The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (1614 page)

(1275–1351)
. A leading Zen monk of the
Rinzai
school during the Five Mountain, Ten Temple period, based on
Ky
to
and
Kamakura
. In a time of conflict, seven emperors bestowed the title of
kok
shi
on him, and he did much to integrate Buddhism into Japanese culture, especially in Ky
to. Nevertheless, much about his own life is obscure. He travelled widely, until, in 1305, he was walking on a dark night, and stopped to think: he leant against a wall that was not there, and as he fell, so did his darkness. Eventually (and reluctantly) he was appointed abbot of Nanzen-ji in Ky
to, and although he still moved on several occasions, he remained close to the reform and rebuilding of Rinzai Zen, a legacy from which remains in his rules for monasteries,
Rinsen kakun
,
San’e-in yuikai
, and
Saih
yuikai
.
In his teaching, he refused to endorse the growing division between
s
tra
and
k
an
methods, believing the means are determined by the capacity of the student. He employed the term
sh
gyoku
as a virtual equivalent to
up
ya
.
Among many works, his
Much
-mond
sh
(Dialogue in a Dream) explains Zen Buddhism in response to questions from the Shogun.

 
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