Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature
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In Journey to the West, when Guanyin Bodhisattva and her disciple Moksha (Hui’an Pilgrim) were sent by Tathāgata to find a scripture-seeking monk in Chang’an, their choice to lodge temporarily in a temple of the local spirit was no random decision.
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In Journey to the West, when Sun Wukong was imprisoned under the Five Elements Mountain, Guanyin Bodhisattva visited him. Wukong declared, “Tathagata deceived me!” But why did he claim deception? How exactly did Tathagata trick him?
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In Journey to the West, Sun Wukong’s “sworn brotherhood” with Zhenyuanzi (Great Immortal Zhenyuan) was a compromise born of extraordinary circumstances.
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Simply put, Sun Wukong both escaped Buddha’s palm and didn’t fully escape it. However, both parties cheated in the process — yet neither point truly mattered, for the gods cared only whether Wukong was defeated. Why is this so?
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Chan Master Zhizang (735–814 CE), also known as Xitang Zhizang, was a renowned Tang Dynasty master. Ordained young, he became a close disciple of Mazu Daoyi at thirteen, later honored among the Three Great Disciples of Hongzhou alongside Baizhang Huaihai and Nanquan Puyuan. He studied with National Preceptor Huizhong and trained under Ox-Head School’s…
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Master Sengcan was the third patriarch of Chinese Chan Buddhism and a direct disciple of Master Huike, who received the Dharma from Bodhidharma. He is best known for composing the seminal work “Xinxin Ming” (“Verses on the Faith-Mind”), which emphasizes the realization of non-duality and the oneness of mind and Buddha-nature.
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A man journeyed through mountains and rivers, enduring great hardship. While crossing a steep cliff, he slipped and fell into a deep ravine. As he plummeted, he desperately grabbed an old branch growing from the cliffside — saving himself but left dangling mid-air.
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Danxia Tianran was a renowned Tang Dynasty Chan master. Ordained as “Tianran,” he earned the name Danxia Tianran after founding Danxia Temple (also known as Red Clouds Temple or Immortal Clouds Temple) on Mount Danxia in Nanzhao County, Henan. Celebrated for his unconventional methods and iconoclastic wisdom, his ordination story epitomizes these traits.
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During the Tang Dynasty, Chan Master Baizhang Huaihai was renowned for his strict adherence to monastic rules and his profound teachings.