A Brief Lecture on Zongjinglu (Volume 1)

The 100-volume "Zongjinglu" was written by Zen Master Yongming Yanshou in the late Tang and Five Dynasties. It is a classic of Chinese Buddhism handed down from generation to generation. Zen Master Yanshou was the third generation heir of the Fayan Sect of Zen Buddhism. He was aware of the various abuses and controversies that arose among Zen believers at that time because they did not understand the Buddha's Dharma. He invited monks from the three Dharma sects of Tiantai, Huayan and Weishi to ask each other's questions and compromise them with the essentials of Zen Buddhism to write this book. The book quotes as many as 300 Buddhist scriptures and treatises by Chinese and Indian sages, which can be said to be "the subtle words of thousands of sages and the insight into the secrets of hundreds of schools of thought." This is unprecedented in the relevant treatises on Buddhism and has never been seen since. "Zongjinglu" has been written for thousands of years. It has been widely praised for its grand scale, beautiful words and profound purpose. At the same time, it has also been regarded as daunting by the public readers. In view of this, Mr. Nan Huaijin analyzed the essential parts of this book in simple terms and in detail. This volume includes the entire book on Zen Buddhism and the theory of consciousness. While analyzing chapters and sentences, Mr. Wang integrated various Buddhist essentials and combined the essence of Chinese and Western cultures, allowing contemporary scholars to enter this extensive and profound Buddhist work.