In the early 1930s, when the project of scientific modernization was in full swing in Chinese Buddhist circles, Dharma Master Taixu wrote a series of essays on “Realism” (Xianshi zhuyi 現實主義, ...1928–1931). These represent one of the profoundest series of writings documenting his understanding of the link between science and Buddhist epistemology/ontology, and consequently also on the role of his notion of scientific Buddhism for modern times. Aside from his meditations on the relationship between science and Buddhism, in this important series of essays Taixu also provided his more or less critical accounts on modern philosophical currents in contemporary China, including Russell’s “New Realism” and materialism. This paper aims to provide a concise reading of the above-mentioned writings by Taixu, in order to cast some new light on the understanding of Western modern philosophy in Chinese Buddhist modernism of the Republican Era, on the one hand, and to highlight the main theoretical features of Taixu’s notion of scientific Buddhism, on the other. Aside from that, I also aim to present some new insights into the otherwise overlooked aspects of the broader intellectual sphere of Chinese Buddhism of the Republican Era. As regards the broader historical and intellectual context of Taixu’s writings, the analysis provided in this article will be regarded within the framework constructed in my forthcoming article on Taixu’s philosophy in the journal Buddhist Studies Review.
The imagery of wine and tea is important in classical and modern Chinese poetry, with an intricate relationship between the two especially evident in the work of Taixu 太虛 (1890–1947), a prominent ...poet–monk in 20th-century China. Taixu’s attitude toward wine—a drink that is deeply rooted in Chinese culture—evolves significantly over time, from initial approval to eventual condemnation due to its detrimental effects on both personal health and society. Nevertheless, it continues to feature prominently in his poetry. The same is true of tea, which Taixu often uses to evoke either Buddhist study or his own healthy lifestyle. This article explores this and other complex meanings in Taixu’s poems, such as his association of wine with knights and tea with hermits. It also discusses how he achieves a delicate balance between the two beverages, sometimes employing both types of imagery in a single poem—a literary innovation that helped to establish his reputation as a central figure in modern Chinese poetry.
This article analyses the work of the Dharma Master Taixu, one of the leading figures of Chinese Buddhism in the Republican Period. Its analysis focuses on the meaning of concepts such as “human ...life,” “freedom,” and “karma” in Taixu’s seminal writings on the role of Buddhism in modern society, politics, and science from the 1920s and early 1930s. The succession of reading notes and reflections on these quintessential concepts in Taixu’s works aims at shedding some light on the relationship between subject and object, and the key question of the autonomy of the subject in modern Chinese Buddhism. Finally, by trying to illuminate the content of the ideas of subject and freedom in the work of this key figure, whose work is a foundational building block in the modernization of Buddhism in East Asia, the present discussion aims at casting some new light on the origins and theoretical foundations of contemporary Buddhism in Taiwan as well as in the broader Chinese cultural sphere.
Over the course of only a few decades during the late nineteenth to early twentieth centuries, part of mainstream Buddhist education underwent a striking shift in China. From being a secluded ...practice within monastery walls taught by monastics for monastics with a strict focus on Buddhist scripture, it became one where monastics and laypeople study together, guided by teachers, both monastic and lay, studying a curriculum of both Buddhist and secular subjects. Although general reforms within the Buddhist community of the times received considerable scholarly attention, the topic of education development was discussed in only a few instances. Therefore, the present article sets out to explore why this radical methodological shift happened, and more concretely, how the individual learning trajectories of the reforms’ leading actors, and their involvement in specific communities, influenced the way the reforms unfolded. The author analyses the work and life of three generations of Buddhist reformers, namely the layman Yang Wenhui, and the monastic masters Taixu, Hsing Yun and Cheng Yen, employing Étienne Wenger’s social theory of learning. The theory’s main assertion that communities of practice provide the main fora of learning for individuals, and its description of the concrete ways in which this learning takes place can provide new insights regarding the specific unfolding of late-nineteenth to early-twentieth-century Buddhist education reforms in China.
The Heritage of Taixu Bart Dessein
Azijske študije (Spletna izd.),
09/2020, Letnik:
8, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Odprti dostop
Much scholarly attention has been devoted to the way the Chinese intellectual world tried to formulate an answer to the challenge posed by European modernity, as well as to the way European political ...thinking (nationalism, socialism, communism, anarchism) impacted traditional Chinese political thinking. In contrast, very little attention has been devoted to the way these same political philosophies also influenced the Chinese Buddhist answer to European modernity. This article discusses the ways in which the ‘reform of Buddhism’ proposed by the famous Venerable Taixu (1889–1947) was shaped by both the political and military events that determined the history of China in the first half of the twentieth century, and by his genuine determination to modernize Buddhism.
Anarchy in the Pure Land investigates the cult of Maitreya, the future Buddha, promoted by the Chinese Buddhist reform movement spearheaded by Taixu as an avenue through which to consider the ...formation of alternative modernities. The cult presents an apparent anomaly: It shows precisely the kind of concern for ritual, supernatural beings, and the afterlife that much scholarship contends the reformers rejected in the name of “modernity.” This book shows that rather than a concession to tradition, the reimagining of ideas and practices associated with Maitreya was an important site for formulating a Buddhist vision of modernity. To make sense of this it develops a new perspective on alternative modernities by drawing on Charles Taylor’s notion of moral frameworks, arguing that the cult of Maitreya represents an attempt to articulate a new constellation of values that integrates novel understandings of the good clustered around modern visions of utopia with the central Buddhist value of Buddhahood. Part I traces the roots of this constellation to Taixu’s youthful career as an anarchist. Part II examines its articulation in the “Maitreya School’s” theology and the cult’s development from its inception to World War II. Part III examines its subsequent decline and its contemporary legacy within and beyond orthodox Buddhism.
The Heritage of Taixu Dessein, Bart
Azijske študije (Spletna izd.),
01/2020, Letnik:
8, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Odprti dostop
Much scholarly attention has been devoted to the way the Chinese intellectual world tried to formulate an answer to the challenge posed by European modernity, as well as to the way European political ...thinking (nationalism, socialism, communism, anarchism) impacted traditional Chinese political thinking. In contrast, very little attention has been devoted to the way these same political philosophies also influenced the Chinese Buddhist answer to European modernity. This article discusses the ways in which the ‘reform of Buddhism’ proposed by the famous Venerable Taixu (1889–1947) was shaped by both the political and military events that determined the history of China in the first half of the twentieth century, and by his genuine determination to modernize Buddhism.
Taixu 太虛 (1890–1947), a prominent figure in modern Chinese Buddhism, produced a voluminous collection of poetry abounding with diverse classical Chinese images. Notably, the “lamp and candle” ...(dengzhu 燈燭) holds great significance, reflecting Taixu’s personal affinity with this imagery and an intimate connection to classical Chinese poetry. Acting as a potent Buddhist metaphor, it encapsulates multifaceted sentiments while also intertwining with other evocative images, such as the boat, the moon, and falling leaves. Symbolizing Taixu’s unwavering spirit, it represents his profound dedication to his craft. This article explores Taixu’s literary achievements as a poet by focusing on his adept utilization of “lamp and candle” imagery, complementing the study of his multifaceted and intricate identities. This detailed examination offers novel insights into Chinese literature and Buddhist studies, highlighting the interplay between spiritual practice and artistic expression.
Sino-Japanese religious discourse, more often than not, is treated as a unidirectional phenomenon. Academic treatments of pre-modern East Asian religion usually portray Japan as the passive recipient ...of Chinese Buddhist traditions, while explorations of Buddhist modernization efforts focus on how Chinese Buddhists utilized Japanese adoptions of Western understandings of religion. This paper explores a case where Japan was simultaneously the receptor and agent by exploring the Chinese revival of Tang-dynasty Zhenyan. This revival—which I refer to as Neo-Zhenyan—was actualized by Chinese Buddhist who received empowerment (Skt. abhiṣeka) under Shingon priests in Japan in order to claim the authority to found “Zhenyan” centers in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, and even the USA. Moreover, in addition to utilizing Japanese Buddhist sectarianism to root their lineage in the past, the first known architect of Neo-Zhenyan, Wuguang (1918–2000), used energeticism, the thermodynamic theory propagated by the German chemist Freidrich Wilhelm Ostwald (1853–1932; 1919 Nobel Prize for Chemistry) that was popular among early Japanese Buddhist modernists, such as Inoue Enryō (1858–1919), to portray his resurrected form of Zhenyan as the most suitable form of Buddhism for the future. Based upon the circular nature of esoteric transmission from China to Japan and back to the greater Sinosphere and the use of energeticism within Neo-Zhenyan doctrine, this paper reveals the sometimes cyclical nature of Sino-Japanese religious influence. Data were gathered by closely analyzing the writings of prominent Zhenyan leaders alongside onsite fieldwork conducted in Taiwan from 2011–2019.
Buddhist women have been building modern Chinese Buddhism for over a century and have been instrumental in the globalization of Buddhism. This article focuses on how Chinese Buddhist nuns constructed ...new networks, and their role as "bridges" between eras, people, institutions, and regions in modern times. The first section contextualizes the "Buddhist Revival" in turn-of-the-century China, and highlights the reforms of Buddhist modernizer Taixu regarding Chinese Buddhist women, particularly in the field of education. The second section discusses several networks of Buddhist women spanning a time-period from the late nineteenth century to the present, including those of two eminent nuns, Longlian and Tongyuan. I also discuss some reasons for the evolution of Taiwan's flourishing order of nuns and highlight networks of Taiwan nuns connecting Taiwan, China, Japan, and Hong Kong. The mission of these nuns past and present has been education, the key to the development of the nuns' order and to the flourishing of Chinese Buddhism today.
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