Shàotán 紹曇
Sobriquet Xīsǒu 希叟 (“the rare old man”), also called Xīsǒu Tán 希叟曇 / Xīsǒu Shàotán 希叟紹曇. A Southern Sòng Chán 禪 master of the Línjì 臨濟 — Yángqí 楊岐 branch, twentieth generation under Nányuè Huáiràng 南嶽懷讓. Native of Western Shǔ 西蜀 (modern Sìchuān). DILA Buddhist Studies Person Authority id A001133, with matching record in the project’s Authority-Databases/authority_person/Buddhist_Studies_Person_Authority.xml.
Dharma heir of Wúzhǔn Shīfàn 無準師範 (1178–1249); thus in the broad post-Dàhuì 大慧 stream of Línjì Chán but not a direct heir of Dàhuì Zōnggǎo — his teacher Wúzhǔn was a fellow heir of Yuánwù Kèqín 圜悟克勤 in the parallel Húqiū 虎丘 line. Birth year unknown; he had died by mid-autumn 1279 (己卯), so active roughly 1249–1279.
Documented abbacies, in sequence: Fólóng chánsì 佛隴禪寺 in Qìngyuánfǔ 慶元府 (Chúnyòu 9 = 1249); Fǎhuá chánsì 法華禪寺 in Píngjiāngfǔ 平江府 (Jǐngdìng 1 = 1260); Xuědòu Zīshèng chánsì 雪竇資聖禪寺 (Jǐngdìng 5 = 1264); Kāishàn Chóngqìng chánsì 開善崇慶禪寺 at Ruìyán 瑞巖 (Xiánchún 5 = 1269). Dharma heirs include Kèwēng Shào 克翁紹 and Fāngwài Yuán 方外圓.
Surviving works in the Xuzangjing 卍續藏經: Wǔjiā zhèngzōng zàn 五家正宗贊 (KR6q0005, 4 juan, X78n1554, composed 1254); Xīsǒu Shàotán chánshī yǔlù 希叟紹曇禪師語錄 (1 juan, X1389); Xīsǒu Shàotán chánshī guǎnglù 希叟紹曇禪師廣錄 (7 juan, X1390). His work was prized in Japanese Zen as a model of sìliù 四六 parallel prose, and the Wǔjiā zhèngzōng zàn was reprinted as a Gozan-ban 五山版 at Tenryū-ji 天龍寺 in 1349 under Shun’oku Myōha 春屋妙葩.