Kōdō Sawaki
Kodo Sawaki | |
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Kosho Uchiyama |
Kodo Sawaki (沢木 興道, Sawaki Kōdō, June 16, 1880.
Biography
Sawaki was born in Tsu, Mie on June 16, 1880.[1] He was the sixth child and both his parents died when he was young,[3] his mother when he was four and his father three years later.[1] Sawaki was then adopted by an aunt whose husband soon died.[1] After this, Sawaki was raised by a gambler[3] and lantern maker named Bunkichi Sawaki.[1]
When he was 16, he ran away from home to become a monk at Eihei-ji, one of the two head temples of the Sōtō Zen sect, and later traveled to Soshin-ji where he was ordained in 1899 by Koho Sawada.[1][3][4] However, he was drafted to serve in the Imperial Japanese Army during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905 to minister to the wounded.
After being discharged in 1906,
He later became a Zen teacher, and during the 1930s he served as a professor at
He is known for his rigorous emphasis on zazen, in particular the practice of shikantaza, or "just sitting".[3] He often called Zen "wonderfully useless," discouraging any gaining idea or seeking after special experiences or states of consciousness.
Lineage
海底泥牛吼 (Clay ox howls on the floor of the sea)
Dharma transmission
Though Sawaki ordained many monks and nuns, only five monks and three nuns received Dharma Transmission (Shihō) from Sawaki:
- Shūyū Narita (1914–2004): students in Japan and Europe.
- Kosho Uchiyama (1912–1998): succeeded Sawaki as abbot of Antai-ji.
- Sodō Yokoyama (1907–1980): also called "Kusabue Zenji (Zen master of the grass-flute)".
- Satō Myōshin.
- Kōjun Kishigami[5] (born 1941): lives in Japan; students in Japan, France and Germany.
- Jōshin Kasai (1920–1985): female, active in kesa sewing.
- Kōbun Okamoto (1925-?): female, active in kesa sewing.
- Baikō Fukuda: female, part time tenzô (cook) in Antaiji.
Influential students
Other influential students of Sawaki who did not receive Dharma transmission from him are:
- Gudo Wafu Nishijima(1919–2014)
- Taisen Deshimaru[6] (1914–1982): went to France in 1967 and lived there for the rest of his life, establishing the Association Zen Internationale.
- Kōbun Chino Otogawa[7] (1938–2002): taught many students over the years in the United States and Europe.
Bibliography
- Sawaki, Kōdō; ISBN 978-1614290483.
- Sawaki, Kōdō (2014). Commentary on the Song of Awakening. Merwin Asia. ISBN 978-1937385613.
References
- ^ ISBN 978-1-61429-048-3.
- ISBN 978-1-61429-048-3.
- ^ ISBN 0-86171-509-8.
- ^ a b c "About Sanshin-ji". Sanshin Zen Community. Archived from the original on March 29, 2015. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
- ^ "Zen Road – Site web de la Sangha sans demeure et de Philippe Rei Ryu Coupey". zen-road.org. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
- ^ "Zen Road – Site web de la Sangha sans demeure et de Philippe Rei Ryu Coupey". zen-road.org. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
- ^ "Kobun Chino Otagawa Resume" (PDF). jikoji.org. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
External links
- Sayings by Kodo Sawaki
- Seven chapters that were not included in the English translation of "The Zen Teaching of 'Homeless Kodo'" (Sayings by Kodo Sawaki with some texts by Kosho Uchiyama)
- tricycle: 17 frank pieces of life advice from a Zen master
- Zen teachings by Kodo Sawaki
- Life and spirit of Kōdō Sawaki Biographical page at Antai-ji (in Japanese)
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A tu, paraules zen plenes de vida (zen teachings of Kõdõ Sawaki), El Bou Blanc Publicacions. www.sotozencatalunya.wordpress.com