Eiheiji -
A Zen Forest

Eiheiji is huge and that is a good thing as all tours in Fukui Prefecture seem to concentrate under its wide roofs. The temple stands in a deep, solemn wood and the red and yellow contrasts beautifully with the pile of brown wood of its own buildings. It is fine day at the end of autumn and there are still lingering fall colors on the trees. Thanks to the spaciousness of the temple, there is room enough for me beside all those hasty tours, as I find my way around the premises.

Of course, Eiheiji is a Zen temple, so there is not much to see. There are almost no Buddha statues, and not many art treasures. All artistic beauty is concentrated in the architecture, the blend of the buildings with nature. Those buildings are huge and numerous. There is the Sodo, where the priests practice zazen on tatami of only 1 by 2 meters (they also eat and sleep in this confined space). The Butsuden has a stone floor and double roof in Chinese style, and on it altar sits a triad of Amida, Shaka and Miroku (symbolizing the Buddhas of the past, present and future). For lectures and services the Dharma hall is used. The Founder's Hall (Joyoden) contains the ashes and image of Dogen and his successors, who still receive daily veneration. Large is also the Daikuin or kitchen, where all the food for the temple is prepared. Open galleries lead through the carefully manicured gardens to which the forest provides a splendid backdrop.

Unsui
The monks, the unsui, run along the galleries, sweeping and cleaning, moving around on bare feet in the stinging cold. Eiheiji is severe. Eiheiji is undiluted Zen.

Zen was transmitted to Japan by two Japanese monks in the 13th century who had studied in China. Dogen (1200-1253) brought back the teachings of Soto Zen and Eisai (1141-1251) those of Rinzai Zen. The differences between both types are not that large. Both emphasize the importance of seated meditation. One of the distinguishing marks is that Rinzai focuses on the use of the koan, seemingly illogical problems the meditating monk uses to break down the logical barriers of his mind. Soto is characterized by silent concentrated meditation.

The word Zen itself means 'meditation' (and is derived from the Chinese Chan; in Sanskrit Dhyana). At a time Buddhism had grown scholastic and lost itself in empty rituals, Zen tried to go back to the source: the meditation practice of the historical Buddha. The world view of Zen is optimistic: all beings basically possess the Buddha nature, all humans can reach enlightenment if they strive for it.

An aspect Dogen emphasized is that enlightenment can also be found in daily cores. It is important to carry out also ordinary activities with a concentrated and aware mind, be it cooking, cleaning or washing oneself. Work is essential. In Eiheiji the young monks time and again scrub the spotlessly clean wooden floors. This may also be connected to the notion that purity is vital. Dogen gave rules and procedures for all these activities, even for brushing one's teeth. What is a better moment for reaching satori?

Eiheiji's impressive wooden hall

Dogen
Dogen (1200-1253) entered Enryakuji at the tender age of 13 and the following year met Eisai. His interest in Zen kindled, from 1217 he studied with Eisai's disciple Myozen in Kenninji. In 1223 Dogen made the arduous trip to China (mainly what is now Zhejiang Province) to study Zen at the root. He became the student of Soto Zen master Zhanweng Rujing (1163-1228), under whose direction he reached enlightenment, after which he was certified by the Chinese master as his Soto successor.

Back in Japan, Dogen first stayed first at Kenninji, where he started to write essays to expound his ideas about Zen. In 1236 Dogen set up the first Soto Zen temple in Japan, Kosho Horinji. In this period he started writing his magnum opus, Shobo Genzo (Treasury of the True Dharma Eye), in which he asserts that enlightenment is accessible by anyone through reliance on meditation in the Lotus position.

When Dogen promoted his ideas to the court, the opposition from the Tendai monks at Enryakuji grew so strong that in 1243 he was driven out of Kyoto. He moved to distant Echizen province where in 1244 he founded a new temple, Daibutsuji, that two years later was renamed Eiheiji.

Circumstance may have helped a hand, but another difference between Rinzai and Soto is that temples of the latter are all located far from the madding crowd. Soto Zen turned its back on the rich and powerful, and retreated to the woods and mountains. It selected places most conducive to meditation and the training of the monks, the 'unsui.'

Eiheiji's Main Entrance

A Zen Forest
And so it has remained. Eiheiji has preserved the precepts set by Dogen and for more than 750 years its dark-brown timber halls have seen many generations training in rigorous discipline. Far from worldly concerns, Eiheiji provides the ideal environment for Zen.

The tourists have left, I linger in the wood of 600 year old cedar trees where the low autumn sun lights up the golden foliage. The stillness is severe, only accentuated by the rustle of a leaf, the call of a bird and the faint sound of bells and clappers from the halls on the hill. In my imagination I again see the monks sweeping the floors with pieces of cloth, running over the shining planks.

The wooden timbers glow just as golden as the tree leaves.