Daowu Yuanzhi
Daowu Yuanzhi
769 – 835
Daowu Yuanzhi (道吾圓智, 769–835) was the Dharma heir of Yaoshan Weiyan and the teacher of Shishuang Qingzhu, holding one of the two main lines of descent from Yaoshan alongside his fellow-student Yunyan Tansheng[1]. He spent most of his teaching career at Mount Daowu in Tanzhou (modern Hunan); the *Jǐngdé Chuándēng Lù* preserves a dense set of encounter dialogues between Daowu and Yunyan, often read as the two heirs sharpening each other's understanding of their teacher's "non-thinking" style of practice[2].
The most influential of these exchanges is the dialogue on the bodhisattva of compassion preserved as Case 89 of the *Blue Cliff Record* and Case 54 of the *Book of Serenity*: Daowu asks, "What does the Bodhisattva of Great Compassion use so many hands and eyes for?" Yunyan replies, "It is like someone reaching back in the night for a pillow"; Daowu answers, "I understand," and Yunyan presses him to say what he has understood[3]. The exchange — read by both Caodong and Linji commentators as a teaching on action without deliberation — became one of the most cited dialogues in the koan literature, and Daowu's line through Shishuang Qingzhu carried the Yaoshan stream into the late ninth century[4].
Names
Disciples of Daowu Yuanzhi
Teachers and lineage of Daowu Yuanzhi
Teacher / root master:
Teachings
- dialogueThe Condolence Visit
Daowu and Jianyuan went to a house to express condolences. Jianyuan struck the coffin and said, "Alive or dead?" Daowu said, "I won't say alive, I won't say dead." Jianyuan said, "Why won't you say?" Daowu said, "I won't say, I won't say." On the way back, Jianyuan said, "Please tell me right now, Teacher. If you don't tell me, I'll hit you." Daowu said, "You can hit me if you like, but I still won't say." Jianyuan struck him. Later, after Daowu had passed away, Jianyuan went to Shishuang and asked about the same matter. Shishuang said, "I won't say alive, I won't say dead." At these words Jianyuan was awakened.
- dialogueThe Seamless Tower
A government official asked Daowu, "What is the essential teaching of Buddhism?" Daowu said nothing and used his whisk to wipe the official's face. The official said, "Is this all?" Daowu said, "What more did you want?" Later Daowu said to his assembly: "When asked about the essential teaching, use neither words nor silence. Use the whole body. And when you use the whole body, do not think that you are doing something. The Dharma seal does not rest in the palm—it cannot be located."
Featured in
- Book of SerenityThe Bodhisattva's Hands and Eyes
Other masters in Qingyuan line
Master Record Sources
769-835
Daowu Yuanzhi
Qingyuan line
- koan_refsChart of the Chan Ancestors
55,89 21,54, 83 4,20
- nameZen Editorial Overlay - Originals Curation
Daowu Yuanzhi
- teachersZen Editorial Overlay - Originals Curation
Yaoshan Weiyan