Ingen Ryūki (, ,, born , December 7, 1592 – May 19, 1673) was a Chinese poet, calligrapher, and

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

of Linji Chan Buddhism from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Ingen" in ; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, ''see'
Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Authority File
. He is most known for founding the

Ōbaku Ōbaku Zen or the Ōbaku school () is one of three main schools of Japanese Zen Buddhism, in addition to the Sōtō and Rinzai schools. The school was founded in Japan by the Chinese monk Ingen Ryūki, who immigrated to Japan during the Manch ...

school of

Zen Zen (; from Chinese: ''Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka phil ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. Ingen is said to have introduced, from China into Japan, the

common bean ''Phaseolus vulgaris'', the common bean,, is a herbaceous annual plant grown worldwide for its edible dry seeds or green bean, green, unripe pods. Its leaf is also occasionally used as a Leaf vegetable, vegetable and the straw as fodder. Its Pla ...

, which is named after him (; ''Ingen'' itself is also short for ''Ingen mame''). Robes worn by Ōbaku monks are called .

Biography

Ingen was born on December 7, 1592, in

Fuqing (，Foochow Romanized: Hók-chiăng; also romanized as Hokchia) is a coastal county-level city under the jurisdiction of Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian Province, China. Covering 1,432 square kilometers and home to over 1.46 million residents ( ...

Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...

, during China's

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...

. Ingen's father disappeared when he was five. At age 20, while searching for him, Ingen arrived at

Mount Putuo Mount Putuo (, from Sanskrit: " Mount Potalaka") is an island in Putuo District, Zhoushan, Zhejiang, China. It is a renowned site in Chinese Buddhism and is the bodhimaṇḍa of the bodhisattva Guanyin. Mount Putuo is one of the four sa ...

off

Zhejiang ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = ( Hangzhounese) ( Ningbonese) (Wenzhounese) , image_skyline = 玉甑峰全貌 - panoramio.jpg , image_caption = View of the Yandang Mountains , image_map = Zhejiang i ...

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

, where he served tea to monks. At 28, after the death of his mother, he was ordained as a monk at his family temple -

Wanfu Temple Wanfu Temple () is a Buddhist temple on Mount Huangbo in Fuqing, Fujian, China. It is famous as the original temple of Yinyuan Longqi, the temple's 33rd abbot and a Chan master. He later travelled to Japan with his disciple Muyan to found the ...

Mount Huangbo Mount Huangbo () is a mountain in Fuqing county of Fujian Province, in the East China region of the People's Republic of China. The mountain has many Buddhist temples, including Wanfu Temple (home of Yinyuan Longqi, founder of the Japanese ...

, Fujian. Ingen's teachers there were Miyun Yuanwu and Feiyin Tongrong. In 1633 he received

dharma transmission In Chan and Zen Buddhism, dharma transmission is a custom in which a person is established as a "successor in an unbroken lineage of teachers and disciples, a spiritual 'bloodline' ('' kechimyaku'') theoretically traced back to the Buddha him ...

from the latter, and in 1637 served his first term as abbot. His second term as 33rd abbot of the temple began in 1646 and at this time he is credited with helping Mount Huangbo to develop into a thriving Buddhist centre. In 1654, after repeated requests of

Itsunen Shoyu Itsunen Shoyu ( zh, t=逸然性融, 1601 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China – 1668 in Nagasaki, Japan) is famous as a Buddhist monk and painter who helped to establish Chan (Zen) in Japan. He was also the third abbot of Kofukuji Temple. In ad ...

, he went to

Nagasaki , officially , is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Founded by the Portuguese, the port of Portuguese_Nagasaki, Nagasaki became the sole Nanban trade, port used for tr ...

, Japan with around 30 monks and artisans, including his disciple

Muyan Mu'an (; Japanese Mokuan Shōtō) (1611–1684) was a Chinese Chan monk who followed his master Ingen to Japan in 1654. Mokuan was from Chuanchow in what was then Fukien Province. He and Sokuhi Nyoitsu were the two disciples most involved in sp ...

. He founded the Ōbaku school of Zen. He established the Ōbaku head temple

Manpuku-ji is a Buddhist temple located in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, approximately a 5-minute walk from Ōbaku Station. It is the head temple of the Japanese Ōbaku Zen school, and named after Wanfu Temple in Fujian, China. The mountain is likewise named ...

Uji, Kyoto is a city on the southern outskirts of the city of Kyoto, in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Founded on March 1, 1951, Uji is between the two ancient capitals of Nara and Kyoto. The city sits on the Uji River, which has its source in Lake Biwa ...

in 1661. On May 21, 1673 (''Enpō 1, 5th day of the 4th month''), he died at Mampuku-ji.

Calligraphy

Ingen was a skilled calligrapher, introducing the Ming style of calligraphy to Japan. Along with his disciples

and

Sokuhi Nyoitsu was a Buddhist monk of the Ōbaku Zen sect, and was also an accomplished poet and calligrapher. His teacher Ingen Ryūki, Mokuan Shōtō and Sokuhi were together known as the "Three Brushes of Ōbaku" or Ōbaku no Sanpitsu. China Sokuhi wa ...

, he was one of the ''

Ōbaku no Sanpitsu Ōbaku Zen or the Ōbaku school () is one of three main schools of Japanese Zen Buddhism, in addition to the Sōtō and Rinzai schools. The school was founded in Japan by the Chinese monk Ingen Ryūki, who immigrated to Japan during the Manchu ...

'' ("Three Brushes of Ōbaku"). He is known to have carried paintings by Chen Xian with him to Japan.

Selected work

Ingen's published writings encompass 35 works in 46 publications in 4 languages and 226 library holdings. WorldCat Identities

隱元 1592-1673
/ref> * 1979 —

Notes

References

* Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia.'' Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou. The pres ...

.
OCLC 48943301
* Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). ''Annales des empereurs du Japon.'' Paris:

Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society, was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encourag ...

OCLC 251800045
see also '' Imprimerie Royale de France,'' {{Authority control Qing dynasty Buddhist monks Obaku Buddhists Zen Buddhist abbots 17th-century abbots 1592 births 1673 deaths Chinese Zen Buddhists Rinzai Buddhists Ming dynasty calligraphers Qing dynasty calligraphers Writers from Fuzhou Artists from Fuzhou Poets from Fujian Qing dynasty poets Chan Buddhist monks Ming dynasty Buddhist monks 17th-century Buddhist monks Chinese tea masters Buddhist artists Buddhist clergy of the Edo period category:17th-century Chinese calligraphers 17th-century Japanese calligraphers

Biography

Calligraphy

Selected work

See also

Notes

References