Xuedou (),Wudeng Huiyuan Vol.15

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theob ...

"Yinzhi"() was a

Chinese Buddhist Chinese Buddhism or Han Buddhism ( zh, s=汉传佛教, t=漢傳佛教, p=Hànchuán Fójiào) is a Chinese form of Mahayana Buddhism which has shaped Chinese culture in a wide variety of areas including art, politics, literature, philosophy, ...

monk of

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

. He is best known for his collection of 100

koan A (; , ; ko, 화두, ; vi, công án) is a story, dialogue, question, or statement which is used in Zen practice to provoke the "great doubt" and to practice or test a student's progress in Zen. Etymology The Japanese term is the Sino-J ...

s which later became the foundation of the koan collection "

Blue Cliff Record The ''Blue Cliff Record'' () is a collection of Chan Buddhist kōans originally compiled in Song China in 1125, during the reign of Emperor Huizong, and then expanded into its present form by Chan master Yuanwu Keqin (1063–1135; ).K. Sekid ...

Life

According to " Wudeng Huiyuan", Xuedou was born in the year of 980 in

Suining Suining (; Sichuanese Pinyin: Xu4nin2; Sichuanese pronunciation: ; ) is a prefecture-level city of eastern Sichuan province in Southwest China. In 2002, Suining had a population of 658,798. Geography and climate Suining is located in the cen ...

Fu. His name by birth was Li Chongxian(李重顯). The origin of his family was in Mingzhou which is situated in Southeastern China. After his parents passed away, he moved to Chengdu seeking the spiritual guidance of master Renxian (仁銑) in the temple of Puan Yuan (普安院). His teachers found him an apt pupil and introduced him to Master Zhimen Guanzuo (智門光祚). Under Zhimen, Chongxian was able to deepen his study and inherited the philosophy of the school which was created by

Yunmen Wenyan Yunmen Wenyan (; romaji: ''Ummon Bun'en''; 862 or 864 – 949 CE), was a major Chinese Chan master of the Tang dynasty. He was a dharma-heir of Xuefeng Yicunbr>} Yunmen founded the Yunmen school, one of the five major schools of Chán (Chinese ...

(雲門文偃). The completion of his study was followed by his travels to different Buddhist temples. He preached and taught in various places. Xuedou eventually settled down in Zisheng temple on the mountain of Xuedou due to the invitation of the local officer of Siming prefecture. In Zisheng temple where he spent 31 years, Xuedou witnessed the peak of his fame. Xuedou was the Fourth Patriarch in the House of Yunmen. Even the imperial court was not able to neglect his fame and consequently bestowed the title "Zen Master Mingjue" (明覺禪師) on him. He died in 1052 during the reign of emperor Renzong of Song. He left behind a series of religious works such as "Baize Songgu" and "Xuedou niangu".

Incidents

Xuedou's funerary inscription records the story of his enlightenment experience. According to this inscription, Xuedou asked his teacher Zhimen, "The ancient masters didn't produce a single thought, so what's the problem?" In response, Zhimen hit Xuedou with a ceremonial fly whisk, and then struck Xuedou a second time before Xuedou could respond. These blows triggered Xuedou's enlightenment. Although Japanese Zen Master

Hakuin Ekaku was one of the most influential figures in Japanese Zen Buddhism. He is regarded as the reviver of the Rinzai school from a moribund period of stagnation, focusing on rigorous training methods integrating meditation and koan practice. Biog ...

is often credited with inventing the koan regarding the sound of one hand clapping, ''The Blue Cliff Record'' includes Xuedou's poetic commentary that "a single hand makes no clapping sound" appears 700 years earlier''.'' There is an anecdote about Xuedou's last words. Near the end of his life, his pupils, regretting the inevitable death of their master, asked if there is anything that he wanted to say. Xuedou simply replied: "The only regret of my life was speaking too much."

References

{{Authority control Chan Buddhists Chinese scholars of Buddhism 980 births 1052 deaths