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Rinzai Zen and the Five Temples of Kamakura
Life tips and miscellaneous information about Rinzai Zen, one of the pioneers of Zen in Japan, and the temples in Kamakura where many of them remain (Kamakura Gozan).
Zen was introduced to Japan from China in the Nara period (710-794). However, it ceased to exist after that, and it was Zen Master Eisai who brought Chinese Zen back to Japan. At that time, China was being invaded by the Mongol Empire and the Jin of the north, and the Southern Song dynasty was active in five Zen sects: Rinzai, Hogen, Ipyo, Yunmen Wenyan , and Soto.
Eisai introduced the Rinzai sect, which was the most flourishing of the five, to Japan, and Dogen Zenji, who founded Eiheiji Temple in Fukui Prefecture, inherited the Soto sect.
The Rinzai sect began with the Tang dynasty founder Rinzai Yixuan (-867). Rinzai was the sixth generation (called the Sixth Patriarch) counting from Daruma (late 5th century – early 6th century), the founder of Zen Buddhism in China. In the chaos of the last five dynasties of the Tang dynasty, the T’ang dynasty was in turmoil.
During the chaotic period of the late Tang dynasty (618-907), the Rinzai sect did not prosper, but during the Northern Song dynasty (960-1279), two outstanding monks, Huanglong Huinan and Yangqi Fangkai, emerged to create the two mainstream schools of Rinzai Buddhism (Huanglong and Yangqi), which came to dominate the whole of China. In the Southern Song Dynasty, Dahui Zong, a disciple of the priesthood proficient in the priesthood of Yangqi (1063-1135), formed the Dahui School based in Zhejiang, which became the mainstream school of Rinzai Buddhism.
In contrast, Rinzai Zen was introduced to Japan by Eisai, who came to China and received the teachings of the Huanglong school. In contrast to the Soto sect of Zen Buddhism, which spread to local families and the general public, the Rinzai sect had strong ties with the warrior governments of the Kamakura and Muromachi shogunates.
The purpose of Zen Buddhism is to attain enlightenment, and it emphasizes enlightenment, not knowledge. In Zen Buddhism, enlightenment is “the realization of Buddha nature, which is the inherent nature of all living things. Buddha nature is “the ability to perceive things beyond the scope of verbal understanding. Enlightenment is passed on from master to disciple, not through words (logos), but through sensory and physical experiences such as zazen and koans. It is said that the state of enlightenment can be expressed in various ways, and in Japan in particular, enlightenment is expressed in poetry, painting, architecture, and other fields. For more information, see “Zen and Art.”
The important exchanges between a master and his disciples are called the secrets of the room, and are never taken out of the master’s room and made public. However, enlightenment is not something that can be conveyed in words, and the koan itself rejects the modern reader’s understanding of the text. However, it is a record of things that provide hints that lead to enlightenment, and there are a great many Zen classics from the time of its founding to the present. At the same time, since the Sung dynasty, Zen Buddhism has changed to a style called kanna-zen, in which the master lectures on the main points using Zen texts as teaching materials (called advocacy), and the majesty of Rinzai and the other Tang dynasty masters has disappeared.
The koans are mainly questions and answers between master and disciple extracted from Zen texts. Many of the stories convey the opportunity of the moment when the disciple attains enlightenment.
Koans are dialogues in the state of innocence before the emergence of human wisdom, which cannot be understood logically or intellectually, and can only be known through the metaphorical state of liberation from thinking and becoming a koan. The koan system is a collection of methods to guide disciples through these koans, and there are between 500 and 1900 known koans. There are between 500 and 1,900 known koans. The koan system differs depending on the master’s family style.
Some examples of koans given in the early stages of training are as follows
The background to this is the knowledge in the Nirvana Sutra that all living things have Buddha nature, which is known to all Buddhists. The purpose behind this is to liberate us from the misleading knowledge that all living beings have Buddha-nature, which everyone in Buddhism knows from the Nirvana Sutra.
The sound of one hand clapping – “the sound of one hand clapping” The disciple must listen to the sound of clapping done with one hand and show it to the master. The intellectual understanding is that one hand cannot clap and makes no sound, but the aim is to liberate oneself from such an everyday feeling.
For more on these Zen ideas, see also “Mahayana Buddhism, the Nirvana Sutra, and Zen Teachings.”
The first Zen temple (Kenninji Temple) was built in Kyoto in 1202 by Eisai, who brought Rinzai Zen to Japan, at the order of Minamoto no Yorike. At that time, however, the influence of Nara and Kyoto Buddhism was strong, and Kenninji was not a pure Zen temple, but rather it was a combination of the three sects of Zen, Tendai, and Shingon. It was about fifty years later, during the reign of Hojo Tokiyori, the fifth regent of the Kamakura Shogunate, when the foundations of the samurai government had become stable.
When the governmental base of the samurai class, which had overwhelmed the official government and established a new shogunate in Kamakura, became stable, a unique spirituality different from the culture and traditions centered in Nara and Kyoto was needed. It is said that the teachings of Rinzai Zen, which are based on the strict practice of Rinzai Zen, were most in tune with the spirit of the warring samurai class, who were forced to reform themselves.
The first Zen temple to be established in Kamakura was Kenchoji Temple, founded in 1253 by Rankei Doryu, who came from China. Rankei Doryu, also known as Dagaku Zenji, was staying at Jorakuji Temple (photo below), located between Ofuna and Kita-Kamakura (3 minutes by bus from Ofuna Station), when he came to Japan.
One of the episodes handed down from Langye Doryu is “Kenchin Jiru“, which is said to have originated from Kenchoji Temple. Kenchin-jiru is a soup made by frying daikon, carrots, burdock, taro, konnyaku, and tofu in sesame oil, adding soup stock, and seasoning with soy sauce.
When one of Doryu’s disciples dropped a piece of tofu on the floor and made a mess, Doryu made a dish to save the broken tofu and the vegetable skins and stems from going to waste. Incidentally, it is pronounced “kenchan-sou” in Chinese.
Kenchoji Temple is located about a 15-minute walk from Kita-Kamakura Station (one stop from Ofuna, the terminal station of the Narita Express, after transferring to the Yokosuka Line) in the direction of Kamakura, and when you enter through the main gate, the buildings are arranged in a straight line. When you enter from the main gate, the buildings are arranged in a straight line. If you climb up the mountain behind the Hansonbo, you can get to the Tenzono Hiking Course, which leads to Kakuonji Temple and Zuisenji Temple. (Figure below)
In second place is Engakuji Temple, founded by Mugaku Sougen, who came to Japan from the Southern Song Dynasty (1279) during the period of Genko (1281), and founded by the regent Hojo Tokimune in 1282. Mugaku Sogen is best known for his words, “Makujikiko,” which means “to go at full speed,” “nao,” which means “straightforward,” and “ka,” which means “to go through,” and thus “Makujikiko” means “to go at full speed in a straight line.
The answer to the question, “How can I avoid the arrival of the big day? The phrase “summer hearth and winter fan” means a hearth in summer and a fan in winter, and the answer is to stay in the hearth when it is hot and use the fan when it is cold.
This means that if you are hot, immerse yourself in the heat, and if you are cold, immerse yourself in the cold. In other words, if you are suffering, immerse yourself in the suffering and get through it. This can also be taken to mean that rather than trying to escape from troubles and sufferings and regretting your past and future misfortunes, you should concentrate on your current problems and get through them by immersing yourself in them.
Engakuji Temple is located right outside of Kita-Kamakura Station and has a beautiful garden called Myokochi.
The third place is Jufukuji Temple, which was founded by Meian Eisai and was founded by Hojo Masako. It is about a 20-minute walk from Kita-Kamakura Station, but the temple grounds are closed to visitors.
The fourth temple is Jochiji Temple, founded by Nanshu Hiromi, and located in the mountains opposite Kenchoji Temple, walking in the direction of Kamakura from Kita-Kamakura Station.
It was originally built in the Heian period (794-1185) and was called Gokuraku-ji, an esoteric Buddhist temple. Incidentally, Gokurakuji is also the name of a place on the sea side of Kamakura, and there are several temples called “Gokurakuji” there.
Unlike the other four temples, Jomyoji Temple is located on the opposite side of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, near the exit of the Tenzono hiking trail mentioned in the Kenchoji Temple section. The temple is famous for its beautiful garden in the mountains.
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