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Zen is a school of Mahayana Buddhism[a] and originated in China during the 6th century CE as Chán. From China, Zen spread south to Vietnam, to Korea and east to Japan.
The word Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Middle Chinese word 禪 Dzyen (Modern Mandarin: Chán), which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "absorption" or "meditative state".
Zen emphasizes the attainment of enlightenment and the personal expression of direct insight in the Buddhist teachings. As such, it de-emphasizes mere knowledge of sutras and doctrine, and favors direct understanding through zazen and interaction with an accomplished teacher.
The teachings of Zen include various sources of Mahāyāna thought, especially Yogācāra, the Tathāgatagarbha Sutras and Huayan . The Prajñāpāramitā literature and, to a lesser extent, Madhyamaka have also been influential.
Main article:
Chinese ChánMain article:
BodhidharmaTraditionally the origin of Chán in China is credited to the Indian monk Bodhidharma. The story of his life, and of the Six Patriarchs, was constructed during the Tang Dynasty to lend credibility to the growing Chán-school.
Bodhidharma is recorded as having come into China from India during the time of Southern and Northern Dynasties to teach a "special transmission outside scriptures" which "did not stand upon words". Only scarce historical information is available about him, but his hagiography developed when the Chan tradition grew stronger and gained prominence in the early 8th century. By this time a lineage of the six ancestral founders of Chán in China was developed.[12] The short text Two Entrances and Four Acts, written by T'an-lín (曇林; 506–574), contains teachings which are attributed to Bodhidharma. The text is known from the Dunhuang-manuscripts.
The actual origins of Chán may lie in ascetic practitioners of Buddhism, who found refuge in forests and mountains. Huike, "a dhuta (extreme ascetic) who schooled others", figures in the stories about Bodhidharma. Huike is regarded as the second Chán patriarch, appointed by Bodhidharma to succeed him. One of Huike's students, Sengcan, to whom is ascribed the Xinxin Ming, is regarded as the third patriarch.
The link between Huike and Sengcan, and the fourth patriarch Daoxin (道信 580–651), "is far from clear and remains tenuous". With Daoxin and his successor, the fifth patriarch Hongren (弘忍 601–674), there emerged a new style of teaching. A large group of students gathered at a permanent residence, and extreme ascetism became outdated. The period of Daoxin and Hongren came to be called the East Mountain Teaching, due to the location of the residence of Hongren at Huamgmei. Hui-neng, a minor student of Hongren, came to be regarded as the Sixth Patriarch, due to the influence of his student Shenhui.
The term "East Mountain Teaching" was used by Shenxiu (神秀 606?-706), the most important successor to Hongren. In 701 he was invited to the Imperial Court by Empress Wu, who paid him imperial reverence. This gave his school the support and the legitimation of the imperial court.
But the Chán-tradition depicts another student of Hongren, Huineng (惠能; 638–713), as the sixth and last patriarch, due to the influence of Shenhui, a successor to Huineng. The dramatic story of Huineng's life, as narrated in the Platform Sutra, tells that there was a contest for the transmission of the title of patriarch. After being chosen by Hongren, the fifth patriarch, Huineng had to flee by night to Nanhua Temple in the south to avoid the wrath of Hongren's jealous senior disciples.
Historic research reveals that this story was created around the middle of the 8th century, beginning in 731 by Shenhui, a successor to Huineng, to win influence at the Imperial Court. He claimed Huineng to be the successor of Hongren's, instead of the then publicly recognized successor Shenxiu. Shenxiu's Northern School was denigrated as "gradual", in opposition to the self-acclaimed "sudden" approach of Shenhui's Southern School. Shenhui's story was so influential that all surviving schools regard Huineng as their ancestor.
The An Lushan Rebellion (755-763) led to a loss of control by the Tang-dynasty, and changed the Chan scene again. Metropolitan Chan began to lose its status, while "other schools were arising in out-lying areas controlled by warlords. These are the forerunners of the Chan we know today."[16]
The most important of these schools is the Hongzhou school (洪州宗) of Mazu, to which also belong Shitou, Baizhang, Huangbo and Linji. This school became the archetypal expression of Zen, with its emphasis on the personal expression of insight, and it's rejection of positive statements of this insight. Shitou is regarded as the Patriarch of Caodong (Jp. Sōtō), while Linji is regarded as the founder of Rinzai-Zen.
During the Song Dynasty, when Chán was favoured by the imperial court and became the largest Buddhist scholl in China, the period of the Tang Dynasty came to be regarded as the "golden age" of Chan. This proliferation is described in a famous saying:
Look at the territory of the house of Tang —
The whole of it is the realm of the Chán school.
[17]
During 845-846 Emperor Wu-tsung persecuted the Buddhist schools in China.[18] This persecution was devastating for metropolitan Chan, but the Chan school of Ma-tsu and his likes survived, and took a leading role in the Chan of the later Tang.[18]
This surviving rural Chan developed into the Five Houses (Ch. 五家) of Zen, or five "schools". These were not originally regarded as "schools" or "sects", but historically they have come to be understood that way. Most Zen lineages throughout Asia and the rest of the world originally grew from or were heavily influenced by the original five houses of Zen.
After the fall of the Tang-dynasty China was in turmoil during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was followed by the Song Dynasty, which established a strong central government. During the Song Dynasty, Chán (禪) was used by the government to strengthen its control over the country, and Chán grew to become the largest sect in Chinese Buddhism. An ideal picture of the Chán of the Tang-period was produced, which served the legacy of this newly acquired status.[19] With the establishment of the Wu-shan (Gozan) system during the Southern Sung the Chinese bureaucratic system entered into Zen temples throughout the country, and a highly organized system of temple rank and administration developed.[20]
In the Ming Dynasty teachers such as Hanshan Deqing (憨山德清) taught Chán alongside Pure Land Buddhism in many Chinese Buddhist monasteries. In time much of the distinction between them was lost, and many masters taught both Chán and Pure Land.
Shuixin Chán Temple in
Anhai Town, Fujian
After further centuries of decline during the Qing Dynasty (1644–1912), Chán was revived again in the early 20th century by Hsu Yun (虛雲), a well-known figure of 20th century Chinese Buddhism. Many Chán teachers today trace their lineage back to Hsu Yun, including Sheng-yen (聖嚴) and Hsuan Hua (宣化), who have propagated Chán in the West where it has grown steadily through the 20th and 21st century.
Chán was repressed in China during the recent modern era in the early periods of the People's Republic, but has more recently been re-asserting itself on the mainland, and has a significant following in Taiwan and Hong Kong as well as among Overseas Chinese.
Thiền monks performing a service in
Huế.
Thiền Buddhism (禪宗 Thiền Tông) is the Vietnamese name for the school of Zen Buddhism. Thiền is ultimately derived from the Chinese Chán Zōng (禪宗).
According to traditional accounts of Vietnam, in 580, an Indian monk named Vinitaruci (Vietnamese: Tì-ni-đa-lưu-chi) traveled to Vietnam after completing his studies with Sengcan, the third patriarch of Chinese Chán. This, then, would be the first appearance of Vietnamese Thiền Buddhism. The sect that Vinitaruci and his lone Vietnamese disciple founded would become known as the oldest branch of Thiền. After a period of obscurity, the Vinitaruci School became one of the most influential Buddhist groups in Vietnam by the 10th century, particularly so under the patriarch Vạn-Hạnh (died 1018).
Other early Vietnamese Zen schools included the Vô Ngôn Thông, which was associated with the teaching of Mazu, and the Thảo Đường, which incorporated nianfo chanting techniques; both were founded by Chinese monks. A new school was founded by one of Vietnam's religious kings; this was the Trúc Lâm school, which evinced a deep influence from Confucian and Taoist philosophy. Nevertheless, Trúc Lâm's prestige waned over the following centuries as Confucianism became dominant in the royal court. In the 17th century, a group of Chinese monks led by Nguyên Thiều established a vigorous new school, the Lâm Tế, which is the Vietnamese pronunciation of Linji. A more domesticated offshoot of Lâm Tế, the Liễu Quán school, was founded in the 18th century and has since been the predominant branch of Vietnamese Thiền.
Zen master Thích Thanh Từ is credit for renovating Thien Trúc Lâm in Việt Nam. He is one of the most prominent and influential figures of Viet Nam zen masters currently alive. He was a disciple of Master Thích Thiện Hoa.
The most famous practitioner of syncretized Thiền Buddhism in the West is Thích Nhất Hạnh who has authored dozens of books and founded Dharma center Plum Village in France together with his colleague Chan Khong, Bhikkhuni and Zen Master.
Seon was gradually transmitted into Korea during the late Silla period (7th through 9th centuries) as Korean monks of predominantly Hwaeom (華嚴) and Consciousness-only (唯識) background began to travel to China to learn the newly developing tradition. During his lifetime, Mazu had begun to attract students from Korea; by tradition, the first Korean to study Seon was named Peomnang (法朗). Mazu's successors had numerous Korean students, some of whom returned to Korea and established the nine mountain (九山) schools. This was the beginning of Chán in Korea which is called Seon.
Seon received its most significant impetus and consolidation from the Goryeo monk Jinul (知訥) (1158–1210), who established a reform movement and introduced kōan practice to Korea. Jinul established the Songgwangsa (松廣寺) as a new center of pure practice. It was during the time of Jinul the Jogye Order, a primarily Seon sect, became the predominant form of Korean Buddhism, a status it still holds. which survives down to the present in basically the same status. Toward the end of the Goryeo and during the Joseon period the Jogye Order would first be combined with the scholarly 教 schools, and then be relegated to lesser influence in ruling class circles by Confucian influenced polity, even as it retained strength outside the cities, among the rural populations and ascetic monks in mountain refuges.
Nevertheless, there would be a series of important Seon teachers during the next several centuries, such as Hyegeun (慧勤), Taego (太古), Gihwa (己和) and Hyujeong (休靜), who continued to develop the basic mold of Korean meditational Buddhism established by Jinul. Seon continues to be practiced in Korea today at a number of major monastic centers, as well as being taught at Dongguk University, which has a major of studies in this religion. Taego Bou (1301–1382) studied in China with Linji teacher and returned to unite the Nine Mountain Schools. In modern Korea, by far the largest Buddhist denomination is the Jogye Order, which is essentially a Zen sect; the name Jogye is the Korean equivalent of Caoxi (曹溪), another name for Huineng.
Seon is known for its stress on meditation, monasticism, and asceticism. Many Korean monks have few personal possessions and sometimes cut off all relations with the outside world. Several are near mendicants traveling from temple to temple practicing meditation. The hermit-recluse life is prevalent among monks to whom meditation practice is considered of paramount importance.
Currently, Korean Buddhism is in a state of slow transition. While the reigning theory behind Korean Buddhism was based on Jinul's "sudden enlightenment, gradual cultivation", the modern Korean Seon master, Seongcheol's revival of Hui Neng's "sudden enlightenment, sudden cultivation" has had a strong impact on Korean Buddhism. Although there is resistance to change within the ranks of the Jogye order, with the last three Supreme Patriarchs' stance that is in accordance with Seongcheol, there has been a gradual change in the atmosphere of Korean Buddhism.
Zen was not introduced as a separate school until the 12th century, when Myōan Eisai traveled to China and returned to establish a Linji lineage, which is known in Japan as Rinzai. Decades later, Nanpo Shōmyō (南浦紹明?) (1235–1308) also studied Linji teachings in China before founding the Japanese Otokan lineage, the most influential branch of Rinzai. In 1215, Dōgen, a younger contemporary of Eisai's, journeyed to China himself, where he became a disciple of the Caodong master Tiantong Rujing. After his return, Dōgen established the Sōtō school, the Japanese branch of Caodong. The Soto-school was further expanded by Keizan:
Soto priests say that if Dogen is the father of Japanese Soto Zen, Keizan Jokin (1268-1325) is its mother.
Keizan's Soji-ji temple was a rival to Dogen's Eihei-ji. Others say that Dōgen gave "high religious ideals" while Keizan ensured Sōtō's survival.
During the Muromachi period the Rinzai school was the most successful of the schools, since it was favoured by the Shogun. Rinzai was organized in the Gozan system. This system was extended throughout Japan, effectively giving control to the central government, which administered this system.[23] The Rinka monasteries, primarily found outside the cities in rural areas, had a greater degree of independence.[24] The O-to-kan lineage, that centered on Daitoku-ji, also had a greater degree of freedom.[25] A well-known teacher from Daytoku-ji was Ikkyū. Another Rinka lineage was the Hotto lineage, of which Bassui Tokushō is the best-known teacher.[27]
Soto too spread out over Japan. Gasan adopted the Five Ranks of Tung-shan as a fit vehicle to explain the Mahayana teachings.[28]
After a period of war Japan was re-united in the Azuchi–Momoyama period. This decreased the power of Buddhism, which had become a strong political and military force in Japan and was seen as a threat by the ruling clan. Neo-Confucianism gained influence at the expense of Buddhism, which came under strict state control. Japan closed the gates to the rest of the world. New doctrines and methods were not to be introduced, nor were new temples and schools. The only exception was the Ōbaku lineage, which was introduced in the 17th century during the Edo period by Ingen, a Chinese monk.
Well-known Zen masters from this period are Bankei Yōtaku (盤珪永琢?, 1622–1693), Matsuo Bashō (松尾 芭蕉?, 1644 – November 28, 1694) and Hakuin Ekaku (白隠 慧鶴?, 1686–1768), who revived the Rinzai school.
During the Meiji period (1868–1912) Japan abandoned its feudal system and opened up to Western modernism. Shinto became the state religion, and Buddhism was coerced to adapt to the new regime. Rinzai and Soto Zen chose to adapt, with embarrassing consequences when Japanese nationalism was endorsed by the Zen institutions. War endeavours against Russia, China and finally during the Pacific War were supported by the Zen establishment.[29][30]
Within the Buddhist establishment the Western world was seen as a threat, but also as a challenge to stand up to.[29][31] Parties within the Zen establishment sought to modernize Zen in accord with Western insights, while simultaneously maintaining a Japanese identity.[32]
Interest in Zen grew in the West after World War II. Westerners such as Philip Kapleau and the Dutchman Janwillem van de Wetering went to Japan to study Zen.[33] Japanese teachers came to the West to share Zen practice and philosophy.[34]
There are three traditional schools of Zen in contemporary Japan are the Sōtō (曹洞?), Rinzai (臨済?), and Ōbaku (黃檗?). Of these, Sōtō is the largest, Rinzai is middle, and Ōbaku the smallest. These are further divided into subschools by head temple, with 2 head temples for Sōtō (Sōji-ji and Eihei-ji, with Sōji-ji having a much larger network), 14 head temples for Rinzai, and 1 head temple (Manpuku-ji) for Ōbaku, for a total of 17 head temples. The Rinzai head temples, which are most numerous, have substantial overlap with the traditional Five Mountain System, and include Myoshin-ji, Nanzen-ji, Tenryū-ji, Daitoku-ji, and Tofuku-ji, among others.
Besides these traditional organizations, there are modern Zen organisations which have especially attracted Western lay followers, namely the Sanbo Kyodan and the FAS Society.
Although it is difficult to trace when the West first became aware of Zen as a distinct form of Buddhism, the visit of Soyen Shaku, a Japanese Zen monk, to Chicago during the World Parliament of Religions in 1893 is often pointed to as an event that enhanced its profile in the Western world. It was during the late 1950s and the early 1960s that the number of Westerners, other than the descendants of Asian immigrants, pursuing a serious interest in Zen began to reach a significant level. Especially Japanese Zen has gained popularity in the West. The various books on Zen by Reginald Horace Blyth, and Alan Watts published between 1950 and 1975, contributed to this growing interest in Zen in the West, as did the interest from beat poets such as Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and Gary Snyder..
Over the last fifty years mainstream forms of Zen, led by teachers who trained in East Asia and their successors, have begun to take root in the West.
In North America, the Zen lineages derived from the Sanbo Kyodan school are the most numerous. The Sanbo Kyodan is a Japan-based reformist Zen group, founded in 1954 by Yasutani Hakuun, which has had a significant influence on Zen in the West. The most widespread are the lineages founded by Hakuyu Taizan Maezumi and the White Plum Asanga. Maezumi's successors include Susan Myoyu Andersen, John Daido Loori, Tetsugen Bernard Glassman, Nicolee Jikyo McMahon, Joan Hogetsu Hoeberichts, and Charlotte Joko Beck.
The San Francisco Zen Center, for Sōtō practice, was established by Shunryu Suzuki. In 1967 it established the first Zen Monastery in America, called Tassajara, in the mountains near Big Sur. This Sōtō-center was followed by other official centers, such as the Sanshin Zen Community (Sanshinji) located in Bloomington, Indiana, established by Shohaku Okumura.
There are also a number of Rinzai Zen centers in the West. In North America, some of the more prominent include Rinzai-ji founded by Kyozan Joshu Sasaki Roshi in California, Dai Bosatsu Zendo Kongo-ji established by Eido Shimano Roshi and Soen Nakagawa Roshi in New York, Chozen-ji founded by Omori Sogen Roshi in Hawaii, Daiyuzenji founded by Dogen Hosokawa Roshi (a student of Omori Sogen Roshi) in Chicago, Illinois, and Chobo-Ji founded by Genki Takabayshi Roshi in Seattle, Washington. In Europe there is Egely Monastery established by a Dharma Heir of Eido Shimano, Denko Mortensen.
Hsuan Hua was the first Chinese master to teach Westerners in North America. He taught Chán and other traditions of Chinese Buddhism in San Francisco during the early 1960s. He went on to found the City Of Ten Thousand Buddhas, a monastery and retreat center located on a 237 acre (959,000 m²) property near Ukiah, California.
Another Chinese Chán teacher with a Western following is Sheng-yen, a master trained in both the Caodong and Linji schools. He first visited the United States in 1978 under the sponsorship of the Buddhist Association of the United States, and subsequently founded the CMC Chán Meditation Center in Queens, New York and the Dharma Drum Retreat Center in Pine Bush, New York.[web 1]
The Fo Guang Shan organization, which has branches worldwide, also belongs to the Chán school; its founder, the Venerable Master Hsing Yun is a lineage holder in the Linji (Rinzai) tradition.
The Kwan Um School of Zen, one of the largest Zen schools in the West, teaches a form of Seon Buddhism. Soeng Hyang Soen Sa Nim (b. 1948), birth name Barbara Trexler (later Barbara Rhodes), is Guiding Dharma Teacher of the international Kwan Um School of Zen and a successor of the late Seung Sahn Soen Sa Nim.
Two notable Vietnamese Zen teachers have been influential in Western countries: Thich Thien-An and Thich Nhat Hanh. Thich Thien-An came to America in 1966 as a visiting professor at UCLA and taught traditional Thien meditation. Thich Nhat Hanh was a monk in Vietnam during the Vietnam War, during which he was a peace activist. In response to these activities, he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967 by Martin Luther King, Jr. In 1966, he left Vietnam in exile and now resides at Plum Village, a monastery in France. He has written more than one hundred books about Buddhism, which have made him one of the very few most prominent Buddhist authors among the general readership in the West. In his books and talks, Thich Nhat Hanh emphasizes mindfulness (sati) as the most important practice in daily life.
In the United States, two pan-lineage organizations have formed in the last few years. The oldest is the American Zen Teachers Association which sponsors an annual conference. North American Soto teachers in North America, led by several of the heirs of Taizan Maezumi and Shunryu Suzuki, have also formed the Soto Zen Buddhist Association.
Though Zen-narrative states that it is a "special transmission outside scriptures" which "did not stand upon words", Zen does have a rich doctrinal background.
- See also: Chinese Chán
Classical Chinese Chán is characterised by a set of polarities: absolute-relative,[37] Buddha-nature - sunyata, sudden and gradual enlightenment, esoteric and exoteric transmission.
The Prajnaparamita Sutras and Madhyamaka emphasized the non-duality of form and emptiness: form is emptiness, emptiness is form, as the Heart Sutra says.[37] The idea that the ultimate reality is present in the daily world of relative reality fitted into the Chinese culture which emphasized the mundane world and society. But this does not tell how the absolute is present in the relative world. This question is answered in such schemata as the Five Ranks of Tozan[41] and the Oxherding Pictures.
When Buddhism was introduced in China it was understood in terms of its own culture. Various sects struggled to attain an understanding of the Indian texts. The Tathāgatagarbha Sutras and the idea of the Buddha-nature were endorsed, because of the perceived similarities with the Tao. Sunyata was understood as pointing to an underlying essence, just as the Buddha-nature. It took Chinese Buddhism several centuries to understand that sunyata does not refer to a substance or essence underneath or behind the world of appearances.[web 2] This realisation was discernable in the course that Chán took.
In the 8th century CE a doctrinal shift appeared from the Lankavatara Sutra to the prajnaparamita tradition, especially the Diamond Sutra. The Lankavatara Sutra, which endorses the Buddha-nature, emphasized purity of mind, which can be attained in gradations. The Diamond Sutra emphasizes sunyata, which "must be realized totally or not at all".[42] Once this dichotomy was in place, it defined its own logic and rhetoric, which are also recognisable in the distiction between Caodong (Soto) and Lin-ji (Rinzai) Chán.[43]
According to Borup the emphasis on 'mind to mind transmission' is a form of esoteric transmission, in which "the tradition and the enlightened mind is transmitted face to face". Metaphorically this can be described as the transmission from a flame from one candle to another candle,, or the transmission from one vein to another. In exoteric transmission requires "direct access to the teaching through a personal discovery of one's self. This type of transmission and identification is symbolized by the discovery of a shining lantern, or a mirror."
This polarity is recognizable in the emphasis that the Zen-tradition puts on maintaining the correct Dharma transmission, while simultaneously stressing seeing into one's nature:
The matter of learning from a teacher is most essential. People of old who arrived at the source of
seeing nature, passed through many barriers clearly and completely without a dot of doubt, and traveled freely through the world opening big mouths in discussion, only came to know the transcendental message of Zen after they finally ran inti Zen masters of great vision. Then they sincerely sought certainty and wound up with the duty of the teacher's succession, bearing the debt of Dharma, never to forget it for a moment. This is called dharma succession. Since ancient times the designated succession of the ancestral teachers has always been like this.
[b]
Nevertheless, while the Zen tradition has always stressed the importance of formal Dharma transmission, there are well known examples of Mushi dokugo, such as Nōnin, Jinul and Suzuki Shōsan who attained awakening on their own, though all of them were familiair with the Zen-teachings.
Main article:
Zen and SutrasA review of the early historical documents and literature of early Zen masters clearly reveals that they were well versed in numerous Mahāyāna Buddhist sūtras. Yet Zen is often pictured as anti-intellectual. This picture of Zen emerged during the Song Dynasty (960–1297), when Chán became the dominant form of Buddhism in China, and gained great popularity among the educated and literary classes of Chinese society. The use of koans, which are highly stylized literary texts, reflects this popularity among the higher classes. The Chán of the Tang Dynasty, especially that of Mazu and Linji with its emphasis on "shock techniques", in retrospect was seen as a golden age of Chán. This picture has gained great popularity in the west in the 20th century, especially due to the influence of D.T. Suzuki. This picture has been challenged, and changed, since the 1970s by modern scientific research on Zen.
The Zen-tradition, especially Rinzai-Zen, says to give a direct transmission of insight, and stresses the impossibility to give any positive statement of this insight. This is famously worded in a 12th century stanza, attributed to Bodhidharma:[c]
A special transmission outside the scriptures,
Not founded upon words and letters.[d]
By pointing directly to [one's] mind,
It lets one see into [one's own true] nature and [thus] attain Buddhahood.
[e]
An example of this non-dependence on words and scripture in 9th century China is Te-shan (Tokusan 780-865). He became famous for burning his commentaries on the Diamond-sutra, when he realized that his attachment to these commentaries had become a stumbleblock on his way to gaining insight.[f]
Masao Abe points out that the role of the intellect in the understanding of Zen should not be misunderstood:
It is clear that Zen is not a philosophy. It is beyond words and intellect and is not, as in the case of philosophy, a study of the processes governing thought and conduct, nor a theory of principles or laws that regulate people and the universe. For the realisation of Zen, practice is absolutely necessary. Nevertheless, Zen is neither a mere anti-intellectualism nor a cheap intuitism nor is it an encouragement to animal-like spontaneity. Rather, it embraces a profound philosophy. Although intellectual understanding cannot be a substitute for Zen's awakening, practice without a proper and legitimate form of intellectual understanding is often misleading.
The importance given to Zen's non-reliance on written words is also often misunderstood as an opposition to the study of Buddhist texts. However, Zen is deeply rooted in the teachings and doctrines of Mahāyāna Buddhism[g][h], and gradually developed its own literature. What the Zen tradition emphasizes is that enlightenment of the Buddha came not through conceptualization, but rather through direct insight:
Despite its teaching of “no dependence upon words and letters,” Chan did not reject the scriptures of the Buddhist canon, but simply warned of the futility of relying on them for the attainment of emancipating insight. The sacred texts — and much more so the huge exegetical apparatus that had grown up around them in the older scholastic schools — were regarded as no more than signposts pointing the way to liberation. Valuable though they were as guides, they needed to be transcended in order for one to awaken to the true intent of Śākyamuni’s teachings.
The early Buddhist schools in China were each based on a specific sutra. At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, by the time of the Fifth Patriarch Hongren (601–674), the Zen school became established as a separate school of Buddhism.[63] It had to develop a doctrinal tradition of its own to ascertain its position,[12] and to ground it's teachings in a specific sutra. Various sutra's were used for this, even before the time of Hongren: the Śrīmālādevī Sūtra (Huike), Awakening of Faith (Daoxin), the Lankavatara Sutra (East Mountain School), the Diamond Sutra (Shenhui), the Platform Sutra. Subsequently, the Zen tradition produced a rich corpus of written literature which has become a part of its practice and teaching.
Other influential sutras are the Vimalakirti Sutra, Avatamsaka Sutra, the Shurangama Sutra, and the Mahaparinirvana Sutra.
The growing Chán tradition also faced the challenge to put its teachings into words, to bolster its identity and to applicate it in formal teaching settings, without losing the central insight into the "suchness" of reality. One solution to this was the shift of emphasis from the recorded sayings of the historical Buddha, to the sayings of living Buddhas, namely the Chán masters. In time, these sayings, from the so-called "encounter-dialogues" between masters and students, but also from sermons, became codified and formed the basis of typical Zen-genres, namely the "yü-lü" (recorded sayings) and the classic koan-collections. These too became formalised, and as such became a subject of disputes on the right way to teach Zen and the avoidance of dependence on words.
The Zen-tradition developed a rich textual tradition, based on the interpretation of the Buddhist teachings and the recorded sayings of Zen-masters.
Among the earliest of the specifically Zen texts, dating back to at least the 8th century CE, is the Platform Sūtra of the Sixth Patriarch, attributed to Huineng. It was constructed over a longer period of time, and contains different layers of writing. It is...
...a wonderful melange of early Chan teachings, avirtual respitory of the entire tradition up to the second half of the eight century. At the heart of the sermon is the same understanding of the Buddha-nature that we have seen in texts attributed to Bodhidharma and Hingren, including the idea that the fundamental Buddha-nature is only made invisble to ordinary humans by their illusions".
It contains the well-known story of the contest for the succession of Hongren. According to the text, Huineng won this contest, but had to flee the monastery to avoid the rage of the supporters of Henxui. The story is not a factual account, but an 8th-century construction, probably by the so-called Oxhead School.
The contest centers on two verses:
Shenxiu:
The body is the bodhi tree;
The mind is like a bright mirror’s stand.
Be always diligent in rubbing it—
Do not let it attract any dust.
Huineng:
Bodhi is fundamentally without any tree;
The bright mirror is also not a stand.
Fundamentally there is not a single thing—
Where could any dust be attracted?
According to the traditional interpretation, which is based on Guifeng Zongmi, the fifth-generation successor of Shenhui, the two verses represent respectively the gradual and the sudden approach. According to McRae, this is an incorrect understanding:
[T]he verse attributed to Shenxiu does not in fact refer to gradual or progressive endeavor, but to a constant practice of cleaning the mirror [...] [H]is basic message was that of the constant and perfect teaching, the endless personal manifestation of the bodhisattva ideal.
Huineng's verse does not stand alone, but forms a pair with Shenxiu's verse:
Huineng's verse(s) apply the rhetoric of emptiness to undercut the substantiality of the terms of that formulation. However, the basic meaning of the first proposition still remains".
McRae notes a similarity in reasoning with the Oxhead School, which used a threefold structure of "absolute, relative and middle", or "thesis-antithesis-synthesis". According to McRae, the Platform Sutra itself is the synthesis in this threefold structure, giving a balance between the need of constant practice and the insight into the absolute.
The Platform Sūtra cites and explains a wide range of Buddhist scriptures: the Diamond Sūtra, the Lotus Sūtra (Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra), the Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra, the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, the Awakening of Faith in the Mahayana-sutra, and the Mahaparinirvana Sutra.
The Chán-tradition developed from the established tradition of "Canonical Buddhism", which "remained normative for all later Chinese Buddhism". It was established by the end of the sixth century, as a result of the Chinese developing understanding of Buddhism in the previous centuries. One of the inventions of this Canonical Buddhism were transmission lists, called "Transmission of the Lamp", a literary device to establish a lineage. Both T'ien Tai and Chán took over this literary device, to lend authority to those developing traditions, and guarantee it's authencity:
Chan texts present the school as Buddhism itself, or as the central teaching of Buddhism, which has been transmitted from the seven Buddhas of the past to the twenty-eight patriarchs, and all the generations of Chinese and Japanese Chan and Zen masters that follow.
Another literary device for establishing those traditions was given by the Kao-seng-chuan (Biographies of Eminent Monks), compiles around 530. The Chán-tradition developed its own corpus in this genre, with works as Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall (952) and the Jingde Records of the Transmission of the Lamp (published 1004). McRae considers Dumoulin's A History of Zen to be a modern example of this genre, disguished as scientific history.
From the "question-and-answer format that had been developed as a means of conveying Buddhist teachins" developed the "yü-lü" genre, the recorded sayings of the masters, and the encounter dialogues. The best-known example is the "Lin-ji yü-lü".[web 3] It is part of the Ssu-chia yü lu (Jp. Shike Goruku, The Collection of the Four Houses), which contains the recorded sayings of Mazu Daoyi, Baizhang Huaihai, Huangbo Xiyun and Linji.
These recorded sayings are not verbatim recordings of the sayings of the masters, but well-edited texts, written down up to 160 years after the supposed sayings and meetings.
This "encounter dialogue"-genre developed into various collections of kōans, which form itself another extensive literary corpus.
The Japanese Zen-tradition also developed a corpus of its own, such as theShōbōgenzō of Dōgen Zenji. But also Hakuin, one of the most famous Rinzai-teachers, produced a corpus of written texts.
To point out 'essential Zen-teachings' is almost impossible, given the variety of schools, the extended history of 1500 years, and the emphasis on suchness, reality just-as-it-is, which has to be expressed in daily life, not in words. But common to most schools and teachings is this emphasis on suchness, the Bodhisattva-ideal, and the priority of zazen.
Zen teachings can be likened to "the finger pointing at the moon". Zen teachings point to the moon, awakening, "a realization of the unimpended interpenetration of the dharmadhatu". But the Zen-tradition also warns against taking its teachings, the pointing finger, to be this insight itself:
Wujin Chang, a nun, asked the Sixth Zen patriarch, Hui Neng, for help in understanding the
Mahanirvana Sutra. The master answered that he could not read, but if the nun would read it aloud for him, he would do his best to help her.
The nun then asked, "If you can't even read the words, how can you understand the truth behind them?"
"Truth and words are unrelated. Truth can be compared to the moon," answered Hui Neng, pointing to the moon with his finger, "And words can be compared to a finger. I can use my finger to point out the moon, but my finger is not the moon, and you don't need my finger in order to be able to see the moon".
[web 4][i]
This warning against confusing the finger and the moon resembles the Diamond-sutra:
[E]very disciple who is seeking
Anuttara-samyak sambhodi should discard, not only conceptions of one's own selfhood, other selves, living beings and a Universal Selfhood, but should discard, also, all ideas about such conceptions and all ideas about the non-existence of such conceptions.
While the
Tathagata, in his teaching, constantly makes use of conceptions and ideas about them, disciples should keep in mind the unreality of all such conceptions and ideas.
As a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism, Zen draws many of its basic driving concepts from that tradition, such as the bodhisattva ideal. Buddhas and bodhisattvas such as Amitābha, Avalokiteśvara, Mañjuśrī, Samantabhadra, and Kṣitigarbha are also venerated alongside Gautama Buddha.[93][j]
The Bodhisattva-ideal is a central theme in the prajnaparamita-sutras. The Diamond Sutra tells
... men and women [how] to follow the Bodhisattva Path and [...] how they should proceed.
[web 6]
Part of this Bodhisattva-ideal are the Paramitas, which are also being mentioned in the Diamond Sutra: Dāna (generosity, giving of oneself), Sīla (virtue, morality, proper conduct), Khanti (patience, tolerance, forbearance, acceptance, endurance), Viriya (energy, diligence, vigour, effort), Dhyana (meditation, tranquility), Paññā (wisdom, insight).[k]
The various traditions lay various emphasizes in their teachings and practices.
The Rinzai-tradition emphasises kensho, insight into one's true nature, followed by further practice to attain Buddhahood:
Hakuin prefers the term "seeing into one's nature
, which for him means ultimate reality. The Buddha nature and the cosmic Buddha body, wisdom (prajna), and emptiness (sunyata), the original countenance one had before one was born, and other expressions from the rich palette of Mahayana terms were all familiar to him from his continued study of the sutras and Zen literature.
To attain this primary insight and to deepen it, zazen and kōan-study is deemed essential. This trajectory of initial insight followed by a gradual deepening and ripening is expressed by linji in his Three mysterious Gates, and the Four Ways of Knowing of Hakuin. Other Zen-teachers have also expressed sudden insight followed by gradual cultivation. Chinul, a 12th-century Koran Seon master, followed Zongmi, and also emphasized that insight into our true nature is sudden, but is to be followed by practice to ripen the insight and attain full Buddhahood. This is also the standpoint of the contemporary Sanbo Kyodan, according to whom kensho is at the start of the path to full enlightenment. Other example of depiction of stages on the path are the Ten Ox-Herding Pictures which detail the steps on the Path.
This gradual cultivation is described by contemporary Chan Master Sheng Yen as follows:
Ch'an expressions refer to enlightenment as "seeing your self-nature". But even this is not enough. After seeing your self-nature, you need to deepen your experience even further and bring it into maturation. You should have enlightenment experience again and again and support them with continuous practice. Even though Ch'an says that at the time of enlightenment, your outlook is the same as of the Buddha, you are not yet a
full Buddha.
This gradual cultivation is also recognized by the Caodong-teacher Tozan, who described the Five ranks of enlightenment.[web 7]
Dogen, the founder of Soto in Japan, emphasised that practice and awakening cannot be separated. By practicing shikantaza, attainment and Buddhahood are already being expressed:
Fundamental to Dogen's Buddha-Way is the conviction that every act as a disciple of the Buddha and the ultimate testimony (of enlightenment) are one and inseparable.
For Dogen, zazen, or shikantaza, is the essence of Buddhist practice:
Properly seated meditation is the core of what has been passed down from the Buddha to his disciples, from one master to another down through the generations, without interruption and without modifications.
The Sōtō-school has de-emphasized kōans since Gentō Sokuchū (circa 1800), and instead emphasized shikantaza.
In the west, Zen-teachings have tended to become part of a modern version of the Perennial philosophy, "the idea of a common set of truths held by all peoples in all times and places". The writings of D.T. Suzuki have been instrumental in this understanding, but Suzuki in his turn was influenced by western esoteric tarditions. This interpretation emphasizes "spiritual progress", experience and the direct cognition of a "divine, ineffable reality, transcendent yet pervading everything and to which the individual mind is directly connected or even identical". This understanding differs from Japanese Zen, which is basically a monastic training[web 8] in which communal aspects and daily life[web 8] are emphasized.
Central to Zen-practice is dhyana or meditation. The Zen tradition holds that in meditation practice, notions of doctrine and teachings necessitate the creation of various notions and appearances (Skt. saṃjñā; Ch. 相, xiāng) that obscure the transcendent wisdom of each being's Buddha-nature. This process of rediscovery goes under various terms such as "introspection", "a backward step", "turning-about" or "turning the eye inward".
Venerable Hsuan Hua meditating in the Lotus Position.
Hong Kong, 1953.
Sitting meditation is called zazen (Jp.: 坐禅, lit. "seated meditation"), and in Chinese it is called zuòchán (坐禅), both simply meaning "sitting dhyāna". During this sitting meditation, practitioners usually assume a position such as the lotus position, half-lotus, Burmese, or seiza postures, using the dhyāna mudrā. To regulate the mind, awareness is directed towards counting or watching the breath or put in the energy center below the navel (see also anapanasati).[web 9] Often, a square or round cushion placed on a padded mat is used to sit on; in some other cases, a chair may be used.
In the Soto school of Zen, meditation with no objects, anchors, or content, is the primary form of practice. The meditator strives to be aware of the stream of thoughts, allowing them to arise and pass away without interference. Considerable textual, philosophical, and phenomenological justification of this practice can be found throughout Dōgen's Shōbōgenzō, as for example in the "Principles of Zazen"[web 10] and the "Universally Recommended Instructions for Zazen".[web 11]
Zen traditions[which?] include periods of intensive group meditation in a monastery. While the daily routine in the monastery may require monks to meditate for several hours each day, during this intensive period they devote themselves almost exclusively to the practice of sitting meditation. The numerous 30–50 minute long meditation periods are interleaved with short rest breaks, meals, and sometimes, short periods of work should be performed with the same mindfulness; nightly sleep is kept to a minimum: 7 hours or less. In modern Buddhist practice in Japan, Taiwan, and the West, lay students often attend these intensive practice sessions, which are typically 1, 3, 5, or 7 days in length. These are held at many Zen centers, especially in commemoration of the Buddha's attainment of Anuttarā Samyaksaṃbodhi. One distinctive aspect of Zen meditation in groups is the use of a flat wooden slat used to keep meditators focused and awake.
At the beginning of the Song Dynasty, practice with the kōan method became popular, whereas others practiced "silent illumination." This became the source of some differences in practice between the Linji and Caodong traditions.
A kōan, literally "public case", is a story or dialogue, describing an interaction between a Zen master and a student. These anecdotes give a demonstration of the master's insight. Koans emphasize the non-conceptional insight that the Buddhist teachings are pointing to. Koans can be used to provoke the "great doubt", and test a student's progress in Zen practice.
Responding to a kōan requires a student to let go of conceptual thinking and of the logical way we order the world, so that insight into sunyata arises naturally and spontaneously in the mind. But this does not mean that words are useless, as is demonstrated already by the mere fact that koans are words:
[T]he way to
Satori is not through dependence upon words, even if they be words of the Buddha or past Masters; however, one should not reject words, for, imperfect as they are, they are the only means we have of attaining enlightenment. They should use the words and ideas contained in the koans to reach satori, but they should never confuse the two. Conceptualizations, words, logic and reason are means whereby one attains enlightenment, but they must not be equated [w]ith enlightenment.
[web 12]
Kōans and their study developed in China within the context of the open questions and answers of teaching sessions conducted by the Chinese Zen masters. The recorded encounter dialogues, and the koan collections which derived from this genre, mark a shift from solitary practice to interaction between master and student:
The essence of enlightenment came to be identified with the interaction between masters and students. Whatever insight dhyana might bring, its verification was always interpersonal. In effect, enlightenment came to be understood not so much as an insight, but as a way of acting in the world with other people
[108]
This mutual enquiry of the meaning of the encounters of masters and students of the past gave students a role model:
One looked at the enlightened activities of one's lineal forebears in order to understand one's own identity [...] taking the role of the participants and engaging in their dialogues instead
[l]
Koan practice developed from a literary practice, styling snippets of encounter-dialogue into well-edited stories. It arose in interaction with "educated literati".[110] There were dangers involved in such a literary approach, such as fixing specific meanings to the cases.[110] Dahui Zonggao is even said to have burned the woodblocks of the Blue Cliff Record, for the hindrance it had become to study of Chán by his students[111]
Today, the Zen student's mastery of a given kōan is presented to the teacher in a private interview (referred to in Japanese as dokusan (独参), daisan (代参), or sanzen (参禅)). Zen teachers advise that the problem posed by a kōan is to be taken quite seriously, and to be approached as literally a matter of life and death. While there is no unique answer to a kōan, practitioners are expected to demonstrate their understanding of the kōan and of Zen through their responses. The teacher may approve or disapprove of the answer and guide the student in the right direction. There are also various commentaries on kōans, written by experienced teachers, that can serve as a guide. These commentaries are also of great value to modern scholarship on the subject. Kōan-inquiry may be practiced during sitting meditation (zazen), walking meditation (kinhin), and throughout all the activities of daily life. Kōan practice is particularly emphasized by the Japanese Rinzai school, but it also occurs in other schools or branches of Zen depending on the teaching line.
Another important, though easily overlooked aspect of the Zen-tradition, is the interaction with a Zen-teacher. This importance is reflected in the private interrogations. Even the literary devices and traditions on which this koan-study is based, are regarded inadequate:
Thus, even the kung-an that had been redacted and commented upon by earlier masters were perceived as inadequate. All props are taken away and no texts or hermeneutical methods are left, except for recourse to religious practice under an enlightened master. In this way, the use of scripture, transmission lineages, yu-lu, and kung-an collections is relegated to a secondary level, as hermeneutical variations on the recurring Ch'an challenge to seek enlightenment oneself through a face-to-face encounter with a Ch'an master.
Yet, it is this same accent on interaction which makes Zen-practice, at least in the west, also vulnerable to misunderstanding and exploitation.
A practice in many Zen monasteries and centers is a daily liturgy service. Practitioners chant major sutras such as the Heart Sutra, chapter 25 of the Lotus Sutra (often called the "Avalokiteshvara Sutra"), the Song of the Jewel Mirror Awareness, the Great Compassionate Heart Dharani (Daihishin Dharani), and other minor mantras.
The Butsudan is the altar in a monastery where offerings are made to the images of the Buddha or Bodhisattvas. The same term is also used in Japanese homes for the altar where one prays to and communicates with deceased family members. As such, reciting liturgy in Zen can be seen as a means to connect with the Bodhisattvas of the past. Liturgy is often used during funerals, memorials, and other special events as means to invoke the aid of supernatural powers.[citation needed]
Chanting usually centers on major Bodhisattvas like Avalokiteshvara (see also Guan Yin) and Manjusri. According to Mahayana Buddhism, Bodhisattvas are beings who have taken vows to remain in Samsara to help all beings achieve liberation from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth. Since the Zen practitioner's aim is to walk the Bodhisattva path, chanting can be used as a means to connect with these beings and realize this ideal within oneself. By repeatedly chanting the Avalokiteshvara sutra (観世音菩薩普門品, Kanzeon Bosatsu Fumonbon?) (chapter 25 of the Lotus Sutra[web 13]), for example, one instills the Bodhisattva's ideals into ones mind. The ultimate goal is given in the end of the sutra, which states, "In the morning, be one with Avalokiteshvara; in the evening, be one with Avalokiteshvara". Through the realization of emptiness and the Mahayana notion that all things have Buddha-nature, one understands that there is no difference between the cosmic bodhisattva and oneself. The wisdom and compassion of the Bodhisattva one is chanting to is seen to equal the inner wisdom and compassion of the practitioner. Thus, the duality between subject and object, practitioner and Bodhisattva, chanter and sutra is ended.
Though in western Zen the emphasis is on zen-meditation, and the application of Zen-teachings in daily life, Japanese Zen also serves a function in public religion. Funerals play an important role as a point of contact between the monks and the laity. Statistics published by the Sōtō school state that 80 percent of Sōtō laymen visit their temple only for reasons having to do with funerals and death, while only 17 percent visit for spiritual reasons and a mere 3 percent visit a Zen priest at a time of personal trouble or crisis.
Though the iconoclastic picture of Zen is emphasised in the western world, the Zen-tradition reflects a high degree of institutionalisation.
In modern soto and Rinzai, monasteries serve as training facilities to educate Zen priests, most of whom move on to run their own temple.
Since the East Mountain Teaching, Zen has centered on monastic life. Only since the Meiji-restauration exists the possibility for laity in Japan to participate in Zen-training.
Japanese Soto and Rinzai arge organized in a system of head-temples and sub-temples.
Contemporary Soto-shu has four classes of temples:
- Honzan (本山?), head temples, namely Eihei-ji and Sōji-ji;
- Kakuchi, teaching monasteries, where at least once a year an ango (ninety-day retreat) takes place;
- Hōchi, dharma temples;
- Jun hōchi, ordinary temples.
The two head temples or honzan (本山?) of the Sōtō sect are Eihei-ji and Sōji-ji. While Eihei-ji owes its existence to Dōgen, throughout history this head temple has had significantly fewer sub-temple affiliates than the Sōji-ji. During the Tokugawa period, Eiheiji had approximately 1,300 affiliate temples compared to Sōji-ji's 16,200. Furthermore, out of the more than 14,000 temples of the Sōtō sect today, 13,850 of those identify themselves as affiliates of Sōji-ji. Additionally, most of the some 148 temples that are affiliates of Eiheiji today are only minor temples located in Hokkaido— founded during a period of colonization during the Meiji period. Therefore, it is often said that Eiheiji is a head temple only in the sense that it is "head of all Sōtō dharma lineages.
In an advice to western practitioners, Kojun Kishigami Osho, a dharma heir of Kodo Sawaki, writes:
Every year, about 150 novices arrive. About 90 percent of them are sons of temple heads, which leaves only 10 percent who chose this path for themselves. For the autumn session, about 250 monks come together. Essentially what they are learning in these temples is the ability to officiate all kinds of ceremonies and rites practiced by the Soto School – the methods for fulfilling their role. Apart from this aspect, practicing with the idea of developing one’s own spirituality is not prevalent.
[web 14]
The Rinzai-school has 14 main-temples, to which subsidiary temples are attached. The 14 branches of Rinzai, by head temple, are:[web 15]
Sometimes a 15th is included:
In the western understanding, dharma transmission is the affirmation of awakening by a teacher. In Japan, it is part of the maintanance of Zen-institutions.
In Soto, dharma transmission establishes a life-long relation between teacher and student. To quaily as a Zen priest, further traing is required.[web 8][web 16][web 17]
In Rinzai, the most common form of transmission is the acknowledgement that one has stayed in the monastery for a certain amount of time, and may later become a temple priest. The common transmission does not include inka shōmei, which is being used for the transmission of the "true lineage" of the masters (shike) of the training halls. Training halls are temples which are authorised for further training after being qualified as a temple priest. There are only about fifty[web 18] to hunderd of such inka shōmei-bearers in Japan.
Although the formal transmission of the dharma-lineage, from Shakyamuni Buddha to the present day, is preserved in this way, it is also seen as problematical in contempary Zen.
- See also: Buddhist universities and colleges
Both Soto and Rinzai have educational institutions, such as Komazawa University and Hanazono University, which stand in strong competetion. Several Zen-teachers known in the west have studied there, such as Shohaku Okumura and Keido Fukushima. The Kyoto University was the centre of activities for the Kyoto School, to which belong Keiji Nishitani and Masao Abe.
Western Zen is mainly a lay-movement, though grounded in formal lineages. It's main Japanese background is in lay-oriented new religious movements, especially the Sanbo Kyodan. Though a number of zen-buddhist monasteries exist in the western world, most practice takes place in Zen centers throughout the western world.
Modern scientific research on the history of Zen discerns three main narratives concerning Zen, its history and its teachings: Traditional Zen Narrative (TZN),[120][web 19] Buddhist Modernism (BM),[31] Historical and Cultural Criticism (HCC).[120]
The Traditional Zen Narrative developed in phases in China during the Tang Dynasty and the beginning of the Song Dynasty, from the 7th to 11th century. It became dominant during the Song Dynasty, when Chán was the dominant form of Buddhism in China, due to support from the Emperial Court.
Its main phases were the development of the traditional Chan lineage, culminating in the "Transmission of the Lamp"-genre,[12] the encounter dialogue culminating in the kōan collections,[12] and the "climax-paradigm of the Song period, when Chan became the dominant Buddhist school in China.[12]
The Traditional Zen Narrative bases its self-understanding especially on the encounter stories of the well-known teachers of the later Tang-period, such as Mazu Daoyi and Linji.[121] This period is seen as the "golden age" of Chan, a "romantic coloring"[121] discarded by McRae:
"...what is being referred to is not some collection of activities and events that actually happened in the 8th through 10th centuries, but instead the retrospective re-creation of those activities and events, the imagined identities of the magical figures of the Tang, within the minds of Song dynasty Chan devotees"[121][121][...]"This retrospective quality pervades the Chan tradition. Time and again we find we are dealing, not with what happened at any given point, but with what people thought happened previously"[122]
In the 20th century the Traditional Zen Narrative was transformed into a modern narrative, due to the power of the Western colonial forces and the modernisation of Japan,[29][31] and the popularization in the Western world.[31]
As a consequence of the adaptation of Zen to the modern world a romantic idea of enlightenment as insight into a timeless, transcendent reality has been popularized, especially by D.T. Suzuki,[123][124] who, though known as a Zen Buddhist, was also influenced by Theosophy.[125] Further popularization was due to the writings of Heinrich Dumoulin.[126][127][128] Dumoulin viewed metaphysics as the expression of a transcendent truth, which according to him was expressed by Mahayana Buddhism, but not by the pragmatic analysis of the oldest Buddhism, which emphasizes anatta.[129] This romantic vision fits into Western romantic notions of self-realization and the true self, being regarded as a substantial essence being covered over by social conditioning:
Westerners do have a preconception of what ought to happen in mystical insight and in the attainment of enlightenment. True mystical insight, they will object, is not something that can be imposed from outside by a social system; instead it is a welling up of psychic energy from within, a breakthrough in which the true self erupts through the shell imposed by intellect, self-images,a nd socialization.
Contemporary research on Buddhism has shed new light on the history of Chan and Zen.
Since the 1960s the scientific research on Zen has created another narrative of Zen.[128] The "grand saga"[131] of Zen appears not to be an accurate historical documentation, but a skillfully created narrative, meant to lend authority to the Zen school.[12] The consequences of this critical narrative seem hardly to be recognized in the Western world.[32][web 20]
The romantic notion of enlightenment as a timeless insight into a transcendental essence has been thoroughly criticized.[123] According to critics it doesn't contribute to a real insight into Buddhism:
"...most of them labour under the old cliché that the goal of Buddhist psychological analysis is to reveal the hidden mysteries in the human mind and thereby facilitate the development of a transcendental state of consciousness beyond the reach of linguistic expression.[132]
The introduction of Zen in the West has been accompanied by problems which seem to be connected to this "grand saga". The teacher scandals which have occurred in Western Zen have been explained as being caused by a misinterpretation of the meaning of dharma transmission and the position of a roshi.
In Western Zen dharma transmission is highly esteemed. In the Japanese monastery system dharma transmission is a formal notification that someone is fully qualified to take a leading role in this system[123][133] In the USA and Europe dharma transmission is linked to the unofficial title roshi, older teacher. In the Western world roshis have been given an archetypal status as wise old man, someone who has realized an infallible insight into the true self, and a perfect personality. In daily life this appears to be an idealized view, give the repeated cases of abuse of power, and financial and sexual misbehaviour.[133][134]
Japanese Zen organisations supported Japanese nationalism and its endeavours during the Pacific War. This support has been made widely known in the Western world by Brian Victoria in his groundbreaking study Zen at War, though in Japan this was already more common knowledge.[29] D.T. Suzuki too supported these endeavours.[30][32][135] This Japanese nationalism, and the Japanese uniqueness was also a reaction to perceived western imperialism during the 19th century.[136]
- ^ Dumoulin writes in his preface to "Zen"A History. Part One: India and China": "Zen (Chin. Ch'an, an abbreviation of ch'an-na, which transliterates the Sanskrit dhyana or its Pali cognate jhana, terms meaning "meditation") is the name of a Mahayana Buddhist school of meditation originating in China and characterized by the practice of meditation in the lotus position (Jpn., zazen; Chin., tso-ch'an and the use of the koan (Chin., kung-an), as well as by the enlightenment experinece of satori
- ^ The modern framing of Zen as the experience of 'ultimate truth' or reality may influence the institutional shape western Zen is going to take, where individual freedom is highly appraised. See also Bodiford 2008, pp 277-279
- ^ According to Whalen Lai, this stanza "point[s] more directly to the Zen of the Hung-chou school" of Ma-tsu
- ^ Whalen Lai translates this line as "No postulating (li) of (any positive) thesis in words"
- ^ In The Essential Determination, a text by Chih-ta (d. 714), a student of Shen-hui, "contemplative analysis" is applied to a line from the Diamond Sutra:
"Should view the locus of non-being".
The text then proceeds:
Question: "What thing does one see?"
Answer: "The [Nirvana] Sutra says: 'See the [Buddha]-nature and achieve the enlightenment of Buddhahood'."
- ^ Tokusan is being mentioned in case 13 and 28 of the Mumonkan, and case 4 of the Blue Cliff Record
- ^ Albert Low: "It is evident that the masters were well versed in the sutras. Zen master Tokusan, for example, knew the Diamond Sutra well and, before meeting with bhis own Zen master, lectured upon it extensively; the founder of the Zen sect, Bodhidharma, the very one who preached selfrealization outside the scriptures, nevertheless advocated the Lankavatara Sutra; Zen master Hogen knew the Avatamsaka Sutra well, and koan twenty-six in the Mumonkan, in which Hogen is involved, comes out of the teaching of that sutra. Other koans, too, make reference directly or indirectly to the sutras. The autobiography of yet another Zen master, Hui Neng, subsequently became the Platform Sutra, one of those sutras so condemned by those who reject intellectual and sutra studies"
- ^ Poceski: "Direct references to specific scriptures are relatively rare in the records of Mazu and his disciples, but that does not mean that they rejected the canon or repudiated its authority. To the contrary, one of the striking features of their records is that they are filled with scriptural quotations and allusions, even though the full extend of their usage of canonical sources is not immediately obvious and its discernment requires familiarity with Buddhist literature." See source for a full-length example from "one of Mazu's sermons", in which can be found references to the Vimalakīrti Scripture, the Huayan Scripture, the Mahāsamnipata-sūtra, the Foshuo Foming Scripture 佛說佛名經, the Lankāvatāra scripture and the Faju jing.
- ^ This anecdote refers to a passage from the Lankavatara Sutra: "As the ignorant grasp the finger-tip and not the moon, (224) so those who cling to the letter, know not my truth." [web 5]
The phrase can also be found in the Surangama Sutra: "The Buddha said: You are still using your clinging mind to listen to the Dharma; since, however, this Dharma is also causal, you fail to realize the Dharma-nature. This is like a man pointing a finger at the moon to show it to others who should follow the direction of the finger to look at the moon. If they look at the finger and mistake it for the moon, they lose (sight of) both the moon and the finger. Why? Because the bright moon is actually pointed at; they both lose sight of the finger and fail to distinguish between (the states of) brightness and darkness. Why? Because they mistake the finger for the bright moon and are not clear about brightness and darkness.
- ^ Lathouwers 2000:221 mentions: Blofeld, John (1988), Bodhisattva of compassion - the mystical tradition of kuan Yin. Boston: Shanbhala
- ^ Wai-tao and Goddard re-arranged theit translation of the Diamond Sutra topically, using the six paramitas as a framework
- ^ This role-taking is described by the Swedish psychologist of religion Hjalmar Sundén, though McRae does not seem to be aware of this
- Web references
- ^ Ven. Master Sheng Yen, The Founder of Dharma Drum Mountain
- ^ Whalen Lai, Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey
- ^ Translation of the Lin-ji yü-lü by Fuller-Sasaki
- ^ Pointing at the moon
- ^ Lankavatara Sutra, chapter LXXXII, p.192 Suzuki-translation, p.223/224 in brackets
- ^ Diamond Sutra (Vajracchedika Prajna Paramita)
- ^ The Five Ranks of Tozan
- ^ a b c What does it take to become a full-fledged Soto-shu priest and is it really worth the whole deal? Part 1
- ^ Sheng, Yen. "Fundamentals of Meditation". http://www.chancenter.org/chanctr/ddp/talks/zuochan.html.
- ^ Soto Zen Text Project. "Zazengi translation". Stanford University. http://hcbss.stanford.edu/research/projects/sztp/translations/shobogenzo/translations/zazengi/zazengi.translation.html. Retrieved 2008-03-26.
- ^ Soto Zen Text Project. "Fukan Zazengi". Stanford University. http://www.stanford.edu/group/scbs/sztp3/translations/gongyo_seiten/translations/part_3/fukan_zazengi.html. Retrieved 2008-03-26.
- ^ John F. Fisher (1978), An Analysis Of The Koans In The Mu Mon Kwan. In: Numen, Vol. 25, Fasc. 1. (Apr., 1978), pp. 65-76
- ^ Avalokiteśvara Sutra
- ^ Kojun Kishigami Osho, Of roots and branches
- ^ Head Temples,/ref>,ref group=web>Rinzai-Obaku zen
- ^ Ten points to keep in mind about dharma transmission
- ^ Ten-e and some words about Zui-se
- ^ Muho Noelke, Part 10: What does it take to become a full-fledged Sōtō-shu priest and is it really worth the whole deal?
- ^ Andre van de Braak, ZEN SPIRITUALITY IN A SECULAR AGE. Charles Taylor and Zen Buddhism in the West
- ^ Weblog of David Chapman
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- Harvey, Peter (1995), An introduction to Buddhism. Teachings, history and practices, Cambridge University Press
- Haskel, Peter (1984), Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei, New York: Grove Weidenfeld
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- Heine, Steven (2007), "A Critical Survey of Works on Zen since Yampolsky.", Philosophy East & West Volume 57, Number 4 October 2007 577–592
- Heine, Steven (2008), Zen Skin, Zen Marrow
- Hisamatsu, Shin'ichi; Gishin Tokiwa; Christopher Ives (2002), Critical Sermons of the Zen Tradition: Hisamatsu's Talks on Linji, University of Hawaii Press
- Hori, Victor Sogen (1994), Teaching and Learning in the Zen Rinzai Monastery. In: Journal of Japanese Studies, Vol.20, No. 1, (Winter, 1994), 5-35, http://www.essenes.net/pdf/Teaching%20and%20Learning%20in%20the%20Rinzai%20Zen%20Monastery%20.pdf
- Hori, Victor Sogen (2005), Introduction. In: Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005), Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 2: Japan. World Wisdom Books. ISBN 978-0-941532-90-7. Pagina xiii - xxi, http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/HoriIntroduction.pdf
- Hu Shih (1953), "Ch'an (Zen) Buddhism in China. Its History and Method", Philosophy East and West, Vol. 3, No. 1 (January, 1953), pp. 3-24, http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/Chan_in_China.html
- Huaijin, Nan (1997), Basic Buddhism: Exploring Buddhism and Zen, York Beach: Samuel Weiser
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- Jaksch, Mary (2007), The Road to Nowhere. Koans and the Deconstruction of the Zen Saga, http://www.thezensite.com/ZenTeachings/KoanStudies/the-road-to-nowhere.pdf
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- Lai, Whalen (Year unknown), Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey, http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/Buddhism_in_China.pdf
- Lai, Whalen (Year unknown B), Ma-Tsu Tao-I And The Unfolding Of Southern Zen, http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/MaTsu_and_Unfolding_of_Southern_Zen.html
- Lathouwers, Ton (2000), Meer dan een mens kan doen. Zentoespraken, Rotterdam: Asoka
- Liang-Chieh (1986), The Record of Tung-shan, Kuroda Institute
- Lievens, Bavo (1981), Ma-tsu. De gesprekken, Bussum: Het Wereldvenster
- Loori, John Daido (2006), Sitting with Koans: Essential Writings on Zen Koan Introspection, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-369-9
- Low, Albert (2000), Zen and the Sutras, Boston: Turtle Publishing
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- Luk, Charles (translator) (Year unknown), The Surangama Sutra, Buddha Dharma Education Association Inc., http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/surangama.pdf
- Matthiessen, Peter (1987), Nine-headed dragon river: Zen journals, 1969-1985, Shambhala
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- Sasaki, Ruth Fuller (2009), The Record of Linji. Translation and commentary by Ruth Fuller Sasaki. Edited by Thomas Yūhō Kirchner, Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, http://info.stiltij.nl/publiek/meditatie/leraren/_historisch/linji-sasaki.pdf
- Sekida, Katuski (1996), Two Zen Classics. Mumonkan, the gateless gate. Hekiganroku, the blue cliff record, New York & Tokyo: Weatherhill
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- Sharf, Robert H. (1995), Whose Zen? Zen Nationalism Revisited, http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/CriticalZen/whose%20zen_sharf.pdf
- Sharf, Robert H. (1995-B), "Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience", NUMEN, vol.42 (1995), http://buddhiststudies.berkeley.edu/people/faculty/sharf/documents/Sharf1995,%20Buddhist%20Modernism.pdf
- Shimano, Eido T. (1991), Points of Departure: Zen Buddhism With a Rinzai View, Livingston Manor, NY: The Zen Studies Society Press, ISBN 0-09-629460-1
- Snelling, John (1987), The Buddhist handbook. A Complete Guide to Buddhist Teaching and Practice, London: Century Paperbacks
- Suzuki, Shunryu (1997), Branching streams flow in the darkness: Zen talks on the Sandokai, University of California Press, http://books.google.nl/books?id=Y_5rgHVvHCUC&pg=PA154&dq=s+sandokai+%22finger+pointing+at+the+moon%22uzuki&hl=nl&sa=X&ei=k_EoT-LNLZGc-wacnIigBQ&ved=0CDYQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false
- Swanson, Paul L. (1993), The Spirituality of Emptiness in Early chinese Buddhism. In: Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast Asian, Tibetan, Early Chinese; edited by Takeuchi Yoshinori, New York: Crossroad
- Tetsuo, Otani (2003), To Transmit Dogen Zenji's Dharma, http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/DogenStudies/ToTransmitDogenZenji%27sDharma.pdf
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- Torei (2010), The Undying Lamp of Zen. The Testament of Zen Master Torei, Boston & London: Shambhala
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- Victoria, Brian Daizen (2006), Zen at war (Second Edition ed.), Lanham e.a.: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
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- Wai-tao (translator) (1994), The Diamond Sutra. In: A Buddhist Bible, Boston, Massachusetts: Beacon Press
- Wayman, Alex and Hideko (1990), The Lion's roar of Queen Srimala, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers
- Welter, Albert (Year unknown), The Textual History of the Linji lu (Record of Linji): The Earliest Recorded Fragments, http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/welter_Linji.html
- Yampolski, Philip (1967), The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch. Translated with notes by Philip B. Yampolsky, Columbia University Press, ISBN 0-231-08361-0
- Yampolski, Philip (2003-A), Chan. A Historical Sketch. In: Buddhist Spirituality. Later China, Korea, Japan and the Modern World; edited by Takeuchi Yoshinori, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass
- Yampolski, Philip (2003-B), Zen. A Historical Sketch. In: Buddhist Spirituality. Later China, Korea, Japan and the Modern World; edited by Takeuchi Yoshinori, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass
- Yanagida, Seizan (2009), Historical Introduction to The Record of Linji. In: The record of Linji, translated by Ruth Fuller Sasakia e.a. Pages 59-115, University of Hawaii Press, http://info.stiltij.nl/publiek/meditatie/leraren/_historisch/linji-sasaki.pdf
- Yen, Chan Master Sheng (2006), Boston & London: Shambhala
Modern classics
- D.T. Suzuki, Essays in Zen Buddhism, First Series (1927), Second Series (1933), Third Series (1934)
- R. H. Blyth, Zen and Zen Classics, 5 volumes (1960–1970; reprints of works from 1942 into 1960's)
- Paul Reps & Nyogen Senzaki, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones (1957)
- Alan Watts, The Way of Zen (1957)
- Lu K'uan Yu (Charles Luk), Ch'an and Zen Teachings, 3 vols (1960, 1971, 1974), The Transmission of the Mind: Outside the Teaching (1974)
- Philip Kapleau, The Three Pillars of Zen (1966)
- Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (1970)
- Katsuki Sekida, Zen Training: Methods & Philosophy (1975)
Classic history
- Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005), Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 1: India and China. World Wisdom Books. ISBN 978-0-941532-89-1
- Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005), Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 2: Japan. World Wisdom Books. ISBN 978-0-941532-90-7
Critical Zen studies
- Mcrae, John (2003), Seeing through Zen. Encounter, Transformation, and Genealogy in Chinese Chan Buddhism. The University Press Group Ltd . ISBN 978-0-520-23798-8
- McMahan, David L. (2008), The Making of Buddhist Modernism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-518327-6
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