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buli wenzi. (J. furyumonji; K. pullip muncha 不立文字). In Chinese, lit. "not establishing words and letters"; a line summarizing the CHAN school's unique sense of its own pedigree, as a school of Buddhism that does not rely on the scriptural teachings of Buddhism but has a direct connection through the "buddhas and patriarchs" (FOZU) to the mind of the Buddha himself. The saying is later attributed to the school's traditional founder, BODHIDHARMA. According to GUIFENG ZONGMI's CHANYUAN ZHUQUANJI DUXU, the Indian monk Bodhidharma taught that the mind was the DHARMA and he transmitted this teaching from mind to mind (YIXIN CHUANXIN) without establishing words or letters. This phrase also often appears together with three other phrases: JIAOWAI BIECHUAN ("a special transmission outside the teachings"), ZHIZHI RENXIN ("directly pointing to the human mind"), and JIANXING CHENGFO ("seeing one's own nature and becoming a buddha"). They appear together for the first time in the ZUTING SHIYUAN compiled in 1108 and soon became a normative teaching in the subsequent CHAN, SoN, THIỀN, and ZEN traditions. As a radical interpretation of the notion of UPAYA, the phrase buli wenzi remains to this day a controversial and frequently debated topic. Song-dynasty exponents of "lettered Chan" (WENZI CHAN), such as JUEFAN HUIHONG (1071-1128), decried the bibliophobic tendencies epitomized in this line and advocated instead that Chan insights were made manifest in both Buddhist SuTRAs as well as in the uniquely Chan genres of discourse records (YULU), lineage histories (see CHUANDENG LU), and public-case anthologies (GONG'AN).

Fukan zazengi. (普勸坐禪儀). In Japanese, "General Advice on the Principles of Seated Meditation," an important meditation manual composed by the eminent Japanese ZEN master DoGEN KIGEN. Although this treatise is traditionally dated to 1227, recent discoveries of a hitherto unknown copy of the Fukan zazengi suggest the date of 1233. The Fukan zazengi is a relatively short treatise on seated meditation (ZAZEN), which is also embedded in Dogen's magnum opus, the SHoBoGENZo. The treatise underscores the need to practice seated meditation as a corrective against excessive indulgence in "words and letters," viz., scholastic interpretations of Buddhist doctrine (cf. BULI WENZI). The explanation of how to perform seated meditation starts with preparing a quiet spot for practice and following a proper diet. The correct posture for meditation is then described. The actual practice of seated meditation begins with the regulation of breathing, which is followed by an injunction to stay aware of all thoughts that arise in the mind. The treatise then briefly explains the psychosomatic effects of meditation and the proper way to rise from seated meditation. The importance of seated meditation is reiterated at the end. Dogen's manual is in large part a revision of the Chinese Chan master CHANGLU ZONGZE's influential primer of meditation, the ZUOCHAN YI.

gewai Chan. (J. kakugai no Zen/kakuge no Zen; K. kyogoe Son 格外禪). In Chinese, lit. "unconventional Chan" (lit. "the Chan that goes beyond all conventions"), referring to one of the styles of practice and pedagogy associated with the CHAN ZONG; often considered to be equivalent to the supreme vehicle Chan (ZUISHANGSHENG CHAN; K. ch'oesangsŭng Son) that is transmitted by the patriarchs (ZUSHI). This form of Chan is said to transcend all conventional standards and styles because its approach transcends all explanations that rely upon language. Based on its fundamental distrust of the ability of language to convey truth, this form of Chan is said to use "unconventional words" (gewai ju; K. kyogoe ku) in its teachings, i.e., absurdities, contradictions, negations, double negations, etc., so that its listeners will come to realize the limits of language itself and thereby seek instead true knowledge that transcends verbal explanations. In addition to this unconventional usage of language, gewai Chan also uses nonverbal expressions, such as shouting and beatings, and many other illocutionary means of teaching. The ideas implicit in this form of Chan are formulated in the well-known phrases retrospectively attributed to BODHIDHARMA by the Chan masters of the Song dynasty: "a separate transmission outside the teaching" (JIAOWAI BIEZHUAN), "mind-to-mind transmission" (YIXIN CHUAN XIN), "no establishment of words and letters" (BULI WENZI), and "directly pointing to the human mind" (ZHIZHI RENXIN). The idea of unconventional Chan also was at times used polemically, i.e., to refer to a form of Chan superior to the more expository style of its opponents, which was denigrated as "theoretical Chan" (yili Chan) or "lettered Chan" (WENZI CHAN).

Huanglong pai. (J. oryoha/oryuha; K. Hwangnyong p'a 龍派). In Chinese, "Huanglong school"; collateral lineage of the CHAN school's LINJI ZONG, one of the five houses and seven schools (WU JIA QI ZONG) of the Chan during the Northern Song dynasty (960-1126). The school's name comes from the toponym of its founder, HUANGLONG HUINAN (1002-1069), who taught at Mt. Huanglong in present-day Jiangxi province; Huinan was a disciple of Shishuang Chuyuan (986-1039), himself a sixth-generation successor in the Linji school. The Huanglong school was especially known for "lettered Chan" (WENZI CHAN), a style of Chan that valorized belle lettres, and especially poetry, in Chan practice. Many of the most influential monks in the Huanglong school exemplified a period when Chan entered the mainstream of Chinese intellectual life: their practice of Chan was framed and conceptualized in terms that drew from their wide learning and profound erudition, tendencies that helped make Chan writings particularly appealing to wider Chinese literati culture. JUEFAN HUIHONG (1071-1128), for example, decried the bibliophobic tendencies in Chan that were epitomized in the aphorism that Chan "does not establish words and letters" (BULI WENZI) and advocated that Chan insights were in fact made manifest in both Buddhist sutras and the uniquely Chan genres of discourse records (YULU), lineage histories (see CHUANDENG LU), and public-case anthologies (GONG'AN). Huanglong and YUNMEN ZONG masters made important contributions to the development of the Song Chan literary styles of songgu ([attaching] verses to ancient [cases]) and niangu (raising [and analyzing] ancient [cases]). Because of their pronounced literary tendencies, many Huanglong monks became close associates of such Song literati-officials as Su Shi (1036-1101), Huang Tingjian (1045-1105), and ZHANG SHANGYING (1043-1122). After the founder's death, discord appeared within the Huanglong lineage: the second-generation master Baofeng Kewen (1025-1102) and his disciple Juefan Huihong criticized the practices of another second-generation master Donglin Changzong (1025-1091) and his disciples as clinging to silence and simply waiting for enlightenment; this view may have influenced the subsequent criticism of the CAODONG ZONG by DAHUI ZONGGAO (1089-1163), who trained for a time with the Huanglong master Zhantang Wenjun (1061-1115). The Huanglong pai was the first school of Chan to be introduced to Japan: by MYoAN EISAI (1141-1215), who studied with the eighth-generation Huanglong teacher Xu'an Huaichang (d.u.). The Huanglong pai did not survive as a separate lineage in either country long after the twelfth century, as its rival YANGQI PAI came to prominence; it was eventually reabsorbed into the Yangqi lineage.

jiaowai biechuan. (J. kyoge betsuden; K. kyooe pyolchon 教外別傳). In Chinese, "a special transmission outside the teachings," a line stating the CHAN school's own sense of its unique pedigree within Buddhism, and later attributed to the school's traditional founder, BODHIDHARMA. The phrase first appears in the ZUTANG JI (K. CHODANG CHIP), compiled in 952. Later, in the ZUTING SHIYUAN compiled in 1108, the phrase appeared together with three other phrases: BULI WENZI ("not establishing words and letters"), ZHIZHI RENXIN ("directly pointing to the human mind"), and JIANXING CHENGFO ("seeing one's nature and achieving buddhahood"). These four phrases subsequently became a normative teaching within the school and the foundation on which the East Asian Chan traditions constructed their self-identity.

Juefan Huihong. (J. Kakuhan Eko; K. Kakpom Hyehong 覺範慧洪) (1071-1128). Chinese CHAN monk in the HUANGLONG PAI collateral line of the LINJI ZONG during the Northern Song dynasty (960-1127) and major proponent of "lettered Chan" (WENZI CHAN), which valorized belle lettres, and especially poetry, in the practice of Chan. Huihong entered the monastery after he was orphaned at fourteen, eventually passing the monastic examinations at age nineteen and receiving ordination at Tianwangsi in the eastern capital of Kaifeng. After studying the CHENG WEISHI LUN (*VijNaptimātratāsiddhi) for four years, he eventually began to study at LUSHAN with the Chan master Zhenjing Kewen (1025-1102), under whom he achieved enlightenment. Because of Huihong's close ties to the famous literati officials of his day, and especially with the statesman and Buddhist patron ZHANG SHANGYING (1043-1122), his own career was subject to many of the same political repercussions as his associates; indeed, Huihong himself was imprisoned, defrocked, and exiled multiple times in his life when his literati colleagues were purged. Compounding his problems, Huihong also suffered along with many other monks during the severe Buddhist persecution (see FANAN) that occurred during the reign of Emperor Huizong (r. 1100-1125). Even amid these trying political times, however, Huihong managed to maintain both his monastic vocation and his productive literary career. Huihong is in fact emblematic of many Chan monks during the Song dynasty, when Chan enters the mainstream of Chinese intellectual life: his practice of Chan was framed and conceptualized in terms that drew from his wide learning and profound erudition, tendencies that helped make Chan writings particularly appealing to wider Chinese literati culture. Huihong decried the bibliophobic tendencies in Chan that were epitomized in the aphorism that Chan "does not establish words and letters" (BULI WENZI) and advocated that Chan insights were made manifest in both Buddhist sutras as well as in the uniquely Chan genres of discourse records (YULU), genealogical histories (see CHUANDENG LU), and public-case anthologies (GONG'AN). Given his literary penchant, it is no surprise that Huihong was a prolific author. His works associated with Chan lineages include the CHANLIN SENGBAO ZHUAN ("Chronicles of the SAMGHA Jewel in the Chan Grove"), a collection of biographies of about a hundred eminent Chan masters important in the development of lettered Chan; and the Linjian lu ("Anecdotes from the Groves [of Chan]"), completed in 1107 and offering a record of Huihong's own encounters with fellow monks and literati and his reflections on Buddhist practice. Huihong also wrote two studies of poetics and poetic criticism, the Lengzhai yehua ("Evening Discourses from Cold Studio") and Tianchu jinluan ("Forbidden Cutlets from the Imperial Kitchen"), and numerous commentaries to Buddhist scriptures, including the SADDHARMAPUndARĪKASuTRA ("Lotus Sutra"), SHOULENGYAN JING, and YUANJUE JING.

KEYS (10k)

   1 Aleister Crowley

NEW FULL DB (2.4M)

1:Look not so deeply into words and letters; for this Mystery hath been hidden by the Alchemists. Compose the sevenfold into a fourfold regimen; and when thou hast understood thou mayest make symbols; but by playing child's games with symbols thou shalt never understand. ~ Aleister Crowley,

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1:I find, that, in general, alliances based on friendship are the only things that last. Not alliances based on words and letters. ~ Leah Lakshmi Piepzna Samarasinha,

2:Zen is a special transmission outside the scriptures,With no reliance on words and letters.A direct pointing to the human mind,And the realization of enlightenment. ~ John Daido Loori,

3:Kids made fun of me because I was dark skinned, had a wide nose, and was dyslexic. Even as an actor, it took me a long time to realize why words and letters got jumbled in my mind and came out differently. ~ Danny Glover,

4:Look not so deeply into words and letters; for this Mystery hath been hidden by the Alchemists. Compose the sevenfold into a fourfold regimen; and when thou hast understood thou mayest make symbols; but by playing child's games with symbols thou shalt never understand. ~ Aleister Crowley,

5:You have both been so busy learning tactics and studying battles, you have failed to see the truth of where thrones are won and lost. It is in the gossip, the words and letters passed in dark corners, the shadow alliances and the secret payments. You think I am worthless? I can do things you could never dream of. ~ Kiersten White,

6:I grew up thinking the only scriptures on earth were those inspired by the Hebrew prophets of the Old Testament, the words and letters of Jesus and his apostles, and the scriptures of the Restoration. But how could the God I believed was the loving God of all the earth not speak somehow to everyone else? For years I wrestled with this idea. Having now read the Chinese classics, certainly Confucius, but others as well, I believe I have found the scriptural infusion God gave the Chinese nation. Mencius is my favorite, I must admit, and I do not hesitate to call what he bestowed upon the world scripture--some of the most optimistic, holy writing the world has. ~ S Michael Wilcox,

7:As far as Serge can tell, Sophie only takes breakfast, and doesn’t even seem to eat that: each time he visits her lab over the next few days he sees sandwiches piled up virtually untouched beside glasses of lemonade that, no more than sipped at, are growing viscid bubbles on their surface like Aphrophora spumaria. Above these, on the wall, the texts, charts and diagrams are growing, spreading. Serge reads, for example, a report on the branchiae of Cercopidida, which are, apparently, “extremely tenuous, appearing like clusters of filaments forming lamellate appendages,” and scrutinises the architecture of Vespa germanica nests: their subterranean shafts and alleyways, their space-filled envelopes and alveolae … Bizarrely, Sophie’s started interspersing among these texts and images the headlines she’s torn from each day’s newspapers. These clippings seem to be caught up in her strange associative web: they, too, have certain words and letters highlighted and joined to ones among the scientific notes that, Serge presumes, must correspond to them in some way or another. One of these reads “Serbia Unsatisfied by London Treaty”; another, “Riot at Paris Ballet.” Serge can see no logical connection between these events and Sophie’s studies; yet colours and lines connect them. Arching over all of these in giant letters, each one occupying a whole sheet of paper, crayon-shaded and conjoined by lines that run over the wall itself to other terms and letter-sequences among the sprawling mesh, is the word Hymenoptera. “Hymenoptera?” Serge reads. “What’s that? It sounds quite rude.” “Sting in the tail,” she answers somewhat cryptically. “The groups contain the common ancestor, but not all the descendants. Paraphyletic: it’s all connected.” She stares at her expanded chart for a long while, lost in its vectors and relays—then, registering his continued presence with a slight twitch of her head, tells him to leave once more. ~ Tom McCarthy,