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[[File:Todaiji.jpg|right|thumb|400px|The main hall at [[Todai-ji|Tôdai-ji]]]]
[[File:Todaiji.jpg|right|thumb|400px|The main hall at [[Todai-ji|Tôdai-ji]]]]
The introduction of Buddhism to Japan from Korea is believed to have taken place in the sixth century, though scholars differ on the date. Some of the most commonly cited dates include [[538]]<ref>[[Albert M. Craig]], ''The Heritage of Japanese Civilization'', Second Edition, Prentice Hall (2011), 10.</ref> and [[552]].<ref>Timon Screech, ''Obtaining Images'', University of Hawaii Press (2012), 347.</ref>
The introduction of Buddhism to Japan from Korea is believed to have taken place in the sixth century, though scholars differ on the date. Some of the most commonly cited dates include [[538]]<ref>[[Albert M. Craig]], ''The Heritage of Japanese Civilization'', Second Edition, Prentice Hall (2011), 10.</ref> and [[552]].<ref>Timon Screech, ''Obtaining Images'', University of Hawaii Press (2012), 347.</ref>
===Buddhism in Ryûkyû===
Buddhism is believed to have been first introduced to the [[Ryukyu Islands|Ryûkyû Islands]] in the 1260s by the Japanese monk [[Zenkan]]. He established the temple [[Gokuraku-ji (Okinawa)|Gokuraku-ji]] in [[Urasoe]] in [[1265]], and secured the conversion to Buddhism of King [[Eiso]]. A monk named Raijû, based at Ichijô-in at [[Bonotsu|Bônotsu]], traveled to Ryûkyû in [[1367]] and established the [[Shingon]] temple [[Gokoku-ji (Okinawa)|Gokoku-ji]], making it the personal prayer hall of King [[Satto]]. The [[Daianzen-ji]] was then founded in [[1430]] by [[Chinese investiture envoy]] [[Chai Shan]]. However, it was not until the reign of [[Sho Taikyu|Shô Taikyû]] (r. [[1454]]-[[1461]]) that Buddhism really began to spread in Ryûkyû. Shô Taikyû dispatched the Japanese monk [[Doan|Dôan]] to Korea in [[1455]] to obtain copies of the [[sutra]]s. The following year, the Japanese monk [[Kaiin]] came to Ryûkyû from Kyoto's [[Nanzen-ji]], and established a number of temples, including [[Tenryu-ji (Okinawa)|Tenryû-ji]], [[Fumon-ji]], and [[Kogen-ji|Kôgen-ji]]. He also had a number of temple bells produced, donating them to temples across the island. Kaiin made a strong impact upon Shô Taikyû, and was named the first abbot of [[Engaku-ji (Okinawa)|Engaku-ji]], one of the top temples in the kingdom. He was unable, however, to convince the king to make Buddhism the state religion.<ref name=yoko38>Yokoyama Manabu 横山学, ''Ryûkyû koku shisetsu torai no kenkyû'' 琉球国使節渡来の研究, Tokyo: Yoshikawa kôbunkan (1987), 38.</ref>
Zen monks based in Ryûkyû, due to their strong connections to Japan (chiefly [[Satsuma province|Satsuma]]), then came to occupy a particularly prominent role in Ryûkyû's diplomatic interactions with Japan, both in drafting formal communications, and in serving as official royal envoys. Interactions with China, Korea, and Southeast Asia continued to be handled chiefly by the [[Ryukyuan scholar-aristocracy|scholar-officials]] of [[Kumemura]], however.<ref name=yoko38/>
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