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永嘉玄覺

Pronunciations

Basic Meaning: Yongjia Xuanjue

Senses:

  • (665–713) An early Tang monk from Yongjia 永嘉. Originally from Wenzhou 溫州 (located in present-day Zhejiang 浙江) with the surname Dai 戴. There are a number of different biographies for him in various canonical texts, some of which claim him as a Tiantai monk, and others that claim him to be a Chan monk. As Yi-hsun Huang (2010) has pointed out, all of these sectarian attributions are made long after his death by writers who are interested in establishing lineages for their respective traditions, so caution must be used when reading these. According to the most commonly told account, he entered the saṃgha at the age of eight, studying the canon, with a special emphasis on Tiantai 天台 doctrine, becoming deeply versed in the Lotus Sutra, as well as the Vimalakīrti 維摩經 and Nirvana Sutras 涅槃經. He also became versed in the Tiantai meditative technique of calm abiding and clear observation 止觀. He later made himself a small hermitage in a cliff next to the Longxingsi 龍興寺 in Wenzhou, where he devoted himself to concentrated study and Chan meditation practice. Among his comrades were the eminent Tiantai monks Zuoxi Xuanlang 左溪玄朗 and Dongyang Ce 東陽策 with whom he practiced and traveled together seeking instruction in the Dharma. He is recorded as having traveled with Ce to the monastery of the sixth Chan patriarch Huineng 慧能. The centerpiece of his biographical account (contained in slightly varying form in several texts) is the narrative of his encounter with Huineng. In this story, Xuanjue goes toe-to-toe with the patriarch in a bit of a Dharma-battle which results in the acknowledgement of his enlightenment by the latter. He finishes his stay at the patriarchʼs temple in one night, which leads to his being called by the nickname Yisujue 一宿覺, or 'One-night Enlightened' (although, according to the story, he is actually enlightened before deciding to stay overnight). (see T 2014.45.397a). He is attributed to be the author of two popular short early Chan texts called the Zhengdao ge 證道歌 (The Song of Actualizing the Way) and the Chanzong yongjia ji 禪宗永嘉集 (Anthology of Yongjia). However, his authorship of the former work is doubted (see Huang 2020). He is also known as Mingdao 明道, Zhenjue 眞覺 (眞覺大師) and Daoming 道明. His posthumous title was Wuxiang Dashi 無相大士. For his biography see T 2061.50.758a-b and T 2014.48.397a. 〔六祖壇經 T 2008.48.357b29〕

    References:

    Huang, Yi-hsun. 2010. “A Study of the Development of Yongjia Xuanjueʼs Biographies: With a Focus on Their Relationship to the Concept of School (zong 宗) in Chinese Buddhism.” Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal 23 : 117–130.

    Liebenthal, Walter. 1941. “Yung-Chiaʼs Song of Experiencing the Tao.” Monumenta Serica 6 : 1–39.

    Luk, Charles. 1962. “Yung-Chiaʼs Song of Enlighenment.”  In Ch'an and Zen Teaching: Third Series. London:  Rider & Co. 102–145.

    [Charles Muller; source(s): Yokoi, FGD, Ui, Kamata, Yokoi]
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    [Dictionary References]

    A Glossary of Zen Terms (Inagaki) 360

    Japanese-English Zen Buddhist Dictionary (Yokoi) 826

    Index to the Bussho kaisetsu daijiten (Ono) 666

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    The rights to textual segments (nodes) of the DDB are owned by the author indicated in the brackets next to each segment. For rights regarding the compilation as a whole, please contact Charles Muller. Please do not reproduce without permission. And please do not copy into Wikipedia without proper citation!

    Entry created: 2001-09-08

    Updated: 2019-06-01