Hagiographies or idealized biographies which recount the lives of
saints, bodhisattvas and other charismatic figures have been the
meeting place for myth and experience. In medieval Europe, the
'lives of saints' were read during liturgical celebrations and the
texts themselves were treated as sacred objects. In Japan, it was
believed that those who read the biographies of lofty monks would
acquire merit. Since hagiographies were written or compiled by
'believers', the line between fantasy and reality was often
obscured. This study of the bodhisattva Gyoki - regarded as the
monk who started the largest social welfare movement in Japan -
illustrates how Japanese Buddhist hagiographers chose to regard a
single monk's charitable activities as a miraculous achievement
that shaped the course of Japanese history.
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