CHINESE BUDDHISM

Chinese Buddhism was dominated by two trends:-

1. Popular devotion2. Inner mystical experience

THE POPULAR DEVOTION SCHOOL – PURE LAND

• The Pure Land School was founded by Hui –Yuan (or T’an Luan as he is sometimes known). He was born in 476C.E. and died in 542 C.E. He founded Pure Land in the latter part of the 4th century C.E.

• Basically, those who call on Amitabha (The Buddha of boundless light) might be assured of their next rebirth in paradise due to the transference of merit (remember bodhisattva work?)

WHAT IS THIS PURE LAND LIKE?

• It is on the western edge of the world

• There are terraces and jewelled branches of trees

• There is some “marvellous music”!

WHY WAS PURE LAND INITIALLY POPULAR?

• It satisfied the layman• It short circuited rebirth and karma• The picture given of a loving saviour of a

Buddha is close to theism• It satisfied those who found Theravada too

difficult• It satisfied those who did not like the concept of

local spirits and the deities of the woods• Some self effort was required

THE INNER MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE SCHOOL or CH’AN

(Meditation School)• According to tradition, this type of Buddhism was

first brought to Canton in 520 C.E. and has been an important element in Buddhism ever since

• Basically, it arose against a background of Indian philosophy or Madhyamaka, whose beliefs were:-

• The world about us has no substance• We falsely distinguish between Samsara and

Nirvana • The realisation of the above comes through

philosophical thought

WHY WAS CH’AN INITIALLY POPULAR?

• It was anti – intellectual

• It made the learner act spontaneously

• It had a very strong feeling for nature

• Illumination can come suddenly or spontaneously

• People saw the gradual processes of “the self” being broken down

PURE LAND BUDDHISM

• Pure Land, like Ch’an or Zen, is a Mahayana school based on the premise that enlightenment is possible for all.

• It sets out to make the path accessible to all classes and levels of people.

• Shin and Jodo are the two main sects of Pure Land Buddhism and there are probably some 25 million followers today.

• Of the two schools of Pure Land Buddhism, Shin seems to be the most popular today

MAIN PRACTICES OF PURE LAND BUDDHISM

• They encourage donations and charity to the needy

• They propagate the Dharma• They paint religious pictures• If you become ill, as a Pure Land follower, you

can ask the monks for chanting to bring you back to full health

• They observe vows• They follow particular laws connected with

abstinence

What are the main beliefs of Pure Land Buddhism?

• Believers will be gathered after death as a reward for faith and good works

• The saviour figure is Amida (in sanskrit – Amitabha)

• According to the Sukhavativyuhu – he was a king who left his throne and heard the Buddha’s sermon. He was so moved by it, he became a wanderer, dedicated to achieving ‘buddhahood’ and made a vow to renounce reward of his own efforts in order to preside over the Buddha land of SUKHAVATI until ALL beings had arrived there

DESCRIPTIONS OF PURE LAND

• It is like Islamic paradise

• It is material

• It is a state of bliss to work hard for

SUMMARY OF PURE LAND BUDDHISM

• Buddhism flourished in China during the T’ang dynasty – 618 – 907 C.E.

• We know something of its appeal e.g. :-• Sophisticated philosophy of Buddhist texts appealed to the more

scholarly Chinese• There is now an opportunity for an improved rebirth in the Buddha

Amida’s Western paradise• The use of architecture and art appealed to ordinary people• Buddhist funeral rites helped dispel anxieties about the fate of dead

relatives• Many Emperors supported Buddhism because it was seen as

encouraging moral and peaceful citizens• The concept of enlightenment, rebirth and karma offered individuals

the responsibility for their own fate and an opportunity for salvation

So……What are the similarities between Pure Land and Zen?

• Both Mahayana• Enlightenment is possible for all• Both deny it is necessary to divorce oneself completely from the

everyday world in order to gain spiritual insight• Both present the individual with the optimistic view that spiritual

attainment is to be had without necessarily subjecting oneself to the rigorous discipline of a monastic life

• Both schools bring spiritual and religious ideals within the grasp of the common populace

• Both aim to provide the ‘great vehicles’ necessary to carry all beings to ‘the further shore’

• Both accept the Dharma attributed to the historical Buddha – Siddhartha Gautama

Differences between Pure Land Buddhism and Zen

• Pure Land Buddhism believes acts of devotion are important and Zen doesn’t!

• Pure Land is very much a religion of Tariki (another’s effort) and Zen Jiriki (self effort)

• Zen follows the Trikaya doctrine but holds that Buddha nature is present in all. Pure Land relies on spiritual development through the Bodhisattva’s – particularly the transcendent ones like Amida

• In Zen, words are used in the form of koans only but in Pure Land, recitations of the formula “Namu Amida Butsu” are used

Where can you read more?

• The Idiots guide to Buddhism - pages 217 – 223• The World of Buddhism – Gombrich – pages

221 – 224• The Buddhist handbook – Snelling – pages156 –

157• Buddhism – John Snelling – pages 84 – 87• Buddhism – Pushpesh Pant – pages 76 – 77• A Short History of Buddhism – Conze – pages

65 – 74• The Sacred Texts of the World – Smart and

Hecht – pages 265 - 266