Humanizing the Study of Late Ming Buddhism (original) (raw)

Buddhist Historiography: A Tale Of Deception in A Seminal Late Ming Buddhist Letter

This article offers an historical repositioning of an unusually rich early seventeenth-century autobiographical letter written by the Donglin 東林 partisan Wang Yuanhan 王元翰 (1565–1633). The letter is religiously complex, yet historians have pre- viously focused only on a single short excerpt listing the names of eighteen monks and officials to argue that Buddhist activity flourished in Beijing circa 1600. To the contrary, the greater historical value of this letter resides in its depictions of reli- gious desire, vision of self-cultivation, and critical judgments imparted by an impas- sioned Buddhist and unremitting Donglin remonstrator. Through examination of Wang’s political and spiritual biography and actual evidence that the network he conjures was more aspirational than real, this article concludes that we need to rethink earlier scholarly depictions of the Donglin as anti-Buddhist, distinguish between being critical and being anti-Buddhist, and reflect on the use of lists in an age of scholarly attention to networks.

Mad but not Chan: Tu Long (1543-1605) and the Tiantai School of Buddhism_Vol.5 No.2 2019

This article focuses on the relationship between the controversial late-Ming playwright Tu Long and the contemporaneous Tiantai school of Buddhism represented by Youxi Chuandeng. It aims to contribute on the one hand to studies of Tu Long, which have paid little attention to Tu's connection with Tiantai, and on the other hand to studies of Chuandeng and the late Ming Tiantai revival, which have not yet explored the nexus between Chuandeng's philosophical teachings and his social network. I argue that it is most likely through Tiantai Buddhism, rather than "mad Chan" or Yangming philosophy, that Tu justified his antinomian deeds. This case study of Tu Long indicates that the success of the Tiantai school in the late Ming may be attributed to its fulfillment of the literati appetite for reading and writing, as well as to its tolerance of their unconventional lifestyle and syncretic spirituality. Unveiling some disagreements between Tu and Yunqi Zhuhong, whom many regard as Tu's guru, this paper highlights the agency of a lay Buddhist amid the tensions between rival schools and teachers.

Miyun Yuanwu 密雲圓悟 (1567-1642) and His Impact on 17th-Century Buddhism

Religions, 2023

This paper relies on the dataset “Historical Social Network of Chinese Buddhism” (Ver. 2021‑06). The focus is on the period between c. 1570 and 1700 CE. We argue that the actor who was most influential for institutional Buddhism in the 17th century was not one of the “four great monks of the late Ming” but rather Miyun Yuanwu 密雲圓悟 (1566–1642). The network illustrates how Miyun’s Tiantong branch 天童派 of the Linji School became the dominant Chan lineage in China and beyond. The main results of this study are: (1) the data corroborate the assumption that (at least) monastic Buddhism declined between c. 1420 and 1570. (2) The network view de‑emphasizes the importance of the ‘four famous late Ming eminent monks’ for the development of 17th‑century Buddhist monasticism. (3) The data align well with a suggestion by Jiang Wu to distinguish two different stages in the development of late Ming Buddhism. The first is characterized by the “late Ming revival,” led by figures such as Yunqi Zhuhong, Zibo Zhenke, and Hanshan Deqing; the second phase is the organization of orthopraxy around the Chan lineage discourse dominated by Miyun Yuanwu and his students. (4) For the 17th century, the network data clearly shows the centrality of Miyun Yuanwu and his network.

ASSIGNMENT 2 Philippe R Mauguy 23.04.2017 Chinese Buddhism in the pre-modern period

The present essay is focused on assessing the impact of Buddhism on the culture and society of Medieval China. The first part will address the impact of Buddhist religious ideas on the culture and society of medieval China. The second part will focus on the Buddhist sacred power impact on the culture and society of medieval China. The historical framework of the present essay will situate Medieval China in the period from 220 CE to 960 CE.

Mad but not Chan: Tu Long (1543-1605) and the Tiantai School of Buddhism

The Foguang Journal of Buddhist Studies, 2019

Chinese Buddhist Studies: Its Character and Established Limits

The study of an entity that we identify as "Chinese Buddhism" started at an early date with the writing of documents that cataloged what came to be the canonic translations and compilations. This focus on the textual tradition and the biographies of those involved in the creation of the Chinese language literature continued to influence study. Over the centuries since those first efforts to establish the identity of the tradition in China, we have seen a variety of approaches to the subject. In every period of time, there have been generally accepted methodologies. These procedures outlined the formalities of study that that resulted from custom, tradition, and preferences of scholars. One result of these developments has been the establishment of limits beyond which there was a penalty of rejection both personal and institutional. Subject matter was ranked so that some aspects were subordinated to a less conspicuous place or status in the scheme of studying Buddhism that could be called "Chinese". In the contemporary world, new technology has challenged the field and newer methods are raising questions about whether the computer is supplanting the older scholarly tasks or amplifying them. The tasks of researchers must include an appraisal of how they define the character of the subject matter as well as recognizing the limits imposed by custom on the ways of active investigation.

Orthodoxy, controversy and the transformation of Chan Buddhism in seventeenth-century China

This dissertation investigates the transformation of Chan Buddhism in seventeenth-century China through the lens of a series of controversies motivated by the claim of orthodoxy. The particular case examined here is the Huangbo lineage within the Linji school. Because the third Huangbo master Yinyuan Longqi emigrated to Japan in 1654, this lineage spread throughout Japan and led to the establishment of the Ōbaku (Huangbo) school in Japan. In this study, I focus on three Huangbo masters: Miyun Yuanwu (1566–1642), Feiyin Tongrong (1593–1662) and Yinyuan Longqi (1592–1673). All three masters had been abbots of Mount Huangbo in Fuqing, Fujian province and were bonded by the relationship of dharma transmission. My study suggests that Chan Buddhism in seventeenth-century China was a systematic reconstruction and reinvention of a Chan ideal that was characterized by the performance of encounter dialogue and a hierarchy of dharma transmission. Motivated by the Linji school's forceful claim of orthodoxy (Linji zhengzong), the Huangbo masters engaged in three major controversies in seventeenth-century China. The controversy between Master Miyun Yuanwu and his disciple Hanyue Fazang, taking place around 1635, concerns the authenticity of the Chan enlightenment experience. Interestingly, this controversy was finally judged by the Yongzheng Emperor a hundred years later. The second controversy, about the legitimacy of dharma transmission, led to a lawsuit in which Feiyin Tongrong, the second Huangbo master, lost the case and his book Wudeng yantong was ordered to be burnt in 1654. In addition, the Huangbo master's orthodox position also propelled them to play a leading role in anti-Christian polemics. As a result, Miyun Yuanwu and Feiyin Tongrong organized an anti-Christian campaign from 1634 to 1640. I conclude that significant transformations of Chan Buddhism took place in seventeenth-century China. Chan Buddhists revitalized ancient Chan ideals embodied in the lively performance of encounter dialogue and the practice of dharma transmission. The result of this re-invention was the emergence of a new orthodoxy within Chinese Buddhism. The establishment of the Japanese Ōbaku school through emigration and overseas missionary work of the third Huangbo master Yinyuan Longqi was a direct result of the transformation of Chan Buddhism in seventeenth-century China. Note: This is the dissertation I completed at Harvard in 2002. Since then, two books derived from it. However, I never went back to the issue of Buddhist-Christian debate which I wrote in Chapter 4. I am going to Rome to see the Jesuits archive and will see if there are potentials to developed this theme.

Humanizing the Study of Late Ming Buddhism (original) (raw)

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