4. THE INFLUENCE OF MYOAN  EISAI

Myoan Eisai, 明菴栄西(1141–1215), a Japanese Tendai monk, was credited with bringing the Rinzai school of Chan Buddha Dharma from China to Japan. He is often known simply as Eisai Zenji (栄西禅師).

He spent only six months in China on this first trip, but returned in 1187 for a longer stay as a disciple of Xuan Huaichang, a master in the Linji (Rinzai) model.

Eisai returned to Japan in 1191, bringing with him Chan texts. 

One feature of Eisai's activity is his continued eclecticism. He never renounced his status as a Tendai monk, and until the end of his life continued to engage in Tendai esoteric practices. 

Though he is credited with transmission of the Rinzai line to Japan it was later that teachers developed a distinctive Japanese form of Rinzai.

Whether this distinctive Rinzai reflects the true Chinese Rinzai is a matter for discussion.

Among his notable disciples was Eihei Dōgen, who himself traveled to China and returned to found the Sōtō school of Zen in Japan.