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{{short description|Japanese Zen buddhist teacher (1200-1253)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2019}}
{{Infobox religious biography
|name = Dōgen
|image= Soto-Zen-Master-Dogen-Zenji-Portrait.png
|caption = 
|birth name = 
|alias = 
|dharma name = 
|birth_date = 26 January 1200
|birth_place = [[Kyoto]], [[Japan]]
|death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1253|9|22|1200|1|19}}
|death_place = Kyoto, Japan
|nationality = 
|religion = [[Buddhism]]
|school = [[Sōtō]]
|lineage = 
|title = [[Zen Master]]
|location = 
|education = 
|occupation = 
|teacher = 
|reincarnation of = 
|predecessor = [[Rujing]]
|successor = 
|students = 
|spouse = 
|partner = 
|children = 
|website = 
}}
{{Zen Buddhism}}
{{Japanese Buddhism}}

{{nihongo|'''Dōgen Zenji'''|道元禅師||{{IPA|ja|doꜜː.ɡeɴ, -ŋeɴ}},<ref>{{cite book|script-title=ja:新明解日本語アクセント辞典|edition=2nd|editor-last=Kindaichi|editor-first=Haruhiko|editor-link=Haruhiko Kindaichi|editor-last2=Akinaga|editor-first2=Kazue|publisher=[[Sanseidō]]|date=10 March 2025|lang=ja}}</ref> 26 January 1200 – 22 September 1253<ref>{{Britannica|167921}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bodiford |first1=William M. |date=2006 |title=Remembering Dōgen: Eiheiji and Dōgen Hagiography |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/25064606 |url-status=live |journal=The Journal of Japanese Studies |volume=32 |issue=1 |pages=1–21 |doi=10.1353/jjs.2006.0003 |jstor=25064606 |s2cid=144431743 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220126183455/https://www.jstor.org/stable/25064606 |archive-date=26 January 2022 |access-date=26 January 2022}}</ref>}} was a [[Japanese people|Japanese]] Zen [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] [[Bhikkhu|monk]], [[writer]], [[poet]], [[philosopher]], and founder of the [[Sōtō]] school of [[Zen]] in [[Japan]]. He is also known as '''Dōgen Kigen''' ({{lang|ja|道元希玄}}), '''Eihei Dōgen''' ({{lang|ja|永平道元}}), '''Kōso Jōyō Daishi''' ({{lang|ja|高祖承陽大師}}), and '''Busshō Dentō Kokushi''' ({{lang|ja|仏性伝東国師}}).

Originally ordained as a monk in the [[Tendai|Tendai School]] in [[Kyoto]], he was ultimately dissatisfied with its teaching and traveled to [[China#Imperial China|China]] to seek out what he believed to be a more authentic [[Buddhism]]. He remained there for four years, finally training under [[Tiantong Rujing|Tiāntóng Rújìng]], an eminent teacher of the [[Caodong|Cáodòng]] lineage of [[Chan Buddhism|Chinese Chan]]. Upon his return to Japan, he began promoting the practice of [[zazen]] (sitting meditation) through literary works such as ''[[Fukan zazengi|Fukanzazengi]]'' and ''[[Bendōwa]]''.

He eventually broke relations completely with the powerful Tendai School, and, after several years of likely friction between himself and the establishment, left [[Kyoto]] for the mountainous countryside where he founded the monastery [[Eihei-ji]], which remains the head temple of the Sōtō school today.

Dōgen is known for his extensive writings like the ''[[Shōbōgenzō]]'' (''Treasury of the True Dharma Eye'', considered his [[Masterpiece|magnum opus]]), the ''[[Eihei Kōroku]]'' (''Extensive Record,'' a collection of his talks), the ''[[Eihei Shingi]]'' (the first Japanese Zen monastic code), along with his Japanese poetry, and commentaries. Dōgen's writings are one of the most important sources studied in the contemporary [[Sōtō]] Zen tradition.

==Biography==

===Early life===
Dōgen was probably born into a noble family, though as an illegitimate child of [[Minamoto no Michichika|Minamoto Michichika]].<ref name=":7">{{Cite book |last=Kodera |first=Takashi James |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TZFTAQAAQBAJ |title=Dogen's Formative Years: An Historical and Annotated Translation of the Hokyo-ki |date=2013-10-16 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-54315-1 |pages=21–24 |language=en}}</ref> His foster father was his older brother [[Minamoto no Michitomo]], who served in the [[Imperial court in Kyoto|imperial court]] as a high-ranking {{nihongo|''ashō''|亞相||"Councillor of State"}}.<ref name="Bodiford_22_36">{{harvp|Bodiford|2008|pp=22–36}}</ref><ref name=":7" /> His mother, named Ishi, the daughter of [[Matsudono Motofusa]] and a sister of the monk Ryōkan Hōgen, is said to have died when Dōgen was age 7.<ref name=":7" /><ref>{{harvp|Kim|2004|p=19}}</ref>

===Early training===
In 1212, the spring of his thirteenth year, Dōgen fled the house of his uncle [[Matsudono Moroie]] and went to his uncle Ryōkan Hōgen at the foot of [[Mount Hiei]], the headquarters of the [[Tendai|Tendai school]] of Buddhism.<ref name=":7" />  Stating that his mother's death was the reason he wanted to become a monk, Ryōkan sent the young Dōgen to [[Jien]], an abbot at Yokawa on Mount Hiei.<ref name=":7" /> According to the ''Kenzeiki'' ({{lang|ja|建撕記}}), he became possessed by a single question with regard to the Tendai doctrine:
{{blockquote|As I study both the exoteric and the esoteric schools of Buddhism, they maintain that human beings are endowed with [[Buddha-nature|Dharma-nature]] by birth. If this is the case, why did the [[Buddha (general)|Buddhas]] of all ages — undoubtedly in possession of [[Bodhi|enlightenment]] — find it necessary to seek enlightenment and engage in spiritual practice?<ref>{{harvp|Bodiford|2008|p=22}}</ref><ref>{{harvp|Ōkubo|1966|p=80}}</ref>}}

This question was, in large part, prompted by the Tendai concept of [[Hongaku|original enlightenment]] ({{lang|ja|本覚}} ''hongaku''), which states that all human beings are enlightened by nature and that, consequently, any notion of achieving enlightenment through practice is fundamentally flawed.<ref>{{harvp|Abe|1992|pp=19–20}}</ref>

The ''Kenzeiki'' further states that he found no answer to his question at Mount Hiei, and that he was disillusioned by the internal politics and need for social prominence for advancement.<ref name="Bodiford_22_36"/> Therefore, Dōgen left to seek an answer from other Buddhist masters. He went to visit Kōin, the Tendai abbot of [[Mii-dera|Onjō-ji Temple]] ({{lang|ja|園城寺}}), asking him this same question. Kōin said that, in order to find an answer, he might want to consider studying [[Chan Buddhism|Chán]] in China.<ref>{{harvp|Tanahashi|1997|p=4}}</ref> In 1217, two years after the death of contemporary Zen Buddhist [[Eisai|Myōan Eisai]], Dōgen went to study at [[Kennin-ji|Kennin-ji Temple]] ({{lang|ja|建仁寺}}), under Eisai's successor, Myōzen ({{lang|ja|明全}}).<ref name="Bodiford_22_36"/>

===Travel to China===
In 1223, Dōgen and Myōzen undertook the dangerous passage across the [[East China Sea]] to [[Song dynasty|China]] ([[Song dynasty]]) to study in Jing-de-si (Ching-te-ssu, {{lang|ja|景德寺}}) monastery as Eisai had once done. Around the time the [[Mongol Empire]] was waging wars on the various dynasties of China.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

In China, Dōgen first went to the leading Chan monasteries in [[Zhejiang|Zhèjiāng province]]. At the time, most Chan teachers based their training around the use of ''[[Koan|gōng-àn]]'' (Japanese: ''kōan''). Though Dōgen assiduously studied the kōans, he became disenchanted with the heavy emphasis laid upon them, and wondered why the sutras were not studied more. At one point, owing to this disenchantment, Dōgen even refused Dharma transmission from a teacher.<ref>{{harvp|Tanahashi|1997|p=5}}</ref> Then, in 1225, he decided to visit a master named [[Rújìng]] ({{lang|zh|如淨}}; J. Nyojō), the thirteenth patriarch of the [[Caodong|Cáodòng]] (J. Sōtō) lineage of Zen Buddhism, at Mount Tiāntóng's ({{lang|zh|天童山}} ''Tiāntóngshān''; J. Tendōzan) [[Tiantong Temple|Tiāntóng temple]] in [[Ningbo|Níngbō]]. Rujing was reputed to have a style of Chan that was different from the other masters whom Dōgen had thus far encountered.  In later writings, Dōgen referred to Rujing as "the Old Buddha".  Additionally he affectionately described both Rujing and Myōzen as {{nihongo|''senshi''|先師||"Ancient Teacher"}}.<ref name="Bodiford_22_36"/>

Under Rujing, Dōgen realized liberation of body and mind upon hearing the master say, "cast off body and mind" ({{lang|zh|身心脱落}} ''shēn xīn tuō luò''). This phrase would continue to have great importance to Dōgen throughout his life, and can be found scattered throughout his writings, as—for example—in a famous section of his ''[[Genjōkōan]]'' ({{lang|ja|現成公案}}):
{{blockquote|To study the Way is to study the Self. To study the Self is to forget the self. To forget the self is to be enlightened by all things of the universe. To be enlightened by all things of the universe is to cast off the body and mind of the self as well as those of others. Even the traces of enlightenment are wiped out, and life with traceless enlightenment goes on forever and ever.<ref>{{harvp|Kim|2004|p=125}}</ref>}}

Myōzen died shortly after Dōgen arrived at Mount Tiantong. In 1227,<ref>{{harvp|Tanahashi|1997|p=6}}</ref> Dōgen received [[Dharma transmission]] and ''[[Dharma transmission|inka]]'' from Rujing, and remarked on how he had finally settled his "life's quest of the great matter".<ref>{{harvp|Tanahashi|2011|p=144}}</ref>

===Return to Japan===
[[File:Dogen.jpg|thumb|upright|Dōgen watching the moon. [[Hōkyō-ji]] monastery, Fukui prefecture, circa 1250.]]

Dōgen returned to Japan in 1227 or 1228, going back to stay at [[Kennin-ji]], where he had trained previously.<ref name="Bodiford_22_36"/> Among his first actions upon returning was to write down the ''Fukanzazengi''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://web.stanford.edu/~funn/zazen_instructions/Fukanzazengi.pdf|title=Fukan zazengi|website=www.stanford.edu|access-date=4 October 2019|archive-date=31 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210131133342/https://web.stanford.edu/~funn/zazen_instructions/Fukanzazengi.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> ({{lang|ja|普観坐禅儀}}; ''Universally Recommended Instructions for Zazen''), a short text emphasizing the importance of and giving instructions for ''[[zazen]]'' (sitting [[meditation]]).<ref>{{harvp|Kim|2004|p=38-40}}</ref>

However, tension soon arose as the Tendai community began taking steps to suppress both Zen and [[Jodo Shinshu|Jōdo Shinshū]], the new forms of Buddhism in Japan. In the face of this tension, Dōgen left the Tendai dominion of Kyōto in 1230, settling instead in an abandoned temple in what is today the city of [[Uji, Kyoto|Uji]], south of Kyōto.<ref>{{harvp|Tanahashi|1997|p= 39}}</ref>

In 1233, Dōgen founded the Kannon-dōri-in<ref>{{harvp|Tanahashi|1997|p=7}}</ref> in Fukakusa as a small center of practice. He later expanded this temple into [[Kōshōhōrin-ji]] ({{lang|ja|興聖法林寺}}).<ref>{{harvp|Kim|2004|p=40}}</ref>

===Eihei-ji===
[[File:Eihei-ji Temple, Fukui Prefecture; September 2019 (01).jpg|thumb|Eihei-ji Temple]]
In 1243, [[Hatano clan|Hatano Yoshishige]] ({{lang|ja|波多野義重}}) offered to relocate Dōgen's community to [[Echizen Province|Echizen province]], far to the north of Kyōto. Dōgen accepted this offer to relocate, because of the ongoing tension with the Tendai community, and the growing competition of the [[Rinzai school|Rinzai]]-school<ref name="Dumoulin_2005b_62">{{harvp|Dumoulin|2005|p=62}}</ref>

His followers built a comprehensive center of practice there, calling it Daibutsu Temple (Daibutsu-ji, {{lang|ja|大仏寺}}). While the construction work was going on, Dōgen would live and teach at Yoshimine-dera Temple (Kippō-ji, {{lang|ja|吉峯寺}}), which is located close to Daibutsu-ji. During his stay at Kippō-ji, Dōgen "fell into a depression".<ref name="Dumoulin_2005b_62"/> It marked a turning point in his life, giving way to "rigorous critique of Rinzai Zen".<ref name="Dumoulin_2005b_62"/> He criticized [[Dahui Zonggao]], the most influential figure of [[Song dynasty]] Chán.<ref>{{harvp|McRae|2003|p=123}}</ref>

In 1246, Dōgen renamed Daibutsu-ji, calling it [[Eihei-ji]].<ref>{{harvp|Kim|2004|p=47}}</ref> This temple remains one of the two head temples of Sōtō Zen in Japan today, the other being [[Sōji-ji]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Touring Venerable Temples of Soto Zen Buddhism in Japan Plan|url=http://global.sotozen-net.or.jp/eng/temples/jp/sojiji.html|publisher=SotoZen-Net|access-date=July 29, 2021|archive-date=22 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922183207/https://global.sotozen-net.or.jp/eng/temples/jp/sojiji.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

Dōgen spent the remainder of his life teaching and writing at Eihei-ji. In 1247, the newly installed [[Shikken|shōgun's regent]], [[Hōjō Tokiyori]], invited Dōgen to come to [[Kamakura, Kanagawa|Kamakura]] to teach him. Dōgen made the rather long journey east to provide the shōgun with lay ordination, and then returned to Eihei-ji in 1248. In the autumn of 1252, Dōgen fell ill, and soon showed no signs of recovering. He presented his robes to his main apprentice, Koun Ejō ({{lang|ja|孤雲懐弉}}), making him the abbot of Eihei-ji.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

===Death===
At Hatano Yoshishige's invitation, Dōgen left for Kyōto in search of a remedy for his illness. In 1253, soon after arriving in Kyōto, Dōgen died. Shortly before his death, he had written a [[death poem]]:

<poem>Fifty-four years lighting up the sky.
A quivering leap smashes a billion worlds.
Hah!
Entire body looks for nothing.
Living, I plunge into Yellow Springs.<ref>Quoted in {{harvp|Tanahashi|1997|p=219}}</ref></poem>

==Teachings==
===Zazen===
Dōgen often stressed the critical importance of [[zazen]], or sitting meditation as the central practice of Buddhism. He considered zazen to be identical to studying Zen. This is pointed out clearly in the first sentence of the 1243 instruction manual ''"Zazen-gi"'' ({{lang|ja|坐禪儀}}; "Principles of Zazen"): "Studying Zen ... is zazen".<ref>[http://www.stanford.edu/group/scbs/sztp3/translations/shobogenzo/translations/zazengi/pdf/Zazengi%20translation.pdf Principles of Zazen] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151216154448/http://stanford.edu/group/scbs/sztp3/translations/shobogenzo/translations/zazengi/pdf/Zazengi%20translation.pdf |date=16 December 2015 }}; tr. Bielefeldt, Carl.</ref> Dōgen taught zazen to everyone, even for the laity, male or female and including all social classes.<ref>{{harvp|Dumoulin|2005|loc=Section 2, "Dogen" pp. 51-119}}</ref> In referring to zazen, Dōgen is most often referring specifically to ''[[shikantaza]]'', roughly translatable as "nothing but precisely sitting", or "just sitting," which is a kind of sitting meditation in which the meditator sits "in a state of brightly alert attention that is free of thoughts, directed to no object, and attached to no particular content".<ref>{{harvp|Kohn|1991|pp=196–197}}</ref> In his ''Fukan Zazengi'', Dōgen wrote:

{{blockquote|For zazen, a quiet room is suitable. Eat and drink moderately. Cast aside all involvements and cease all affairs. Do not think good or bad. Do not administer pros and cons. Cease all the movements of the conscious mind, the gauging of all thoughts and views. Have no designs on becoming a Buddha. Zazen has nothing whatever to do with sitting or lying down.<ref>{{cite web|title=Fukanzazengi: Universally Recommended Instructions for Zazen|url=http://www.zenheartsangha.org/sutras/Fukanzazengi.pdf|publisher=Zen Heart Sangha|access-date=26 February 2016|archive-date=6 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161006151329/http://www.zenheartsangha.org/sutras/Fukanzazengi.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>}}

Dōgen also described zazen practice with the term ''hishiryō'' ({{lang|ja|非思量}}, "non-thinking", "without thinking", "beyond thinking"). According to Cleary, it refers to ''ekō henshō'', [[turning the light around]], focussing awareness on awareness itself.<ref>Thomas Cleary, ''Rational Zen'', p.69, note 3</ref> It is a state of [[no-mind]] which one is simply aware of things as they are, beyond thinking and not-thinking - the active effort not to think.<ref name="Kasulis 70">{{harvp|Kasulis|2021 |pp=70-71}}</ref> In the ''Fukanzazengi'', Dōgen writes:<blockquote>...settle into a steady, immobile sitting position. Think of not thinking (''fushiryō''). How do you think of not-thinking? Without thinking (''hishiryō''). This in itself is the essential art of zazen. The zazen I speak of is not learning [[meditation]]. It is simply the Dharma-gate of repose and bliss, the cultivation-authentication of totally culminated enlightenment. It is the presence of things as they are.<ref name="Kasulis 70" /></blockquote>Masanobu Takahashi writes that ''hishiryō'' is not a state of no mental activity whatsoever. Instead, it is a state "beyond thinking and not-thinking" and beyond affirmation and rejection.<ref name=":72">{{harvp|Kasulis|2021 |p= 72}}</ref> Other Japanese Dogen scholars link the term with the realization of [[Śūnyatā|emptiness]].<ref name=":72" /><ref name=":8">Hee-Jin Kim. ''Eihei Dogen: Mystical Realist,'' pp. 62-63. Simon and Schuster, Jun 25, 2012</ref> According to Thomas Kasulis, non-thinking refers to the "pure presence of things as they are", "without affirming nor negating", without accepting nor rejecting, without believing nor disbelieving. In short, it is a non-conceptual, non-intentional and "prereflective mode of consciousness" which does not imply that it is an experience without content.<ref>{{harvp|Kasulis|2021 |pp=73-75}}</ref> Similarly, Hee-Jin Kim describes this as an "objectless, subjectless, formless, goalless and purposeless" state which is yet not a blank void.<ref name=":8" /> As such, the correct mental attitude for zazen according to Dōgen is one of effortless non-striving, this is because for Dōgen, [[original enlightenment]] is already always present.

=== Other Buddhist practices ===
[[File:Eiheiji34st3200.jpg|thumb|Dharma hall at Eihei-ji where various rites and recitations have been performed since Dōgen's time.]]
While Dōgen emphasized the importance and centrality of zazen, he did not reject other traditional Buddhist practices, and his monasteries performed various traditional ritual practices.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Foulk |first=T. Griffith |title="Just Sitting"? Dōgen's Take on Zazen, Sutra Reading, and Other Conventional Buddhist Practices |url=https://academic.oup.com/book/8467/chapter-abstract/154274555?redirectedFrom=fulltext |access-date=2023-10-31 |website=academic.oup.com|date=2012 |pages=75–106 |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199754465.003.0003 |isbn=978-0-19-975446-5 }}</ref><ref name=":6">Foulk, T. Griffith. 1999. [https://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/DogenStudies/History_Soto_Zen_School.html "History of the Soto Zen School."] from ''Dogen Zen and Its Relevance for Our Time: An International Symposium Held in Celebration of the 800th Anniversary of the Birth of Dōgen-zenji : Kresge Auditorium, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.''</ref> Dōgen's monasteries also followed a strict monastic code based on the Chinese Chan codes and Dōgen often quotes these and various [[Vinaya]] texts in his works.<ref name=":6" /> As such, monastic rules and decorum (saho) was an important element of Dōgen's teaching. One of the most important texts by Dōgen on this topic is the ''Pure Standards for the Zen Community'' (''[[Eihei Shingi]]'').<ref>{{harvp|Leighton|Okumura|1996}}{{pages needed|date=January 2025}}</ref>

Dōgen certainly saw zazen as the most important Zen practice, and saw other practices as secondary. He frequently relegates other Buddhist practices to a lesser status, as he writes in the ''[[Bendōwa]]'': "Commitment to Zen is casting off body and mind.  You have no need for incense offerings, homage praying, [[nembutsu]], penance disciplines, or silent sutra readings; just sit single-mindedly."<ref name="collcutt">{{cite book |last1=Collcutt |first1=Martin |title=Five Mountains: The Rinzai Zen Monastic Institution in Medieval Japan |publisher=Harvard University Asia Center |year=1996 |isbn=978-0674304987 |pages=49–50}}</ref> While Dōgen rhetorically critiques traditional practices in some passages, Foulk writes that "Dōgen did not mean to reject literally any of those standard Buddhist training methods".<ref name=":5" /><ref name="collcutt" /> Rather, for Dōgen, one should engage in all practices without attachment and from the point of view of the emptiness of all things. It is from this perspective that Dōgen writes we should not engage in any "practice" (which is merely a conventional category which separates one kind of activity from another).<ref name=":5" />

Indeed, according to Foulk:<blockquote>the specific rituals that seem to be disavowed in the ''Bendowa'' passage are all prescribed for Zen monks, often in great detail, in Dogen's other writings. In ''Kuyo shobutsu'', Dogen recommends the practice of offering incense and making worshipful [[prostration]]s before [[Buddhist art|Buddha images]] and [[stupas]], as prescribed in the sutras and Vinaya texts. In ''Raihai tokuzui'' he urges trainees to revere enlightened teachers and to make offerings and prostrations to them, describing this as a practice which helps pave the way to one's own awakening. In ''Chiji shingi'' he stipulates that the vegetable garden manager in a monastery should participate together with the main body of monks in sutra chanting services (fugin), recitation services (nenju) in which buddhas' names are chanted (a form of [[Nianfo|nenbutsu]] practice), and other major ceremonies, and that he should burn incense and make prostrations (shoko raihai) and recite the buddhas' names in prayer morning and evening when at work in the garden. The practice of [[Repentance|repentences]] (sange) is encouraged in Dogen's ''Kesa kudoku'', in his ''Sanji go'', and his ''Keisei sanshiki''. Finally, in ''Kankin'', Dogen gives detailed directions for sutra reading services (kankin) in which, as he explains, texts could be read either silently or aloud as a means of producing merit to be dedicated to any number of ends, including the satisfaction of wishes made by lay donors, or prayers on behalf of the emperor.<ref name=":6" /> </blockquote>

===Oneness of practice-verification===
The primary concept underlying Dōgen's Zen practice is "the oneness of practice-verification" or "the unity of cultivation and confirmation" ({{lang|ja|修證一如}} ''shushō-ittō'' / ''shushō-ichinyo'').<ref name=":2">Carl Bielefeldt. ''Dogen's Manuals of Zen Meditation'', p. 137, University of California Press, 1990.</ref> The term ''shō'' ({{lang|ja|證}}, verification, affirmation, confirmation, attainment) is also sometimes translated as "[[Enlightenment in Buddhism|enlightenment]]", though this translation is also questioned by some scholars.<ref>Eitan Bolokan. [https://www.academia.edu/17274252/Review_of_Treasury_of_the_True_Dharma_Eye_Zen_Master_D%C5%8Dgen_s_Sh%C5%8Db%C5%8D_Genz%C5%8D_Ed_Kazuaki_Tanahashi_Philosophy_East_and_West_vol_65_4_pp_1286_88 Review of "Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Zen Master Dōgen’s Shōbō Genzō" Ed. Kazuaki Tanahashi.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221215195016/https://www.academia.edu/17274252/Review_of_Treasury_of_the_True_Dharma_Eye_Zen_Master_D%C5%8Dgen_s_Sh%C5%8Db%C5%8D_Genz%C5%8D_Ed_Kazuaki_Tanahashi_Philosophy_East_and_West_vol_65_4_pp_1286_88 |date=15 December 2022 }}  "Philosophy East and West", vol. 65 (4), pp: 1286-88.</ref><ref name=":2" /><ref>Masao Abe (1991). ''A Study of Dogen: His Philosophy and Religion'', p. 17. State University of New York Press.</ref>

The ''shushō-ittō'' teaching was first and most famously explained in the ''[[Bendōwa]]'' ({{lang|ja|弁道話}} ''A Talk on the Endeavor of the Path'', c. 1231) as follows:<ref name=":2"/>

{{blockquote|To think that practice and verification are not one is the view of infidels. In the buddha-dharma, practice and verification are the same &#91;shushō kore itto nari&#93;. Because it is practice based on verification, the beginner's pursuit of the way is the whole substance of original verification. Therefore, in giving instruction on what to be careful of in the practice, we teach not to expect verification outside of practice, for &#91;the practice&#93; is itself original verification. Since it is the verification of practice, verification has no limit; since it is the practice of verification, practice has no beginning.}}

In the ''[[Fukan zazengi|Fukanzazengi]]'' (''Universal Recommendation for Zazen''), Dōgen explains how to practice zazen and then explains the nature of verification <blockquote>If you grasp the point of this &#91;practice&#93;, the four elements &#91;of the body&#93; will become light and at ease, the spirit will be fresh and sharp, thoughts will be correct and clear; the flavor of the dharma will sustain the spirit, and you will be calm, pure, and joyful. Your daily life will be &#91;the expression of&#93; your true natural state. Once you achieve clarification &#91;of the truth&#93;, you may be likened to the dragon gaining the water or the tiger taking to the mountains. You should realize that when right thought is present, dullness and agitation cannot intrude.<ref>Carl Bielefeldt. ''Dogen's Manuals of Zen Meditation'', p. 183, University of California Press, 1990.</ref> </blockquote>

===Buddha-nature===
For Dōgen, [[buddha-nature]] or ''busshō'' ({{lang|ja|佛性}}) is all of reality, "all things" ({{lang|ja|悉有}}).<ref name=":1">{{cite journal |first=Takashi James |last=Kodera |url=https://terebess.hu/zen/dogen/Kodera-Dogen.pdf |title=The Buddha-nature in Dogen's Shobogenzo |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220214102005/https://terebess.hu/zen/dogen/Kodera-Dogen.pdf |archive-date=14 February 2022 |journal=Japanese Journal of Religious Studies |volume=4 |issue=4 |date=December 1977 |doi=10.18874/jjrs.4.4.1977.267-292 }}</ref> In the ''[[Shōbōgenzō]]'', Dōgen writes that "whole-being is the Buddha-nature" and that even inanimate objects (rocks, sand, water) are an expression of Buddha-nature. He rejected any view that saw buddha-nature as a permanent, substantial inner self or ground. Dōgen describes buddha-nature as "vast emptiness", "the world of becoming" and writes that "impermanence is in itself Buddha-nature".<ref>{{harvp|Dumoulin|2005|pp=82, 85}}</ref> He writes in ''[[Busshō_(Shōbōgenzō)|Busshō]]'',

<blockquote>Therefore, the very impermanency of grass and tree, thicket and forest is the Buddha nature. The very impermanency of men and things, body and mind, is the Buddha nature. Nature and lands, mountains and rivers, are impermanent because they are the Buddha nature. Supreme and complete enlightenment, because it is impermanent, is the Buddha nature.<ref>{{harvp|Waddell|Abe|1976|p=93}}</ref></blockquote>Takashi James Kodera writes that the main source of Dōgen's understanding of buddha-nature is a passage from the ''[[Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra|Nirvana sutra]]'' which was widely understood as stating that all sentient beings possess buddha-nature.<ref name=":1" /> However, Dōgen interpreted the passage differently, rendering it as follows: <blockquote>All are ({{lang|ja|一 切}}) sentient beings, ({{lang|ja|衆生}}) all things are ({{lang|ja|悉有}}) the Buddha-nature ({{lang|ja|佛性}}); the Tathagata ({{lang|ja|如来}}) abides constantly ({{lang|ja|常住}}), is non-existent ({{lang|ja|無}}) yet existent ({{lang|ja|有}}), and is change ({{lang|ja|變易}}).<ref name=":1" /> </blockquote>Kodera explains that "whereas in the conventional reading the Buddha-nature is understood as a permanent essence inherent in all sentient beings, Dōgen contends that all things are the Buddha-nature. In the former reading, the Buddha-nature is a change less potential, but in the latter, it is the eternally arising and perishing actuality of all things in the world."<ref name=":1" />

Thus for Dōgen buddha-nature includes everything, the totality of "all things", including inanimate objects like grass, trees and land (which are also "mind" for Dōgen).<ref name=":1" />

=== Great realization / satori ===
Dōgen taught that through zazen one could attain "great realization" or "great enlightenment" ({{lang|ja|大悟徹底}} ''daigo-tettei''), which is also called [[satori]] ({{lang|ja|悟り}}, "understanding", "knowledge").<ref name="leighton">{{harvp|Leighton|Okumura|1996|p=209. SUNY}}</ref><ref name=":3">Bielefeldt, Carl (1990). ''Dogen's Manuals of Zen Meditation'', p. 5. University of California Press.</ref>

According to Ko'un Yamada, Dōgen "repeatedly emphasizes the importance of each person attaining enlightenment".<ref>Yamada Ko'un, "Dogen Zenji and Enlightenment." in Maezumi, Taizan; Glassman, Bernie (2012). ''On Zen Practice: Body, Breath, and Mind.'' Simon and Schuster.</ref> Dōgen writes about this in a [[Fascicle (book)|fascicle]] of the ''[[Shōbōgenzō]]'' titled ''[[Daigo (Shōbōgenzō)|Daigo]]'', which states that when practitioners of Zen attain daigo they have risen above the discrimination between delusion and enlightenment.<ref>Kosho Uchiyama Roshi; Shohaku Okumura, (1997) ''The Wholehearted Way,'' Tuttle Publishing, p. 82.</ref>

While Dōgen did teach the importance of attaining enlightenment, he also critiqued certain ways of explaining it and teaching about it. According to Barbara O'Brien, Dōgen critiqued the term "''[[kenshō]]''" because "the word ''kenshō'' means 'to see one's nature', which sets up a dichotomy between the seer and the object of seeing."<ref name=":4">O'Brien, Barbara (2019). ''The Circle of the Way: A Concise History of Zen from the Buddha to the Modern World'', p. 204. Shambhala Publications.</ref> Furthermore, according to Bielefeldt, Dōgen's zazen is "a subtle state beyond either thinking or not thinking" in which "body and mind have been sloughed off". It is a state in which "all striving for religious experience, all expectation of satori (daigo), is left behind."<ref name=":3" /> As such, while Dōgen did not reject the importance of satori, he taught that we should not sit zazen with the goal of satori in mind.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" />

===Time-Being===
Dōgen's conception of Being-Time or Time-Being (''[[Uji (Being-Time)|Uji]]'', {{lang|ja|有時}}) is an essential element of his metaphysics in the ''Shōbōgenzō''. According to the traditional interpretation, "''Uji''" here means time itself is being, and all being is time."<ref>"Uji: The Time-Being by Eihei Dogen" Translated by Dan Welch and Kazuaki Tanahashi from: ''The Moon in a Dewdrop; writings of Zen Master Dogen''</ref> ''Uji'' is all the changing and dynamic activities that exist as the flow of becoming, all beings in the entire world are time.<ref>{{harvp|Dumoulin|2005|p=89}}</ref> The two terms are thus spoken of concurrently to emphasize that the things are not to be viewed as separate concepts. Moreover, the aim is to not abstract time and being as rational concepts. This view has been developed by scholars such as [[Steven Heine]],<ref>{{harvp|Heine|1985}}</ref> [[Joan Stambaugh]]<ref>{{harvp|Stambaugh|1990}}</ref> and others and has served as a motivation to compare Dōgen's work to that of Martin Heidegger's "[[Dasein]]".{{citation needed|date=September 2018}} [[Rein Raud]] has argued that this view is not correct and that Dōgen asserts that all existence is momentary, showing that such a reading would make quite a few of the rather cryptic passages in the ''Shōbōgenzō'' quite lucid.<ref>Raud, Rein. "The Existential Moment: Re-reading Dōgen's theory of time". ''Philosophy East and West'', vol.62 No.2, April 2012</ref>

===Perfect expression===
Another essential element of Dōgen's 'performative' metaphysics is his conception of Perfect expression (''Dōtoku'', {{lang|ja|道得}}).<ref>Cf. {{harvp|Kim|2004}} and more systematically based on a theory of symbols {{harvp|Müller|2013}}; reviewed by {{harvp|Döll|2015}}.</ref> "While a radically critical view on language as soteriologically inefficient, if not positively harmful, is what Zen Buddhism is famous for,"<ref name=":0">{{harvp|Döll|2015|p=637}}</ref> it{{Clarify|reason=what can be argued?|date=September 2018}} can be argued "'within the framework of a rational theory of language, against an obscurantist interpretation of Zen that time and again invokes experience.'"<ref>{{harvp|Müller|2013|p= 25}} cited after {{harvp|Döll|2015|p=637}}</ref> Dōgen distinguishes two types of language: monji {{lang|ja|文字}}, the first, – after Ernst Cassirer – "discursive type that constantly structures our experiences and—more fundamentally—in fact produces the world we experience in the first place"; and dōtoku {{lang|ja|道得}}, the second, "presentative type, which takes a holistic stance and establishes the totality of significations through a texture of relations.".<ref>{{harvp|Döll|2015|p=637}}, cf. {{harvp|Müller|2013|p= 231}}.</ref> As Döll points out, "It is this second type, as Müller holds, that allows for a positive view of language even from the radically skeptical perspective of Dōgen’s brand of Zen Buddhism."<ref name=":0"/>

===Critique of Rinzai===
Dōgen was sometimes critical of the [[Rinzai school]] for their formulaic and intellectual koan practice (such as the practice of the ''Shiryoken'' or "Four Discernments")<ref name="Dumoulin_65">{{harvp|Dumoulin|2005|p=65}}</ref> as well as for their disregard for the sutras:

<blockquote>Recently in the great Sung dynasty of China there are many who call themselves "Zen masters". They do not know the length and breadth of the Buddha-Dharma. They have heard and seen but little. They memorize two or three sayings of [[Linji Yixuan|Lin Chi]] and [[Yun Men]] and think this is the whole way of the Buddha-Dharma. If the Dharma of the Buddha could be condensed in two or three sayings of Lin Chi and Yun Men, it would not have been transmitted to the present day. One can hardly say that Lin Chi and Yun Men are the Venerable ones of the Buddha-Dharma.<ref name="Dumoulin_65"/></blockquote>

Dōgen was also very critical of the Japanese Daruma school of [[Dainichi Nonin|Dainichi Nōnin]].{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

===Virtues===
Dogen's perspective of virtue is discussed in the ''Shōbōgenzō'' text as something to be practiced inwardly so that it will manifest itself on the outside. In other words, virtue is something that is both internal and external in the sense that one can practice internal good dispositions and also the expression of these good dispositions.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Mikkelson|first1=Douglas|title= Toward a Description of Dogen's Moral Virtues|journal=Journal of Religious Ethics|date=2006|volume=34|issue=2|pages=225–251 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-9795.2006.00267.x}}</ref>

==Writings==
[[File:Fukan-Zazengi-Instructions-for-Zazen-1233.png|thumb|Universally Recommended Instructions for Zazen ({{lang|ja|普勧坐禅儀}}, ''fukan zazengi'')]]

While it was customary for Buddhist works to be written in Chinese, Dōgen often wrote in Japanese, conveying the essence of his thought in a style that was at once concise, compelling, and inspiring. A master stylist, Dōgen is noted not only for his prose, but also for his poetry (in Japanese ''[[Waka (poetry)|waka]]'' style and various Chinese styles). Dōgen's use of language is unconventional by any measure. According to Dōgen scholar [[Steven Heine]]: "Dogen's poetic and philosophical works are characterized by a continual effort to express the inexpressible by perfecting imperfectable speech through the creative use of wordplay, neologism, and lyricism, as well as the recasting of traditional expressions".<ref>{{harvp|Heine|1997|p=67}}</ref>

===Shōbōgenzō===
Dōgen's masterpiece is the ''[[Shōbōgenzō]]'' ({{lang|ja|正法眼蔵}}, "Treasury of the True Dharma Eye"), talks and writings collected together in ninety-five [[Fascicle (book)|fascicle]]s. The topics range from [[zazen]], [[koan]]s, [[Buddhist philosophy]], monastic practice, the equality of women and men, to the philosophy of language, being, and time.

==== Shushō-gi ====
The ''[[Shōbōgenzō]]'' served as the basis for the short work entitled ''Shushō-gi'' ({{lang|ja|修證儀}}), which was compiled in 1890 by a layman named Ouchi Seiran (1845–1918) along with Takiya Takushū ({{lang|ja|滝谷卓洲}}) of Eihei-ji and Azegami Baisen ({{lang|ja|畔上楳仙}}) of Sōji-ji. The compilation serves as an introductory compilation of key extracts from the ''[[Shōbōgenzō]]'' which help explain the foundational teachings and concepts of Dōgen Zen to a lay audience.<ref>{{Cite web |script-title=ja:修證義 (修証義) |title=Shushō-gi |url=https://terebess.hu/zen/dogen/shushogi.html |access-date=2022-12-16 |website=terebess.hu |archive-date=7 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907114226/https://terebess.hu/zen/dogen/shushogi.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Shinji Shōbōgenzō===
Dōgen also compiled a collection of 301 koans in Chinese without commentaries added. Often called the ''[[Shinji Shōbōgenzō]]'' (''shinji'': "original or true characters" and ''shōbōgenzō'', variously translated as "the right-dharma-eye treasury" or "Treasury of the Eye of the True Dharma"). The collection is also known as the ''Shōbōgenzō Sanbyakusoku'' (The Three Hundred Verse Shōbōgenzō") and the ''Mana Shōbōgenzō'', where ''mana'' is an alternative reading of ''shinji''. The exact date the book was written is in dispute but Nishijima believes that Dogen may well have begun compiling the koan collection before his trip to China.<ref>{{harvp|Nishijima|2003|p=i}}</ref>

Although these stories are commonly referred to as ''kōans'', Dōgen referred to them as ''kosoku'' (ancestral criteria) or ''innen'' (circumstances and causes or results, of a story). The word ''kōan'' for Dogen meant "absolute reality" or the "universal Dharma".<ref>{{harvp|Yasutani|1996|p=8}}</ref>

===Collections of dharma discourses===
Lectures that Dōgen gave to his monks at his monastery, [[Eihei-ji]], were compiled under the title ''[[Eihei Kōroku]]'', also known as ''Dōgen Oshō Kōroku'' (The Extensive Record of Teacher Dōgen's Sayings) in ten volumes. The sermons, lectures, sayings and poetry were compiled shortly after Dōgen's death by his main disciples, [[Koun Ejō]] ({{lang|ja|孤雲懐奘}}, 1198–1280), [[Yōkō Senne|Senne]], and Gien. There are three different editions of this text: the Rinnō-ji text from 1598, a popular version printed in 1672, and a version discovered at Eihei-ji in 1937, which, although undated, is believed to be the oldest extant version.<ref>{{harvp|Kim|2004|pp=236–237}}</ref>

Another collection of his talks is the ''[[Shōbōgenzō Zuimonki]]'' (Gleanings from Master Dōgen's Sayings) in six volumes. These are talks that Dōgen gave to his leading disciple, Ejō, who became Dōgen's disciple in 1234. The talks were recorded and edited by Ejō.

===Other writings===
Other notable writings of Dōgen are:<ref>See {{harvp|Kim|2004|loc=Appendix B, pp. 243–247}} for a more complete list of Dōgen's major writings.</ref> 
* ''[[Fukan zazengi|Fukanzazengi]]'' ({{lang|ja|普勧坐禅儀}}, General Advice on the Principles of Zazen), one volume; probably written immediately after Dōgen's return from China in 1227.
* ''[[Bendōwa]]'' ({{lang|ja|弁道話}}, "On the Endeavor of the Way"), written in 1231. This represents one of Dōgen's earliest writings and asserts the superiority of the practice of shikantaza through a series of questions and answers. 
* ''Eihei shoso gakudō-yōjinshū'' (Advice on Studying the Way), one volume; probably written in 1234.
* ''[[Tenzo kyōkun]]'' (Instructions to the Chief Cook), one volume; written in 1237.
* ''Bendōhō'' (Rules for the Practice of the Way), one volume; written between 1244 and 1246.
* The earliest work by Dōgen is the ''Hōkojōki'' (Memoirs of the Hōkyō Period). This one volume work is a collection of questions and answers between Dōgen and his Chinese teacher, Tiāntóng [[Rújìng]] ({{lang|ja|天童如淨}}; Japanese: Tendō Nyojō, 1162–1228).  The work was discovered among Dōgen's papers by Ejō in 1253, just three months after Dōgen's death.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

==Lineage==
{{more citations needed section|date=September 2020}}
Though Dogen emphasised the importance of the correct transmission of the Buddha dharma, as guaranteed by the line of transmission from Shakyamuni, his own transmission became problematic in the [[Sandai sōron|third generation]]. In 1267 Ejō retired as Abbot of Eihei-ji, giving way to Gikai, who was already favored by Dōgen. Gikai introduced esoteric elements into the practice. Opposition arose, and in 1272 Ejō resumed the position of abbot. Following Ejō's death in 1280, Gikai became abbot again, strengthened by the support of the military for magical practices.<ref>{{harvp|Dumoulin|2005|p=135}}</ref> Opposition arose again, and Gikai was forced to leave Eihei-ji. He was succeeded by Gien, who was first trained in the Daruma-school of [[Nōnin]]. His supporters designated him as the third abbot, rejecting the legitimacy of Gien.

* [[Koun Ejō]], commentator on the ''Shōbōgenzō'', and former [[Darumashū]] elder
** [[Giin]], through Ejō
** [[Gikai]], through Ejō
*** [[Keizan]]
** Gien, through Ejō
* [[Yōkō Senne|Senne]], another commentator of the ''Shōbōgenzō''.

[[Jakuen]], a student of Rujing, who traced his lineage "directly back the Zen of the Song period",<ref>{{harvp|Dumoulin|2005|p=138}}</ref> established [[Hōkyō-ji]], where a strict style of Zen was practised. Students of his played a role in the conflict between Giin and Gikai.

A notable successor of Dogen was [[Keizan]] ({{lang|ja|瑩山}}; 1268–1325), founder of [[Sōji-ji|Sōji-ji Temple]] and author of the ''Record of the Transmission of Light'' ({{lang|ja|傳光錄}} ''[[Denkoroku|Denkōroku]]''), which traces the succession of Zen masters from [[Gautama Buddha|Siddhārtha Gautama]] up to Keizan's own day. Together, Dōgen and Keizan are regarded as the founders of the Sōtō school in Japan.

==Miraculous events and auspicious signs==
Several "miraculous experiences"{{sfn|Bodiford|2008|p=32}} and "auspicious signs"{{sfn|Faure|2000|p=92}} have been recorded in Dōgen's life,<ref>{{harvp|Bodiford|2008|p=32}}, {{harvp|Faure|2000}},{{pages needed|date=January 2025}} {{harvp|Williams|2005}},{{pages needed|date=January 2025}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|See also {{harvp|MacPhillamy|Roberson|Benson|Nearman|1997}},{{verify source|date=December 2018}} {{harvp|Kato|1994}},{{verify source|date=December 2018}} {{harvp|DeVisser|1923}},{{verify source|date=December 2018}} {{harvp|Eihei-ji Temple Staff|1994}},{{verify source|date=December 2018}} {{harvp|Dōshū|1969–70}}.{{verify source|date=December 2018}}}} some of them quite famous.{{sfn|Kato|1994}}{{sfn|Williams|2005}} According to Bodiford, "Monks and laymen recorded these events as testaments to his great mystical power," which "helped confirm the legacy of Dōgen's teachings against competing claims made by members of the Buddhist establishment and other outcast groups." Bodiford further notes that the "magical events at Eiheiji helped identify the temple as a cultic center," putting it at a par with other temples where supernatural events occurred.{{sfn|Bodiford|2008|p=32}} According to Faure, for Dōgen these auspicious signs were proof that "Eiheiji was the only place in Japan where the Buddhist Dharma was transmitted correctly and that this monastery was thus rivaled by no other."{{sfn|Faure|2000|p=93}}

In Menzan Zuihō's well-known 1753 edition of Dōgen's biography, it records that while traveling in China with his companion Dōshō, Dōgen became very ill, and a deity appeared before him who gave him medicine which instantly healed him:{{sfn|Williams|2005}}

{{blockquote|Dōgen fell gravely ill on his way back from China but had no medicines that could be of use. Suddenly, an immortal appeared and gave Dōgen a herbal pill, after which he immediately became better. The master asked this deity to reveal its identity. The mysterious figure replied, “I am the Japanese kami Inari” and disappeared. The medicine became known as Gedokugan, which has been ever since been part of the Dōshō family heritage &#91;...&#93; Dōgen then told Dōshō that this rare and wondrous medicine had been bestowed on him by a true kami for the protection of the great Dharma,  &#91;and that&#93; this medicine of many benefits should be distributed to temples so that they might spread the Dharma heritage.{{sfn|Williams|2005}}}}

This medicine, which later became known as Gedokuen or "Poison-Dispelling Pill" was then produced by the Sōtō church until the Meiji Era, and was commonly sold nationwide as an herbal medicine,{{sfn|Williams|1998}} and became a source of income for the Sōtō church.{{sfn|Williams|2005}}{{sfn|Williams|1998}}

[[File:Statue of Dogen's Sea Vision of Avalokiteshvara while Returning from China, at a pond at Eihei-ji Temple.png|thumb|The statue memorializing Dōgen's vision of Avalokiteshvara at a pond in Eihei-ji, Japan.]]
Another famous incident happened when he was returning to Japan from China. The ship he was on was caught in a storm. In this instance, the storm became so severe, that the crew feared the ship would sink and kill them all. Dōgen then began leading the crew in recitation of chants to Kannon (Avalokiteshwara),  during which, the Bodhisattva appeared before him, and several of the crew saw her as well.{{sfn|MacPhillamy|Roberson|Benson|Nearman|1997}} After the vision appeared, the storm began to calm down, and consensus of those aboard was that they had been saved due to the intervention of Bodhisattva Avalokiteshwara.{{sfn|MacPhillamy|Roberson|Benson|Nearman|1997}} This story is repeated in official works sponsored by the Sōtō Shū Head Office{{sfn|Kato|1994}}{{sfn|MacPhillamy|Roberson|Benson|Nearman|1997}} and there is even a sculpture of the event in a water treatment pond in Eihei-ji Temple.{{sfn|MacPhillamy|Roberson|Benson|Nearman|1997}}{{sfn|Eihei-ji Temple Staff|1994}} Additionally, there is a 14th-century copy of a painting of the same Kannon, that was supposedly commissioned by Dōgen, that includes a piece of calligraphy that is possibly an original in Dōgen's own hand, recording his gratitude to Avalokiteshwara:

{{blockquote|From the single blossom five leaves uncurled: Upon one single leaf a Tathagata stood alone. Her vow to harmonize our lives is ocean deep, As we spin on and on, shouldering our deeds of right and wrong. –written by the mendicant monk Dōgen, September 26, 1242.<ref>{{harvp|Ishida|1964}}{{pages needed|date=January 2025}}</ref>{{sfn|MacPhillamy|Roberson|Benson|Nearman|1997}}}}

Another miraculous event occurred, while Dōgen was at Eihei-ji. During a ceremony of gratitude for the 16 Celestial Arahants (called Rakan in Japanese), a vision of 16 Arahants appeared before Dōgen descending upon a multi-colored cloud,{{sfn|MacPhillamy|Roberson|Benson|Nearman|1997}} and the statues of the Arahants that were present at the event began to emanate rays of light,{{sfn|Bodiford|2008}} to which Dōgen then exclaimed:

{{blockquote |The Rakans caused to appear felicitous flowers, exceedingly wonderful and beautiful{{sfn|DeVisser|1923}}}}

Dōgen was profoundly moved by the entire experience, and took it as an auspicious sign that the offerings of the ceremony had been accepted.{{sfn|Faure|2000}} In his writings he wrote:

{{blockquote|As for other examples of the appearance of auspicious signs, apart from &#91;the case of&#93; the rock bridge of Mount Tiantai, &#91;in the province&#93: of Taizhou, in the great kingdom of the Song, nowhere else to my knowledge has there been one to compare with this one. But on this mountain &#91;Kichijōsan, the location of Eiheiji&#93; many apparitions have already happened. This is truly a very auspicious sign showing that, in their deep compassion, &#91;the Arahats&#93; are protecting the men and the Dharma of this mountain. This is why it appeared to me.” {{sfn|Faure|2000|p=92}}{{sfn|Dōshū|1969–70}}}}

Dōgen is also recorded to have had multiple encounters with non-human beings.{{sfn|Williams|2005}}{{sfn|Faure|2000}} Aside from his encounter with the kami Inari in China, in the Denkōrou it is recorded that while at Kōshō-ji, he was also visited by a deva who came to observe during certain ceremonies, as well as a dragon who visited him at Eihei-Ji and requested to be given the eight abstinence Precepts:{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}

{{blockquote|When he was at Kōshō-ji a deva used to come to hear the Precepts and join in as an observer at the twice-monthly renewal of Bodhisattva vows. At Eihei-ji a divine dragon showed up requesting the eight Precepts of abstinence and asking to be included among the daily transfers of merit. Because of this Dōgen wrote out the eight Precepts every day and offered the merit thereof to the dragon. Up to this very day this practice has not been neglected.{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}}}

==See also==
*''[[Zen (2009 film)|Zen]]'' - 2009 Japanese biopic about the life of Dōgen

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|21em}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin|32em}}
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* {{citation |last=Ishida |first=M | translator-last=Nearman | translator-first=Hubert |title= Japanese Buddhist Prints | location= New York  | publisher=Abrams | date=1964}}
* {{ cite book |last=Kasulis |first=Thomas P. |title=Zen Action / Zen Person |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |year=2021 |isbn= 9780824845162}}
* {{citation |last=Kato |first=K |title= Zen Fountains  | chapter= The Life of Zen Master Dōgen (Illustrated) | publisher=Taishōji Sōtō Mission, Hilo, Hawaii, by permission of the Sōtōshū Shūmuchō, Tokyo  | date=1994 }}
* {{cite book |last=Kim |first=Hee-jin |year=2004 |orig-year=1975, 1980, 1987 |title=Eihei Dogen, Mystical Realist |publisher=Wisdom Publications |isbn=978-0-86171-376-9 }}
* {{cite book |last=Kohn |first=Michael H. |year=1991 |title=The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen |location=Boston, MA |publisher=Shambhala Publications |isbn=978-0-87773-520-5 }}
* {{cite book |editor-last=LaFleur |editor-first=William R. |title=Dogen Studies |publisher=The Kuroda Institute |year=1985 |isbn=0-8248-1011-2}}
* {{citation |last1=MacPhillamy |first1=Daizui |last2=Roberson |first2=Zenshō |last3=Benson |first3=Kōten |last4=Nearman |first4=Hubert |title=YUME: Visionary Experience in the Lives of Great Masters Dōgen and Keizan |journal= The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives | volume= 12 | number = 2 | date= 1997 }}
* {{cite book |authorlink=Taigen Dan Leighton |last=Leighton |first=Taigen Dan |title=Visions of Awakening Space and Time: Dogen and the Lotus Sutra |location=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-19-538337-9}}.
* {{cite book |authorlink=Taigen Dan Leighton |last=Leighton |first=Taigen Dan |title=Zen Questions: Zazen, Dogen and the Spirit of Creative Inquiry |location=Boston |publisher=Wisdom Publications |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-86171-645-6}}.
*{{cite book |translator-link1=Taigen Dan Leighton |translator-last1=Leighton |translator-first1=Taigen Dan |translator-link2=Shohaku Okumura |translator-last2=Okumura |translator-first2=Shohaku  |title=Dogen's Extensive Record: A Translation of the Eihei Koroku |location=Boston |publisher=Wisdom Publications |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-86171-670-8}}
* {{cite book |authorlink1=Taigen Dan Leighton |last1=Leighton |first1=Taigen Dan  |authorlink2=Shohaku Okumura |last2=Okumura |first2=Shohaku  |title=Dogen's Pure Standards for the Zen Community: A Translation of Eihei Shingi |location=Albany |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=1996 |isbn=0-7914-2710-2}}.
*  {{cite book |last=Masunaga |first=Reiho |title=A Primer of Soto Zen |publisher=University of Hawaii: East-West Center Press |year=1978 |isbn=0-7100-8919-8}}
* {{cite book |last=McRae |first=John |year=2003 |title=Seeing Through Zen. Encounter, Transformation, and Genealogy in Chinese Chan Buddhism |publisher=The University Press Group Ltd |isbn=9780520237988 }}
* {{cite book |last=Müller |first=Ralf |year=2013 |title=Dōgens Sprachdenken: Historische und symboltheoretische Perspektiven |trans-title=Dōgen's Language Thinking: Systematic Perspectives from History and the Theory of Symbols] |series=Welten der Philosophie [Worlds of Philosophy] |place=Freiburg |publisher=Verlag Karl Alber |language=de |isbn=9783495486108 }}
*  {{cite book |translator-link1=Shohaku Okumura |translator-last1=Okumura |translator-first1=Shohaku |translator-link2=Taigen Dan Leighton |translator-last2=Leighton |translator-first2=Taigen Dan |title=The Wholehearted Way: A Translation of Eihei Dogen's Bendowa with Commentary |location=Boston |publisher=Tuttle Publishing |year=1997 |isbn=0-8048-3105-X}}
* {{cite book |last=Ōkubo<!-- 大久保--> |first=Dōshū<!-- 道舟--> |title=Dōgen Zenji-den no kenkyū |script-title=ja:道元禅師伝の研究 |publisher=Chikuma shobō |year=1966 }}
* {{cite book |last=Nishijima |first=Gudo |year=2003 |title=Master Dōgen's Shinji Shobogenzo, 301 Koan Stories |editor=M. Luetchford |editor2=J. Peasons |publisher=Windbell }}
* {{cite book |translator-last1=Nishijima |translator-first1=Gudo |translator-last2=Cross |translator-first2=Chodo |title=Master Dogen's Shobogenzo |volume=4 volumes |publisher=Windbell Publications |year=1994 |isbn=0-9523002-1-4}}
*{{cite book |last=Stambaugh |first=Joan |title=Impermanence is Buddha-Nature: Dogen's Understanding of Temporality |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |location=Honolulu |date=1990}}
* {{cite book |editor-link1=Kazuaki Tanahashi |editor-last=Tanahashi |editor-first=Kazuaki |title=Moon In a Dewdrop: Writings of Zen Master Dogen |location=New York |publisher=North Point Press |date=1997 |isbn=0-86547-186-X}}
* {{cite book |translator-last1=Tanahashi |translator-first1=Kazuaki |others=Commented by Loori, Daido |title=The True Dharma Eye |publisher=[[Shambhala Publications]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-1590304747 |ref={{harvid|Tanahashi|2011}}}}
* {{citation |last=Williams | first=Duncan |title= Temples, Pharmacies, Traveling Salesmen, and Pilgrims: Buddhist Production and Distribution of Medicine in Edo Japan | journal=Japanese Religion Bulletin Supplement |series=New Series |volume= 23 | issue= February | date=1998}}
* {{Citation | last =Williams | first =Duncan Ryūken | year =2005 | title =The Other Side of Zen: A Social History of Sōtō Zen Buddhism in Tokugawa Japan | publisher =Princeton University Press}}
* {{cite book |translator-last1=Yokoi |translator-first1=Yūhō |translator-last2=Victoria |translator-first2=Daizen |editor-last1=Yokoi |editor-first1=Yūhō |editor-last2=Victoria |editor-first2=Daizen |title=Zen Master Dōgen: An Introduction with Selected Writings |location=New York |publisher=Weatherhill |year=1990 |isbn=0-8348-0116-7}}
* {{cite book |last=Yasutani |first=Hakuun |year=1996 |title=Flowers Fall: a Commentary on Zen Master Dōgen's Genjokoan |location=Boston, MA |publisher=Shambhala Publications |isbn=978-1-57062-103-1 }}
* {{cite journal
 | last1       = Waddell
 | first1      = Norman
 | last2       = Abe
 | first2      = Masao
 | title       = Shōbōgenzō Buddha-nature: Part II
 | journal     = The Eastern Buddhist
 | series      = New Series
 | volume      = 9
 | issue       = 1
 | date        = May 1976
 | pages       = 87–105
 | jstor       = 44361421
 | url         = https://www.jstor.org/stable/44361421
 | access-date = 2025-03-31
}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{wikiquote}}
{{commons category|Dogen}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20160303202429/http://www.mitene.or.jp/~katumin/eiheiji/sonota/daionki/message/top.htm Who is Dogen Zenji?] Message from Dogen
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100409075312/http://www.wwzc.org/OnlinePubTrans.htm Dogen Translations] Translations of Dogen and other works by Anzan Hoshin.
*[http://www.thezensite.com/ZenTeachings/Dogen_Teachings/understandingShobo.pdf Understanding the Shobogenzo] by Gudo Nishijima
*[http://www.wwzc.org/translations/tenzokyokun.htm Instructions for the cook]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20151212095654/http://www.mro.org/mr/archive/24-2/articles/dogenandkoansdaido.html Dogen and Koans] by John Daido Loori
*[http://thenewheretics.wordpress.com/2009/06/18/shusho-gi/ Shusho-gi, Online Translation] by Neil Christopher
*[http://thenewheretics.wordpress.com/2009/06/17/gakudo-yojin-shu/ Gakudo Yojin-shu, Online Translation] by Neil Christopher
*[http://www.kanzeon.nl/dogen_shushogi.pdf Shushogi] What is Truly Meant by Training and Enlightenment
*[http://www.thezensite.com/ZenTeachings/Dogen_Teachings/Shobogenzo_Complete.html The Complete Shobogenzo] free for download
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20130420061745/http://global.sotozen-net.or.jp/eng/library/Zuimonki/index.html Shobogenzo Zuimonki]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20221129183540/https://zenmasterdogen.com/ Zen Master Dogen] Dogen-related translations, books, articles and other media. Includes related video teachings from modern Zen masters.

{{s-start}}
{{s-rel|bu}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Rujing]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Sōtō]] [[Zen]] patriarch|years=1227&ndash;1253}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Koun Ejō]]}}
{{s-end}}
{{Eihei Dōgen}}
{{Buddhism topics}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dogen}}
[[Category:Dōgen| ]]
[[Category:1200 births]]
[[Category:1253 deaths]]
[[Category:Soto Zen Buddhists| ]]
[[Category:Zen Buddhism writers]]
[[Category:Zen Buddhist priests]]
[[Category:Japanese scholars of Buddhism]]
[[Category:Japanese philosophers]]
[[Category:Japanese religious leaders]]
[[Category:Japanese Zen Buddhists]]
[[Category:13th-century Buddhists]]
[[Category:13th-century scholars]]
[[Category:13th-century Japanese philosophers]]
[[Category:Founders of religions]]
[[Category:Founders of Buddhist sects]]
[[Category:Buddhist poets]]
[[Category:Koga family]]