Zen Master Huyen Quang's Character Revealed Through Zen Poetry-Verse

In particular, through the survey of 24 poems by Huyen Quang, we realized that in his world of Zen poetry, there are three main forms of space: pagodas; hometown, rivers and mountains. In which, the names of pagodas are mentioned 5 times in 5 poems: Nhan co vien den cuu Lan pagoda, O am nui Yen Tu, Hoa ban tho den tren vat Bao Khanh pagoda, Den chua Dam Thuy, Chua Dien Huu . The titles of the poems include the names of pagodas, pagodas are places to retreat and live in seclusion, which are themselves full of the vitality of Zen. As for the space of hometown, rivers and mountains are also mentioned 4 times. With rivers and mountains, we often see the poet talking about them in relation to "a small boat" and "moonlight" (in the poems Trong thuyen, Choi thuyen ). In our hometown, we encounter two images: " The gardens of our ancestors plowed to their heart's content/...The cool wind lingers in our daydreams" (Daytime Sleep), "The old gardens are everywhere in full bloom with yellow flowers" (Chrysanthemums , I). The most mentioned (6 times) and most poetic (many beautiful poetic images) is the pure mountain forest space: " After the rain, the streams and mountains are all clean/Having a cool dream in the maple forest " ( Afternoon Sleep ); " What is better than following you back to the mountains/Amidst the myriad layers of mountains like overlapping screens " ( Because there are

the work at Cuu Lan Pagoda ); ― Late at night, the autumn wind shakes the curtain / The house in the mountain is desolate, resting on the green vines” (House in the mountain ); ― What is better than living in seclusion in the forest and stream / A pine-wind bed, a cup of tea” (For students on the path to mandarinhood ); “The bamboo forest has many birds perching / More than half are friends of the leisurely monk ” ( At Yen Tu mountain hermitage) … All three forms of space above are different in terms of landscape characteristics, but in essence, they are very similar: they are places without people, a world completely different from the mundane world, which is the dream of Zen masters. As mentioned, the transcendental space in Zen poetry is the meeting point in the perception of Confucian poetry. However, if Zen masters choose this space with a comfortable mindset, which is necessary for nurturing the true mind, then in Confucianism, there are often struggles in choosing between the transcendental space and the mundane space. Once a monk has chosen a natural space, he will no longer let his mind be entangled in worldly affairs. That is why Huyen Quang seems to have forgotten the concept of real time: " At the end of the year in the mountains, there is no calendar/ Seeing chrysanthemums blooming, I know it is the Chongyang Festival " (Chrysanthemums , poem 3 - Huyen Quang). Huyen Quang's verse deeply implies that he lives in the mountains, far away from the mundane world to practice and attain the calm, pure mind of a monk who is not entangled in the mundane world, not even having a calendar of people outside of society, only using the natural calendar means that he has lived in the mountains for a long time, has attained enlightenment, has transcended the mundane world, has reached the realm of Nirvana. This image is a metaphor for the Zen master's practice method. When a Zen master wants to reach a state of no mind, of course, time for them seems to stop, very slowly, or time circulates, like the Buddhist idea of ​​reincarnation. Thus, Huyen Quang's poetry exudes from poetic images that are both suggestive, hidden and silent in the solitude and silence of Zen. Through the poem, we can see both the portrait of a monk in a space of transcendence full of nature and the passion for "enjoying" the beauty of nature of a soul who loves life, loves life as the Zen master himself wrote in the poem "Vĩnh Vân Yên" ( Vĩnh Vân Yên Self-Phu): "Let go of worldly worries/Take refuge in Vân Yên/The sleeping birds listen to the sleeping birds' songs/The fairy wind carries the steps of a fairy/The gourd leisurely floats in harmony with the world/The shoes leisurely wander across the mountains and rivers... ".

Dealing with “body – mind”:

The path back to nature is also the path to find purity for the Zen master's body and mind , free from all worldly concerns. With "body", Huyen Quang especially exalts the "idle body" - the body outside the worldly circle. Buddhism considers the body as an illusion and to avoid being tempted by material desires and disturbed by fame and fortune, the best way is to proactively separate the "body" from society, put yourself in the middle of nature, and befriend nature. Therefore, we understand why

Huyền Quang considered "wealth and honor as floating clouds" and "took the Zen forest as his home" (he often said his home was a house in the mountains, a stone house ...); the monk's friends were "more than half birds" and then clouds, wind, moon, flowers... Having practiced diligently, he considered "my heart has now become a block of Zen". In the pure, quiet space of a hermit, the Zen master was able to

― Take a cool dream in the maple forest ‖ ( Afternoon nap ) or ― A pillow in the cool breeze, the daydream has not ended ‖ ( Day nap ), sometimes even ― forget ‖ all the external things around him: ― The monk lies on the bed, the sutras are in front of the table / The stove is dying, the firewood is dying, what morning does it matter ‖ ( Stone House ). And from that comfort full of life instinct, the poet-Zen master Huyen Quang found for himself truly leisurely moments - something that Confucian scholars in seclusion like Nguyen Trai - who, although he had retired to live in seclusion in Con Son, always dreamed of, longed for ― a minute of leisure in those days / Could a thousand gold coins be exchanged for it? ‖ could hardly achieve: ― The small boat glides on the immense wind / Green mountains, blue water, cold autumn light”; “From now on, worldly desires will no longer linger/Leaning on the pillow in peace before the winter wind” … When he was no longer entangled with anything, Huyen Quang still “allowed” himself to enjoy the beauty of nature. However, it is important to understand that this was not necessarily a glorification of the body or a praise of a beautiful life with the desire to enjoy that life, but rather an illustration of the innocent spirit in the Zen master’s character. After meditating, he sat and watched the chrysanthemums. Watching the chrysanthemums bloom was also meditating; he sat and watched the flowers until he saw that the person watching the flowers and the flowers were two innocent things as one. As a result, the Zen master “enlightened his nature” and

His “vision” of reality blossomed like a flower:

People upstairs, flowers in the yard

Burning incense and sitting quietly, suddenly forgetting sorrow, Innocent people and things do not compete,

Compared to the top chrysanthemum ( Chrysanthemum , V).

Sometimes the "idle body" in Huyen Quang also meets with Lao-Trang ideology with the principle of "inaction" and "freedom" that disregards human reason. The poem De Dam Thuy Tu tells us that. The Zen master went for a walk through the royal carriage's path and entered the meditation hermitage, then helped the temple ring the bell and pick up fallen flowers: "Conveniently entering the royal carriage's path to visit Buddha/ Ringing the bell, helping the monk pick up fallen flowers ."

With "mind", Huyen Quang has often reached the so-called "mind of wisdom", not tainted by the slightest bit of worldly dust. Doing this will certainly reach a state of pure mind, bright mind, and tranquil mind: " The heart of Zen is like the bright moon shining/The worldly affairs are like the gentle wind blowing by" ( Van Yen Tu Ke ). Great Zen poets like Huyen Quang often choose for themselves an environment to nurture their souls.

Of course, that is the natural environment and often uses natural images to imply the empty mind. We encounter a spacious, delicate, poetic soul in Ngo Thuy, Chu Trung, Thach Da, Nhan Su De Cuu Lan Tu, Yen Tu Son Am Cu, Phiem Chu ... by Huyen Quang:

- The rain stopped, the mountains and streams were clean, The maple forest was a dream. Looking back at the dusty life,

Open eyes drunken road. (Nap)

- Half a stone house with clouds (Stone house)

- I might as well follow you to the mountain.

The mountains are steep and covered with thousands of layers. (On the occasion of the event at Cuu Lan Pagoda)…

The nature of the mind according to Buddhism is to reach an empty mind, a pure mind , sweeping away all attachments of life. The Zen master's talk of going up the mountain, going to a deserted place, talking about sleep, talking about the state of a child's mind are all metaphors, comparisons to express the idea of ​​an empty mind (the soul of a child is still innocent, pure, not entangled in the dust of life; sleep or dreams are also a state of an empty mind; the scene of a remote mountain also symbolizes the quiet world of the mind not broken by the hustle and bustle of life...).

To express the pure, clear mind, the true mind that has attained enlightenment in the Zen poetry of Huyen Quang, we also see the poet using images and poetic materials from nature such as autumn, moonlight, wind, birds, water, clouds... Through Zen poems such as Stone House, Daytime Sleeping, House in the Mountain, Playing Boat, Mountain and Rockery of the Donor in Dong Hien... we see natural images such as clouds, birds, wind, autumn, moon, flowers ... are all metaphors expressing the Zen implications of the author. The clarity and silence of autumn creates a boundless space and a quiet void like "the sky is thousands of feet deep and clean" or "the autumn sky is blue several levels high"... evoking the great cosmic essence that is formless, unborn and undying, eternal and present everywhere. The moonlight symbolizes both Prajna wisdom and enlightenment, and the mind that has reached the state of clear emptiness. Clouds, wind, mountains, water , etc. symbolize the natural innocence of all things, which is also the natural innocence of the meditative mind.

Among the natural images used in Huyen Quang's poems, flowers account for a significant proportion (12/24 poems, accounting for 50%) and in which the Zen master especially favors two flowers with pure and lasting beauty: apricot blossoms and chrysanthemums. In which apricot blossoms are mentioned 3 times and chrysanthemums are mentioned 10 times. Regarding apricot blossoms, perhaps the most impressive is in the poem

" Hoa Mai " when Huyen Quang wrote about his feelings for this pure flower, associated with spring. The quality of the apricot flower "alone washing the snow in the deep mountains" also refers to the eternal sincerity of a person who has attained enlightenment, not afraid of challenges. Chrysanthemum is associated with autumn and is a flower that, according to Huyen Quang, "compared to other flowers, chrysanthemum is one level superior". Perhaps that is why his poetry is filled with the yellow color of this flower "in the eastern fence":

- The old garden is full of yellow flowers in front and back (Chrysanthemums, Part I)

- Chrysanthemums bloom at the time of the Great Ocean (Chrysanthemums, III)

- Innocent, people and things do not compete

Compared to all flowers, chrysanthemum is the best (Chrysanthemum, V)

- The autumn garden is withered, thousands of flowers have fallen,

Only the chrysanthemum is still full of color (Chrysanthemum, VI)…

We know that among flowers, the lotus is actually the flower that symbolizes Buddhism. In Buddhism, the lotus symbolizes purity and innocent life. According to the Lalitavistara Sutra (Universal Wonderful Sutra), the human spirit is pure, like the lotus that grows in the mud without being tainted by the mud. But the chrysanthemum also occupies a special place in the spiritual life of the Vietnamese people. This is shown through the four-panel painting series "Tung Truc Cuc Mai". The chrysanthemum is a symbol of the nobility of life, of prosperity and love between people. Chrysanthemum is often the symbol of a gentleman in Confucian literature.

Chrysanthemum as a literary material appearing in Vietnam originated from Tao Yuanming (China). Traces of influence from the image of Tao Yuanming's chrysanthemum in Vietnamese literature probably began in the 13th century with the poem Qui thanh chuong by Zen master Phan Truong Nguyen ( Thien uyen tap anh ) with the line: " Thu chi cuc khai mot mo dang " (Thu comes still a yellow chrysanthemum). Next, we must mention the work Pho thuyet huong thuong nhat lo by Tran Thai Tong, which mentioned " vo huyen cam " as a symbol associated with Tao Yuanming. Tue Trung in the poem Doi co also has the phrase " hoang cuc li bien ". By the end of the Tran Dynasty, Tao's chrysanthemum was "planted" more widely and widely in Vietnamese poetry as Confucianism gradually replaced Buddhism. Vietnamese intellectuals such as Mac Dinh Chi, Truong Han Sieu, Tran Minh Tong, Tran Hue Kha... all wrote about Chrysanthemum. Venerable Huyen Quang also chose the Chrysanthemum to convey the profound meanings of Zen. Right in the opening poem, Huyen Quang found the image of the chrysanthemum in relation to the pine and the apricot blossoms, and Tao Yuanming in relation to two other sages, Tuong Hu of the Han Dynasty and Han The Trung of the Song Dynasty, who abandoned their fame and fortune to live in seclusion and find joy in flowers and grass:

Tuong Hu's house is full of wind, his hut is covered with dew from the West Lake.

Different morals, different scenery, The old garden is full of yellow flowers in front and back.

Above, it can be said that for Zen Master Huyen Quang, the chrysanthemum is first of all a metaphor with Buddhist meaning, symbolizing the hermit and elegance. This is the serenity that Vietnamese Zen masters of the Ly-Tran dynasties always wanted to aim for.

With the spirit of returning to nature and reconciling with nature, Zen masters expressed their emotions and moods before nature and life with the meaning of Zen and the mundane like Huyen Quang, which we can also see in some other great Zen poets such as Tran Thai Tong, Tue Trung, Tran Nhan Tong (Huong Thien Nhat Lo, Giang Ho Tu Thich, Lang Chau Van Canh...)

Thus, returning to nature is also a way for Zen masters to liberate themselves. And from here, on the one hand, we can see the path of Zen masters' practice in nature, and on the other hand, we can see another beauty in Zen masters: a soul that loves nature and life.

2.2.1.2. “Practicing in the midst of life”:

According to Nguyen Pham Hung, "harmony of light and dust" is the thought of Lao Tzu expressed in the Tao Te Ching . Chinese Zen has greatly influenced this thought. It penetrated Vietnam and became one of the basic thoughts of Vietnamese Zen. Practitioners of this thought do not cling to restrictive doctrines, are not bound by rigid formulas and principles of precepts, but practice and attain the path in a spirit of freedom, independence, self-reliance, and self-strengthening " [54; p.50].

With this idea of ​​"harmonizing with the world", Zen masters can live fully with both life and religion according to the viewpoint of "following customs" and "following fate". That is the endless source of joy for those who study and understand the religion, creating a mind of constant joy. Bringing that heart into life, Zen masters freely handle all matters, actively caring for the people and the country. When the work is done, Zen masters leisurely return to their daily life of meditation. Therefore, they can also love human love as they love nature and life. Only then can they find true peace, freedom, and joy. This is essentially a manifestation of the method of meditation practice, the meditator aims to reach a state of zero psychology, breaking attachments, that is, removing all the impacts and influences of life (money, material things, beauty), reaching an empty, void mind. That mind that has attained the path is called the mind of Nirvana, a pure mind. That is the purpose of practice. The verse of Tran Nhan Tong " Doi canh vo tam mac van thien" means that if before a scene the heart is empty and quiet, then there is no need to ask what meditation is, the state of mind of zero is meditation. Before all scenes of life (money, material things...), the monk's heart is indifferent, not the slightest bit moved. Before a sad or happy scene, the monk is calm, at ease, not sad, not happy, not worried, not suffering. It is like the answer of Zen Master Bao Tu Van Kham (?-928) to the young monk when he asked what is "normal mind": " Eating rice, drinking tea depends on the situation/Drinking water from the mountains, see if you like it " [115; p.423].

The "disturbance" of everyday life

Reading Huyen Quang's poetry, we see that the state of "normal mind", the method of "practicing in the midst of life" is expressed discreetly and wonderfully in many aspects.

different. First of all, it can be found in the seemingly very ordinary "disturbance" in him. His worries and thoughts about life and human love are still very heavy. We rarely notice here the state of Zen perception that tends towards serenity, silence, and clarity. We also cannot see in his poetry the fluctuations, movements, excitement, and recklessness with the wild and reckless nature of Tran Tung's poetry. What the reader feels first in his poetry is the "disturbance", the breaking of the static, nihilistic balance of Zen, with the colors, images, and sounds of the world that exists constantly around the poet, in a spirit of accepting reality as it is. That disturbance is expressed in many different appearances, in many different forms, diverse and vivid, full of images and poetry. That is the wandering state of the poet when he lets his soul float on a lonely boat in the vastness of the sky and water, going to infinity. Here, the real and the virtual blend together, relying on each other, just like the poet's own troubled mood, torn between the world and the path, between form and emptiness, existence and non-existence:

A small boat of a seafaring passenger, The reeds glide forward, the wind rustles, The water rises high in the mist,

The last white-winged seagull. ( Chu Trung )

We remember the metaphor in Zen through the famous saying of Thanh Nguyen Duy Tin: ―before learning Zen, seeing mountains as mountains, seeing rivers as rivers; when learning Zen, seeing mountains as not mountains, rivers as not rivers; When I finished studying, I saw mountains as mountains and rivers as rivers." Everything returned to its original state. Therefore, we can also understand that the "disturbance" and "torment" above in Huyen Quang is not because he is still "attached to worldly attachments" (Not attached to the world means not greedy, angry, or ignorant about material things, sex, or salary) or still attached to a certain choice, but they are the feelings of a delicate and sensitive poet's soul before the world and human feelings. And perhaps that is the reason why his poems contain contradictory states. It is the tearing and agitation of his heart when the resonance of worldly life has made him feel pain, sadness, torment, and anxiety. So, has he not become a true monk, still has the appearance of a Confucian scholar? That agitation and anxiety is revealed in the poetic ideas and poetic language. He considers life as "the world". "dusty life" ( Ngo thuy ), he considered "wealth and honor like floating clouds" ( Treasure for scholars and disciples )... He returned to "clean mountain streams" ( Ngo thuy ), to "cool Zen hermitages" ( Yen Tu mountain hermitages ), to "mountains upon mountains" ( Nhan su de Cuu Lan tu), to "a cup of fragrant tea, a bed of fresh air" ( Treasure for scholars and disciples )... He firmly said: "My heart is now completely Zen" ( Son vu ), "from now on I am no longer entangled in worldly concerns" ( De Dong hien Dan Viet gia son )... but