朗弁、良辨、朗辨
Rōben was born in 680. Some accounts give his birthplace as the province of Omi, other as the province of Sagami.
Legend states that when he was a child he was carried off by a large eagle and transported to the Kasuga Shrine in the province of Yamato, where he was found by the eminent priest Gien and raised to manhood. Thirty years later he was finally reunited with his mother.
Roben studied Buddhism under Gien.
He was treated with great favor by Emperor Shomu, and it has even been said that he was the one who persuaded the emperor to undertake the building of the Todai-ji. In 733 he built the Kensaku-in, the forerunner of the present Sangatsu-do of the Todai-ji. Later, when Emperor Shomu decided to build the Todai-ji, Roben was put in charge of the construction and worked with Gyoki and others to bring it to completion in 752. He was made the first head of the new temple.
