(538–597) incorporated it into his system of practice.
Zhiyi was a devotee of Amitabha (and other buddhas).
In addition, he worked on the problem of classifying
the different types of Pure Lands and developed the
constant walking samadhi, which is focused on
Amitabha, a core practice for Tiantai.
From the Tang dynasty on, Tiantai forms of Pure
Land practice were influenced by developments both
within the school and from outside. Tiantai followers
helped make Pure Land part of daily life during the
Song dynasty (960–1279) and thereafter by forming
White Lotus societies and engaging in other activities
to spread the tradition.
The Pure Land teachings were also influential in
the CHAN SCHOOL. The Tiantai form influenced the
fourth Chan patriarch Daoxin (580–651). Xuanshi, a
disciple of the fifth patriarch, Hongren (688–761),
founded the Southern Mountain Chan of the Nian Fo
Gate school. Baizhang (749–814) incorporated Pure
Land practices into his Chan rules, which are the be-
havioral code for Chan monasteries. YANSHOU
(904–975) was influenced by Cimin’s line. Of partic-
ular note is Yinyan Longqi (1592–1673), who became
the founder of the Obaku Zen school in Japan. The
idea of Pure Land practice even becomes the KOAN,
“Who recites the nian fo.”
There were many significant figures in Chinese
Buddhist history who, although masters of different
teachings such as Huayan and Sanlun, were influential
in the overall development of Pure Land thought and
practice. In fact, Pure Land teachings became so ubiq-
uitous in Chinese Buddhism that to speak of them as
a schoolis a misnomer.
Pure Land teachings in Japan
Gyogi (668–749), while cultivating donations for the
building of Todaiji in Nara, spread the Pure Land
teachings to the populace by publicly reciting the nen-
butsu(Chinese, nianfo) and teaching people about the
Pure Land in their homes. Chiko(709–780), a resident
of Nara’s Gangoji, wrote a now lost commentary to
Vasubandhu’s Discourseand had a MANDALApainted
after his vision of the Pure Land. These are the major
Pure Land activities during the early period.
SAICHO(767–822), the founder of Tendai (Chinese,
Tiantai) in Japan, introduced the teachings on
Amitabha associated with this line of transmission. EN-
NIN(794–864), Saicho’s main disciple in addition to
those mentioned above, learned the “nianfo in five
movements” while in China. Upon his return to Japan,
he blended the “constant walking samadhi” with the
“five movements” and created the nonstop (fudan)
nenbutsu.He also seems to have known some esoteric
aspects of Amitabha lore. With these beginnings
Tendai became the fountainhead of Pure Land teach-
ings in Japan for many centuries with masters like
Ryogen (912–985), Ryonin (1072–1134), and many
more. Of special distinction is the great master and
prolific writer GENSHIN(942–1017), who composed
some twenty works on Pure Land teachings, including
the celebrated Ojoyoshu(Essentials for Birth).The Heian period witnessed Amitabha sages who
helped spread the teachings to the general population.
Several of these are historically significant. Koya (903–
972), a Tendai monk, performed many good works and
taught the nenbutsuin the Nagoya, Kyoto, and north-
ern Japan. Senkan (918–983), Koya’s disciple, wrote
Gokurakukoku Mida wasan(SukhavatlRealm Amida
Chant) and many other works. Koya strictly observed
the PRECEPTSand established eight rules and ten vows
for his disciples. In addition, masters associated with
many other schools of Japanese Buddhism also prac-
ticed and promoted Pure Land teachings.The Kamakura period saw an emphasis on finding
the one primary practice that was sufficient for awak-
ening, an effort that brought theretofore exclusive
practices to the fore and led to a simplification of con-
siderable lore throughout Japanese Buddhism. The
first major figure to address this effort as it related
to Pure Land teachings was HONEN(1133–1212), a
learned Tendai priest. He wrote a commentary to Gen-
shin’s work, which became the standard of interpreta-
tion. In 1198 Honen wrote Senchaku hongan nenbutsu
shu (Passages on the Selection of the Nenbutsu in the
Original Vow), which explained the essentials of the
nenbutsuway, including exclusive recitation, theory of
the Pure Land lineage, emphasis on the three sutras,
and welcoming by Amitabha at the time of death.
Honen’s writings generally accepted the interpretation
of the Shandao line. He also transmitted the bo-
dhisattva precepts, and his teachings formed the basis
of the Jodo school.Among Honen’s important disciples, SHINRAN
(1173–1262) is of particular note. Like Honen, Shin-
ran was first trained as a Tendai scholar-practitioner.
He lived as an openly married priest and propagated
Pure Land teachings near eastern Tokyo. He wrote a
number of works including Kyogyoshinsho (Teaching,
Practice, Faith, and Attainment). A new sect (Jodo Shin-
shu) was based on his interpretations of the Pure LandPURELANDSCHOOLS