Genshin
Encyclopedia
Genshin also known as Eshin Sozu, was the most influential of a number of Tendai
scholars active during the tenth and eleventh centuries in Japan
. He was not a wandering evangelist as Kūya
was, but was an elite cleric who espoused a doctrine of devotion to Amida Buddha which taught that because Japan was thought to have entered mappō
, the "degenerate age" of the "latter law," the only hope for salvation
lay in the reliance on the power of Amitabha. Other doctrine
s, he claimed, could not aid an individual because they depended on "self-power" (jiriki
), which cannot prevail during the chaos of the degenerate age, when the power of another (tariki) is necessary. In his approach to rebirth in the Pure Land
, Genshin emphasized visual meditation practices, where later Pure Land
sects favored verbal recitations such as the nembutsu. Genshin's doctrine is documented in his magnum opus
, the , which in later copies of the text came complete with graphic depictions of the joy
of the blessed
and the suffering of those doomed to chaos
.
Genshin's influence in contemporary Japanese culture today is primarily due to his treatise, Ōjōyōshū
, particularly the graphic descriptions of the Buddhist hell
realms (地獄 jigoku), which inspired a genre of horror and morality stories. The 1960 Japanese film Jigoku
was influenced by Genshin's Ōjōyōshū among others. In Jodo Shinshu
Buddhism, he is considered the Sixth Patriarch
.
Genshin is credited as the founder of the Enshin school of Tendai
Buddhism, and for espousing the "original enlightenment" teaching, or hongaku (本覚), where one is originally enlightened, but unaware of it. In all, Genshin left more than 30 works which continue to influence Pure Land thought today.
The image of Amida Nyorai in the main building of Yasaka-ji Temple in Shikoku is said to have been made by Genshin in the Nara Period
.
Tendai
is a Japanese school of Mahayana Buddhism, a descendant of the Chinese Tiantai or Lotus Sutra school.Chappell frames the relevance of Tendai for a universal Buddhism:- History :...
scholars active during the tenth and eleventh centuries in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. He was not a wandering evangelist as Kūya
Kūya
Kūya was an itinerant Japanese priest who, along with Genshin and Jakushin, was an early promoter of the practice of the nembutsu amongst the common people in order to attain salvation and entry into the Pure land of Amida...
was, but was an elite cleric who espoused a doctrine of devotion to Amida Buddha which taught that because Japan was thought to have entered mappō
Mappo
The Latter Day of the Law, is one of the Three Ages of Buddhism. Mappō or Mofa , which is also translated as the Age of Dharma Decline, is the "degenerate" Third Age of Buddhism.- Tradition :...
, the "degenerate age" of the "latter law," the only hope for salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
lay in the reliance on the power of Amitabha. Other doctrine
Doctrine
Doctrine is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system...
s, he claimed, could not aid an individual because they depended on "self-power" (jiriki
Jiriki
Jiriki is the Japanese Buddhist term for self power, to enable ones self to liberate or spiritually enlighten themselves, in other words, to reach nirvana. "Ji" means self and "riki" means power. There are two terms in Japanese Buddhist schools that classify how one becomes spiritually enlightend,...
), which cannot prevail during the chaos of the degenerate age, when the power of another (tariki) is necessary. In his approach to rebirth in the Pure Land
Pure land
A pure land, in Mahayana Buddhism, is the celestial realm or pure abode of a Buddha or Bodhisattva. The various traditions that focus on Pure Lands have been given the nomenclature Pure Land Buddhism. Pure lands are also evident in the literature and traditions of Taoism and Bön.The notion of 'pure...
, Genshin emphasized visual meditation practices, where later Pure Land
Pure land
A pure land, in Mahayana Buddhism, is the celestial realm or pure abode of a Buddha or Bodhisattva. The various traditions that focus on Pure Lands have been given the nomenclature Pure Land Buddhism. Pure lands are also evident in the literature and traditions of Taoism and Bön.The notion of 'pure...
sects favored verbal recitations such as the nembutsu. Genshin's doctrine is documented in his magnum opus
Masterpiece
Masterpiece in modern usage refers to a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or to a work of outstanding creativity, skill or workmanship....
, the , which in later copies of the text came complete with graphic depictions of the joy
Happiness
Happiness is a mental state of well-being characterized by positive emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy. A variety of biological, psychological, religious, and philosophical approaches have striven to define happiness and identify its sources....
of the blessed
Blessing
A blessing, is the infusion of something with holiness, spiritual redemption, divine will, or one's hope or approval.- Etymology and Germanic paganism :...
and the suffering of those doomed to chaos
Chaos (cosmogony)
Chaos refers to the formless or void state preceding the creation of the universe or cosmos in the Greek creation myths, more specifically the initial "gap" created by the original separation of heaven and earth....
.
Genshin's influence in contemporary Japanese culture today is primarily due to his treatise, Ōjōyōshū
Ojoyoshu
The was an influential medieval Buddhist text composed in 985 by the Japanese Buddhist monk Genshin. Three volumes in length and in kanbun prose, the text expounds on Pure Land Buddhist thought, with emphasis on methods to attain rebirth in the Pure Land of Amida Buddha, drawing upon earlier...
, particularly the graphic descriptions of the Buddhist hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
realms (地獄 jigoku), which inspired a genre of horror and morality stories. The 1960 Japanese film Jigoku
Jigoku (film)
is a 1960 Japanese horror film, directed by Nobuo Nakagawa and starring Utako Mitsuya and Shigeru Amachi. Jigoku was re-made in 1970 by Tatsumi Kumashiro, and later re-made again under the title of Japanese Hell by Teruo Ishii in 1999....
was influenced by Genshin's Ōjōyōshū among others. In Jodo Shinshu
Jodo Shinshu
, also known as Shin Buddhism, is a school of Pure Land Buddhism. It was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran. Today, Shin Buddhism is considered the most widely practiced branch of Buddhism in Japan.-Shinran :...
Buddhism, he is considered the Sixth Patriarch
Jodo Shinshu Patriarchs
The Seven Patriarchs of Jodo Shinshu were seven Buddhist monks who helped develop Pure Land Buddhism. Shinran, founder of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism, established a lineage for Pure Land Buddhist thought that traced to the time of Shakyamuni Buddha...
.
Genshin is credited as the founder of the Enshin school of Tendai
Tendai
is a Japanese school of Mahayana Buddhism, a descendant of the Chinese Tiantai or Lotus Sutra school.Chappell frames the relevance of Tendai for a universal Buddhism:- History :...
Buddhism, and for espousing the "original enlightenment" teaching, or hongaku (本覚), where one is originally enlightened, but unaware of it. In all, Genshin left more than 30 works which continue to influence Pure Land thought today.
The image of Amida Nyorai in the main building of Yasaka-ji Temple in Shikoku is said to have been made by Genshin in the Nara Period
Nara period
The of the history of Japan covers the years from AD 710 to 794. Empress Gemmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō . Except for 5 years , when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capital of Japanese civilization until Emperor Kammu established a new capital, Nagaoka-kyō, in 784...
.