Jùzhī Yīzhǐ (; ja, Gutei Isshi) was a 9th-century Chinese

Chán Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit '' dhyāna'' (meaning "meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and So ...

, or Zen, master. After

Bodhidharma Bodhidharma was a semi-legendary Buddhist monk who lived during the 5th or 6th century CE. He is traditionally credited as the transmitter of Chan Buddhism to China, and regarded as its first Chinese patriarch. According to a 17th century apo ...

, he was the eleventh successor in the line of Nányuè Huáiràng (677–744) and Mǎzǔ Dàoyī (709–788), as well as—according to some sources— Línjì Yìxuán (although according to others he was Linji's contemporary). He was the student of Hángzhōu Tiānlóng (Kōshū Tenryū).

Enlightenment

Gutei spent his time alone in the mountains,

meditating Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...

and chanting the ''Kannongyō'', th
twenty-fifth chapter
of the Lotus Sutra. One day, he was visited by a young nun who lived nearby. The nun challenged Gutei to utter a word of Zen, but—when he proved unable to do so—she left. Having spent so much time in meditation and study, Gutei became dismayed at his inability to say a single word of Zen to the nun. Shortly afterwards, Tenryū paid Gutei a visit. Gutei realized that his inability to answer the nun was due to his lack of understanding, and asked Tenryū to teach him. Tenryū held up his finger, and at that moment Gutei was

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. Versions of this story are told by Taisen Deshimaru and Susan Ji-on Postal.

Gutei's Finger

Gutei is famous for the following story, which appears as a kōan in various collections. The version here ("Gutei's Finger") is from the '' Mumonkan'', in the translation by

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and

Paul Reps Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

."Gutei's Finger"
retrieved 28 August 2006

Gutei raised his finger whenever he was asked a question about Zen. A boy attendant began to imitate him in this way. When anyone asked the boy what his master had preached about, the boy would raise his finger.

Gutei heard about the boy's mischief. He seized him and cut off his finger. The boy cried and ran away. Gutei called and stopped him. When the boy turned his head to Gutei, Gutei raised up his own finger. In that instant the boy was enlightened.

When Gutei was about to pass from this world he gathered his monks around him. "I attained my finger-Zen," he said, "from my teacher Tenryū, and in my whole life I could not exhaust it." Then he passed away.

''Mumon's comment:'' Enlightenment, which Gutei and the boy attained, has nothing to do with a finger. If anyone clings to a finger, Tenryū will be so disappointed that he will annihilate Gutei, the boy and the clinger all together.

::''Gutei cheapens the teaching of Tenryū,'' ::''Emancipating the boy with a knife.'' ::''Compared to the Chinese god who pushed aside a mountain with one hand'' ::''Old Gutei is a poor imitator.'' It is due to this story that Gutei has commonly become known as Gutei Isshi, meaning "Gutei One-finger".

External links

Mumonkan ( the Gateless Gate)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yizhi, Juzhi Chan Buddhists Tang dynasty Buddhists Chinese Zen Buddhists