Lineage Genealogy of the Chinese Madhyamaka School (Sanlun School)
Introduction:
As stated in Master Kuiji’s Yilin Zhang regarding the meaning of the word "school" (Zong, 宗): "When speaking of a 'school,' it carries the meanings of reverence, veneration, and paramountcy. That which is revered, venerated, and held as paramount within the holy teachings is therefore called a 'school.' For instance, between heterodox and orthodox paths, or between the Hinayana and Mahayana, what they revere, venerate, and hold as the paramount Dharma differ from one another; hence, they are spoken of as different schools." However, in the Chinese language, the general meaning of "Zong" refers to the fundamental meaning or the main tenet. Although it also carries connotations of an ancestral temple, ancestors, or a faction, the root essence of "Zong" is to take the revered and venerated principles as the foundation for studying the holy teachings.
Nagarjuna transmitted the teachings to Aryadeva. Aryadeva transmitted them to Rahula and Nagabodhi. Rahula transmitted them to Pingala, and Nagabodhi transmitted them to Sthiramati. Pingala transmitted them to Bhaviveka and Suryasoma; Bhaviveka transmitted them to Jnanaprabha, and Suryasoma transmitted them to Kumarajiva. Furthermore, the Japanese monk Gyōnen stated: "Nagarjuna bestowed the teachings upon the Bodhisattvas Nagabodhi and Aryadeva; these two great masters of the wheel jointly propagated the teachings. Nagabodhi bestowed them upon Bodhisattva Bhaviveka, who bestowed them upon Master Jnanaprabha, who in turn bestowed them upon Bodhisattva Simharasmi."
Kumarajiva transmitted the teachings to his ten brilliant disciples: Daosheng, Sengzhao, Daorong, Sengrui, Tanying, Huiyan, Huiguan, Sengdao, Daochang, and Daobiao.
Daosheng, Sengzhao, Daorong, and Sengrui are also known as the "Four Sages of Guanzhong."
Sengrui and Sengzhao are jointly honored as the "Second Patriarchs of the Sanlun (Three Treatises) School." Master Kumarajiva praised Sengzhao, saying: "Among the people of Qin, his understanding of emptiness is unparalleled." Master Sengzhao also attended the translation assemblies of the Kashmiri master Buddhayaśas to listen to the Dīrghāgama and other texts. Moreover, Master Kumarajiva himself had studied under Tripitaka Master Buddhayaśas, who was also known as Mahāvibhāṣā.
Sengzhao transmitted the teachings to Daolang of Hexi; Daolang transmitted them to Sengquan of Mount She; Sengquan transmitted them to Falang of Xinghuang; and Falang transmitted them to Jizang. Jizang transmitted the teachings to Huilang, the Goguryeo monk Hyegwan (Huiguan), Zhikai, and Master Shuo. However, according to the Japanese Sanlun School, Daosheng transmitted them to Tanji, and Tanji transmitted them to Daolang of Hexi.
The Goguryeo monk Hyegwan transmitted the teachings to Fukuryō; Fukuryō transmitted them to Chizō; and Chizō transmitted them to the Japanese monks Chikō (of Gangō-ji), Raikō (of Gangō-ji), and Dōji (of Daian-ji). The Japanese monks Chikō and Raikō transmitted them to Ryōei. Master Shuo transmitted them to Yuankang, and Yuankang transmitted them to the Japanese monk Dōji (of Daian-ji). Dōji also studied Tang Esoteric Buddhism under Tripitaka Master Śubhakarasiṃha. Dōji later transmitted the teachings to Zengi. Afterward, Anchō wrote the Chūron Shoki (Notes on the Commentary of the Middle Way), greatly illuminating Madhyamaka. The Japanese monk Kaikei also authored the Separate Explanations on the Twenty-Seven Chapters of the Madhyamaka Śāstra, the preface of which quotes the Preface to the Madhyamaka Śāstra by Kumarajiva’s disciple, Tanying.
Furthermore, the Japanese monk Gyōnen stated: "Hyegwan bestowed the teachings upon Bishop Fukuryō; Fukuryō bestowed them upon Bishop Chizō; Chizō jointly bestowed them upon Vinaya Master Dōji and Master Raikō. Dōji bestowed them upon the Great Virtuous Zengi; Zengi bestowed them upon Archbishop Gonsō; Gonsō bestowed them upon the Great Virtuous Anchō. Thus, the lineage has been transmitted down to the present without interruption."
Regarding Master Kumarajiva, the middle scroll of the Commentary on the Treatises of Sengzhao states:
"Dharma Master Kumarajiva left the home life at the age of seven. He first studied the various treatises of the Hinayana. By the age of thirteen, he studied under Suryasoma, the son of a state official.</p>
Suryasoma and his brother were two siblings; the elder brother was named Suryabhadra, and the younger was Suryasoma.
Suryasoma's talent and eloquence were unparalleled, and both his elder brother and many others studied under him.
Suryasoma expounded the Anavatapta Sutra for Kumarajiva. When Kumarajiva heard that all dharmas of the aggregates and elements are empty and markless, he was astonished and asked: 'What further meaning does this sutra hold, that it destroys all dharmas?' Suryasoma replied: 'All dharmas, such as the eye, do not truly exist.'
Because Kumarajiva clung to the existence of the sense organs, while Suryasoma argued based on dependent origination that they lack true reality, they debated and scrutinized the Greater and Lesser Vehicles back and forth for a long time. Only then did Kumarajiva realize where the ultimate truth resided. He subsequently devoted himself entirely to the Vaipulya (Mahayana) teachings, extensively seeking the essential meanings and receiving and reciting the Middle Treatise, the Hundred Verses Treatise, and the Twelve Gates Treatise. Hence, it is said that he stepped onto the Great Path at a young age."
This is a brief overview of the lineage of Chinese Madhyamaka. Those who study Chinese Buddhism must not belittle themselves, nor should they harbor arrogance toward others.
Additionally, the Lineage Genealogy of the Sanlun School appended to the Jinling Scriptural Press edition of the Profound Meaning of the Three Treatises (published in 1899/1900, the 25th year of the Guangxu era) corresponds to the Lineage Genealogy of the Sanlun School found in the Nihon Daizōkyō (Japanese Tripitaka, 1914).
Tatsue Nakano (1871–1934), who served as the compiler and publisher for the Manji Daizōkyō, the Manji Zokuzōkyō, and the Nihon Daizōkyō, had previously traveled to Qing dynasty China to collect various Buddhist scriptures. It is highly probable that during that time, he collected the Lineage Genealogy of the Sanlun School appended to the edition of the Profound Meaning of the Three Treatises published by the Jinling Scriptural Press.
Sourced from the Essentials of the Meanings and Texts of the Three Treatises' Profound Meanings and Commentaries by the Japanese Master Chinkai: "From the oral transmission of the bloodline:
Mañjuśrī, Aśvaghoṣa, Nāgārjuna, Āryadeva, Piṅgala, Bhāviveka, Shache, Kumārajīva, Tanying, Sengrui, Daosheng, Sengzhao, Daorong, Daoheng, Huiyan, Huiguan (the above eight luminaries emerged together). Daolang, Sengquan, Faming, Jixiang [Jizang] (the above four masters are in sequence). Yuankang, Xuanshi (the above are Chinese). Vinaya Master Dōji, Great Virtuous Zengi, Archbishop Gonsō, Vinaya Master Gankyō, Archbishop and Reverend Master Shōbō, Bishop Enshin, Acting Senior Bishop Kanri, Bishop Chōshin, Vinaya Master Zaikei, Senior Bishop Yūkei, Kenshin, Vinaya Master Yōkan, Bishop Kakuju, Archbishop Chizō—this lineage can be traced and is recorded separately."
Lineage Genealogy of the Chinese Madhyamaka School (Sanlun School)
(Figures 1 to 4 show the Lineage Genealogy of the Chinese Madhyamaka School / Sanlun School)
Furthermore, regarding the discourse by Master Jizang of the Chinese Madhyamaka School on the Conventional Truth and the Ultimate Truth: