THE WORSHIP OF MEDICINE MASTER BUDDHA IN MEDIEVAL CHINA By YUJING CHEN A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2017 © 2017 Yujing Chen To my parents and teachers ACKNOWLEDGMENTS My academic life has brought me into contact with many kind-hearted people. This study would not have been possible without the aid of those who generously give me their support. I would first like to express my deepest gratitude to my teachers and advisers at the University of Florida, who inspire me in various ways. I am especially grateful to Mario Poceski for giving me solid training of Chinese religious studies and offering kind advice. He has truly embodied the role of mentor. His guidance, encouragement, and support have been instrumental in my completion of the graduate program. Richard Wang has introduced me into many aspects of Daoist tradition and shaped my views of historical studies. Guolong Lai has given me helpful and incisive suggestions for the study of Chinese art. I am thankful to Ying Xiao who has been very supportive by offering her wisdom to guide me to think about my research and my long- term academic goals. Several scholars also help me greatly by providing their sources and sharing their professional expertise. David Hickey read part of the manuscript and made comments on it. Wang Huimin shared his knowledge on Medicine Master Buddha worship when I visited Dunhuang in 2015. Li Yumin generously provides me with photographs of Medicine Master Buddha statues and other relevant sources. I am also deeply indebted to Yan Juanying of Academia Sinica for introducing me to the joy of studying Chinese art. Finally, I want to acknowledge the support I received from my friends and monastery. I am grateful to Man Soifer for kindly taking care of me, especially during my last stage of writing the dissertation. Special thanks go to Sally Lin, Laura Chang, and Taili Xi for their incessant compassion and generosity that always support me in various 4 ways. I also want to express my greatest gratitude to my spiritual teachers, Ven. Kuanqian and Ven. Houzhong, for their encouragement and guidance. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. 4 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................. 8 ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................... 9 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 11 Recent Research on Buddhist Divinities ................................................................. 13 Methods and Sources ............................................................................................. 17 Chapter Summary ................................................................................................... 20 2 SCRIPTURAL FOUNDATIONS .............................................................................. 23 Extant Versions of Medicine Master Buddha Scripture ........................................... 24 Central Claims of the Shengsi Dedu Jing ............................................................... 33 The Presence of Human Sufferings ................................................................. 34 The Salvific Power of Medicine Master Buddha ............................................... 40 Devotional Practices ............................................................................................... 46 Pious Acts Centered on the Scripture .............................................................. 47 Recollection of the Buddha’s Name ................................................................. 51 Making the Buddha’s Image ............................................................................. 52 Setting up Lamps and Banners ........................................................................ 54 Concluding Remarks............................................................................................... 57 3 EARLY DEVELOPMENT AND BURGEONING GROWTH ..................................... 59 The Initial Phase ..................................................................................................... 60 The Buddhist Pantheon during the Northern Dynasties .......................................... 63 Some Prominent Divinities ............................................................................... 64 Worship in the Sixth Century ............................................................................ 67 Increasing Popularity of the Cult ............................................................................. 74 Commentaries and Exegesis ............................................................................ 75 The Buddha as Described in Miracle Tales ...................................................... 78 Patrons at Longmen ......................................................................................... 82 Pictorial Art at Dunhuang.................................................................................. 86 Esoteric Ritual Manuals .................................................................................... 92 Concluding Remarks............................................................................................... 97 4 MEDICINE MASTER BUDDHA AS A THIS-WORLDLY SAVIOR ........................... 99 Accumulating and Transferring Merit .................................................................... 100 6 Pursuit of Healing ................................................................................................. 103 In Search of a Safe Journey ................................................................................. 112 Quest for Prolonging Life ...................................................................................... 120 Female Devotees’ Views and Concerns ............................................................... 126 Fertility and Childbirth ..................................................................................... 126 Cultural Bias towards Male Heirs ................................................................... 130 Women’s Self-Perception ............................................................................... 134 The Buddha as a National Protector ..................................................................... 139 Seeking Divine Protection .............................................................................. 140 Imperial Rituals ............................................................................................... 144 Concluding Remarks............................................................................................. 148 5 BELIEFS AND PRACTICES RELATED TO THE AFTERLIFE ............................. 149 Yāma and Infernal Punishments ........................................................................... 150 Motif of Returning from Death ............................................................................... 157 Placating the Dead and Protecting the Living ....................................................... 164 Family Ethics and Filial Piety ................................................................................ 173 Concluding Remarks............................................................................................. 184 6 THE BUDDHA’S CONNECTIONS WITH THE PURE LAND TRADITION ............ 186 Conception of Otherworldly Realms ..................................................................... 186 The Sacred Lands of Medicine Master Buddha and Amitābha ............................. 189 Religious Cross-Fertilization ................................................................................. 195 Popular Formulaic Expression .............................................................................. 205 Pluralistic Ideas of Chinese Buddhists .................................................................. 210 Concluding Remarks............................................................................................. 218 7 CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................... 222 APPENDIX: BUDDHIST AND DAOIST MEDICINE MASTER REPENTANCE RITES 227 LIST OF REFERENCES ............................................................................................. 237 Primary Sources ................................................................................................... 237 Secondary Sources: East Asian Languages ......................................................... 241 Secondary Sources: Western Languages............................................................. 247 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .......................................................................................... 257 7 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS Ch Chinese. P Pelliot collection of Chinese Dunhuang manuscripts at the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris. S Stein collection of Chinese Dunhuang manuscripts at the British Library, London. Sk Sanskrit. T Taishō shinshū dai zōkyō 大正新修大藏經. Tokyo: Taishō issaikyō kankōkai 大正一切經刊行會. X Wan xinzuan xuzang jing 卍新纂續藏經 (reprint of Dai nihon zoku zōkyō 大日本續藏經). Taipei: Xin wen feng 新文豐. 8 Abstract of Dissertation Presented to the Graduate School of the University