The life and teachings of Master Yi
Master Yi is one of the masters of Zen Buddhism in China and is known as one of the \”Top Ten Zen Masters\”. He made great contributions to the development of Zen Buddhism, and his teachings deeply influenced future generations. The following will elaborate on Master Yi’s contribution and influence on Zen Buddhism from four aspects: his life, educational background, thoughts and achievements.
Lifetime
Master Yi was born in the Tang Dynasty. He practiced Buddhism with his father when he was a boy, and he became familiar with Buddhism at a young age. His great enlightenment of Zen Buddhism occurred in Huashan Mountain in Nanyue when he was 36 years old. Since then, his life has been closely linked with Zen Buddhism. After that, he traveled throughout China, preaching Buddhism and becoming a Zen master.
In his later years, a master left Nanyue and established a Buddhist temple in Lushan, Qizhou, dedicated to the development of Zen Buddhism. At the end of his life, Master Yi passed on all his wisdom and experience to his disciples, leaving a precious ideological legacy to future generations.
Education background
Master Yi practiced Buddhism at a very young age, and his father had a great influence on him. His father is also a Buddhist and has a profound understanding of Buddhism. Master Yi was also very smart and was soon able to practice with his father. In addition, Master Yi later received guidance from many eminent monks, such as Qingyuan Xingsi, Puzhao, Huisi, etc. Under the teachings of these people, Master Yi\’s Zen ability has been improved.
Thoughts
Master Yi\’s thoughts can be summarized into two aspects.
The first aspect is his \”one thought is boundless\” thought. He believes that the core of Zen practice is to describe the state of \”infinite thoughts\”, that is, the realm of Zen\’s \”pure and equal mind\” and \”nature-cultivating mind\”. The practice of Zen Buddhism is to break through illusions, cognitive errors, attachments, etc., and ultimately achieve \”non-discriminating wisdom\”, dissolve the self, and finally achieve unity.
The second aspect is his thought of \”not living in the image\”. He believes that everything is caused by causes and conditions, and everything is false. The key to Zen practice is to establish the idea of non-abiding. All things are impermanent, so practitioners must learn to accept the changes of things and avoid being biased and attached to any thing or person.
Achievements
Master Yi is one of the important figures in the development of Zen Buddhism, and his ideas have a profound impact on Zen Buddhism. His ideas are still very influential today. In addition, he also wrote some important Zen books, such as \”The Authentic Biography of the Zen Sect\” and \”The Essentials of Huixi Dajue Mind Dharma\” and so on. These books are valuable assets and cultural wealth of Chinese Zen Buddhism, and have made immeasurable contributions to the development of Zen Buddhism.
Summary
Master Yi is one of the important figures in the history of Chinese Zen Buddhism. His thoughts and achievements have an important impact on the development of Zen Buddhism. His important thoughts are \”one thought is immeasurable\” and \”never dwells in the image\”, among which \”one thought is immeasurable\” is the core and essence of Zen practice. At the same time, he also wrote some important Zen books and made great contributions to the development of Zen Buddhism.
