Shinran

Shinran

 orig. Matsuwaka-Maru

(born 1173, near Kyoto, Japan—died Jan. 9, 1263, Kyoto) Japanese philosopher and religious reformer. He entered the priesthood at age nine and studied for 20 years at the centre founded by Saicho on Mount Hiei. He later met Honen, founder of the Jodo sect (see Pure Land Buddhism). When Honen's movement was suppressed, he and Shinran were exiled. For more than 20 years, Shinran lived an academic and missionary life, compiling the six volumes of his teachings. In 1224 he established Jodo Shinshu (“True Pure Land sect”). He refined the Pure Land teaching that salvation could be attained through chanting the name of the Buddha Amida (Amitabha) by saying that even one such utterance, if made with true faith, was sufficient for salvation. He advocated marriage for his priests to minimize the distance between clergy and laity. Jodo Shinshu is the largest Buddhist denomination in modern Japan.