(b Quanzhou Prefecture, Fujian Province, 1611; d Nagasaki, 1684). Chinese monk, calligrapher, painter and poet. He was the second abbot of MANPUKUJI and a prominent early patriarch of Obaku Zen Buddhism in Japan. Together with INGEN RYUKI (Yinyuan Longqi) and SOKUHI NYOITSU (Jifei Ruyi), he became known as one of the Three Brushes of Obaku (Obaku no Sanpitsu), noted master Zen calligraphers (see also JAPAN, VII, 2(iv)(c)). Mokuan was ordained at the age of 18 (19 by Chinese reckoning) and studied under the eminent Chinese monks Miyun Yuanwu (1566-1642) and Feiyin Tongrong (1593-1661) before training at Wanfu si on Mt Huangbo (Fujian Province) under Ingen. Mokuan received dharma transmission from Ingen in 1650 and went on to serve as abbot of the monasteries Taiping si on Mt Lianshi and Huiming si on Mt Xiang in south-eastern China. In 1655, at Ingen's behest, Mokuan emigrated to Nagasaki, where he took over as abbot of the monastery Fukusaiji and served as Ingen's senior disciple in Japan. Sokuhi Nyoitsu and Mokuan gained renown as the 'Two Gates to the Nectar [of liberation]' (Jap. nikanromon), a euphemism implying mastery of the Buddha's teachings. In 1660, Ingen summoned Mokuan to the capital region to assist in the founding of a major monastery, Manpukuji (now in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture). Mokuan became abbot following Ingen's retirement in 1664. During his 16-year tenure, Mokuan received substantial financial support and recognition from the government, oversaw the construction of major monastic halls and played a prominent role in the spread of Obaku Zen in metropolitan Japan. In 1670, Mokuan was granted the purple robe (a privilege reserved for monks of the highest rank, typically abbots of major public monasteries) and founded the monastery Zuishoji in Edo (now Tokyo). Mokuan retired to Fukusaiji in 1680, where he remained until his death. His body was enshrined in the Manjuin memorial chapel on the grounds of Manpukuji. Mokuan's religious lineage grew to dominate the Obaku Zen school well into the 19th century.
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