Five Mountains System

The Five Mountains System is a way of organizing Japanese Zen Buddhist monasteries into five main regions, or mountains, each led by a prominent monastery. These five are Engaku-ji (Kamakura), Kencho-ji (Kamakura), Jufuku-ji (Kamakura), Kenkō-ji (Kamakura), and Daitoku-ji (Kyoto). This system helped coordinate religious activities, promote exchanges among monasteries, and establish authority and hierarchy within Zen Buddhism. It served to unify practice and scholarship across Japan’s Zen centers, fostering a shared identity and network among monastic communities during historical periods of political stability.