Huáyán jīng hé lùn zuǎn yào 華嚴經合論纂要
Compilation of Essentials from the Combined Edition of the Huáyán Scripture and the [Lǐ Tōngxuán] Treatise by 方澤 (Fāngzé, 纂 / compiled)
About the work
The Hé lùn zuǎn yào in 3 fascicles is a late-Míng compilation of essentials from [[KR6e0066|Huáyán jīng hé lùn 華嚴經合論]] (X223, 120 fascicles) by 方澤 Fāngzé — a compact alternative to 李贄 Lǐ Zhuówú’s [[KR6e0067|Hé lùn jiǎn yào 簡要]] (X225, 4 fascicles). The two abridgements together attest the broader late-Míng project of making Lǐ Tōngxuán’s commentary accessible to lay readers.
Prefaces
The work opens with a Hé lùn zuǎn yào mù cì 華嚴經合論纂要目次 (table of contents) followed by the editorial preface of śramaṇa 慧研 Huìyán 慧研 (cross-referenced as appearing also at the head of [[KR6e0066|the Hé lùn]] / X223). The first chapter listed is the Shìzhǔ miào yán pǐn dì yī 世主妙嚴品第一.
Abstract
The bracket adopted here (1580 – 1644) reflects the late-Míng period during which the Hé lùn’s readership expanded among educated lay-Buddhist intellectuals. The work follows the chapter-organisation of the parent sūtra in 39 chapters, providing for each chapter a compact summary drawn from Lǐ Tōngxuán’s commentary. Together with Lǐ Zhuówú’s abridgement it documents the late-Míng renaissance of interest in Lǐ Tōngxuán’s contemplative reading of the Avataṃsaka among the educated lay reading public.
The work is preserved in the Manji Xù zàng jīng (X226) collection.
Translations and research
- No substantial Western-language translation located.
- Yoshizu Yoshihide 吉津宜英. Kegon zen no shisōshi-teki kenkyū 華厳禅の思想史的研究. Daitō shuppansha, 1985 — late-Míng Buddhist publishing context.
- Hamar, Imre, ed. Reflecting Mirrors (2007).
Other points of interest
- The two parallel late-Míng abridgements (X225 by Lǐ Zhuówú; X226 by Fāngzé) — produced within roughly the same period — testify to the strong late-Míng demand for accessible Buddhist literature drawn from the older scholastic apparatus.