紫竹林顓愚衡和尚語錄

Zǐzhúlín Zhuānyú Héng héshàng yǔlù 紫竹林顓愚衡和尚語錄

Recorded Sayings of Venerable Zhuān-yú Héng of Zǐ-zhú-lín by 觀衡 (說), 正印 (重編)

About the work

Twenty-juan yǔlù of Zhuānyú Guānhéng 觀衡 顓愚觀衡 (1579–1646) — one of the most important late-Míng Chán masters, principal dharma-heir of Hànshān Déqīng 憨山德清 (1546–1623) and thus a senior cousin-line to the Mìyún Yuánwù line (both ultimately descending from Xiàoyán Débǎo 笑巖德寶 [1512–1581]: Xiàoyán → Huànyǒu Zhèngchuán 幻有正傳 → Mìyún Yuánwù and → Hànshān Déqīng → Guānhéng). Fǎhuì 法諱 Guānhéng 觀衡, zì Zhuānyú 顓愚 (“Simple-Foolish”), biéhào Sǎnjū 傘居 (“Umbrella-Residence”), seat-hào Zǐzhúlín 紫竹林 (from his final Nánjīng abbacy). 30th-generation Línjì per self-positioning preserved in the 1643 Jīnlíng Niú-shǒu祖圖 inclusion-ceremony. Lay surname Zhào 趙, of Běizhílì Shùntiānfǔ Bàzhōu 北直隸順天府霸州 (Héběi Bàzhōu, near Běijīng). Re-compiled (chóng biān 重編) from a much larger original yǔlù manuscript-corpus by his principal dharma-heir Fǎxǐyìn 正印 法璽印 / Zhèngyìn 正印 in the early 1670s; cut at Jiāxīng with woodblocks stored at Jiāxīng Léngyánsì 嘉興楞嚴寺 (colophon at juan 7 closing reads “Kāngxī shísì nián shíyī yuè rì Léngyánsì zàngjīngfáng fùbǎn 康熙十四年十一月日楞嚴寺藏經坊附板” = Kāngxī 14 / 1675 lunar 11). Non-commentary; commentedTextid omitted. Printed as Jiāxīng Canon J28 B219.

Abstract

Author. Guān-héng was born 萬曆 7 己卯 8.18 亥時 (= 28 September 1579 Western) in Bà-zhōu 霸州 to the Zhào 趙 family. Mother dreamed of Avalokiteśvara (大士) leading a child into her embrace at conception; birth involved a double-placenta anomaly. Age 14 (rén-chén 壬辰 = 1592): tonsured at Wǔ-tái-shān Yuán-zhào-sì 五臺圓照寺 by Huì-rén dà-shī 惠仁大師; given dharma-name Guān-héng 觀衡. 丙申 丙申 (= 1596): received full precepts from Kōng-yìn dà-shī 空印大師 who gave him the zì Zhuān-yú 顓愚.

Meeting Zǐbó and the shaping prophecy (1600). 庚子 庚子 (= 1600): accompanied Kōngyìn to Yān 燕 (Běijīng) and met Dáguān chánshī 達觀禪師 = Zǐbó Zhēnkě 紫柏真可 (1543–1603, the great late-Wàn-lì martyr-master). Zǐbó placed his hand on Guānhéng’s crown and declared: “zǐ dǐnggǔ rú liánhuā, zhì wǔshí dāng míng zhèn hǎinèi 子頂骨如蓮花至五十當名振海內” (“your crown-bone is like a lotus-flower; at age 50 your name shall resound within the seas”). This prophecy, confirmed in all subsequent biographies, positioned Guānhéng as one of Zǐbó’s anticipated successors. Same year: southern-pilgrimage to Xuělàng 雪浪 and Yúnqī Zhūhóng 雲棲袾宏; retreated at Tiāntāi Huádǐngfēng 華頂峰 where he had a Chán-opening on the Léngyán jīng. 癸卯 癸卯 (= 1603): bìguān 閉關 at Kuāngshān Gàngānglǐng 匡山乾崗嶺 — decisive awakening during an evening walking-meditation, recorded with the verse “yīyè tà kōng xíng, xūkōng hūér shì; shǐ zhī dàjué xīn, tǔmù yǔ wǎshí 一夜踏空行虛空忽爾釋始知大覺心土木與瓦石” (“walked through the void all night; void suddenly released — only then knew the Great-Awakened mind, earth and wood and tile and stone”).

Sealing by Hànshān Déqīng (1608–16). 戊申 戊申 (= 1608): went to Cáoxī 曹溪 to meet Hànshān Déqīng 憨山德清 (1546–1623, then in southern exile after the Wànlì political persecution). Famous first-exchange: Hànshān asked why he still wore an old patched robe; Guānhéng answered “zhèng yào xūn pò héshàng bíkǒng 正要薰破和尚鼻孔” (“precisely to smoke out your nose”). Hànshān stripped off his own gown and gave it to Guānhéng; Guānhéng took it and walked out with a sleeve-flip. Hànshān: “lǎosēng sānshí nián mùzhōng suǒ hǎn jiàn zhě 老僧三十年目中所罕見者” (“in thirty years, I have rarely seen such a person”). Multi-year training. Formal dharma-transmission at Héngyáng Húdōngsì 衡陽湖東寺 in 丙辰 丙辰 (= 1616): Hànshān personally wrote the yuánliú 源流 and publicly conferred the sealing-verse “fǎyì yánqián cǎo, niān lái fù dàqiān; fù jūn xū zìzhòng, huā fā lì réntiān 法意簷前艸拈來覆大千付君須自重花發利人天” (“the dharma-meaning is grass under the eaves — take it to cover the universe; entrusted to you, be self-careful: the flowers will open and benefit heaven and humans”). Hànshān also indicated his own imminent Jìngshān departure and named Guānhéng’s seat as his successor-seat. Returned to Wǔtáiān 五臺庵 at Shuāngqīngjī 雙清磯 (Shàolíng, Húnán) for teaching.

Middle years (1624–42). 甲子 甲子 (= 1624): winter-retreat with 15 named disciples at Wǔtáiān; founded the 觀音旋明 觀音旋明 practice-community. 甲戌 甲戌 (= 1634): to Wǔlíng Déshān pagoda for mastership at the Chángdé Róngwáng 榮王’s Méiyuán 梅園. 乙亥 乙亥 (= 1635): to Jiāngxī Qīngyuán pagoda 青原祖. 丁丑 丁丑 (= 1637): at Kuāngshān Wǔrǔ 匡山五乳 to sweep Hànshān’s tomb (Hànshān had died 1623); composed the 《華嚴綱要序》 華嚴綱要序. Invited by gěijiàn Xióng Wénjǔ 熊文舉 (hào Qīngyǔ 青嶼, the Jiāngxī lay-patron) to take abbacy at Yúnjūshān Wèibáisì 雲居味白寺 — the famous Cáodòng ancestral seat of Dàoyīng Dàoyīng 道膺 (835–902). Element White 元白可 transferred from Tiāntóng to join Guānhéng at Yúnjū. 戊寅 戊寅 (= 1638): at Liú Yīnqí’s Qīlǐsōng 七里松 道場. 庚辰 庚辰 (= 1640): returned to Yúnjū, built Míngyuètáng 明月堂 and other structures. 辛巳 辛巳 (= 1641): invited to Qīngyuán 青原 祖庭 (Jiāngxī, Liú Diànyuán Xiàozé petition) for one-year abbacy. 壬午 壬午 (= 1642): returned to Yúnjū; passed principal transmission to 方融璽 Fāngróngxǐ as dōngtáng 東堂 and 法璽印 Fǎxǐyìn as xītáng 西堂, with fǎyī 法衣, rúyì 如意, 藏經, and the cízhǐ wénquàn 慈旨文券 ceremony-certificate.

Final years (1643–46). 癸未 癸未 (= 1643): invited to Bǎoqìng but waylaid by bandits at Luóchuān; diverted east to Jīnlíng. At Niúshǒushān 牛首山 formally positioned himself as Línjì 30th-generation in the Jīn-líng祖圖 ancestor-lineage-chart ceremony (“shī yú Línjì pài xià zhǐ yuē héng dāng yú cǐ 師於臨濟派下指曰衡當於此”). End of 1643: accepted invitation to Jīnlíng Běishān 北山, which he renamed Zǐzhúlín 紫竹林 — the final seat. 乙酉 乙酉 (= 1645): Qīng forces capture Nánjīng under Prince Dodo 豫王 (大將軍豫王多鐸). Dodo sent three audience-invitations; Guānhéng declined on illness. Winter 1645: gave the Hóngjiè 弘戒 大-precepts ceremony at Tiānjièsì 天界寺 on disciples’ petition — “wàn zhǐ 萬指” (thousands) attended. Died 丙戌 5.6 午時 (= 19 June 1646) at Zǐzhúlín, aged 68 suì / fǎlà 54. Body preserved three days in summer heat with unchanged color; cremated on 5.8.

Compositional history. Guānhéng’s large manuscript-corpus was initially edited for publication at Yúnjūshān by Zhèngyìn / Fǎxǐyìn 法璽印 (his principal heir) through the 1640s–1660s, but the 1661 Yúnjū tomb-pagoda fire (“rényín yuándàn tǎyuàn huílù 壬寅元旦塔院回祿” = Kāngxī 1 / 1662 New Year’s Day tomb-fire, per the 塔銘) destroyed the earlier assembly. Zhèngyìn re-compiled and pared down the corpus, sending his final 20-juan version from Jiāngnán Tóngān 同安 to Jiāhé 嘉禾 (Jiāxīng) where the Léngyánsì cutting was completed in Kāngxī 14 / 1675 lunar 11. Two dated front-prefaces: (1) Lǐ Xiāngēn 李僊根 (Suìníng jìnshì 內閣學士兼禮部侍郎), Kāngxī 12 / 1673 lunar 9; (2) Shībó 施博 (約菴道人, same preface-writer as KR6q0432), Kāngxī 15 / 1676 lunar 7. notBefore = 1620 (conservative — earliest shàngtáng corpus post-1616 Hànshān transmission); notAfter = 1676 (latest dated preface).

Contents by juan. (j.1) 序 + shìzhòng 示眾 + wǎncān 晚參; (j.2–4) fǎyǔ 法語; (j.5–6) shūwèn 書問 (correspondence); (j.7) jīngxù 經序; (j.8–17?) various gōngàn and sūtra commentary blocks (mu-lu truncated in my extract); (j.20) 行狀 行狀 (by Sùhuá fǎshī 素華法師 of Shānyáng) + 塔銘 塔銘 (by Xióng Wénjǔ 熊文舉, qián jìnshì tōngyì dàfū lìbīng èrbù zuǒshìláng xīnjiàn fǎmén dìzǐ 前進士出身通議大夫吏兵二部左侍郎新建法門弟子) + hòuxù 後敘.

Tiyao

Not applicable — this is a Jiā-xīng-canon imprint (J28 B219, also preserved in the Xùzàngjīng Wànxù collection), not a WYG text. Two dated front-prefaces (1673, 1676) + juan 20 xíngzhuàng (by Sùhuá) + tǎmíng (by Xióng Wénjǔ) provide the exceptionally detailed biographical documentation summarized under Abstract.

Translations and research

• Sung-peng Hsu, A Buddhist Leader in Ming China: The Life and Thought of Han-Shan Te-ch’ing (1546–1623) (University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1979). Hàn-shān’s dharma-lineage to Guān-héng is briefly treated.
• Jiang Wu, Enlightenment in Dispute (2008). Guān-héng is treated at pp. 100–02 as the non-Mìyún-line late-Míng Línjì heir of Hàn-shān Dé-qīng, representing a distinct revivalist lineage within the broader Línjì-tradition landscape.
• Liào Zhào-hēng 廖肇亨, 《忠義菩提》 (2013). Guān-héng’s Jiāng-xī 熊文舉 patron-network and the 1637 Yún-jū restoration are treated in detail. Xióng Wén-jǔ’s tǎ-míng preserved in juan 20 is one of Xióng’s few major Buddhist prose pieces.
• Chén Yuán 陳垣, 《釋氏疑年錄》. Dates confirmed 1579–1646.
• Chūn-fang Yü (Chün-fang Yü), The Renewal of Buddhism in China (New York: Columbia UP, 1981). Yún-qī Zhū-hóng and the late-Wàn-lì Buddhist revival — Guān-héng’s 1600 Yún-qī-sì visit situates him in the senior generation of Yún-qī’s direct acquaintance.

Other points of interest

• Primary Hànshān Déqīng dharma-heir. Guānhéng’s 1616 formal transmission from Hànshān Déqīng at Héngyáng Húdōngsì is the principal documented Hànshān direct-dharma-heirship. Hànshān’s own yǔlù (separately extant) preserves the sealing-verse; Guānhéng’s subsequent “Line of transmission” — his 20+ named dharma-heirs including Fǎxǐyìn, Yuánbái Kě, Wànbái Hào, Xīyì Yuán, Xīshēng Mí, Fāngróngxǐ, Chāozōng Yì, Yīshēng, Yōng Cǎotáng, Zànfó, Yǔxūn, Yōutányí, Dōngyán Càn, Ruòléimò, Èrshuǐ Yú, Qiānfúchéng, Miàomíngyuàn, Fódìzài, Xiàofēng Rán, Wúnéng Xiàn — makes him the single most substantial node in the Hànshān sub-line after 1623.
• Zǐbó 1600 prophecy. The Zǐbó Zhēnkě hand-on-crown prophecy at the 1600 Beijing meeting — “crown-bone like a lotus, at age 50 your name shall resound within the seas” — is preserved verbatim in the tǎmíng and is one of the most-cited late-Wàn-lì prophetic moments in surviving Chán biography. Whether Zǐbó intended this as a formal successor-prediction or as a generic encouragement, subsequent hagiography treats it as a definitive prediction that culminated in Guānhéng’s 1616 Hànshān transmission (when he was 37) and his 1629-onward public ascent. The “age 50” marker happens to coincide closely with his 1629 public-abbacy expansion, supporting the retrospective-prophetic reading.
• The 1646 Qīng-conquest deathbed and the Dodo refusal. Guānhéng’s three refusals of audience with Manchu prince Dodo 多鐸 (Yùwáng 豫王, the commander of the Nánjīng conquest in 1645) just before his 1646 death is a significant refused-imperial-audience datum for the MíngQīng transition. Unlike Mùchén Dàomǐn 木陳道忞 who would later accept Shùnzhì’s 1659 summons, Guānhéng at the very moment of the Qīng takeover refused to meet the Manchu conqueror — maintaining a Míng-loyalist stance through his 1646 death. The subsequent Hóngjiè large-precepts ceremony at Tiānjièsì in late 1645 (despite the Qīng occupation) attended by “wàn zhǐ 萬指” (thousands) reflects Guānhéng’s position as a senior spiritual refuge-figure for the immediate post-conquest Nánjīng Buddhist community.
• Xióng Wénjǔ 1670s tǎmíng. Xióng Wénjǔ 熊文舉’s tǎmíng is a specific long prose piece by this Jiāngxī jìnshì official whose own late-life Buddhist engagement is poorly documented outside this text. Xióng signs as “qián jìnshì chūshēn, tōngyì dàfū, lìbīng èrbù zuǒshìláng, Xīnjiàn fǎmén dìzǐ 前進士出身通議大夫吏兵二部左侍郎新建法門弟子” — i.e. a retired Qīng official identifying as a Xīn-jiàn-district dharma-disciple. The tǎmíng is one of Xióng’s longest preserved Buddhist prose pieces and an important late-life literary-work.
• 1662 Yúnjū tomb-fire as manuscript-loss event. The Kāngxī 1 New Year’s Day 1662 tomb-fire at Yúnjū destroyed not only the ancestor-pagoda but apparently also the first-pass editorial work on Guānhéng’s yǔlù manuscript corpus — a specific Qīng-era manuscript-loss event that required Zhèngyìn’s subsequent re-assembly and 1670s re-cutting. The parallel to the 1648 Bóshān scripture-hall fire mentioned at KR6q0419 is striking: both represent significant mid-17th-century destruction of Chán textual apparatus at major ancestor-seats.

Links

• CBETA
• Dharma-teacher: Hànshān Déqīng 憨山德清 (1546–1623; separate extant yǔlù).
• Prophet-predecessor: Zǐbó Zhēnkě 紫柏真可 (1543–1603).
• Principal dharma-heir and editor: 正印 法璽印 / Zhèngyìn.
• Xíngzhuàng author: Sùhuá fǎshī 素華法師 of Shānyáng.
• Tǎmíng author: Xióng Wénjǔ 熊文舉.
• Preface authors: Lǐ Xiāngēn 李僊根 (1673); Shībó 施博 (1676; also preface-writer at KR6q0432).
• Lay-patron network: Xióng Wénjǔ 熊文舉 (Jiāngxī); Jīn-líng大-Yǒnglè fāng and Nánjīng circle; the Yúnjūshān Wèibáisì Jiāngxī Buddhist hub.