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  Huiming (Hui-ming, Emyō; 7th c.; Cases 2, 260 n.) was born in the area of Poyang , in present Jiangxi ; his family name was Chen . Since he was of royal descent he was awarded the title “General” when his country fell and he lost his position. He became a monk at an early age at the temple Yongchang si , then studied Zen under the Fifth Patriarch, Hongren. Following his exchange with the Sixth Patriarch, Huineng, described in Case 2, he is said to have dwelt for three years on Mount Lu , after which he made his way to Mount Meng in Yuanzhou . As the first character of his name, , was the same as that of Huineng , he changed it to and thereafter called himself Mengshan Daoming .

  Huineng (Hui-neng, Enō; 638–713; also Dajian Huineng , Ta-chien Hui-neng, Daikan Enō; Cases 2, 83, 96, 118, 238, 260 n., 261 n., 272) is honored as the Sixth Patriarch of Chinese Zen and founder of the Southern school; with him Zen is regarded as having taken on a truly Chinese character.

  According to the traditional accounts of his life, Huineng was a native of Xinzhou in present Guangdong ; his lay name was Lu . His family was originally from Fanyang in modern Hebei , but his father, demoted from a government post, had moved south to the Guangdong region, where he died when Huineng was only three years old. The boy was raised by his widowed mother, and as he grew older he helped support her by selling firewood. One day in town he was deeply moved when he heard the line “Give rise to the mind that does not abide in anything” from the Diamond Sutra. Learning that the reciter had received the sutra from the Fifth Patriarch, Hongren, Huineng set off in search of the Dharma. He first went to nearby Shaozhou , where the people, impressed with him, restored the temple Baolin si in neighboring Caoxi and asked him to be the priest. Huineng was not yet satisfied with his understanding, however, and thus traveled north to Hongren’s monastery on Mount Huangmei . According to the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch, Hongren, hearing that Huineng came from Guangdong, remarked that “a barbarian from the south cannot become a Buddha.” Huineng responded, “In buddha nature there is no north and south.” Hongren was impressed and put him to work as a rice huller.

  One day Hongren, wishing to name a successor, asked the monks to write a verse expressing their understanding. The first verse was that of the senior monk, Shenxiu (605–706): “The body is the bodhi tree, the mind is like the stand of a bright mirror. At all times strive to polish it, and let no dust collect.” Later the illiterate Huineng heard a monk reciting Shenxiu’s verse and, recognizing its shortcomings, had the following verse posted: “Originally there is no tree of enlightenment, nor a stand with a bright mirror. Fundamentally not one thing exists—where is there for dust to collect?” Although Hongren realized the superiority of Huineng’s verse, he withheld praise so that Shenxiu’s supporters would not harm the layman. That night, however, he presented Huineng with the Patriarch’s robe and bowl, and told him to flee south for his own safety. This set the stage for the events described in Kattōshū Case 2.

  Huineng subsequently spent sixteen years in seclusion; in 676, still a layman, he appeared at Faxing si (see Case 83). The priest, Yinzong (627–713), recognizing his deep understanding, shaved his head and gave him the full commandments. The following year Huineng returned to his former temple, Baolin si, where he taught until his death in 713. With him the patriarchate ended in accordance with the wishes of Hongren, who felt that it was merely a cause of contention. Huineng left behind numerous important disciples, among them Heze Shenhui (670–762), the main proponent of the Southern school; Qingyuan Xingsi (d. 740), whose descendants founded what is now the Sōtō school; and Nanyue Huairang, whose descendants founded what is now the Rinzai school.

  Huitang Zuxin (Hui-t’ang Tsu-hsin, Maidō Soshin; 1025–1100; Case 18), also known as Huanglong Zuxin , was a native of Nanxiong in Guangdong . He entered temple life at the age of ten, and later studied under Yunfeng Wenyue (998–1062) and Huanglong Huinan, eventually succeeding Huanglong as abbot of the monastery on Mount Huanglong . He received the title Zen Master Baojue .

  Huiyuan (Hui-yüan, Eon; 334–416; Case 186), one of the leading figures of early Chinese Buddhist history, was a native of Yanmen , in present Shanxi ; his family name was Jia . He studied the Confucian and Taoist teachings before becoming, at twenty-one, a disciple of the great Buddhist scholar and meditator Daoan (312–85). Under Daoan he studied the Prajñā-pāramitā sutras, using Taoist concepts as an aid to understanding. In 381 Huiyuan moved from Xiangyang , in present-day Hubei , southward to Mount Lu , where he spent the remainder of his years at Donglin si , the monastery built for him and his many followers. His biography states, “His shadow never left the mountain, his footprints never entered the secular world. When he bade farewell to his guests, he went only as far as the Tiger Creek” (Chen 1964, p. 105; see also Case 186).

  Under Huiyuan, Mount Lu became a major Buddhist center noted for its monastic discipline, doctrinal study, and meditative practice. Huiyuan supported the efforts of the Kashmirian monk Sanghadeva to translate into Chinese the works of the Sarvāstivāda school of Buddhism, and he was otherwise active in disseminating the Buddhist teachings. In an extensive correspondence with the great translator-monk Kumārajiva (344–413) he posed numerous questions in an attempt to clarify such basic Buddhist concepts as “dharmakāya,” “arhat,” and “bodhisattva.” With a group of his disciples Huiyuan formed the White Lotus Society , dedicated to rebirth in the Pure Land of Amitābha Buddha, and for this reason he is honored as the founder of the Pure Land tradition. When the government under Huan Xuan attempted to assert control over the sangha, Huiyuan wrote a tract entitled Priests Do Not Bow before Kings , arguing that those in sacred orders need not subordinate themselves to secular authority, and that, with their understanding of karma, they would always be responsible citizens.

  Huo’an Shiti (Huo-an Shih-t’i, Wakuan Shitai; 1108–79; Case 109 n.) was a native of Danqiu Huangyan in present-day Zhejiang ; his family name was Luo . He entered the temple Miaozhi yuan at the age of fifteen and became a novice at twenty. After receiving the full precepts he studied under the master Cian Jingyuan (1094–46), a successor of Yuanwu Keqin. After receiving transmission from the master, Huo’an retired to a hut on Mount Baishifeng with the intention of remaining there the rest of his days. However, hearing that Fohai Huiyuan (1103–76) was moving to the monastery Guoqing si on Mount Tiantai , he traveled there to help him establish the community. He later resided on Mount Jiao in Zhenjiangfu , in present Jiangsu . He was known for always keeping in his sanzen room a broom handle, which he used as an expedient in teaching the Dharma.

  Hutou (Hu-t’ou, Kotō; n.d.; Case 19-1). Nothing is known of this figure.

  J

  Ji Xin (Chi Hsin, Ki Shin; n.d.; Case 191) was a prominent retainer of Liu Bang (247–195 BCE), one of the two great generals in the wars that led to the fall of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE). Giles writes:

  [Chi Hsin (Jixin) was] a captain in Liu Pang’s army. When the latter was besieged by Hsiang Chi [see Xiang Yu] at Jung-yang , with little hope of escape, Chi disguised himself as Liu Pang and proceeded to the enemy’s lines [riding in Liu Pang’s Nine-Dragon Carriage] to tender his submission. In the excitement that ensued, Liu Pang succeeded in getting clear away; but when the ruse was discovered, Hsiang Chi ordered Chi Hsin to be burnt alive. A shrine was erected to his memory in Shun-ch’ing in modern Ssuch’uan, as a patriot whose loyalty saved the country, and as one who reckoned his own life of no account compared with that of his sovereign. (1939, p. 118)

  Jianfu Chenggu (Chien-fu Ch’eng-ku, Senpuku Shōko; d. 1045; Case 235), also known as Gutazhu , was a native of Xizhou in Shanxi . He became a monk under a certain Daguang Jingxuan at Mount Liao in Tanzhou , and later studied with Nanyue Liangya , a Dharma heir of the Yunmen master Dongshan Shouchu. While under Nanyue he had an awakening upon hearing some words of Yunmen Wenyan. He later went to the monasteries on Mount Lu and Mount Oufeng before taking up residence at Hongjue tayuan on Mount Yunju . He first lectured at Mount Zhi , claiming to be a Dharm
a successor of Yunmen. Later he was invited to be abbot of the temple Jianfu si , where he was active in teaching. There were widespread repercussions when it was subsequently learned that he had never actually met Yunmen.

  Jiashan Shanhui (Chia-shan Shan-hui, Kassan Zenne; 805–81; Cases 99, 101, 105, 257) was a native of Hanguang , in modern Henan ; his lay name was Liao . He entered temple life at age nine, becoming an acolyte at Mount Longya in Tanzhou , present Hunan . He took the full commandments in Jiangling , present-day Hubei , and devoted himself to the study of Buddhist doctrine and the practice of meditation. He later moved to the city of Jingkou in Runzhou , present Jiangsu . As described in Case 257, one night during a lecture Jiashan gave some answers to a questioning monk that dissatisfied Daowu Yuanzhi, who advised Jiashan to visit the “Boatman Monk” Chuanzi Decheng. Daowu described Chuanzi as a teacher that “above, hasn’t a tile to cover his head, and below, hasn’t a gimlet point of ground to stand on.”

  Jiashan went to the river Wujiang in modern Jiangsu , where Chuanzi had his boat. It is said that he and Chuanzi had an immediate meeting of minds, and that Chuanzi, after sanctioning his understanding, advised him to dwell in the mountains and devote himself to finding even just a single true student to maintain the Dharma. Chuanzi then capsized his boat and was never seen again. Jiashan followed Chuanzi’s advice, secluding himself in the mountains for over thirty years. In 870 he settled on Mount Jia , in present Hunan, and began to teach the students who came to him. Finally the temple Lingquan yuan was built for them. In Case 99 Jiashan poetically describes his “state” or “surroundings” there. It was at Lingquan yuan that, two hundred years later, the great master Yuanwu Keqin delivered the lectures that were compiled into the Blue Cliff Record.

  Jingqing Daofu (Ching-ch’ing Tao-fu, Kyōsei Dōfu; 868–937; Cases 158, 197 n., 200) was a native of Yongjia in Wenzhou , present Zhejiang ; his family name was Chen . While still young he entered the temple Kaiyuan si . Later he joined the assembly under Xuefeng Yicun on Mount Xianggu in present Fujian . At their first meeting Xuefeng, hearing that Daofu came from Yongjia, commented that he was from the same region as Yongjia Xuanjue. “Where, though, did Yongjia come from?” responded Daofu. After succeeding to Xuefeng’s Dharma, Jingqing went to Yuezhou , in present-day Zhejiang, and there resided at the temple Jingqing si . Later, at the invitation of the imperial court, he became abbot of Tianlong si and Hangzhou Longce si .

  Jingshan Hongyin (Ching-shan Hung-yin, Kinzan Kōin; d. 901; Case 200) was a native of Wuxing in present Zhejiang ; his family name was Wu . At the age of nineteen he became a monk at the temple Kaiyuan si under a priest named Wushang and at the age of twenty-two took the full precepts at Mount Song in Henan . He first studied under Yunyan Tansheng (Yün-yen T’an-sheng, Ungan Donjō; 782–841), but, failing to accord with Yunyan’s teaching style, later joined the assembly under Guishan Lingyou on Mount Jing . Following Guishan’s death in 866, Hongyin, at the request of the other monks, took his place to become the third abbot of the monastery on Mount Jing.

  Jingzhao Mihu (Ching-chao Mi-hu, Keichō Beiko; n.d.; Case 246), also known as Qishi , Mi Qishi , and Mihu , was a successor of Guishan Lingyou. Little else is known of him other than the stories that remain in koans, most of which feature his exchanges with Yangshan Huiji and Dongshan Liangjie.

  Jue Tiezui . Another name for Guangxiao Huijue.

  Juefan Huihong (Chüeh-fan Hui-hung, Kakuhan Ekō; 1071–1128; Case 140), also known as Jiyin Zunzhe (Chi-yin Tsun-che, Jakuon Sonja), was a native of Ruizhou , in modern Jiangxi ; his lay name was Peng . He became a monk at the age of fourteen and began doctrinal studies; a brilliant student, he was reportedly able to memorize an entire book at a single reading. He took the full precepts at nineteen at the temple Tianwang si in Loyang , then studied the Madhyamaka and Yogācāra teachings under a Dharma master named Xuanmi . Later he began his formal Zen training under Zhenjing Kewen. After succeeding to Zhenjing’s Dharma he entered the temple Qingliang si in Ruizhou. During the Chongning era (1102–6) he was imprisoned a total of four times owing to false charges brought against him by a priest who disagreed with his teachings. He was aided at this time by Zhang Wujin and Guo Tianmin , both of them prominent government officials and lay Zen practitioners. Later he went to Xiangxi in present Xiangnan , and there he resided at the hermitage Mingbai an , devoting himself to scholarship. He produced several important commentaries and biographies, including the Zen Forest Records , Biographies of Monks of the Zen School , and Biographies of Eminent Monks .

  Juzhou Baotan (Chü-chou Pao-t’an, Kisshū Hōdon; 1129–97; Case 123) was a native of Longyou in Jiadingfu , modern Sichuan ; his family name was Xu . He was a successor of Dahui Zonggao, and resided at Yanshou Chanyuan on Mount Zhangxi in Zhejiang . He is best known as the compiler of the biographical collection Treasury of Great Light .

  K

  Kānadeva. See Āryadeva.

  Kanzan Egen (1277–1360; Cases 35, 175 n., 225, 253) was a Japanese monk, born as the second son of the aristocratic Takanashi family in Shinano (present-day Nagano Prefecture). He received ordination at Kenchō-ji under the priest Tōden Shikei (d. 1374); in 1307 he met Nanpo Jōmyō, from whom he received the name Egen , but there is no evidence that he studied under him. In 1309 Egen returned to Shinano and remained there until 1327, when he met Shūhō Myōchō at Kenchō-ji and became his student. In 1330 he experienced a deep enlightenment with the koan “Yunmen’s ‘Barrier,’” Case 8 of the Blue Cliff Record:

  At the end of the training period Cuiyan Lingcan said to the assembly, “Monks, I have preached to you throughout the retreat. Look and tell me if I have any eyebrows left.”

  Paofu said, “One who steals is uneasy at heart.”

  Changqing Huileng said, “They’ve grown!”

  Yunmen said, “Kan!” [which literally means “Barrier!” but which is untranslatable in the context of the koan].

  After receiving transmission from Myōchō, Kanzan is said to have gone to the mountain village of Ibuka , in Mino , present-day Gifu Prefecture, where he worked as a laborer to integrate his realization into his daily life. In 1337 he was called back to the capital and installed as the founding priest of the temple Myōshin-ji . He is said to have died in his traveling clothes, in the standing posture. Although he had only one Dharma successor—Juō Sōhitsu (1296–1380)—his lineage, known as the Ōtōkan lineage (see p. 10, above) has continued through the present day, and, through Hakuin Ekaku, includes every Rinzai Zen master in Japan.

  Kanzan is remembered for his austere lifestyle. A famous (and undoubtedly apocryphal) story relates how one day his contemporary Musō Soseki came to Myōshin-ji on an unannounced visit. Kanzan had nothing to offer his guest, so he sent a monk to a neighborhood shop for some bean cakes. These he served to Soseki on the cover of his inkstone box, as he had no proper tray for the purpose. Soseki is said to have been much impressed by the simplicity of Kanzan’s life and to have later predicted that Kanzan’s lineage would prevail over his own.

  Kāśyapa Buddha (Jiashe Fo , Chia-she Fo, Kashō Butsu; Cases 34, 70 n.) was the sixth and last of the nonhistorical buddhas (the buddhas said to have preceded Śākyamuni). According to legend he lived in an age when the human lifespan was twenty thousand years, and he liberated twenty thousand people at one gathering. The Jingde-Era Record of the Transmission of the Lamp gives his verse as: “All sentient beings are naturally pure; originally they have no birth, no death. Bodies and minds are born of delusion; there is no weal or woe in illusory life” (Ogata 1990, p. 3).

  L

  Langye Huijue (Lang-yeh Hui-chüeh, Rōya Ekaku; 11th c.; Cases 27 n., 114, 191, 223, 228) was a native of the capital city Luoyang . After the death of his father Langye went to Hangyang , where his father had served as governor, to help with the funeral proceedings. On his return he stopped at the ancient monastery located on Mount Yao in Liyang . While there he experienced such a deep feeling of affinity for the place that he decided to renounce lay life and
enter the monkhood. After ordination he went on pilgrimage and visited many masters, finally entering the assembly under Fenyang Shanzhao, whose Dharma successor he became. He then went to Chuzhou in present Anhui , where he settled on Mount Langye . He and his contemporary Xuedou Chongxian were known as the “Two Amṛta Gates” of their era for their skill in teaching Linji Zen. Langye was given the honorary title Zen Master Guangzhao . Among his important students was Changshui Zixuan.

  Li Tongxuan (Li T’ung-hsüan, Ri Tsūgen; 635–730 [646–740]; Case 235) was a native of Cangzhou in modern Hebei ; some accounts say he was related to the imperial family. In later life he became interested in Avataṁsaka philosophy and authored a number of works, including the New Treatise on the Avataṁsaka Sutra and the Comprehensive Treatise on the Avataṁsaka Sutra . He also stressed the importance of meditation, and the ultimate unity of delusion and enlightenment. His writings were a major influence on later East Asian Buddhist thought.

  Li Ying (Li Ying, Ri Yō; d. 169; Case 262) was a Han-dynasty official of exceptional ability and force of character. Giles writes:

  [Li Ying was] a native of Ying-ch’uan in Anhui… In AD 156 he was appointed by the Emperor Huan Ti to operate against the Kitan Tartars who were raiding the frontier, and his appearance on the scene created such consternation in the Tartar ranks that they sent back all the men and women who had been carried away as captives. For these services he was advanced to high office, and for a long time exercised great influence. When appointed in 159 to be Governor of Honan, Chang Shuo, brother to the eunuch Chang Jang, then magistrate at Yeh-wang, was so alarmed that he fled to the capital and hid himself in a pillar in his brother’s house. But Li Ying, who had discovered his iniquities, tracked him to his hiding-place, dragged him forth, and after due trial caused him to be executed. This bold act frightened the eunuchs into good behaviour for a long time. At the death of the Emperor in 167, Ch’en Fan and Topu Wu took the lead in the administration; and when they fell victim to eunuch intrigues, Li Ying fell with them. He was thrown into prison and beaten to death. Personally he was a man of very abrupt character. He had in consequence few friends; and those who sought him out were said to “go to the dragon’s door.” (1939, pp. 474–75)