What is the relationship between Zhouyi and Buddhism?

The Relationship between Zhouyi and Buddhism

Fang Tian Li of Renmin University of China

The most important relationship between Zhouyi and Buddhism is that between Hua Yanzong and Zen, because they have some similarities with Zhouyi.

Both Zhouyi scholars and Buddhist scholars believe that the thoughts of Zhouyi and Hua Yanzong are interlinked. Hua Yanzong scholars believe that his concept of non-phase is consistent with the changing principle of 64 hexagrams and 384 hexagrams in Zhouyi. Although, Confucianism also thinks that its divination is connected with Hua Yan's thought, and both show the basic idea of free movement of things. For another example, Buddhism believes that its thought of Hua Yan is consistent with the overall concept of Zhouyi, and also with the concept of "harmony between man and nature". Therefore, a scholar named Li explained the Huayan Classic with the Book of Changes and wrote the famous Xinhua Yan. In Zen, Cao Dongzong has a famous method to enlighten students, which is called the Five-position Method. Zen scholars believe that this method conforms to the changing principle of hexagrams and hexagrams in Zhouyi.

Some Buddhist scholars use Zhouyi to explain Zen in order to guide Confucian scholars to study Zen. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, there was a great scholar named Xu Zhi, who wrote The Interpretation of Zen in Zhouyi.

In addition, Buddhist scholars also criticized Zhouyi. They criticized the viewpoint of "Tai Chi gives birth to two instruments" in Zhouyi, and thought that "Tai Chi" could not be born as an absolute thing, and what was born could not be used as the source. There is also the Book of Changes, which holds that the essence is matter and can be transformed into wandering souls. Buddhist scholars believe that this is wrong, and matter cannot be transformed into spirit. These have greatly promoted the study of the relationship between matter and spirit.

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