Chan Master Wu De refers to Master Fenyang Shanzhao, a renowned Chan master of the Song Dynasty and a monk of the Linji school. In Chan practice, Shanzhao pioneered innovative forms such as Dai-Bie (substitute phrases and critical amendments—revising interpretations of koan dialogues) and Song-Gu (eulogizing antiquity—praising ancient koans through poetic verses). He compiled 100 dialogues of ancestral enlightenment encounters, expounding each with a gatha verse. This marked Chan’s transition from ‘not establishing words’ to ‘literary Chan’, pioneering a new path for Chan’s evolution in the Song era.”
(more…)