This page is part of my exploration of the origins of Zen:

https://listed.valdelane.net/55456/20241004-zen

Chan is the Chinese school of Buddhism emphasizing direct experience. Chan has roots in Mahayana Buddhism but it dropped the religious complexity and created something fresh.

« From the Chan perspective, the goal of life is to live fully as a human being, with one’s inherent potential completely developed. This means to become a buddha. To become a buddha means to “wake up.” The goal is not to be reborn in a blissful place such as a heavenly kingdom with Brahmin or other gods. The goal is to be awakened, to realize one’s full capacity as a human being and one’s inherent potential for wisdom and compassion. To become a buddha is to be free from the bondage of suffering. We may say, therefore, that Buddhism is a very humanistic way to realize our full potential. The fourfold axiom of Chan, which defines this tradition of awakening in wisdom and compassion, is:

A transmission outside of doctrine
Not dependent on words or language (nor on concepts, labels, or categories)
Which directly points to the mind by
Seeing one’s nature in order to realize buddhahood.

» —Guo Gu

The Essence of Chan: A Guide to Life and Practice According to the Teachings of the Bodhidharma by Guo Gu (2012)

https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/essen.pdf

This page is part of my exploration of the origins of Zen:

https://listed.valdelane.net/55456/20241004-zen

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