at Mount Lu " – Huiyuan,
Tao Yuanming, and Lu Xiujing –
Soga Shōhaku (1730-1781). Huiyuan began studying the
Zhuangzi,
Laozi, and the teachings of
Confucius at a young age. However, at the age of 21 he was converted to Buddhism in
Hebei Province by the monk
Dao An, a Chinese disciple of a
Kuchan missionary. Hearing the sermons of Dao An convinced Huiyuan to "leave the family" and embark on a life of Buddhist teachings. Later, he founded
Donglin Temple (East Forest Temple) at the foot of
Mount Lu. His teachings were various, including the
vinaya (), meditation (),
abhidharma, and
Prajna or wisdom. Although Huiyuan did not take initiative in establishing relations with the secular world, he had contacts with court and gentry families. Huiyuan was on two occasions invited by the dictator
Huan Xuan to take part in discussions about the status of the clergy, whose independence Huiyuan defended. Members of the cultured classes came to live on Mount Lu as Huiyuan's lay disciples to take part in religious life. Huiyuan also upheld a learned correspondence with the monk
Kumarajiva. In the year 402 he organized a group of monks and lay people into a
Mahayana sect known as
Pure Land Buddhism, the Pure Land being the western paradise of the Buddha
Amitabha. In the year 404, Huiyuan wrote
On Why Monks Do Not Bow Down Before Kings (). This book symbolized his efforts to assert the political independence of Buddhist clergy from the courts of monarchic rulers. At the same time, it was a religious and political text that aimed to convince monarchs and Confucian-minded ministers of state that followers of Buddhism were ultimately not subversive. He argued that Buddhists could make good subjects in a kingdom due to their beliefs in retribution of
karma and the desire to be reborn in paradise. Despite the Buddhists' reputation of leaving their family behind for a monastic life, Huiyuan stated "those who rejoice in the Way of the Buddha invariably first serve their parents and obey their lords." ==See also==