was an influential Japanese

Japanese people

The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...

 Rinzai

Rinzai school

The Rinzai school is , one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism.Rinzai is the Japanese line of the Chinese Linji school, which was founded during the Tang Dynasty by Linji Yixuan...

 zen master

Zen master

Zen master is an umbrella title sometimes used to refer to an individual who has been recognized by an authorized Zen lineage holder and teacher as having met his or her own teacher's standards of realization or insight. These standards vary widely in different traditions, and may vary among...

. He was also a prolific writer and a calligrapher

Calligraphy

Calligraphy is a type of visual art. It is often called the art of fancy lettering . A contemporary definition of calligraphic practice is "the art of giving form to signs in an expressive, harmonious and skillful manner"...

.

Born in Shizuoka Prefecture

Shizuoka Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshu island. The capital is the city of Shizuoka.- History :Shizuoka prefecture was formed from the former Tōtōmi, Suruga and Izu provinces.The area was the home of the first Tokugawa Shogun...

, Asahina graduated from Nihon University

Nihon University

Nihon University is the largest university in Japan. Akiyoshi Yamada, the minister of justice, founded Nihon Law School in October 1889....

. He studied at Myōshin-ji

Myoshin-ji

is a temple complex in Kyoto, Japan. The Myōshin-ji school of Rinzai Zen Buddhism is the largest school in Rinzai Zen. This particular school contains within it more than three thousand temples throughout Japan, along with nineteen monasteries. The head temple was founded in the year 1342 by the...

 in Kyoto

Kyoto

is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...

 and at Engaku-ji

Engaku-ji

right|thumb|A stone carvingNot to be confused with Enryaku-ji in Kyoto., or Engaku-ji , is one of the most important Zen Buddhist temple complexes in Japan and is ranked second among Kamakura's Five Mountains. It is situated in the city of Kamakura, in Kanagawa prefecture to the south of Tokyo...

 in Kamakura

Kamakura, Kanagawa

is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called .Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the...

. He rose to become the head of the Engaku-ji branch of Rinzai Zen. Also, he was a professor at Komazawa University

Komazawa University

Komazawa University is one of the oldest universities in Japan. Its history starts in 1592, when a seminary was established to be a center of learning for the young monks of the Sōtō sect, one of the two main Zen Buddhist traditions in Japan.The university in Tokyo campus comprises eight faculties...

.

Asahina's works include Zen (bilingual, English and Japanese; 1954), Nippon no Zen (1959) and commentaries on the Hekiganroku and Rinzairoku.

Asahina was also an accomplished calligrapher. Television shows, including Mito Kōmon

Mito Kōmon

is a Japanese jidaigeki or period drama that has been on prime-time television since 1969. The title character is the historic Tokugawa Mitsukuni, former vice-shogun and retired second daimyo of the Mito domain...

and Ōoka Echizen

Ooka Echizen

was a long-running prime-time television jidaigeki in Japan. From March 16, 1970 to March 15, 1999, 402 episodes were broadcast. Also, a two-hour special aired on March 20, 2006, commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the National Gekijō, which occupies the Monday evening 8:00–8:54 time slot on...

, featured his writing in their title screens. His writing can also be seen in the memorial to Gichin Funakoshi

Gichin Funakoshi

was the creator of Shotokan karate, perhaps the most widely known style of karate, and is attributed as being the 'father of modern karate.' Following the teachings of Anko Itosu, he was one of the Okinawan karate masters who introduced karate to the Japanese mainland in 1921...

 at Engaku-ji.

Source

This article incorporates material from 朝比奈宗源 (Asahina Sōgen) in the Japanese Wikipedia, retrieved on March 16, 2008.

External links

• 日本全国書誌 JAPANESE NATIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY National Diet Library
  National Diet Library
  The is the only national library in Japan. It was established in 1948 for the purpose of assisting members of the in researching matters of public policy. The library is similar in purpose and scope to the U.S...