Encounters with Chan

Abstract The handscroll Tales of the Eight Eminent Monks 八高僧故事圖卷, attributed to Liang Kai 梁楷 (fl. 1201–4), is a collection of eight alternating pictorial scenes and eight texts. The texts are largely excerpts from Transmission of the Lamp (dated 1004), which emphasizes adepts’ biographies, recorded sayings, and other nonconventional enlightenment literature. The scenes and text are encounter narratives 禪會 (chanhui) that depict meetings between travelers and masters on the diverse nature of circumstances leading to enlightenment. Disparate in nature—the synoptic narrative paintings include depictions of patriarchs such as the Bodhidharma, the second and fifth Chan patriarchs, and lesser-known figures in Chan history. In the essay, the figures in the scroll are analyzed in comparison with the accepted iconography of Chan (Zen) art. Lingering questions about the calligraphy, date, and the scroll's attribution (linked to the four extant signatures hidden in the paintings) are also addressed.