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Dōgen

File:Soto-Zen-Master-Dogen-Zenji-Portrait.png · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

EntityQ318064· pop 53· linked from 2,395 articles

Also known as Dōgen Zenji, Dōgen Kigen, Eihei Dōgen, Dougen

was a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk, writer, poet, philosopher, and founder of the Sōtō school of Zen in Japan. He is also known as Dōgen Kigen (), Eihei Dōgen (), Kōso Jōyō Daishi (), and Busshō Dentō Kokushi ().

AI overview

Dōgen was a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk and philosopher who founded the Sōtō school of Zen, one of the major branches of Zen Buddhism in Japan. He is considered an important figure in Buddhist history for his teachings and writings that shaped how Zen Buddhism developed and was practiced in Japan.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Person · Open Library

Born
1200
Died
1253
Works
37

Top works

  • 正法眼蔵を読む
  • 普勧坐禅儀講話
  • 典座教訓赴粥飯法
  • 正法眼蔵解読
  • 修証義の仏教

via Open Library + Wikidata

Music · MusicBrainz

Type
Person
Gender
Male
Origin
Japan
Active from
1200
Active to
1253

via MusicBrainz · CC0

Listeners · Last.fm

Listeners
2
Total plays
2

<a href="https://www.last.fm/music/D%C5%8Dgen">Read more on Last.fm</a>

via Last.fm · Dōgen

Recent publications · Crossref

5 total works indexed

  1. Treasury of the True Dharma Eye

    · 2023 · cited 1x

  2. A Primer of Soto Zen

    · 1972 · cited 1x

  3. Dōgen Kigen-Mystical Realist

    · 1978

  4. Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Dōgen’s &lt;em&gt;Shōbōgenzō&lt;/em&gt;

    · 2025

  5. Treasury of the True Dharma Eye

    · 2023

via Crossref · CC0

Quotes

  • Coming, going, the waterbirds don't leave a trace don't follow a path.
  • But do not ask me where I am going, As I travel in this limitless world, Where every step I take is my home.
  • As I study both the exoteric and the esoteric schools of Buddhism, they maintain that human beings are endowed with Dharma-nature by birth. If this is the case, why did the Buddhas of all ages — undoubtedly in possession of enlightenment — find it necessary to seek enlightenment and engage in spiritual practice?
  • The primordial Buddhas are saying,
  • It is only due to a lack of heart for the Way and a lack of skill in handling their daily conduct that people become vainly tied to fame and gain.
  • Zazen is the ultimate practice. This is indeed the True Self. The Buddhadharma is not to be sought outside of this.

via Wikiquote · CC BY-SA

Key facts

Religious biography.name
Dōgen
Religious biography.image
Soto-Zen-Master-Dogen-Zenji-Portrait.png
Religious biography.birth_date
26 January 1200
Religious biography.birth_place
Kyoto, Japan
Religious biography.death_place
Kyoto, Japan
Religious biography.religion
Buddhism
Religious biography.school
Sōtō
Religious biography.title
Zen Master
Religious biography.predecessor
Rujing

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Image
Dogen.jpg
Show 10 more facts
Commons category
Dōgen
date of birth
1200-01-19
date of death
1253-09-29
name in native language
道元
pseudonym
高祖
name in kana
どうげん
posthumous name
承陽大師
religious name
希玄
birth name
文殊丸
Commons Creator page
Dōgen
Sources (1)

via Wikidata · CC0

~31 min read

Article

30 sections
Contents
  • Biography
  • Early life
  • Early training
  • Travel to China
  • Return to Japan
  • Eihei-ji
  • Death
  • Teachings
  • Zazen
  • Other Buddhist practices
  • Oneness of practice-verification
  • Buddha-nature
  • Great realization / satori
  • Time-Being
  • Perfect expression
  • Critique of Rinzai
  • Virtues
  • Writings
  • Shōbōgenzō
  • Shushō-gi
  • Shinji Shōbōgenzō
  • Collections of dharma discourses
  • Other writings
  • Lineage
  • Miraculous events and auspicious signs
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References
  • Sources
  • External links

was a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk, writer, poet, philosopher, and founder of the Sōtō school of Zen in Japan. He is also known as Dōgen Kigen (), Eihei Dōgen (), Kōso Jōyō Daishi (), and Busshō Dentō Kokushi ().

Originally ordained as a monk in the Tendai School in Kyoto, he was ultimately dissatisfied with its teaching and traveled to China to seek out what he believed to be a more authentic Buddhism. He remained there for four years, finally training under Tiāntóng Rújìng, an eminent teacher of the Cáodòng lineage of Chinese Chan. Upon his return to Japan, he began promoting the practice of zazen (sitting meditation) through literary works such as Fukanzazengi and Bendōwa.

Gallery (18)

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