Hōun Jiyu-Kennett (
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
: 法雲慈友ケネット, 1 January 1924 – 6 November 1996), born Peggy Teresa Nancy Kennett, was a British
roshi most famous for having been the first female to be sanctioned by the
Sōtō School of Japan to teach in the
West
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
.
Biography
Early years
Hōun Jiyu-Kennett was born as Peggy Teresa Nancy Kennett in
St Leonards-on-Sea
St Leonards-on-Sea (commonly known as St Leonards) is a town and seaside resort in the Borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England. It has been part of the borough since the late 19th century and lies to the west of central Hastings. The origina ...
,
Sussex
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
on January 1, 1924. As a young woman she found herself questioning
gender role
A gender role, also known as a sex role, is a social role encompassing a range of behaviors and attitudes that are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for a person based on that person's sex. Gender roles are usually cent ...
s in society and grew to become disillusioned with
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
. She studied
medieval music
Medieval music encompasses the sacred and secular music of Western Europe during the Middle Ages, from approximately the 6th to 15th centuries. It is the first and longest major era of Western classical music and followed by the Renaissance ...
at
Durham University
, mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1)
, established = (university status)
, type = Public
, academic_staff = 1,830 (2020)
, administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19)
, chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen
, vice_chan ...
and then received a scholarship to
Trinity College of Music
Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance is a music and dance conservatoire based in London, England. It was formed in 2005 as a merger of two older institutions – Trinity College of Music and Laban Dance Centre. The conservatoire has ...
in
London, England
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...
. Though attracted to
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
, she felt during this period that she was called to serve the
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
as a priest. However, church policies at the time did not allow women to be ordained, and this enhanced her previous disillusionment with Christianity.
Training at ''Sojiji''
![KeidoChisanKohoZenjiandRevMasterJiyu](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/22/KeidoChisanKohoZenjiandRevMasterJiyu.jpg)
She first became interested in
Theravada Buddhism
''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...
during this period of questioning and searching, joining the
London Buddhist Vihara
The London Buddhist Vihara ( Sinhala:ලන්ඩන් බෞද්ධ විහාරය ''Landan Bauddha Viharaya'') is one of the main Theravada Buddhist temples in the United Kingdom. The Vihara was the first Sri Lankan Buddhist monastery to ...
. In 1954 she joined the London
Buddhist Society
The Buddhist Society is a UK registered charity which aims to encourage the study and practice of Buddhist principles.
The Buddhist Society is an inter-denominational and non-sectarian lay organization. It offers talks and classes on the teach ...
, where she continued her Buddhist studies and lectured. While there, she met the scholar
D.T. Suzuki
, self-rendered in 1894 as "Daisetz", was a Japanese-American Buddhist monk, essayist, philosopher, religious scholar, translator, and writer. He was a scholar and author of books and essays on Buddhism, Zen and Shin that were instrumental in s ...
, and developed a strong interest in
Rinzai Zen Buddhism. In 1960, when chief abbott Kōho Keidō Chisan Zenji of
Sojiji in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
came to the society, she was asked to make the arrangements for his stay. Koho asked if she would consider becoming his student back in Japan. She accepted the offer, and two years passed before she arrived at Sojiji to study
Soto Zen Buddhism Soto may refer to:
Geography
*Soto (Aller), parish in Asturias, Spain
* Soto (Las Regueras), parish in Asturias, Spain
* Soto, Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles
*Soto, Russia, a rural locality (a ''selo'') in Megino-Kangalassky District of the Sakha ...
under him.
In January 1962, Kennett traveled to
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
to accept an award she had been honored with for setting a Buddhist hymn, "Welcome Joyous Wesak Day" by
Sumangalo
Venerable Sumangalo was a Buddhist monk ordained in both Theravada Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism, and actively involved in Dhamma propagation works in both Singapore and Malaysia.
Biography
(1903—1963) was born as Robert Stuart Clifton in Bir ...
, to music. Before leaving for Japan, Kennett was ordained a
novice nun by Venerable Seck Kim Seng (釋金星; ''Shì Jīnxīng'') in the
Linji Chan school and given the
Buddhist name
A Dharma name or Dhamma name is a new name acquired during both lay and monastic Buddhist initiation rituals in Mahayana Buddhism and monastic ordination in Theravada Buddhism (where it is more proper to call it Dhamma or Sangha name). The nam ...
Jiyu (慈友, ''Cíyou'' in Chinese, ''Jiyu'' in Japanese) meaning ''compassionate friend''.
Jiyu-Kennett arrived in Japan in 1962, where she was also ordained in the Soto-school, and trained at
Sōjiji from 1962 to 1963. Formally, Kōho Keidō Chisan Zenji was her teacher, but practically, one of Keido Zenji's senior officers, Suigan Yogo
roshi, was her main instructor, because 'Keido Zenji was often preoccupied with administrative affairs. She received
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'') theoretica ...
twice, from Kōho Keidō Chisan Zenji on May 28, 1963, but also from Suigan Yogo.
[Ford, 141-143]
While training at Sōjiji, Kōho Keidō Chisan let her take care of westerners who were interested in Zen training, mostly from American military bases, and she "developed a regular programme of teaching and meditation to nurture their growing interest in Zen." Eventually, she received the official title of "Foreign Guest Hall Master" from Keido Chisan.
Jiyu-Kennett continued her institutional career by becoming an ''
Oshō
is a Buddhist priest (in charge of a temple);''Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary'', Tokyo 1991, honorific title of preceptor or high priest (especially in Zen or Pure Land Buddhism). The same kanji are also pronounced ''kashō'' as a ...
'',
[Seikai Luebke]
''Why Are Roshi Jiyu Kennett’s Disciples So Reclusive?''
i.e. "priest" or "teacher." Her
Zuise[Kennett, 77] ceremony was conducted in public in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. Previously, women's ceremonies were held in private, but Koho had decided that the practice of holding private ceremonies for women and public ceremonies for men was wrong. According to Jiyu-Kennett's account,
Following her ''Zuise'' ceremony, Jiyu-Kennett was installed as ''shinzan'' (head priest) of Unpukuji temple in
Mie prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Mie Prefecture has a population of 1,781,948 () and has a geographic area of . Mie Prefecture is bordered by Gifu Prefecture to the north, Shiga Prefecture and Kyoto Prefecture to ...
.
Return to the west
After the death of Chisan Koho, in November 1967, the Soto Administration Section became ambivalent to her, and "Kennett’s title of Foreign Guest Hall Master was deleted from the list of Sojiji office appointments." Nevertheless, according to Jiyu-Kennett, she "received a certificate asking me to become the official pioneer missionary of the Soto Sect
in America" just before she left Japan for a lecturing tour the US in November 1969,
[Boucher, 135] At this time Jiyu-Kennett was not in good health, as during her time in Japan she had experienced many illnesses.
In 1969 Jiyu-Kennett founded the Zen Mission Society in San Francisco, and in 1970
Shasta Abbey
Shasta Abbey, located on sixteen forested acres near Mount Shasta in northern California, United States is a training monastery for Buddhist monks and a place of practice for lay Buddhists and interested visitors. It was established in 1970 by R ...
in
Mount Shasta, California
Mount Shasta (also known as Mount Shasta City) is a city in Siskiyou County, California, at about above sea level on the flanks of Mount Shasta, a prominent northern California landmark. The city is less than southwest of the summit of its na ...
,
[Carroll, 110-11] the first Zen monastery in the United States to be established by a woman. In 1972, Jiyu-Kennett's British chapter of the Zen Mission Society established
Throssel Hole Priory in
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
[Fowler, 164; 195][Snelling, 206] In 1978 Jiyu-Kennett changed the name of the Zen Mission Society to the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives.
Illness and visions
In 1975 Jiyu-Kennett was stricken with illness yet again, and this time she became bedridden. In 1976, worn out and convinced death was near, she resigned from her position as abbess of Shasta Abbey and went into retreat in
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
. Still rather ill, of unknown causes, she had her student Daizui MacPhillamy with her often to tend to her care. Following a
kensho experience he had, she conferred
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'') theoretica ...
to him at her bedside in 1976.
During this retreat, Jiyu-Kennett had a prolonged religious experience, including a series of visions and recalling past lives. She regarded these experiences as "a profound kensho (enlightenment) experience," constituting a third kensho, and published an account of these visions, and an elaborate scheme of stages of awakening, in ''How to Grow a Lotus Blossom''. Her interpretations, which parallel Christian mysticism, were controversial, and rejected by some as ''
makyo'' ("illusion").
Stephen Batchelor Stephen Batchelor may refer to:
* Stephen Batchelor (author) (born 1953), Scottish-born author of books relating to Buddhism
*Stephen Batchelor (field hockey)
Stephen James "Steve" Batchelor (born 22 June 1961) is an English former field hockey ...
describes these episodes,
Around four months into her 'third kensho', Jiyu-Kennett regained her health and again assumed her position as Abbess of Shasta Abbey for the next 20 years until her death on November 6, 1996. According to Jiyu-Kennett, her experiences are not uncommon, but are rarely spoken of; she regarded publishing her own experiences as a way to acknowledge the existence and validity of such experiences, which, according to her, may contribute to further insight after initial awakening. She acknowledged the risks and potential for controversy in publishing her account, but felt that the benefits of releasing such information outweighed the risks.
According to Kay, "Kennett’s visionary experiences – and also her ambivalence about the status of their content – are not unprecedented within the Zen tradition. Soto literature includes numerous accounts, as noted especially by Faure (2001) ''Visions of powere'', described by the founders of Soto Zen, Dogen and Keizan. Yet, Dogen and Keizan "also both warned against seeing visions or unusual spiritual experiences as the goal of practice."
Teachings
According to Jiyu-Kennett the accumulation of insight happens in three stages of kensho, along with a fourth that can occur at the time of death:
# "initial glimpse" kensho, or "great flash of deep understanding," that most Zen practitioners eventually experience, and that are often used in the Soto-tradition as the later basis for qualification for Dharma Transmission;
# "On-Going Fūgen Kensho," or in D.T. Suzuki's words, "the little moments that make one dance," experienced by practitioners with a continual, stable practice;
# based on her personal experience with visions, Jiyu-Kennett postulated a third stage which involves the recalling of past life experiences, profound spiritual visions, and deep awakening experiences, that bring great clarity to aspects of the Dharma and practice, and go beyond what is experienced in the first kensho;
# parinirvana, experienced by rare practitioners who achieve Buddhahood upon time of death.
Teaching style
Jiyu-Kennett had a commanding presence about her, both intellectually as well as physically. Of a rather husky build, she had a tremendous laughter and was known to be gifted at storytelling.
To some, her demeanor appeared rather persistent at times, as author
James Ishmael Ford
James Ishmael Ford (Zeno Myoun, Roshi) is an American Zen Buddhist priest and a retired Unitarian Universalist minister. He was born in Oakland, California on July 17, 1948. He earned a BA in psychology from Sonoma State University, as well as ...
writes,
According to the book ''The Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America'',
Jiyu-Kennett was an advocate for equality between the sexes, as was
Great Master Dogen.
Dharma heirs
* Haryo Young (Head of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives)
* Meian Elbert (Abbess of
Shasta Abbey
Shasta Abbey, located on sixteen forested acres near Mount Shasta in northern California, United States is a training monastery for Buddhist monks and a place of practice for lay Buddhists and interested visitors. It was established in 1970 by R ...
)
* Daishin Morgan (Former Abbott of
Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey
Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey is a Buddhist monastery and retreat centre located in Northumberland, in northern England. The monastic order is equally for men and women. It follows the Serene Reflection Meditation Tradition, similar to the ...
)
* Daizui MacPhillamy
Among many others...
Legacy
The Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, founded by Jiyu-Kennett, now has chapters in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, the
West Indies
The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...
, the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
and
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
.
See also
*
Buddhism in Europe
Although there was regular contact between practising Buddhists and Europeans in antiquity the former had little direct impact. In the latter half of the 19th century, Buddhism came to the attention of Western intellectuals and during the cours ...
*
Buddhism in the United States
The term American Buddhism can be used to describe all Buddhist groups within the United States, including Asian Americans, Asian-American Buddhists born into the faith, who comprise the largest percentage of Buddhists in the country.
American Budd ...
*
Timeline of Zen Buddhism in the United States
Below is a timeline of important events regarding Zen Buddhism in the United States. Dates with "?" are approximate.
Events
Early history
* 1893: Soyen Shaku comes to the United States to lecture at the World Parliament of Religions held in C ...
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Notes
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
External links
Order of Buddhist ContemplativesShasta AbbeyThrossel Hole Buddhist Abbey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jiyu-Kennett, Houn
1924 births
1996 deaths
Soto Zen Buddhists
Zen Buddhist nuns
Alumni of Durham University
People from Hastings
English Zen Buddhists
Buddhist new religious movements
Buddhist abbesses
People from Mount Shasta, California
British expatriates in Japan
British expatriates in the United States