Ingen Ryūki () (December 7, 1592 – May 19, 1673) was a Chinese poet, calligrapher, and

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

of Linji Chan Buddhism from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Ingen" in ; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, ''see'
Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Authority File
. He is most known for founding the

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 ...

school of

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

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 ...

Biography

Ingen was born on December 7, 1592, in

Fuqing (; Foochow Romanized: Hók-chiăng; also romanized as Hokchia) is a county-level city of Fujian Province, China, it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Fuzhou. Geography Fuqing is located in the north-central part ...

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...

, during China's

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

. Ingen's father disappeared when he was five. At age 20, while searching for him, Ingen arrived at

Mount Putuo Mount Putuo (, from Sanskrit: "Mount Potalaka") is an island in Putuo District, Zhoushan, Zhejiang, China. It is a renowned site in Chinese Buddhism and is the bodhimaṇḍa of the bodhisattva Guanyin. Mount Putuo is one of the four sacre ...

off

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

, where he served tea to monks. At 28, after the death of his mother, he was ordained as a monk at his family temple -

Wanfu Temple Wanfu Temple () is a Buddhist temple on Mount Huangbo in Fuqing, Fujian, China. It is famous as the original temple of Yinyuan Longqi, the temple's 33rd abbot and a Chan master. He later travelled to Japan with his disciple Muyan to found the J ...

Mount Huangbo Mount Huangbo () is a mountain in Fuqing county of Fujian Province, in the East China region of the People's Republic of China. The mountain is famous for its Buddhist temples, including Wanfu Temple (home of Yinyuan Longqi, founder of the Ja ...

, Fujian. Ingen's teachers there were Miyun Yuanwu and Feiyin Tongrong. In 1633 he 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 ...

from the latter, and in 1637 served his first term as abbot. His second term as 33rd abbot of the temple began in 1646 and at this time he is credited with helping Mount Huangbo to develop into a thriving Buddhist centre. In 1654, after repeated requests of

Itsunen Shoyu Itsunen Shoyu (, 1601 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China – 1668 in Nagasaki, Japan) is famous as a Buddhist monk and painter who helped to establish Chan (Zen) in Japan. He was also the third abbot of Kofukuji Temple. In addition to his skill ...

, he went to

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hidden Christian Sites in the ...

, Japan with around 30 monks and artisans, including his disciple

Muyan Mu'an (; Japanese Mokuan Shōtō) (1611–1684) was a Chinese Chan monk who followed his master Yinyuan Longqi to Japan in 1654. History Together they founded the Ōbaku Zen school and Mampuku-ji, the school's head temple at Uji in 1661 ...

. He founded the Ōbaku school of Zen. He established the Ōbaku head temple

Manpuku-ji is a Buddhist temple located in Uji, Kyoto. It is the head temple of the Japanese Ōbaku Zen sect, named after Wanfu Temple in Fujian, China. The mountain is likewise named after Mount Huangbo, where the Chinese temple is situated. History ...

Uji, Kyoto is a city on the southern outskirts of the city of Kyoto, in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Founded on March 1, 1951, Uji is between the two ancient capitals of Nara and Kyoto. The city sits on the Uji River, which has its source in Lake Biwa. ...

in 1661. On May 21, 1673 (''Enpō 1, 5th day of the 4th month''), he died at Mampuku-ji.

Calligraphy

Ingen was a skilled calligrapher, introducing the Ming style of calligraphy to Japan. Along with his disciples

and

Sokuhi Nyoitsu was a Buddhist monk of the Ōbaku Zen sect, and was also an accomplished poet and calligrapher. His teacher Ingen Ryūki, Mokuan Shōtō and Sokuhi were together known as the "Three Brushes of Ōbaku" or Ōbaku no Sanpitsu. China Sokuhi was ...

, he was one of the ''

Ōbaku no Sanpitsu is a name given to a group of three famous Chinese calligraphers who lived in Japan: * Ingen Ryūki, 隱元隆琦 1592–1673 * Mokuan Shōtō Mu'an (; Japanese Mokuan Shōtō) (1611–1684) was a Chinese Chan monk who followed his master Yinyua ...

'' ("Three Brushes of Ōbaku"). He is known to have carried paintings by Chen Xian with him to Japan.

Selected work

Ingen's published writings encompass 35 works in 46 publications in 4 languages and 226 library holdings. WorldCat Identities

隱元 1592-1673
/ref> * 1979 —

Notes

References

* Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia.'' Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retirem ...

.
OCLC 48943301
* Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). ''Annales des empereurs du Japon.'' Paris: Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 251800045
see also '' Imprimerie Royale de France,'' {{Authority control Qing dynasty Buddhist monks Obaku Buddhists Zen Buddhist abbots 1592 births 1673 deaths Chinese Zen Buddhists Rinzai Buddhists Ming dynasty calligraphers Qing dynasty calligraphers Writers from Fuzhou Artists from Fuzhou Poets from Fujian Qing dynasty poets Chan Buddhist monks Ming dynasty Buddhist monks 17th-century Buddhist monks Chinese tea masters Buddhist artists Edo period Buddhist clergy category:17th-century Chinese calligraphers 17th-century Japanese calligraphers

Biography

Calligraphy

Selected work

See also

Notes

References