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Myan Eisai (1141-1215) 
 Myan Ysai; Senk Kokushi
 Kzen-gokoku-ron (1198) 
 Kissa-yj-ki (1211) 

 Shukke
taik 

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<TD><a
href="#m">Idzet Eiszai rpiratbl a terl </a></TD>
<TD>PDF: A Treatise on Letting Zen Flourish to Protect the
State 
by Myan Eisai (1141-1215) 
Translated by Gishin
Tokiwa 
In: <a href="dBET_ZenTexts_2005.pdf" target="_blank">Zen Texts, BDK
Tripitaka Translation Series</a>, 2005, pp. 43ff. 
<a href="#a3">Eisai: Propagation of Zen for the Protection of the
State (Kzen gokokuron)</a> Translated by William Bodiford 
<a href="#a4">Eisai: Essentials for Monastics (Shukke
taik)</a> () 
Translated <a href="#a">Eisai. The First Japanese
Master</a> 
by Thomas
Hoover <a href="#a1">Eisai and
Tea </a>
<img src="https://terebess.hu/zen/francia.gif" width="36"
height="25" border="0"> PDF: <a href="Aux-origines-du-Zen.pdf"
target="_blank">Aux origines du Zen</a> () 
dition bilingue, commente et annote, du Kzen
gokokuron de Eisai (1141-1215) 
par Pierre Marsone 
ditions You-Feng, Paris, 2002 
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The first
Japanese monk to transmit the Rinzai teachings to Japan was the Japanese Tendai
monk Myoan Yosai [Eisai] (11411215). Born in present Okayama
Prefecture, he became a Tendai-school monk at the age of eleven and studied the
esoteric teachings of that tradition. He went to the Tendai headquarters on Mt.
Hiei two years later, and was ordained in 1154. In 1168 he traveled to China,
where he studied the Tiantai teachings and practiced Tiantai meditation methods
for six months before returning to Japan. 
Twenty years
later, in 1187, he once again sailed for China, hoping to make a pilgrimage to
India, the home of Buddhism, in order further his goal of restoring Japanese Zen
to its original ideals. When the Chinese government refused him permission to
travel beyond its borders, Eisai made his way to Mount Tiantai and undertook the
practice of Linji (Rinzai) Zen with the Huanglong (Oryo) lineage master Xuan
Huaichang (J., Koan Esho; n.d.), under whom he studied both meditation
and the vinaya. 
In 1191 Eisai
returned to Japan, bringing not only the Rinzai Zen teachings but also the
practice of tea-drinking. He founded the monastery Shofuku-ji on the island of
Kyushu, avoiding the capital of Kyoto for the time being because of opposition
to the Zen teachings from the older established sects of Tendai and Shingon.
Later he did go to the capital to answer charges made against him by the older
schools, presenting his arguments in his chief work, the Kzen Gokokuron (Propagation
of Zen for protection of the nation). In 1199 he went to Kamakura to assume the
abbacy of the temple Jufuku-ji , built for him by the Kamakura Shogunate.
In 1202 he agreed to become abbot of the new temple Kennin-ji in Kyoto, where,
until the end of his life in 1215, he taught a combination of Zen meditation
with Tendai and Shingon ritual. Although Eisai's Oryo lineage did not continue
long, he was important in setting the stage for the restoration of monastic
discipline and the establishment of Zen meditation practice. 
He introduced the
cultivation of tea into Japan, and wrote a book, entitled On Drinking Tea as
A Way of Nourishing Spirit (Kissa-yj-ki ).
His other works include the Discourse on the Propagation of Zen and
Protection of the Stat e (Kzen-gokoku-ron 
), which is the first Zen work in Japan. He was given the posthumous
title, Senko Kokushi (State Master a Thousand Rays of Light).

Pgina 3
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<a href="http://sweepingzen.com/eisai-bio/"
target="_blank">http://sweepingzen.com/eisai-bio/</a> 
<a
href="http://openreads.com/chapter/the-zen-experience-chapter-15-eisai-the-first
-japanese-master/"
target="_blank">http://openreads.com/chapter/the-zen-experience-chapter-15-eisai
-the-first-japanese-master/</a>
 
<img src="https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/Eisai1.jpg" width="283"
height="500" border="0"> 
sans-serif"><a name="a2"
id="a2"></a>Eisai by
William Bodiford 
in Sources of Japanese Tradition: Volume 1: From Earliest Times to 1600
 
ed. by Wm. Theodore de de Bary 
pp. 308-319.

sans-serif">Japanese Zen tradition customarily cites Eisai (aka Ysai, 1141
1215) and Dgen (12001253) as the first teachers of Song-dynasty Zen in Japan
and as the founders of the Rinzai (Ch: Linji) and St (Ch: Caodong) Zen
lineages, respectively. Certainly Eisai and Dgen were important Zen pioneers
who laid the foundation for subsequent developments, but their Zen teachings had
little immediate impact. Even the wave of Chinese migr Zen teachers who fled
to Japan from the advancing Mongol armies and found new patrons among the
military rulers of Kamakura immediately before and after the first Mongol
invasion attempt of 1274 remained largely isolated from cultural currents. These
Chinese monks provided the Hj regents and the new military government with a
cosmopolitan aura otherwise lacking in the provincial town of Kamakura. But
overall, the Kamakura warlords continued to sponsor established Buddhist schools
and to join Pure Land and Nichiren movements as well. It was not until the
second- and third-generation Japanese disciples of this first wave of Zen
pioneers found new patrons among rival warlords and among members of the royal
family that Zen became prominent in Japan. 
Eisai was a Tendai monk who traveled to China twice (in 1168 and from 1187 to
1197). He was especially impressed by the resolute discipline of Chinese
monasteries, which contrasted markedly with the moral laxity so common among
Japanese clerics. Eisai believed that Zen would breathe new life into Japanese
Tendai by reviving strict observance of the Buddhist precepts and the norms of
monastic decorum. But Eisais agenda was opposed by the Tendai establishment on
Mount Hiei. He also had to contend with competition from the Darumash, a rival
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Zen group founded by another Tendai monk named Nnin, who never went to China
but who had received mail-order certification in a Chinese Zen lineage. The
Darumash (named after Bodhidharma) promoted ideas completely opposite from
Eisais goals. They taught that no monastic discipline was required, since
Buddha awakening could be expressed in any activity. In 1194, the court in Kyoto
banned the Zen teachings of Eisai and the Darumash. Eisais most important
work, the Propagation of Zen for the Protection of the State (Kzen gokokuron,
1198), is an eloquent defense of Chinese Zen training that shows how it differs
from normative Japanese Tendai and Darumash practices.
 
<blockquote>
</a>Eisai: Propagation of Zen for the Protection of
the State ( Kzen gokokuron) 
 Translated Eisai compiled
this anthology in 1198, four years after the court had prohibited the
establishment of independent Zen institutions in an attempt to persuade the
court not merely to lift its ban but also to promote Zen in order to revitalize
Japanese Buddhism. Since Eisais chief adversaries at the Kyoto court were the
monks of Mount Hiei monastery, which Saich had founded, Eisai selected
quotations primarily from scriptures and commentaries favored in the Tendai
school to argue that Zen is the essence of true Buddhism. He points out that
Saich himself belonged to a Zen lineage and asserts that if Zen is
illegitimate, then Saich and the Tendai school he founded must also be
illegitimate. In the following excerpts, Eisai equates Zen with the essence of
mind, whose clarification is the goal of Buddhist practice. He asserts that mind
is understood only by members of the special Zen lineage and emphasizes that the
master-to-disciple transmission of the Zen lineage preserves the correct forms
of monastic discipline as well as strict adherence to the precepts. He further
attacks the Darumash as false Zen, defends Zen ' s rejection of language, and
attempts to show how Zen practice will reform wayward Japanese Buddhist
monasticism. 
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
Preface 
So great is
Mind! Heaven's height is immeasurable, but Mind goes above it. Earth's depth is
unfathomable, but Mind extends beneath it. The light of the sun and moon cannot
be outdistanced, yet Mind reaches beyond them. Galaxies are as infinite as
grains of sand, yet Mind spreads outside them. Ho w great is the empty space!
How primal is the ether! Still Mind encompasses all space and generates the
ethereal. Because of it, Heaven and Earth treat us with their coverage and
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support. The sun and moon treat us with their circuits, and the four seasons
treat us with their transformations. The myriad things treat us with their
fecundity. Great indeed is Mind! Of necessity we assign it names: the Supreme
Vehicle, the Prime Meaning, the True Aspect of Transcendental Wisdom [Praj],
the Single Dharma Realm of T ruth, the Unsurpassed A wakened Wisdom [Bodhi], the
Heroic Concentration [Shrangama samdhi], the True Dharma Eye Matrix, the
Marvelous Mind of Nirvna. All scriptures of the Three Turnings of the Dharma
Wheel and eight canons, as well as all the doctrines of the Four Shla Trees and
Five Vehicles fit neatly within it. 
The Great
Hero Shkyamuni's having conveyed this Mind Dharma to his disciple the golden
ascetic Mah Kshyapa is known as the special transmission outside the
scriptures. From their facing one another on Vulture Peak to Mah Kshyapa's
smile in Cockleg Cave, the raised flower produced thousands of shoots; from this
one fountainhead sprang ten thousand streams. In India the proper succession was
maintained. In China the dharma generations were tightly linked. Thus has the
true dharma as propagated by the Buddhas of old been handed down along with the
dharma robe. Thus have the correct ritual forms of Buddhist ascetic training
been made manifest. The substance of the dharma is kept whole through
master-disciple relationships, and confusion over correct and incorrect monastic
decorum is eliminated. In fact, after Bodhidharma, the great master who came
from the West, sailed across the South Seas and planted his staff on the banks
of the East River in China, the Dharma-eye Zen lineage of Fayan Wenyi was
transmitted to Korea and the Ox-head Zen lineage of Niudou Farong was brought to
Japan. Studying Zen, one rides all vehicles of Buddhism; practicing Zen, one
attains awakening in a single lifetime. Outwardly promoting the moral discipline
of the Nirvna Scripture while inwardly embodying the wisdom and compassion of
the Great Perfection of Wisdom Scripture is the essence of Zen. 
In our
kingdom the sovereign shines in splendor and his honor extends far and wide.
Emissaries from distant fabled lands pay their respects to his court. Ministers
conduct the affairs of the realm while monastics propagate the path of
renunciation. Even the dharma of the Four Hindu Vedas finds use. Why then
discard the five family lineages of Zen? Nonetheless, many malign this teaching,
calling it the Zen of blind trance. Others doubt it, calling it the evil of
clinging to emptiness. Still others consider it ill-suited to this latter age of
dharma decline, saying that it is not needed in our land. Or they disparage my
capacity, saying that I lack sufficient power. They belittle my spiritual
ability, saying that it is impossible for me to revive what was already
abandoned. Whoever attempts to uphold the Dharma Jewel in such a way destroys
the Dharma Jewel. Not being me, how can they know my mind? Not only do they
block the gateway through the Zen barriers, but they also defy the legacy of
Saich, the founder of Mount Hiei. Alas, how sad, how distressing. Which of us
is right? Which of us is wrong? 
I have
compiled an anthology of the Buddhist scriptures that record the essential
teachings of our lineage for consideration by today's pundits and for the
benefit of posterity. This anthology is in three fascicles consisting of ten
chapters, and it is entitled Propagation of Zen for the Protection of the
State in accordance with the basic idea of the Sutra for Humane Kings. As
my humble fictive words accord with reality, I ignore the catcalls of ministers
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and monastics. Remembering that the Zen of Linji benefits his later generations,
I am not embarrassed by their written slanders. I merely hope that the flame of
wisdom transmitted in Zen verse will not be extinguished until the arrival of
Maitreya and that the fountain of Zen will flow unimpeded until the future eon
of the Thousand Buddhas. 
[Ichikawa,
Chsei zenke, pp. 89; WB] 
 
sans-serif">Zen and Precepts
sans-serif">Question: Some criticize you, asking what makes you think
this new Zen lineage will cause Buddhism to flourish forever?
sans-serif">Answer: Moral precepts and monastic discipline cause
Buddhism to flourish forever. Moral precepts and monastic discipline are the
essence of Zen. Therefore, Zen causes Buddhism to flourish forever. Zhiyis
Calming and Contemplation states: Worldly desires of ordinary people are
denounced by all the holy ones. Evil is destroyed by pure wisdom. Pure wisdom
arises from pure Zen. Pure Zen arises from pure precepts.
Chsei zenke, pp. 3536; WB]
 
sans-serif">The Darumash
sans-serif">Question: Some people say that the Zen teaching of not
relying on words and letters means the evil of clinging to emptiness and the
practice of blind trance. If so, then Tendai opposes it. In Zhi-yis Calming and
Contemplation, where it explains contemplation of the inconceivable object, it
says: This cannot be known by the Zen teachers of blind trance or the dharma
masters of scriptural chanting. In Zhiyis Profound Meaning of the Lotus
Scripture it says: If those who contemplate Mind think that their own mind is
it, equate themselves with the Buddha, and ignore the scriptures, then they fall
into the error of arrogance. It is like holding a torch so as to burn oneself.
Likewise, Zhanrans commentary on this passage says: Grasping the torch of
blind trance burns the hand of cavalier meditator. How do you respond to these
criticisms of not relying on words and letters?
sans-serif">Answer: This Zen lineage despises teachers of blind trance
and hates people who practice the evil of clinging to emptiness. They are as
repugnant as corpses sunk to the bottom of the ocean. We solely rely on the
Perfect Teaching, cultivating the perfect and the sudden. Outwardly we observe
the precepts to eliminate vice, inwardly we employ compassion to benefit others.
This is called the Zen teaching. This is called the Buddha dharma. Those who
practice blind Zen and cling to evil not only lack our teaching but are thieves
of the dharma. Yongming Yanshous Zen Mirror Record says: Principle
truly responds to conditions. No practice obstructs principle. Practice rests on
principle. No practice exists without principle. Those people who do not enter
the Perfect Teaching but disparage others as being beneath them and regard
themselves as spiritually advanced have not only lost the practice but
Pgina 7
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completely lack principle. One must merely awaken to the essence of the One Mind
free from all obstructions, in which principle and practice fuse together
naturally, in which the worldly and the ultimate merge completely. If one clings
to practice and mistakes principle, then one sinks into eons of samsra. If one
awakens to principle but neglects practice, then one lacks perfect realization.
How can principle and practice not be products of the mind? How could essence
and appearance not correspond? If one enters the Zen Mirror and suddenly awakens
to the True Mind, then even the words principle or practice do not exist,
much less the clinging to principle or practice. But after attaining the
fundamental, one must not abandon perfect cultivation. How can those
practitioners of the Zen of blind trance even know of the Six Identities between
Buddha and Humans? How can the crazed chanters of the scripture even be aware of
the One Mind? . . .
sans-serif">Question: But what about those who mistakenly refer to the
Zen lineage as the Dharumash? They teach: There is nothing to practice,
nothing to cultivate. Originally afflictions (klesha) do not exist. From the
beginning, afflictions are bodhi. Therefore, moral precepts and monastic rituals
are of no use. One should merely eat and sleep as needed. Why must anyone labor
to recall the Buddha (nembutsu), to worship relics, or to observe dietary
restrictions? What about their teaching?
sans-serif">Answer: There is no evil that such people will not do. They
are the ones the scriptures denounce as nihilists. One must not talk with such
people nor even sit with them. One must avoid them by a thousand yojana [about
8,500 miles].
Chsei zenke, pp. 3941; WB]
 
sans-serif">Language
sans-serif">Scriptures, or Zen are merely names. Investigate, or
study likewise are merely provisional designations. Self, other,
living beings, bodhi, nirvna, and so forth are just words, without
any real existence. Similarly, because the dharma preached by the Buddha is just
such words, in reality nothing was preached.
sans-serif">For this reason Zen lies beyond the details of words and letters,
outside mental conditions, in the inconceivable, in what ultimately cannot be
grasped. So-called Buddha dharma consists of the dharma that cannot be
preached. So-called Zen is exactly the same. If anyone says the Buddhas Zen
exists in words, letters, or speech, then that person slanders the Buddha and
slanders the dharma. For this reason our ancestral teachers did not rely on
words and letters, pointed directly at the human mind, saw nature, and became
Buddhas. Such is Zen practice. Whoever clings to words loses the dharma, whoever
clings to appearances becomes topsy-turvy. Fundamentally inactive, without a
thing to grasp, is seeing the Buddha dharma. The Buddha dharma consists of
merely walking, standing, sitting, and lying down. Adding even a single fine
hair to it is impossible. Subtracting even a single fine hair from it is
impossible. Once one attains this understanding, then expend not even the least
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effort. With even the slightest attempt at being clever, one has already missed
it. Therefore, activity gives rise to samsra while quietude leaves one in a
drunken stupor, and avoiding both activity and quietude displays ignorance of
Buddha nature. If one does none of the above, then what? This point lies outside
clarification of doctrine. It cannot be fathomed through words. Look ahead and
see! Get up and go! Once the arrow leaves the bow, there is no art that can
bring it back. Even the thousand Buddhas could not grab it. As long as it has
not hit the ground, no matter how much one might rue the crooked shot, one
merely seizes air. Even if one tried until the last days of ones life, there is
no grasping it.
sans-serif">[Ichikawa, Chsei zenke, pp. 6263; WB]
sans-serif">Ten Facilities for Zen Monasticism
sans-serif">Facilities for Zen Monasticism consist of ten items, which I
describe in accordance with the Pure Rules for Zen Cloisters and other
Chinese standards.
sans-serif">First, the monastery: Monasteries can be large or small, but all
should conform to the layout of the Buddhas Jetavana Vihra (Gion Shja) in
India. Along the four sides there are walls without side gates. There is only
one main gate, which the gatekeeper shuts at dusk and opens at dawn. Nuns,
women, and inauspicious people must not be allowed to stay the night. The
decline of the Buddha dharma always results from women.
sans-serif">Second, ordinations: The distinction between Hinayna precepts and
Mahyna precepts exists only in the hearts of men. Because one must merely
embody sentiments of great compassion for the benefit of others, Zen does not
choose between Mahyna or Hinayna precepts but merely focuses on living a pure
life.
sans-serif">Third, observing the precepts: After ordination, if one violates the
precepts, it would be the same as obtaining a precious jewel only in order to
smash it. Therefore one must strictly observe the two hundred fifty bhiksu
[monk] precepts, as well as the bodhisattvas three groups of pure precepts, ten
major precepts, and forty-eight minor precepts. Twice each month during the
uposatha ceremony, these precepts must be reviewed as explained in the precept
scriptures. Anyone who violates the precepts must be kicked out. Such a one can
be likened to a corpse cast into the ocean.
sans-serif">Fourth, academic study: Learning that spans the entire Buddhist
canon and conduct that accords with the Mahyna and Hinayna precepts as well
as proper monastic decorum constitute being a field of merit for gods and men.
Inwardly embodying the great compassion of the bodhisattvas constitutes being a
benevolent father to all living beings. In this way we become a valued jewel to
the sovereign and a good physician to the country. To these goals we must
aspire. 
 
Fifth, ritual conduct: monastics observe dietary restrictions, practice
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chastity, and obey the Buddhas words. The schedule for each night and day are
as follows: At dusk all monks assemble in the Buddha Hall to offer incense and
worship. At evening they practice sitting Zen (zazen). During the third watch of
the night (about 2:00 a.m.) they sleep. During the fourth watch they sleep. At
the fifth watch they practice sitting Zen. At cockcrow they assemble in the
Buddha Hall to offer incense and worship. At dawn they eat morning gruel. At the
hour of the dragon (about 8:00 a.m.) they chant scriptures, study, or attend
elder monks. At midmorning they practice sitting Zen. At noon they eat their
daily meal. Afterwards they bathe or wash. During midafternoon they practice
sitting Zen. Late afternoons are free time. The four periods of sitting Zen must
be diligently practiced. Each moment of sitting Zen repays ones debts to the
state; each act commemorates the sovereigns long life. These rituals truly
cause the imperial reign to long prosper and the dharma flame to shine
forever.
sans-serif">Sixth, monastic decorum: Old and young must always wear full robes.
When they encounter one another, they must first place the palms of their hands
together and then bow their heads to the ground in harmonious expressions of
respect. Also, all meals, all walking exercises, all sitting Zen, all academic
study, all chanting, and all sleeping must be performed as a group. Even if a
hundred thousand monks are together inside one hall, each of them must observe
correct monastic decorum. If someone is absent, the group leader (in) must
investigate and must not forgive even the slightest transgression.
sans-serif">Seventh, robes: Both inner and outer wear should conform to Chinese
designs. These imply circumspection. One must be prudent in all
affairs.
sans-serif">Eighth, disciples: Those who embody morality and wisdom without
lapse should be admitted to the assembly. They must possess both mental and
physical ability.
sans-serif">Ninth, economic income: As they say, Do not cultivate the fields,
since sitting Zen leaves no time for it; Do not hoard treasures, since the
Buddhas words alone suffice. Aside from one cooked meal each day, eliminate
all other needs. The dharma of monks consists of being satisfied with as little
as possible. 
sans-serif">Tenth, summer and winter retreats: The summer retreat begins on the
fifteenth day of the fourth moon and ends on the fifteenth day of the seventh
moon. The winter retreat begins on the fifteenth day of the tenth moon and ends
on the fifteenth day of the first moon. Both of these two retreats were
established by the Buddhas. Do not doubt it. In our land these retreats have not
been practiced for a long time. In the great land of Song-dynasty China,
however, not a single monk fails to participate in the two retreats. From the
standpoint of the Buddha dharma, the Japanese practice of calculating ones
monastic seniority in terms of the retreats without actually participating in
them is laughable.
sans-serif">[Ichikawa, Chsei zenke, pp. 8083; WB] 
 
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eisai.txt
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
 
</a>Eisai: Essentials for Monastics (
 Shukke taik) 
Translated Unlike
Propagation of Zen for the Protection of the State, which was directed toward a
wide audience of court officials and ecclesiastical officials, Eisai wrote this
treatise for his own followers as a guide to the proper lifestyle for Buddhist
monks and nuns. In it, he confesses that before his trip to China he had, like
most other Japanese monks, ignored the Buddhist prohibitions against eating meat
and drinking alcohol. Eisais vigorous advocacy for observing the Buddhist
precepts is remarkable not just because it goes against the currents of Japanese
Buddhist history but also because it stresses such elementary points (e.g., the
distinctions between Buddhist robes and secular clothing) that the reader is
left with the impression that clerics of Eisais time completely lacked any
firsthand knowledge of traditional Buddhist monastic norms. The opening section
gives an overview of the treatise. 

<blockquote>
The
Buddha dharma is the boat that ferries one across the sea of death, the chariot
that traverses the roads of delusion, the good medicine that cures our eternal
afflictions, the torch that illuminates our long night. The depth of its merit
cannot be fathomed. Now that the degenerate and evil age has finally arrived,
our ability to know suffering must develop. Now that we have entered the
beginning of the latter five hundred years, the number of people who study
precepts must increase. The Great Perfection of Wisdom Scriptures prophecy that
it will be propagated in northeastern lands during the latter age must refer to
todays Japan. Likewise, how could the Nirvana Scriptures goal of promoting
moral discipline during the latter age have been intended for any other time?
The same applies to the Lotus Scriptures four peaceful practices for the evil
age and to the Calming and Contemplations encouragement of samadhi. What is
essential for this age is merely to follow the Buddhas own words, namely,
promoting moral discipline by preaching the permanent.
life essence of the Buddha dharma is moral purity. You must compre- hend this
life essence. The five-thousand scrolls of scriptures are called the Buddha
dharma. How can you chant them without practicing what they teach? The sixty
scrolls of Zhiyis commentaries are known as the Tendai Perfect Doctrine. How
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can you discuss them without following their principles? You must know that
Buddha dharma consists of the Buddhas wondrous decorum. Only a person who knows
the Buddha dharmas meaning, who understands its principles, and who practices
its decorum can be called a Buddhist.
In
this treatise I outline the practice of Buddhist decorum in order to save people
during this latter age. The Buddhist canon of discourses, discipline, and
treatises resembles a contract. They record the principles of the threefold
study (meditation, morality, and wisdom) of the Buddha dharma. For example,
contracts for estates (shen) are preserved in a ledger to show how much profit
can be derived from planting, weeding, and harvesting a piece of land.
Similarly, chanting the discourses, discipline, and treatises and practicing
their teachings show you how to rectify body and mind and how to follow the
Buddhas footsteps.
Seven Past Buddhas Precept Verse says: Refrain from all evil; Perform every
manner of good; Purify your own mind; This is the teaching of all Buddhas. All
the doctrines preached by the Buddha throughout his teaching career are summed
up in this one verse. How can you rely on the Buddhas teaching to leave your
home as a renunciant monk, yet not follow the Buddhas admo- nition? The time to
uphold the precepts has arrived. How can you imagine that observing the precepts
is tiresome? Isnt the wheel of suffering around your neck more bothersome? When
impermanence strikes you in the face, dont be caught lackadaisically
napping.
When
I, Eisai, was in Great China, I studied the holy scriptures, recorded the main
points of the discipline, and then returned to Japan. Once here, I knew that the
time was ripe and that peoples spiritual capacities were ready for me to
promote the precepts. When so many monks responded to my encouragement, I
experienced joy a thousand times over. Since my twenty-first year until my
fiftieth year, I have trained as a Buddhist monk in Japan and in China for a
full thirty years. During that time I never before experienced any miracles.
Now, however, I have the miracle of all of you following me. Based on the notes
that I took in China, I have written this treatise on precepts for the latter
age. Anyone who wishes to attain moral purity should follow its exhortations.
The essentials for monastics are written herein.
Maintaining moral purity consists of two main types of
practices. The first concerns robes and meals. The second concerns practice and
decorum. First, robes cover the body while meals nourish the body. Second,
practice means observing the Buddhist precepts while decorum means proper
etiquette. Each of these consists of two types. There are secular robes and
dharma robes. There are invitations to banquets and begging for food. There are
bhiksu precepts and bodhisattva precepts. There are secular forms of etiquette
and the universal norms of the Way...
[from the
1789 woodblock edition]
</blockquote>

 
</blockquote>
Pgina 12
eisai.txt
PDF:
A Treatise on Letting Zen Flourish to Protect the State
 
by Myan Eisai (1141-1215) 
Translated by
Gishin Tokiwa 
In: <a href="dBET_ZenTexts_2005.pdf">Zen Texts, BDK Tripitaka
Translation Series</a>, 2005, pp. 43ff. 
 

<a name="a1" id="a1"></a>Eisai and Tea
<img width="280" height="417"
src="https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/eisai_01.jpg" alt="
"> 
 Kissa
Yjki 
- the Book of Tea 
1) 
In 1191, the famous Zen priest Eisai (; 1141-1215) brought back tea seeds
to Kyoto. Some of the tea seeds were given to the priest Myoe Shonin, and
became the basis for Uji tea. The oldest tea specialty book in Japan, Kissa
Yjki (; How to stay healthy by drinking tea) was written by
Eisai. The two-volume book was written in 1211 after his second and last visit
to China. The first sentence states, "Tea is the ultimate mental and
medical remedy and has the ability to make one's life more full and
complete". The preface describes how drinking tea can have a positive
effect on the five vital organs, especially the heart. It discusses tea's
medicinal qualities which include easing the effects of alcohol, acting as a
stimulant, curing blotchiness, quenching thirst, eliminating indigestion, curing
beriberi, preventing fatigue, and improving urinary and brain function. Part One
also explains the shapes of tea plants, tea flowers and tea leaves and covers
how to grow tea plants and process tea leaves. In Part Two, the book discusses
the specific dosage and method required for individual physical ailments. 
Eisai was
also instrumental in introducing tea consumption to the warrior class, which
rose to political prominence after the Heian Period. Eisai learned that the
shogun Minamoto no Sanetomo had a habit of drinking too much every night.
In 1214, Eisai presented a book he had written to the general, lauding the
health benefits of tea drinking. After that, the custom of tea drinking became
popular among the Samurai. 
2) 
The Kissa Yjki or Tea drinking Good for the Health
of Eisai Zenji, the famous Buddhist scholar and architect who went to China in
1187, is the first work on Tea written in Japan. It is small pamphlet of some
twenty printed pages devoted to the virtues of Tea and of Mulberry Infusion
which he strongly recommends for the Five Disease, viz. the water-drinking
Pgina 13
eisai.txt
disease, the want of appetite disease, paralysis, boils and beri-beri . There
are two MSS of it, one dated 1211 and the other 1214. It was in this latter yare
that Eisai is said to have cured the Sogun Sanemoto of some malady by means of
Tea, and as a result it became a fashionable remedy. Other medicines, he
observes, cure only one kind of disease, but Tea is a remedy for all disorders.
As the Sung poet says, The Pest-god gets out of his chariot to salute the Tea
tree. Eisai quotes the Sonsho Darani Kyo as
declaring that of the Five Viscera, the Liver likes acid taste, the Lungs
pungent, the Heart bitter, the Spleen sweet and the Kidneys salt. Now the Heart
is the chief of the Five Viscera, as Bitter is the chief of the Five Tastes. And
since Tea is the chief of bitter tastes naturally it is best for the Heart.

 
Drinking Tea
for Health (Kissa-yjki , 1211 or 1214) by Eisai 
The First Japanese Book about the drinking tea. In Chinese, with Classical
Japanese, Modern Japanese translations. 
<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/229536679/Eisai-Kissa-Hojoki"
target="_blank">https://www.scribd.com/doc/229536679/Eisai-Kissa-Hojoki
</a>
 
<blockquote>
Eisai: The Monk that Propagated Tea Culture in Japan
 
By Ricardo Caicedo 
<a href="http://www.myjapanesegreentea.com/eisai"
target="_blank">http://www.myjapanesegreentea.com/eisai</a>
Myouan Eisai
(Myan Eisai, ) is best known for bringing the Rinzai school of Zen
Buddhism to Japan.
He also played
a prominent role in Japanese tea history because he wrote the Kissayojoki (
), a book about tea.
A
closer look at Eisais life
He was born on
April 20th of 1141 in what is now Okayama prefecture. His father was a Shinto
priest.
At the age of
eleven he studied the Tendai school of Buddhism in Anyouji temple. When he was
14 he became ordained at Mount Hiei, near Kyoto.
As a side note,
the Tendai school was founded by Saicho, another Buddhist monk. He was one of
the first to bring tea seeds to Japan, according to written accounts.
When Eisai was
28 (year 1168), he travelled to Mount Tiantai (Tendai in Japanese) in China to
further his studies. Since this was where his school of Buddhism originated, it
was the best place to go.
In his six
Pgina 14
eisai.txt
months stay, he learned that Zen teachings had become widespread in Chinese
Buddhism. He also obtained 60 volumes of scriptures and offered them to the head
priest of his school.
This was no
small feat for such a young man, and so this gives us an impression of Eisais
skill.
His second trip
to China wouldnt happen until 1187, when he was 47 years old. He wanted to
visit India, the motherland of Buddha.
However, once
in China the local government didnt give him permission to cross the border, so
he decided to study there once more.
Eisai spent
four years as a disciple of Xuan Huaichang (), who was a master of the
Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism.
He received the
certification of Zen teacher (the first one given to a Japanese monk in China),
and returned to Japan in 1191.
Eisai
and tea
Eisai didnt
only bring the teachings of Rinzai Zen to Japan. He also brought tea seeds with
him.
He first
planted tea seeds in Mount Sefuri, on the border of Fukuoka and Saga
prefectures. He thought that this place looked similar to Mount Tiantai, so it
was a suitable place for the tea plants to grow.
In addition, he
gave tea seeds to Myoue Shounin (), a monk from Kousanji temple ()
in Toganoo (), Kyoto. Myoue planted the seeds near the temple, and this was
the beginning of tea in the region of Uji.
Theres a
written account from 1214 where Shogun Minamoto was suffering from a hangover,
and Eisai gave him tea and also his book: Kissayojoki. By then, Eisai was 74
years old.
The book talked
about the health benefits of tea, how to cultivate it, and how to prepare it,
among other things.
This led to the
reintroduction of tea culture in Japan, because this time the lower classes
began to drink it. Until then, tea was reserved for nobles and monks
only.
Eisai died
close to a year later and was buried in Kenninji, the temple that he founded
back in 1202. He is now known as the father of Japanese tea culture.
 
<blockquote>
 <a name="myoe"
id="myoe"></a> Mye Shnin (1173-1232) 
Myoue Shounin: The Beginning of Tea in Uji 
By Ricardo Caicedo 
<a href="http://www.myjapanesegreentea.com/myoue-shounin"
target="_blank">http://www.myjapanesegreentea.com/myoue-shounin </a> 
Myoue Shounin
(Mye Shnin, ) was a Japanese Buddhist monk that lived from 11731232.

Shounin is
a title, which can be translated as high priest. 
Myoue is
remembered for popularizing the Kegon school of Buddhism (), and for
keeping a journal of his dreams for over 40 years. 
In addition,
he also played a role in the history of Japanese tea, as we will see next.

story of Myoue 
Myoue was
born in January 8th of 1173, in what is now Wakayama prefecture. 
Both of his
parents died in 1180 while he was still a child. First it was his mother due to
an illness, and several months later his father passed away in a battle.

An aunt took
care of him, and later on when he was 9 years old he started his Buddhist
studies. 
His first
teacher was his uncle Joukaku, who was a Shingon Buddhist priest. When Myoue was
16, he became the pupil of Mongaku, who was also Joukaku's teacher. 
Myoue then
traveled to Toudaiji temple in Nara, where he learned the Kegon school of
Buddhism under Shousen's guidance. 
Furthermore,
he also learned about Zen from Eisai. They became friends from there on.

In 1206 Myoue
was given the Kousanji () temple in Toganoo (), Kyoto, by Emperor
Go-Toba. Myoue had the task of reviving the Kegon school of Buddhism, which he
did. 
It was there
in Kousanji where Myoue was given tea seeds as a gift from Eisai, who had
brought them from China. 
Myoue not
only planted the tea seeds near the temple. He became a regular tea drinker and
encouraged other monks to do the same, because tea helps to avoid falling asleep
while meditating. 
This was how
tea begun to spread around Kyoto, especially in the region of Uji. In fact, tea
from Toganoo became known as honcha (), meaning real tea. All other tea
Pgina 16
eisai.txt
cultivated somewhere else was referred to as hicha (), false tea.

As time
passed by, it was the tea from Uji that took the title of honcha. It's the most
prestigious tea growing region in Japan. 
At Kousanji
temple the tea field remains, and it is still harvested every year in mid May.

Every 8th of
November, there is a memorial ceremony where the tea industry association of Uji
brings shincha to the temple. 
 
 
</blockquote>
 
</blockquote>


 
<img
src="https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/Eisai2.jpg" width="355" height="462"
border="0">
<a name="a" id="a"></a>EISAI: 
THE FIRST JAPANESE MASTER 
In: The Zen Experience by Thomas Hoover
 
Copyright 1980
<blockquote>
There is a
twelfth-century story that the first Japanese monk who 
journeyed to China to study Ch'an returned home to find a 
summons from the Japanese court. There, in a meeting 
reminiscent of the Chinese sovereign Wu and the Indian 
Bodhidharma some seven hundred years before, Japan's 
emperor commanded him to describe the teachings of this 
strange new cult. The bemused monk (remembered by the name 
Kakua) replied with nothing more than a melody on his flute, 
leaving the court flabbergasted.1 But what more ideal expression 
of China's wordless doctrine? 
As in the China entered by Bodhidharma, medieval Japan 
already knew the teachings of Buddhism. In fact, the Japanese 
ruling classes had been Buddhist for half a millennium before 
Ch'an officially came to their attention. However, contacts with 
China were suspended midway during this time, leaving 
Japanese Buddhists out of touch with the many changes in 
Chinathe most significant being Ch'an's rise to the dominant 
Buddhist sect.2 Consequently the Japanese had heard almost 
Pgina 17
eisai.txt
nothing about this sect when contacts resumed in the twelfth 
century. To their amazement they discovered that Chinese 
Buddhism had become Ch'an. The story of Ch'an's transplant in 
Japan is also the story of its preservation, since it was destined to 
wither away in China. 
Perhaps we should review briefly how traditional Buddhism 
got to Japan in the first place. During the sixth century, about the 
time of Bodhidharma, a statue of the Buddha and some sutras 
were transmitted to Japan as a gift/bribe from a Korean monarch 
seeking military aid. He claimed Buddhism was very powerful 
although difficult to understand. Not all Japanese, however, were 
overjoyed with the appearance of a new faith. The least pleased 
were those employed by the existing religion, the Japanese cult of 
Shinto, and they successfully discredited Buddhism for several 
decades. But a number of court intrigues were underway at the 
time, and one faction got the idea that Buddhism would be helpful 
in undermining the Shinto-based ruling clique. Eventually this new 
faction triumphed, and by the middle of the seventh century, the 
Japanese were constructing Buddhist temples and pagodas.3 
Other imports connected with these early mainland contacts 
were Chinese writing and the Chinese style of government. The 
Japanese even recreated the T'ang capital of Ch'ang-an, 
consecrated at the beginning of the eighth century as Nara, their 
first real city. The growing Buddhist establishment soon 
overwhelmed Nara with a host of sects and temples, culminating 
in 752 with the unveiling of a bronze meditating Buddha larger 
than any statue in the world. 
Japan was now awash in thirdhand Buddhism, as Chinese 
missionaries patronizingly expounded Sanskrit scriptures they 
themselves only vaguely understood. Buddhism's reputation for 
powerful magic soon demoralized the simple religion of Shinto, 
with its unpretentious shrines and rites, and this benign nature 
reverence was increasingly pushed into the background. The 
impact of Buddhism became so overwhelming that the alarmed 
emperor finally abandoned Nara entirely to the Buddhists, and at 
the close of the eighth century set up a new capital in central 
Japan, known today as Kyoto. 
The emperor also decided to discredit the Nara Buddhists on 
their own terms, sending to China for new, competing sects. Back 
came emissaries with two new schools, which soon assumed 
dominance of Japanese Buddhism. The first of these was Tendai, 
named after the Chinese T'ien-t'ai school. Its teachings centered 
on the Lotus Sutra, which taught that the human Buddha 
personified a universal spirit, evidence of the oneness permeating 
all things. The Tendai school was installed on Mt. Hiei, in the 
outskirts of Kyoto, giving birth to an establishment eventually to 
number several thousand buildings. The monks on Mt. Hiei 
became the authority on Buddhist matters in Japan for several 
centuries thereafter, and later they also began meddling in affairs 
of state, sometimes even resorting to arms. Tendai was, and 
perhaps to some degree still is, a faith for the fortunate few. It did 
Pgina 18
eisai.txt
not stress an idealized hereafter, since it served a classthe idle 
aristocracyperfectly comfortable in the present world. In any 
case, it became the major Japanese Buddhist sect during the 
Heian era (794-1185), a time of aristocratic rule. 
The other important, and also aristocratic, version of 
Buddhism preceding Zen was called Shingon, from the Chinese 
school Chen-yen, a magical-mystery sect thriving on secrecy and 
esoteric symbolism. It appealed less to the intellect than did 
Tendai and more to the taste for entertainment among the bored 
aristocrats. Although Shingon monasteries often were situated in 
remote mountainous areas, the intrigue of their engaging 
ceremonies (featuring efflorescent iconography, chants, and 
complex liturgies) and their evocative mandalas (geometrical 
paintings full of symbolism) made this sect a theatrical success. 
This so-called Esoteric Buddhism of Shingon grew so popular that 
the sober Tendai sect was obliged to start adding ritualistic 
complexity into its own practices.4 
The Japanese government broke off relations with China less 
than a hundred years after the founding of Kyoto, around the 
middle of the ninth century. From then until the mid-twelfth 
century mainland contacts virtually ceased, and consequently 
both Japanese culture and Japanese Buddhism gradually evolved 
away from their Chinese models. The Japanese aristocracy 
became obsessed with aesthetics, finery, and refined lovemaking 
accompanied by poetry, perfumes, and flowers.5 They distilled 
the vigorous T'ang culture to a refined essence, rather like 
extracting a delicate liqueur from a stout potion. 
The Buddhist church also grew decadent, even as it grew 
ever more powerful and ominous. The priesthood became the 
appointment of last resort for otherwise unemployable courtiers, 
and indeed Buddhism finally degenerated largely into an 
entertainment for the ruling class, whose members were amused 
and diverted by its rites. This carefree aristocracy also allowed 
increasing amounts of wealth and land to slip into the hands of 
corrupt religious establishments. For their own part, the Buddhists 
began forming armies of monks to protect their new wealth, and 
they eventually went on to engage in inter-temple wars and 
threaten the civil government. 
During this time, the Japanese aristocracy preserved its 
privileged position through the unwise policy of using an emerging 
military class to maintain order. These professional soldiers seem 
to have arisen from the aristocacy itself. Japanese emperors had 
a large number of women at their disposal, through whom they 
scattered a host of progeny, not all of which could be maintained 
idle in Kyoto. A number of these were sent to the provinces, 
where they were to govern untamed outlying areas. This 
continued until one day the court in Kyoto awoke to find that 
Japan was in fact controlled by these rural clans and their 
mounted warriors, the samurai.6 
In the middle of the twelfth century, the samurai effectively 
seized Japan, and their strongman invented for himself the title of 
Pgina 19
eisai.txt
shogun, proceeding to institute what became almost eight 
centuries of unbroken warrior rule. The age of the common man 
had arrived, and one of the shogun's first acts was to transfer the 
government away from aristocratic Kyoto, whose sophisticated 
society made him uncomfortable, to a warrior camp called 
Kamakura, near the site of modern Tokyo. The rule of Japan 
passed from perfumed, poetry-writing aesthetes to fierce, often 
illiterate swordsmen. 
Coincident with this coup, the decadence and irrelevance of 
traditional Buddhism had begun to weigh heavily upon a new 
group of spiritual reformers. Before long Tendai and Shingon 
were challenged by new faiths recognizing the existence and 
spiritual needs of the common people. One form this reformation 
took was the appearance of new sects providing spiritual comfort 
to the masses and the possibility of eternal salvation through 
some simple act, usually the repetition of a sacred chant. One, 
and later two, such sects (Jodo and Jodo Shin) focused on the 
Buddhist figure Amida, whose Paradise or "Pure Land" in the 
hereafter was open to all those calling upon his name (by 
chanting a sort of Buddhist "Hail Mary" called the nembutsu, 
"Praise to Amida Buddha"). Another simplified sect preached a 
fundamentalist return to the Lotus Sutra and was led by a 
firebrand named Nichiren, who also created a chant for his largely 
illiterate followers. A formula guaranteeing Paradise had particular 
appeal to the samurai, whose day-to-day existence was 
dangerous and uncertain. The scandalized Tendai monks 
vigorously opposed this home-grown populist movement, 
occasionally even burning down temples to discourage its growth. 
But the Pure Land and Nichiren sects continued to flourish, since 
the common people finally had a Buddhism all their own. 
There were others, however, who believed that the 
aristocratic sects could be reformed from withinby importing 
them afresh from China, from the source. These reformers hoped 
that Buddhism in China had maintained its integrity and discipline 
during the several centuries of separation. And by fortunate 
coincidence, Japanese contacts with the mainland were being 
reopened, making it again allowable to undertake the perilous sea 
voyage to China. But when the first twelfth-century Japanese 
pilgrims reached the mainland, they were stunned to find that 
traditional Buddhism had been almost completely supplanted by 
Ch'an. Consequently, the Japanese pilgrims returning from China 
perforce returned with Zen, since little else remained. However, 
Zen was not originally brought back to replace traditional 
Buddhism, but rather as a stimulant to restore the rigor that had 
drained out of monastic life, including formal meditation and 
respect or discipline.7 
Credit for the introduction of Lin-chi Zen (called Rinzai) in 
Japan is traditionally given to the aristocratic priest and traveler 
Myoan Eisai (1141-1215).8 He began his career as a young monk 
in the Tendai complex near Kyoto, but in the summer of 1168 he 
accompanied a Shingon priest on a trip to China, largely to 
Pgina 20
eisai.txt
sightsee and to visit the home of the T'ien-t'ai sect as a pilgrim. 
However, the T'ien-t'ai school must have been a mere shadow of 
its former self by this time, and naturally enough Eisai became 
familiar with Ch'an. But he was hardly a firebrand for Zen, for 
when he returned to Japan he continued practice of traditional 
Buddhism. 
Some twenty years later, in 1187, Eisai again journeyed to 
China, this time planning a pilgrimage on to India and the 
Buddhist holy places. But the Chinese refused him permission to 
travel beyond their borders, leaving Eisai no choice but to study 
there. He finally attached himself to an aging Ch'an monk on Mt. 
T'ien-t'ai and managed to receive the seal of enlightenment 
before returning to Japan in 1191, quite probably the first 
Japanese ever certified by a Chinese Ch'an master. He was not, 
however, totally committed to Zen. His Ch'an teacher was also 
occupied with other Buddhist schools, and what Eisai brought 
back was a Buddhist cocktail blended from several different 
traditions.9 But he did proceed to build a temple to the Huang-lung 
(Japanese Oryo) branch of the Lin-chi sect on the southernmost 
Japanese island, Kyushu (the location nearest China), in the 
provincial town of Hakata. Almost as important, he also brought 
back the tea plant (whose brew was used in China to keep drowsy 
monks awake during meditation), thereby instituting the long 
marriage of Zen and tea. 
Although his provincial temple went unchallenged, later 
attempts to introduce this new sect into Kyoto, the stronghold of 
traditional Buddhism, met fierce resistance from the 
establishment, particularly Tendai. But Eisai contended that Zen 
was a useful sect and that the government would reap practical 
benefits from its protection. His spirited defense of Zen, entitled 
"Propagation of Zen for the Protection of the Country," argued
that 
its encouragement would be good for Japanese Buddhism and 
therefore good for Japan.10 
As in India, so in China its teaching has attracted followers and 
disciples in great numbers. It propagates the Truth as the ancient 
Buddha did, with the robe of authentic transmission passing from 
one man to the next. In the matter of religious discipline, it 
practices the genuine method of the sages of old. Thus the Truth 
it teaches, both in substance and appearance, perfects the 
relationships of master and disciple. In its rules of action and 
discipline, there is no confusion of right and wrong. . . . Studying 
it, one discovers the key to all forms of Buddhism; practicing it, 
one's life is brought to fulfillment in the attainment of 
enlightenment. Outwardly it favors discipline over doctrine, 
inwardly it brings the Highest Inner Wisdom. This is what the Zen 
sect stands for.11 
He also pointed out how un-Japanese it would be to deny Zen a 
hearing: Japan has been open-minded in the past, why should 
she reject a new faith now? 
In our country the [emperor] shines in splendor and the influence 
Pgina 21
eisai.txt
of his virtuous wisdom spreads far and wide. Emissaries from the 
distant lands of South and Central Asia pay their respects to his 
court. Lay ministers conduct the affairs of government; priests and 
monks spread abroad religious truth. Even the truths of the Four 
Hindu Vedas are not neglected. Why then reject the five schools 
of Zen Buddhism?12 
Eisai was the classic tactician, knowing well when to fight and 
when to retire, and he decided in 1199 on a diversionary retreat to 
Kamakura, leaving behind the hostile, competitive atmosphere of 
aristocratic Kyoto. Through his political connections, he managed 
to get installed as head of a new temple in Kamakura, beginning 
Zen's long association with the Japanese warrior class. 
Eisai seems to have done well in Kamakura, for not long after 
he arrived, the current strongman gave him financing for a Zen 
temple in Kyoto, named Kennin-ji and completed in 1205. Eisai 
returned the favor by assisting in the repair of temples ravaged by 
the recent wars. It was reportedly for a later, hard-drinking ruler 
that Eisai composed his second classic work, "Drink Tea and 
Prolong Life," which championed the medicinal properties of this 
exotic Chinese beverage, declaring it a restorative that tuned up 
the body and strengthened the heart. 
In the great country of China they drink tea, as a result of which 
there is no heart trouble and people live long lives. Our country is 
full of sickly-looking, skinny persons, and this is simply because 
we do not drink tea. Whenever one is in poor spirits, one should 
drink tea. This will put the heart in order and dispel all illness. 
When the heart is vigorous, then even if the other organs are 
ailing, no great pain will be felt. . . . The heart is the sovereign of 
the five organs, tea is the chief of the bitter foods, and bitter is the 
chief of the tastes. For this reason the heart loves bitter things, 
and when it is doing well all the other organs are properly 
regulated. . . . When, however, the whole body feels weak, 
devitalized, and depressed, it is a sign that the heart is ailing. 
Drink lots of tea, and one's energy and spirits will be restored to 
full strength.13 
This first Zen teacher was certainly no Lin-chi. He was merely 
a Tendai priest who imported Lin-chi's sect from China hoping to 
bring discipline to his school; he established an ecumenical 
monastery at which both Zen and esoteric Tendai practices were 
taught; he consorted with leaders whose place was owed to a 
military coup d'etat; and he appeared to advocate Zen on 
transparently practical, sometimes almost political, grounds. He 
compromised with the existing cults to the end, even refusing to 
lend aid to other, more pure-minded advocates of Ch'an who had 
risen in Kyoto in the meantime.14 But Eisai was a colorful figure 
whom history has chosen to remember as the founder of Zen in 
Japan, as well as (perhaps equally important) the father of the cult 
of tea. 
Eisai ended his days as abbot of the Kyoto temple of Kennin-ji 
and leader of a small Zen community that was careful not to 
quarrel with the powers of Tendai and Shingon, which also had 
Pgina 22
eisai.txt
altars in the temple. Eisai's "Zen" began in Japan as a minor 
infusion of Buddhism's original discipline, but through an 
accommodation with the warrior establishment, he accidentally 
planted the seeds of Ch'an in fertile soil. Gradually the number of 
Zen practitioners grew, as more and more of the samurai 
recognized in Zen a practical philosophy that accorded well with 
their needs. As Paul Varley has explained: "Zen . . . stresses 
cultivation of the intuitive faculties and places a high premium on 
discipline and self-control. It rejects rational decision-making as 
artificial and delusory, and insists that action must come from 
emotion. As such, Zen proved particularly congenial to the 
medieval samurai, who lived with violence and imminent death 
and who sought to develop such things as 'spontaneity of conduct' 
and a 'tranquility of heart' to meet the rigours of his profession. 
Under the influence of Zen, later samurai theorists especially 
asserted that the true warrior must be constantly prepared to 
make the ultimate sacrifice of his life in the service of his lord 
without a moment's reflection or conscious consideration."15 
It can only be ironic that what began in China as a school of 
meditation, then became an iconoclastic movement using koans 
to beat down the analytical faculties finally emerged (in an 
amalgam with other teachings) in Japan as a psychological 
mainstay for the soldiers of a military dictatorship. There was, 
however, another Japanese school of Zen that introduced its 
practice in a form more closely resembling original Ch'an. This 
was the movement started by Dogen, whose life we may now 
examine.
<blockquote>
1. This
anecdote is in Martin Charles Collcutt, "The Zen Monastic 
Institution in Medieval Japan" (Ph.D. dissertation, Harvard 
University, 1975). 
2. Although there were various attempts to introduce Ch'an into 
Japan prior to the twelfth century, nothing ever seemed to 
stick. Dumoulin (History of Zen Buddhism, pp. 138-39) 
summarized these efforts as follows: "The first certain 
information we possess regarding Zen in Japan goes back to 
the early period of her history. The outstanding Japanese 
Buddhist monk during that age, Dosho, was attracted to Zen 
through the influence of his Chinese teacher, Hsuan-tsang, 
under whom he studied the Yogacara philosophy (653). . . . 
Dosho thus came into immediate contact with the tradition of 
Bodhidharma and brought the Zen of the patriarchs to Japan. 
He built the first meditation hall, at a temple in Nara. . . . 
"A century later, for the first time in history, a Chinese Zen 
master came to Japan. This was Tao-hsuan, who belonged to 
the northern sect of Chinese Zen in the third generation after 
Shen-hsiu. Responding to an invitation from Japanese 
Buddhist monks, he took up residence in Nara and 
contributed to the growth of Japanese culture during the 
Tempyo period (729-749). . . . The contemplative element in 
Pgina 23
eisai.txt
the Tendai tradition, which held an important place from the 
beginning, was strengthened in both China and Japan by 
repeated contacts with Zen. 
"A further step in the spread of Zen occurred in the following 
century when I-k'ung, a Chinese master of the Lin-chi sect, 
visited Japan. He came at the invitation of the Empress 
Tachibana Kachiko, wife of the Emperor Saga, during the 
early part of the Showa era (834-848), to teach Zen, first at 
the imperial court and later at the Danrinji temple in Kyoto, 
which the empress had built for him. However, these first 
efforts in the systematic propagation of Zen according to the 
Chinese pattern did not meet with lasting success. I-k'ung 
was unable to launch a vigorous movement. Disappointed, he 
returned to China, and for three centuries Zen was inactive in 
Japan." 
Another opportunity for the Japanese to learn about Ch'an 
was missed by the famous Japanese pilgrim Ennin, who was 
in China to witness the Great Persecution of 845, but who 
paid almost no attention to Ch'an, which he regarded as the 
obsession of unruly ne'er-do-wells. 
3. A number of books provide information concerning early 
Japanese history and the circumstances surrounding the 
introduction of Buddhism to Japan. General historical works of 
particular relevance include: John Whitney Hall, Japan, from 
Prehistory to Modern Times (New York: Delacorte, 1970); 
Mikiso Hane, Japan, A Historical Survey (New York: 
Scribner's, 1972); Edwin O. Reischauer, Japan: Past and 
Present, 3rd ed. (New York: Knopf, 1964); and George B. 
Sansom, A History of Japan, 3 vols. (Stanford, Calif.: Stanford 
University Press, 1958-63). 
Studies of early Japanese Buddhism may be found in: 
Masaharu Anesaki, History of Japanese Religion (London: 
Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner, 1930: reissue, Rutland, Vt.: 
Tuttle, 1963); William K. Bunce, Religions in Japan (Rutland, 
Vt.: Tuttle, 1955); Ch'en, Buddhism in China; Eliot, Japanese 
Buddhism; Shinsho Hanayama, A History of Japanese 
Buddhism (Tokyo: Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai, 1966); and E. Dale 
Saunders, Buddhism in Japan (Philadelphia: University of 
Pennsylvania Press, 1964). 
4. In fact, the popularity of esoteric rituals was such that they 
were an important part of early Zen practice in Japan. 
5. This world is well described by Ivan Morris in The World of the 
Shining Prince: Court Life in Ancient Japan (New York: Knopf, 
1964). A discussion of the relation of this aesthetic life to the 
formation of Japanese Zen may be found in Thomas Hoover, 
Zen Culture (New York: Random House, 1977; paperback 
edition, New York: Vintage, 1978). 
6. One of the most readable accounts of the rise of the Japanese 
military class may be found in Paul Varley, Samurai (New 
York: Delacorte, 1970; paperback edition, New York: Dell, 
1972). 
Pgina 24
eisai.txt
7. This theory is advanced eloquently in Collcutt, "Zen Monastic 
Institution in Medieval Japan." In later years the Ch'an sect in 
China itself actually entered a phase of decadence, with the 
inclusion of esoteric rites and an ecumenical movement that 
advocated the chanting of the nembutsu by Ch'anistssome 
of whom claimed there was great similarity between the 
psychological aspects of this mechanical chant and those of 
the koan. 
8. Accounts of Eisai's life may be found in Dumoulin, History of 
Zen Buddhism; and in Collcutt, "Zen Monastic Institution in 
Medieval Japan." 
9. See Collcutt, "Zen Monastic Institution in Medieval
Japan." 
10. See Saunders, Buddhism in Japan, p. 221. 
11. Translated in Wm. Theodore de Bary, ed. Sources of 
Japanese Tradition, Vol. 1 (New York: Columbia University 
Press, 1958), pp. 236-37. 
12. Ibid., p. 237. 
13. De Bary, Sources of Japanese Tradition, pp. 239-40. 
14. Again the best discussion of this intrigue is provided by 
Collcutt, "Zen Monastic Institution in Medieval Japan." 
15. Varley, Samurai, p. 45.
</blockquote>
 
</blockquote>
 
<a name="m" id="m"></a> <img
src="https://terebess.hu/zen/magyar.gif" width="36" height="25"
border="0"> 
sans-serif">Idzet Eiszai rpiratbl A teaivs gygyt
hatsa 
(Mikls Pl: A Zen s a mvszet, Magvet Kiad, Budapest, 1978)

"A tea a
legcsodsabb orvossg egszsgnk polsra; ez a hossz let elixrje.
Domboldalakon sarjad, mintegy a fld leheleteknt. Akik szedik s hasznljk,
magas kort remlhetnek. India is, Kna is nagyra tartja, s az elmlt idkben a
mi orszgunk is kedvet kapott mr egyszer a tehoz. Most is, mint akkor, ritka
j tulajdonsgokkal br, bzvst terjeszthetjk ht lvezett. 
A rgi idkben,
azt mondjk, az emberek az ggel egy kort rtek meg, mostansg azonban az ember
fokozatosan lehanyatlott s elgynglt, vagyis testnek ngy alkotrsze s t
szerve elfajzott. Ennek okrt megesik az is, hogy ha a tszrsos s
moxagetses kezelshez folyamodnak, vgzetes lesz az eredmny, s meleg
tavaszokon teljesen hatstalan a kezels. Olyannyira, hogy akik alvetik magukat
ezeknek a gygyszati eljrsoknak, szakadatlan gynglnek, mgnem a hall
elviszi ket, s ettl a flelem nem v meg. Ha pedig ezeket a hagyomnyos
Pgina 25
eisai.txt
gygykezelseket ma is vltozatlanul tovbb alkalmazzk a betegekre, bajosan
remlhetnek valami enyhlst. 
Mindazon dolgok
kzl, amelyeket az g teremtett, az ember a legnemesebb. Megrizni letnket,
megtenni minden lehetsgest az osztlyrsznkl jutott arasznyi ltrt okos s
helynval. Az let megrzsnek az alapja egszsgnk polsa; az egszsg
titka pedig az t szerv j mkdsben rejlik. Az t szerv uralkodja a szv,
mrpedig a szv erstsnek a legkitnbb mdja a teaivs. Ha a szv gynge, az
sszes tbbi szerv megsnyli azt. Immron tbb mint ktszer ezer esztendeje,
hogy a hrneves orvos, Dzsiva, Indiban eltvozott az lk sorbl, s a mostani
elfajzott idkben senki sincs mr, aki akkurtusan meg tudn hatrozni a vr
keringst. Tbb mint hromszor ezer esztendeje, hogy a knai orvos, Sen-nung,
eltnt a fldrl, s ma senki sincs, aki helyesen tudn elrni az orvossgokat.
Minthogy senki sincs, akitl tancsot lehetne krni effle dolgokban, betegsg,
kr, nyavalya s pusztuls egymst kvetik vgtelen sorban. Ha pedig a
gygyszati mdban hibt vtnk, pldul moxagetsnl, abbl nagy rtalom
szrmazhatik. Valaki azt mondotta nkem, hogy az orvossgokat ma gy hasznljk,
hogy gyakorta megkrostjk a szvet, mert a fzetek nem felelnek meg a
betegsgeknek. A moxagets sokszor id eltt hallt hoz, mert a lktets
ellenttben van a moxval. gy vlem teht, tancsos lenne fellvizsglni ezeket
a gygymdokat aszerint, ahogyan n megismertem ket Knban. Kt f
megkzeltst mutatok be a manapsg elterjedt betegsgek megismersre, azt
remlve, hogy msoknak is hasznra lehetek majd. 
Els : az t
Szerv Mkdsnek sszhangja. 
A Pokol
Meghdtsa cmen ismert titkos knyv szerint a mj a savas tpllkot kedveli,
a td a cspset, a szv a kesert, a lp az deset, a vese pedig a ssat. ...
gy ht az t szerv mindegyiknek megvan a sajt zbeli kedvence. Ha kzlk
valamelyiket tlzott elnyben rszestjk, a megfelel szerv tlsgosan
megersdik, elnyomja a tbbit, s gy betegsg okozja lesz. Manapsg savanyt,
cspset, deset s ssat nagy mennyisgben esznk, de keser telt nem.
Csakhogy, ha a szv megbetegszik, azt minden szerv s rzk megsnyli. Mrmost
(kesert) enni lehet, de hnyingernk tmad, s abba kell hagyni az evst. Ha
azonban tet iszunk, a szv meg fog ersdni, s mentes lesz a betegsgektl. J
tudni, hogy ha a szvnek valami baja van, a br szne megfakul, ami annak a
jele, hogy az let fogyban van. Csodlkozom, hogy a japnok nem trdnek azzal,
hogy keser tpllkot is fogyasszanak. Kna nagy orszgban tet isznak, aminek
kvetkeztben nincsenek szvbetegsgek, s a np hossz let. A mi orszgunk
tele van bgyadt, sovny emberekkel, s ennek egyszeren az az oka, hogy nem
isznak tet. Ez rendbe hozza a szvet, s elzi a krt. Ha a szv lnk, akkor,
mg ha a tbbi szervek nincsenek is jl, nem lesz rsznk nagy fjdalomban...

...A szv az t
szerv uralkodja, a tea a keser tpllkok feje, az zek feje pedig a keser.
Ennek okrt a szv kedveli a keser dolgokat, mrpedig ha a szv jl mkdik,
az sszes szervek helyesen vannak szablyozva..." 
 
 

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