Hōnen(1133 - 1212)
Hōnen was the religious reformer and founder of the first independent branch of Japanese Pure Land Buddhism called Jōdo-shū (浄土宗, "The Pure Land School"). He is also considered the Seventh Jōdo Shinshū Patriarch.
Hōnen became a Tendai initiate at an early age, but grew disaffected and sought an approach to Buddhism that anyone could follow, even during the perceived Age of Dharma Decline. After discovering the writings of the Chinese Buddhist Shandao, he undertook the teaching of rebirth in the pure land of Amitābha through nianfo or "recitation of the Buddha's name".
Hōnen gathered a wide array of followers and critics. Emperor Tsuchimikado exiled Hōnen and his followers in 1207 after an incident regarding two of his disciples in addition to persuasion by influential Buddhist communities. Hōnen was eventually pardoned and allowed to return to Kyoto, where he stayed for a short time before his death. (Source Accessed October 17, 2019)
On the topic of this person
Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations
Originating in India, Mahayana Buddhism spread across Asia, becoming the prevalent form of Buddhism in Tibet and East Asia. Over the last twenty-five years Western interest in Mahayana has increased considerably, reflected both in the quantity of scholarly material produced and in the attraction of Westerners towards Tibetan Buddhism and Zen.
Paul Williams’ Mahayana Buddhism is widely regarded as the standard introduction to the field, used internationally for teaching and research and has been translated into several European and Asian languages. This new edition has been fully revised throughout in the light of the wealth of new studies and focuses on the religion’s diversity and richness. It includes much more material on China and Japan, with appropriate reference to Nepal, and for students who wish to carry their study further there is a much-expanded bibliography and extensive footnotes and cross-referencing. Everyone studying this important tradition will find Williams’ book the ideal companion to their studies. (Source: Routledge)
Williams, Paul. Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations. 2nd ed. The Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices. New York: Routledge, 2009. https://archive.org/details/mahayanabuddhismthedoctrinalfoundationspaulwilliamsroutledgeseealtruismandreality_202003_445_W/mode/2up.
Williams, Paul. Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations. 2nd ed. The Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices. New York: Routledge, 2009. https://archive.org/details/mahayanabuddhismthedoctrinalfoundationspaulwilliamsroutledgeseealtruismandreality_202003_445_W/mode/2up.;Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations;tathāgatagarbha;Ratnagotravibhāga Mahāyānottaratantraśāstra;gzhan stong;rang stong;The doctrine of buddha-nature in Chinese Buddhism;The doctrine of buddha-nature in Japanese Buddhism;Dasheng qixin lun;Critical Buddhism;anātman;Contemporary;prajñā;Madhyamaka;śūnyatā;Two Truths;Yogācāra;trisvabhāva;ālayavijñāna;The doctrine of buddha-nature in Tibetan Buddhism;Saddharmapuṇḍarīkasūtra;Nāgārjuna;Dōgen;Buddhāvataṃsakasūtra;Fazang;Tien Tai;Hōnen;Shinran;Paul Williams;Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations
Seiji Kumagai at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium
Seiji Kumagai discusses the theory of “innate enlightenment” (hongaku) in Japanese Buddhism. He argues that Shinran clearly showed a negative attitude toward innate enlightenment despite the fact that he used terms which are often regarded to be associated with the theory.
Kumagai, Seiji. "How the Concepts of 'Buddha-Nature' (Tathāgatagarbha) and 'Innate Enlightenment' (Hongaku) Were Interpreted by Shinran (1173–1263), Founder of the Jōdo-Shin-Shū School of Japanese Pure Land Buddhism." Paper presented at the University of Vienna Symposium, Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia, Vienna, Austria, July 2019. Video, 47:28. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KwdudJF4hc.
Kumagai, Seiji. "How the Concepts of 'Buddha-Nature' (Tathāgatagarbha) and 'Innate Enlightenment' (Hongaku) Were Interpreted by Shinran (1173–1263), Founder of the Jōdo-Shin-Shū School of Japanese Pure Land Buddhism." Paper presented at the University of Vienna Symposium, Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia, Vienna, Austria, July 2019. Video, 47:28. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KwdudJF4hc.;Seiji Kumagai at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium;Shinran;The doctrine of buddha-nature in Japanese Buddhism;Tien Tai;Genshin;Hōnen;Tanluan;Pure Land;Original Enlightenment;Tamura, Y.;Seiji Kumagai; How the Concepts of “buddha-nature” (Tathāgatagarbha) and “innate enlightenment” (Hongaku) were interpreted by Shinran (1173-1263)
The Path of Gratitude
The goal of Shin Buddhism’s central practice, nembutsu, is not to attain buddhahood for ourselves, says Jeff Wilson, but to express gratitude for all we have received.
Wilson, Jeff. "The Path of Gratitude." Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Quarterly, November 1, 2019.
Wilson, Jeff. "The Path of Gratitude." Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Quarterly, November 1, 2019.;The Path of Gratitude;Pure Land;The doctrine of buddha-nature in Japanese Buddhism;Hōnen;Shinran;Jeff Wilson; 
Other names
- 法然 · other names
- Genkū · other names
- 源空 · other names
Affiliations & relations
- Founder of the Jōdo-shū (The Pure Land School), a branch of Pure Land Buddhism · religious affiliation
- Benchō (1162–1238), founder of the main Chinzei branch of Jōdo-shū. Often called Shōkō. Exiled in 1207 to Kyushu · student
- Genchi (1183–1238), Hōnen's personal attendant, and close friend of Benchō · student
- Shōkū (1147–1247), founder of the Seizan branch of Jōdo-shū. Not exiled · student
- Shinran (1173–1263), founder of the Jōdo Shinshū branch of Pure Land Buddhism. Exiled to Echigo Province in 1207 · student
- Ryūkan (1148–1227), founder of the many-recitation or Tanengi branch of Jōdo-shū · student
- Chōsai (1184–1266), founder of the Shōgyōhongangi branch of Jōdo-shū which believed that all Buddhist practices can lead to rebirth in the Pure land · student
- Kōsai (1163–1247), promoted the controversial Ichinengi, or "single-recitation" teaching of Jōdo-shū. Expelled from Honen's community before the exile of 1207 · student
- Gyōkō (?), another proponent of Ichinengi doctrine. Exiled to Sado in 1207 · student
- Rensei (1141–1208), formerly a notable samurai named Kumagai no Jirō Naozane who had fought at the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani and killed the Heike leader Taira no Atsumori · student
- Kansai (1148–1200) · student
- Shinkū (1146–1228) · student
- Anrakubō (? -1207), executed during the purge of 1207 · student
- Jūren (?), executed along with Anrakubō in 1207 · student
