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Body and Mind Cast Off — What Was the Enlightenment Dogen Found in Song China?

In 1225, Dogen heard his master Rujing say 'body and mind cast off' and experienced deep enlightenment. This became the foundation of Soto Zen: just sitting, nothing else. He returned to Japan and founded Eiheiji.

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In 1225, Dogen heard his master Rujing shout ‘body and mind cast off!’ and experienced enlightenment. He returned to Japan in 1227, wrote the Fukanzazengi (universal promotion of zazen), eventually retreated to the mountains of Echizen, and founded Eiheiji in 1244 — a pure practice temple uncompromising with political power.

Portrait of Dogen Zenji — the Kamakura-era Zen master who established Soto Zen from the enlightenment of 'body and mind cast off'

Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

Horyuji — in the long history of Japanese Buddhism stretching back to Asuka times, Dogen kept asking: 'What is true Buddhist teaching?'

Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

Kenchoji — symbol of the era when Zen took root in Japan. Eisai's Rinzai Zen and Dogen's Soto Zen both took form in the Kamakura period

Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

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