Changes

*''Born: [[774]]''

*''Born: [[774]]''

*''Died: [[835]]''

*''Died: [[835]]''

*''Other Names'': 弘法大師 ''(Koubou daishi)''

*''Other Names'': 弘法[[大師]] ''(Koubou daishi)''

*''Japanese'': 空海 ''(Kuukai)''

*''Japanese'': 空海 ''(Kuukai)''

Returning from a journey to China in [[806]], he brought with him ideas of [[Esoteric Buddhism]] (''Mikkyô'') which he had learned there; the sect Shingon, which he then founded, takes its name from the Chinese term ''zhenyan'', a translation of the Sanskrit word ''mantra''.

Returning from a journey to China in [[806]], he brought with him ideas of [[Esoteric Buddhism]] (''Mikkyô'') which he had learned there; the sect Shingon, which he then founded, takes its name from the Chinese term ''zhenyan'', a translation of the Sanskrit word ''mantra''.

Kûkai initially established his first Shingon center of worship at [[Mt Koya|Mt Kôya]], in what is today [[Wakayama prefecture]], a good distance from the religious competition and politics of the capital.  

Kûkai initially established his first Shingon center of worship at [[Mt. Koya|Mt. Kôya]], in what is today [[Wakayama prefecture]], a good distance from the religious competition and politics of the capital.  

Kûkai returned to the [[Heian-kyo|Heian]] capital, however, in [[823]], when he was made the abbot of [[To-ji|Tô-ji]]; he promptly converted the site into a Shingon temple and renamed it Kyôôgokoku-ji. Tô-ji remains the head temple of Japanese Shingon today.

Kûkai returned to the [[Heian-kyo|Heian]] capital, however, in [[823]], when he was made the abbot of [[To-ji|Tô-ji]]; he promptly converted the site into a Shingon temple and renamed it Kyôôgokoku-ji. Tô-ji remains the head temple of Japanese Shingon today.

Following Kûkai's death in [[835]], he was posthumously named Kôbô Daishi ("The Great Teacher of the Spreading of the Law"), and was buried at Mt. Kôya. According to Shingon belief, he did not in fact die, but remains, rather, in a state of deep meditation, atop Mt. Kôya, awaiting the coming of [[Miroku]] (Maitreya, Buddha of the Future). A massive graveyard can be found on Mt. Kôya today, including the burials of a great many prominent historical figures, among others, who chose to be buried there in order to eventually follow Kûkai into salvation.

Following Kûkai's death in [[835]], he was posthumously named Kôbô Daishi ("The Great Teacher of the Spreading of the Law"), and was buried at Mt. Kôya. According to Shingon belief, he did not in fact die, but remains, rather, in a state of deep meditation, atop Mt. Kôya, awaiting the coming of [[Miroku]] (Maitreya, Buddha of the Future). A massive graveyard can be found on Mt. Kôya today, including the burials of a great many prominent historical figures, among others, who chose to be buried there in order to eventually follow Kûkai into salvation.

Statues of Kôbô Daishi are a common sight at temples in Japan, and are easily recognizable by the signs of a traveling monk's outfit, including the round hat and staff with rings at the top. The [[bodhisattva]] [[Jizo|Jizô]] is often depicted similarly, however.

Statues of Kôbô Daishi are a common sight at temples in Japan, and are easily recognizable by the signs of a traveling monk's outfit, including the round hat and staff with rings at the top. The [[bodhisattva]] [[Jizo|Jizô]] is often depicted similarly, however.

==References==

==References==

*Conrad Schirokauer, David Lurie, and Suzanne Gay, ''A Brief History of Japanese Civilization'', Wadsworth Cengage (2013), 56.  

*Conrad Schirokauer, David Lurie, and Suzanne Gay, ''A Brief History of Japanese Civilization'', Wadsworth Cengage (2013), 56.  

[[Category:Religious Figures]]

[[Category:Religious Figures]]

[[Category:Heian Period]]

[[Category:Heian Period]]