Background
Kanchō was born in 916. He was a a son of Imperial Prince Atsuzane and a grandson of Emperor Uda.
Kanchō was born in 916. He was a a son of Imperial Prince Atsuzane and a grandson of Emperor Uda.
He entered the clergy at the age of forty, and received kanjo, a ceremony in Esoteric Buddhism indicating the attainment of Buddhahood, from Kanku of Ninna-ji in Kyoto. He numbered among his religious followers Emperor En’yu and other members of the court. He served as head monk of To-ji and held the ecclesiastical rank of daisojo.
The Shingon sect was represented by two teaching lines, that descending from Yakushin, which enjoyed great prestige, and the less prestigious Shobo line. Kancho belonged to the former, which with him became clearly established as the Hirosawa branch of Shingon. The latter, represented by Ninkai, became known as the Ono. branch, the Shingon sect thus splitting into two distinct groups. Kancho’s principal disciple was Saishin. He was well known for his mastery of shomyo, the special type of chanting used in Buddhist ceremonies.