HAKUIN (1747)

Priest, artist and writer who helped revive Zen Buddhism in Japan.

After undergoing a mystical experience in 1708 he joined the Rinzai Zen sect.

In 1716 he settled at the Shoin-ji in his Suruga province in central Japan which remained his base until his death.

In contrast to the haughty priests who served the shogunate or ruling feudal government he lived in great poverty among his peasant parishioners and his spiritually, humility and contentment attracted a large following that became a new foundation for Zen in Japan.

Hakuin taught that direct knowledge of the truth is available to allo even the lowliest and that a moral life must accompany religious practice.

His chiefs writings are Keiso dokozui (Poisonous Stamens and Pistils of Thorns) written in Chinese and intended for advanced students of Zen; Orate-gama (The Embossed Tea Kettle), practical advice for ordinary people; Hogo-roku (Record of Talks on the Law) doctrines for the peasants in which he accommodates Zen doctrines to local conditions; and Yasen kanwa (A Chat on a Boat in the Evening) a warning not to treat the body too harshly in meditation.

Hakuin is also well known as an artist and calligrapher. He belongs to the Zen tradition of Japanese art in which the thing represented in a painting is not so important as what it evokes in the spectator´s mind. With a few brush strokes the Zen artists hopes to give an insight into the universe.