The Making of a Masterpiece: An Examination of Zimen Jingxun’s Authorship

Abstract

The Chinese Buddhist anthology Zimen jingxun (Admonitions to the Black-robed Monastics 緇門警訓), a compilation believed to have originated during the Song dynasty, constitutes a Chinese Buddhist anthology containing teachings from Buddhist masters and ethical principles intended for observance by monastics. This anthology has garnered scholarly attention due to the noteworthy nature of some of its components. However, there exists a dearth of comprehensive scholarly analyses in the English language, and the precise compilers of this anthology remain shrouded in ambiguity. Nevertheless, the Zimen jingxun has exerted a profound influence on the training of monastics in China, Japan, and Korea, and has emerged as a particularly influential work on Buddhist monastic education in the Korean context. Therefore, this paper functions as an initial effort to address this scholarly gap. Utilizing the methodologies of comparative philology and historical philology, this study undertakes an analysis and comparison of the original Zimen jingxun and its foundational counterpart, the Zilin baoxun, in addition to their subsequent amended and modified versions. The primary aim of this research is to deduce its compilers and the timeframe of its compilation by examining the existing content, prefaces, citations, and any discrepancies discernible in each rendition. Furthermore, it seeks to evaluate the importance and role of each version within the broader context of the Buddhist canon.