Moderated by Associate Professor Chia-Hsing Liu of the Interdisciplinary Bachelor’s Degree Program, National Cheng Kung University, this lecture features Associate Professor Mikiyasu Yanagida of the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, The University of Tokyo. It will be held on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, from 15:00 to 17:00, at the International Academic Lecture Hall, College of Liberal Arts, Department of Chinese Literature Building.
Transmission-of-the-Lamp records, as historical writings of Chan Buddhism, have served as an important foundation through which Chan Buddhism established its own orthodoxy. Across successive generations, numerous authors contributed to this genre, leaving behind a substantial body of valuable texts. This lecture focuses in particular on seven lamp records, beginning with the Zutang ji, continuing through the “Five Lamps,” and culminating in the Wudeng Huiyuan. Through a close analysis of each text’s structure—including vertical lines of transmission and horizontal hierarchical positioning—the lecture seeks to clarify the distinctive forms of “Transmission of the Lamp” presented in these works, as well as their unique narrative features.
We sincerely invite faculty and students interested in Buddhist history, Chan Buddhist thought, and East Asian philosophy to attend. Guided by Professor Mikiyasu Yanagida, participants will embark on an in-depth journey into the development of Chan Buddhist thought and, through the analysis of texts and narratives, explore the core dimensions of Chan Buddhism.
