Tetsugen Dōkō (鉄眼道光 1630–1682) was a Japanese

Zen Master Zen master is a somewhat vague English term that arose in the first half of the 20th century, sometimes used to refer to an individual who teaches Zen Buddhist meditation and practices, usually implying longtime study and subsequent authorizat ...

, and an important early leader of 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

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 ...

. Tetsugen was born in the seventh year of the

Kan'ei was a after ''Genna'' and before ''Shōhō.'' This period spanned the years from February 1624 through December 1644. The reigning emperors and empress were , and .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834) ''Annales des empereurs du japon'', p. 411./ref> Chang ...

era (1630) in Higo Province. He became a priest of the Jodo Shinshu sect at the age of 13. When

Ingen Ingen Ryūki () (December 7, 1592 – May 19, 1673) was a Chinese poet, calligrapher, and monk of Linji Chan Buddhism from China.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Ingen" in ; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, ' ...

came to Japan, Tetsugen became his follower in the

school. In 1681, Tetsugen oversaw the production of the first complete

woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas that ...

edition (consisting of around 60,000 pieces) of the Chinese Buddhist

sutras ''Sutra'' ( sa, सूत्र, translit=sūtra, translit-std=IAST, translation=string, thread)Monier Williams, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Oxford University Press, Entry fo''sutra'' page 1241 in Indian literary traditions refers to an aph ...

in Japan. Tetsugen died at the age of 53 in the second year of the

Tenna was a after ''Enpō'' and before '' Jōkyō.'' This period spanned the years from September 1681 through February 1684. The reigning emperor was . Change of era * '': The new era name of ''Tenna'' (meaning "Heavenly Imperial Peace") was creat ...

era (1682). The anniversary of Tetsugen's birth is celebrated on January 1 in the

Western calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years diff ...

Tetsugen and the Sutras

The following story is told of Tetsugen's efforts to publish the sutras. :Tetsugen decided to publish the sutras, which at that time were available only in Chinese. The books were to be printed with wood blocks in an edition of seven thousand copies, a tremendous undertaking. :Tetsugen began by travelling and collecting donations for this purpose. A few sympathizers would give him a hundred pieces of gold, but most of the time he received only small coins. He thanked each donor with equal gratitude. After ten years Tetsugen had enough money to begin his task. :It happened that at that time the

Uji 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. ...

River overflowed. Famine followed. Tetsugen took the funds he had collected for the books and spent them to save others from starvation. Then he began again his work of collecting. :Several years afterward an epidemic spread over the country. Tetsugen again gave away what he had collected. :For a third time he started his work, and after twenty years his wish was fulfilled. The printing blocks which produced the first edition of sutras can be seen today in Ōbaku monastery in

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

. :The Japanese tell their children that Tetsugen made three sets of sutras, and that the first two invisible sets surpass even the last.

References

Bibliography

* Baroni, HJ (1994)
Bottled Anger: Episodes in Ōbaku Conflict in the Tokugawa Period
Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 21/2-3, 191-210

External links

Tetsugen's cremation place
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tetsugen Obaku Buddhists Zen Buddhist priests 1630 births 1682 deaths Japanese Zen Buddhists Tripiṭaka Edo period Buddhist clergy People from Kumamoto Prefecture