Dokyo Etan

"You're a self-centered rascal, aren't you!"

"Here in the shadow of death it is hard To utter the final word. I'll only say, then, "Without saying." Nothing more, Nothing more."

"Hurrying to die, It’s difficult to find a last word. If I spoke the wordless word, I wouldn’t speak at all!"

"Dôkyô Etan (1642–1721) Japanese Rinzai monk from the Myôshin-ji lineage, best known as the master of Hakuin Ekaku (1768–1768), the great Rinzai sect reformer. Etan was the son of a samurai and his concubine. He was raised in the household of Lord Matsudaira Tadatomo, where he was first introduced to Zen. On a trip to Edo in 1660, Etan became the disciple of Shidô Bu'nan (1603–1676), having already attained an experience of enlightenment. He received the master's certificate (J. inka) after only one year of practice. He then returned to his native Iiyama in Shinano, where he lived a simple life in a small hermitage called Shôju-an. From the hermitage Etan received his nickname, Shôju Rôji, “the old man of the Shôju hermitage.” None of Etan's writings were published, although some of his teachings are scattered within Hakuin's work."