Qingzhuo Zhengcheng

CHINA, Fujian, Fuzhou; Yuan dynasty

Qingzhuo Zhengcheng had an original family name of Liu and was also known as Qingcheng. He was a master in the Linji school of Chan Buddhism who studied under several masters and was the eventual Dharma successor of Chan Master Yuji Zhihui at Jingci Temple in Zhejiang. Master Qingzhuo was invited to Japan in 1326 and served as the 22nd abbot of Kenchoji Temple in Kamakura where he made many reforms. There, he became known as Seisetsu Shocho. He later relocated to Jochiji Temple and Engakuji Temple before he was appointed by Emperor Go-Daigo (reigned 1318–1339) in 1333 as the 23rd abbot of Kenninji Temple in Kyoto. Following his term, he transferred to Nanzenji Temple in Kyoto and eventually established Kaizenji Temple. As the founding Patriarch of the Daikan branch of Zen Buddhism in Japan, he was posthumously bestowed the title of “Zen Master Daikan.”
Master Qingzhuo’s introduction of rules, systems, and teachings of the Chinese Chan school greatly impacted the Zen Buddhist practice in Japan. His publications include Quotes of Master Qingzhuo and Daikan Pure Regulations, the latter of which was written to correct the purview of rules for the Zen school in Japan.
His extant calligraphic work, Farewell Verse of Master Qingzhuo, famous for its spacious layout of characters and unadorned brushstrokes, is a National Treasure of Japan and kept at the Tokiwayama Bunko Foundation in Kamakura, Japan. Other works, which are listed as Important Cultural Properties of Japan, include Verse of Lingzhi, at the Mitsui Memorial Museum in Tokyo; Verse of Praise, at the Nomura Art Museum; Verse of Xiushan, at the Fukuoka Art Museum; and Verse of Offering Incense, at the Tokyo National Museum. The Inscription on Dialogue Between Master Mazu and Pang Yun kept in Myoshinji Temple in Kyoto, was also written by him.