Kànhuà Meditation in Chinese Zen
Morten Schlütter
Asian Traditions of Meditation October 31, 2016 DOI: 10.21313/hawaii/9780824855680.003.0009 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Historical analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Buddhism Meditation |
| Key points | Argues that kànhuà meditation, developed by Dàhuì Zōnggǎo, remained largely faithful to his vision despite later innovations such as calming the mind, emphasizing doubt, integrating Pure Land practice, and calling the huàtóu aloud. |
Abstract
This paper discusses the kànhuà technique developed by the Chinese Línjì (Jpn.: Rinzai) master Dàhuì Zōnggǎo (1089-1163) that became a widespread form of meditation in East Asian Zen. Kànhuà meditation focuses on the keyword or “punch line” (Ch.: huàtóu, Jpn.: watō, Kor.: hwadu) of puzzling Chán “encounter dialogues” (or kōan stories) associated with past Chán (Zen) masters. Dàhuì insisted on a sudden breakthrough enlightenment and considered kànhuà meditation an alternative to a dead-end, no-enlightenment, seated meditation that he associated with the rival Cáodòng (Jpn.: Sōtō) tradition of Chán. The paper further explores four innovations in kànhuà meditation during the centuries after Dàhuì: the use of kànhuà meditation to calm the mind; a greater emphasis on doubt; the integration of Pure Land practice into the kànhuà technique; and the notion that the huàtóu could be called out aloud. However, in spite of such changes kànhuà Chán stayed close to Dàhuì’s vision.
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