One body, one mind and one wisdom: four foundations of mindfulness in Huisi’s essay
This article provides a nonteleological and nonsectarian reading of Nanyue Huisi’s 南嶽慧思 (515–577) life and his meditation manual Zhufa wuzheng sanmei famen 諸法無諍三昧法門 [The Method of Samādhi in which All Dharmas are without Contention]. The main argument centers on his modification of the classical mod...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2025
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| In: |
Studies in Chinese Religions
Year: 2025, Volume: 11, Issue: 1/2, Pages: 174-201 |
| Further subjects: | B
Mahāyāna
B Tiantai B Buddhist Meditation B smṛtyupasthāna B Huisi |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | This article provides a nonteleological and nonsectarian reading of Nanyue Huisi’s 南嶽慧思 (515–577) life and his meditation manual Zhufa wuzheng sanmei famen 諸法無諍三昧法門 [The Method of Samādhi in which All Dharmas are without Contention]. The main argument centers on his modification of the classical model of smṛtyupasthāna (Foundations of Mindfulness). This is achieved by integrating major Mahāyāna doctrines with diverse contemplative techniques that were prevalent within the general milieu of Buddhist meditation during the sixth century. Many of those techniques, including the model of smṛtyupasthāna, could not easily fit into the established hierarchy of doctrinal and soteriological schemes until years later. Although smṛtyupasthāna was subsequently marginalized within the dominant discourse of Chinese Buddhism due to its pre-Mahāyāna origins, for Huisi, it explicitly expressed the meaning of the Great Vehicle. Overall, Huisi’s life and writings point to a critical developmental stage in the history of Buddhist meditation, characterized by keen competitions, intellectual fluidity and open-ended experimentations related to contemplative practice. |
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| ISSN: | 2372-9996 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Studies in Chinese Religions
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/23729988.2025.2532288 |
