Buddhism

A Dictionary of Buddhism The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions Further reading

kill the Buddha

A Dictionary of Buddhism | 2004 | | Copyright

kill the Buddha. A teaching ascribed to the Chinese Ch'an master Lin-chi I-hsüan (d. 866). In full, his teaching reads, ‘If you meet the Buddha, kill the Buddha; if you meet the patriarchs, kill the patriarchs; if you meet an Arhat, kill the Arhat; if you meet your parents, kill your parents… in this way, you attain liberation.’ (Taishō, vol. 47, p. 500b). According to the Ch'an tradition, his intention was to shock students into realizing that they themselves were Buddhas, patriarchs, Arhats, and so on, and that they had no need to depend upon, mistakenly objectify, or inordinately revere figures external to themselves.

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

DAMIEN KEOWN. "kill the Buddha." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

DAMIEN KEOWN. "kill the Buddha." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O108-killtheBuddha.html

DAMIEN KEOWN. "kill the Buddha." A Dictionary of Buddhism. 2004. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O108-killtheBuddha.html

Learn more about citation styles

Kill the Buddha

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions | 1997 | | Copyright

Kill the Buddha: see LIN-CHI I-HSÜAN.

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

JOHN BOWKER. "Kill the Buddha." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 31 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN BOWKER. "Kill the Buddha." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 31, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-KilltheBuddha.html

JOHN BOWKER. "Kill the Buddha." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved May 31, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-KilltheBuddha.html

Learn more about citation styles

Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Profile: Jeff Sharlet and Peter Manseau are touring the US with their new... Transcript from: NPR Morning Edition; 3/23/2004
	I love my.... Burmese Buddha - Nicki Chapman.(Features) Newspaper article from: The Mirror (London, England); 2/22/2003
	The Buddha from another planet: action star Steven Seagal has now been... Magazine article from: Esquire; 10/1/1997