Illusory Abiding: The Cultural Construction of the Chan Monk Zhongfeng Mingben (Harvard East Asian Monographs)

A groundbreaking monograph on Yuan dynasty Buddhism, __Illusory Abiding__ offers a cultural history of Buddhism through a case study of the eminent Chan master Zhongfeng Mingben. Natasha Heller demonstrates that Mingben, and other monks of his stature, developed a range of cultural competencies through which they navigated social and intellectual relationships. They mastered repertoires internal to their tradition―for example, guidelines for monastic life―as well as those that allowed them to interact with broader elite audiences, such as the ability to compose verses on plum blossoms. These cultural exchanges took place within local, religious, and social networks―and at the same time, they comprised some of the very forces that formed these networks in the first place. This monograph contributes to a more robust account of Chinese Buddhism in late imperial China, and demonstrates the importance of situating monks as actors within broader sociocultural fields of practice and exchange. A groundbreaking monograph on Yuan dynasty Buddhism, Illusory Abiding offers a cultural history of Buddhism through a case study of the eminent Chan master Zhongfeng Mingben. Natasha Heller demonstrates that Mingben, and other monks of his stature, developed a range of cultural competencies through which they navigated social and intellectual relationships. They mastered repertoires internal to their tradition--for example, guidelines for monastic life--as well as those that allowed them to interact with broader elite audiences, such as the ability to compose verses on plum blossoms. These cultural exchanges took place within local, religious, and social networks--and at the same time, they comprised some of the very forces that formed these networks in the first place. This monograph contributes to a more robust account of Chinese Buddhism in late imperial China, and demonstrates the importance of situating monks as actors within broader sociocultural fields of practice and exchange.--Amazon.com Contents Illustrations Acknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction 1 Floating Light and Illusory Shadows: The Life of a Monk 2 Places and Patrons: The View from Mount Tianmu 3 Beneath Thatched Roofs and amid Waves 4 To Place One’s Mind in the Assembly 5 Raising Old Expedients: Genealogies, Gongan, and the Chan Literary Tradition 6 Body and Mind Like an Iron Wall: The Huatou in Practice 7 Brushes and Inkstones 8 Capturing Charisma Conclusion Chronology of Zhongfeng Ming ben’s Life Bibliography Glossary-Index Natasha Heller offers a cultural history of Buddhism through a case study of the Chan master Zhongfeng Mingben. Monks of his stature developed a broad set of cultural competencies for navigating social and intellectual relationships. Heller shows the importance of situating monks as actors within wider sociocultural fields of practice and exchange.