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Hakuin Ekaku

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Hakuin Ekaku

Hakuin Ekaku. (白隱慧鶴) (1685-1768). Japanese ZEN master renowned for revitalizing the RINZAISHu. Hakuin was a native of Hara in Shizuoka Prefecture. In 1699, Hakuin was ordained and received the name Ekaku (Wise Crane) from the monk Tanrei Soden (d. 1701) at the nearby temple of Shoinji. Shortly thereafter, Hakuin was sent by Tanrei to the temple of Daishoji in Numazu to serve the abbot Sokudo Fueki (d. 1712). Hakuin is then said to have lost faith in his Buddhist training and devoted much of his time instead to art. In 1704, Hakuin visited the monk Bao Sochiku (1629-1711) at the temple Zuiunji in Mino province. While studying under Bao, Hakuin is said to have read the CHANGUAN CEJIN by YUNQI ZHUHONG, which inspired him to further meditative training. In 1708, Hakuin is said to have had his first awakening experience upon hearing the ringing of a distant bell. That same year, Hakuin met Doju Sokaku (1679-1730), who urged him to visit the Zen master Dokyo Etan (1642-1721), or Shoju Ronin, at the hermitage of Shojuan in Iiyama. During one of his begging rounds, Hakuin is said to have had another important awakening after an old woman struck him with a broom. Shortly after his departure from Shojuan, Hakuin suffered from an illness, which he cured with the help of a legendary hermit named Hakuyu. Hakuin's famous story of his encounter with Hakuyu was recounted in his YASENKANNA, Orategama, and Itsumadegusa. In 1716, Hakuin returned to Shoinji and devoted much of his time to restoring the monastery, teaching students, and lecturing. Hakuin delivered famous lectures on such texts as the VIMALAKĪRTINIRDEsA, SADDHARMAPUndARĪKASuTRA, VAJRACCHEDIKĀPRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀSuTRA, BIYAN LU, BAOJING SANMEI, DAHUI PUJUE CHANSHI SHU, and YUANREN LUN, and the recorded sayings (YULU) of LINJI YIXUAN, WUZU FAYAN, and XUTANG ZHIYU. He also composed a number of important texts during this period, such as the Kanzan shi sendai kimon, Kaian kokugo, and SOKKoROKU KAIEN FUSETSU. Prior to his death, Hakuin established the monastery of Ryutakuji in Mishima (present-day Shizuoka prefecture). Hakuin was a strong advocate of "questioning meditation" (J. kanna Zen; C. KANHUA CHAN), which focused on the role of doubt in contemplating the koan (GONG'AN). Hakuin proposed that the sense of doubt was the catalyst for an initial SATORI (awakening; C. WU), which had then to be enhanced through further koan study in order to mature the experience. The contemporary Rinzai training system involving systematic study of many different koans is attributed to Hakuin, as is the famous koan, "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" (see SEKISHU KoAN). Hakuin was a prolific writer who left many other works as well, including the Dokugo shingyo, Oniazami, Yabukoji, Hebiichigo, Keiso dokuzui, Yaemugura, and Zazen wasan. Hakuin also produced many prominent disciples, including ToREI ENJI, Suio Genro (1716-1789), and GASAN JITo. The contemporary Japanese Rinzai school of Zen traces its lineage and teachings back to Hakuin and his disciples.


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asceticism. (S. duskaracaryA; P. dukkarakArikA; T. dka' ba spyod pa; C. kuxing; J. kugyo; K. kohaeng 苦行). Derived from the Greek term askesis, "to exercise"; the performance of austerities, both mental and physical, for the purpose of attaining enlightenment (BODHI) and, in certain cases, special powers or knowledges (ABHIJNA). The basic Buddhist attitude toward asceticism, as found in the narrative surrounding the life of the Buddha, has been a negative one, particularly with regard to those practices associated with physical torment, such as fasting. The Buddha himself is said to have once practiced asceticism with five fellow ascetics in the forest of URUVILVA, only to eventually abandon it for the middle way (MADHYAMAPRATIPAD) between sensual indulgence and mortification of the flesh. Ascetic practices nevertheless continued to be important in the various Buddhist traditions, as attested to by the life stories of the teachers MI LA RAS PA (Milarepa), BODHIDHARMA, and HAKUIN EKAKU to name but a few. See also DUsKARACARYA; DHUTAnGA; TAPAS.

Hakuin Ekaku

Hakuin Ekaku. (白隱慧鶴) (1685-1768). Japanese ZEN master renowned for revitalizing the RINZAISHu. Hakuin was a native of Hara in Shizuoka Prefecture. In 1699, Hakuin was ordained and received the name Ekaku (Wise Crane) from the monk Tanrei Soden (d. 1701) at the nearby temple of Shoinji. Shortly thereafter, Hakuin was sent by Tanrei to the temple of Daishoji in Numazu to serve the abbot Sokudo Fueki (d. 1712). Hakuin is then said to have lost faith in his Buddhist training and devoted much of his time instead to art. In 1704, Hakuin visited the monk Bao Sochiku (1629-1711) at the temple Zuiunji in Mino province. While studying under Bao, Hakuin is said to have read the CHANGUAN CEJIN by YUNQI ZHUHONG, which inspired him to further meditative training. In 1708, Hakuin is said to have had his first awakening experience upon hearing the ringing of a distant bell. That same year, Hakuin met Doju Sokaku (1679-1730), who urged him to visit the Zen master Dokyo Etan (1642-1721), or Shoju Ronin, at the hermitage of Shojuan in Iiyama. During one of his begging rounds, Hakuin is said to have had another important awakening after an old woman struck him with a broom. Shortly after his departure from Shojuan, Hakuin suffered from an illness, which he cured with the help of a legendary hermit named Hakuyu. Hakuin's famous story of his encounter with Hakuyu was recounted in his YASENKANNA, Orategama, and Itsumadegusa. In 1716, Hakuin returned to Shoinji and devoted much of his time to restoring the monastery, teaching students, and lecturing. Hakuin delivered famous lectures on such texts as the VIMALAKĪRTINIRDEsA, SADDHARMAPUndARĪKASuTRA, VAJRACCHEDIKĀPRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀSuTRA, BIYAN LU, BAOJING SANMEI, DAHUI PUJUE CHANSHI SHU, and YUANREN LUN, and the recorded sayings (YULU) of LINJI YIXUAN, WUZU FAYAN, and XUTANG ZHIYU. He also composed a number of important texts during this period, such as the Kanzan shi sendai kimon, Kaian kokugo, and SOKKoROKU KAIEN FUSETSU. Prior to his death, Hakuin established the monastery of Ryutakuji in Mishima (present-day Shizuoka prefecture). Hakuin was a strong advocate of "questioning meditation" (J. kanna Zen; C. KANHUA CHAN), which focused on the role of doubt in contemplating the koan (GONG'AN). Hakuin proposed that the sense of doubt was the catalyst for an initial SATORI (awakening; C. WU), which had then to be enhanced through further koan study in order to mature the experience. The contemporary Rinzai training system involving systematic study of many different koans is attributed to Hakuin, as is the famous koan, "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" (see SEKISHU KoAN). Hakuin was a prolific writer who left many other works as well, including the Dokugo shingyo, Oniazami, Yabukoji, Hebiichigo, Keiso dokuzui, Yaemugura, and Zazen wasan. Hakuin also produced many prominent disciples, including ToREI ENJI, Suio Genro (1716-1789), and GASAN JITo. The contemporary Japanese Rinzai school of Zen traces its lineage and teachings back to Hakuin and his disciples.

Ekaku. (J) (慧鶴). See HAKUIN EKAKU.

fusho Zen. (不生禪). In Japanese, "unborn Zen"; a form of ZEN meditation popularized by the RINZAISHu master BANKEI YoTAKU. The teaching of the "unborn" (fusho) functioned as the central theme of Bankei's vernacular sermons (kana hogo). According to Bankei, the unborn is none other than buddha-nature (FOXING), or buddha mind, itself. As such, he emphatically notes that there is little need actually to seek buddhahood, since everyone is already born with the innate, unborn buddha mind. Bankei's teaching of unborn Zen was harshly criticized by the fellow Rinzai Zen master HAKUIN EKAKU.

gong'an. (J. koan; K. kongan 公案). In Chinese, "public case," or "precedent"; better known in the West by its Japanese pronunciation koan, a word that has now entered common English parlance as "koan." Gong'an was originally a legal term, referring to the magistrate's (gong) table (an), which by metonymy comes to refer to a legal precedent or an authoritative judgment; the term also comes to mean simply a "story" (gong'an in vernacular Chinese refers to the genre of detective stories). The term is widely used in the CHAN school in a way that conveys both denotations of a legal precedent and a story. The study of gong'an seems to have had its beginnings in the practice, probably dating from the late-Tang dynasty, of commenting on the exchanges or "ancient precedents" (guce) culled from Chan genealogical histories (e.g., JINGDE CHUANDENG LU) and the recorded sayings or discourse records (YULU) of the Chan masters of the past. Commenting on old cases (niangu), often using verses (SONGGU), seems to have become a well-established practice by the early Song dynasty, as more recorded sayings began to include separate sections known as nianggu and songgu. Perhaps one of the most famous collections of verse commentaries on old cases is the Chan master XUEDOU CHONGXIAN's Xuedou heshang baice songgu, which now exists only as part of a larger influential collection of gong'ans known as the BIYAN LU. Other famous gong'an collections, such as the CONGRONG LU and WUMEN GUAN, were compiled during the Song dynasty and thereafter. These collections often shared a similar format. Each case (bence), with some exceptions, begins with a pointer (CHUISHI), a short introductory paragraph. The actual case, often a short anecdote, is interspersed with interlinear notes known as "annotations" or "capping phrases" (C. zhuoyu/zhuyu; see J. JAKUGO). After the case, a prose commentary (pingchang), verse commentary (songgu), and subcommentary on the verse commentary follow. Traditionally, 1,700 specific gong'an are said to have been in circulation in the Chan school. Although this number does have antecedents within the tradition, there are no fixed numbers of cases included in Chan gong'an anthologies; for example, a late Qing-dynasty collection, the 1712 Zongjian falin, includes 2,720 gong'an, which were claimed to be all the gong'an then in active use within the tradition. Whatever the number, there seems not to have been any kind of systematic curriculum within the Chinese Chan or Korean Son traditions using this full panoply of gong'an. The creation of a pedagogical system of training involving mastery of a series of many different koans is commonly attributed to HAKUIN EKAKU (1685-1768) in the Japanese RINZAISHu of ZEN. The widespread reference to 1,700 gong'an in Western-language materials may derive from accounts of Japanese government attempts in 1627 to routinize the Rinzai monastic curriculum, by promulgating a regulation requiring all Zen abbots to master 1,700 cases as part of their training. ¶ The literary endeavor of studying old cases also gave rise to new forms of meditation. The Chan master DAHUI ZONGGAO in the YANGQI PAI of the LINJI ZONG systematized a practice in which one focuses on what he termed the "meditative topic" (HUATOU), which in some contexts refers to the "keyword," or "critical phrase" of a gong'an story. For instance, the famous huatou "WU" (no) that Dahui used as a meditative topic was derived from a popular gong'an attributed to ZHAOZHOU CONGSHEN: A student asked Zhaozhou, "Does a dog have buddha nature, or not?," to which Zhaozhou replied "wu" (no; lit., "it does not have it") (see WU GONG'AN; GOUZI WU FOXING). This new practice was called the "Chan of observing the meditative topic" or, more freely, "questioning meditation" (KANHUA CHAN). During the Song dynasty, students also began to seek private instruction on gong'an from Chan masters. These instructions often occurred in the abbot's quarters (FANGZHANG). ¶ The active study of gong'an in Korean SoN begins with POJO CHINUL and his disciple CHIN'GAK HYESIM, who learned of Dahui's kanhua Chan largely through the writings of their Chinese counterpart. Hyesim was also the first Korean Son monk to compile his own massive collection of cases, titled the SoNMUN YoMSONG CHIP. The use of cases was later transmitted to Japan by pilgrims and émigré monks, where koan study became emblematic of the Rinzaishu. Because rote memorization of capping phrases came to take precedence over skilled literary composition in classical Chinese, the Japanese compiled large collections of capping phrases, such as the ZENRIN KUSHu, to use in their training.

Gudo Toshoku. (愚堂東寔) (1579-1661). Japanese ZEN master in the RINZAISHu. Gudo Toshoku was born in Mino, present-day Gifu prefecture. In his twenties, he went on a pilgrimage around the country with several other young monks, such as DAIGU SoCHIKU and Ungo Kiyo (1582-1659), in search of a teacher. Gudo later travelled to Shotakuin, a memorial chapel (tatchu) at the Rinzai monastery of MYoSHINJI, where he found a teacher by the name of Yozan Keiyo (1559-1626). Gudo later became Yozan's DHARMA heir (see FASI). In 1614, Gudo became the abbot of a dilapidated monastery named Zuiganji in his native Mino. He was also invited as the abbot of the nearby monastery of Shodenji. In 1621, he was once again invited to restore Daisenji, another dilapidated monastery in Mino. With the support of powerful local patrons, Gudo was able to restore all these monasteries. In 1628, he became the abbot of Myoshinji and served as abbot a total of three times. During his stay at Myoshinji, Gudo led a faction within the monastery that opposed tendering an invitation to the Chinese Chan master YINYUAN LONGQI to serve as abbot of the monastery. Yinyuan instead was invited to Uji in 1661 to establish a new monastery, MANPUKUJI, which led to the foundation of the oBAKUSHu of Japanese Zen. Gudo later returned to his efforts to restore monasteries throughout the country. During the Tokugawa period, monasteries were mandated by the military government (bakufu) to affiliate themselves with a main monastery (honzan), thus becoming branch temples (matsuji). The monasteries that Gudo restored became branch temples of Myoshinji. Through Gudo's efforts, the influence of Myoshinji thus grew extensively. The influential Zen master HAKUIN EKAKU traced his lineage back to Gudo through the latter's disciple Shido Bunan (1603-1676) and Shido's disciple Dokyo Etan (1642-1721). Gudo later received the honorary title Daien Hokan kokushi (State Preceptor Great and Perfect Jeweled Mirror). His teachings can be found in the Hokanroku.

huatou. (J. wato; K. hwadu 話頭). In Chinese, "topic of inquiry"; in some contexts, "critical phrase" or "keyword." The Song-dynasty CHAN master DAHUI ZONGGAO, in the LINJI ZONG, popularized a meditative technique in which he urged his students (many of whom were educated literati) to use a Chan case (GONG'AN) as a "topic of meditative inquiry" (huatou) rather than interpret it from purely intellectual or literary perspectives. Perhaps the most famous and most widely used huatou is the topic "no" (WU) attributed to the Chan master ZHAOZHOU CONGSHEN: A monk asked Zhaozhou, "Does a dog have buddha-nature (FOXING), or not?," to which Zhaozhou replied "WU" ("no"; lit. "it does not have it"; see GOUZI WU FOXING; WU GONG'AN). Because of the widespread popularity of this particular one-word topic in China, Korea, and Japan, this huatou is often interpreted as a "critical phrase'" or "keyword," in which the word "wu" is presumed to be the principal topic and thus the "keyword," or "critical phrase," of the longer gong'an exchange. Because Zhaozhou's answer in this exchange goes against the grain of East Asian Mahāyāna Buddhism-which presumes that all sentient beings, including dogs, are inherently enlightened-the huatou helps to foster questioning, or technically "doubt" (YIQING), the focus of a new type of Chan meditation called KANHUA CHAN, "the Chan of investigating the huatou." Huatou (which literally means "head of speech," and thus "topic") might best be taken metaphorically as the "apex of speech," or the "point at which (or beyond which) speech exhausts itself." Speech is of course initiated by thought, so "speech" in this context refers to all the discriminative tendencies of the mind, viz., conceptualization. By leading to the very limits of speech-or more accurately thought-the huatou acts as a purification device that frees the mind of its conceptualizing tendencies, leaving it clear, attentive, and calm. Even though the huatou is typically a word or phrase taken from the teachings of previous Chan masters, it is a word that is claimed to bring an end to conceptualization, leaving the mind receptive to the influence of the unconditioned. As Dahui notes, huatou produces a "cleansing knowledge and vision" (see JNĀNADARsANA) that "removes the defects of conceptual understanding so that one may find the road leading to liberation." Huatou is thus sometimes interpreted in Chinese Buddhism as a type of meditative "homeopathy," in which one uses a small dosage of the poison of concepts to cure the disease of conceptualization. Dahui's use of the huatou technique was first taught in Korea by POJO CHINUL, where it is known by its Korean pronunciation as hwadu, and popularized by Chinul's successor, CHIN'GAK HYESIM. Investigation of the hwadu remains the most widespread type of meditation taught and practiced in Korean Buddhism. In Japanese Zen, the use of the wato became widespread within the RINZAISHu, due in large part to the efforts of HAKUIN EKAKU and his disciples.

Kaian kokugo. (槐安國語). In Japanese, "Words on the Peaceful Land of the Locust-Trees," composed by the Japanese RINZAI ZEN master HAKUIN EKAKU. The peaceful land of the locust-trees (Sophora japonica) is an allusion to the tale of a retired official who dreams of a peaceful paradise, but upon waking realizes that it was nothing but a mound of ants living underneath a locust-tree in the yard. This tale is found in the Nanke taishou zhuan ("Biography of the Governor of Nanke"), written by Li Gongzuo (c. 778-848), and retold in the Nanke ji ("Record of the Southern Bough") by the Ming-dynasty playwright Tang Xianzu (1550-1617). Hakuin composed this treatise in 1749 and published it the next year in 1750. The treatise, which was written at the request of his students, consists largely of Hakuin's prose commentary and notes on the recorded sayings (YULU) of the Zen master Daito (see SoHo MYoCHo). The entire treatise was written in literary Chinese.

kanhua Chan. (J. kannazen/kanwazen; K. kanhwa Son 看話禪). In Chinese, "Chan of investigating the topic of inquiry," or, more freely, "questioning meditation." The systematization of this meditative practice is commonly traced back to the writings of the Song-dynasty CHAN master DAHUI ZONGGAO. The kanhua Chan technique grew out of the growing interest in the study of "public cases" (GONG'AN), viz., old stories and anecdotes of Chan masters, which flourished during the Song dynasty. Dahui's teacher YUANWU KEQIN is also known to have lectured on numerous public cases, and his anthology of gong'an, along with his analysis of them, was recorded in the famous collection the BIYAN LU ("Blue Cliff Records"). Dahui further elaborated upon Yuanwu's investigation of public cases and applied this process to the practice of Chan meditation. In his lectures and letters (DAHUI PUJUE CHANSHI SHU), Dahui urged his students (many of whom were educated literati) to use the gong'an as a "topic of meditative inquiry" (HUATOU, K. hwadu), rather than interpret it from purely intellectual or conceptual perspectives. Perhaps the most famous huatou is the topic "no" (WU) attributed to the Chan master ZHAOZHOU CONGSHEN: A monk asked Zhaozhou, "Does a dog have buddha-nature (FOXING), or not?" to which Zhaozhou replied "WU" ("no"; lit. "it does not have it"). (See WU GONG'AN; GOUZI WU FOXING.) (Because of the popularity of this one-word meditative topic, kanhua Chan is often interpreted to mean the investigation of the "critical phrase" or "keyword," in which the "keyword" "wu" is presumed to have been extracted from the longer gong'an exchange.) The investigation of this huatou starts by "investigating the meaning" (C. canyi; K. ch'amŭi) of the huatou: what could Zhaozhou have meant by answering "no" to this question, when the right answer should be "yes"? The mainstream of East Asian Buddhist doctrine insists that all sentient beings, including dogs, are inherently enlightened and thus do in fact possess the buddha-nature, so this question promotes inquiry. Examining what Zhaozhou might have meant by saying "no" has what Dahui termed "taste" (C. wei, K. mi), meaning intellectual interest. As one's intellectual inquiry into this question continues, however, the student is ultimately left with "doubt" (YIQING), viz., the inability of the (unenlightened) mind to understand Zhaozhou's motive in giving this response to the student's question. Doubt, Dahui says, renders the mind "puzzled, frustrated, and tasteless" (viz., lacking intellectual interest), just as if you were gnawing on an iron rod." Once doubt arises, there is no longer any conceptual support for the meditation, and the student moves on to "investigating the word" (C. canju; K. ch'amgu), viz., just sitting with the huatou wu and no longer trying to understand Zhaozhou's motive in offering this response. At this point, the huatou becomes a "live word" (C. huoju; K. hwalgu) that helps to free the mind from conceptualization and to lead the meditator forward toward liberation. As the sense of doubt becomes more and more intense, it finally "explodes" (C. po; K. p'a), bringing an end to the deluded processes of thought and removing the limiting point of view that is the self. Once the distinctions between self and other disintegrate, the meditator experiences the interconnection between himself or herself and all the phenomena in the universe (SHISHI WU'AI). Kanhua Chan, therefore, employs the inevitable doubt that a benighted person would have about the sayings of the enlightened Chan masters of old to create a powerful sense of inquiry that leads the meditator toward the experience of nonconceptualization and finally enlightenment. ¶ Dahui's system of kanhua Chan was first taught in Korea by POJO CHINUL, where it is known as kanhwa Son, and popularized by Chinul's successor, CHIN'GAK HYESIM. Kanhwa Son continues to be the most common contemplative technique practiced in Korean Son halls. Korean Son monks typically work on one hwadu-often Zhaozhou's "no"-for much of their career, continually deepening their experience of that topic. In China, after the Ming dynasty, kanhua Chan merged with the recitation of the buddha AMITĀBHA's name (NIANFO), so that Chan meditators would turn the recitation into a huatou by reflecting on the topic "Who is reciting the Buddha's name?" In Japanese Zen, due in large part to the efforts of HAKUIN EKAKU and his disciples, kannazen became widespread within the RINZAI ZEN tradition, where it was incorporated into an elaborate system of koan training, involving the systematic investigation of many different koans.

Myoshinji. (妙心寺). In Japanese, "Sublime Mind Monastery"; an influential ZEN monastery in Kyoto that is currently the headquarters (HONZAN) of the Myoshinji branch of the RINZAISHu. After the eminent Zen master Daito's (see SoHo MYoCHo) death in 1337, Emperor Hanazono (r. 1308-1318) converted his country villa into a monastery, which he named Myoshinji, and installed Daito's disciple KANZAN EGEN as its founding abbot (J. kaisan; C. KAISHAN). During the Muromachi period, Myoshinji was excluded from the powerful GOZAN ranking system and became the subject of harsh persecution during Ashikaga's rule. In the early half of the fifteenth century, the monk Nippo Soshun (1358-1448) oversaw the restoration of Myoshinji, but the monastery was consumed in a conflagration during the onin war (1467-1469). In 1477, with the support of Emperor Gotsuchimikado (r. 1464-1500) the monastery was restored once more under the supervision of its abbot Sekko Soshin (1408-1486). At the decree of Emperor Gokashiwabara (r. 1500-1526), Myoshinji was included in the gozan system and enjoyed the financial support of a high-ranking official monastery. Largely through its tight fiscal management and active proselytizing efforts, Myoshinji expanded quickly to control over fifty branch temples and became one of the most influential monasteries of the Rinzai Zen tradition. During the Edo period, a renowned Zen master of the Myoshinji lineage named HAKUIN EKAKU played an important role in the revitalization of the koan (C. GONG'AN) training system.

Nanpo Jomyo. [alt. Shomyo] (南浦紹明) (1235-1308). Japanese ZEN master in the RINZAISHu; a native of Suruga in present-day Shizuoka Prefecture. He studied under the émigré Chinese Chan master LANXI DAOLONG (1213-1278) at the monastery of KENCHoJI in Kamakura. In 1259, Nanpo left for China, where he studied with the LINJI ZONG Chan master XUTANG ZHIYU (1185-1269). Before returning to Japan, Nanpo is said to have received Xutang's seal of approval (see YINKE) and thus inherited Xutang's Linji lineage. In 1267, Nanpo returned to Japan and served his teacher Lanxi. Nanpo later moved to the monastery of Sufukuji in Hakata (present-day Kyushu), where he continued to reside for the next thirty-three years. In 1305, he was invited to the influential monastery of Manjuji in Kyoto and was installed as its abbot. Later, he served as abbot of his home monastery of Kenchoji. In 1309, he received the posthumous title State Preceptor Entsu Daio (Perfect Penetration, Great Resonance). Among his disciples SoHo MYoCHo (1282-1337), also known as Daito, is most famous. Currently, virtually all monks in the Rinzai Zen tradition trace their lineages back to Nanpo via HAKUIN EKAKU (1685-1768). The lineages that originated from Nanpo came to be known collectively as the otokan, which is a combination of Sinographs taken from the names of Dai-o, Dai-to, and Kan-zan (see KANZAN EGEN).

obakushu. (黄檗宗). In Japanese, "obaku school"; one of the three main ZEN traditions in Japan, along with the RINZAISHu and SoToSHu. The émigré Chinese CHAN master YINYUAN LONGQI (1594-1673) is credited with its foundation. In 1654, Yinyuan fled the wars that accompanied the fall of the Ming dynasty and the establishment of the Manchu Qing dynasty, and arrived in Nagasaki, Japan, where he first served as abbot of the monastery of Kofukuji. With the support of the shogun Tokugawa Ietsuna (1639-1680) and Emperor Gomizunoo (r. 1611-1629), in 1661, Yinyuan traveled to a mountain he named obaku (after Mt. Huangbo in China), where he began construction of a new monastery that he named MANPUKUJI (C. Wanfusi), after his old monastery in Fujian, China. The monastery and the broader obaku tradition retained many of the exotic Chinese customs that Yinyuan and his Chinese disciples MU'AN XINGTAO, Jifei Ruyi (1616-1617), and Huilin Xingji (1609-1681) had brought with them from the mainland, including the latest monastic architecture and institutional systems, the use of vernacular Chinese as the official ritual language in the monastery, and training in Chinese artistic and literary styles. In addition, for thirteen generations after Yinyuan, Manpukuji's abbots continued to be Chinese, and only later began to alternate between Chinese and Japanese successors. These Chinese monastic customs that Yinyuan introduced were met with great ambivalence by such Japanese Rinzai leaders as Gudo Toshoku (1577-1661) and later HAKUIN EKAKU. Although Yinyuan himself was affiliated with the YANGQI PAI in the Chinese LINJI ZONG, Chinese Chan traditions during this period had also assimilated the widespread practice of reciting of the Buddha's name (C. NIANFO; J. nenbutsu) by transforming it into a form of "questioning meditation" (C. KANHUA CHAN; J. kannazen): e.g., "Who is it who is reciting the Buddha's name?" Raising this question while engaging in nenbutsu was a technique that initially helped to concentrate the mind, but would also subsequently help raise the sense of doubt (C. YIQING; J. gijo) that was central to Linji school accounts of authentic Chan meditation. However, since buddha-recitation was at this time closely associated in Japan with pure land traditions, such as JoDOSHu and JoDO SHINSHu, this approach to Chan practice was extremely controversial among contemporary Japanese Zen adepts. The Chinese style of Zen that Yinyuan and his followers promulgated in Japan prompted their contemporaries in the Rinzai and Soto Zen traditions to reevaluate their own practices and to initiate a series of important reform movements within their respective traditions (cf. IN'IN EKISHI). During the Meiji period, obaku, Rinzai, and Soto were formally recognized as separate Zen traditions (ZENSHu) by the imperial government. Currently, the monastery Manpukuji in Uji serves as the headquarters (honzan) of the obaku school.

PrajNāpāramitāhṛdayasutra. (T. Shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa'i snying po'i mdo; C. Bore boluomiduo xin jing; J. Hannya haramitta shingyo; K. Panya paramilta sim kyong 般若波羅蜜多心經). In English, the "Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom Sutra" (or, in other interpretations, the "DHĀRAnĪ-Sutra of the Perfection of Wisdom"); a work known in English simply as the "Heart Sutra"; one of only a handful of Buddhist SuTRAs (including the "Lotus Sutra" and the "Diamond Sutra") to be widely known by an English title. The "Heart Sutra" is perhaps the most famous, and certainly the most widely recited, of all Buddhist sutras across all Mahāyāna traditions. It is also one of the most commented upon, eliciting more Indian commentaries than any Mahāyāna sutra (eight), including works by such luminaries as KAMALAsĪLA, VIMALAMITRA, and ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNĀNA, as well as such important East Asian figures as FAZANG, KuKAI, and HAKUIN EKAKU. As its title suggests, the scripture purports to be the quintessence or heart (hṛdaya) of the "perfection of wisdom" (PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ), in its denotations as both supreme wisdom and the eponymous genre of scriptures. The sutra exists in long and short versions-with the longer version better known in India and the short version better known in East Asia-but even the long version is remarkably brief, requiring only a single page in translation. The short version, which is probably the earlier of the two recensions, is best known through its Chinese translation by XUANZANG made c. 649 CE. There has been speculation that the Chinese version may be a redaction of sections of the Chinese recension of the MAHĀPRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀSuTRA (also translated by Xuanzang) as a mnemonic encoding (dhāranī) of the massive perfection of wisdom literature, which was then subsequently translated back into Sanskrit, perhaps by Xuanzang himself. Although there is as yet no scholarly consensus on the provenance of the text, if this argument is correct, this would make the "Heart Sutra" by far the most influential of all indigenous Chinese scriptures (see APOCRYPHA). The long version of the text, set on Vulture Peak (GṚDHRAKutAPARVATA) outside RĀJAGṚHA, begins with the Buddha entering SAMĀDHI. At that point, the BODHISATTVA AVALOKITEsVARA (who rarely appears as an interlocutor in the prajNāpāramitā sutras) contemplates the perfection of wisdom and sees that the five aggregates (SKANDHA) are empty of intrinsic nature (SVABHĀVA). The monk sĀRIPUTRA, considered the wisest of the Buddha's sRĀVAKA disciples, is inspired by the Buddha to ask Avalokitesvara how one should train in the perfection of wisdom. Avalokitesvara's answer constitutes the remainder of the sutra (apart from a brief epilogue in the longer version of the text). That answer, which consists essentially of a litany of negations of the major categories of Buddhist thought-including such seminal lists as the five aggregates (skandha), twelve sense-fields (ĀYATANA), twelve links of dependent origination (PRATĪTYASAMUTPĀDA), and FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS-contains two celebrated statements. The first, made in reference to the first of the five aggregates, is "form (RuPA) is emptiness (suNYATĀ); emptiness is form" (RuPAM suNYATĀ sUNYATAIVA RuPAM). This is one of the most widely quoted and commented upon statements in the entire corpus of Mahāyāna sutras and thus is not easily amenable to succinct explication. In brief, however, the line suggests that emptiness, as the nature of ultimate reality, is not located in some rarified realm, but rather is found in the ordinary objects of everyday experience. The other celebrated statement is the spell (MANTRA) that concludes Avalokitesvara's discourse-GATE GATE PĀRAGATE PĀRASAMGATE BODHI SVĀHĀ-which, unlike many mantras, is amenable to translation: "gone, gone, gone beyond, gone completely beyond, enlightenment, svāha." This mantra has also been widely commented upon. The presence of the mantra in the sutra has led to its classification as a TANTRA rather than a sutra in some Tibetan catalogues; it also forms the basis of Indian tantric SĀDHANAs. The brevity of the text has given it a talismanic quality, being recited on all manner of occasions (it is commonly used as an exorcistic text in Tibet) and inscribed on all manner of objects, including fans, teacups, and neckties in modern Japan.

Rinzaishu. (濟宗). In Japanese, "Rinzai School"; one of the major Japanese ZEN schools established in the early Kamakura period. The various branches of the Japanese Rinzai Zen tradition trace their lineages back to the Chinese CHAN master LINJI YIXUAN (J. Rinzai Gigen) and his eponymous LINJI ZONG; the name Rinzai, like its Chinese counterpart, is derived from Linji's toponym. The tradition was first transmitted to Japan by the TENDAISHu monk MYoAN EISAI (1141-1215), who visited China twice and received training and certification in the HUANGLONG PAI collateral line of the Linji lineage on his second trip. Eisai's Zen teachings, however, reflected his training in the esoteric (MIKKYo) teachings of the Tendai school; he did not really intend to establish an entirely new school. After Eisai, the Rinzai tradition was transferred through Japanese monks who trained in China and Chinese monks who immigrated to Japan. Virtually all of the Japanese Rinzai tradition was associated with the YANGQI PAI collateral line of the Linji lineage (see YANGQI FANGHUI), which was first imported by the Japanese vinaya specialist Shunjo (1166-1227). According to the early-Edo-period Nijushiryu shugen zuki ("Diagrammatic Record of the Sources of the Twenty-Four Transmissions of the Teaching"), twenty-four Zen lineages had been transmitted to Japan since the Kamakura period, twenty-one of which belonged to the Rinzai tradition; with the exception of Eisai's own lineage, the remaining twenty lineages were all associated with the Yangqi collateral line. Soon after its introduction into Japan, the Rinzai Zen tradition rose to prominence in Kamakura and Kyoto, where it received the patronage of shoguns, emperors, and the warrior class. The Rinzai teachers of this period included monks from Tendai and SHINGONSHu backgrounds, such as ENNI BEN'EN (1202-1280) and SHINCHI KAKUSHIN (1207-1298), who promoted Zen with an admixture of esoteric elements. Chinese immigrant monks like LANXI DAOLONG (J. Rankei Doryu, 1213-1278) and WUXUE ZUYUAN (J. Mugaku Sogen, 1226-1286) also contributed to the rapid growth in the popularity of the Rinzai tradition among the Japanese ruling classes, by transporting the Song-style Linji Chan tradition as well as Song-dynasty Chinese culture more broadly. With the establishment of the Ashikaga shogunate in 1338, the major Zen temples were organized following the Song Chinese model into the GOZAN (five mountains) system, a tripartite state control system consisting of "five mountains" (gozan), "ten temples" (jissetsu), and several associated "miscellaneous mountains" (shozan). The powerful gozan monasteries located in Kamakura and Kyoto functioned as centers of classical Chinese learning and culture, and continued to influence the ruling classes in Japan until the decline of the Ashikaga shogunate in the sixteenth century. The disciples of Enni Ben'en and MUSo SOSEKI (1275-1351) dominated the gozan monasteries. In particular, Muso Soseki was deeply engaged in both literary endeavors and political activities; his lineage produced several famous gozan poets, such as Gido Shushin (1325-1388) and Zekkai Chushin (1336-1405). Outside the official gozan ecclesiastical system were the RINKA, or forest, monasteries. DAITOKUJI and MYoSHINJI, the two principal rinka Rinzai monasteries, belonged to the otokan lineage, which is named after its first three masters NANPO JoMYo (1235-1309), SoHo MYoCHo (1282-1337), and KANZAN EGEN (1277-1360). This lineage emphasized rigorous Zen training rather than the broader cultural endeavors pursued in the gozan monasteries. After the decline of the gozan monasteries, the otokan lineage came to dominate the Rinzai Zen tradition during the Edo period and was the only Rinzai line to survive to the present. Despite the presence of such influential monks as TAKUAN SoHo (1573-1645) and BANKEI YoTAKU (1622-1693), the Rinzai tradition began to decline by the sixteenth and the seventeenth centuries. The monk credited with revitalizing the Rinzai tradition during the Edo period is the Myoshinji monk HAKUIN EKAKU (1685-1768). Hakuin systematized the KoAN (see GONG'AN; KANHUA CHAN) method of meditation, which is the basis of modern Rinzai Zen practice; it is also through Hakuin and his disciples that most Rinzai masters of today trace their lineages. The Rinzai tradition is currently divided into the fifteen branches named after each of their head monasteries, which represents the influence of the head and branch temple system designed in the Edo period. Of the fifteen branches, the Myoshinji branch has largely eclipsed its rivals and today is the largest and most influential of all the Rinzai lines.

sekishu koan. (隻手公案). In Japanese, "the case of one-hand [clapping]"; a famous koan (C. GONG'AN) attributed to the Japanese RINZAI ZEN master HAKUIN EKAKU (1685-1768), in which he asks, "What is the sound of one hand [clapping]?" The koan is included in his 1752 collection Yabukoji, along with Hakuin's autocommentary. The sekishu koan came to be used within some Rinzai kanna Zen (see KANHUA CHAN) systems as the first case given to neophytes in Zen training and, along with the mu koan (C. WU GONG'AN), continues to be one of the emblematic koans used in Japanese Rinzai Zen circles.

Yasenkanna. [alt. Yasenkanwa] (夜船閑話). In Japanese, "Idle Talk on a Night Boat"; a short meditative text composed by the ZEN master HAKUIN EKAKU in the RINZAISHu, and his most popular piece. The Yasenkanna was first published in 1757 and has remained in print ever since. The title seems to be an allusion to the popular saying, "night boat on the Shirakawa River" (Shirakawa yasen), which refers to the story of a man from the countryside and the lies he tells about his trip to Kyoto. Hakuin wrote the Yasenkanna to offer beginners of meditation an expedient technique for overcoming "Zen illness" (zenbyo) and fatigue. The Yasenkanna details Hakuin's own bout with this illness and his miraculous recovery with the help of a secret technique known as inner discernment or visualization (naikan), which he purports to have learned from the obscure hermit Hakuyu. Different versions of this story also appear in Hakuin's other writings, such as the Kanzanshi sendai kimon, Orategama, and Itsumadegusa.

Zazen wasan. (坐禪和讚). In Japanese, "Praise of Seated Meditation"; a short song by the Japanese ZEN master HAKUIN EKAKU in the RINZAISHu, which is probably his most popular work. The Zazen wasan is still printed in manuals for scripture recitation and is chanted at many Rinzai temples and monasteries today. In his song, Hakuin extols as the supreme virtues original enlightenment (J. HONGAKU; C. BENJUE), seated meditation (J. zazen; C. ZUOCHAN), and seeing one's own nature (J. kensho; C. JIANXING).

KEYS (10k)

   8 Hakuin Ekaku

NEW FULL DB (2.4M)

   28 Hakuin Ekaku

1:If you forget yourself, you become the universe. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

2:If you forget yourself, you become the universe." ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

3:Not knowing how near the truth is, we seek it far away." ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

4:Should you desire the great tranquility prepare to sweat white beads. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

5:Contemplation within activity is a million times better than contemplation within stillness. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

6:At the bottom of great doubt lies great awakening. If you doubt fully, you will awaken fully.    ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

7:I encourage all you superior seekers in the secret depths to devote yourselves to penetrating and clarifying the self, as earnestly as you would put out a fire on the top of your head.    ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

8:It's like chopping down a huge tree of immense girth. You won't accomplish it with one swing of your axe. If you keep chopping away at it, though, and do not let up, eventually, whether it wants to or not, it will suddenly topple down. When that time comes, you could round up everyone you could find and pay them to hold the tree up, but they wouldn't be able to do it. It would still come crashing to the ground. . . . But if the woodcutter stopped after one or two strokes of his axe to ask the third son of Mr. Chang, Why doesn't this tree fall? And after three or four more strokes stopped again to ask the fourth son of Mr. Li, Why doesn't this tree fall? he would never succeed in felling the tree. It is no different for someone who is practicing the Way.    ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

*** WISDOM TROVE ***

*** NEWFULLDB 2.4M ***

1:If only you could hear ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

2:What is the sound of one hand? ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

3:Nirvana is right here, before our eyes. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

4:From the very beginning all beings are Buddha. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

5:In singing and dancing is the voice of the Law. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

6:If you forget yourself, you become the universe. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

7:If you forget yourself, you become the universe. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

8:How bright and transparent the moonlight of wisdom. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

9:Not knowing how near the truth is, we seek it far away. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

10:Should you desire the great tranquility prepare to sweat white beads. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

11:Should you desire the great tranquility prepare to sweat white beads. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

12:Meditation in action is endlessly more important than meditation in stillness. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

13:From the sea of effortlessness, let your great uncaused compassion shine forth. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

14:You know the sound of two hands clapping; tell me, what is the sound of one hand? ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

15:Contemplation within activity is a million times better than contemplation within stillness. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

16:Meditation in the midst of activity is a thousand times superior to meditation in stillness. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

17:At the bottom of great doubt lies great awakening. If you doubt fully, you will awaken fully. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

18:Contemplation within activity is a million times better than contemplation within stillness. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

19:At the bottom of great doubt lies great awakening. If you doubt fully, you will awaken fully.    ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

20:The spirit of meditation is the combating of self-willed thinking-it is a combat against the weight of one's feelings. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

21:All beings are by nature are Buddhas, as ice by nature is water. Apart from water there is no ice; apart from beings, no Buddhas. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

22:Underlying great doubt there is great satori, where there is thorough questioning there will be thoroughgoing experience of awakening. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

23:At this moment, is there anything lacking? Nirvana is right here now before our eyes. This place is the lotus land. This body now is the Buddha. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

24:I encourage all you superior seekers in the secret depths to devote yourselves to penetrating and clarifying the self, as earnestly as you would put out a fire on the top of your head. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

25:I encourage all you superior seekers in the secret depths to devote yourselves to penetrating and clarifying the self, as earnestly as you would put out a fire on the top of your head.    ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

26:Once a person is able to achieve true singlemindedness in his practice and smash apart the old nest... into which he has settled... Wisdom immediately appears... and the all-discerning Fivefold Eye opens wide. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

27:What is this true meditation? It is to make everything: coughing, swallowing, waving the arms, motion, stillness, words, action, the evil and the good, prosperity and shame, gain and loss, right and wrong, into one single koan. ~ Hakuin Ekaku,

28:A bird gives a cry–the mountains quiet all the more.’ 49 (This is also perhaps the real meaning behind Hakuin Ekaku’s famous eighteenth-century-BCE koan ‘What is the Sound of the Single Hand?’: it is an invitation to attend to the silence, the emptiness. ~ Julian Baggini,

29:It's like chopping down a huge tree of immense girth. You won't accomplish it with one swing of your axe. If you keep chopping away at it, though, and do not let up, eventually, whether it wants to or not, it will suddenly topple down. When that time comes, you could round up everyone you could find and pay them to hold the tree up, but they wouldn't be able to do it. It would still come crashing to the ground. . . . But if the woodcutter stopped after one or two strokes of his axe to ask the third son of Mr. Chang, Why doesn't this tree fall? And after three or four more strokes stopped again to ask the fourth son of Mr. Li, Why doesn't this tree fall? he would never succeed in felling the tree. It is no different for someone who is practicing the Way.    ~ Hakuin Ekaku,