Zhimen Guangzuo 智門光祚 (ca. 950-1030) of the Yunmen 雲門 School,active from the late Five Dynasties to the early Song, was the teacher of the famous Song Chan master Xuedou Chongxian 雪竇重顯 (980-1053). Overshadowed by the fame of Yunmen Wenyan 雲門文偃 (864-949) and Xuedou Chongxian, Guangzuo is usually mentioned only briefly in the history of Chan Buddhism. Guangzuo, however, serves as a necessary link for the transmission of the Yunmen School between Yunmen and Xuedou. This article first makes a detailed comparison of several biographical sources in order to characterize Guangzuo’s life and teaching career. Next, the compilation, publication and structure of the Record of Sayings of Chan Master Zhimen Zuo (Zhimen zuo chanshi yulu 智門祚禪師語錄) are systematically analyzed. Finally, the author examines three pieces of information from the section of“Ascending the Dharma Hall＂(shangtang 上堂) in his Record of Sayings to discuss Guangzuo’s Chan thought. This article on Zhimen Guangzuo’s life and Record of Sayings contributes to the field of the study of Chan Buddhism not only by providing important information for analyzing the development of Chan Buddhism from the Tang dynasty to the Song dynasty, but also by serving a basis for the studies of Chan texts and genres of the Song dynasty.
