覚如 Kakunyo

Background

Kakunyo was born in 1270. He was a great-grandson of Shinran, the founder of the Jôdo Shinshü sect of Buddhism.

Career

He began as a student of the Tendai sect and in 1286 became a monk of the Kofuku-ji in Nara. The following year he received instruction in the doctrines of the Jodo Shinshü sect from the priest Nyoshin. In 1290 he journeyed around the Kantô region visiting sites associated with Shinran, and in 1300, when Nyoshin died in the province of Mutsu in the far north of Japan, Kakunyo replaced him as propagator of the Jodo Shinshü faith in the Mutsu region.

In 1308 he returned to Kyoto and the same year was presented by Emperor Gofushimi with the area called Ôtani in Kyoto, the site of Shinran’s grave. He proceeded to repair the grave and build a temple on the site called the Hongan-ji.

Achievements

• He did his best to preserve the unity of the group centering around the Hongan-ji, stressing the view that Shinran in the first generation, Nyoshin in the second, and himself in the third were the true leaders of the Jodo Shinshü religious community.

Works

• Other Work

  • Among his writings are the Hôonkô-shiki and the Kudensho.

Connections

Great-grandfather:

Shinran