The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (681 page)

(1200–53).
Founder of the
S
t
Zen school in Japan and a major figure in Japanese intellectual history. He entered the Mount Hiei
Tendai Sh
monastery at the age of 13. Here he was assailed by ‘the Great Doubt’ (see
dai-funshi
): if, as the
s
tras
maintain, all beings are endowed with the buddha-nature, why is such strenuous effort and training necessary to attain enlightenment? He left and studied Zen under
Eisai
(1141–1215), but went to Sung China in 1223 for further study. There he became a disciple of Jü-ching (Rujing) (1163–1268) of T’ien-t’ung-ssu, attaining enlightenment by realizing the truth of ‘Mind and body dropped off; dropped off mind and body’. In 1227 he returned to Japan and embarked on a mission to spread Zen, but, frustrated in his plans because of oppositions from various quarters, he retreated to present-day Fukui Prefecture where he founded
Eihei-ji
. He devoted his life to the training of his disciples and the writing of his major work,
The Treasury of the Eye of True Dharma
(
Sh
b
genz
) in ninety-five chapters (of which
Genj
-K
an
is an especially revered part). His sayings are collected in
Eihei K
roku
, and his rules of discipline for the community are in
Eihei Shingi
. His introduction to
zazen
is in
Fukan Zazengi
. He was given the posthumous name and title of Bussh
dento Kokushi in 1854, and of J
y