Hakuin (redirected from Hakuin Ekaku)

Hakuin

 or Hakuin Ekaku

(born Jan. 19, 1686, Hara Suruga province, Japan—died Jan. 18, 1769, Hara) Japanese priest and artist who helped revive the Rinzai Zen sect. After joining the sect c. 1700, he became an itinerant monk. He lived in poverty at a time when many priests sought advancement under the Tokugawa shogunate, and he attracted a large following that provided a new foundation for Rinzai Zen. Hakuin taught that direct knowledge of truth is open to all people and that a moral life must follow from religious belief. He used koans to aid meditation and invented the well-known paradox of contemplating the sound of one hand clapping. He is also known as an artist and calligrapher.