Practice
312 articles in category.
Deshan Xuanjian
Master Deshan Xuanjian was a native of Sichuan, surnamed Zhou in lay life. He left home as a boy and threw himself into the study of Buddhist teachings, becoming especially skilled at expounding the Diamond Sutra—hence his nickname, "Zho...
ReadThe Way of Hospitality
The King of Zhao made a special trip to visit Chan Master Zhaozhou Congnen in Zhaozhou City. At the time, the Master was resting in bed. He remained lying down and said to his visitor, "Your Majesty, I'm old and frail now. Though you've ...
ReadReceiving the Buddha's Prophecy of Buddhahood
At one time, the Buddha was staying in the city of Śrāvastī. In the city, the wife of a prominent lay patron gave birth to a remarkably handsome and dignified child. The couple held an elaborate birth celebration, gave him a name fitting...
ReadAttaining Great Freedom
Clouds in the blue sky, water in the bottle.
ReadWhere Are You Going?
One day, Chan Master Dongshan went to visit a gravely ill student monk named Dezhao. Dezhao pleaded with him, "Master! Why won't you show compassion and save a disciple who has sincerely pursued the Way? Can you bear to watch me die with...
ReadGo Practice in the Stench of Urine
During the Song Dynasty, when Chan Master Congyue of Jiangxi went to call on Chan Master Yungai Shouzhi, they had barely exchanged a few words before Shouzhi reproved him:
ReadEmanation of Amitabha
During the Tang Dynasty, there was a Chan Master Fenggan. No one knew where he came from originally. He lived at Guoqing Temple on Mount Tiantai, his hair cropped to his eyebrows, always dressed in a plain cloth robe.
ReadDeshan's Encounter Dialogues
A great ancestor who has awakened has a heart wide open, utterly naked, freshly clean, without the faintest trace of obstruction. It's like clouds scattering across the open sky, the blue heavens fully revealed, their light boundless, sh...
ReadThe Descent of Maitreya
One day, Zen Master Daoying brought up a koan with Zen Master Dongshan—Nanquan testing a monk. Nanquan (Puyuan) asked the monk: "What sutra are you expounding?" The monk said: "The Sutra of Maitreya's Descent." Nanquan said: "When will M...
ReadGuizong Zhichang
A monk came to take his leave of Guizong Zhichang.
ReadThe Returning Bird, Lost Its Nest
A lay devotee asked Chan Master Foguang:
ReadExalting the South, Eclipsing the North
Shenhui was a late disciple of the Sixth Patriarch Huineng and the founder of the Heze lineage. He played a crucial role in the establishment and flourishing of the Southern School, and was among its greatest champions.
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