DDB: 西有瑾英 | Nishiari Kin'ei

Digital Dictionary of Buddhism

西有瑾英

Pronunciations

Basic Meaning: Nishiari Kin'ei

Senses:

A monk of the Sōtō school 曹洞宗 of Japanese Zen. His Buddhist name was Bokusan 穆山, and he was also known as Kaō 可翁, Muian 無爲庵, and Anshin Rōjin 安心老人. He was a native of Mutsu 陸奧 (Aomori 靑森 prefecture). His original secular surname was Sasamoto 笹本, but he later took the name Nishiari 西有. At the age of thirteen, he received the precepts from Kinryū 金龍 (n.d.) of Chōryūji 長龍寺 (Ibaraki 茨城 prefecture). The following year he moved with Kinryū to Hōkōji 法光寺 (Aomori), where he served him for seven years. At the age of nineteen, Nishiari moved to Shōonji 松音寺 (Sendai 仙台) to practice under Tennō Etsuon 天應悅音 (n.d.). At the age of twenty-one, he entered the Sōtō schoolʼs university at Kichijōji 吉祥寺 (Edo 江戶). In 1842, he was fully established and became the dharma successor of Ansō Taizen 安窗泰禪 (n.d.) of Honnenji 本然寺 in Asakusa (Edo). He first resided in Hōrinji 鳳林寺 (Edo), but upon turning thirty, he moved to Kaizōji 海藏寺 (Kanazawa 神奈川 prefecture) to practice under Gettan Zenryū 月潭全龍 (–1865). He spent some twelve years in strict practice until he suddenly awakened one day upon hearing the masterʼs sermon on the Śūraṃgama-sūtra 楞嚴經. Later Nishiari resided at Nyoraiji 如來寺 (Shizuoka 靜岡 prefecture), Eikoin 英湖院 (Sagami 相模), Shūsanji 宗參寺 (Edo), and Hōsenji 鳳仙寺 (Gunma 群馬). In 1872, he was appointed as an upper-level doctrinal instructor 大講義 (daikōgi) by the ministry of education, and as an examiner for the Sōtō schoolʼs academy lecturers. In 1875, he became abbot of Hōkōji 法光寺 (Aomori 靑森) and later of Chūōji 中央寺 (Hokkaidō 北海道) and Kasuisai 可睡齋 (Shizuoka). In 1892, Nishiari officially retired and moved to reside in Denshinji 傳心寺. In 1900, he was honored as the founder of Saiyūji 西有寺 in Yokohama. In the following year, he was elected by the Sōtō school as the third abbot of Sōjiji 總持寺 (one of the schoolʼs two head temples). In the same year, he also received the honorary title of National Zen master Jikishinjō 直心淨國禪師. In 1901 he was appointed chief officer 管長 of the Sōtō school. Nishiari is considered a prominent scholar of Dōgen and is, in many ways, responsible for Dōgenʼs popularity in the modern era. Included among his many writings are the Anshin ketsu 安心訣, Saiu zenna 西有禪話, Dōsan goi setsu 洞山五位說, Fukan zazengi daini roku 普勸坐禪儀提耳錄, Jikishin jōkoku zenshi goroku 直心淨國禪師語錄, Shōbōgenzō keiteki 正法眼藏啓迪.

References:

Rutschman-Byler, Mark. 2014. “Sōtō Zen in Meiji Japan: the Life and Times of Nishiari Bokusan.” MA thesis, UC Berkeley.

[Erez Joskovich; source(s): ZGDJT]

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Zengaku daijiten (Komazawa U.) 0977c

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Entry created: 2020-05-30