McRae, John
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John R. McRae(1947 - 2011)
John R. McRae was a renowned expert on Chinese Chan who also possessed an extensive knowledge of the field of Buddhism in general. After getting a PhD at Yale University, he taught at Cornell and Indiana Universities before moving to Japan and teaching part-time at Komazawa University. As a specialist in East Asian Buddhism, he was especially interested in ideologies of spiritual cultivation and how they interact with their intellectual and cultural environments. His seminal work on Chinese Chan was The Northern School and the Formation of Early Chan Buddhism, (University of Hawai`i Press, 1986). This was later followed by Seeing through Zen: Encounter, Transformation, and Genealogy in Chinese Chan Buddhism, (University of California Press, 2003). He spent much of his career studying the life of the important Chan figure Shenhui (684–758), and was expecting to complete a manuscript on the topic before his untimely passing in October of 2011. John also completed a number of translations of Chinese Buddhist scriptural texts for the Bukkyō Dendō Kyōkai's English translation series and served as Chair of the Publication Committee for the series until his passing.
For the DDB, John provided explanations for a number of terms derived from his research in Chinese Chan texts. (Source Accessed Nov. 27, 2019)
2 Library Items
Shen-hui and the Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism
No abstract given. Here are the first relevant paragraphs:
The field of Ch'an studies has seen some very lively disputes over the course of the twentieth century, but there has been general agreement on the proposition that the doctrine of sudden enlightenment represents the highest expression of the doctrinal mainstream of early Chinese Ch’an Buddhism. Although there is some quibbling regarding details and specific interpretations, scholars working in this field often describe the history of the doctrine of sudden enlightenment within Ch’an in terms of three subjects: (1) Hui-neng’s doctrine of sudden enlightenment as shown in his "mind verse" (hsin-chieh) in the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch (Liu-tsu t'an-ching); (2) Shen-hui’s campaign in opposition to the gradual teaching of the Northern school and in support of the public recognition of Hui-neng as sixth patriarch; and (3) the continuation of the spirit of Hui-neng in the teachings and religious practice of Ma-tsu, Shih-t'ou, and the later Ch’an tradition
Research done in recent years has shown that the traditional interpretations of these three subjects are all substantially incorrect, although the implications of these findings have not yet been fully realized. The history of early Ch'an is in the process o f being thoroughly rewritten, but it is already clear that the doctrine of sudden enlightenment and the dispute between the sudden and gradual teachings should no longer be used as yardsticks by which the religious message of Ch'an and its widespread acceptance in T'ang dynasty China are understood. (McRae, "Shen-hui and the Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism," 227)
The field of Ch'an studies has seen some very lively disputes over the course of the twentieth century, but there has been general agreement on the proposition that the doctrine of sudden enlightenment represents the highest expression of the doctrinal mainstream of early Chinese Ch’an Buddhism. Although there is some quibbling regarding details and specific interpretations, scholars working in this field often describe the history of the doctrine of sudden enlightenment within Ch’an in terms of three subjects: (1) Hui-neng’s doctrine of sudden enlightenment as shown in his "mind verse" (hsin-chieh) in the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch (Liu-tsu t'an-ching); (2) Shen-hui’s campaign in opposition to the gradual teaching of the Northern school and in support of the public recognition of Hui-neng as sixth patriarch; and (3) the continuation of the spirit of Hui-neng in the teachings and religious practice of Ma-tsu, Shih-t'ou, and the later Ch’an tradition
Research done in recent years has shown that the traditional interpretations of these three subjects are all substantially incorrect, although the implications of these findings have not yet been fully realized. The history of early Ch'an is in the process o f being thoroughly rewritten, but it is already clear that the doctrine of sudden enlightenment and the dispute between the sudden and gradual teachings should no longer be used as yardsticks by which the religious message of Ch'an and its widespread acceptance in T'ang dynasty China are understood. (McRae, "Shen-hui and the Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism," 227)
McRae, John R. "Shen-hui and the Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism." In Sudden and Gradual: Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese Buddhist Thought, edited by Peter N. Gregory, 227–78. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1991. First published 1987 by University of Hawai'i Press.
McRae, John R. "Shen-hui and the Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism." In Sudden and Gradual: Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese Buddhist Thought, edited by Peter N. Gregory, 227–78. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1991. First published 1987 by University of Hawai'i Press.; Shen-hui and the Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism; Shen-hui and the Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism; Zen - Chan; The doctrine of buddha-nature in Chinese Buddhism; Heze Shenhui; John R. McRae;
The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch (McRae)
Taishō 2008
Volume 48
The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch consists of a record of the teachings of Hui-neng, the Sixth Patriarch of the Chan School in China, recorded by his disciple Fahai, and is known by several abbreviated titles such as Platform Sūtra or Platform Sūtra of the Dharma Treasure. It proclaims the independence of the Southern School of Chan from the Northern School on such subjects as "sudden enlightenment" (Ch. dun-wu) and the external expression of one's real nature (Ch. jian-xing).
Source
McRae, John R., trans. The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch. Translated from the Chinese of Zongbao (Taishō Volume 48, Number 2008). BDK English Tripiṭaka Series, vol. 73, no. 2. Berkeley, CA: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2000. https://bdkamerica.org/product/the-platform-sutra-of-the-sixth-patriarch/.
McRae, John R., trans. The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch. Translated from the Chinese of Zongbao (Taishō Volume 48, Number 2008). BDK English Tripiṭaka Series, vol. 73, no. 2. Berkeley, CA: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2000. https://bdkamerica.org/product/the-platform-sutra-of-the-sixth-patriarch/.;The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch (McRae);Zen - Chan; John R. McRae;The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch
