Study On Monk Tianru Weize Of Yuan Dynasty

After Bodhidharma and successive patriarchs,Chan Buddhism,also known as Zen,flourished and developed into five schools,namely,Weiyang,Linji,Caodong,Fayan and Yunmen.Therefore,one flower with five petals is often referred to as the Chan origin blossoming into five schools in China.The Linji school was further divided into the Yangqi and Huanglong lines,which,together with the Five Families,formed the Seven Sects.Among the Seven Sects,it is the Yangqi Line that spreads the widest and carries on the longest line.There was indeed a resurgence of Linji school during Yang,Ming and Qing Dynasties thanks to several eminent monks including Tianru Weize.Monk Tianru's life can be generalized into four phases as follows: becoming a monk in Heshan Mountain,achieving enlightenment in Tianmu Mountain,seeking seclusion in Songjiang and passing down his thoughts in Suzhou.His lifelong experience of seeking enlightenment and spreading his ideas carried the stamp of the age.Apart from that,Monk Tianru demonstrates great literary merit in his poems and essays,which sheds significant lights on the study of poems written by monks in Yuan Dynasty.This paper attempts to look into Monk Tianru' s life story,thoughts of Chan Buddhism,Consistency of Chan and Pure Land,as well as his works and influence.Following the traditional logical framework of studying historical figures,this paper consists of three parts,including the introduction,the main part and the conclusion.The first part deals with the significance and purpose of this study before systematically clarifying the feasibility of this paper guided by the research value by sorting out the achievements of currently other researches,and points out the methodology and logic employed in this paper.The second part can be divided into the ensuing four chapters.Chapter one illustrates the overall condition in Yuan Dynasty such as changes of religious policies and their impact on Chan Buddhism and the development of Chan Buddhism in south of the Yangtze River.Chapter two narrates the life story and works of Monk Tianru,and understanding of lifelong experiences of Monk Tianru is believed to help readers better know his ideas of Chan Buddhism.Chapter three is the very essence and key to the entire paper that penetrates MonkTianru' s thoughts on Chan Buddhism.Based on the Quotations from Monk Tianru,this chapter combines the historical background to analyze characteristics of his views on Chan Buddhism as well as Consistency of Chan and Pure Land.Chapter four explains his influence,especially his status when he lived and his contribution to the development of Buddhism in China after his death.The conclusion summarizes the whole paper and indicates its shortcomings.In a word,this paper exerts to draw on from the current study,aspiring to research meticulously the life story and core of thoughts of Monk Tianru in order to clarify his place and influence throughout the development of Buddhism in Yuan,Ming and Qing Dynasties.