More from The Tao of Zen. The book is divided into two main paarts: the first part covers the history of the various movements of Taoism, Buddhism and Zen. The second part reviews these movements from the perspective of their respective philosophies. I am almost finished reading the first part.

There are three main writings that are seminal to Chinese Taoism:

• I Ching (The Book of Changes) [Tao Te Ching] (about 1000 BC)
• Lao Tzu (about 500 BC) [this is the same book as the I Ching! 26.05.2000]
• Chuang Tzu (about 300 BC)

It is not clear whether these last two writings were the work of one person or a group. It is not even clear that there ever were people with this name. The historical record is very unclear about these matters. Fascinating.

Bodhidharma (about 470 - 543 A.D.) was an Indian buddhist who travelled to China in 520 A.D.. He is credited with founding the Ch'an movement which later became Zen Buddhism in Japan. This was very helpful to me, since I was not clear of the relationship between The Buddha [Siddhartha Guatama] and Bodhidharma. I was not sure if they were the same person, but with a different name, depending on whether one was speaking about the Japanese, the Chinese, or the Indian cultures. I think I now have this clear.

"The early history of Ch'an is not so clear" (p. 73) ... "Such a shortage of reliable information about Ch'an's early history is not surprising. One reason is simply the absence of existing records. The other has been the consistent inclinaation of Mahayana Buddhism to chart its history through Hui-neng to Bodhidharma rather than from Hui-neng to Lao-Tzu. (p. 74).

Bodhidharma is called the First Patriarch of Buddhism in China. Hui-neng is the sixth Patriarch. "Because of Hui-neng something happened to Ch'an." (p. 79). ... The rise of Zen after Hui-neng was phenomenal" (p. 79). [about 700 AD] "By the tenth century Ch'an was the largest Buddhist sect in China and by the twelfth century most Buddhism practiced in China was Ch'an." (p. 79)

Two other well-known modern authors are mentioned:

• Alan Watts: "a free-spirited iconoclast who did much to popularize Zen and separate it from Buddhism" (p. 87)
• D.T. Suzuki: "represents the side of Japanese Zen thatis connected by belief to India and the Buddha" (p. 89)

I am grateful for this characterization, since I have seen many references to both men, but I was not sure what perspective they represented. This is helpful.

I am beginning to form a much clearer framework for understanding the various events and personages in Buddhist history. A good beginning.