Samatha and vipassana in Seon

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Varis
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Samatha and vipassana in Seon

Post by Varis »

According to the Jogye Order's website, the Seon master Choui Uisun practiced shamatha and vipassana (jigwan) for 40 years and advocated the practice of jigwan and studying scriptures alongside Seon practice. From what I understand jigwan practice comes from Tiantai. Does anyone know more about this practice and it's place in modern Seon?

I've also found the name of a Tiantai sutra that's supposed to be about jigwan called "止觀法門", can anyone tell me the English title of this sutra?

Thank you.
"I have never encountered a person who committed bad deeds." ― Ven. Jìngkōng
ItsRaining
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Re: Samatha and vipassana in Seon

Post by ItsRaining »

The first two books in this link are Tiantai Meditation manuals mostly based on Zhiguan. I’m not aware of a text called 止观法门 though there are two works by Zhiyi known as 小止观 which is th first book in that link (an introduction to meditation on Zhiguan) and 圆顿止观 “Greater Stopping and Seeing”which is the magnum opus of Zhiyi and a guide to Tiantai practice.

http://www.kalavinka.org/Jewels/jewels_toc.htm
Varis
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Re: Samatha and vipassana in Seon

Post by Varis »

ItsRaining wrote: Wed Apr 04, 2018 12:00 am The first two books in this link are Tiantai Meditation manuals mostly based on Zhiguan. I’m not aware of a text called 止观法门 though there are two works by Zhiyi known as 小止观 which is th first book in that link (an introduction to meditation on Zhiguan) and 圆顿止观 “Greater Stopping and Seeing”which is the magnum opus of Zhiyi and a guide to Tiantai practice.

http://www.kalavinka.org/Jewels/jewels_toc.htm
Thanks!
"I have never encountered a person who committed bad deeds." ― Ven. Jìngkōng
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Seishin
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Re: Samatha and vipassana in Seon

Post by Seishin »

Varis wrote: Tue Apr 03, 2018 10:18 pm According to the Jogye Order's website, the Seon master Choui Uisun practiced shamatha and vipassana (jigwan) for 40 years and advocated the practice of jigwan and studying scriptures alongside Seon practice. From what I understand jigwan practice comes from Tiantai. Does anyone know more about this practice and it's place in modern Seon?

I've also found the name of a Tiantai sutra that's supposed to be about jigwan called "止觀法門", can anyone tell me the English title of this sutra?

Thank you.
I'm not familiar with a text called "止觀法門", however the English translation would be 'Samatha/vipashyana Dharma Gate' and most likely refers to Ven Zhiyi's text on Samatha/vipashyana called 'Six Dharma Gates to the Sublime' 六妙法門. ItsRaining has given you the link to it. Other Tiantai texts on Samatha/vipashyana are xiao zhiguan/sho shikan (Smaller/Essential Samatha/vipashyana) 小止觀 http://www.kalavinka.org/kp_book_pages/ ... k_page.htm
And the main text mohe zhiguan/maka shikan 摩訶止觀 (Great Samatha/vipashyana) http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p-9843-9780824873776.aspx

If you have any questions on these texts don't hesitate to ask in the Tendai section of this forum. The Japanese school of Tendai preserves the texts and practices of Tiantai Buddhism.
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Astus
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Re: Samatha and vipassana in Seon

Post by Astus »

Varis wrote: Tue Apr 03, 2018 10:18 pmFrom what I understand jigwan practice comes from Tiantai.
Not so. Samatha and vipasyana are standard categories in Buddhism everywhere. Furthermore, Huayan teachings, and not Tiantai, are the most prominent in Korea aside from Chan. As an example, Dushun, first teacher of Huayanzong, wrote (in Cleary's translation): "Cessation and Contemplation in the Five Teachings of the Hua-yen" (華嚴五教止觀). But as for what Choui himself practised, that would require studying his writings first.
1 Myriad dharmas are only mind.
Mind is unobtainable.
What is there to seek?

2 If the Buddha-Nature is seen,
there will be no seeing of a nature in any thing.

3 Neither cultivation nor seated meditation —
this is the pure Chan of Tathagata.

4 With sudden enlightenment to Tathagata Chan,
the six paramitas and myriad means
are complete within that essence.


1 Huangbo, T2012Ap381c1 2 Nirvana Sutra, T374p521b3; tr. Yamamoto 3 Mazu, X1321p3b23; tr. J. Jia 4 Yongjia, T2014p395c14; tr. from "The Sword of Wisdom"
Varis
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Re: Samatha and vipassana in Seon

Post by Varis »

Seishin wrote: Wed Apr 04, 2018 8:45 am I'm not familiar with a text called "止觀法門", however the English translation would be 'Samatha/vipashyana Dharma Gate' and most likely refers to Ven Zhiyi's text on Samatha/vipashyana called 'Six Dharma Gates to the Sublime' 六妙法門. ItsRaining has given you the link to it. Other Tiantai texts on Samatha/vipashyana are xiao zhiguan/sho shikan (Smaller/Essential Samatha/vipashyana) 小止觀 http://www.kalavinka.org/kp_book_pages/ ... k_page.htm
And the main text mohe zhiguan/maka shikan 摩訶止觀 (Great Samatha/vipashyana) http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p-9843-9780824873776.aspx

If you have any questions on these texts don't hesitate to ask in the Tendai section of this forum. The Japanese school of Tendai preserves the texts and practices of Tiantai Buddhism.
Thank you for the help, Seishin, I appreciate it.
Astus wrote: Wed Apr 04, 2018 10:10 am Not so. Samatha and vipasyana are standard categories in Buddhism everywhere. Furthermore, Huayan teachings, and not Tiantai, are the most prominent in Korea aside from Chan. As an example, Dushun, first teacher of Huayanzong, wrote (in Cleary's translation): "Cessation and Contemplation in the Five Teachings of the Hua-yen" (華嚴五教止觀). But as for what Choui himself practised, that would require studying his writings first.
You're right, but a Korean website I found seemed to suggest that the above mentioned Tiantai text was important in Korean Buddhism in the past, it might very well be his teachings were an amalgam of various shamatha/vipasyana teachings. And from what I've been able to gather, he considered the Lotus Sutra a very important text and drew upon it in his writings, though he also drew from the Avatamsaka sutra as well.
Something I also noticed is that Choui appears to be holding a vajra in this painting, which if it is, would suggest Esoteric influence.

Edit: According to Kusan Sunim, the Jogye Seon, Tiantai, and Vinaya schools were forcefully unified by King Sejong.

Image
"I have never encountered a person who committed bad deeds." ― Ven. Jìngkōng
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