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Albert Welter (1952-)
After earning a bachelor's degree in Political Science, Dr. Albert Welter became interested in Chinese language and culture, earning his PhD in 1986 in Asian Religions from McMaster University, Department of Religions Studies, with an emphasis on the study of Chinese Buddhist texts. As part of his dissertation research, he studied at Komazawa University in Tokyo, and was one of McMaster University's first exchange students with Fudan University in Shanghai. Since graduation, Dr. Welter has established a reputation as a leading expert in the academic study of Chan (Zen) Buddhist texts and Chinese Buddhism during the transition from the Tang (late medieval) to the Song (early modern) dynasties (9th-11th centuries). While popular images of Zen and Buddhism emphasize exotic ideas and eccentric characteristics, Dr. Welter interprets these as textual representations embedded in a particular East Asian intellectual and cultural context. He has given lectures and presentations at leading universities in Asia (eg., University of Tokyo, Beijing University, Hong Kong University), Europe (eg., University of Oslo, Bonn University, University of Lund), and North America (eg., UC Berkeley, University of Florida). His research has been supported since 1999 by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). In 2006-07, he was awarded a China-Canada Scholars' Exchange grant, and was a Visiting Professor at Renmin University in Beijing.
http://www.uwinnipeg.ca/index/cms-filesystem-action?file=pdfs/religious-studies/welter-albert.pdf
Professor Welter's area of academic study is Chinese Buddhism, and he has published in the area of Japanese Buddhism as well. His main research focuses on the study of Buddhist texts in the transition from the late Tang (9 th century) to the Song dynasty (10 th -13 th centuries). In recent years, he has published Monks, Rulers, and Literati: The Political Ascendancy of Chan Buddhism (Oxford, 2006), The Linji lu and the Creation of Chan Orthodoxy: The Development of Chan's Records of Sayings Literature (Oxford, 2008), and Yongming Yanshou's Conception of Chan in the Zongjing lu: A Special Transmission within the Scriptures (Oxford, 2011), in addition to numerous articles. He is currently working on two projects: a comparative analysis of the dialogue records ( yulu or goroku ) attributed to Chan masters, compiled in the early Song dynasty; and the social and institutional history of Buddhism as conceived through a text also compiled in the early Song dynasty, Zanning's Topical History of Buddhism ( Seng shilue ). Stemming from this latter research interest, Professor Welter has also developed a broader interest in Chinese administrative policies toward religion, including Chinese notions of secularism and their impact on religious beliefs and practices. His work also encompasses Buddhist interactions with Neo-Confucianism and literati culture.
http://eas.arizona.edu/users/albert-welter
Welter, Albert Franklin, "Huang-po's Notion of Mind" (1978).
Open Access Dissertations and Theses. Paper 2815.
http://digitalcommons.mcmaster.ca/opendissertations/2815
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS:
PDF: Ch. 2. The Hangzhou Region and the Spread of East Asian Buddhism
by Albert Welter
In: Approaches to Chan, Sŏn, and Zen studies: Chinese Chan Buddhism and its spread throughout East Asia
Edited by Albert Welter, Steven Heine, and Jin Y. Park
Albany: State University of New York Press, 2022. pp. 35ff
PDF: The Administration of Buddhism in China: A Study and Translation of Zanning and the Topical Compendium of the Buddhist Clergy
(Da Song Seng shilüe 大宋僧史)
by Albert Welter
Amherst, New York: Cambria Press, 2018.
PDF: Yongming Yanshou’s Conception of Chan in the Zongjing lu: A Special Transmission within the Scriptures
New York: Oxford University Press: 2011, 381 and x pages
http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199760312.001.0001/acprof-9780199760312
https://archive.org/details/meaningofmyriadgooddeedsastudyalbertfwelterthesis_202003_656_y/
Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter One - Yongming Yanshou and the complexities of Chan identity
Chapter Two - Revealing the Implicit Truth: Yongming Yanshou's Notion of Zong in the Zongjing lu
Chapter Three - Establishing the Chan Zong: Yanshou's Notion of Chan in the Zongjing lu
Chapter Four - Yanshou and Chan Lineages: An Overview of Chan Sources and Chan Patriarchs in the Zongjing lu
Chapter Five - The Teachings of the Patriarchs: A Study of Chan Lineage Fragments in the Zongjing lu
Chapter Six - The Buddhist School of Principle and the Early Song Intellectual Terrain
Translation of the Zongjing lu, Fascicle One
Abbreviations
Notes
Bibliography
Abstract
Yongming Yanshou (904–975) has had a profound impact on the development of Buddhism in East Asia. Although Yanshou is known for his prolific output and wide-ranging scholasticism, Welter's study is the first in a Western language to address Yanshou's significance as a Chan master and provide a sustained analysis of an important aspect of his most significant work. In addition, by isolating the Chan fragments contained in the Zongjng lu (literally, Records of the Source-Mirror), and through comparisons of these Chan fragments with other leading Chan works of the period, the Zutang ji (Anthology of the Patriarch's Hall) and Jingde Chuandeng lu (Record of the Transmission of the Lamp compiled in the Jingde era), this study provides valuable insight into the development of Chan teaching at a critical phase in its development. As a result, the book is the first major attempt to change the generally accepted view of post-Tang Chan Buddhism—restoring Yanshou as a Chan master and as a widely influential proponent of a scripture-based Chan (in opposition to the rhetorical and iconoclastic Chan of the Linji school). In addition to analyzing an important aspect of Yanshou's magnum opus, the Zongjing lu, the book provides a complete, annotated translation of the first fascicle, and translations of numerous Chan fragments throughout. By suggesting Yanshou as an advocate of a Buddhist School of Principle, the book provides a new and exciting paradigm for Song intellectual history.
"Albert Welter has produced his third consecutive outstanding book in recent years documenting the history of Chinese Chan Buddhism during its formative period. In this volume, he treats the crucial figure, Yongming Yanshou, with great skill and insight. The historical materials are compelling, the sources and citations are first-rate, and the translations are reliable and readable. This is another must-read for scholars and students of the Chan school."
—Steven Heine, Professor and Director of Asian Studies, Florida International University
"In this landmark work, Welter restores Yanshou to his rightful Chan identity, redeeming him from marginalization as a non-Chan scholastic or Pure Land-Chan syncretist; and positions him as the mainstay of a Song 'Buddhist School of Principle' alongside the 'Linji Chan Mind School.' Welter also brings to light invaluable Chan materials from the extensive Zongjing lu that have long been ignored. In highlighting the existence of a 'principled' Chan, the book breaks new ground."
— Jeffrey L. Broughton, author of Zongmi on Chan
PDF: Beyond Lineage Orthodoxy: Yongming Yanshou's Model of Chan as Bodhisattva Cultivation
Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal (2013, 26: 1-31) New Taipei: Chung-Hwa Institute of Buddhist Studies
http://enlight.lib.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-BJ001/bj001390672.pdfPDF: Yongming Yanshou: Scholastic as Chan Master
in Steven Heine; Dale Wright, Zen Masters, Chapter 3, New York, 2010, pp. 59–89.PDF: The problem with orthodoxy in Zen Buddhism: Yongming Yanshou's notion of zong in the Zongjin lu
(Records of the Source Mirror)
Studies in Religion / Sciences Religieuses 31/1 (2002): 3-18.
http://www.wlupress.wlu.ca/Journals/sr/issues/31_1/welter.pdfThe practice of Zen Buddhism in Japan, Chan Buddhism in China, and its counterparts in Korea and Vietnam bear little resemblance to the way this form of Buddhism is often characterized ideologically. The present study explores some of the premises of “moderate” Chan, which forms the basis for Chan/Zen as an institutional religion operating within the larger Buddhist world of East Asian societies. In particular, the study addresses the notion of zong in the Zongjing lu (Record of the Source Mirror), compiled by Yongming Yanshou (904-975), one of the leading representatives of “scholastic” (wenzi) Chan and a key figure in articulating the “moderate” Chan position. The study suggests how the definition of contemporary Zen orthodoxy has been dominated by representatives from the “rhetorical” Zen tradition, creating a disjuncture between our intellectual understanding of Zen and the principles guiding its actual practice.
PDF: The Linji lu and the Creation of Chan Orthodoxy: The Development of Chan’s Records of Sayings Literature
New York: Oxford University Press: 2008, 236 and xvi pages.
"Albert Welter's groundbreaking study of the Linji lu provides a model of comprehensive and innovative historical research. Unlike earlier studies of the Zen master Linji, Welter focuses directly on this classic text, showing how both the text and the image of the Zen master in it developed in the course of Chan history. Linji wrote nothing, and in the two and a half centuries between the end of his life and the emergence of the Linji lu as we know it, the Chan tradition and the image of one of its most powerful masters went through several stages of significant change. Carefully placing Linji's text in its rapidly changing historical context, Welter's systematic study sheds new light on classical Chan literature and the emergence of this fascinating form of Buddhism." —Dale S. Wright, Occidental College
"This is an outstanding piece of scholarship that investigates in a convincing and compelling way a very important element in the development of Chinese Chan Buddhism, that is, the recorded sayings of master Linji —arguably one of the two or three most significant and widely read Chan sources — and the social historical context of how the text came to be created. In addition to providing a detailed textual analysis of the Linji lu in its different editions and redactions, Albert Welter show how this helps us understand the formation of Chan writings from the Song dynasty dealing with eminent Tang patriarchs." —Steven Heine, Florida International University
PDF: The Formation of the Linji lu: An Examination of the Guangdeng lu / Sijia yulu and Linji Huizhao Chanshi yulu.
Versions of the Linji lu in Historical Context
http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/The_Formation_of_the_Linji_lu.pdf
PDF: Monks, Rulers, and Literati: The Political Ascendancy of Chan Buddhism
New York: Oxford University Press: 2006, 322 and xii pages.
Table of Contents
Partt. I Introduction and background 1 The historical and geographical context of Chan's official acceptance 3 2 Official recognition of Chan Buddhism in the Tang Dynasty 25 Partt. II Factional motives and literati influences in the creation of Chan narratives 3 Chan transmission records and factional motives in the Tang Dynasty 41 4 Chan transmission and factional motives in the Patriarch's Hall anthology (Zutang ji) 59 5 Chan transmission and factional motives in the Jingde (Era) transmission of the lamp (Jingde Chuandeng lu) 115 6 Literati influences on the compilation of Chan records : the Jingde (Era) transmission of the lamp and the Tiansheng (Era) expanded lamp record 161 7 Literati interpretations of Chan Buddhism in early Song China 209 "This is a fascinating and very important study of the history of the development of the Chan/Zen monastic institution as seen through a careful reading of the denglu or "transmission records." While other books have examined the institution or the literary texts of Chan, this is the very first work in English to provide a socio-political historical account based on a group of writings that is crucial for understanding how Chan Buddhism took hold and became the dominant religious movement in the Song dynasty. Welter explores in detail which monks were responsible for the spread and how and why they garnered support from public officials and literati, and clarifies the boundary line between mythical narrative and factual history presented in the records. Anybody interested in role of Chan/Zen in Chinese society will want to read and digest the contents of this book."
—Steven Heine, author of Opening a Mountain: Koans of the Zen MastersReviewed by Charles B. Jones
http://blogs.dickinson.edu/buddhistethics/files/2010/05/jones-review.pdf
The Meaning of Myriad Good Deeds: A Study of Yung-ming Yen-shou and the Wan-shan t'ung-kuei chi
Asian Thought and Culture Series, no. 13. New York, Bonn, et. al.: Peter Lang Publishing Inc.: 1993, 266 and xiii pages (revised doctoral dissertation).
This book investigates the world of medieval Chinese Buddhist thought at a time when the efficacy of Buddhist practice was being openly questioned. It reviews the life and times of Yung-ming Yen-shou (904-975), a leading figure in the restoration of Buddhism and the principle architect of post-T'ang Buddhist practice. It focuses on the Wan-shan t'ung-kuei chi (Treatise on the Common End of Myriad Good Deeds), a work which has long been credited with providing theoretical justification for the combined practice of Ch'an meditation and activities aimed at rebirth in the Pure Land. The present study offers evidence on how Yen-shou and his Treatise have for centuries been subjected to sectarian bias, clarifying our understanding of the man and his work.
PDF: Welter, Albert Franklin, "The Meaning of Myriad Good Deeds: A Study of Yung-ming Yen-shou and the Wan-shan t'ung-kuei chi
("Treatise on the Common End of Myriad Good Deeds")" (1986).
Open Access Dissertations and Theses. Paper 2185.
http://digitalcommons.mcmaster.ca/opendissertations/2185Abstract
Yung-ming Yen-shou (904-975) was a Buddhist monk who lived in a period of broad changes in Chinese society and Buddhism. He played a leading role in the restoration of Buddhism in the Wu Yüeh kingdom, and left a large body of writings. One of his best known works, the Wan-shan t'ung-kuei chi, has long been cherished by the tradition for its advocacy of harmony between Ch'an meditation and Pure Land practice. The dissertation questions the association of Yen-shou and his Treatise on the Common End of Myriad Good Deeds with the motives of the Pure land school from two points of view. In the history of the numerous biographies of Yen-shou, the association of his image with the Pure Land movement is relatively late. An investigation of the Wanshan t'ung-kuei chi demonstrates that the synthesis of Ch'an meditation and Pure Land practice is a topic of discussion, but is by no means the central concern of the text from either a theoretical or pracical standpoint. The dissertation contends that Yen-shou's Ch'an-Pure Land synthesis should be understood within the context of the Wan-shan t'ung-kuei chi as a whole. A translation of elect passages of the Wan-shan t'ung-kuei chi are included by way of confirming the reassessment put forward in the dissertation.
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PDF: Lineage and Context in the Patriarch's Hall Collection and the Transmission of the Lamp
In: The Zen Canon: Understanding the Classic Texts (2004), Chapter 5
PDF: Zen as the Ideology of the Japanese State: Eisai and the Kôzen gokokuron
In:
Zen Classics: Formative Texts in the History of Zen Buddhism. Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright, eds. New York, 2006: pp. 65-112.
PDF: Eisai's Promotion of Zen for the Protection of the Country
Translated by Albert Welter
in: Religions of Japan in Practice, 1999, ch. 4.
PDF: Mahakasyapa's Smile: Silent Transmission and the Kung-an (Koan) Tradition
by Albert Welter
In: The Koan: Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism (New York, 2000), Chapter 3
PDF: Zen Ritual: Studies of Zen Buddhist Theory in Practice (2008) Go to Chapter 3
Buddhist Rituals for Protecting the Country in Medieval Japan: Myoan Eisai's “Regulations of the Zen School”
Contested Identities in Chan/Zen Buddhism: The “Lost” Fragments of Mazu Daoyi in the Zongjing lu
by Albert Welter
PDF: "Zanning and Chan: The Changing Nature of Buddhism in Early Song China."
by Albert Welter
Journal of Chinese Religions, 23(1),
January 1995, pp. 105–140.
PDF: Zen and Japanese Culture: Nativist Influences on Suzuki Daisetsu’s Interpretation of Zen
pp. 177-206
by Albert Welter
On-cho Ng and Charles Prebish, eds. The Theory and Practice of Zen Buddhism: A Festschrift in Honor of Steven Heine, Springer.
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THE DISPUTED PLACE OF "A SPECIAL TRANSMISSION" OUTSIDE THE SCRIPTURES" IN CH'AN
by Albert Welter
http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/A_Special_Transmission.htm
“Secularizing the Sacred, Sacralizing the Secular: Reflections on the Buddhist Monastic Institution in China.” Presentation from the conference: Monastic Life: A Cross-Cultural and Religious Comparison (University of Konstanz, Germany, Dec. 5-6, 2008),
Saeculum. Volume 60, Issue 2, (Dec 2010) Pages 307–330.
http://www.degruyter.com/view/j/saeculum.2010.60.issue-2/saeculum.2010.60.2.307/saeculum.2010.60.2.307.xml
“A Buddhist Response to the Confucian Revival: Tsan-ning and the Debate Over Wen in the Early Sung.”
by Albert Welter
In: Peter N. Gregory and Daniel Getz, eds. Buddhism in the Sung. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, Kuroda Institute Studies on Buddhism, 1999: pp. 21-61.
Yulu Formation in Chinese Chan: The Records of Qingyuan Xingsi and Nanyue Huairang
by Albert Welter
Journal of Chan Buddhism, Volume 1: Issue 1-2, Pages: 77–145.
In recent decades, the study of Chan Buddhism has emerged from the haze of mythologically tinged orthodoxy. This study focuses on the yulu (Dialogue Record) formation process of two of Chan’s most important masters, Qingyuan Xingsi and Nanyue Huairang, linchpins for a flourishing Chan tradition allegedly descended from them. Viewed through four seminal texts – Zutang ji, Zongjing lu, Jingde chuandenglu and Tiansheng guangdenglu – Qingyuan Xingsi and Nanyue Huairang represent two very different cases in the development of Chan. While Xingsi remains a relatively obscure figure, Huairang emerges with a full-fledged Chan persona. The study emphasizes the role of textual compilations in shaping the Chan imaginaire of these two masters.
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