THE RELIGION OF THE SAMURAI
A STUDY OF ZEN PHILOSOPHY AND DISCIPLINE IN CHINA AND JAPAN
by
KAITEN NUKARIYA
Professor of Kei-O-Gi-Jiku University and of So-To-Shu Buddhist
College, Tokyo
1913
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
(1) The Southern and Northern Schools of Buddhism
(2) The Development and Differentiation of Buddhism
(3) The Object of this Book is the Explaining of the Mahayanistic
View of Life and the World
(4) Zen holds a Unique Position among the Established Religions of
the World
(5) The Historical Antiquity of Zen
(6) The Denial of Scriptural Authority by Zen
(7) The Practisers of Zen hold the Buddha as their Predecessor, whose
Spiritual Level they Aim to Attain
(8) The Iconoclastic Attitude of Zen
(9) Zen Activity
(10) The Physical and Mental Training
(11) The Historical Importance
CHAPTER I
HISTORY OF ZEN IN CHINA
1. The Origin of Zen in India
2. The Introduction of Zen into China by Bodhidharma
3. Bodhidharma and the Emperor Wu
4. Bodhidharma and his Successor, the Second Patriarch
5. Bodhidharma's Disciples and the Transmission of the Law
6. The Second and the Third Patriarchs
7. The Fourth Patriarch and the Emperor Tai Tsung
8. The Fifth and the Sixth Patriarchs
9. The Spiritual Attainment of the Sixth Patriarch
10. The Flight of the Sixth Patriarch
11. The Development of the Southern and the Northern School of Zen
12. The Missionary Activity of the Sixth Patriarch
13. The Disciples under the Sixth Patriarch
14. Three Important Elements of Zen
15. Decline of Zen
CHAPTER II
HISTORY OF ZEN IN JAPAN
1. The Establishment of the Rin Zai School of Zen in Japan
2. The Introduction of the So To School of Zen
3. The Characteristics of Do-gen, the Founder of the Japanese So To
Sect
4. The Social State of Japan when Zen was Established by Ei-sai and
Do-gen
5. The Resemblance of the Zen Monk to the Samurai
6. The Honest Poverty of the Zen Monk and the Samurai
7. The Manliness of the Zen Monk and the Samurai
8. The Courage and Composure of Mind of the Zen Monk and the Samurai
9. Zen and the Regent Generals of the Ho-jo Period
10. Zen after the Downfall of the Ho-jo Regency
11. Zen in the Dark Age
12. Zen under the Toku-gawa Shogunate
13. Zen after the Restoration
CHAPTER III
THE UNIVERSE IS THE SCRIPTURE OF ZEN
1. Scripture is no More than Waste Paper
2. No Need of the Scriptural Authority for Zen
3. The Usual Explanation of the Canon
4. Sutras used by the Zen Masters
5. A Sutra Equal in Size to the Whole World 68
6. Great Men and Nature
7. The Absolute and Reality are but an Abstraction
8. The Sermon of the Inanimate
CHAPTER IV
BUDDHA, THE UNIVERSAL SPIRIT
1. The Ancient Buddhist Pantheon
2. Zen is Iconoclastic
3. Buddha is Unnamable
4. Buddha, the Universal Life
5. Life and Change
6. The Pessimistic View of Ancient Hindus
7. Hinayanism and its Doctrine
8. Change as seen by Zen
9. Life and Change
10. Life, Change, and Hope
11. Everything is Living according to Zen
12. The Creative Force of Nature and Humanity
13. Universal Life is Universal Spirit
14. Poetical Intuition and Zen
15. Enlightened Consciousness
16. Buddha Dwelling in the Individual Mind
Enlightened Consciousness is not an Intellectual Insight
18. Our Conception of Buddha is not Final
19. How to Worship Buddha
CHAPTER V
THE NATURE OF MAN
1. Man is Good-natured according to Mencius
2. Man is Bad-natured according to Siun Tsz
3. Man is both Good-natured and Bad-natured according to Yan Hiung
4. Man is neither Good-natured nor Bad-natured according to Su Shih
5. There is no Mortal who is Purely Moral
6. There is no Mortal who is Non-moral or Purely Immoral
7. Where, then, does the Error Lie?
8, Man is not Good-natured nor Bad-natured, but Buddha natured
9. The Parable of the Robber Kih
10. Wang Yang Ming and a Thief
11. The Bad are the Good in the Egg
12. The Great Person and the Small Person
13. The Theory of Buddha-Nature adequately explains the Ethical
States of Man
14. Buddha-Nature is the Common Source of Morals
15. The Parable of a Drunkard
16. Shakya Muni and the Prodigal Son
17. The Parable of the Monk and the Stupid Woman
18. 'Each Smile a Hymn, each Kindly Word a Prayer'
19. The World is in the Making
20. The Progress and Hope of Life
21. The Betterment of Life
22. The Buddha of Mercy
CHAPTER VI
ENLIGHTENMENT
1. Enlightenment is beyond Description and Analysis
2. Enlightenment Implies an Insight into the Nature of Self
3. The Irrationality of the Belief of Immortality
4. The Examination of the Notion of Self
5. Nature is the Mother of All Things
6. Real Self
7. The Awakening of the Innermost Wisdom
8. Zen is not Nihilistic
9. Zen and Idealism
10. Idealism is a Potent Medicine for Self -Created Mental Disease
11. Idealistic Scepticism concerning Objective Reality
12. Idealistic Scepticism concerning Religion and Morality
13. An Illusion concerning Appearance and Reality
14. Where does the Root of the Illusion Lie?
15. Thing-in-Itself means Thing-Knowerless
16. The Four Alternatives and the Five Categories
17. Personalism of B. P. Bowne
18. All the Worlds in Ten Directions are Buddha's Holy Land
CHAPTER VII
LIFE
1. Epicureanism and Life
2. The Errors of Philosophical Pessimists and Religious Optimists
3. The Law of Balance
4. Life Consists in Conflict
5. The Mystery of Life
6. Nature favours Nothing in Particular
7. The Law of Balance in Life
8. The Application of the Law of Causation to Morals
9. The Retribution in the Past, the Present, and the Future Life
10. The Eternal Life as taught by Professor M?nsterberg
11. Life in the Concrete
12. Difficulties are no Match for an Optimist
13. Do Thy Best and Leave the Rest to Providence
CHAPTER VIII
THE TRAINING OF THE MIND AND THE PRACTICE OF MEDITATION
1. The Method of Instruction adopted by Zen Masters
2. The First Step in the Mental Training
3. The Next Step in the Mental Training
4. The Third Step in the Mental Training
5. Zazen, or the Sitting in Meditation
6. The Breathing Exercise of the Yogi
7. Calmness of Mind
8. Zazen and the Forgetting of Self
9. Zen and Supernatural Power
10. True Dhyana
11. Let Go of Your Idle Thoughts
12. 'The Five Ranks of Merit'
13. 'The Ten Pictures of the Cowherd'
14. Zen and Nirvana
15. Nature and Her Lesson
16. The Beatitude of Zen
APPENDIX
ORIGIN OF MAN
PREFACE
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER I
REFUTATION OF DELUSIVE AND PREJUDICED (DOCTRINE)
CHAPTER II
REFUTATION OF INCOMPLETE AND SUPERFICIAL (DOCTRINE)
1. The Doctrine for Men and Devas
2. The Doctrine of the Hinayanists
3. The Mahayana Doctrine of Dharmalaksana
4. Mahayana Doctrine of the Nihilists
CHAPTER III
THE DIRECT EXPLANATION OF THE REAL ORIGIN
5. The Ekayana Doctrine that Teaches the Ultimate Reality
CHAPTER IV
RECONCILIATION OF THE TEMPORARY WITH THE REAL DOCTRINE
INTRODUCTION
Buddhism is geographically divided into two schools[FN#1]--the
Southern, the older and simpler, and the Northern, the later and more
developed faith. The former, based mainly on the Pali texts[FN#2] is
known as Hinayana[FN#3] (small vehicle), or the inferior doctrine;
while the latter, based on the various Sanskrit texts,[4] is known as
Mahayana (large vehicle), or superior doctrine. The chief tenets of
the Southern School are so well known to occidental scholars that
they almost always mean the Southern School by the word Buddhism.
But with regard to the Northern School very little is known to the
West, owing to the fact that most of its original texts were lost,
and that the teachings based on these texts are written in Chinese,
or Tibetan, or Japanese languages unfamiliar to non-Buddhist
investigators.
[FN#1] The Southern School has its adherents in Ceylon, Burma, Siam,
Anan, etc.; while the Northern School is found in Nepal, China,
Japan, Tibet, etc.
[FN#2] They chiefly consist of the Four Nikayas: (1) Digha Nikaya
(Dirghagamas, translated into Chinese by Buddhaya?as, A.D. 412-413);
(2) Majjhima Nikaya (Madhyamagamas, translated into Chinese by
Gautama Sanghadeva, A.D. 397-398); (3) Sanyutta Nikaya
(Samyuktagamas, translated into Chinese by Gunabhadra, of the earlier
Sung dynasty, A.D. 420 479); (4) Anguttara Nikaya (Ekottaragamas,
translated into Chinese by Dharmanandi, A.D. 384-385). Out of these
Hinayana books, the English translation of twenty-three suttas by
Rhys Davids exist in 'Sacred Books of Buddhist,' vols. ii.-iii., and
of seven suttas by the same author in 'Sacred Books of the East,'
vol. xi.
[FN#3] The Southern Buddhists never call their faith Hinayana, the
name being an invention of later Buddhists, who call their doctrine
Mahayana in contradistinction to the earlier form of Buddhism. We
have to notice that the word Hinayana frequently occurs in Mahayana
books, while it does not in Hinayana books.
[FN#4] A catalogue of the Buddhist Canon, K'-yuen-luh, gives the
titles of 897 Mahayana sutras, yet the most important books often
quoted by Northern Buddhist teachers amount to little more than
twenty. There exist the English translation of Larger
Sukhavati-vyuha-sutra, Smaller Sukhavati-vyuha-sutra,
Vajracchedika-sutra, Larger Prajna-paramita-hradya-sutra, Smaller
Prajna-paramita-hrdaya-sutra, by Max M?ller, and
Amitayur-dhyana-sutra, by J. Takakusu, in 'Sacred Books of the East,'
vol. xlix. An English translation of Saddharma-pundarika-sutra, by
Kern, is given in 'Sacred Books of the East,' Vol. xxi. Compare
these books with 'Outlines of Mahayana Buddhism,' by D. Suzuki.
It is hardly justifiable to cover the whole system of Buddhism with a
single epithet[FN#5] 'pessimistic' or 'nihilistic,' because Buddhism,
having been adopted by savage tribes as well as civilized nations, by
quiet, enervated people as well as by warlike, sturdy hordes, during
some twenty-five hundred years, has developed itself into beliefs
widely divergent and even diametrically opposed. Even in Japan alone
it has differentiated itself into thirteen main sects and forty-four
sub-sects[FN#6] and is still in full vigour, though in other
countries it has already passed its prime. Thus Japan seems to be
the best representative of the Buddhist countries where the majority
of people abides by the guiding principle of the Northern School. To
study her religion, therefore, is to penetrate into Mahayanism, which
still lies an unexplored land for the Western minds. And to
investigate her faith is not to dig out the remains of Buddhist faith
that existed twenty centuries ago, but to touch the heart and soul of
Mahayanism that enlivens its devotees at the present moment.
[FN#5] Hinayanism is, generally speaking, inclined to be
pessimistic, but Mahayanism in the main holds the optimistic view of
life. Nihilism is advocated in some Mahayana sutras, but others set
forth idealism or realism.
[FN#6] (1) The Ten Dai Sect, including three sub-sects; (2) The Shin
Gon Sect, including eleven sub-sects; (3) The Ritsu Sect; (4) The Rin
Zai Sect, including fourteen sub-sects; (5) The So To Sect; (6) The O
Baku Sect; (7) The Jo Do Sect, including two sub-sects; (8) The Shin
Sect, including ten sub-sects; (9) The Nichi Ren Sect, including nine
sub-sects; (10) The Yu Zu Nen Butsu Sect; (11) The Hosso Sect; (12)
The Ke Gon Sect; (13) The Ji Sect. Out of these thirteen Buddhist
sects, Rin Zai, So To, and O Baku belong to Zen. For further
information, see 'A Short History of the Twelve Japanese Buddhist
Sects,' by Dr. B. Nanjo.
The object of this little book is to show how the Mahayanistic view
of life and of the world differs markedly from that of Hinayanism,
which is generally taken as Buddhism by occidentals, to explain how
the religion of Buddha has adapted itself to its environment in the
Far East, and also to throw light on the existing state of the
spiritual life of modern Japan.
For this purpose we have singled out of thirteen Japanese sects the
Zen Sect, [FN#7] not only because of the great influence it has
exercised on the nation, but because of the unique position it holds
among the established religious systems of the world. In the first
place, it is as old as Buddhism itself, or even older, for its mode
of practising Meditation has been handed down without much alteration
from pre-Buddhistic recluses of India; and it may, on that account,
provide the student of comparative religion with an interesting
subject for his research.
[FN#7] The word Zen is the Sinico-Japanese abbreviation of the
Sanskrit Dhyana, or Meditation. It implies the whole body of
teachings and discipline peculiar to a Buddhist sect now popularly
known as the Zen Sect.
In the second place, in spite of its historical antiquity, ideas
entertained by its advocates are so new that they are in harmony with
those of the New Buddhists;[FN#8] accordingly the statement of these
ideas may serve as an explanation of the present movement conducted
by young and able reformers of Japanese Buddhism.
[FN#8] There exists a society formed by men who have broken with the
old creeds of Buddhism, and who call themselves the New Buddhists.
It has for its organ 'The New Buddhism,' and is one of the
influential religious societies in Japan. We mean by the New
Buddhists, however, numerous educated young men who still adhere to
Buddhist sects, and are carrying out a reformation.
Thirdly, Buddhist denominations, like non-Buddhist religions, lay
stress on scriptural authority; but Zen denounces it on the ground
that words or characters can never adequately express religious
truth, which can only be realized by mind; consequently it claims
that the religious truth attained by Shakya Muni in his Enlightenment
has been handed down neither by word of mouth nor by the letters of
scriptures, but from teacher's mind to disciple's through the line of
transmission until the present day. It is an isolated instance in
the whole history of the world's religions that holy scriptures are
declared to be 'no more than waste[FN#9] paper by religionists, as
done by Zen masters.
[FN#9] Lin Tsi Luh (Rin-zai-roku).
Fourthly, Buddhist as well as non-Buddhist religions regard, without
exception, their founders as superhuman beings, but the practisers of
Zen hold the Buddha as their predecessor, whose spiritual level they
confidently aim to attain. Furthermore, they liken one who remains
in the exalted position of Buddhaship to a man bound by a gold chain,
and pity his state of bondage. Some of them went even so far as to
declare Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to be their servants and
slaves.[FN#10] Such an attitude of religionists can hardly be found
in any other religion.
[FN#10] "Shakya and Maitreya," says Go So, "are servants to the
other person. Who is that other person?" (Zen-rin-rui-ju, Vol. i.,
p. 28).
Fifthly, although non-Buddhist people are used to call Buddhism
idolatry, yet Zen can never be called so in the accepted sense of the
term, because it, having a grand conception of Deity, is far from
being a form of idol-worship; nay, it sometimes even took an
iconoclastic attitude as is exemplified by Tan Hia, [FN#11] who
warmed himself on a cold morning by making a fire of wooden statues.
Therefore our exposition on this point will show the real state of
existing Buddhism, and serve to remove religious prejudices
entertained against it.
[FN#11] A Chinese Zen teacher, well known for his peculiarities, who
died in A.D. 824. For the details of this anecdote, see
Zen-rin-rui-ju, Vol. i., P. 39.
Sixthly, there is another characteristic of Zen, which cannot be
found in any other religion-that is to say, its peculiar mode of
expressing profound religious insight by such actions as the lifting
up of a hair-brush, or by the tapping of the chair with a staff, or
by a loud outcry, and so forth. This will give the student of
religion a striking illustration of differentiated forms of religion
in its scale of evolution.
Besides these characteristics, Zen is noted for its physical and
mental training. That the daily practice of Zazen[FN#12] and the
breathing exercise remarkably improves one's physical condition is an
established fact. And history proves that most Zen masters enjoyed a
long life in spite of their extremely simple mode of living. Its
mental discipline, however, is by far more fruitful, and keeps one's
mind in equipoise, making one neither passionate nor dispassionate,
neither sentimental nor unintelligent, neither nervous nor senseless.
It is well known as a cure to all sorts of mental disease,
occasioned by nervous disturbance, as a nourishment to the fatigued
brain, and also as a stimulus to torpor and sloth. It is
self-control, as it is the subduing of such pernicious passions as
anger, jealousy, hatred, and the like, and the awakening of noble
emotions such as sympathy, mercy, generosity, and what not. It is a
mode of Enlightenment, as it is the dispelling of illusion and of
doubt, and at the same time it is the overcoming of egoism, the
destroying of mean desires, the uplifting of the moral ideal, and the
disclosing of inborn wisdom.
[FN#12] The sitting-in-meditation, for the full explanation of which
see Chapter VIII.
The historical importance of Zen can hardly be exaggerated. After
its introduction into China in the sixth century, A.D., it grew
ascendant through the Sui (598-617) and the Tang dynasty (618-906),
and enjoyed greater popularity than any other sect of Buddhism during
the whole period of the Sung (976-1126) and the Southern Sung dynasty
(1127-1367). In these times its commanding influence became so
irresistible that Confucianism, assimilating the Buddhist teachings,
especially those of Zen, into itself and changing its entire aspect,
brought forth the so-called Speculative philosophy.[FN#13] And in
the Ming dynasty (1368-1659) the principal doctrines of Zen were
adopted by a celebrated Confucian scholar, Wang Yang Ming,[FN#14] who
thereby founded a school, through which Zen exercised profound
influence on Chinese and Japanese men of letters, statesmen, and
soldiers.
As regards Japan, it was first introduced into the island as the
faith first for the Samurai or the military class, and moulded the
characters of many distinguished soldiers whose lives adorn the pages
of her history. Afterwards it gradually found its way to palaces as
well as to cottages through literature and art, and at last permeated
through every fibre of the national life. It is Zen that modern
Japan, especially after the Russo-Japanese War, has acknowledged as
an ideal doctrine for her rising generation.
[FN#13] See 'A History of Chinese Philosophy,' by Ryukichi Endo, and
A History of Chinese Philosophy,' by Giichi Nakauchi.
[FN#14] For the life of this distinguished scholar and soldier
(1472-1529), see 'A Detailed Life of O Yo Mei' by Takejiro Takase, and
also 'O-yo-mei-shutsu-shin-sei-ran-roku.'
CHAPTER I
HISTORY OF ZEN IN CHINA
1. Origin of Zen in India.
To-day Zen as a living faith can be found in its pure form only among
the Japanese Buddhists. You cannot find it in the so-called Gospel
of Buddha anymore than you can find Unitarianism in the Pentateuch,
nor can you find it in China and India any more than you can find
life in fossils of bygone ages. It is beyond all doubt that it can
be traced back to Shakya Muni himself, nay, even to pre-Buddhistic
times, because Brahmanic teachers practised Dhyana, or
Meditation,[FN#15] from earliest times.
[FN#15] "If a wise man hold his body with its three parts (chest,
neck, and head) erect, and turn his senses with the mind towards the
heart, he will then in the boat of Brahman cross all the torrents
which cause fear.
"Compressing his breathings let him, who has subdued all motions,
breathe forth through the nose with the gentle breath. Let the wise
man without fail restrain his mind, that chariot yoked with vicious
horses.
"Let him perform his exercises in a place level, pure, free from
pebbles, fire, and dust, delightful by its sounds, its water, and
bowers; not painful to the eye, and full of shelters and eaves.
"When Yoga, is being performed, the forms which come first, producing
apparitions in Brahman, are those of misty smoke, sun, fire, wind,
fire-flies, lightnings, and a crystal moon.
"When, as earth, water, light, heat, and ether arises, the fivefold
quality of Yoga takes place, then there is no longer illness, old
age, or pain for him who has obtained a body produced by the fire of
Yoga.
The first results of Yoga they call lightness, healthiness,
steadiness, a good complexion, an easy pronunciation, a sweet odour,
and slight excretions "(Cvet. Upanisad, ii. 8-13).
"When the five instruments of knowledge stand still together with the
mind, and when the intellect does not move, that is called the
highest state.
"This, the firm holding back of the senses, is what is called Yoga.
He must be free from thoughtlessness then, for Yoga comes and goes"
(Katha Upanisad, ii. 10, 11).
"This is the rule for achieving it (viz., concentration of the mind
on the object of meditation): restraint of the breath, restraint of
the senses, meditation, fixed attention, investigation,
absorption-these are called the sixfold Yoga. When beholding by this
Yoga, be beholds the gold-coloured maker, the lord, the person,
Brahman, the cause; then the sage, leaving behind good and evil,
makes everything (breath, organs of sense, body, etc.) to be one in
the Highest Indestructible (in the pratyagatman or Brahman) " (Maitr.
Upanisad, vi. 18).
"And thus it has been elsewhere: There is the superior fixed
attention (dharana) for him-viz., if he presses the tip of the tongue
down the palate, and restrain the voice, mind, and breath, he sees
Brahman by discrimination (taraka). And when, after the cessation of
mind, he sees his own Self, smaller than small, and shining as the
Highest Self, then, having seen his Self as the Self, he becomes
Self-less, and because he is Self-less, he is without limit, without
cause, absorbed in thought. This is the highest mystery--viz., final
liberation " (Maitr. Upanisad, vi. 20).
Amrtab. Upanisad, 18, describes three modes of sitting-namely, the
Lotus-seat (Padmasana), the sitting with legs bent underneath; the
mystic diagram seat (Svastika); and the auspicious-seat
(Bhadrasana);--while Yogacikha directs the choice of the
Lotus-posture, with attention concentrated on the tip of the nose,
hands and feet closely joined.
But Brahmanic Zen was carefully distinguished even by early
Buddhists[FN#16] as the heterodox Zen from that taught by the Buddha.
Our Zen originated in the Enlightenment of Shakya Muni, which took
place in his thirtieth year, when he was sitting absorbed in profound
meditation under the Bodhi Tree.
[FN#16] The anonymous author of Lankavatara-sutra distinguishes the
heterodox Zen from the Hinayana Zen, the Hinayana Zen from the
Mahayana Zen, and calls the last by the name of the Buddha's Holy
Zen. The sutra is believed by many Buddhists, not without reason, to
be the exposition of that Mahayana doctrine which Acvaghosa restated
in his Craddhotpada-castra. The sutra was translated, first, into
Chinese by Gunabbadra, in A.D. 443; secondly, by Bodhiruci in A.D.
513; and, thirdly, by Ciksanada in A.D. 700-704. The book is famous
for its prophecy about Nagdrajuna, which (according to Dr. Nanjo's
translation) is as follows:
"After the Nirvana of the Tathagata,
There will be a man in the future,
Listen to me carefully, O Mahatma,
A man who will hold my law.
In the great country of South,
There will be a venerable Bhiksu
The Bodhisattva Nagarjuna by name,
Who will destroy the views of Astikas and Nastikas,
Who will preach unto men my Yana,
The highest Law of the Mahayana,
And will attain to the Pramudita-bhumi."
It is said that then he awoke to the perfect truth and declared: "All
animated and inanimate beings are Enlightened at the same time."
According to the tradition[FN#17] of this sect Shakya Muni
transmitted his mysterious doctrine from mind to mind to his oldest
disciple Mahakacyapa at the assembly hold on the Mount of Holy
Vulture, and the latter was acknowledged as the first patriarch, who,
in turn, transmitted the doctrine to Ananda, the second patriarch,
and so till Bodhidharma, the twenty-eighth[FN#18] patriarch. We have
little to say about the historical value of this tradition, but it is
worth while to note that the list of the names of these twenty-eight
patriarchs contains many eminent scholars of Mahayanism, or the later
developed school of Buddhism, such as Acvaghosa,[FN#19]
Nagarjuna,[FN#20] Kanadeva,[FN#21] and Vasubhandhu.[FN#22]
[FN#17] The incident is related as follows: When the Buddha was at
the assembly on the Mount of Holy Vulture, there came a Brahmaraja
who offered the Teacher a golden flower, and asked him to preach the
Dharma. The Buddha took the flower and held it aloft in his hand,
gazing at it in perfect silence. None in the assembly could
understand what he meant, except the venerable Mahakacyapa, who
smiled at the Teacher. Then the Buddha said: "I have the Eye and
Treasury of Good Dharma, Nirvana, the Wonderful Spirit, which I now
hand over to Mahakacyapa." The book in which this incident is
described is entitled 'Sutra on the Great Brahman King's Questioning
Buddha to Dispel a Doubt,' but there exists no original text nor any
Chinese translation in the Tripitaka. It is highly probable that
some early Chinese Zen scholar of the Sung dynasty (A.D. 960-1126)
fabricated the tradition, because Wang Ngan Shih (O-an-seki), a
powerful Minister under the Emperor Shan Tsung (Shin-so, A.D.
1068-1085), is said to have seen the book in the Imperial Library.
There is, however, no evidence, as far as we know, pointing to the
existence of the Sutra in China. In Japan there exists, in a form of
manuscript, two different translations of that book, kept in secret
veneration by some Zen masters, which have been proved to be
fictitious by the present writer after his close examination of the
contents. See the Appendix to his Zen-gaku-hi-han-ron.
[FN#18] The following is the list of the names of the twenty-eight
patriarchs:
1. Mahakacyapa.
2. Ananda.
3. Canavasu.
4. Upagupta.
5. Dhrtaka.
6. Micchaka.
7. Vasumitra.
8. Buddhanandi.
9. Buddhamitra.
10. Parcva.
11. Punyayacas.
12. Acvaghosa.
13. Kapimala.
14. Nagarjuna.
15. Kanadeva.
16. Rahulata.
17. Samghanandi.
18. Samghayacas.
19. Kumarata.
20. Jayata.
21. Vasubandhu.
22. Manura.
23. Haklanayacas.
24. Simha.
25. Vacasuta.
26. Punyamitra.
27. Prajnyatara.
28. Bodhidharma.
The first twenty-three patriarchs are exactly the same as those given
in 'The Sutra on the Nidana of transmitting Dharmapitaka,' translated
in A.D. 472. King Teh Chwen Tang Iuh (Kei-toku-den-to-roku), a
famous Zen history of China, gives two elaborate narratives about the
transmission of Right Dharma from teacher to disciple through these
twenty-eight patriarchs, to be trusted without hesitation. It would
not be difficult for any scholar of sense to find these statements
were made from the same motive as that of the anonymous author who
gives a short life, in Dirghagama-sutra, of each of the six Buddhas,
the predecessors of Shakya Muni, if he carefully compare the list
given above with the lists of the patriarchs of the Sarvastivada
school given by San Yin (So-yu died A.D. 518) in his Chuh San Tsung
Ki (Shutsu-san zo-ki).
[FN#19] One of the founders of Mahayana Buddhism, who flourished in
the first century A.D. There exists a life of his translated into
Chinese by Kumarajiva in A.D. 401-409. The most important of his
works are: Mahayanacraddhotpada-castra, Mahalankara-sutra-castra,
Buddha-caritakavya.
[FN#20] The founder of the Madhyamika school of Mahayana Buddhism,
who lived in the second century A.D. A life of his was translated
into Chinese by Kumarajiva in A.D. 401-409. Twenty-four books are
ascribed to him, of which Mahaprajñaparamita-castra, Madhyamika-castra,
Prajnyadipa-castra, Dvadacanikaya-castra, Astadacakaca-castra, are
well known.
[FN#21] Sometimes called Aryadeva, a successor of Nagarjuna. A life
of his was translated into Chinese by Kumarajiva in A.D. 401-409.
The following are his important works: Cata-castra, 'Castra by the
Bodhisattva Deva on the refutation of four heretical Hinayana schools
mentioned in the Lankatvatara-sutra'; 'Castra by the Bodhisattva Deva
on the explanation of the Nirvana by twenty Hinayana teachers
mentioned in the Lankavatara-sutra.'
[FN#22] A younger brother of Asamga, a famous Mahayanist of the
fifth century A.D. There are thirty-six works ascribed to
Vasubandhu, of which Dacabhumika-castra, Aparimitayus-sutra-castra,
Mahapari-nirvana-sutra-castra, Mahayana-catadharmavidyadvara-castra,
Vidya-matrasiddhi-tridaca-castra, Bodhicittopadana-castra,
Buddha-gotra-castra, Vidyamatrasiddhivincatigatha-castra,
Madhyantavibhaga-castra, Abhidharma-koca-castra, Tarka-castra, etc.,
are well known.
2. Introduction of Zen into China by Bodhidharma.
An epoch-making event took place in the Buddhist history of China by
Bodhidharma's coming over from Southern India to that country in
about A.D. 520.[FN#23] It was the introduction, not of the dead
scriptures, as was repeatedly done before him, but of a living faith,
not of any theoretical doctrine, but of practical Enlightenment, not
of the relies of Buddha, but of the Spirit of Shakya Muni; so that
Bodhidharma's position as a representative of Zen was unique. He
was, however, not a missionary to be favourably received by the
public. He seems to have behaved in a way quite opposite to that in
which a modern pastor treats his flock. We imagine him to have been
a religious teacher entirely different in every point from a popular
Christian missionary of our age. The latter would smile or try to
smile at every face he happens to see and would talk sociably; while
the former would not smile at any face, but would stare at it with
the large glaring eyes that penetrated to the innermost soul. The
latter would keep himself scrupulously clean, shaving, combing,
brushing, polishing, oiling, perfuming, while the former would be
entirely indifferent to his apparel, being always clad in a faded
yellow robe. The latter would compose his sermon with a great care,
making use of rhetorical art, and speak with force and elegance;
while the former would sit as absolutely silent as the bear, and kick
one off, if one should approach him with idle questions.
[FN#23] Buddhist historians differ in opinion respecting the date of
Bodhidharma's appearance in China. Compare Chwen Fah Chan Tsung Lun
(Den bo sho ju ron) and Hwui Yuen (E-gen).
3. Bodhidharma and the Emperor Wu.
No sooner had Bodhidharma landed at Kwang Cheu in Southern China than
he was invited by the Emperor[FN#24] Wu, who was an enthusiastic
Buddhist and good scholar, to proceed to his capital of Chin Liang.
When he was received in audience, His Majesty asked him: "We have
built temples, copied holy scriptures, ordered monks and nuns to be
converted. Is there any merit, Reverend Sir, in our conduct?" The
royal host, in all probability, expected a smooth, flattering answer
from the lips of his new guest, extolling his virtues, and promising
him heavenly rewards, but the Blue-eyed Brahmin bluntly answered: "No
merit at all."
This unexpected reply must have put the Emperor to shame and doubt in
no small degree, who was informed simply of the doctrines of the
orthodox Buddhist sects. 'Why not,' he might have thought within
himself, 'why all this is futile? By what authority does he declare
all this meritless? What holy text can be quoted to justify his
assertion? What is his view in reference to the different doctrines
taught by Shakya Muni? What does he hold as the first principle of
Buddhism?' Thus thinking, he inquired: "What is the holy truth, or
the first principle?" The answer was no less astonishing: "That
principle transcends all. There is nothing holy."
[FN#24] The Emperor Wu (Bu-Tei) of the Liang dynasty, whose reign
was A.D. 502-549.]
The crowned creature was completely at a loss to see what the teacher
meant. Perhaps he might have thought: 'Why is nothing holy? Are
there not holy men, Holy Truths, Holy Paths stated in the scriptures?
Is he himself not one of the holy men?' "Then who is that confronts
us?" asked the monarch again. "I know not, your majesty," was the
laconic reply of Bodhidharma, who now saw that his new faith was
beyond the understanding of the Emperor.
The elephant can hardly keep company with rabbits. The petty
orthodoxy can by no means keep pace with the elephantine stride of
Zen. No wonder that Bodhidharma left not only the palace of the
Emperor Wu, but also the State of Liang, and went to the State of
Northern Wei.[FN#25] There he spent nine years in the Shao
Lin[FN#26] Monastery, mostly sitting silent in meditation with his
face to the wall, and earned for himself the appellation of 'the
wall-gazing Brahmin.' This name itself suggests that the
significance of his mission was not appreciated by his
contemporaries. But neither he was nor they were to blame, because
the lion's importance is appreciated only by the lion. A great
personage is no less great because of his unpopularity among his
fellow men, just as the great Pang[FN#27] is no less great because of
his unpopularity among the winged creatures. Bodhidharma was not
popular to the degree that he was envied by his contemporary
Buddhists, who, as we are told by his biographers, attempted to
poison him three times,[FN#28] but without success.
[FN#25] Northern Gi dynasty (A.D. 386-534).
[FN#26] Sho-rin-ji, erected by the Emperor Hiao Ming of Northern Wei
A.D. 497.
[FN#27] Chwang-tsz in his famous parable compares a great sage with
the Pang, an imaginary bird of enormous size, with its wings of
ninety thousand miles. The bird is laughed at by wrens and sparrows
because of its excessive size.
[FN#28] This reminds us of Nan Yoh Hwui Sz (Nan-gaku-e-shi, died
A.D. 577), who is said to have learned Zen under Bodhidharma. He says
in his statement of a vow that he was poisoned three times by those
who envied him.
4. Bodhidharma and his Successor the Second Patriarch.
China was not, however, an uncultivated[FN#29] land for the seed of
Zen--nay, there had been many practisers of Zen before Bodhidharma.
[FN#29] The translation of Hinayana Zen sutras first paved the way
for our faith. Fourteen Zen sutras, including such important books
as Mahanapanadhyana-sutra, Dhyanacarya-dharmasanyjnya-sutra,
Dhyanacarya-saptatrimcadvarga-sutra, were translated by Ngan Shi Kao
(An-sei-ko) as early as A.D. 148-170. Cullamargabhumi-sutra was
translated by K' Yao (Shi-yo) in A.D. 185; Dharmatara-dhyana-sutra by
Buddhabhadra in A.D. 398-421;
Dhyananisthitasamadhi-dharma-parygya-sutra by Kumarajiva in A.D. 402;
'An Abridged Law on the Importance of Meditation' by Kumarajiva in
A.D. 405; Pancadvara-dhyanasutra-maharthadharma by Dharmamitra in
A.D. 424-441. Furthermore, Mahayana books closely related to the
doctrine of Zen were not unknown to China before Bodhidharma.
Pratyutpanna-buddhasammukhavasthita-samadhi was translated by K' Leu
Cia Chan (Shi-ru-ga-sen) in A.D. 164-186; Vimalakirttinirdeca-sutra,
which is much used in Zen, by Kumarajiva in A.D. 384-412;
Lankavatara-sutra, which is said to have been pointed out by
Bodhidharma as the best explanation of Zen, by Gunabhadra in A.D.
433; Saddharma-pundarika-sutra, in its complete form, by Kumarajiva
in A.D. 406; Avatamsaka-sutra by Buddhabhadra in A.D. 418;
Mahaparinirvana-sutra by Dharmaraksa in A.D. 423.
If we are not mistaken, Kumarajiva, who came to China A.D. 384, made
a valuable contribution towards the foundation of Zen in that
country, not merely through his translation of Zen sutras above
mentioned, but by the education of his disciples, such as Sang Chao
(So-jo, died A.D. 414), Sang Shang (So-sho, whose writings
undoubtedly influenced later Zen teachers. A more important
personage in the history of Zen previous to the Blue-eyed Brahmin is
Buddhabhadra, a well-known Zen master, who came over to China A.D.
406. His translation of Dharmatara-dhyana-sutra (which is said to
have been preached by Bodhidharma himself when he was in India) and
that of Avatamsaka-sutra may be said without exaggeration to have
laid the corner-stone for Zen. He gave a course of lectures on the
Zen sutra for the first time in China in A.D. 413, and it was through
his instruction that many native practisers of Zen were produced, of
whom Chi Yen (Chi-gon) and Huen Kao (Gen-ko) are well known. In
these days Zen should have been in the ascendant in India, because
almost all Indian scholars-at least those known to us-were called Zen
teachers-for instance, Buddhabhadra, Buddhasena, Dharmadhi, and some
others were all Zen scholars.
Chinese Buddhist scholars did no less than Indian teachers toward the
uprising of Zen. The foremost among them is Hwui Yuen (E-on, died
A.D. 414), who practised Zen by the instruction of Buddhabhadra. He
founded the Society of the White Lotus, which comprised eighteen
eminent scholars of the age among its members, for the purpose of
practising Meditation and of adoring Buddha Amitabha. We must not
forget that during the Western and the Eastern Tsin (Shin) dynasties
(A.D. 265-420) both Taoism and Buddhism grew prosperous to no small
extent. And China produced, on the one hand, Taoists of an eccentric
type, such as the Seven Wise Men of the Bamboo Forest, while she gave
birth to many recluse-like men of letters, such as Tao Yuen Ming
(To-yen-mei, died A.D. 427) and some others on the other. Besides
there were some scholars who studied Buddhism in connection with
Taoism and Confucianism, and led a secluded life. To the last class
of scholars belonged Chwen Hih (Hu dai shi), known as Chwen the
Great. He is said to have been accustomed to wear a Confucianist
hat, a Buddhist robe, and Taoist shoes. It was in A.D. 534 that he
presented a memorial to the Emperor Wu, in which he explained the
three grades of good. "The Highest Good consists," says he, "in the
emptiness of mind and non-attachment. Transcendence is its cause,
and Nirvana is its result. The Middle Good consists in morality and
good administration. It results in a peaceful and happy life in
Heaven and in Earth. The Lowest Good consists in love and protection
of sentient beings." Thus his idea of good, as the reader will see
without difficulty, is the result of a compromise of Taoism and
Buddhism. Sin Wang Ming (Sin-o-mei, On the Mind-King), one of his
masterpieces, together with other minor poems, are still used as a
textbook of Zen. This fact unmistakably proves that Taoist element
found its way into the constituents of Zen from its very outset in
China.
All that he had to do was to wait for an earnest seeker after the
spirit of Shakya Muni. Therefore he waited, and waited not in vain,
for at last there came a learned Confucianist, Shang Kwang (Shin-ko)
by name, for the purpose of finding the final solution of a problem
which troubled him so much that he had become dissatisfied with
Confucianism, as it had no proper diet for his now spiritual hunger.
Thus Shang Kwang was far from being one of those half-hearted
visitors who knocked the door of Bodhidharma only for the sake of
curiosity. But the silent master was cautious enough to try the
sincerity of a new visitor before admitting him to the Meditation
Hall. According to a biography[FN#30] of his, Shang Kwang was not
allowed to enter the temple, and had to stand in the courtyard
covered deep with snow. His firm resolution and earnest desire,
however, kept him standing continually on one spot for seven days and
nights with beads of the frozen drops of tears on his breast. At
last he cut off his left arm with a sharp knife, and presented it
before the inflexible teacher to show his resolution to follow the
master even at the risk of his life. Thereupon Bodhidharma admitted
him into the order as a disciple fully qualified to be instructed in
the highest doctrine of Mahayanism.
[FN#30] King Teh Chwen Tang Luh (Kei-toku-den-to-roku), published by
Tao Yuen (Do-gen) A.D. 1004, gives a detailed narrative concerning
this incident as stated here, but earlier historians tell us a
different story about the mutilation of Shang Kwang's arm. Compare
Suh Kas San Chwen (Zoku-ko-so-den) and Hwui Yuen (E-gen).
Our master's method of instruction was entirely different from that
of ordinary instructors of learning. He would not explain any
problem to the learner, but simply help him to get enlightened by
putting him an abrupt but telling question. Shang Kwang, for
instance, said to Bodhidharma, perhaps with a sigh: "I have no peace
of mind. Might I ask you, sir, to pacify my mind?" "Bring out your
mind (that troubles you so much)," replied the master, "here before
me! I shall pacify it." "It is impossible for me," said the
disciple, after a little consideration, "to seek out my mind (that
troubles me so much)." "Then," exclaimed Bodhidharma, "I have
pacified your mind." Hereon Shang Kwang was instantly Enlightened.
This event is worthy of our notice, because such a mode of
instruction was adopted by all Zen teachers after the first
patriarch, and it became one of the characteristics of Zen.
5. Bodhidharma's Disciples and the Transmission of the Law.[FN#31]
[FN#31] For details, see Chwen Tang Luh and Den Ka Roku, by Kei Zan.
As for the life of Bodhidharma, Dr. B. Matsumoto's 'A Life of
Bodhidharma' may well be recommended to the reader.
Bodhidharma's labour of nine years in China resulted in the
initiation of a number of disciples, whom some time before his death
he addressed as follows: "Now the time (of my departure from this
world) is at hand. Say, one and all, how do you understand the Law?"
Tao Fu (Do-fuku) said in response to this: "The Law does not lie in
the letters (of the Scriptures), according to my view, nor is it
separated from them, but it works." The Master said: "Then you have
obtained my skin." Next Tsung Chi (So-ji), a nun, replied: "As
Ananda[FN#32] saw the kingdom of Aksobhya[FN#33] only once but not
twice, so I understand the Law". The master said: "Then you have
attained to my flesh." Then Tao Yuh (Do-iku) replied: "The four
elements[FN#34] are unreal from the first, nor are the five
aggregates[FN#35] really existent. All is emptiness according to my
view." The master said: "Then you have acquired my bone." Lastly,
Hwui Ko (E-ka), which was the Buddhist name given by Bodhidharma, to
Shang Kwang, made a polite bow to the teacher and stood in his place
without a word. "You have attained to my marrow." So saying,
Bodhidharma handed over the sacred Kachaya, [FN#36] which he had
brought from India to Hwui Ko, as a symbol of the transmission of the
Law, and created him the Second Patriarch.
[FN#32] A favourite disciple of Shakya Muni, and the Third Patriarch
of Zen.
[FN#33] The: name means I Immovable,' and represents the firmness of
thought.
[FN#34] Earth, water, fire, and air.
[FN#35] (1) Rupa, or form; (2) Vedana, or perception; (3) Samjnya,
or consciousness; (4) Karman (or Samskara), or action; (5) Vijnyana,
or knowledge.
[FN#36] The clerical cloak, which is said to have been dark green.
It became an object of great veneration after the Sixth Patriarch,
who abolished the patriarchal system and did not hand the symbol over
to successors.
6. The Second and the Third Patriarchs.
After the death of the First Patriarch, in A.D. 528, Hwui Ko did his
best to propagate the new faith over sixty years. On one occasion a
man suffering from some chronic disease called on him, and requested
him in earnest: "Pray, Reverend Sir, be my confessor and grant me
absolution, for I suffer long from an incurable disease." "Bring out
your sin (if there be such a thing as sin)," replied the Second
Patriarch, "here before me. I shall grant you absolution." "It is
impossible," said the man after a short consideration, "to seek out
my sin." "Then," exclaimed the master, "I have absolved you.
Henceforth live up to Buddha, Dharma, and Samgha."[FN#37] "I know,
your reverence," said the man, "that you belong to Samgha; but what
are Buddha and Dharma?" "Buddha is Mind itself. Mind itself is
Dharma. Buddha is identical with Dharma. So is Samgha." "Then I
understand," replied the man, "there is no such thing as sin within
my body nor without it, nor anywhere else. Mind is beyond and above
sin. It is no other than Buddha and Dharma." Thereupon the Second
Patriarch saw the man was well qualified to be taught in the new
faith, and converted him, giving him the name of Sang Tsung (So-san).
After two years' instruction and discipline, he[FN#38] bestowed on
Sang Tsung the Kachaya handed down from Bodhidharma, and authorized
him as the Third Patriarch. It is by Sang Tsung that the doctrine of
Zen was first reduced to writing by his composition of Sin Sin[FN#39]
Ming (Sin zin-mei, On Faith and Mind), a metrical exposition of the
faith.
[FN#37] The so-called Three Treasures of the Buddha, the Law, and
the Order.
[FN#38] The Second Patriarch died in A.D. 593--that is, sixty-five
years after the departure of the First Patriarch.
[FN#39] A good many commentaries were written on the book, and it is
considered as one of the best books on Zen.
7. The Fourth Patriarch and the Emperor Tai Tsung (Tai-so).
The Third[FN#40] Patriarch was succeeded by Tao Sin (Do-shin), who
being initiated at the age of fourteen, was created the Fourth
Patriarch after nine years' study and discipline. Tao Sin is said
never to have gone to bed for more than forty years of his
patriarchal career.[FN#41] In A.D. 643 the Emperor Tai Tsung
(627-649), knowing of his virtues, sent him a special messenger,
requesting him to call on His Majesty at the palace. But he declined
the invitation by a memorial, saying that be was too aged and infirm
to visit the august personage. The Emperor, desirous of seeing the
reputed patriarch, sent for him thrice, but in vain. Then the
enraged monarch ordered the messenger to behead the inflexible monk,
and bring the head before the throne, in case he should disobey the
order for the fourth time. As Tao Sin was told of the order of the
Emperor, he stretched out his neck ready to be decapitated. The
Emperor, learning from the messenger what had happened, admired all
the more the imperturbable patriarch, and bestowed rich gifts upon
him. This example of his was followed by later Zen masters, who
would not condescend to bend their knees before temporal power, and
it became one of the characteristics of Zen monks that they would
never approach rulers and statesmen for the sake of worldly fame and
profit, which they set at naught.
[FN#40] He died in A.D. 606, after his labour of thirteen years as
the teacher.
[FN#41] He died in A.D. 651-that is, forty-five years after the
death of the Third Patriarch.
8. The Fifth and the Sixth Patriarchs.
Tao Sin transmitted the Law to Hung Jan (Ko-nin), who being educated
from infancy, distinguished himself as the Abbot of the Hwang Mei
Monastery at Ki Cheu. The Fifth Patriarch, according to his
biographer, gathered about him seven hundred pupils, who came from
all quarters. Of these seven hundred pupils the venerable Shang Sin
(Jin-shu) was most noted for his learning and virtues, and he might
have become the legitimate successor of Hung Jan, had not the Kachaya
of Bodhidharma been carried away by a poor farmer's son of Sin Cheu.
Hwui Nang, the Sixth Patriarch, seems to have been born a Zen
teacher. The spiritual light of Buddha first flashed in his mind
when he happened to hear a monk reciting a sutra. On questioning the
monk, be learned that the book was
Vajracchedika-prajnya-paramita-sutra,[FN#42] and that Hung Jan, the
Abbot of the Hwang Mei Monastery, was used to make his disciples
recite the book that it might help them in their spiritual
discipline. Hereupon he made up his mind to practise Zen, and called
on Hung Jan at the Monastery. "Who are you," demanded the Fifth
Patriarch, "and whence have you come?" "I am a son of the farmer,"
replied the man, "of Sin Cheu in the South of Ta Yu Ling." "What has
brought you here?" asked the master again. "I have no other purpose
than to attain to Buddhahood," answered the man. "O, you, people of
the South," exclaimed the patriarch, "you are not endowed with the
nature of Buddha." "There may be some difference between the
Southern and the Northern people," objected the man, "but how could
you distinguish one from the other as to the nature of Buddha?" The
teacher recognized a genius in the man, but he did not admit the
promising newcomer into the order, so Hwui Nang had to stay in the
Monastery for eight months as a pounder of rice in order to qualify
himself to be a Zen teacher.
[FN#42] The book was translated into Chinese by Kumarajiva in A.D.
384. 417; also by Bodhiruci in A.D. 509, and by Paramartha in A.D.
592; then by Hiuen Tsang in A.D. 648. Many commentaries have been
written on it by the prominent Buddhist authors of China and Japan.
9. The Spiritual Attainment of the Sixth Patriarch.
Some time before his death (in 675 A.D.) the Fifth Patriarch
announced to all disciples that the Spirit of Shakya Muni is hard to
realize, that they should express their own views on it, on condition
that anyone who could prove his right realization should be given
with the Kachaya and created the Sixth Patriarch. Then the venerable
Sung Siu, the head of the seven hundred disciples, who was considered
by his brothers to be the man entitled to the honour, composed the
following verses:
"The body is the Bodhi-tree.[FN#43]
The mind is like a mirror bright on its stand.
Dust it and wipe it from time to time,
Lest it be dimmed by dust and dirt."
[FN#43] The idea expressed by these lines is clear enough. Body is
likened to the Bodhi-tree, under which Shakya Muni attained to his
supreme enlightenment; for it is not in another body in the future
existence, but in this very body that one had to get enlightened.
And mind is pure and bright in its nature like a mirror, but the dirt
and dust of passions and of low desires often pollute and dim it.
Therefore one should dust and wipe it from time to time in order to
keep it bright.
All who read these lines thought that the writer was worthy of the
expected reward, and the Fifth Patriarch also, appreciating the
significance of the verses, said: "If men in the future would
practise Zen according to this view, they would acquire an excellent
result." Hwui Nang, the rice-pounder, hearing of them, however,
secretly remarked that they are beautiful, but hardly expressive of
the Spirit of Shakya Muni, and wrote his own verses, which ran as
follows:
"There is no Bodhi-tree,[FN#44]
Nor is there a mirror stand.
Nothing exists from the first
What can be dimmed by dust and dirt?"
[FN#44] These verses have often been misunderstood as expressive of
a nihilistic view, but the real meaning is anything but nihilistic.
Mind is pure and bright in its essence. It is always free from
passions and mean desires, just as the sun is always bright, despite
of cloud and mist that cover its face. Therefore one must get an
insight into this essential nature of Mind, and realize that one has
no mean desires and passions from the first, and also that there is
no tree of Bodhi nor the mirror of Enlightenment without him, but
they are within him.
Perhaps nobody ever dreamed such an insignificant fellow as the
rice-pounder could surpass the venerable scholar in a religious
insight, but the Fifth Patriarch saw at once an Enlightened Soul
expressed in those lines; therefore he made up his mind to give the
Kachaya to the writer, in whom he found a great spiritual leader of
future generations. But he did it secretly at midnight, lest some of
the disciples from envy do violence to Hwui Nang. He was, moreover,
cautious enough to advise his successor to leave the Monastery at
once, and go back to the South, that the latter might conceal his
Enlightenment until a time would come for his missionary activities.
10. Flight of the Sixth Patriarch.
On the following morning the news of what had happened during the
night flew from mouth to mouth, and some of the enraged brothers
attempted to pursue the worthy fugitive. The foremost among them,
Hwui Ming (E-myo), overtook the Sixth Patriarch at a mountain pass
not very far from the Monastery. Then Hwui Nang, laying down the
Kachaya on a rock by the road, addressed the pursuer: "This is a mere
symbol of the patriarchal authority, and it is not a thing to be
obtained by force. Take it along with you, if you long for it."
Upon this Hwui Ming, who began to be ashamed of his base act, tried
to lift the Kachaya, but in vain, for it was, as he felt, as heavy as
the rock itself. At last he said to the Sixth Patriarch: "I have
come here, my brother, not for the sake of this robe, but for the
sake of the Law. Grant my hearty desire of getting Enlightened."
"If you have come for the Law," replied Hwui Nang, "you must put an
end to all your struggles and longings. Think neither of good nor of
evil (make your mind pure from all idle thoughts), then see how is,
Hwui Ming, your original (mental) physiognomy!" Being thus
questioned, Ming found in an instant the Divine Light of Buddha
within himself, and became a disciple of the Sixth Patriarch.
11. The Development of the Southern and of the Northern School of Zen.
After the death of the Fifth Patriarch the venerable Shang Siu,
though not the legitimate successor of his master, was not inactive
in the propagation of the faith, and gathered about him a number of
enthusiastic admirers. This led to the foundation of the Northern
school of Zen in opposition to the Southern school led by the Sixth
Patriarch. The Empress Tseh Tien Wa Heu,[FN#45] the real ruler of
China at that time, was an admirer of Shang Siu, and patronized his
school, which nevertheless made no further development.
[FN#45] The Emperor Chung Tsung (Chu-so, A.D. 684-704) was a nominal
sovereign, and the Empress was the real ruler from A.D. 684 to 705.
In the meanwhile the Sixth Patriarch, who had gone to the South,
arrived at the Fah Sing Monastery in Kwang Cheu, where Yin Tsung
(In-shu), the abbot, was giving lectures on the Mahayana sutras to a
number of student monks. It was towards evening that he happened to
overhear two monks of the Monastery discussing about the flag
floating in air. One of them said: "It is the wind that moves in
reality, but not the flag." "No," objected the other, "it is the
flag that moves in reality, but not the wind." Thus each of them
insisted on his own one-sided view, and came to no proper conclusion.
Then the Sixth Patriarch introduced himself and said to them: "It is
neither the wind nor the flag, but your mind that moves in reality."
Yin Tsung, having heard these words of the stranger, was greatly
astonished, and thought the latter should have been an extraordinary
personage. And when he found the man to be the Sixth Patriarch of
Zen, he and all his disciples decided to follow Zen under the master.
Consequently Hwui Nang, still clad like a layman, changed his
clothes, and began his patriarchal career at that Monastery. This is
the starting-point of the great development of Zen in China.
12. Missionary Activity of the Sixth Patriarch.
As we have seen above, the Sixth Patriarch was a great genius, and
may be justly called a born Zen teacher. He was a man of no
erudition, being a poor farmer, who had served under the Fifth
Patriarch as a rice-pounder only for eight months, but he could find
a new meaning in Buddhist terms, and show how to apply it to
practical life. On one occasion, for instance, Fah Tah (Ho-tatsu), a
monk who had read over the Saddharma-pundarika-sutra[FN#46] three
thousand times, visited him to be instructed in Zen. "Even if you
read the sutra ten thousand times," said the Sixth Patriarch, who
could never read the text, "it will do you no good, if you cannot
grasp the spirit of the sutra." "I have simply recited the book,"
confessed the monk, "as it is written in characters. How could such
a dull fellow as I grasp its spirit?" "Then recite it once,"
responded the master; "I shall explain its spirit." Hereupon Fah Tah
began to recite the sutra, and when he read it until the end of the
second chapter the teacher stopped him, saying: "You may stop there.
Now I know that this sutra was preached to show the so-called
greatest object of Shakya Muni's appearing on earth. That greatest
object was to have all sentient beings Enlightened just as He
Himself." In this way the Sixth Patriarch grasped the essentials of
the Mahayana sutras, and freely made use of them as the explanation
of the practical questions about Zen.
[FN#46] One of the most noted Mahayana sutras, translated by
Dharmaraksa (A.D. 286) and by Kumarajiva (A.D. 406). The reader has
to note that the author states the essential doctrine in the second
chapter. See " Sacred Books of the East," vol. xxi., pp. 30-59.
13. The Disciples under the Sixth Patriarch.
Some time after this the Sixth Patriarch settled himself down at the
Pao Lin Monastery, better known as Tsao Ki Shan (So-kei-zan), in Shao
Cheu, and it grow into a great centre of Zen in the Southern States.
Under his instruction many eminent Zen masters qualified themselves
as Leaders of the Three Worlds. He did not give the patriarchal
symbol, the Kachaya, to his successors, lest it might cause needless
quarrels among the brethren, as was experienced by himself. He only
gave sanction to his disciples who attained to Enlightenment, and
allowed them to teach Zen in a manner best suited to their own
personalities. For instance, Huen Kioh (Gen-kaku), a scholar of the
Tien Tai doctrine,[FN#47] well known as the Teacher of Yung
Kia[FN#48] (Yo-ka), received a sanction for his spiritual attainment
after exchanging a few words with the master in their first
interview, and was at once acknowledged as a Zen teacher. When he
reached the zenith of his fame, he was presented with a crystal bowl
together with rich gifts by the Empress Tseh Tien; and it was in A.D.
705 that the Emperor Chung Tsung invited him in vain to proceed to
the palace, since the latter followed the example of the Fourth
Patriarch.
[FN#47] The Teacher of Tien Tai (Ten-dai, A.D. 538-597), the founder
of the Buddhist sect of the same name, was a great scholar of
originality. His doctrine and criticism on the Tripitaka greatly
influenced the whole of Buddhism after him. His doctrine is briefly
given in the second chapter.
[FN#48] His Ching Tao Ko (Sho-do-ka), a beautiful metrical
exposition of Zen, is still read by most students of Zen.
After the death[FN#49] of the Sixth Patriarch (A.D. 713), the
Southern Zen was divided into two schools, one being represented by
Tsing Yuen (Sei-gen), the other by Nan Yoh (Nan-gaku.) Out of these
two main schools soon developed the five[FN#50] branches of Zen, and
the faith made a splendid progress. After Tsing Yuen and Nan Yoh,
one of the junior disciples of the Sixth Patriarch, Hwui Chung
(E-chu), held an honourable position for sixteen years as the
spiritual adviser to the Emperor Suh Tsung (A.D. 756762) and to the
Emperor Tai Tsung (A.D. 763-779). These two Emperors were
enthusiastic admirers of Zen, and ordered several times the Kachaya
of Bodhidharma to be brought into the palace from the Pao Lin
Monastery that they might do proper homage to it. Within some one
hundred and thirty years after the Sixth Patriarch, Zen gained so
great influence among higher classes that at the time of the Emperor
Suen Tsung (A.D. 847-859) both the Emperor and his Prime Minister,
Pei Hiu, were noted for the practice of Zen. It may be said that Zen
had its golden age, beginning with the reign of the Emperor Suh
Tsung, of the Tang dynasty, until the reign of the Emperor Hiao Tsung
(1163-1189), who was the greatest patron of Buddhism in the Southern
Sung dynasty. To this age belong almost all the greatest Zen
scholars[FN#51] of China.
[FN#49] There exists Luh Tan Fah Pao Tan King
(Roku-so-ho-bo-dan-kyo), a collection of his sermons. It is full of
bold statements of Zen in its purest form, and is entirely free from
ambiguous and enigmatical words that encumber later Zen books. In
consequence it is widely read by non-Buddhist scholars in China and
Japan. Both Hwui Chung (E-chu), a famous disciple of the Sixth
Patriarch, and Do-gen, the founder of the Soto Sect in Japan, deny
the authority of the book, and declare it to be misleading, because
of errors and prejudices of the compilers. Still, we believe it to
be a collection of genuine sections given by the Sixth Patriarch,
though there are some mistakes in its historical narratives.
[FN#50] (1) The Tsao Tung (So-to) Sect, founded by Tsing Yuen (died
in A.D. 740) and his successors; (2) the Lin Tsi (Rin-Zai) Sect,
founded by Nan Yoh (died in 744) and his successors; (3) the Wei Yan
(Yi-gyo) Sect, founded by Wei Shan (Yi-san, died in 853) and his
disciple Yen Shan (Kyo-zan, died in 890); (4) the Yun Man (Un-mon)
Sect, founded by Yun Man (died in 949); (5) the Pao Yen (Ho-gen)
Sect, founded by Pao Yen (died in 958).
[FN#51] During the Tang dynasty (A.D. 618-906) China produced,
besides the Sixth Patriarch and his prominent disciples, such great
Zen teachers as Ma Tsu (Ba-so, died in 788), who is probably the
originator of the Zen Activity; Shih Teu (Seki-to, died in 790), the
reputed author of Tsan Tung Ki (San-do-kai), a metrical writing on
Zen; Poh Chang (Hyaku-jo, died 814), who first laid down regulations
for the Zen Monastery; Wei Shan (Yi-san), Yang Shan (Kyo-zan), the
founders of the Wei Yang Sect; Hwang Pah (O-baku, died in 850), one
of the founders of the Lin Tsi Sect, and the author of Chwen Sin Pao
Yao, (Den-sin-ho-yo), one of the best works on Zen; Lin Tsi (Rin-zai,
died in 866), the real founder of the Lin Tsi Sect; Tung Shan
(To-zan, died in 869), the real founder of the Tsao Tung Sect; Tsao
Shan (So-zan, died in 901), a famous disciple of Tung Shan; Teh Shan
(Toku-san, died in 865), who was used to strike every questioner with
his staff; Chang Sha (Cho-sha, died in 823); Chao Cheu (Jo-shu, died
in 897); Nan Tsuen (Nan-sen, died in 834); Wu Yeh (Mu-go, died in
823); who is said to have replied, 'Away with your idle thoughts,' to
every questioner; Yun Yen (Un-gan, died in 829); Yoh Shan (Yaku-san,
died in 834); Ta Mei (Tai-bai, died in 839), a noted recluse; Ta Tsz
(Dai-ji, died in 862); Kwei Fung (Kei-ho, died in 841), the author of
'The Origin of Man,' and other numerous works; and Yun Ku (Un-go,
died in 902).
To the period of the Five Dynasties (A.D. 907-959) belong such
teachers as Sueh Fung (Set-po, died in. 908); Huen Sha (Gen-sha, died
in 908); Yun Man (Un-mon, died in 949), the founder of the Yun Man
Sect; Shen Yueh (Zen-getsu, died in 912), a renowned Zen poet; Pu Tai
(Ho-tei, died in 916), well known for his peculiarities; Chang King
(Cho-kei, died in 932); Nan Yuen (Nan-in, died in 952); Pao Yen
(Ho-gen, died in 958), the founder of the Pao Yen Sect. During the
Sung dynasty (A.D. 960-1126) appeared such teachers as Yang Ki
(Yo-gi, died in 1049), the founder of the Yang Ki School of Zen; Sueh
Teu (Set-cho, died in 1052), noted for poetical works; Hwang Lung (O
ryu, died in 1069), the founder of the Hwang Lung School of Zen;
Hwang Lin (Ko-rin, died in 987); Tsz Ming (Ji-myo, died in 1040); Teu
Tsy (To-shi, died in 1083); Fu Yun (Fu-yo, died in 1118); Wu Tsu
(Go-so, died in 1104); Yung Ming (Yo-myo, died in 975), the author of
Tsung King Luh (Shu-kyo-roku); Ki Sung (Kai-su, died in 1071), a
great Zen historian and author. In the Southern Sung dynasty (A.D.
1127-1279) flourished such masters as Yuen Wu (En-go, died in 1135),
the author of Pik Yen Tsih (Heki-gan-shu); Chan Hieh (Shin-ketsu,
flourished in 1151); Hung Chi (Wan-shi, died in 1157), famous for his
poetical works; Ta Hwui (Dai-e, died in 1163), a noted disciple of
Yuen Wu; Wan Sung (Ban-sho), flourished in 1193-1197), the author of
Tsung Yun Luh (Sho-yo-roku); Ju Tsing (Nyo-jo), died in 1228), the
teacher to Do-gen, or the founder of the So-to Sect in Japan.
To this age belong almost all the eminent men of letters,[FN#52]
statesmen, warriors, and artists who were known as the practisers of
Zen. To this age belongs the production of almost all Zen
books,[FN#53] doctrinal and historical.
[FN#52] Among the great names of Zen believers the following are
most important: Pang Yun (Ho-on, flourished in 785-804), whose whole
family was proficient in Zen; Tsui Kiun (Sai-gun, flourished in
806-824); Luh Kang (Rik-ko), a lay disciple to Nan Tsun; Poh Loh Tien
(Haku-raku-ten, died in 847), one of the greatest Chinese literary
men; Pei Hiu (Hai-kyu, flourished 827-856), the Prime Minister under
the Emperor Suen Tsung, a lay disciple to Hwang Pah; Li Ngao (Ri-ko,
lived about 806), an author and scholar who practised Zen under Yoh
Shan; Yu Chuh (U-teki, flourished 785-804), a local governor, a
friend of Pang Yun; Yang Yih (Yo-oku, flourished in 976), one of the
greatest writers of his age; Fan Chung Ngan (Han-chu an, flourished
1008-1052), an able statesman and scholar; Fu Pih (Fu shitsu,
flourished 1041-1083), a minister under the Emperor Jan Tsung; Chang
Shang Ying (Cho-sho-yei, 1086-1122), a Buddhist scholar and a
statesman; Hwang Ting Kien (Ko-tei-ken, 1064-1094), a great poet; Su
Shih (So-shoku, died in 1101), a great man of letters, well known as
So-to-ba; Su Cheh (So-tetsu, died in 1112), a younger brother of
So-to-ba, a scholar and minister under the Emperor Cheh Tsung; Chang
Kiu Ching (Cho-Kyu-sei, flourished about 1131), a scholar and lay
disciple of Ta Hwui; Yang Kieh (Yo-ketsu, flourished 1078-1086), a
scholar and statesman.
[FN#53] Of doctrinal Zen books, besides Sin Sin Ming by the Third
Patriarch, and Fah Pao Tan King by the Sixth Patriarch, the following
are of great importance:
(1) Ching Tao Ko (Sho-do-ka), by Huen Kioh (Gen-kaku).
(2) Tsan Tung Ki (San-do-kai), by Shih Ten (Seki-to).
(3) Pao King San Mei (Ho-kyo-san-mai), by Tung Shan (To-zan).
(4) Chwen Sin Pao Yao (Den-sin-ho-yo), by Hwang Pah (O-baku).
(5) Pih Yen Tsih (Heki-gan-shu), by Yuen Wu (En-go).
(6) Lin Tsi Luh (Rin-zai-roku), by Lin Tsi (Rin-zai).
(7) Tsung Yun Luh (Sho-yo-roku), by Wan Sung (Ban-sho).
Of historical Zen books the following are of importance:
(1) King teh Chwen Tan-Luh (Kei-toku-den-to-roku), published in 1004
by Tao Yuen (Do-gen).
(2) Kwan Tang Luh (Ko-to roku), published in 1036 by Li Tsun Suh
(Ri-jun-kyoku).
(3) Suh Tang Luh (Zoku-O-roku), published in 1101 by Wei Poh (I-haku).
(4) Lien Tang Luh (Ren-O-roku), published in 1183 by Hwui Wang
(Mai-o).
(5) Ching Tsung Ki (Sho-ju-ki), published in 1058 by Ki Sung
(Kwai-su).
(6) Pu Tang Luh (Fu-O-roku), published in 1201 by Ching Sheu (Sho-ju).
(7) Hwui Yuen (E-gen), published in 1252 by Ta Chwen (Dai-sen).
(8) Sin Tang Luh (Sin-W-roku), published in 1280-1294 by Sui (Zui).
(9) Suh Chwen Tang Luh (Zoku-den-to-roku), by Wang Siu (Bun-shu).
(10) Hwui Yuen Suh Lioh (E-gen-zoku-ryaku), by Tsing Chu (Jo-chu).
(11) Ki Tang Luh (Kei-to-roku), by Yung Kioh (Yo-kaku).
14. Three Important Elements of Zen.
To understand how Zen developed during some four hundred years after
the Sixth Patriarch, we should know that there are three important
elements in Zen. The first of these is technically called the Zen
Number--the method of practising Meditation by sitting cross-legged,
of which we shall treat later.[FN#54] This method is fully developed
by Indian teachers before Bodhidharma's introduction of Zen into
China, therefore it underwent little change during this period. The
second is the Zen Doctrine, which mainly consists of Idealistic and
Pantheistic ideas of Mahayana Buddhism, but which undoubtedly
embraces some tenets of Taoism. Therefore, Zen is not a pure Indian
faith, but rather of Chinese origin. The third is the Zen Activity,
or the mode of expression of Zen in action, which is entirely absent
in any other faith.
[FN#54] See Chapter VII.
It was for the sake of this Zen Activity that Hwang Pah gave a slap
three times to the Emperor Suen Tsung; that Lin Tsi so often burst
out into a loud outcry of Hoh (Katsu); that Nan Tsuen killed a cat at
a single stroke of his knife in the presence of his disciples; and
that Teh Shan so frequently struck questioners with his staff.[FN#55]
The Zen Activity was displayed by the Chinese teachers making use of
diverse things such as the staff, the brush[FN#56] of long hair, the
mirror, the rosary, the cup, the pitcher, the flag, the moon, the
sickle, the plough, the bow and arrow, the ball, the bell, the drum,
the cat, the dog, the duck, the earthworm--in short, any and
everything that was fit for the occasion and convenient for the
purpose. Thus Zen Activity was of pure Chinese origin, and it was
developed after the Sixth Patriarch.[FN#57] For this reason the
period previous to the Sixth Patriarch may be called the Age of the
Zen Doctrine, while that posterior to the same master, the Age of the
Zen Activity.
[FN#55] A long official staff (Shu-jo) like the crosier carried by
the abbot of the monastery.
[FN#56] An ornamental brush (Hos-su) often carried by Zen teachers.
[FN#57] The giving of a slap was first tried by the Sixth Patriarch,
who struck one of his disciples, known as Ho Tseh (Ka-taku), and it
was very frequently resorted to by the later masters. The lifting up
of the brush was first tried by Tsing Yuen in an interview with his
eldest disciple, Shih Ten, and it became a fashion among other
teachers. The loud outcry of Hoh was first made use of by Ma Tsu,
the successor of Nan Yoh. In this way the origin of the Zen Activity
can easily be traced to the Sixth Patriarch and his direct disciples.
After the Sung dynasty Chinese Zen masters seem to have given undue
weight to the Activity, and neglected the serious study of the
doctrine. This brought out the degeneration severely reproached by
some of the Japanese Zen teachers.
15. Decline of Zen.
The blooming prosperity of Zen was over towards the end of the
Southern Sung dynasty (1127-1279), when it began to fade, not being
bitten by the frost of oppression from without, but being weakened by
rottenness within. As early as the Sung dynasty (960-1126) the
worship of Buddha Amitabha[FN#58] stealthily found its way among Zen
believers, who could not fully realize the Spirit of Shakya Muni, and
to satisfy these people the amalgamation of the two faiths was
attempted by some Zen masters.[FN#59]
[FN#58] The faith is based on Larger Sukhavati-vyuha, Smaller
Sukhavati-vyuha, and Amitayus-dhyana-sutra. It was taught in India
by Acvaghosa, Nagariuna, and Vasubandhu. In China Hwui Yuen (E-on,
died in A.D. 416), Tan Lwan (Don-ran, died in 542), Tao Choh
(Do-shaku), and Shen Tao (Zen-do) (both of whom lived about 600-650),
chiefly taught the doctrine. It made an extraordinary progress in
Japan, and differentiated itself into several sects, of which Jodo
Shu and Shin Shu are the strongest.
[FN#59] It is beyond all doubt that Poh Loh Tien (Haku-raku-ten)
practised Zen, but at the same time believed in Amitabha; so also Su
Shih (So-shoku), a most noted Zen practiser, worshipped the same
Buddha, Yang Kieh (Yo-keteu), who carried a picture of Amitabha
wherever he went and worshipped it, seems to have thought there is
nothing incompatible between Zen and his faith. The foremost of
those Zen masters of the Sung dynasty that attempted the amalgamation
is Yung Ming (Yo-myo, died in 975), who reconciled Zen with the
worship of Amitabha in his Wan Shen Tung Kwei Tsih
(Man-zen-do-ki-shu) and Si Ngan Yan Shan Fu (Sei-an-yo-sin-fu). He
was followed by Tsing Tsz (Jo-ji) and Chan Hieh (Shin-ketsu, lived
about 1151), the former of whom wrote Kwei Yuen Chih Chi
(Ki-gen-jiki-shi), and the latter Tsing Tu Sin Yao (Jo-do-sin-yo), in
order to further the tendency. In the Yuen dynasty Chung Fung
(Chu-ho, died in 1323) encouraged the adoration of Amitabha, together
with the practice of Zen, in his poetical composition
(Kwan-shu-jo-go). In the Ming dynasty Yun Si (Un-sei, died in 1615),
the author of Shen Kwan Tseh Tsin (Zen-kwan-saku-shin) and other
numerous works, writing a commentary on Sukhavati-vyuha-sutra,
brought the amalgamation to its height. Ku Shan (Ku-zan, died in
1657), a Zen historian and author, and his prominent disciple Wei Lin
(E-rin), axe well known as the amalgamators. Yun Ming declared that
those who practise Zen, but have no faith in Amitabha, go astray in
nine cases out of ten; that those who do not practise Zen, but
believe in Amitabha, are saved, one and all; that those who practise
Zen, and have the faith in Amitabha, are like the tiger provided with
wings; and that for those who have no faith in Amitabha, nor practise
Zen, there exist the iron floor and the copper pillars in Hell. Ku
Shan said that some practise Zen in order to attain Enlightenment,
while others pray Amitabha for salvation; that if they were sincere
and diligent, both will obtain the final beatitude. Wei Lin also
observed: "Theoretically I embrace Zen, and practically I worship
Amitabha." E-chu, the author of Zen-to-nenbutsu ('On Zen and the
Worship of Amitabha'), points out that one of the direct disciples of
the Sixth Patriarch favoured the faith of Amitabha, but there is no
trustworthy evidence, as far as we know, that proves the existence of
the amalgamation in the Tang dynasty.
This tendency steadily increasing with time brought out at length the
period of amalgamation which covered the Yuen (1280-1367) and the
Ming dynasties (1368-1659), when the prayer for Amitabha was in every
mouth of Zen monks sitting in Meditation. The patrons of Zen were
not wanting in the Yuen dynasty, for such a warlike monarch as the
Emperor Shi Tsu (Sei-so), 1280-1294) is known to have practised Zen
under the instruction of Miao Kao, and his successor Ching Tsung
(1295-1307) to have trusted in Yih Shan,[FN#60] a Zen teacher of
reputation at that time. Moreover, Lin Ping Chung (Rin-hei-cha, died
in 1274), a powerful minister under Shi Tsu, who did much toward the
establishment of the administrative system in that dynasty, had been
a Zen monk, and never failed to patronize his faith. And in the Ming
dynasty the first Emperor Tai Tsu (1368-1398), having been a Zen
monk, protected the sect with enthusiasm, and his example was
followed by Tai Tsung (1403-1424), whose spiritual as well as
political adviser was Tao Yen, a Zen monk of distinction. Thus Zen
exercised an influence unparalleled by any other faith throughout
these ages. The life and energy of Zen, however, was gone by the
ignoble amalgamation, and even such great scholars as Chung
Fung,[FN#61] Yung Si,[FN#62] Yung Kioh,[FN#63] were not free from the
overwhelming influence of the age.
[FN#60] The Emperor sent him to Japan in 1299 with some secret
order, but he did nothing political, and stayed as a Zen teacher
until his death.
[FN#61] A most renowned Zen master in the Yuen dynasty, whom the
Emperor Jan Tsung invited to visit the palace, but in vain.
[FN#62] An author noted for his learning and virtues, who was rather
a worshipper of Amitabha than a Zen monk.
[FN#63] An author of voluminous books, of which Tung Shang Ku Cheh
(To-jo-ko-tetsu) is well known.
We are not, however, doing justice to the tendency of amalgamation in
these times simply to blame it for its obnoxious results, because it
is beyond doubt that it brought forth wholesome fruits to the Chinese
literature and philosophy. Who can deny that this tendency brought
the Speculative[FN#64] philosophy of the Sung dynasty to its
consummation by the amalgamation of Confucianism with Buddhism
especially with Zen, to enable it to exercise long-standing influence
on society, and that this tendency also produced Wang Yang
Ming,[FN#65] one of the greatest generals and scholars that the world
has ever seen, whose philosophy of Conscience[FN#66] still holds a
unique position in the history of human thought? Who can deny
furthermore that Wang's philosophy is Zen in the Confucian
terminology?
[FN#64] This well-known philosophy was first taught by Cheu Men Shuh
(Shu-mo-shiku, died in 1073) in its definite form. He is said to
have been enlightened by the instruction of Hwui Tang, a contemporary
Zen master. He was succeeded by Chang Ming Tao (Tei-mei-do, died in
1085) and Chang I Chwen (Tei-i-sen, died in 1107), two brothers, who
developed the philosophy in no small degree. And it was completed by
Chu Tsz (Shu-shi, died in 1200), a celebrated commentator of the
Confucian classics. It is worthy to note that these scholars
practised Meditation just as Zen monks. See 'History of Chinese
Philosophy' (pp. 215-269), by G. Nakauchi, and 'History of
Development of Chinese Thought,' by R. Endo.
[FN#65] He was born in 1472, and died in 1529. His doctrine
exercised a most fruitful influence on many of the great Japanese
minds, and undoubtedly has done much to the progress of New Japan.
[FN#66] See Den-shu-roku and O-ya-mei-zen-sho.