Kenchi (顕智)

Kenchi (1226 - July 30, 1310 ?) was a monk of the Jodo Shinshu (True Pure Land Sect of Buddhism) in the mid Kamakura period.

It is said that he first became a priest in Mt. Hiei and practiced asceticism, and he used Kenjun as a pseudonym. He studied under Shinbutsu, a disciple of Shinran who was a founder of Jodo Shinshu, and later became Shinran's direct disciple and changed his name to Kenchi. He always went with and followed Shinran and attended on him when he came back to Kyoto. In 1258, after Shinbutsu died, he succeeded the third Senju-ji Temple, Shinshu Sect Takada school head temple and helped Kakushinni and devoted himself to build Otani-byodo Mausoleum. According to one theory, he was appointed to Hoin (the highest rank among Buddhist priests) and Daisozu (the upper Buddhist priests in the second highest position) for the first time in Jodo Shinshu.

[Original Japanese]