Akegarasu Haya

Akegaras Haya (暁烏 敏, 1877-1954) was a Shin Buddhist student of Kiyozawa Manshi for a decade. Akegarasu was a former head of administration of the Higashi Hongan-ji who was a major inspiration to the formation of the Dobokai Movement.^[1]

In 1949, Akegarasu focused Shin practice in the direction of faith alone, declaring in a statement to his disciples: "First shinjin, second shinjin, third shinjin." This is basically the moment where Dobokai became official, although the movement did not receive official recognition until 1962. The early roots for the Dobokai Movement faith movement began in 1947 as the shinjinsha, or, 'true person community'.^[1]

Akegarasu died August 27, 1954.^[2]

The earliest English translation of Akegarasu's writings can be found in Selections From The Nippon Seishin Library, which Akegarasu published in 1936 (translators Hata Taigan, Hanaoka Kimi, Imadate Tosui and others).^[3] In 1977 to commemorate the centennial of Akegarasu's birth, two ministers of the Buddhist Temple of Chicago who were his direct students published their translations: The Fundamental Spirit of Buddhism translated by Gyomay Kubose with Nancy DeRoin^[4] and Shout of Buddha: Writings of Haya Akegarasu translated by Gyoko Saito with Joan Sweany.^[5]

Akegarasu's main student was Shuichi Maida (1906-1967).

References

1. Popular Buddhism In Japan: Shin Buddhist Religion & Culture by Esben Andreasen, pp. 46,71,72 / University of Hawaii Press 1998, ISBN 0-8248-2028-2
2. Heard By Me: Essays on My Buddhist Teacher by Shuichi Maida, translated by Nobuo Haneda, p. 194 / Berkeley: Frog Press 1992, ISBN 0-9627231-0-X
3. Selections From The Nippon Seishin Library / Kita-yasuda, Ishikawa: Koso 1936, OCLC 4383762
4. The Fundamental Spirit of Buddhism by Haya Akegarasu, translated by Gyomay M. Kubose (with Nancy DeRoin) / Chicago: Buddhist Educational Center 1977, OCLC 84284631
5. Shout of Buddha: Writings of Haya Akegarasu translated by Gyoko Saito and Joan Sweany / Chicago: Orchid Press 1977, OCLC 8224165