Tag Archives: Practice

Jeffrey L. Broughton’s new anthology looks like a real gem; from his intro:

“Zhuhong published the Chan Whip in 1600, the late Ming dynasty. However, to characterize the Chan Whip as simply “late Ming Chan” would be grossly inaccurate. It surveys most of the history of Chan literature, not just that of the late Ming, as it is a compendium of extracts, over 80% of which are drawn from the enormous Chan corpus dating from the Tang dynasty (ninth century) to the late Ming. The remaining 20 percent or so consists of extracts from sutras and treatises. The Chan Whip was conceived by Zhuhong as a portable, convenient, no-nonsense “pocket companion guide” that addressed practitioners directly, providing not just method but morale. As such, its selections deliberately eschew abstract discussions of theory in favor of sermons, exhortations, sayings, autobiographical narratives, letters, and anecdotal sketches dealing frankly—and encouragingly—with the concrete ups and downs of lived practice.” read more