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Some Problems Concerning Genshin's Biographies

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Some Problems Concerning Genshin's Biographies Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies, Vol. 50, No. 1, December 2001 (15) Some Problems concerning Genshin's Biographies Robert F. RHODES As Hayami Tasuku has shown, within eighty to ninety years after Genshin's (942-1017) death, four biographies were written on this monk. They are (1) the biography in the Ryogon-in Nijugo Zalninai Kesshu Kakocho, (2) that found in Chingen's Hokke Genki, (3) Oe Sukekuni's Enrvakuji Shurvogon-in Genshin Sozuden, and (4) that of Oe Masafusa's Zoku Honcho Kosoden. ') These biographies are all quite interesting, but in this paper I will focus on the first two biographies, and discuss the images of Genshin found in them. First, it must be noted that the images of Genshin presented in these biographies are quite different. The Kakocho is the register of deceased members of the Nijugo zammai-e, the nembutsu association formed in Yokawa on Mt. Hiei in 986. This document contains short biographies of seventeen monks, including Genshin, who were believed to have reached the Pure Land. This biography is divided into three parts : (1) the section dealing with Genshin's life (takingup about 49% of the text), (2) the description of his death (22%), and (3) the section introduction two dreams "proving" that Genshin went to the Pure Land after he died (29%). The first section recounts such things as the miraculous dream which led to Genshin's birth, his decision to enter the monkhood (also induced by a mira- culous dream), his seclusion in Yokawa, the composition of the Ojoyoshu, and the fact that the Ojovoshu was highly praised in China. This section closes by notiong that, since monks who have helped spread the Dharma in both China and Japan are exceedingly rare, Genshin must be a "messenger from the Tathagata." This is followed by the description of his death and the two dreams of his birth into the Pure Land. It is important to note that these sections take up about half of the biography. In the first dream, Genshin's disciple Nogu saw Genshin, surrounded by monks and young boys, setting off to the west, chanting "We have transcended the triple realms." After taking a few steps, they rose up into the sky and disappeared into the western horizon. In the second dream, one of Genshin's unnamed disciples went to the Pure Land and conversed 514 (16) Some Problems concerning Genshin's Biographies (R. F. RHODES with Genshin. Both of these dreams were included in the biography because they were con- sidered to show that Genshin reached the Pure Land after he died. As these examples indi- cate, in the Kakocho biography, Genshin is depicted as a faithful Pure Land practitioner who, through his diligent practice, attained birth in the Pure Land. In contrast, the Hokke Genki presents an image of Genshin developed from the per- spective of the Lotus Sutra. This does not mean that the Hokke Genki ignores Genshin's Pure Land practices. Instead, it argues that the Pure Land faith and devotion to the Lotus Sutra were equally important to Genshin. This stance is illustrated by the Hokke Genki's treatment of the Ichijo Yoketsu. The Ichijo Yoketsu was written by Genshin in 1007 to refute the Hosso doctrine of the Five Lineages (whichholds that not all beingsare capableof attaining Buddhahood) and to support the Lotus Sutra's doctrine of the One Vehicle, which argues that all beings are indeed capable of becoming fully enlightened Buddhas. The Kakocho biography does not accord any special significance to the Ichijo Yoketsu. However, in the Hokke Genki, it is highlighted as one of two most important works written by Genshin, the other being the Ojovoshu. Moreover, the biography states that, when Genshin composed the Ichijo Yoketsu, Asvaghosa and Nagarjuna appeared to him in a dream to praise it ; simi- larly Saicho also appeared to entrust him with the future of the Buddhist Dharma on Mt. Hiei. (The samepassage continues that, whenGenshin wrote the Ojovoshii, Kannonand Bishamon also manifestedthemselves in a dream pay homageto him.) This is one example of the way in which the Hokke Genki emphasizes Genshin's profound relationship with the Lotus Sutra. The Hokke Genki also devotes about half of the biography to Genshin's death. At the center of this sequence is an interesting dream in which Genshin saw a vision in which he was visited by two messengers from Maitreya. These messengers told Genshin that, since he had been a diligent student of the Lotus Sutra throughout his life, he was now entitled to be born Tusita Heaven (Maitreya'sabode) at death. However, Genshin refused this offer, stating instead that he wished the merits from his study should be transferred to attaining birth in the Pure Land. Although it would seem that this story shows that Genshin was not greatly interested in the Lotus Sutra, it actually serves to emphasize how diligently studied this scripture. In this way, the Hokke Genzkireconiles its image of Genshin as a student of the Lotus Sutra with the undeniable fact that he was a dedicated Pure Land Buddhist. To repeat, the images of Genshin presented in the Kakocho and the Hokke Genki differ significantly. This difference reflects the character of these two texts. The Kakocho was 513 Some Problems concerning Genshin's Biographies (R. F. RHODES) (17) written to present examples of people who gained birth in the Pure Land and thereby to deepen the reader's faith in Pure Land Buddhism, while the Hokke Genki was composed the extol the benefits of devotion to the Lotus Sutra. In The Idea of History, R. G. Collingwood has argued that "the historian's pifactureof the past is thus in every detail an imaginary picture..." 2) In his view, historical writing is the product of the historian's imagination. Each historian selects a certain set of facts from the past and constructs a coherent narrative based on his interpretation of the facts. Thus, even when treating the same incident, the narrative may differ significantly, depending on what set of facts the historian decides to emphasize. The same is true regarding biographies. Even when treating the same person, different images would be developed depending on what aspect the biographer chooses to highlight. Thus it is only natural that the image of Genshin found in the Kakocho and the Hokke Genki differ in important respects. Second, it must also be stressed that Genshin's biographies found in these two texts are not "objective" biographies written in the tradition of modern positivistic histories. In- stead, they are best understood as "hagiographies" or "sacred biographies," that is to say, stories about extraordinary religious figures. As Charles Keyes has noted, sacred biogra- phies are composed to illustrate "the intrusion of the sacred into history" 3) i, e., to show how the sacred is manifested within the life of a certain human being. Thus both the Kakoch o and the Hokke Genki highlight the "miraculous" aspects of Genshin's life, including, most importantly, the fact that he was born in the Pure Land at death. Keyes also argues that sacred biographies point both backwards and forward in time. 4) They point backwards because sacred biographies are records of a religious figure of the past. But they also point forward in time, inasmuch as these biographies provide a model of exemplary religious life to the readers. In recent years, a number of scholars have re- marked on the important role that narratives play in religion, stressing how they serve both to order our world and to situate ourselves in that world. As Michael Goldberg explains, By allowinga particularstory to directour attentionto the world in some specific way, we let it direct our activityin the worldin a certainmanner. As the story shapesour understandingof reality, it simultaneouslyqualifies the way we relate to reality.... By articulatinga certainvision of the world, narrativesprovide us with a way of articulatingwhat we are doing in the world. 5) In other worlds, narratives, including narratives of a person's life (i. e., biographies), both shape our perception of reality, and provide guidelines showing us how we should behave 512 (18) Some Problems concerning Genshin's Biographies (R. F. RHODES) in light of that reality. The stories of Genshin found in the Kakocho and Hokke Gennki also provide the readers with a model of virtuous spiritual life. By recognizing the didactic pur- pose of these biographies, we can better understand the significance that these texts have had for Buddhists of the past. 1) On these biobraphies see Hayami Tasuku, Genshin. Yoshikawa kobunkan, 1988, pp. 3-7. 2) R. G. Collingwood, The Idea of History. Revised edition. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1993, p. 245. 3) Charles Keyes, "Charisma: From Social Life to Sacred Biography," in Michael A. Williams ed., Chariama and Sacred Biography. JAAR Thematic Studies 48/3-4. American Academy of Religions, 1982, p. 14. 4) Ibid., p. 13. 5) Michael Goldberg, Theology and Narrative : A Critical Introduction. Philadephia, Trinity Press International, 1991, pp. 176-7. (keywards) Genshin, Nijugo Zammai Kesshu Kakocho, Hokke Genki (Assistant Professor, Otani University) 511.
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