Nanjō studied Classical Chinese texts and Buddhist doctrine in his youth before being sent to Europe in 1876 to study Sanskrit and Indian philosophy from European scholars, including Max Müller, under whom Bunyu studied in England. While there he met the Chinese Buddhist Yang Wenhui, whom he helped to acquire some three hundred Chinese Buddhist texts that had been lost in China to be reprinted at Yang's printing house in Nanjing.
In September 1880, Nanjō examined and cataloged a complete edition of the Chinese translation of the Buddhist Tripitaka that had been gifted to the India Office Library in London by the Japanese government. He determined that the India Office Library collection contained the same works as those mentioned in the oldest Catalogue of the Chinese Translation of the Buddhist Tripitaka compiled in 520 AD.
He returned to Japan in 1884 and served as a professor or head of a number of Buddhist seminaries and universities until his death. (Source Accessed Jan 13, 2022)
