Ōtōkan
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Ōtōkan
The is a lineage of the Rinzai school of Zen (a form of Japanese Buddhism). It was founded by Nanpo Shōmyō, who received the dharma in China in 1265 and returned to Japan in 1267. It is centered at the temple complexes of Myōshin-ji (founded by Kanzan Egen, the third patriarch) and Daitoku-ji (founded by Daito Kokushi, the second patriarch) in Kyoto, and sometimes referred to as the "Myōshin-ji lineage" accordingly. It now consists of two main lines, the Inzan line and the Takujū line, which date to circa 1800. History The Otokan lineage was founded by Nanpo Shōmyō 南浦紹明 (1235–1308), who received transmission in China from the monk Xutang Zhiyu 虚堂智愚 (Japanese ''Kido Chigu,'' 1185–1269) in 1265, who then returned to Japan in 1267. It was then spread by his student Shuho Myocho (second generation) and Kanzan Egen (third generation), who made it an influential school. It is today the only surviving lineage in the Rinzai school,
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Rinzai School
The Rinzai school ( ja, , Rinzai-shū, zh, t=臨濟宗, s=临济宗, p=Línjì zōng) is one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (along with Sōtō and Ōbaku). The Chinese Linji school of Chan was first transmitted to Japan by Myōan Eisai (1141 –1215). Contemporary Japanese Rinzai is derived entirely from the Ōtōkan lineage transmitted through Hakuin Ekaku (1686–1769), who is a major figure in the revival of the Rinzai tradition. History Rinzai is the Japanese line of the Chinese Linji school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Linji Yixuan (Japanese: Rinzai Gigen). Kamakura period (1185–1333) Though there were several attempts to establish Rinzai lines in Japan, it first took root in a lasting way through the efforts of the monk Myōan Eisai. In 1168, Myōan Eisai traveled to China, whereafter he studied Tendai for twenty years. In 1187, he went to China again, and returned to establish a Linji lineage, which is known in Japan as Rinzai. Decades ...
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Nanpo Shōmyō
Nanpo Shōmyō (Japanese: なんぽしょうみょう, Kanji: 南浦紹明; 1235 – 9 February 1309) is a Japanese Zen monk of Rinzai school during the Kamakura period. Although his exact origin is unknown, he is from Inomiya village, Abe District, Shizuoka (now Inomiya-chō, Aoi-ku, Shizuoka). Shōmyō is his true name (also "Jyōmin"), Nampo is his Dharma name. His imperial name is the Entsū Daiō Kokushi. Life Nanpo Shōmyō grew up and studied at his hometown's temple, Takyō-ji. In 1249 he began studying Zen under Lanxi Daolong at Kenchō-ji. In 1259 he traveled to Song China and inherited the law from the monk Kidō Chigu. In 1267 he returned to Japan and Kenchō-ji, staying until 1270, when he moved Kōtoku-ji in Chikuzen Province. In 1272 years he became the chief priest at Sōfuku-ji. In 1304, at the invitation of Emperor Go-Uda, he entered Manju-ji. In 1307 he returned to Kenchō-ji. He died at the age of 75 in 1309. He was the master of Kyōō Unryō and Shūh ...
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Kanzan Egen
(1277–1360) was a Japanese Rinzai Zen Buddhist monk, founder of Myōshin-ji Temple and a principal member of the extant Ōtōkan lineage, from which all modern Rinzai Zen derives. Centuries later, Emperor Meiji conferred the posthumous name to Kanzan. Biography Kanzan Egen was born in Shinano Province on January 7, 1277. He initially studied Rinzai Zen Buddhism under Nanpo Jōmyō, who received dharma-transmission from China and later under Nanpo Jōmyō's student, Shūhō Myōchō. After Shūhō Myōchō confirmed Kanzan Egen's enlightenment, Kanzan went to Mino Province and dwelt in the Ibuki Mountains for intensive training. During this time, Emperor Hanazono was the 95th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1308 through 1318. Genealogy Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name (his ''imina'') was Tomihito''-s ... recalled Kanzan to the capitol to help found a new tem ...
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Ōbaku
The is one of several schools of Zen in Japanese Buddhism, in addition to Sōtō and Rinzai. History Often termed the third sect of Zen Buddhism in Japan, Ōbaku-shū was established in 1661 by a small faction of masters from China and their Japanese students at Manpuku-ji in Uji, Japan. Today Manpuku-ji serves as the Ōbaku's head temple, with 420 subtemples spread throughout Japan as of 2006. In addition to their contribution to the culture of Zen in Japan, the Ōbaku also "disseminated many aspects of Ming-period culture" in the country. Many of the monks who came from China were accomplished calligraphers, and Obaku's founder Yinyuan Longqi and two other Ōbaku masters, Mokuan Shōtō and Sokuhi Nyoitsu, became known as the Ōbaku no Sanpitsu (or, the "Three Brushes of Ōbaku"). Author Steven Heine writes, "Areas where the influence of — or the reaction to — Ōbaku left an imprint on Japanese Buddhism is manifold, and its impact even reached the fields of Japanese cu ...
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Gudō Toshoku
Gudō Toshoku (1577–1661) was a Japanese Rinzai school zen monk from the early Tokugawa period. He was a leading figure in the Ōtōkan lineage of the Myōshin-ji, where he led a reform movement to revitalize the practice of Rinzai. He served three times as abbot of Myōshin-ji. Among his leading disciples was Shidō Bunan (1603–1676), from whose line came the great reformer Hakuin Ekaku (1685–1768). The illustrious Zen preacher Bankei Yōtaku earlier in life wanted to meet Gudō and receive confirmation of enlightenment, but narrowly missed seeing him at his Daisen-ji temple in Mino province (today's Gifu prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Gifu Prefecture has a population of 1,991,390 () and has a geographic area of . Gifu Prefecture borders Toyama Prefecture to the north; Ishikawa Prefecture to the northwest, F ...) because the master was visiting up in Edo (Tokyo). Gudō received the posthumous title Daien Hôkan Kokushi (nat ...
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Myōshin-ji
is a temple complex in Kyoto, Japan, and head temple of the associated branch of Rinzai Zen Buddhism. The Myōshin-ji school is by far the largest school in Rinzai Zen, approximately as big as the other thirteen branches combined: it contains within it about 3,400 temples throughout Japan, together with a handful overseas, of the approximately six thousand total Rinzai temples, and also has nineteen associated monasteries, of the total of forty monasteries and one nunnery. History The grounds of the temple were formally a palace for the Emperor Hanazono. Hanazono abdicated in 1318 and took the tonsure (became a monk) in 1335, and in 1342 donated the palace to found the temple; the district and many places in the area are named "Hanazono" in his honor. The head temple was founded in 1342 by the Zen master Kanzan Egen (関山慧玄, 1277–1360), third patriarch in the influential Ōtōkan lineage. Nearly all of the buildings were destroyed in the Ōnin War in 1467. However, many o ...
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Dharma Transmission
In Chan Buddhism, Chan and Zen Buddhism, dharma transmission is a custom in which a person is established as a "successor in an unbroken Lineage (Buddhism), lineage of teachers and disciples, a spiritual 'bloodline' (''kechimyaku'') theoretically traced back to the Gautama Buddha, Buddha himself."Haskel, 2 The dharma lineage reflects the importance of family-structures in ancient China, and forms a symbolic and ritual recreation of this system for the monastical "family". In Rinzai school, Rinzai-Zen, ''inka shōmei'' is ideally "the formal recognition of Zen's deepest realisation", but practically it is being used for the transmission of the "true lineage" of the masters (''shike'') of the training halls. There are only about fifty to eighty of such ''inka shōmei''-bearers in Japan. In Sōtō, Sōtō-Zen, dharma transmission is referred to as ''shiho'', and further training is required to become an oshō. History The notion and practice of Dharma Transmission developed ea ...
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Hakuin Ekaku
was one of the most influential figures in Japanese Zen Buddhism. He is regarded as the reviver of the Rinzai school from a moribund period of stagnation, focusing on rigorous training methods integrating meditation and koan practice. Biography Early years Hakuin was born in 1686 in the small village of Hara, at the foot of Mount Fuji. His mother was a devout Nichiren Buddhist, and it is likely that her piety was a major influence on his decision to become a Buddhist monk. As a child, Hakuin attended a lecture by a Nichiren monk on the topic of the Eight Hot Hells. This deeply impressed the young Hakuin, and he developed a pressing fear of hell, seeking a way to escape it. He eventually came to the conclusion that it would be necessary to become a monk. Shōin-ji and Daishō-ji At the age of fifteen, he obtained consent from his parents to join the monastic life, and was ordained at the local Zen temple, Shōin-ji. When the head monk at Shōin-ji took ill, Hakuin was sent t ...
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Lineage (Buddhism)
A lineage in Buddhism is a line of transmission of the Buddhist teaching that is "theoretically traced back to the Buddha himself." The acknowledgement of the transmission can be oral, or certified in documents. Several branches of Buddhism, including Chan (including Zen and Seon) and Tibetan Buddhism maintain records of their historical teachers. These records serve as a validation for the living exponents of the tradition. The historical authenticity of various Buddhist lineages has been subject to debate. Stephen Batchelor has claimed, speaking about specifically Japanese Zen lineage, "the historicity of this “lineage” simply does not withstand critical scrutiny." Erik Storlie has noted that transmission "is simply false on historical grounds." Edward Conze said "much of the traditions about the early history of Chan are the inventions of a later age." Vinaya In the lineage of the vinaya, the requirements for ordination as a bhikkhu ("monk") or a bhikkhuni ("nun") in ...
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Gasan Jitō
Gasan Jitō was a Zen master in the Japanese Rinzai school. He received Dharma transmission from Rinzai tacher Gessen Zen'e, before meeting Hakuin. Deeply impressed, he started koan-study with Hakuin, completing it under Tōrei Enji (8 May 1721 - 10 April 1792) was an eminent Japanese Zen Buddhist monk, teacher, author, painter and calligrapher. He was the chief disciple and Dharma heir of famed Japanese Rinzai master Hakuin Ekaku (1685-1786) and was a major figure in the r ... tutelage. Gasan is considered to be a dharma heir of Hakuin, though "he did not belong to the close circle of disciples and was probably not even one of Hakuin's dharma heirs," After receiving dharma transmission, Gasan Jitō moved to Rinsho-in, a temple in Edo. His two most important students, Inzan ien and Takuju Kosen, completed the formalisation of the Rinzai koan-curriculum. Notes References Sources * * * Japanese Zen Buddhists Zen Buddhist spiritual teachers Year of birth missing ...
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