YIXUAN

Yixuan (Linji Yixuan; Japanese, Rinzai Gigen;?–866) was a famous Chinese master and an emblematic figure of the putative "golden age" of the Chan school of Buddhism. Early biographical sources agree on only a few details about his life. Linji's family name before becoming a monk was Jing; he was born in southwest Shandong province, studied under master Huangbo Xiyun (died ca. 850), visited various monasteries during his pilgrimage years, and finally taught at a monastery "near the ford" (linji, the origin of his name) in Hebei province, where he died. Most sources offer May 27, 866, as the date of his death.

In Chan circles, Linji's reputation as a forceful teacher fond of deafening shouts and unconventional teaching methods grew rapidly after his death. Notes of his sermons and conversations circulated, and such phrases as "Linji's True Man of No Rank" achieved wide renown. Nevertheless, almost three centuries passed before, in 1120, Yuanjue Zongyan (ca. late eleventh–twelfth century) compiled the Linji lu (Record of Linji), the most important extant source for Linji's teaching. When this gem of a Chan text was published, Linji's reputation was already established as the founder of one of Chan's Five Houses, and his life story had become thoroughly embellished with colorful details.

Bibliography

Demiéville, Paul, trans. and ed. Entretiens de Lin-tsi. Paris: Fayard, 1972.

Miura, Isshū, and Sasaki, Ruth Fuller. Zen Dust. Kyoto: First Zen Institute of America in Japan, 1966.

Sasaki, Ruth Fuller, trans. The Record of Lin-chi. Kyoto: Institute for Zen Studies, 1975.

Watson, Burton, trans. The Zen Teachings of Master Lin-chi. Boston: Shambhala, 1993.

Yanagida, Seizan. "The Life of Lin-chi I-hsüan." Eastern Buddhist vol. V, no. 2 (1972): 70–94.

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