At the age of 13, he became a priest at Jufuku-ji Temple in Kamakura to study Buddhism under Jakuan Joso, and later practiced Zen meditation under Yishan Yining of Enkaku-ji Temple.
13歳で鎌倉寿福寺の寂庵上昭に師事して出家し、その後円覚寺の一山一寧に参禅した。