Question: Book Dumoulin's "Zen Buddhism: A History"

[sjlabat]

I'm reading Heinrich Dumoulin's book [Zen Buddhism: A History[/U]. My question: for those who are familiar with it, what are your thoughts about this book? Are there any other historical works regarding Zen that that you would suggest?
Gassho,
Sean

[Jundo]

Hi Sean,

Father Dumoulin's 2-Volume history (on Zen Buddhism in India and China, Japan) is still probably the best single introduction to the whole story, all the people, stories, events and legends up until modern times. Very readable too. The one thing to keep in mind, however, is that the author employed many methods of the modern historian, but still largely reported the legends and rather romantic myths of Zen as historical events. He largely accepted the traditional dogma and claims at face value. So, it is pretty much the "official" Zen history as taken by Zen folks, and a bit romanticized. (Anything by D.T. Suzuki also did this).

For example, we now know that the Zen Lineage past 1000 years ago begins to be a bit of a "cut and paste" with many myths and suppositions added in, and people who may never have actually met each other, been actual "Zen" practitioners or even real people! (However, as I have said many times before, that Lineage still represents many someones somewhere, male and the rarely mentioned females, who kept and developed this Path over the centuries). However, Fr. Dumoulin pretty much tends to report the stories about the accepted Lineage without too much question. We also know that many of the Koan and other biographical stories about the Tang Dynasty figures were actually written wholly or to some great extent several centuries later, in the Sung Dynasty, as religious myths. (However, as I often say too, that does not mean that there are not True Teachings in those stories whether they were really historical events or not). If I recall, the books accept the belief which was current until recent decades that the Tang Dynasty was the "Golden Age of Zen," and the Sung Dynasty more a period of churchy institutionalism and decline. Instead, today many historians argue that the legends of the Tang Dynasty are actually creations of authors inside the Sung Dynasty Zen church who painted a romantic vision of the past and rather idealized ancestors and their feats.

For me, knowing a bit more about what was probably the more complicated and human story only makes my trust in and dedication to this Path stronger. I like human figures, not people who can walk on water. I am happy to Practice knowing that there was some factional religious politics involved at many places in Zen history (such as the largely invented and propaganda filled "Platform Sutra" story of the Sixth Ancestor and the "Northern Southern" Zen rift). No problem, as this Practice is about living in this sometimes messy and complicated world of "Samsara."

However, I do highly recommend Fr. Dumoulin for an excellent introduction to the "official story," if you keep the above in mind.

I don't know how much you like dry history books, but for an alternative view on some points this might be a good start:

Seeing Through Zen: Encounter, Transformation, and Genealogy in Chinese Chan Buddhism

The tradition of Chan Buddhism—more popularly known as Zen—has been romanticized throughout its history. In this book, John R. McRae shows how modern critical techniques, supported by recent manuscript discoveries, make possible a more skeptical, accurate, and—ultimately—productive assessment of Chan lineages, teaching, fundraising practices, and social organization. Synthesizing twenty years of scholarship, Seeing through Zen offers new, accessible analytic models for the interpretation of Chan spiritual practices and religious history.

Writing in a lucid and engaging style, McRae traces the emergence of this Chinese spiritual tradition and its early figureheads, Bodhidharma and the "sixth patriarch" Huineng, through the development of Zen dialogue and koans. In addition to constructing a central narrative for the doctrinal and social evolution of the school, Seeing through Zen examines the religious dynamics behind Chan’s use of iconoclastic stories and myths of patriarchal succession. McRae argues that Chinese Chan is fundamentally genealogical, both in its self-understanding as a school of Buddhism and in the very design of its practices of spiritual cultivation. Furthermore, by forgoing the standard idealization of Zen spontaneity, we can gain new insight into the religious vitality of the school as it came to dominate the Chinese religious scene, providing a model for all of East Asia—and the modern world. Ultimately, this book aims to change how we think about Chinese Chan by providing new ways of looking at the tradition.

https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/John_R._McRae_Seeing_through_Zen.pdf

For a more detailed study of later periods, and the whole "Silent Illumination/Koan Introspection" branching during the Sung:

How Zen Became Zen: The Dispute over Enlightenment and the Formation of Chan Buddhism in Song-Dynasty China

How Zen Became Zen takes a novel approach to understanding one of the most crucial developments in Zen Buddhism: the dispute over the nature of enlightenment that erupted within the Chinese Chan (Zen) school in the twelfth century. The famous Linji (Rinzai) Chan master Dahui Zonggao (1089–1163) railed against "heretical silent illumination Chan" and strongly advocated kanhua (koan) meditation as an antidote. In this fascinating study, Morten Schlütter shows that Dahui’s target was the Caodong (Soto) Chan tradition that had been revived and reinvented in the early twelfth century, and that silent meditation was an approach to practice and enlightenment that originated within this "new" Chan tradition. Schlütter has written a refreshingly accessible account of the intricacies of the dispute, which is still reverberating through modern Zen in both Asia and the West. Dahui and his opponents’ arguments for their respective positions come across in this book in as earnest and relevant a manner as they must have seemed almost nine hundred years ago.

Although much of the book is devoted to illuminating the doctrinal and soteriological issues behind the enlightenment dispute, Schlütter makes the case that the dispute must be understood in the context of government policies toward Buddhism, economic factors, and social changes. He analyzes the remarkable ascent of Chan during the first centuries of the Song dynasty, when it became the dominant form of elite monastic Buddhism, and demonstrates that secular educated elites came to control the critical transmission from master to disciple ("procreation" as Schlütter terms it) in the Chan School.

https://terebess.hu/zen/How-Zen-Became-Zen.pdf

I believe that both of the above books have been uploaded with permission of the authors.

Gassho, Jundo

SatTodayLAH

[Onkai]

Thank you, Jundo, for those book recommendations. How Zen Became Zen looks like it answers some questions that I have been forming in my mind.

Gassho,
Onkai
Sat

[Jakuden]

Wow thank you Jundo.

Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday/LAH


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Eishuu]

I'm in the middle of How Zen Became Zen...I'm finding it quite heavy going but very interesting.

Gassho
Eishuu
ST/LAH

[Ryushi]

Thanks for your perspective, Jundo. I picked up the second volume focusing on Japanese Zen at a used bookstore a few months ago. I've been slowly working through it. It is a reasonably straightforward read (though, I assume, translated from German?) I do struggle a little bit with unfamiliar place and personal names, but that's unavoidable.

[somanaut]

I mostly visit treeless.org because of book recommendations. The market for books on meditation, buddhism and zen has exploded these last years. And it's becoming harder and harder to find the good books (books that I feel give me some kind of decent information). Now one could argue, that you just need certain classical texts, and in soto just Dogen and some commentaries on his work. However I really don't understand Dogen, as in I have no idea what he is talking about 99% of the time. And mos of the commentaries don't resonate with me either. I like Kosho Uchiyamas books. He has some passages, while I may not understand them, they do somehow stick in my mind. At the moment, I am very drawn to the more scholarly (historical) texts like Bielefeldt. I just finished Dale S. Wright "Philosophical Meditations on Zen Buddhism" which I found interesting.
My points is: I greatly appreciate that Treeleaf (Jundo) is willing to engage with these academic books, which at times are very critical of Zen. And as I have mentioned before, it still doesn't change the way I do zazen (or try to atleast). Dogen can for all I care have invented shikantaza, it is still a fascinating practise. Also it is my impression, that there is a very hard divide between tradition and invention in the west, that one actually doesn't find in the east (in many areas, I my self encountered it in Kendo). One thing that I thought, which was worthy of note in Dale S. Wrights book, was that he commented on how the west has approached Buddhism by two paths; scientific rationalism and romantic spiritualism. Both miss the point of Buddhism in his view, and I am inclined to agree.
These days Buddhism, meditation and Zen seem to have been co-opted into the wellness industry. Some (even zen) teachers seem to go along with this and even actively endorse it. I honestly don't know what to think of this. On one hand, I think that it won't work. I have seen that in the yoga community. The more inclusive a practise (or set of practises) get, the less it works, the more diluted it becomes. On the other hand, I think that there is a lot of unnecessary practises in zen, hence why I avoid formal IRL sanghas. But I can't say for certain, which practises (other than zazen) are necessary in order for a practise to be zen. Now I might even argue, that perhaps I am not interested in the whole of zen. I just care about shikantaza. Taigen Dan Leighton argue (as others have done) that zazen is an enactment ritual, and was/is "just" one ritual among others in the zen sect of buddhism. That opens up for a discussion about which rituals one has to do. I.e. what set of practises are necessary and sufficient. Necessary and sufficient for what? As I said, I am undecided, what constitute essential practise. And it seems to be a question, that simply goes on ad infinitum. Sorry for the rant.
TL;DR: I am grateful that Jundo links to so many books that are critical of zen history. Will add How Zen Became Zen to my amazon order list.
Sat Today
Jesper

[Jundo]

Hi Jesper,

I mostly visit treeless.org because of book recommendations.

Yes, that is the only reason that I come here too.

However I really don't understand Dogen, as in I have no idea what he is talking about 99% of the time. And mos of the commentaries don't resonate with me either.

I just finished authoring today the last chapter of my commentary on various Shobogenzo fascicles (called "Letters from Dogen"). Kirk is doing the editing as we speak. After that, to get it published. Stand by, it will make everything clear (Really). Dogen ain't half as hard to understand as he is made out to be. (Really).

finished Dale S. Wright "Philosophical Meditations on Zen Buddhism"

That is actually a book I cherish very much, although the title probably causes it not to be more widely read. It is not really that kind of philosophy book. It should be read together with Blofeld's translation and commentary on "The Zen Teachings of Huang Po: On The Transmission Of Mind" ...

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01E81KJRK/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

... because, among other topics, Prof. Wright really tears into the romantic and idealistic presentation of Huangpo's Teachings by Blofeld , and in Zen books like it. It brings things down to earth (although I really recommend the Wright only for real Zen history wonks).

Likewise for true Zen history wonks only, many of the books by Bernard Faure such as "Chan Insights and Oversights: An Epistemological Critique of the Chan Tradition" and "The Rhetoric of Immediacy: A Cultural Critique of Chan/Zen Buddhism." and several more. (The titles may also scare folks away, and they are not light reading, but unique and fascinating history nonetheless). Again, I recommend them for ZEN TRUE HISTORY WONKS ONLY (e.g., who like pages and pages of discussion of the role of statues to local tutelary gods in Zen monasteries, or the meaning of mummies of old Zen masters, or the role of dreams in Chinese and Japanese Zen, and such things) ...

http://religion.columbia.edu/people/Bernard%20Faure

I think that there is a lot of unnecessary practises in zen, hence why I avoid formal IRL sanghas.

Yes, there are. But some of the "unnecessary practices" also turn out to be quite worthwhile. Don't discount them all.

I hope you will come around here for more than just the book recommendations sometimes.

Gassho, J

SatTodayLAH

[somanaut]

Thank you Jundo for the book suggestions. I think my next book will be "How Zen Became Zen" by Morten Schlütter.

l don't mind rituals, zazen is the ultimate ritual. But I have been at the mercy of traditions before, that demanded that I submit to the will of the tradition, collective and authoritative people, never again. I will pick and chose rituals that make sense to me, as I go long the rest of my life. Even if that means, that I am somehow missing out on the grand TRUTH of zen. So be it. I hope this isn't interpreted as if I am against ritual, since I just stated that I don't mind rituals, and that I consider zazen the ultimate ritual. I quite enjoy some zen rituals and chants (ex. Brad Warners modification of the 1st. boddhisatva vow, that is my daily prayer multiple times a day). But I am done joining a club of any kind. I don't mind that other people do, if they need to do that, good for them (and I mean that).

Sat Today
Jesper

[Byrne]

Thank you for the book recommendations. I recently read a compilation Sheng Yen our together called “Attaining the Way” which includes writings from select Chan masters over the past few centuries. They talk quite a bit about how the various methods such as silent illumination, koans, huatou, Pure Land, etc. were used and developed. I found it very meaningful. Not really a hardcore history book so much as a collection of masters discussing practice in a practical way.

Gassho

Sat Today

[Mitka]

Ooh so much good reading I need to do, especially that book about Huang Po. Read a collection of his poems not to long ago and it was like stepping into a hot shower after a long journey. Thanks for the suggestions.

Gassho,

Matthew
SAT

[Kokuu]

But I have been at the mercy of traditions before, that demanded that I submit to the will of the tradition, collective and authoritative people, never again.

I think that is a good approach to take but don't rule out giving yourself to a tradition willingly out of faith and trust rather than it being demanded of you.

Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-

[sjlabat]

Jundo,
Thanks for the thoughtful response to my question - I'll have to check out the sources you mention. History is a complicated matter and yes, in Dumoulin there is clearly a mix of "myth" (and I mean this term in the sense that Carl Jung or Joseph Campbell might - stories that point to a deep/ultimate truth, but a story that may not necessarily be factual) and, to a lesser extent, critical historical analysis which is trying to get to the more 'hard headed,' and in my view also necessary, work of what factually did and did not happen and why, what may that mean for us today?
Also, Bankei Yotaku struck me as an interesting person. Dumoulin lists him as part of the Rinzai tradition - yet, as being rather critical of the Koan method. I am not sure I understand how this works together?
Gassho,
Sean
sat,lah

[sjlabat]

Jesper,
I did want to acknowledge your comments(s). I can't know what you've experienced or been through... but I do know what it's like to be hurt by religious community. Just wanted to honor and acknowledge what must have been a very difficult experience.
Best Wishes,
Sean
sat

[Jundo]

Also, Bankei Yotaku struck me as an interesting person. Dumoulin lists him as part of the Rinzai tradition - yet, as being rather critical of the Koan method. I am not sure I understand how this works together?

Hi Sean,

The introduction by Peter Haskel to his translations of Bankei's Talks says this ... This "unborn" is Bankei's way of speaking of Emptiness, the Absolute etc ...

As Bankei saw it,
the whole approach of koan Zen was hopelessly contrived.
He rejected the need for familiarity with classical Chinese
as an unnecessary encumbrance, and rejected the koan
itself as an artificial technique. The original koans, he
argued, were not "models," but actual living events. The
old masters had simply responded to particular situations
that confronted them, naturally accommodating themselves
to the needs of the students involved. That was the
business of any Zen teacher, to meet each situation on its
own terms. There was no need to make people study the
words of ancient Chinese monks when you could simply
have them look at their own "cases," the way in which the
Unborn was at work here and now in the actual circumstances
of their lives. This was what Bankei called his
"direct" teaching, as opposed to koan practice, which he
referred to disparagingly as "studying old waste paper." The
koan, said Bankei, was merely a device, and teachers who
relied on it, or on any other technique, were practicing
"devices Zen." Why rely on a device, he argued, when you
could have the thing itself?

https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/BankeiHaskel.pdf

Gassho, J

SatTodayLAH