Five-Character Poem by Xuelang Hong’en; Ming dynasty, dated 1587
Ink on paper
Xuelang Hong’en
CHINA, Jiangsu, Nanjing; Ming dynasty
Xuelang Hong’en, originally named Huang Sanhuai, was a monk and calligrapher from Jinling (present day Nanjing, Jiangsu). He became a monk at the age of 12 in Changgan Temple and studied the Avatamsaka Sutra under monk Wuji. His life was dedicated to teaching the Avatamsaka Sutra and the Huayan school of Buddhism. In his later life, he studied the meditation techniques of the Caodong school of Chan Buddhism under monk Dazhangsu at Shaolin Temple. He served as the abbot of Dabao’en Temple and authored Collection of Xuelang.
Xuelang’s adeptness in poetry was reckoned foremost among the monks of the Ming dynasty (1368–1644). His works include Five-Character Poem written in running-regular script and considered an outstanding piece of calligraphy and poetry. It is collected at Ho’s Calligraphy Foundation in Taipei, Taiwan.
For more details, go to the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: People, page 310.
Cite this article:
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Youlu and Pokorski, Stefanie and Yichao and Mankuang and Miaohsi,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: People },
pages = 310,
title = {{Xuelang Hong’en}},
volume = 19,
year = {2016}}