Bojo Jinul, a representative figure of the Zen sect in Korea Dynasty, was a pioneer who verified an original position in the Korean Buddhist thought history through the Gan Hoa Zen-the Zen which promises to reach us a divine enlightenment by studying ...
Bojo Jinul, a representative figure of the Zen sect in Korea Dynasty, was a pioneer who verified an original position in the Korean Buddhist thought history through the Gan Hoa Zen-the Zen which promises to reach us a divine enlightenment by studying a catechetic question for meditation of the ancientsts.
If Dae Gak Euy Cheon, a naional priest who attained a divine enlightenment, tried to reconcile "religion" with "Zen" in the Kyo sect's (non-Zen Buddhism) stand, while Jinul "Zen" with "religion" in the Zen sect's stand.
Saint Jinul' s Zen thouht can be explained by monism of Zen and religion, "Jeong Hae Ssang-Su (定慧雙修)" -training both concentration of mind and truth and wisdom, "Sim Jeuk Si Bul (心卽是佛)" -equalizing mind with Budda, "Don 0 Jeom Su (頓悟漸修) "-training gradually after sudden enlightenment, "Gan Hoa Gyeong Jeol" (看話經截) -a route to attain a divine enlightenment not through the Buddhist Scripture but through seeing and talking, "Hoa Eom thought and sincerity theory etc.
Summerizing these again, they can be divided into three main thoughts largely;thought of reunion, perfectibility and unity.
Saint Jinul made sure that "mouth" and "mind" of Budda and priest are not originally different and wanted to verify it by Kyo sect (non-Zen Buddhism) what he had perceived through his Zen training.
Through the process of unity and reunion, perfectibility and parallelism etc., Jinul's Zen thought is brought to a conclusion of sincerity theory in the end.
By writing (Sincere mind and Direct sayings) (眞心直說) Saint Jinul minutely clarified the route from bringing heart to light to making the best of it.
(Sincere mind and Direct saying) is the outstanding masterpiece among his Zen works, in which saint Jinul's Zen thought is systemetically clarified. Saint Iinul did not come to an end only in clarifying the pure, original mind of heart but emphasized that, after this clarifying, it must be laid up by persevering in our efforts like "Jeong Jo (正助)" -rnaking a pause of desultory thoughts by absent mind study and doing general good - and "Heom Gong (驗攻) " - testing and training sincerity after clarifying it-and it must be a living Zen like "Acting is Zen and Sitting is Zen (行亦神坐亦神) "which makes the best use of them in the end.