Maura O'Halloran
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maura O'Halloran Go-Roshi | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal life | |
| Born | May 24, 1955 |
| Died | October 22, 1982 (aged 27) |
| Cause of death | Traffic collision |
| Alma mater | Trinity College Dublin |
| Other names | Daigo Soshin Bikuni |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Buddhism |
| Denomination | Zen Buddhism |
| Sect | Sōtō |
| Dharma names | Soshin |
| Senior posting | |
| Teacher | Tetsugyu Soin Ban |
Maura "Soshin" O'Halloran (May 24, 1955 – October 22, 1982) was an Irish Zen Buddhist monk.[1] She is known for her book Pure Heart, Enlightened Mind, which was posthumously published, and for being one of the "first of few Western women allowed to practice in a traditional Japanese Zen monastery".[2]
O'Halloran was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1955 and her parents moved to Ireland when she was four years old.[3][4] Her father was originally from County Kerry while her mother was native of Maine.[4] In Ireland, O'Halloran was educated in Loreto College, Foxrock in Dublin and later attended Trinity College Dublin, where she graduated with a joint degree in mathematical economics/statistics and sociology.[3] Shortly after her graduation O'Halloran travelled to Japan, where she studied to become a Zen monk at Toshoji in Tokyo and at Kannonji in the Iwate Prefecture.[3]
On November 18, 1979, O'Halloran contacted and went to the Toshoji Temple where she met the master at the time, Tetsugyu Soin Ban, who she respected with the honorific title "Go-Roshi."[5] On November 23, 1979, she was given the Dharma name of "Soshin", meaning something like "Genuine Heart/Mind".[6] In June 1982 she completed the Denbóshiki ceremony which allowed her to be an oshō, a priest in charge of a temple, while her Hasansai (graduation ceremony) was held on 7 August 1982. Following the completion of her training, O'Halloran and her teacher had a disagreement; She felt she should open a Buddhist temple in Ireland while he sought to have her remain in Japan and eventually succeed him at Kannonji temple.[4]
On 8 August 1982, O'Halloran decided she would travel back to Ireland.[3] O'Halloran first travelled through Hong Kong and Macao. It was while she was in Thailand that she was hit and killed in a traffic accident in Chiang Mai on October 22, 1982.[4][7] After her death she was titled "Great Enlightened Lady, of the same heart and mind as the Great Teacher Buddha" and a statue was dedicated to her at the temple she studied at in Iwate Prefecture.[3]
