The Way of Chan: Essential Texts of the Original Tradition

This sweeping collection of new translations paints a brilliant picture of the development of Chan (Zen) Buddhism, Chinas most radical philosophical and meditative tradition.In this landmark anthology of some two dozen translations, celebrated translator David Hinton shows how Chan (Japanese: Zen)-too long considered a perplexing school of Chinese Buddhism-was in truth a Buddhist-inflected form of Taoism, Chinas native system of spiritual philosophy. The texts in The Way of Chan build from seminal Taoism through the Dark-Enigma Learning literature and on to the most important pieces from all stages of the classical Chan tradition. Guided by Hintons accessible introductions, readers will encounter texts and authors including:I Ching (c. 12th century BCE) Lao Tzu (c. 6th century BCE Bodhidharma (active c. 500-550 CE) Sixth Patriarch Prajna-Able (Hui Neng, 638-713) Cold Mountain (Han Shan: c. 8th-9th centuries) Yellow-Bitterroot Mountain (Huang Po, d. 850) Blue-Cliff Record (c. 1040) Through this steadily deepening and transformative reading experience, readers will see the profound and intricate connections between native Chinese philosophy, Taoism, and Chan. Contemporary Zen students and practitioners will never see their tradition in the same way again.