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Ennin (792-862 A.D.), who is better known in Japan by his posthumous
name, Jikaku Daishi, was a priest of the Tendai school. He was born into the
Mibu family in present-day Tochigi Prefecture, Japan and entered the
Buddhist priesthood at Enryakuji on Mt. Hiei (Hieizan) near Kyoto at the age
of 14.
In 838 A.D., his trip to Tang Dynasty China marked the beginning of a set
of tribulations and adventures. Initially, he studied under two masters and
then spent some time at Wutaishan (五臺山; Japanese: Godaisan), a mountain
range famous for its numerous Buddhist temples in Shanxi (山西) Province in
China. Later he went to Chang-an (長安; Japanese: Choan), the then-capital of
China, where he was ordained into both mandala rituals.
In 847 he returned to Japan and in 854, he became the chief priest of the
Tendai sect at Enryakuji, where he built buildings to store the sutras and
religious instruments he brought back from China.
He authored more than 100 books. His diary of travels in China 入唐求法巡礼行記
(Nitto Guho Junrei Koki) was translated into English by Professor Edwin
Reischauer under the title Ennin's Diary: The Record of a Pilgrimage to
China in Search of the Law (Ronald Press, New York: 1955). Sometimes ranked
among the best travelogues in world literature, it is a key source of
information on life in Tang China.
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