DOSHO

born 629, Kawachi province, Japan died 700, Japan Japanese priest who helped introduce Buddhism into his country. Dosho served as a temple priest at Gango Temple, one of the great temples at Nara, until he left for China about 653. There he studied for eight years under the Buddhist monk Hsan-tsang (Pinyin: Xuanzang), the founder of the Wei-shih (Ideation Only, or Consciousness Only) school, which was derived from the Indian Yogacara (also called Vijanavda) philosophy and stressed the idea that the world is but a representation of the mind. Dosho returned to Japan and introduced the doctrines of the Wei-shih school. It is generally believed he founded the school known as Hosso (Chinese: Fa-hsiang), which continues the Wei-shih philosophy. Dosho established a centre on the grounds of the Gango Temple where he instructed his disciples, and for 10 years he traveled around Japan to preach his doctrines. At his death, according to his wishes, his body was cremated, and he is the first person known to have been cremated in Japan.