Concept
Xuanxue
Related concepts (9)
Philosophy
Philosophy (love of wisdom in ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. It is a rational and critical inquiry that reflects on its own methods and assumptions. Historically, many of the individual sciences, like physics and psychology, formed part of philosophy. But they are considered separate academic disciplines in the modern sense of the term.
Zen
Zen (; ; ; ) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (Chánzong 禪宗), and later developed into various sub-schools and branches. From China, Chán spread south to Vietnam and became Vietnamese Thiền, northeast to Korea to become Seon Buddhism, and east to Japan, becoming Japanese Zen. The term Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Middle Chinese word 禪 (chán), an abbreviation of 禪那 (chánnà), which is a Chinese transliteration of the Sanskrit word ध्यान dhyāna ("meditation").
Mu (negative)
The Japanese and Korean term () or Chinese (), meaning "not have; without", is a key word in Buddhism, especially Zen traditions. It is a fourth grade kanji. The Old Chinese * (無) is cognate with the Proto-Tibeto-Burman *ma, meaning "not". This reconstructed root is widely represented in Tibeto-Burman languages; for instance, means "not" in both Written Tibetan and Written Burmese. The Standard Chinese pronunciation of (無, "not; nothing") historically derives from the 7th century CE Middle Chinese , the 3rd century CE Late Han Chinese muɑ, and the reconstructed 6th century BCE Old Chinese *.
Chan Buddhism
Chan (; () of ), from Sanskrit dhyāna (meaning "meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and Song dynasties. Chan is the originating tradition of Zen Buddhism (the Japanese pronunciation of the same character, which is the most commonly used English name for the school). Chan Buddhism spread from China south to Vietnam as Thiền and north to Korea as Seon, and, in the 13th century, east to Japan as Japanese Zen.
Laozi
Laozi (ˈlaudzə, ), also romanized as Lao Tzu and various other ways, was a semi-legendary ancient Chinese Taoist philosopher, credited with writing the Tao Te Ching. Laozi is a Chinese honorific, generally translated as "the Old Master". Although modern scholarship generally regards him as a fictional person, traditional accounts say he was born as Li Er in the state of Chu in the 6th century BC during China's Spring and Autumn Period, served as the royal archivist for the Zhou court at Wangcheng (modern Luoyang), met and impressed Confucius on one occasion, and composed the Tao Te Ching in a single session before retiring into the western wilderness.
Chinese philosophy
Chinese philosophy originates in the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period, during a period known as the "Hundred Schools of Thought", which was characterized by significant intellectual and cultural developments. Although much of Chinese philosophy begun in the Warring States period, elements of Chinese philosophy have existed for several thousand years. Some can be found in the I Ching (the Book of Changes), an ancient compendium of divination, which dates back to at least 672 BCE.
Zhuangzi (book)
The Zhuangzi (Chinese: 莊子, historically romanized Chuang Tzŭ) is an ancient Chinese text from the late Warring States period (476221) which contains stories and anecdotes that exemplify the carefree nature of the ideal Taoist sage. Named for its traditional author, "Master Zhuang" (Zhuangzi), the Zhuangzi is one of the two foundational texts of Taoism, along with the Tao Te Ching. The Zhuangzi consists of a large collection of anecdotes, allegories, parables, and fables, which are often humorous or irreverent.
Tao
Tao or Dao (道) is the natural order of the universe, whose character one's intuition must discern to realize the potential for individual wisdom, as conceived in the context of East Asian philosophy, East Asian religions, or any other philosophy or religion that aligns to this principle. This seeing of life cannot be grasped as a concept. Rather, it is seen through actual living experience of one's everyday being. Its name, Tao or Dao , came from Chinese, where it signifies the way, path, route, road, or sometimes more loosely doctrine, principle, or holistic belief.
Jin dynasty (266–420)
The Jin dynasty (jin4; ) or the Jin Empire, sometimes distinguished as the Sima Jin (司馬晉) or the Two Jins (兩晉), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed from 266 to 420. It was founded by Sima Yan (Emperor Wu), eldest son of Sima Zhao, who had previously been declared the King of Jin. The Jin dynasty was preceded by the Three Kingdoms period, and was succeeded by the Sixteen Kingdoms in northern China and the Liu Song dynasty in southern China. There are two main divisions in the history of the dynasty.