The Recorded Sayings of Chan Master Zhongfeng Mingben

This book presents Chan (Zen) Buddhism through the talks and writings of Zhongfeng Mingben (1263-1323), the key Chan master of the Mongol Yuan dynasty (1271-1368). Through translation of various genres of Zhongfeng''s talks and writings, the book attempts to allow Zhongfeng to "speak Chan/Zen" for himself. His interactions with foreign students (such as disciples from distant Yunnan and Japan) and his teachings on the relationship between Chan and Pure Land nianfo (nembutsu) are closely examined. Also, the book highlights his influence on the Linji Chan of the subsequent Ming dynasty (a neglected area in Chan studies).

After the death of his master Gaofeng Yuanmiao, Zhongfeng Mingben (1263-1323) left Gaofeng''s mountain and lived in solitude. For many years, he resided in various small mountain hermitages (often called "Dwelling-in-the-Phantasmal Hermitages") or houseboats. He drew students from all over East Asia: Yunnan, Turfan, Mongolia, Korea, Japan, and elsewhere. The Recorded sayings of Chan Master Zhongfeng Mingben provides an introduction, from the perspective of Chan/Zen Studies, to the teachings of this key figure of Yuan-dynasty Chan. Jeffrey Broughton focuses on selected works in Zhongfeng''s two Chan records, the enormous Extensive Record of Preceptor Tianmu Zhongfeng, and the much smaller ancillary Zhongfeng Record B. Included translations are Instructions to the Assembly; selected Dharma Talks; the miscellany Night Conversations in a Mountain Hermitage; the dharma talk entitled House Instructions for Dwelling-in-the-Phantasmal Hermitage; In Imitation of Hanshan''s Poems (one-hundred poems); Song of Dwelling-in-the-Phantasmal Hermitage; Cross-Legged Sitting Chan Admonitions (with Preface); Ten Poems on Living on a Boat; and Ten Poems on Living in Town.