01 Meditation Panel Preface.indd - United Nations Day of Vesak 2013

Buddhist Philosophy and
Meditation Practice
Hwam doctrine to indicate the complex web of interrelationships governing everything in
existence (Buswell 1992:51-2). 12 Even after the solid foundation of the Sn thought in Korea in
the ninth century, Hwam thought has maintained its strong inuence in the development of
Korean Buddhism. Dharma lectures by eminent Korean Sn masters such as Kusan also contained
much of Hwam imagery for a formal statement about Sn understanding, which is distinctively
Korean (Buswell 1992:184). The monastic curricular of the three major monasteries in
contemporary Korea, T’ongdosa, Haeinsa, and Songgwangsa, each of which is Buddha-jewel
Monastery, Dharma-jewel Monastery, and Sagha-jewel Monastery, shares similarities in their major
content and represent the strong inuence of Hwam thought.
However, Meditation and Doctrine had been in conict vying for religious hegemony before
the twelfth century, when Chinul emerged. Chinul harmonized the two Buddhist traditions, 13
eventually developing his philosophical system of thought. Chinul sought to develop a comprehensive
system of Buddhism in which Meditation would be practiced in tandem with training in the Hwam
scholastic teachings. He advocated a “sudden awakening and gradual cultivation” (tono chmsu) 14
approach to practice, in which the initial awakening engendered by Hwam doctrinal understanding
was bolstered through gradual cultivation of Meditation and finally verified through direct
realization (Buswell 1992:59).
In addition, Chinul’s legacy has been persistent down to the present in terms of monastic
curricula, Buddhist precepts, and soteriology. Prospective ordinands in contemporary Korea are
supposed to follow a system of postulancy. Postulants, known literally as “practitioners” (haengja),
are expected to complete a six-month training period to ordination (Buswell 1992:76). 15 After their
six-month postulancies are over, the postulants are ready to ordain as novice monks (sami;
Skt. ramaera) or nuns (samini; Skt. ramaer). They are supposed to study either in the monastic
college (kangwn) or in the meditation center (snbang) for four years before full ordination. 16
Chinul’s works, including his magnum opus Excerpts from the Dharma Collection and Personal
Notes on Its Special Practice Records (Ppchip pylhaengnok chryo pyng ip sagi) constitute
an important part of these monastic curricular, Buddhist precepts, and soteriology.
Therefore, unlike thus far known in the West, where Zen Buddhism is characterized by such
aphorism as “special transmission of Buddhism distinct from the teachings, which is not dependent
on words and letters” (Buswell 1992:217), monks of the Chogye Order study doctrinal teachings
primarily based on the thought of Chinul as its theoretical prop, which is characterized by the unity
of doctrine and meditation. However, the two are not on equal standing in the Chogye Order:
Doctrinal study is considered inferior to Meditation and the former just serves as a prerequisite
to enter into the latter. In addition, Chinul’s Admonition to Beginners (Kye ch’osim hagin mun)
constitutes part of a major work on Buddhist ethics in contemporary Korea and his approach to
12
The chart appears in T 1887 A.45.711a. For an English translation of the chart, see Lee 1993:163-4.
13
For Chinul’s harmonization between Sn and Hwam thought, see Shim 1999:3-158
14
In the Japanese monk Yasutani Hakuun (1885-1973)’s soteriological schema, “sudden enlightenment” or “sudden
awakening” is based on tathgatagrbha and “gradual cultivation” is based on layavijñna (Gregory 2011:106).
15
Before 1945 it was expected to complete a three-year training period before ordination (Buswell 1992:76).
16
The standardized curriculum adopted in Korean seminaries is divided into four levels: The elementary curriculum,
or sami kwa (ramaera Course), the intermediate curriculum, or sajip kwa (Fourfold Collection Course), the advanced
curriculum, or sagyo kwa (Fourfold Doctrinal Course), and the graduate level, the taegyo kwa (Great Doctrinal Course).
A student who completes all four of these curricular would have spent approximately twelve years in study (Buswell
1992:98-9) in the past.
17