Soyen Shaku

Soyen Shaku (釈 宗演, January 10, 1860 – October 29, 1919, Kamakura, Japan; written in modern Japanese Sōen Shaku or Kōgaku Sōen Shaku) was the first Zen Buddhist master to teach in the United States. He was a Roshi of the Rinzai school and was abbot of both Kenchō-ji and Engaku-ji temples in Kamakura, Japan. Shaku was a disciple of Imakita Kosen.