| Rempo Niwa | |
| Native Name: | 丹羽 廉芳 |
| Birth Date: | February 23, 1905 |
| Birth Place: | Shizuoka Prefecture |
| Nationality: | Japanese |
| Religion: | Zen Buddhism |
| School: | Sōtō |
| Zen Master | |
| Occupation: | Buddhist monk |
Zuigaku Rempo Niwa Zenji (1905 - 1993)[1] was a Japanese Zen master.[1]
He was born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.[2] His father was a schoolmaster and his mother was a farmer.[2] After graduating from Tokyo University, he became the head official in Tokei-in[2] and later studied at Antai-ji.[3] At the age of 50,[4] Niwa became the 77th abbot of the Eihei-ji monastery.[1] [5] He also received the imperial title of Jikô Enkai Zenji (“Great Zen Master of Compassion, Ocean of Plenitude”).[1]
An avid practitioner of zazen, he rebuilt the zendo (meditation hall) so that the young people in training could better engage in this essential practice.[4] His dharma heirs include Gudō Wafu Nishijima[6] [7] and Moriyama Daigyo as well as several teachers affiliated with the Taisen Deshimaru Lineage in Europe.[1] Zenji (literally, "Zen Master") is an honorary title given to the senior Eihei temple (Eihei-ji), headquarters of the Sōtō school, founded in the thirteenth century by Master Dogen.
Outside of Zen, he created brush calligraphy.[8] His work was often credited to various pseudonyms.[8] Niwa died in 1993.[1] [2]