The Guan Wuliangshou jing Luelun (観無量寿経略論), Yang Wenhui's (楊文会, 1837-1911) commentary on the Guan Wuliangshou jing Luelun written late in his career, is an important source for the understanding of Pure Land (Jingtu, 浄土) thought during the late Qing dynasty in China. In particular, this treatise positively absorbs the ideas of Shandao(善導, 613-681). one of the early formulators of Chinese Pure Land thought, whose ideas and writings had long been neglected or lost to China. Until now, the study of the Guan Wuliangshou jing Luelun has also been ignorred, leaving a "blank spot" in research relating to the thought of Yang Wenhui. This paper attempts to rectify this situation by discussing the substance of this treatise and its special features from the historical perspective of interpretations on the Guan Wuliangshou jing Luelun. There is a correlation between the resurgence of Chinese Buddhism and the printing and publishing of ancient Chinese Buddhist texts during the late Qing. The renewed interest in Pure Land thought during this period was a direct result of this phenomenon. Between 1890 and 1894, Yang Wenhui enlisted the services of the famous Japanese Buddhist scholar Nanjō Bunyū (南条文雄, 1849-1927) to assist in reintroducing into China Buddhist texts then only preserved in Japan. According to Nanjo's Zōsyo shimatsu (贈書始末), among the texts brought back to China at this time were works composed by Shandao. This event served as the catalyst for Yang's Guan Wuliangshou jing Luelun. Yang's original draft of the Guan Wuliangshou jing Luelun remained unfinished and unpublished at the time of his death, the final form being arranged by his disciples. Although a short commentary of only about 3,000 characters, it is an important source for understanding the Guan Wuliangshou jing Luelun. This paper specifically addresses the following four points. (1) The essence of meditation(guanxiang, 観想) : Yang argues that meditation is not only something one does for one's own sake alone, but is also a practice for saving others. Yang thus calls meditation the "Bodhisattva's Practice" (pusa xing, 菩薩行). (2) The "sixteen meditations" found in the Guan Wuliangshou jing: The comprehension of these sixteen meditations forms the core of Yang's concerns. Based on his understanding of the essence of meditation. Yang designs a unique and comprehensive scheme for systematizing and practising these meditations. (3) The status of the practitioner: Yang makes a distinction between the meditative practitioner(xiuguanzhe, 修観者) and the nine kinds of living beings (jiupin zhongsheng, 九品衆生). a distinction that highlights his emphasis on the concept of meditation. (4) The synthesis of Huayan (華厳), Weishi (唯識) and Pure Land ideas: Yang's interpretation of the Guan Wuliangshou jing draws upon Huayan and Weishi thought. In this paper, special attention is given to Shandao's influence on Yang Wenhui. It argues that, on the one hand, Yang absorbed the ideas of Shandao, especially those relating to the practical meaning of meditation, and that Shandao's ideas were thus revived through the writings of Yang. In addition and on the other hand, it shows that Yang's efforts to connect Huayan and Weishi thought to Pure Land thought reflect an academic predilection of Chinese Buddhists in the late Qing dynasty. The paper concludes with a discussion of the influence of Yang's thought on modern Chinese Buddhism as represented by the interpretation of Shandao's ideas by the twentieth-century Pure Land scholar Yinguang(印光, 1861-1940).
