THE 'FUKAN ZAZEN-GI' AND THE MEDITATION TEACHINGS OF THE JAPANESE ZEN MASTER DOGEN

This paper is a study of the Fukan zazen-gi, a meditation text by the Japanese Zen master Dogen (1200-53). It is divided into three more or less independent sections: the first reviews the evidence for the dating of the two extant versions of the text and raises some questions about previous interpretations of this evidence; the second considers some major features of the textual and, to a lesser extent, the historical background of the FKZZG, and discusses the relationship of Dogen's work to its sources; the third analyzes certain passages of the FKZZG in connection both with earlier Chinese materials and with Dogen's other writings. Appendices provide comparative tables of the FKZZG and several related works in both the original texts and their English translations.