Hokke genki; Ōjōden; Chingen; Yoshishige no Yasutane; mountain practice; jikyōsha
摘要
This article is an investigation of historical sources such as the Hokke genki that reveal the practices and thought of medieval Japanese Buddhists. The textual history of this genre of biographies and its sources are described. A comparison with Ōjōden is particularly useful. The article then analyzes a number of biographies, many of them of recluses in the mountains, and focuses on the relationship between practitioners and lay believers. Finally, the doctrinal aspects of practices are examined and a progression from a mix of esotericexoteric thought to a focus on the Lotus Sutra is suggested.
