Nembutsu Kōan
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"Who is the master that sees and hears?" is a
kōan A ( ; ; zh, c=公案, p=gōng'àn ; ; ) is a narrative, story, dialogue, question, or statement from Chan Buddhism, Chinese Chan Buddhist lore, supplemented with commentaries, that is used in Zen Buddhism, Buddhist practice in different way ...
-like form of self-inquiry practiced in the
Zen Zen (; from Chinese: ''Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka phil ...
tradition. It is best known from the 14th-century Japanese Zen Master
Bassui Tokushō was a Rinzai Zen Master born in modern-day Kanagawa Prefecture who had trained with Sōtō and Rinzai Zen-masters. Bassui was tormented by the question "Who is the one that sees, hears, and understands?" This question was also central in his te ...
who pursued this question for many years.


Overview


Background

Although Bassui is well-known for looking into the one who sees and hears, such a practice did not originate with him and has been variously pointed to in Buddhist sources. Bassui points out how many sutras stress the importance of seeing into one's own nature, and he reduces the
six perfections 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics A six-sided polygon is a hexagon, one of the three regular polygons capable of tiling the plane. A hexagon a ...
of the Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra to this one truth as well. One can find many examples in Chan sources which point to the numinous nature of the sense-faculties. For instance,
Mazu Daoyi Mazu Daoyi (709–788) (, Japanese: Baso Dōitsu) was an influential abbot of Chan Buddhism during the Tang dynasty. He is known as the founder of the Hongzhou school of Zen. The earliest recorded use of the term "Chan school" is from his ''Ex ...
says, "Now seeing, listening, sensing, and knowing are fundamentally your original nature 'běn xìng'', 本性 which is also called original mind 'běn xīn'', 本心" Similarly, the Hongzhou school master Fen-chou Wu-yeh says, "This very nature of yours that does see, hear, feel, and know, is the same age as empty space which is neither born nor perishable." The ''Dunwu rudao yaomen lun'', attributed to
Dazhu Huihai Dazhu Huihai ( Chinese: ) ( 788) was a Chan Master in the Hongzhou School, and was a disciple of Mazu Daoyi. The ''Dunwu rudao yaomen lun'' (Treatise on the Essential Doctrine of Suddenly Entering into Enlightenment) is attributed to him. His name ...
, also describes the nature of hearing as eternal and says, "It is your own nature which hears and it is the inner cognizer who knows." In a similar fashion, the
Śūraṅgama Sūtra The ''Śūraṅgama Sūtra'' (, ''Sūtra of the Heroic'' ''March'') (Taisho no. 945) is a Mahayana Buddhist sutra that has been especially influential on Korean Buddhism (where it remains a major subject of study in Sŏn monasteries) and Chine ...
says:
We’re capable of hearing sounds and silence both;
They may be present to the ear or not.
Though people say that when no sound is present,
Our hearing must be absent too, in fact
Our hearing does not lapse. It does not cease
With silence; neither is it born of sound.
Our hearing, then, is genuine and true.
It is the everlasting one.


Examples

In ''Question Your Mind'', Bassui urges his listeners to realize their own mind, their
original face The original face is a term in Zen Buddhism, pointing to one's real essence or Buddha-nature, one's 'real face'.Martin Goodson (April 14, 2021)A Sermon on the Original Face/ref> Origins The phrase "original face" originates in Huangbo's Chuanh ...
or
Buddha-nature In Buddhist philosophy and soteriology, Buddha-nature ( Chinese: , Japanese: , , Sanskrit: ) is the innate potential for all sentient beings to become a Buddha or the fact that all sentient beings already have a pure Buddha-essence within ...
, so as "to avoid the
suffering Suffering, or pain in a broad sense, may be an experience of unpleasantness or aversion, possibly associated with the perception of harm or threat of harm in an individual. Suffering is the basic element that makes up the negative valence (psyc ...
of life and death." To realize this originally pure mind, one has to see where thoughts come from, by deeply questioning "What is this mind?" Bassui then states: In his ''Wadeigassui'' ("Mud and Water"), Bassui places great stress on looking into the question "who is it that sees and hears?" which is equivalent to seeing into ne'snature. Bassui's last words reputedly were: Similarly, Linji (Jp. Rinzai) advised his listeners, "Here in this lump of red flesh there is a True Man with no rank. Constantly he goes in and out the gates of your face. If there are any of you who don't know this for a fact, then look! Look!" While Hakuin is perhaps most famous for " the sound of one hand," he also taught the question "Who is the host of seeing and hearing?" to arouse the great doubt. The practice of contemplating the listener is also associated with the mythology of
Avalokiteśvara In Buddhism, Avalokiteśvara (meaning "the lord who looks down", International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ), also known as Lokeśvara ("Lord of the World") and Chenrezig (in Tibetan), is a Bodhisattva#Bhūmis (stages), tenth-level bodhisattva associ ...
, the Bodhisattva of great compassion who hears the cries of all suffering beings in the universe. As scriptural support for his teaching of looking into the one who hears, Bassui cites the
Śūraṅgama Sūtra The ''Śūraṅgama Sūtra'' (, ''Sūtra of the Heroic'' ''March'') (Taisho no. 945) is a Mahayana Buddhist sutra that has been especially influential on Korean Buddhism (where it remains a major subject of study in Sŏn monasteries) and Chine ...
in which Avalokiteśvara teaches a practice of turning one's attention to the hearing faculty. The eminent Ming dynasty monk
Hanshan Deqing Hanshan Deqing (, Wade Giles: Han-Shan Te-Ch’ing, "Crazy Mountain, Virtuous Clarity", c. 1546–1623), was a leading Buddhist monk and poet of the late Ming dynasty China.Buswell Jr.; Lopez Jr. (2013) ''The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhis ...
held this sūtra in high regard. Before relying on it to verify his own enlightenment, he first engaged in its practice of meditation based on the organ of hearing as suggested to him by his friend and traveling companion Miao-feng. Bassui says that
Kannon Guanyin () is a common Chinese name of the bodhisattva associated with Karuṇā, compassion known as Avalokiteśvara (). Guanyin is short for Guanshiyin, which means " he One WhoPerceives the Sounds of the World". Originally regarded as m ...
, the bodhisattva of compassion, was "someone who, for every sound he heard, contemplated the mind of the hearer, thereby realizing his true nature." He also identifies the "one who hears the Dharma" with the perfection achieved by the bodhisattva Kannon. Similarly, Manzan Dōhaku (1635-1715) states:
Yamada Koun , or Koun Yamada, was a Japanese Buddhist who was the leader of the Sanbo Kyodan lineage of Zen Buddhism, the Dharma heir of his teacher Yasutani Haku'un Ryoko. Yamada was appointed the leader of the Sanbo Kyodan in 1967, 1970 or 1973 and co ...
, dharma heir of
Hakuun Yasutani was a Sōtō Zen priest and the founder of the Sanbo Kyodan, a lay Japanese Zen group. Through his students Philip Kapleau and Taizan Maezumi, Yasutani has been one of the principal forces in founding western (lay) Zen-practice. Biography ...
, likewise used it for his practice after he had completed formal kōan-study.Robert Aitken, title to be added Although not formally part of any of the great kōan collections, "Who is the master of seeing and hearing?" has been treated as such and similar questions can be found in several kōan collections. Nonetheless, as Braverman observes, Bassui himself, who is perhaps best known for his teaching of looking into the one who sees and hears, "was very critical of the Rinzai practice of studying kōans, perhaps because they were becoming more and more formalized, hence losing their original spirit."


Similar questions

Similar examples of self-inquiry in Zen include, "Who is it that thus comes?" and "Who is the master that makes the grass green?" The
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 ...
Case 1 and the Book of Serenity Case 2 relate
Bodhidharma Bodhidharma was a semi-legendary Bhikkhu, Buddhist monk who lived during the 5th or 6th century CE. He is traditionally credited as the transmitter of Chan Buddhism to China, and is regarded as its first Chinese Lineage (Buddhism), patriarch. ...
's meeting with
Emperor Wu of Liang Emperor Wu of Liang () (464 – 12 June 549), personal name Xiao Yan (蕭衍), courtesy name Shuda (叔達), childhood name Lian'er (練兒), was the founding Emperor of China, emperor of the Chinese Liang dynasty, during the Northern and Souther ...
, who asked him "Who is it that is standing before me?" —to which Bodhidharma answered "Don't know." In
Chinese Chan 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 Song d ...
and
Korean Seon Seon or Sŏn Buddhism (; ) is the Korean name for Chan Buddhism, a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism commonly known in English as Zen Buddhism. Seon is the Sino-Korean pronunciation of Chan, () an abbreviation of 禪那 (''chánnà''), which is a ...
, the question "Who am I?" in several variations is used as a
Hua Tou ''Hua Tou'' (simplified Chinese: 话头; traditional Chinese: 話頭, Korean: ''hwadu'', Japanese: ''watō'') is part of a form of Buddhist meditation known as ''Gongfu'' 工夫 (not to be confused with the Martial Arts 功夫) common in the t ...
, in which the one word, "Who?" is continuously repeated. After attaining a first insight the question remains the focus of attention, to deepen the insight. In the Japanese
Ōbaku school Ōbaku Zen or the Ōbaku school () is one of three main schools of Japanese Zen Buddhism, in addition to the Sōtō and Rinzai schools. The school was founded in Japan by the Chinese monk Ingen Ryūki, who immigrated to Japan during the Manchu ...
(which has incorporated
Pure Land Pure Land is a Mahayana, Mahayana Buddhist concept referring to a transcendent realm emanated by a buddhahood, buddha or bodhisattva which has been purified by their activity and Other power, sustaining power. Pure lands are said to be places ...
practice) the ''nembutsu'' kōan entails the practice of reciting the name of Amitabha while holding in one's mind the question "Who is reciting?" —a question mostly assigned to lay practitioners. The question, "Who is it?" is also explicated by Torei in ''The Undying Lamp of Zen.'' Similarly,
Ramana Maharshi Ramana Maharshi (; ; 30 December 1879 – 14 April 1950) was an Indian Hindu Sage (philosophy), sage and ''jivanmukta'' (liberated being). He was born Venkataraman Iyer, but is mostly known by the name Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. He was b ...
and
Nisargadatta Maharaj Nisargadatta Maharaj (born Maruti Shivrampant Kambli; 17 April 1897 – 8 September 1981) was an Indian guru of nondualism, belonging to the Inchagiri Sampradaya, a lineage of teachers from the Navnath Sampradaya. The publication in ...
used the question "Who am I?" for their practice of self-inquiry.


See also

* Self-inquiry * The sound of one hand *
Original face The original face is a term in Zen Buddhism, pointing to one's real essence or Buddha-nature, one's 'real face'.Martin Goodson (April 14, 2021)A Sermon on the Original Face/ref> Origins The phrase "original face" originates in Huangbo's Chuanh ...
*
Reality tunnel Reality tunnel is a theory that, with a subconscious set of mental filters formed from beliefs and experiences, every individual interprets the same world differently, hence "Truth is in the eye of the beholder". It is similar to the idea of repr ...


Notes


References


Sources

;Printed sources * * * * * ;Web-sources


External links


Teachings by Master Xu Yun on “Huatou”-style Practice in Chan
{{Zen Zen Kōan Articles titled with a question