[Buddha-l] Pai-chang Huai-hai (was Re: there he goes again (samharris))

[Joy Vriens]

Piya Tan wrote:
>You might like to known (if not already) that monks like Bhikkhu Sujato ( 
>www.suttacentral.net) and Roderick Bucknell (U of Queensland, Australia) 
>share the same interest, and it is a most interesting growing area. 

Thanks for the tip. Nice project and interesting indeed. 

Reading Lance on the Jhaanas has shown me once more how much the "Hinayana" approach I was taught, is a strawman and how important it is to go back to the roots and to a good translation thereof, if available. I discovered pretty recently that the "Mahamudra" teachings in Tibetan Buddhism, which Sakya Pandita qualified as merely "Chinese Dzogchen" or "Chinese ch'an" have indeed a lot in common with Chinese Ch'an. Sapan's observation was correct IMO, although it was meant to be a denigrating one.  

I am currently reading the treaty on Sudden Enlightenment by Pai-chang Huai-hai and I am struck by its similarity with Gampopa's and other's texts on "Mahamudra" and with some teachings by the Kadampa and Zhi byed lineages. The Chinese influence on Tibetan Buddhism (early second propagation) seems much greater than is commonly admitted.  I am aware of the research being done in that field. Also when Pai-chang Huai-hai talks about Jhaana I don't find it much different from Lance's explanations. 

The translation I am reading is a French translation (L'éveil subit) by Maryse and Musmi Shibata. I expect it gets the general meaning across pretty well, but could anyone recommend me a more thorough translation (English or French, no Norwegian or Italian please) with notes and references to the sutras that are quoted? 

Joy