The Illustrated Manuscript of the Lotus Sutra (妙法蓮華経変相図, Seikado Bunko Library) is a transcription of the 28 sections of the Lotus Sutra accompanied by illustrations, handed down in the form of a one-volume folding book. The dedication which appears at the end of the book indicates that Xue Daoyin (薜道因, 1090-1167), a Tiantai sect priest at Yanqing Temple (延慶寺) in Mingzhou (Ningbo), was the priest in charge of donations for the book's creation and that he gathered the powerful people of the region to act as the sponsors for each of the sutra sections. Further, the illustrated title bears a cyclical year date of 3rd day of the 3rd month of the ""gengshen"" (庚申) year. Daoyin's period of activity indicates that this refers to 1140 (紹興 10). Given that the production environment and date of this work are known, it can be used as an important tool in the clarification of the regional society in Southern Song dynasty Ningbo and the state of religious worship at the time. The book also provides information useful in the search for the source of Buddhist narrative pictures in Japan. This article is made up of three sections, with the first and second sections providing a detailed introduction to the materials and the third section suggesting topics for further study on this book. Section 1 analyzes the textual information in the transcribed sutra text. It is unclear when this book was brought to Japan, but the note written in ink on the accompanying box indicates that it was owned by Kawai Hiroomi (河合道臣, 寸翁: Sunnô, 1787-1841), a chief retainer of the Himeji Domain. The main text not only includes the Lotus Sutra itself and apocryphal sutras, it also transcribes general audience-aimed sutra texts describing the efficacy of dharani (Buddhist magical spells), mantras and mystic spells towards the acquiring virtues in the real world. The beginning of the transcription includes the mantra used to invite the White Robed Guanyin from the Mount Potalaka paradise, thus standing as evidence of the link between the group which transcribed the sutra and Mount Putuo, located in the sea to the east of Ningbo. Judging from the fanjia (梵夾, wooden binding boards), epigraphy and dedicatory prayer, Daoyin of Yanqing Temple was the driving force behind its creation. Many of the donors were local scholar-bureaucrat class individuals who held official positions, and the many female names in the dedications include some of their wives and daughters. Section 2 analyzes the iconography and painting style of the illustrations. The chosen illustrations include examples of the Enlightenment of the Dragon King's Daughter and Manjusri Crossing the Sea scenes, both rare in China. We can indicate that this selection reflects a production environment that included numerous female donors and the regional influence of this site located near Mount Wutai, sacred to the worship of Manjusri. There are no clues to the identity of the painters involved in the process, but given the relatively swift brushwork and intricacy of details, and the fact that there are almost no traces of corrections, clearly the painter was someone who fully understood the sutra contents and was practiced in the production of Buddhist paintings or sutra pictures. Section 3 notes two issues for future study on this work. First, this work is an actual example of a group Buddhist project carried out by people related to overlapping networks, namely the priests and laypeople centered on Yanqing Temple, and the Tiantai teachings and Nembutsu worship. An analysis based on the recently advanced theory of the priest-lay network centered on Yanqing Temple would provide an indispensable vantage point for a deepening of research on the work. Second, the selection of depicted scenes and iconographic characteristics share aspects with medieval Japanese Buddhist narrative pictures. Thus, the influence of Song dynasty Buddhist paintings on Japan was not simply a question of forms or styles, but also should be considered in terms of the social groups that created such works and their belief systems. Thus, this work with its rich array of information about its production background will help address these issues from a variety of vantage points. The Japanese receipt of worship forms that linked the Lotus Sutra with mantras and magical spells can also be considered, and at the same time, help deepen our understanding of the religious and artistic links between Ningbo and Japan at the time.