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Engaku-ji
, or Engaku-ji (円覚寺), is one of the most important Zen Buddhist temple complexes in Japan and is ranked second among Kamakura's Five Mountains. It is situated in the city of Kamakura, in Kanagawa Prefecture to the south of Tokyo. Founded in 1282 (Kamakura period, the temple maintains the classical Japanese Zen monastic design, and both the Shariden and the are designated National Treasures. Engaku-ji is one of the twenty-two historic sites included in Kamakura's proposal for inclusion in UNESCO's World Heritage Sites. It is located in Kita-Kamakura, very close to Kita-Kamakura Station on the Yokosuka Line, and indeed the railway tracks cut across the formal entrance to the temple compound, which is by a path beside a pond which is crossed by a small bridge. History The temple was founded in 1282 by a Chinese Zen monk Mugaku Sōgen (1226-1286) at the request of the then ruler of Japan, the regent Hōjō Tokimune after he had repelled a Mongolian invasion in the ...
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Mugaku Sogen
, also known as Bukko Kokushi (1226 – 1286) was a prominent Zen Buddhist monk of the 13th century in Japan, an emigre from Song dynasty China. He was adviser to Japan's most powerful ruler of the day, the regent of the ''shōgun'' (''Shikken'') Hōjō Tokimune (as opposed to an Imperial Regent). He founded the Zen temple Engaku-ji in Kamakura is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Kamakura has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 persons per km² over the total area of . Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939. Kamak ..., one of Japan's five most important Zen temples. Early life and priesthood Mugaku Sogen was born in 1226 in Southern Song (during the Song dynasty; 1127–1279) and became a priest at age 11. He entered the priesthood at Ching-tz'u-ssu temple when he was just 13 years old, and soon afterward, in 1239, he visited Wu-chun Shih-fan, under whom he studied the Zen teachings. In order to furthe ...
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Five Mountain System
The system, more commonly called simply ''Five Mountain System'', was a network of state-sponsored Chan (Zen) Buddhist temples created in China during the Southern Song (1127–1279). The term "mountain" in this context means "temple" or "monastery", and was adopted because many monasteries were built on isolated mountains. The system originated in India and was later adopted also in Japan during the late Kamakura period (1185–1333). In Japan, the ten existing "Five Mountain" temples (five in Kyoto and five in Kamakura, Kanagawa) were both protected and controlled by the shogunate.Iwanami Nihonshi Jiten, ''Gozan''. In time, they became a sort of governmental bureaucracy that helped the Ashikaga shogunate stabilize the country during the turbulent Nanboku-chō period. Below the ten ''Gozan'' temples there were ten so-called temples, followed by another network called . The terms ''Gozan'' and Five Mountain System are used both for the ten temples at the top and for the Five Mo ...
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Kamakura
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Kamakura has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 persons per km² over the total area of . Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939. Kamakura was the ''de facto'' capital of Japan from 1185 to 1333 as the seat of the Kamakura Shogunate, and became the nation's most populous settlement during the Kamakura period. Kamakura is a popular domestic tourist destination in Japan as a coastal city with a high number of seasonal festivals, as well as ancient Buddhist and Shinto shrines and temples. Geography Surrounded to the north, east, and west by hills and to the south by the open water of Sagami Bay, Kamakura is a natural fortress. Before the construction of several tunnels and modern roads that now connect it to Fujisawa, Ofuna ( ja) and Zushi, on land it could be entered only through narrow artificial passes, among which the seven most important were called , a name so ...
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Kita-Kamakura
is a neighborhood of Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Because of the presence of East Japan Railway Company's (JR) Kita-Kamakura Station, it is better known as Kita-Kamakura. It lies within the Ofuna administrative subdivision of the city of Kamakura. History Yamanouchi used to be the northern border of the city during the shogunate.Ōnuki (2008:50) The border post was about a hundred meters from today's Ōfuna Station. The name of the area during the Kamakura shogunate used to be . During the Muromachi period Yamanouchi also gave its name to the Yamanouchi branch of the Uesugi clan. The land where the station itself stands used to be part of Engaku-ji, but it was expropriated during the Meiji period to let the Yokosuka Line pass through. The area nonetheless has not changed much, and is still visually an integral part of the temple. Within it, under the road next to the bridge on the Meigetsu river, was buried a famous and magical stele, the . According to the legend, it ...
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Yamanouchi, Kamakura
is a neighborhood of Kamakura, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Because of the presence of East Japan Railway Company's (JR) Kita-Kamakura Station, it is better known as Kita-Kamakura. It lies within the Ofuna administrative subdivision of the city of Kamakura. History Yamanouchi used to be the northern border of the city during the shogunate.Ōnuki (2008:50) The border post was about a hundred meters from today's Ōfuna Station. The name of the area during the Kamakura shogunate used to be . During the Muromachi period Yamanouchi also gave its name to the Yamanouchi branch of the Uesugi clan. The land where the station itself stands used to be part of Engaku-ji, but it was expropriated during the Meiji period to let the Yokosuka Line pass through. The area nonetheless has not changed much, and is still visually an integral part of the temple. Within it, under the road next to the bridge on the Meigetsu river, was buried a famous and magical stele, the . According to the legen ...
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Zen Buddhism
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 later developed into various sub-schools and branches. From China, Chán spread south to Vietnam and became Vietnamese Thiền, northeast to Korea to become Seon Buddhism, and east to Japan, becoming Japanese Zen. The term Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Middle Chinese word 禪 (''chán''), an abbreviation of 禪那 (''chánnà''), which is a Chinese transliteration of the Sanskrit word ध्यान ''dhyāna'' (" meditation"). Zen emphasizes rigorous self-restraint, meditation-practice and the subsequent insight into nature of mind (見性, Ch. ''jiànxìng,'' Jp. '' kensho,'' "perceiving the true nature") and nature of things (without arrogance or egotism), and the personal expression of this insight in ...
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Rinzai
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. Dec ...
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Kita-Kamakura Station
is a railway station on the Yokosuka Line in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). Lines Kita-Kamakura Station is located on the Yokosuka Line and is also served by Shōnan-Shinjuku Line through services. It is located 2.3 km from the junction at Ōfuna Station, and 51.7 km from Tokyo Station. Station layout Kita-Kamakura Station has two opposed side platforms serving two tracks, which are connected by a level crossing at the Kamakura end of the platforms. The station building is located on the side of the up (Tokyo-bound) track at the end of the platform nearest to Kamakura. To reach the down platform, passengers must cross the tracks via a level-crossing. The station building has one normal exit, the , where there are three automatic ticket gates. However, during the morning school commute time only, students of the Kamakura Gakuen schools and ''Kita-Kamakura Joshi Gakuen'' schools can exit without passing through the ticket ...
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Hōjō Tokimune
of the Hōjō clan was the eighth ''shikken'' (officially regent of the shōgun, but ''de facto'' ruler of Japan) of the Kamakura shogunate (reigned 1268–84), known for leading the Japanese forces against the invasion of the Mongols and for spreading Zen Buddhism. He was the eldest son of Tokiyori, fifth ''shikken'' (regent) of the Kamakura shogunate and de facto ruler of Japan. From birth, Hojo was seen as the ''tokuso'' (head) of the clan Hōjō and rigorously groomed to become his father's successor. In 1268 AD, at the age of 18, he became ''shikken'' himself. Tokimune was known to rule with an iron fist and also eventually monopolized at one point all three titles of power, namely holding the offices of ''tokusō'' (head of clan, since birth, and ''rensho'' (vice regent). During his lifetime, the seats of power of the Japanese Emperor, Imperial Regent ('' sesshō''), Imperial Chief Advisor ('' kampaku''), and the ''shōgun'' had all been completely marginalized by the Hō ...
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Seisetsu Shucho
Seisetsu Shucho, also known as Daiyu Kokushi, (1745 – 28 June 1820) was a Japanese 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 ... priest, poet and artist, He is known for the reconstruction and consolidation of the Engaku-ji Zen Buddhist temple towards the end of the Edo era. References External links SEISETSU Shucho the Manyo'an Collection of Japanese Art. Japanese poets 1745 births 1820 deaths Rinzai Buddhists Japanese Buddhist clergy {{japan-poet-stub ...
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World Heritage Sites
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, scientific or other form of significance. The sites are judged to contain " cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity". To be selected, a World Heritage Site must be a somehow unique landmark which is geographically and historically identifiable and has special cultural or physical significance. For example, World Heritage Sites might be ancient ruins or historical structures, buildings, cities, deserts, forests, islands, lakes, monuments, mountains, or wilderness areas. A World Heritage Site may signify a remarkable accomplishment of humanity, and serve as evidence of our intellectual history on the planet, or it might be a place of great natural beauty. A ...
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Sutra Of Perfect Enlightenment
The Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment or Complete Enlightenment () is a Mahāyāna Buddhist sūtra highly esteemed by both the Huayan and Zen schools. The earliest records are in Chinese, and it is believed to be of Chinese origin. Divided into twelve chapters as a series of discussions on meditation practice, this text deals with issues such as the meaning and origin of ignorance, sudden and gradual enlightenment, original Buddhahood, etc. these themes were also elucidated in the '' Awakening of Faith''. It was intended to resolve questions regarding doctrine and meditation for the earliest practitioners of the Chan school. The most important commentary is the 9th-century ''Great Exegesis on the Sutra of Complete Enlightenment'' (圓覺經大疏鈔 ''Dajuejing Dashuchao'') by Zongmi. Titles Its full Chinese title: (, ). Its reconstructed title in Sanskrit is ''Mahāvaipulya pūrṇabuddha-sūtra prasannārtha-sūtra''. History Its translation into Chinese is traditionally ...
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