Heinrich Dumoulin

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Heinrich Dumoulin

Heinrich Dumoulin, S.J. (31 May 1905 – 21 July 1995) was a Jesuit theologian, a widely published author on Zen, and a professor of philosophy and history at Sophia University in Tokyo, where he was Professor Emeritus.[1] He was the founder of its Institute for Oriental Religions, as well as the first Director of the Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture.

Biography and career[edit]

Dumoulin was born in the village of Wevelinghoven, Rhineland, Germany, the son of a notary public. He studied philosophy in Holland and France, receiving his doctoral degree in 1929, and was ordained as a Jesuit priest in 1933.[2] In 1935, he was sent to Japan on missions under the guidance of Fr. Hugo Enomiya-Lassalle, where he became fluent in the Shinto religion and Buddhism.[3]

Dumoulin was a scholar of Zen Buddhism and wrote several books on its history, first urged to do it by the American Buddhist Ruth Fuller Sasaki. His Zen Buddhism: A history was published in 1988, translated from the original German by James Heisig and Paul Knitter.[4]

He died in 1995 at the age of 90, after being hospitalized for three weeks, and was buried at the St. Ignatius Church, Tokyo.[5]

Legacy[edit]

According to John Jorgensen Dumoulin was "the foremost exponent of the history of Zen Buddhism to the West".[6] The 1985 double number of the Japanese Journal of Religious Studies was dedicated to him and his work.

Bibliography[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Heinrich Dumoulin: Life and Work". www.worldwisdom.com. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  2. ^ Heisig, James W. (1985). "Editor's Introduction". Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. 12 (2/3): 109–117. ISSN 0304-1042.
  3. ^ Oldmeadow, Harry. Journeys East: 20th Century Western Encounters with Eastern Religious Traditions. World Wisdom, Inc. pp. 430–431. ISBN 0-941532-57-7.
  4. ^ Dumoulin, Heinrich (1988). Zen Buddhism: A history. Volume 1: India and China. New York: Macmillan. ISBN 0-02-908230-7.
  5. ^ Van Bragt, Jan (1995). "In memoriam: Heinrich Dumoulin (1905–1995)". Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. 22 (3–4): 459–461.
  6. ^ Jorgensen, John (1991). Dumoulin, Heinrich; Heisig, James W.; Knitter, Paul (eds.). "Heinrich Dumoulin's "Zen Buddhism: A History"". Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. 18 (4): 377–400. ISSN 0304-1042.

External links[edit]