I.

RENNYO (1415 - 1499), THE EIGHTH head priest of the Hongwanji, is known for his unique theory on Amida Buddha's Name ( myogo - ron ) developed while he worked to propagate Jodo Shinshu through a concrete application of Shinran's interpretation of the six-character Name ( rokuji shaku ). The most distinctive characteristic of Rennyo's theory, as well noted in traditional scholarship, is his interpretation of the six-character Name ( na - mu - a - mi - da - butsu ) as the relationship between the practitioner and Amida's Dharma ( kihomon , "gateway of practitioner and Dharma" ). This paper examines the development of Rennyo's theory on Amida's Name by focusing on three factors crucial to understanding his theory. First, Rennyo's understanding of Shinran's thought is influenced by Kakunyo. Rennyo adopts Kakunyo's doctrinal position, which frames Shinran's doctrinal system through an emphasis on Shinran's interpretation of the passage of the fulfillment of the Eighteenth Vow ( juhachigan jojumon ). Second, Rennyo follows Shan-tao's interpretation of the six-character Name, that Amida's Name is the practitioner's aspiration and practice for birth in the Pure Land ( gangyomon , "gateway of aspiration and practice" ). However, Rennyo reinterprets Shan-tao's theory by incorporating Shinran's concept of directing merit through Other Power ( tariki eko ). Third, Rennyo's interpretation of the six-character Name as the relationship between practitioners and Dharma was greatly influenced by the concept of the oneness of practitioner and Dharma of Amida Buddha ( kiho ittai ) from the Anjin ketsujo sho (On Attaining the Settled Mind).² By paying special attention to these three factors, I will demonstrate how Rennyo developed his interpretation of the Name as the relationship between the practitioner and the Dharma...