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Kōan
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-Japanese reading of the Chinese word (). The term is a compound word, consisting of the characters "public; official; governmental; common; collective; fair; equitable" and "table; desk; (law) case; record; file; plan; proposal." According to the Yuan dynasty Zen master Zhongfeng Mingben ( 1263–1323), originated as an abbreviation of (, Japanese —literally the "official correspondence; documents; files" of a "government post"), which referred to a "public record" or the "case records of a public law court" in Tang dynasty China. / thus serves as a metaphor for principles of reality beyond the private opinion of one person, and a teacher may test the student's ability to recognize and understand that principle. Commentaries in col ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rinzai School
The Rinzai school ( ja, , Rinzai-shū, zh, t=臨濟宗, s=临济宗, p=Línjì zōng) is one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (along with Sōtō and Ōbaku). The Chinese Linji school of Chan was first transmitted to Japan by Myōan Eisai (1141 –1215). Contemporary Japanese Rinzai is derived entirely from the Ōtōkan lineage transmitted through Hakuin Ekaku (1686–1769), who is a major figure in the revival of the Rinzai tradition. History Rinzai is the Japanese line of the Chinese Linji school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Linji Yixuan (Japanese: Rinzai Gigen). Kamakura period (1185–1333) Though there were several attempts to establish Rinzai lines in Japan, it first took root in a lasting way through the efforts of the monk Myōan Eisai. In 1168, Myōan Eisai traveled to China, whereafter he studied Tendai for twenty years. In 1187, he went to China again, and returned to establish a Linji lineage, which is known in Japan as Rinza ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dhyāna In Buddhism
In the oldest texts of Buddhism, ''dhyāna'' () or ''jhāna'' () is a component of the training of the mind ('' bhavana''), commonly translated as meditation, to withdraw the mind from the automatic responses to sense-impressions, "burn up" the defilements, and leading to a "state of perfect equanimity and awareness ('' upekkhā- sati- parisuddhi'')." ''Dhyāna'' may have been the core practice of pre-sectarian Buddhism, in combination with several related practices which together lead to perfected mindfulness and detachment. In the later commentarial tradition, which has survived in present-day Theravāda, ''dhyāna'' is equated with "concentration", a state of one-pointed absorption in which there is a diminished awareness of the surroundings. In the contemporary Theravāda-based Vipassana movement, this absorbed state of mind is regarded as unnecessary and even non-beneficial for the first stage of awakening, which has to be reached by mindfulness of the body and ''vip ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seung Sahn
Seungsahn Haengwon (, August 1, 1927November 30, 2004), born Duk-In Lee, was a Korean Seon master of the Jogye Order and founder of the international Kwan Um School of Zen. He was the seventy-eighth Patriarch in his lineage. As one of the early Korean Zen masters to settle in the United States, he opened many temples and practice groups across the globe. He was known for his charismatic style and direct presentation of Zen, which was well tailored for the Western audience. Known by students for his many correspondences with them through letters, his utilization of dharma combat and expressions such as "only don't know" or "only go straight" in teachings, he was conferred the honorific title of Dae Jong Sa in June 2004 by the Jogye Order for a lifetime of achievements. Considered the highest honor to have bestowed upon one in the order, the title translates "Great Lineage Master" and was bestowed for his establishment of the World Wide Kwan Um School of Zen. He died in November ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sōtō
Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Cáodòng school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Dòngshān Liánjiè. It emphasizes Shikantaza, meditation with no objects, anchors, or content. The meditator strives to be aware of the stream of thoughts, allowing them to arise and pass away without interference. The Japanese brand of the sect was imported in the 13th century by Dōgen Zenji, who studied Cáodòng Buddhism () abroad in China. Dōgen is remembered today as the co-patriarch of Sōtō Zen in Japan along with Keizan Jōkin. With about 14,000 temples, Sōtō is one of the largest Japanese Buddhist organizations. Sōtō Zen is now also popular in the West, and in 1996 priests of the Sōtō Zen tradition formed the Soto Zen Buddhist Association based in North America. History Chinese origins The original Chinese version of S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kwan Um School Of Zen
The Kwan Um School of Zen (관음선종회) (KUSZ) is an international school of zen centers and groups founded in 1983 by Zen Master Seung Sahn. The school's international head temple is located at the Providence Zen Center in Cumberland, Rhode Island, which was founded in 1972 shortly after Seung Sahn first came to the United States. The Kwan Um style of Buddhist practice combines ritual common both to Korean Buddhism as well as Rinzai school of Zen, and their morning and evening services include elements of Huayan and Pure Land Buddhism. While the Kwan Um Zen School comes under the banner of the Jogye Order of Korean Seon, the school has been adapted by Seung Sahn to the needs of Westerners. According to James Ishmael Ford, the Kwan Um School of Zen is the largest Zen school in the Western world. History Seung Sahn first arrived in the United States in 1972, where he lived in Providence, Rhode Island and worked at a Korean-owned laundromat, repairing washing machines to financi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mu (negative)
The Japanese and Korean term ' () or Chinese (), meaning "not have; without", is a key word in Buddhism, especially Zen traditions. Etymology The Old Chinese * () is cognate with the Proto-Tibeto-Burman *''ma'', meaning "not". This reconstructed root is widely represented in Tibeto-Burman languages; for instance, means "not" in both Written Tibetan and Written Burmese. Pronunciations The Standard Chinese pronunciation of (, "not; nothing") historically derives from the Middle Chinese , the Late Han Chinese ''muɑ'', and the reconstructed Old Chinese *., p. 518. Other varieties of Chinese have differing pronunciations of . Compare Cantonese ; and Southern Min (Quanzhou) and (Zhangzhou). The common Chinese word () was adopted in the Sino-Japanese, Sino-Korean, and Sino-Vietnamese vocabularies. The Japanese kanji has readings of or , and a (Japanese reading) of . The Korean is read (in Revised, McCune–Reischauer, and Yale romanization systems). The Vietna ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dahui Zonggao
Dahui Zonggao (1089–10 August 1163) (; Wade–Giles: Ta-hui Tsung-kao; Japanese: Daie Sōkō; Vietnamese: Đại Huệ Tông Cảo) was a 12th-century Chinese Chan (Zen) master. Dahui was a student of Yuanwu Keqin (Wade–Giles: Yuan-wu K'o-ch'in; Japanese: Engo Kokugon) (1063–1135) and was the 12th generation of the Linji school of Chan Buddhism. He was the dominant figure of the Linji school during the Song dynasty. Dahui introduced the practice of '' kan huatou'', or "inspecting the critical phrase," of a kōan story. This method was called the "Chan of gongan (kōan) introspection" (Kanhua Chan). Dahui was a vigorous critic of what he called the "heretical Chan of silent illumination" (mozhao xie Chan) of the Caodong school (Wade–Giles: Ts'ao-tung; Japanese: Sōtō). Biography Early years Dahui was born in Xuancheng, Anhui, to the Xi family. He left home at sixteen and became a Buddhist monk at seventeen. His initiatory name was Zong Gao. Following the tradition ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zhongfeng Mingben
''Zhongfeng Mingben'' (; ja, Chūhō Myōhon), 1263–1323 was a Chan Buddhist master who lived at the beginning of Yuan China. He adhered to the rigorous style of the Linji school and influenced Zen through several Japanese teachers who studied under him. Biography Zhongfeng Mingben's family name was Sun. He was the youngest of seven children. His mother died when he was nine years old. Already in his teenage years he wanted to become a monk. From fifteen he observed the layman's Five Precepts. His left hand became mutilated when, in his youth he burned the little finger as a sacrifice to the Buddha. This may have been inspired by chapter 23 of the ''Lotus Sutra'': In 1287 Zhongfeng Mingben received tonsure at Shiziyuan Monastery on Tianmu Mountain. In 1288 he was ordained as a monk. Contrary to the norm, he grew long hair in (presumed) accordance with his teacher, Gaofeng Yuanmai. As a young man he was appointed to succeed the abbot of the monastery on Tianmu Mountain, b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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. Sekida, ''Two Zen Classics'' (1977) p. 18-20 The book includes Yuanwu's annotations and commentary on ''100 Verses on Old Cases'' (), a compilation of 100 kōans collected by Xuedou Chongxian (980–1052; , '). Xuedou selected 82 of these from '' The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp'', with the remainder selected from the ''Yunmen Guanglu'' (, ''Extensive Record of Yunmen Wenyan'', 864–949). Name and origin The ''Blue Cliff Record'' derives its name from the temple where Yuanwu Keqin wrote most of his commentaries, the Blue Cliff Cloister (碧巖院, ''Bìyán Yuàn'') in Hunan. The work was originally called Xuedou's ''Juko'' (''ju'', verse; ''ko'', old koans) before its ''Blue Cliff Record'' title was attributed. Yuanwu f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Five Mountain System
The system, more commonly called simply ''Five Mountain System'', was a network of state-sponsored Chan (Zen) Buddhist temples created in China during the Southern Song (1127–1279). The term "mountain" in this context means "temple" or "monastery", and was adopted because many monasteries were built on isolated mountains. The system originated in India and was later adopted also in Japan during the late Kamakura period (1185–1333). In Japan, the ten existing "Five Mountain" temples (five in Kyoto and five in Kamakura, Kanagawa) were both protected and controlled by the shogunate.Iwanami Nihonshi Jiten, ''Gozan''. In time, they became a sort of governmental bureaucracy that helped the Ashikaga shogunate stabilize the country during the turbulent Nanboku-chō period. Below the ten ''Gozan'' temples there were ten so-called temples, followed by another network called . The terms ''Gozan'' and Five Mountain System are used both for the ten temples at the top and for the Five Mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Samatha
''Samatha'' (Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' (Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of the mind developed in tandem in Buddhist practice. In the Pali Canon and the Āgama they are not specific practices, but elements of "a single path," and "fulfilled" with the development (''bhāvanā'') of '' sati'' ("mindfulness") and '' jhana/dhyana'' ("meditation") and other path-factors. While ''jhana/dhyana'' has a central role in the Buddhist path, ''vipassanā'' is hardly mentioned separately, but mostly described along with ''samatha''. The '' Abhidhamma Pitaka'' and the commentaries describe samatha and vipassanā as two separate techniques, taking samatha to mean concentration-meditation, and ''vipassana'' as a practice to gain insight. In the Theravada-tradition, ''vipassanā'' is defined as a practice that seeks "insight into th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vipassana
''Samatha'' ( Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' ( Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of the mind developed in tandem in Buddhist practice. In the Pali Canon and the Āgama they are not specific practices, but elements of "a single path," and "fulfilled" with the development (''bhāvanā'') of '' sati'' ("mindfulness") and '' jhana/dhyana'' ("meditation") and other path-factors. While ''jhana/dhyana'' has a central role in the Buddhist path, ''vipassanā'' is hardly mentioned separately, but mostly described along with ''samatha''. The '' Abhidhamma Pitaka'' and the commentaries describe samatha and vipassanā as two separate techniques, taking samatha to mean concentration-meditation, and ''vipassana'' as a practice to gain insight. In the Theravada-tradition, ''vipassanā'' is defined as a practice that seeks "insight into ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
