Zen's Chinese Heritage: The Masters and Their Teachings by Ferguson Andrew

Author:Ferguson, Andrew [Ferguson, Andrew]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780861716043
Publisher: Perseus Books Group
Published: 2011-03-08T22:00:00+00:00

A monk asked Daguang, “People like Bodhidharma become ancestors, right?”

Daguang said, “No.”

The monk said, “If Bodhidharma isn’t our ancestor, then why did he come from the west?”

Daguang said, “So that you won’t worship ancestors.”

The monk asked, “After you stop worshipping ancestors, then what?”

Daguang said, “Then you know they aren’t your ancestors.”

XUEFENG YICUN

XUEFENG YICUN (822–908) was a disciple of Deshan Xuanjian. He came from the city of Nanan in ancient Quanzhou (a place in modern Fujian Province). It’s recorded that as a toddler Xuefeng refused to eat nonvegetarian food. One day, while being carried on his mother’s back, a funeral spectacle of flags and flowers appeared. This caused a profound change in the child’s countenance. At the age of twelve he left home to live at Yujian Temple in Putian City. Later he traveled widely, eventually coming to Baocha Temple in ancient Youzhou (modern Beijing), where he was ordained. Later, he went on to Wuling (near the modern city of Changde in Hunan Province), where he studied under the great teacher Deshan, eventually becoming his Dharma heir. However, Xuefeng’s most profound realization occurred with his Dharma brother, Yantou, while they were traveling and staying at a mountain inn during a snowstorm. In the year 865, Xuefeng moved to Snow Peak on Elephant Bone Mountain in Fuzhou, where he established the Guangfu Monastery and obtained his mountain name. The monastery flourished, the congregation’s size reaching up to fifteen hundred monks.

True to the spirit of Zen, Xuefeng’s teaching did not rely on words or ideas. Instead, he emphasized self-realization and experience. The Yunmen and Fayan Zen schools, two of the traditionally recognized five houses of Zen, evolved from Xuefeng’s students.

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