Gyōnen

Gyōnen (凝然; 1240–1321) was a Japanese Buddhist monk of the Kegon school who resided at Tōdai-ji Temple in the late Kamakura period. He studied the history of Buddhism in India, China, and Japan, compiling documents on this subject in pursuit of a comprehensive understanding of Japanese Buddhism.[1]

Biography

Gyōnen, also known as Jikan, was born in Iyokuni (present-day Ehime Prefecture).

He received the Bodhisattva Precepts at Mt. Hiei in 1255.[2] At the age of 18, he received the novice precepts and was fully ordained by Enshō (1220–1277) at Tōdaiji Temple when he was 20. He studied the teachings of a number of traditions of Buddhism including Sanron and Hossō under various masters around Japan before setting into Tōdaiji, where he remained for most of his life.[1]

Works in English translation

• The essentials of the Vinaya tradition.: the collected teachings of the Tendai Lotus School, translated by Leo M Pruden (1995).[3]
• The essentials of the eight traditions. Berkeley, Calif.: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research. OCLC 988575765.[4]
• Gyōnen's transmission of the Buddha Dharma in three countries. Green, Ronald S.; Mun, Chanju (2018). translated by Ronald S. Green and Chunju Mun.[5]
• The Risshū-kōyō: an annotated translation, translated by Leo M Pruden, Ph. D. thesis, Harvard University 1969.[6]
• The origins and development of Pure Land Buddhism: a study and translation of Gyōnen's Jōdo Hōmon Genrushō, translated by Mark Laurence Blum (2004).[7]

References

1. Green, Ronald S; Mun, Chanju; Gyōnen (2018). Gyōnen's Transmission of the Buddha Dharma in three countries. pp. 3–7. doi:10.1163/9789004370456. ISBN 978-90-04-37045-6. OCLC 1043914042.
2. 日本国語大辞典,世界大百科事典内言及, ブリタニカ国際大百科事典 小項目事典,デジタル大辞泉,百科事典マイペディア,デジタル版 日本人名大辞典+Plus,朝日日本歴史人物事典,世界大百科事典 第２版,大辞林 第三版,日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ),367日誕生日大事典,精選版. "凝然(ぎょうねん)とは". コトバンク (in Japanese). Retrieved 2020-02-15.
3. Gyōnen; Pruden, Leo M; Gishin (1995). The essentials of the Vinaya tradition.: the collected teachings of the Tendai Lotus School / by Gishin. Berkeley, Calif.: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research. ISBN 978-0-9625618-9-4. OCLC 645624378.
4. 凝然; 最澄 (1994). The essentials of the eight traditions. Berkeley, Calif.: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research. OCLC 988575765.
5. Green, Ronald S. [VNV]; Mun, Chanju [VNV] (2018). Gyōnen's transmission of the Buddha Dharma in three countries. Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-37038-8. OCLC 1048747840.
6. Pruden, Leo M (1969). The Risshū-kōyō: an annotated translation (Thesis). OCLC 53009539.
7. Blum, Mark Laurence; Gyōnen (2004). The origins and development of Pure Land Buddhism: a study and translation of Gyōnen's Jōdo Hōmon Genrushō. Oxford; New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-512524-5. OCLC 57371330.