Menzan Zuihō (, 1683–1769) was a Japanese

Sōtō Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai school, Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Caodong school, Cáodòng school, which was founded during the ...

Zen scholar and abbot of the Zenjo-ji and Kuin-ji temples active during the

Tokugawa period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

. Born in Ueki,

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...

, Menzan was the most influential Sōtō Zen writer of his time and his work continue to influence Sōtō Zen scholarship and practice today. Menzan's scholarship was part of the Tokugawa movement of returning to original historical sources to revitalize Zen ( ''fukko'', "return to the old"), especially the works of

Dōgen Zenji was a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk, writer, poet, philosopher, and founder of the Sōtō school of Zen in Japan. He is also known as Dōgen Kigen (), Eihei Dōgen (), Kōso Jōyō Daishi (), and Busshō Dentō Kokushi (). Originally ordained ...

. Before Menzan the works of Dōgen were not widely studied or put into practice, he helped revitalize the Sōtō school by analyzing and building on Dogen's writings. Menzan used Dōgen to promote a reform of the Sōtō sect, which included reforming the monastic code and meditation practice. Due to Menzan's efforts, Dōgen studies now occupies a central position in Sōtō Zen thought. Menzan wrote to advocate the use of the old

Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...

monk's hall system, in which monks ate, slept, and meditated in one large monk's hall, rather than in separate rooms as was commonly practiced in Japan at the time. Menzan was the most prolific Sōtō zen scholar, having written over a hundred titles of detailed scholarship on monastic regulations, precepts, ordination,

dharma Dharma (; , ) is a key concept in various Indian religions. The term ''dharma'' does not have a single, clear Untranslatability, translation and conveys a multifaceted idea. Etymologically, it comes from the Sanskrit ''dhr-'', meaning ''to hold ...

transmission and philology. Menzan was also involved in lecturing to the public and teaching laymen and laywomen

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

practice. One of his most famous works, the Buddha Samadhi (''Jijuyu Zanmai'') is addressed to laypeople and focuses on the teachings of Dōgen.Steven Heine, Dale S. Wright, Michel Mohr; ''Zen Classics'', p. 247

Partial list of works

*Record of the Activities of the Founder of Eihei *Buddha Samadhi *Standards for Walking Meditation *Selections for Ceremonial Procedures from the Pure Rules for the Monks Hall of Soto *Additional Record of Historical Research Concerning the Pure Rules for the Monks Hall of Soto *Record of the Teachings of the Hoei Era *Fireside Chat on a Snowy Eve *Personal Record of the Rejection of the Kirikami of the Soto Abbot's Room *Revised and Expanded Record of Kenzei *Record of the Activities of Zen Teacher T'ien-t'ung Ju-ching *Fukanzazengi monge (commentary on Dogen's ''Universally recommended instructions for

Zazen ''Zazen'' is a meditative discipline that is typically the primary practice of the Zen Buddhist tradition. The generalized Japanese term for meditation is 瞑想 (''meisō''); however, ''zazen'' has been used informally to include all forms ...

'') *Zazenshin monge (commentary on Dogen's '' Lancet of Zazen)'' *Gakudo yojin-shu monge (commentary on Dogen's ''Things to look out for in your Buddhist training'') *Tenzo kyokun monge (commentary on Dogen's ''Instructions to the cook'') *The Teaching of the Correctly Transmitted Great Precepts of the Buddhas and Ancestors *Verses for the Chapters of the Mahaprajnaparamita Sutra *Source Texts Cited in the

Shōbōgenzō is the title most commonly used to refer to the collection of works written in Japan by the 13th-century Buddhist monk and founder of the Sōtō Zen school, Eihei Dōgen. Several other works exist with the same title (see above), and it is som ...

*Explanations of the Old Cases Presented by the Old Buddha of Hsi Province *Explanations of the One Hundred Old Cases of Zen Teacher Hsüeh-tou Hsien *On the Donations of the Faithful

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zuiho, Menzan Soto Zen Buddhists Japanese scholars of Buddhism 18th-century Japanese philosophers Japanese religious leaders Zen Buddhist abbots 18th-century abbots Japanese Zen Buddhists 1683 births 1769 deaths People from Kumamoto Prefecture