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五燈嚴統

Pronunciations

Basic Meaning: Corrected [Lineage of the] Five Lamps

Senses:

  • Wudeng yantong. Twenty-five fascicles; and two additional bibliography fascicles; also known as Yantong 嚴統. Compiled by Feiyin Tongrong 費隱通容 (1593–1661) and his assistant Baichi Xingyuan 百癡行元 (1611–1662) and published in 1653 (X80n1567–X81n1569). A comprehensive history of the transmission of Chan 禪宗 both in India and China, beginning with the seven buddhas of the past 七佛 and continuing up to the last years of the Ming dynasty 明代. It includes detailed accounts of the transmission of dharma from master to disciple, many sermons by Chan patriarchs, and their jiyu 機語, that is, words by which they brought disciples to awakening. As the title of the work implies, Feiyinʼs primary motivation was to correct earlier lamp records, such as the Chuandeng lu 傳燈錄, Guangdeng lu 廣燈錄, Wudeng Huiyuan 五燈會元, among others. In particular, he wished to amend the transmission line of Nanyue Huairang 南嶽懷讓 (677–744) and the Linji School 臨濟宗, which derived from it. Feiyin asserted that the Yunmen 雲門 and the Fayan 法眼 schools, which previously had been considered as stemming from the line of Qingyuan Xingsi 靑原行思 (d. 740), actually belonged to the line of Nanyue.He further contended that the Caodong school 曹洞宗 alone stemmed from the Qingyuan line, which virtually came to an end with Tiantong Rujing 天童如淨 (1163–1228). At the beginning of his work, Feiyin introduced considerable evidence in support of his position, criticizing sharply other writings that presented the traditional views. Members of the Caodong school quickly and vigorously challenged Feiyin theories, and he promptly retorted to his critics with a short work entitled Wudeng yantong jiehuo bian 五燈嚴統解惑編 (1 fasc.; X81n1569.317a6–b17). Nevertheless, modern scholars have on the whole rejected Feiyinʼs views, considering the lineage as given in the traditional histories more or less accurate. One of Feiyinʼs Dharma-heirs was Yinyuan Longqi 隱元隆琦 (1592–1673), founder of the Japanese Ōbaku Sect 黃檗宗. He brought with him from China a copy of the Wudeng yantong 五燈嚴統 and had it reprinted in 1657 at the Fumon fukugen zenji 普門福元禪寺, a temple in Settsu 攝津 near present Osaka. It is this edition of the work that was printed in the Zokuzōkyō. 〔續藏、二、乙三、一~五〕 [Erez Joskovich, Stefan Grace; source(s): Ui, ZGDJT, Yokoi, FGD]
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    [Dictionary References]

    Chūgoku bukkyōshi jiten (Kamata) 113

    Bukkyō jiten (Ui) 282

    Bulgyo sajeon 607a, 607a

    Zengaku daijiten (Komazawa U.) 0354b

    Japanese-English Zen Buddhist Dictionary (Yokoi) 176

    Zen Dust (Sasaki) 430

    Fo Guang Dictionary 1204

    Ding Fubao {Digital Version}

    Bussho kaisetsu daijiten (Ono) ③272d*

    Bukkyō daijiten (Mochizuki) (v.1-6)1267c

    Bukkyō daijiten (Oda) 555-3



    Entry created: 2018-05-09

    Updated: 2019-04-11