The Khitan Monk Quanming 詮明 in Buddhist Literature of the Kamakura Period

With the progress of research in recent years, the works of Quanming 詮明, who is known as the “first person in the Vijñaptimātratā school of Khitan Buddhism,” have been found in ancient Buddhist circles from west to east, such as in Turfan, Dunhuang 敦煌, the Yingxian Wooden Pagoda 応県木塔, and the Songgwangsa temple 松広寺 in Korea. This paper investigates the relationship between Quanming and Japanese Buddhism through Buddhist texts of the Kamakura period in Japan. Specifically discussed are the writings of Quanming quoted by Jōkei 貞慶 and Sōshō 宗性, and Quanming’s stories of faith in Maitreya were very popular in Japan at that time.