The Development of Chinese Zen

by Heinrich Dumoulin

During the last decades Zen has been given increasing publicity, but reliable source material for a scientific examination and accurate representation of this important component of Eastern thought remains extremely scanty. A comprehensive history of Zen, giving an authoritative account of its inception and early growth, has yet to be written. The period discussed in this volume constitutes the acme of Zen in China during the eras of T’ang and Sung. Hardly any other epoch can equal it in its richness of strong personalities and originality of expression. Not even Japan, where Zen has exerted a more lasting and pervading influence on culture and thought than in China, has seen a similar flowering. (from the Author’s Foreword)

146 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1953