The Princess Nun Bunchi Buddhist Reform And Gender In Early Edo Japan

This book tells the story of Bunchi (1619-1697), daughter of Emperor Go-Mizunoo and founder of EnshMji. Bunchi advocated strict adherence to monastic precepts while devoting herself to the posthumous welfare of her family. As the first full-length biographical study of a premodern Japanese nun, this book incorporates issues of gender and social status into its discussion of Bunchi's ascetic practice and religious reforms to rewrite the history of Buddhist reform and Tokugawa religion.