The Zǔtáng jí was initially compiled by Jìng 靜 (d.u.) and Yún 筠 (d.u.), two Chan monks on whom we have little information, and prefaced by Chan master Jìngxiū 淨修禪師 (892?–972) of the Zhāoqìng monastery 招慶寺 in Quánzhōu 泉州 (Fújiàn 福建 province). It inherits the patriarchal lineage of the Bǎolín zhuàn and the earliest stratum of the text was likely completed around the mid-tenth century. The sole extant witness of the Zǔtáng jí is the Goryeo 高麗 woodblock edition carved in the 32nd year (eulsa 乙巳) of the Gojong 高宗 era (1245). It was found and identified by Japanese scholars in the early 20th century among the extra-canonical works of the second enterprise of the Goryeo Buddhist canon (Kor. Goryeo Daejanggyeong 高麗大藏經) stored at the Haein monastery 海印寺 in Korea, supplemented by a preface written by a certain Gwangjun 匡儁 (d.u.).

In consideration of numerous editorial notes in the text, the Zǔtáng jí appears to have been largely compiled based on various types of records, such as 'record of conduct'  行錄, 'veritable record'  實錄, 'account of conduct'  行狀, 'separate record'  別錄, 'separate biography'  別傳, etc. In addition, the compilers of the Zǔtáng jí explicitly referred to or cited from the Bǎolín zhuàn and the praise verses (讚 or 頌) composed by Jìngxiū in his Quánzhōu Qiānfó xīnzhù zhūzǔshī sòng 泉州千佛新著諸祖師頌 (Eulogies for the Patriarchs Newly Composed by Qiānfó [Dèng] of Quánzhōu; Or.8210/S.1635). Eventually, other sources were consulted by the compilers, including:

• (a) literary compositions such as poems (shī 詩) (e.g., of Bái Xíngjiǎn 白行簡 or Bái Jūyì 白居易), songs (gē 歌) (e.g., Shénjiàn gē 神劍歌 of Luòpǔ 落浦), and gāthās (jì 偈);
• (b) stele or stūpa inscriptions (bēiwén 碑文, bēimíng 碑銘, tǎmíng 塔銘);
• (c) Chan texts and bio-hagiographical records that circulated at the time (e.g., Juéguân lùn 絕觀論, Cáoxī dàshī zhuàn 曹溪大師傳).

From an analysis of the Zǔtáng jíʼs two prefaces and a few linguistic features, Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次 (1998) has suggested that the compilation and editing process of the text likely underwent three stages: (1) a version in one fascicle collected by Jìng and Yún around the mid-10th century, possibly ca. 952, and prefaced by Jìngxiū at their request; (2) an expanded version in ten fascicles, perhaps completed by the end of the 10th century or the very early 11th century; and (3) the Goryeo edition of the Zǔtáng jí, edited and carved in 1245, subdivided into twenty fascicles.

In contrast with the Jǐngdé chuándēng lù, the language and the style of the Zǔtáng jí most likely did not undergo revisions by Northern Song 北宋 literati or prior to the carving enterprise. As a result, the Zǔtáng jí is an invaluable source for the study of the vernacular of the late Tang 唐代 and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms 五代十國 period and linguistic research on the transition from Middle Chinese (zhōnggǔ hànyǔ 中古漢語) to Early Mandarin (jìndài hànyǔ 近代漢語). Furthermore, the Goryeo edition of the Zǔtáng jí preserves many graphic variants (yìtǐzì 異體字) and phonetic loan characters (tōngjiǎzì 通假字) that appear to reflect the customs of non-official documents during these periods.

In terms of contents, the Zǔtáng jí consists of a succession of 246 bio-hagiographical entries of individuals, whether legendary or historical, associated with the Chan tradition (Yanagida 1964, 46; Sūn, Kinugawa, and Nishiguchi 2007, 9, n. 10). Fascicle 1 and 2 cover the so-called 'seven buddhas of the past'  過去七佛 and the thirty-three patriarchs of Chan. Fascicle 3 contains entries of Chan masters belonging to the side-lineages of Dàoxìn 道信 and Hóngrěn 弘忍, as well as the entries of eight first-generation disciples of Huìnéng 慧能. Fascicle 4 to 13 cover individuals in the line of succession of Qīngyuán Xíngsī 靑原行思 (671–741), beginning with Shítóu Xīqiān 石頭希遷 (701–791). Eventually, fascicles 14 to 20 consist of the entries of figures in the line of succession of Nányuè Huáiràng 南嶽懷讓 (677–744), beginning with Mǎzǔ Dàoyī 馬祖道一 (709–788). For more details, please refer to the table of contents of the two editions cited in the paragraph below or consult the .xlsx table of Van Cutsem (2020c).

Currently, the best editions of the whole text of the Zǔtáng jí are that of Sūn Chāngwǔ 孫昌武, Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次, and Nishiguchi Yoshio 西口芳男 (2007) and that of Zhāng Měilán 張美蘭 (2009). Thoroughly annotated editions of sections of the Zǔtáng jí have been published in the Tōyō bunka kenkyūjo kiyō and the Zen bunka kenkyūjo kiyō.

Selected bibliography

Facsimiles and photographic reproductions

Sodōshū. 祖堂集. 1994. Edited by Zen bunka kenkyūjo 禪文化硏究所. Kyoto: Zen bunka kenkyūjo.

Yanagida Seizan 柳田聖山. 1980–1984. Sodōshū sakuin. 祖堂集索引. Vol. 3. 3 vols. Kyoto: Kyōto daigaku jinbun kagaku kenkyūjo.

Zǔtáng jí. 祖堂集. 1994. Shànghǎi: Shànghǎi gǔjí chūbǎnshè.

Zǔtáng jí. 祖堂集. In Gāolí zàngjīng bǔyí. 高麗藏經補遺. Vol. 6. 18 vols. Kyoto: Library of the Institute for Research in Humanities, Kyoto University.

Edited primary sources

Fóguâng dàzàngjīng biānxiū wěiyuánhùi 佛光大藏經編修委員會, ed. 1994. Zǔtáng jí. 祖堂集. Gāoxióng: Fóguâng chūbǎnshè.

Koga Hidehiko 古賀英彥, ed. 2003. Kunchū Sodōshū. 訓注祖堂集. Vol. 8. Kyoto: Hanazono daigaku kokusai zengaku kenkyūjo.

Matsubara Akira 松原朗, Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次, and Ogawa Takashi 小川隆. 2000. “ Sodōshū Chōga Oshō shō to Haku Kyo’i 『祖堂集』鳥窠和尙章と白居易.” Tōyō bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 140: 59–122.

Okayama Hajime 丘山新, Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次, and Ogawa Takashi 小川隆. 2000. “Sodōshū Gozu Hōyū shō soshō 『祖堂集』牛頭法融章疏證.” Tōyō bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 139: 39–83.

Sūn Chāngwǔ 孫昌武, Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次, and Nishiguchi Yoshio 西口芳男, eds. 2007. Zǔtáng jí. 祖堂集. 2 vols. Beijing: Zhōnghuá shūjú.

Tsuchiya Masaaki 土屋昌明, Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次, and Ogawa Takashi 小川隆. 2001. “Ransan Oshō Rakudōka kō 懶瓚和尙『樂道歌』攷.” Tōyō bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 141: 125–95.

Van Cutsem, Laurent. 2020a. “Chán Master Jìngxiūʼs 淨修禪師 Preface to the Zǔtáng jí 祖堂集 (K.1503): A TEI-based Edition.” Database of Medieval Chinese Texts. 中古寫本資料庫. Ghent; New Taipei: Ghent University and Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts . https://www.database-of-medieval-chinese-texts.be/views/texts/zutang_ji/showText.php.

Van Cutsem, Laurent. 2020b. “The Goryeo 高麗 Preface to the Zǔtáng jí 祖堂集 (K.1503): A TEI-based Edition.” Database of Medieval Chinese Texts. 中古寫本資料庫. Ghent; New Taipei: Ghent University and Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts . https://www.database-of-medieval-chinese-texts.be/views/texts/zutang_ji/showText.php.

Wú Fúxiáng 呉福祥 and Gù Zhīchuân 顧之川, eds. 1996. Zǔtáng jí. 祖堂集. Chángshā: Yùelù shūshè.

Zen bunka kenkyūjo Tōdai goroku kenkyūhan 禪文化硏究所唐代語錄硏究班. 2011. “Sodōshū kan shichi Seppō Oshō shō yakuchū (1) 『祖堂集』卷七雪峯和尙章譯注（上）.” Zen bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 31: 199–286.

Zen bunka kenkyūjo Tōdai goroku kenkyūhan 禪文化硏究所唐代語錄硏究班. 2013. “Sodōshū kan shichi Seppō Oshō shō yakuchū (2) 『祖堂集』卷七雪峯和尙章譯注（下）.” Zen bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 32: 13–138.

Zen bunka kenkyūjo Tōdai goroku kenkyūhan 禪文化硏究所唐代語錄硏究班. 2016. “Sodōshū kan jū yakuchū (1) 『祖堂集』卷一〇譯注（一）.” Zen bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 33: 55–189.

Zen bunka kenkyūjo Tōdai goroku kenkyūhan 禪文化硏究所唐代語錄硏究班. 2019. “Sodōshū kan jū yakuchū (2) Kyōshō Oshō shō (1) 『祖堂集』卷一〇譯注（二）鏡淸和尙章（一）.” Zen bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 34: 337–73.

Zen bunka kenkyūjo Tōdai goroku kenkyūhan 禪文化硏究所唐代語錄硏究班. 2021. “Sodōshū kan dai jū yakuchū (3) Kyōshō Oshō shō (2) 『祖堂集』卷第一〇譯注（三）鏡淸和尙章（二）.” Zen bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 35: 79–189.

Zhāng Huá 張華, ed. 2001. Zǔtáng jí. 祖堂集. Zhèngzhōu: Zhōngzhōu gǔjí chūbǎnshè.

Zhāng Měilán 張美蘭, ed. 2009. Zǔtáng jí jiàozhù. 祖堂集校注. Beijing: Shāngwù yìnshūguǎn.

Secondary literature

Anderl, Christoph. 2004. Studies in the Language of Zu-Tang Ji. . 2 vols. Acta Humaniora 213. Oslo: Unipub.

Cài Róngtíng 蔡榮婷. 2004. Zǔtáng jí Chánzōng shījì yánjiū. 《祖堂集》禪宗詩偈硏究. Táiběi 台北: Wénjīn chūbǎnshè.

Demiéville, Paul. 1970. “Le Recueil de la Salle des Patriarches, 'Tsou-t’ang Tsi. .' ” T’oung Pao. 56 (4/5): 262–86.

Ishii Shūdō 石井修道. 1986. “Senshū Fukusen Shōkei-in no Jōshū Zenji Shōtō to Sodōshū 泉州福先招慶院の淨修禪師省僜と『祖堂集』.” Komazawa daigaku bukkyōgakubu kenkyū kiyō. 44: 155–97.

Jorgensen, John. 2005. Inventing Hui-Neng, the Sixth Patriarch: Hagiography and Biography in Early Ch’an. . Leiden: Brill.

Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次. 1998. “Sodōshū satsuki 祖堂集札記.” Zen bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 24: 113–28.

Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次. 2007. “Guânyú Zǔtáng jí de jiàolǐ 關於祖堂集的校理.” In Zǔtáng jí. 祖堂集, edited by Sūn Chāngwǔ 孫昌武, Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次, and Nishiguchi Yoshio 西口芳男, 2:933–54. Beijing: Zhōnghuá shūjú.

Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次. 2010. “Quánzhōu Qiānfó xīnzhù zhūzǔshī sòng yǔ Zǔtáng jí 《泉州千佛新著諸祖師頌》與《祖堂集》.” Translated by Lǎng Jié 朗潔. Zhōngzhèng dàxué zhōngwén xuéshù niánkān. 15: 1–31.

Kinugawa Kenji 衣川賢次. 2010. “Sodōshū ibun betsuji kōshō: Sodōshū naka no onin shiryō.”  『祖堂集』異文別字校證:『祖堂集』中の音韻資料. Tōyō bunka kenkyūjo kiyō. 157: 316(1)–191(126).

Robson, James. 2009. Power of Place: The Religious Landscape of the Southern Sacred Peak (Nanyue) in Medieval China. . Cambridge: Harvard University Asia Center.

Suzuki Tetsuo 鈴木哲雄. 1994. “Sodōshūv taishō keitoku dentōroku 『祖堂集』對照『景德傳燈錄』.” . Zen kenkyūjo kiyō. 22: 249–500.

Van Cutsem, Laurent. 2020c. “The Zǔtáng jí 祖堂集: A Comprehensive .xlsx Table of its Contents and Structure.” Database of Medieval Chinese Texts. 中古寫本資料庫. Ghent. New Taipei 新北市: Ghent University and Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts . https://www.database-of-medieval-chinese-texts.be/views/texts/zutang_ji/showText.php.

Van Cutsem, Laurent, and Christoph Anderl. 2021. “A Translation and Study of Chán Master Jìngxiūʼs 淨修禪師 Preface to the Zǔtáng jí 祖堂集.” Religions. 12 (11): 974, 39 pp.

Waley, Arthur. 1968. “Two Posthumous Articles: (I) A Sung Colloquial Story from the Tsu-T’ang Chi.” Asia Major. 14: 242–46.

Welter, Albert. 2006. Monks, Rulers, and Literati: The Political Ascendancy of Chan Buddhism. . New York: Oxford University Press.

Xiàng Dézhēn 向德珍. 2005. “Quánzhōu Qiānfó xīnzhù zhūzǔshī sòng yǔ Zǔtáng jí 'Jìngxiū Chánshī zàn' jiàolù 《泉州千佛新著諸祖師頌》與《祖堂集》 '淨修禪師讚' 校錄.” Jiǔzhōu xuélín. 3 (4): 160–89.

Yanagida Seizan 柳田聖山. 1953. “Sodōshū no shiryō kachi (1): Tōki Zenseki no hihanteki sochi ni kansuru hitotsu no kokoromi 『祖堂集』の資料價値 (一): 唐期禪籍の批判的措置に關する一つの試み.” Zengaku kenkyū. 44: 31–80. Published under the name Yokoi Seizan 橫井聖山.

Yanagida Seizan 柳田聖山. 1964. “Sodōshū no honbun kenkyū (1) 祖堂集の本文硏究 (一).” Zengaku kenkyū. 54: 11–87.

Yanagida Seizan 柳田聖山. 1980–1984. Sodōshū sakuin. 祖堂集索引. 3 vols. Kyoto: Kyōto daigaku jinbun kagaku kenkyūjo.

Yanagida Seizan 柳田聖山. 1985. “Goroku no rekishi: Zen bunken no seiritsu shiteki kenkyū 語錄の歷史–禪文獻の成立史的硏究.” Tōhō gakuhō. 57: 211–663.

Yáng Zēngwén 楊曾文. 2006 [1999]. Táng Wǔdài Chánzōng shǐ. 唐五代禪宗史. Beijing: Zhōngguó shèhuì kēxué chūbǎnshè.

Zhān Xùzuǒ 詹緖左. 2018. Chánjí cíyǔ yánjiū: yǐ 'Zǔtáng jí' wéi zhǔyào kǎochá duìxiàng. 禪籍詞語硏究: 以祖堂集爲主要考察對象. Beijing: Kēxué chūbǎnshè.

Zhāng Měilán 張美蘭. 2003. Zǔtáng jí yǔfǎ yánjiū. 《祖堂集》語法硏究. Beijing: Shāngwù yìnshūguǎn.