Abstract:

Researches and studies on Chan Buddhism (禪宗) are done and discussed in academic field all the time. They are from several dominant approaches of research. However, most of them in which controversial issues of mysticism, cultural difference and historical fact are involved. Just a few of them are focusing on the discussion of philosophy of Chan Buddhism. In addition, issues of how the Chan Buddhism works and how it can enlighten people nowadays are seldom to be elucidated, even under the light of philosophy of Chan Buddhism.

In this research, first, I want to introduce a classification on the existing researches of Chan Buddhism. For those researches on the Chan Buddhism, most of them involve, in different degree, a kind of “Irrationalism of Chan Buddhism” that assumes the experience of enlightenment of Chan Buddhism cannot be explained by daily language. I think the “Irrationalism of Chan Buddhism” causes mainly the hinder people nowadays from understanding and try to make use of the wisdom from Chan Buddhism. So, there is a research gap for a new kind of interpretation of Chan Buddhism.

Second, my thesis tries to introduce new kind of interpretation: Chan Buddhism as a kind of Philosophical Counseling. Before that, I shall introduce what "Philosophical Counseling" is and how the philosophical counselling can help us to solve the problems in our (daily) life.

Third, I will show how the new interpretation of Chan Buddhism gives us a reasonable and practical explanation on how the Chan Buddhism works.

Finally, I also want to show you this new interpretation of Chan Buddhism aspires to a new form of philosophical counselling: Philosophical Counseling of Chan Buddhism.

This research aims at providing a new perspective on understanding Chan Buddhism and trying to bridge the gap from the profound wisdom of Chan Buddhism to practical daily usage of it.