Kawaguchi Ekai

A Buddhist scholar and Tibetan explorer in the Meiji and Taisho periods. He was originally a priest of the Obaku sect. He was born in Sakai, Izumi Province (Osaka Prefecture). His childhood name was Sadajiro. After graduating from the Tetsugakukan (the predecessor of Toyo University) in Tokyo, he became a monk in 1890 (Meiji 23). In 1897, feeling the need to study the original Buddhist texts, he traveled to India and studied Tibetan. In 1899, he passed through Nepal and became the first Japanese to enter Tibet, which was in a state of isolation, claiming to be a doctor in Ladakh (Western Tibet). He studied at Sera University, but when his nationality was discovered, he returned to Japan in 1903 (Meiji 36). He entered Nepal again in 1905, and entered Tibet in 1913 (Taisho 2). In Nepal, he collected a large amount of Sanskrit Buddhist scriptures, and in Tibet, with the cooperation of the Panchen Lama, he also obtained botanical specimens and folklore materials. He returned to Japan in 1915 and became a professor at Toyo University, where he devoted himself to studying Buddhist texts, writing travelogues, and training Tibetan scholars. He also edited a Tibetan dictionary (the Tibetan-Japanese Dictionary) at the Toyo Bunko, but did not see completion of it, and passed away on February 24, 1945, at the age of 80. In his later years, he renounced his monkhood, but kept the precepts and worked hard to spread the teachings as a lay Buddhist. All of the textual materials he collected were donated to public institutions, making a great contribution to the development of Buddhist studies. His books include Chinese translations of Buddhist scriptures, the Tibetan (Tibetan) Grammar, Tibetan Language Grammar, and Tibetan Travel Journal.

[Rikizan Ishikawa June 20, 2017]

"Travels in Tibet by Ekai Kawaguchi (Obunsha Bunko/Kodansha Academic Library)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

明治・大正時代の仏教学者、チベット探検家。もと黄檗(おうばく)宗の僧。和泉(いずみ)国（大阪府）堺(さかい)の出身。幼名は定次郎。東京の哲学館（東洋大学の前身）を卒業したのち、1890年（明治23）に出家した。1897年仏教の原典研究の必要性を感じてインドに渡り、チベット語を学んだ。1899年ネパールを経て、ラダック（西チベット）の医師と称し、日本人としては初めて鎖国状態のチベットに入国し、セラ大学に学んだが、国籍が発覚して、1903年（明治36）帰国。1905年ふたたびネパールに入り、1913年（大正2）チベットに入国した。ネパールではサンスクリット仏典、チベットではパンチェン・ラマの協力を得て大量のチベット仏典を収集し、また植物標本や民俗資料などを入手。1915年帰国、東洋大学教授となり、仏教の原典研究、旅行記の執筆、チベット学者の養成などに尽くす。また東洋文庫でチベット語辞典（『蔵和辞典』）の編集にあたったが、完成をみず、昭和20年2月24日、80歳で没した。晩年は僧籍を返上したが、戒律を守り在家(ざいけ)仏教徒として布教に努めた。収集した原典資料などはすべて公共の機関に寄贈され、仏教学の発展に大きく寄与した。著書は、諸経の漢蔵対訳や『西蔵(チベット)文典』『西蔵語文法』『西蔵旅行記』など。

［石川力山　2017年6月20日］

『河口慧海著『チベット旅行記』（旺文社文庫／講談社学術文庫）』

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例