Qiānyán héshàng yǔlù 千巖和尚語錄
Recorded Sayings of Reverend Qiān-yán by 元長 (說), 嗣詔 (錄)
About the work
Single-juan yǔlù of Qiānyán Yuáncháng 元長 千巖元長 (1284–1357), Yuán-dynasty LínjìYángqí dharma-heir of Zhōngfēng Míngběn 中峰明本 (1263–1323) at the Tiānmùshān seat. Originally recorded by dìzǐ Sìzhào 嗣詔 during Yuáncháng’s lifetime at his Wūshāng Fúlóngshān 烏傷伏龍山 abbacy in Yìwū 義烏 (Zhèjiāng). Original Yuán-era cutting was destroyed in the YuánMíng transition warfare (post-1357); reconstituted from an old manuscript by Yuáncháng’s longtime attendant Yīān Lín shàngrén 一庵鄰上人 and re-cut with a new front-preface by Sòng Lián 宋濂 宋濂 (1310–1381) dated Hóngwǔ 9 / 8/25 = 1376-09-08 Gregorian. Printed as Jiāxīng Canon J32 B273. Contents: xù; shàngtáng; xiǎocān; pǔshuō; fǎyǔ; sònggǔ; jìsòng; zànbá; fóshì; fùlù.
Abstract
Authorship. Yuáncháng was a principal late-Yuán Línjì heir of Zhōngfēng Míngběn at Tiānmùshān, with imperial title Pǔyīng guóshī 普應國師. Sòng Lián’s preface (he himself had personally visited Yuáncháng at Fúlóngshān in his youth, yú jiājū shí cháng yè 予家居時嘗謁) records the swift transformation of the Fúlóngshān wilderness retreat into a major monastic center attracting thousands of disciples (xiáěr xuézǐ wàngfēng bēncòu 遐邇學子望風奔湊). The tǎshàng zhī míng 塔上之銘 (tomb-inscription) had also been composed by Sòng Lián and is referenced in the preface as already existing — suggesting it was written at or shortly after Yuáncháng’s 1357 death.
Dating. notBefore = c. 1320 (Yuáncháng’s mature preaching career, post-transmission from Zhōngfēng who died 1323); notAfter = 1357 (Yuáncháng’s death). The Sòng Lián preface and the Yīān Lín shàngrén reconstitution are 1376 events; the yǔlù material itself is from Yuáncháng’s own lifetime as recorded by Sìzhào.
Sòng Lián’s preface. A particularly authoritative early-Míng preface, signed Hànlín xuéshì chéngzhǐ Jiāyì dàifū zhī zhìgào jiān xiū guóshǐ jiān tàizǐ zànshàn dàifū Jīnhuá Sòng Lián 翰林學士承旨嘉議大夫知制誥兼修國史兼太子贊善大夫金華宋濂 — at the height of Sòng’s pre-purge official career under the Hóngwǔ emperor. Sòng Lián’s invocation of his personal acquaintance with Yuáncháng — chánshī yǔ yú jiāo yě 禪師與余交也 — and his already-completed tomb-inscription give this preface particular biographical weight beyond standard Chán-formula praise.
Re-cutting context. The 1376 re-cut by Yīān Lín shàngrén is part of the broader early-Míng restoration of late-Yuán monastic literature in the post-warfare reconstruction period. Yīān Lín had served Yuáncháng zìyòu 自幼 (from childhood) and personally retained the old text; the 1376 re-cut sequence was completed bù yuǎn yīqiān yú lǐ lái zhēng yú xù 不遠一千餘里來徵予序 — Yīān Lín traveled more than a thousand li to obtain Sòng Lián’s preface, evidencing the importance attached to the project.
Tiyao
Not applicable — Jiā-xīng-canon imprint of a Yuán-era yǔlù (J32 B273). The Sòng Lián 1376 preface provides the principal documentation of the post-warfare reconstitution.
Translations and research
- No substantial Western-language secondary literature located. For the broader Zhōng-fēng Míng-běn → Yuán-cháng line: Natasha Heller, Illusory Abiding: The Cultural Construction of the Chan Monk Zhongfeng Mingben (Harvard 2014).
Other points of interest
- Sòng Lián as preface-writer. Sòng Lián (1310–1381) was one of the most important YuánMíng transitional men of letters and the principal Hóng-wǔ-era court historian. His preface here, dated 1376, falls within his peak political-literary period before his 1380 implication in the Hú Wéiyōng affair and 1381 death in exile. Few Chán yǔlù prefaces of any period carry comparable official-literary weight.
- Pǔyīngguóshī title. The imperial pǔyīng 普應 designation makes Yuáncháng one of the few late-Yuán Chán masters to receive a guóshī 國師 title — placing him institutionally alongside Zhōngfēng (pǔyìng 普應) and Gǔlín Qīngmào 古林清茂.