Sheng Yen | |
|---|---|
聖嚴 | |
 | |
| Title | Chan master |
| Personal life | |
| Born | January 22, 1931 |
| Died | February 3, 2009(2009-02-03) (aged 78) |
| Nationality | Taiwanese |
| Education | Rissho University (MA,PhD) |
| Other names | Changjin (novice name) |
| Occupation | Buddhist monk, religious scholar, writer |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Chan Buddhism |
| School | Caodong,Linji |
| Senior posting | |
| Teacher | Dongchu, Ling Yuan,Ban Tetsugyu Soin |
Sheng Yen (Chinese:聖嚴;pinyin:Shèngyán;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Sèng-giâm), bornZhang Baokang (Chinese:張保康;pinyin:Zhāngbǎokāng;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:Tiuⁿ Pó-khong), (January 22, 1931 – February 3, 2009) was a Taiwanese Buddhist monk, religious scholar, and writer. He was one of the mainstream teachers ofChan Buddhism. He was a 57th generationaldharma heir ofLinji Yixuan in theLinji school (Japanese:Rinzai) and a third-generation dharma heir ofHsu Yun. In theCaodong (Japanese:Sōtō) lineage, Sheng Yen was a 52nd-generation Dharma heir ofDongshan Liangjie (807-869), and a direct Dharma heir ofDongchu (1908–1977).[1]
Sheng Yen was the founder of theDharma Drum Mountain, a Buddhist organization based inTaiwan. During his time in Taiwan, Sheng Yen was well known as a progressive Buddhist teacher who sought to teach Buddhism in a modern and Western-influenced world. In Taiwan, he was one of four prominent modern Buddhist masters, along withHsing Yun,Cheng Yen andWei Chueh, popularly referred to as the "Four Heavenly Kings" of Taiwanese Buddhism. In 2000 he was one of the keynote speakers in the Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders held in theUnited Nations.[2]
Born as Chang Baokang on January 22, 1931, inNantong, Jiangsu nearShanghai inmainland China, he became a monk at the age of 13. During theChinese Civil War, he went to Taiwan in 1949 by enlisting in a unit of theNationalist Army.[3] After leaving the army Sheng Yen became recognized as aDharma Heir in both theLinji andCaodong traditions and became a monk again in 1959.
From 1961 to 1968 he trained in solitary retreat in southern Taiwan at Chao Yuan Monastery. Sheng Yen became a lecturer at Shan Dao Monastery in Taipei and then completed amaster's degree (1971) anddoctorate (1975) inBuddhist literature atRissho University in Japan.[4][5] At the time Sheng Yen was the only major Buddhist figure in Taiwan to have earned a doctorate from a reputable foreign university.[6]
Sheng Yen received full transmission in the Caodong tradition in 1975 and the Linji tradition in 1978.[5]
Sheng Yen became abbot ofNung Chan in Taiwan in 1978 and founder of the Institute of Chung-Hwa Buddhist Culture inNew York City in 1979. In 1985, he founded the Institute of Chung-Hwa Buddhist Studies inTaipei and the International Cultural and Educational Foundation ofDharma Drum Mountain in 1989.
Sheng Yen taught in the United States starting in 1975, and established Chan Meditation Center in Queens, New York, and its retreat center,Dharma Drum Retreat Center atPine Bush, New York in 1997. He also visited many countries in Europe, as well as continuing his teaching in several Asian countries, in particular Taiwan.[7] Sheng Yen gave dharma transmission to several of his lay Western students, such asJohn Crook, who later formed the Western Chan Fellowship,[8] and several other Western disciples such as Simon Child, Max Kalin, and Zarko Andricevic.
Sheng Yen's health was poor in the last couple years of his life, although he still gave lectures in Taiwan.
Sheng Yen died fromrenal failure on February 3, 2009, while returning fromNational Taiwan University Hospital inTaipei.[9] He had endured the illness for many years, but refused a kidney transplant.[10][11][12] In accordance withEast Asian age reckoning, the Dharma Drum Mountain organization states that Sheng Yen died at the age of 80.[13]Officially, according to the Western way of reckoning age, Sheng Yen died at the age of 78.
Hours after his death, tributes from eminent Buddhist monks and Taiwanese politicians and celebrities, including PresidentMa Ying-jeou, Vice PresidentVincent Siew,DPP ChairwomanTsai Ing-wen, kung fu starJet Li, and actressBrigitte Lin, began to pour into Dharma Drum Mountain monastery. As stipulated in his will, Sheng Yen forbade the use of extravagant funeral services, including the construction of memorials or monuments. Sheng Yen received a simple Buddhist ritual attended by the President and dignitaries, and was buried in the Life Memorial Garden near the monastery. His ashes were divided into five sections, with each section filled by the Abbot, senior disciples, President Ma, Vice President Siew, and other laity.[14][15][16]
Monks:
Nuns:
Western Lay practitioners:
In the Chan lineage of Sheng Yen, a "Dharma heir" receives the dharma transmission based on his or her selfless administrative contributions to Dharma Drum Mountain and practice of Chan.[17] However, a Dharma heir may not have hada personal experience of self-nature orBuddha-nature, the nature ofśūnyatā, in which case the person would also receiveyinke (Jp.inka shōmei), the seal of approval. Among the Dharma heirs, there are only a few who have both Dharma transmission and yinke.
Among Sheng Yen's senior disciples, there are also those who have received yinke but no dharma transmission for various reasons.[17]
In alphabetical order of the books' title:
Autobiography of Master Sheng Yen:
History of the Dharma Drum Lineage:
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
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