Rinzai-shu
The Rinzai shū ( jap. 臨済宗 ) is one of Myōan Eisai in 1191 in Japan , introduced teaching tradition of Zen - Buddhism and is one of the major schools of Chinese Chan , the Linji zong ( Chinese 臨濟宗 , Pinyin Linji Zong , W .-G. Lin-chi tsung ) and its founder Linji Yixuan (9th century).
After the Sōtō-shū, the Rinzai-shū is the second largest of the three Zen schools in Japan today, all of which are in the tradition of the Huanglong or Ōryo school. The main centers were and are Kyoto and Kamakura . Japanese culture was strongly influenced by the Zen aesthetic , as the Rinzai-shū, which dominated the Japanese Middle Ages ( Kamakura period , Muromachi period ), in particular the temple ranking system “Monasteries of the Five Mountains” ( Gozan ) had a great influence on samurai circles would have. The saying "Rinzai for the Shōgun, Sōtō for the farmers" ( 臨 済 将軍 、 曹洞 土 民 , rinzai shōgun, sōtō domin ) also comes from this time .
In particular, the Tea Way ( Sadō ) expresses the culture of silence in a special way, as Eisai is considered to be the bearer of the tea plant from China. The Rinzai temples are also considered to be the home of garden art , as well as martial arts and the other Zen ( Dō ) paths .
The main teaching method of all Zen schools is zazen , the sitting meditation in silence, which is practiced in the Rinzai school with the face towards the center of the room. In addition to the kinhin , which is practiced in a counter-clockwise direction and at different speeds, the monastic practice places great emphasis on physical work ( samu ). The Rinzai-shū in Japan was renewed and reformed in the 18th century by the great Zen master and artist Hakuin Ekaku . Hakuin, who valued the power of the 'Great Doubt' in breaking the barriers of the mind, placed great emphasis on working with kōans , who are important in the practices of the Rinzai-shū. Kōans are seemingly absurd puzzles (for example: "Who were you before your parents were born?"), Which the student is asked to solve and which should lead him to enlightenment. The special thing about this is that these koans cannot be solved intellectually and therefore demand the highest mental and physical effort from the student. From the answers that the student gives the master, the master can recognize the degree of spiritual maturity of his protégé.
The Rinzai-shū is divided into fourteen branches, which are named after their main temples. The main temple of the largest school of Rinzai Zen is the Myōshin-ji in Kyoto. Therefore, the Mampuku-ji of the Ōbaku-shū is also included, since this school was traditionally affiliated with the Rinzai-shū for a long time. Other well-known temples in Kyōto are the main temples Nanzen-ji , Tenryū-ji , Shōkoku-ji and Tōfuku-ji , as well as the Daitoku-ji , which belong to the Gozan circle . A total of 6,000 Rinzai-shu temples in Japan are given.
The Rinzai-shū also maintains its own university ( Hanazono University ) and the Hanazono High School.
List of main Rinzai temples
| Surname | Location | |
|---|---|---|
| Romaji | Kanji | |
| Myōshin-ji | 妙 心 寺 | 64 Myōshinji-chō, Hanazono, Ukyō-ku, Kyōto |
| Mampuku-ji | 萬 福寺 | 34 Samban-wari, Gokashō, Uji , Kyōto Prefecture |
| Nanzen-ji | 南禅寺 / 南禪寺 | Fukuchi-chō, Nanzen-ji, Sakyō-ku, Kyōto |
| Kenchō-ji | 建 長 寺 | 8 Yamanouchi, Kamakura , Kanagawa Prefecture |
| Tofuku-ji | 東 福寺 | 15 Honmachi, Higashiyama-ku, Kyōto |
| Engaku-ji | 円 覚 寺 / 圓覺 寺 | 409 Yamanouchi, Kamakura , Kanagawa Prefecture |
| Daitoku-ji | 大 徳 寺 | 53 Daitokuji-chō, Murasakino, Kita-ku, Kyōto |
| Hoko-ji | 方 廣 寺 / 方 広 寺 | 1577-1 Okuyama, Inasa-chō, Kita-ku, Hamamatsu , Shizuoka Prefecture |
| Eigen-ji | 永 源 寺 | 41 Eigenji Takano-chō, Higashiōmi , Shiga Prefecture |
| Tenryu-ji | 天 竜 寺 / 天龍寺 | 68 Susukinobaba-chō, Tenryūji, Saga, Ukyō-ku, Kyōto |
| Shokoku-ji | 相 國寺 / 相 国寺 | 701 Shōkokuji Monzen-chō, Kamigyō-ku , Kyōto |
| Kennin-ji | 建 仁 寺 | 584 Komatsu-chō, Higashiyama-ku, Kyōto |
| Kogaku-ji | 向 嶽 寺 | 2026 Kamiozo, Enzan, Kōshū , Yamanashi Prefecture |
| Buttsu-ji | 佛 通 寺 | 22 Motoyama, Takasaka-chō, Mihara , Hiroshima Prefecture |
| Kokutai-ji | 國泰 寺 / 国泰 寺 | 184 Ōta, Takaoka , Toyama Prefecture |
Web links
- Japanese Rinzai and Obaku Zen College website (Japanese, English)
- Hanazono University (English)