My dissertation examines the figure of Zhongfeng Mingben, one of the most eminent Chan monks of the Yuan dynasty. While Mingben never left southeast China, he attracted followers from throughout China and from abroad. These followers were not only Buddhist monks but also elite lay men and women. Mingben refused to head large monasteries, but instead traveled and lived in the small cloistered communities that he founded in the Jiangnan region. Thus he was a figure of both religious and cultural importance but also one who stood outside the monastic mainstream. Mingben's approach to the study of Chan rejected reliance on the textual tradition and instead demanded rigorous, long-term attention to the cultivation of mind. This underlying religiosity was central to all his pursuits, in both Buddhist and literati realms. My study is divided into three parts. The first two chapters consider the context and construction of Mingben's life. Chapters three and four analyze his contributions to Chan through his teachings and through the monastic code he authored. Chapters five through seven consider Mingben in relation to his literati followers, with special attention to his use of cultural forms to convey his core teachings.
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