Wisdom without a teacher
Wisdom without a teacher, sometimes also called "self-enlightened and self-certified," or jigo-jishō in Japanese, is a term used in Zen Buddhism to refer to the experience of a Zen practitioner reaching enlightenment or kensho without the aid of a master or teacher.
The idea of wisdom without a teacher is often considered suspect among various Zen schools, like in the modern Japanese Sōtō school. William Bodiford writes that since the risk of self-delusion is high, it is common for Zen disciples to rely on their teacher to "authenticate and formally acknowledge" their enlightenment experience. In spite of this, there have been Zen masters throughout history who have claimed to have awakened without the aid of a teacher and to not have required a teacher to confirm their awakening. This phenomenon is often related to criticisms of Zen institutions, especially the institutions of dharma transmission and transmission certificates.
Etymology
Mushi-dokugo is a Japanese term composed of four Chinese characters, or kanji, meaning "independent realization without a master." The character mu means "without" or "no", shi means "master" or "teacher", doku means "independent" or "alone", and go means "realization" or "understanding", also translated as "enlightenment". When strung together, the characters literally read, "no master independent understanding." The equivalent Chinese pronunciation is ''wúshī dúwù.''Indian sources
The idea that the Buddha awakened by himself without a teacher is found in the Early Buddhist texts. In the Ariyapariyesanā Sutta, the Buddha describes himself as being without peer. When asked about his teacher, he explains, "I have no teacher, and one like me can't be found," going on to state, "I, alone, am rightly self-awakened."The idea of teacherless wisdom appears in Mahāyāna sources as well. A Sanskrit term which indicates a kind of jñāna "without an āchārya" appears in the Lotus sutra. The term anācāryaka jñāna can be found in the sutra's section on the parable of the burning house, in connection with both the pratyekabuddha and bodhisattva paths. Regarding the bodhisattva vehicle, the sutra states:
There are other people, who, desiring the wisdom of the Omniscient One, the wisdom of the buddhas, the wisdom of the Self-generated One, wisdom without a teacher, apply themselves to the teaching of the Tathāgata in order to understand the wisdom, powers and confidence of the Tathāgata, for the sake of the welfare and happiness of many people, out of compassion for the world, for the benefit, welfare and happiness of many people, both gods and men, for the sake of the parinirvāṇa of all beings. They are said to be those who, desiring the great vehicle, escape from the threefold world. Therefore, they are called bodhisattva-mahāsattvas.
John McRae observes that the phrase "natural wisdom and teacherless wisdom" occurs in the Wisdom Sūtra of Heavenly King Pravara as well, where it also refers to the wisdom sought after by bodhisattvas. However, according to McRae, the point of sutras such as the Lotus and Pravara is that "natural wisdom and teacherless wisdom" is a state that bodhisattvas wish to attain, but is otherwise not a fundamental endowment of sentient beings. McRae contrasts this with the interpretation of Shenhui, who appealed to such sutras in support of his view that "natural wisdom and teacherless wisdom" constitutes a kind of Buddhist naturalness, identifying this with the "fundamental nature of sentient beings."
Reference to the Buddha's awakening without a teacher can be found in the Gaganagañjaparipṛccha, which states, "The Lord, having awakened through his own power, entered into the state of perfect awakening by himself to all moments of existence without a teacher." Likewise, the term "anācāryaka" also appears in the Ratnagotravibhāga, in which it is listed as a quality of the wisdom of the Buddha's attainment of Buddhahood. The Buddha is described as having "perfectly cognized its unutterable nature by one-self, i.e. by means of self-born knowledge which needs no teacher." The same text also explains how the Buddha's awakening is "not dependent on others", "because it is realized through one's innate knowledge." Similarly, the Avataṃsaka Sūtra states, "This wisdom transcends illusion, giving rise to the wisdom that is all-knowing, the wisdom that has no teacher, and the wisdom without obstructions."
A parallel term is the self- or masterless ordination in which a Buddhist monk ordains himself without a quorum of monks. The idea is found in Vasubandhu's Abhidharmakoṣabhāṣya with reference to the Vinaya. The term can also refer to taking the bodhisattva vow by oneself, an act which is discussed in the Śrīmālādevisiṃhanāda sūtra and in the Bodhisattvabhūmi.
In Chinese Chan
Proto- and Early Chan sources
In the Long Scroll, which contains the earliest known records of Chan, the iconoclastic Master Yüan says, "If you do not seek the marvellous understanding, and do not take someone as a teacher, and do not take the Dharma as a teacher, one will naturally advance alone." The Xuemai lun 血脈論, attributed to Bodhidharma though probably a product of the Oxhead School, while arguing that teacherless enlightenment is rare, nonetheless concedes, "If, though, by the conjunction of conditions, someone understands what the Buddha meant, that person doesn't need a teacher. Such a person has a natural awareness superior to anything taught." Similarly, in the Lengqie shizi ji 楞伽師資記, after explaining how one can understand the nature of things so that the mind becomes luminous and clear, Daoxin goes on to state, "This can be brought about by somebody teaching you, or you may attain liberation without ever having to be taught."A famous story within the Chan tradition is that of the sixth patriarch Huineng who, without any prior training or instruction, is said to have experienced awakening at a chance hearing of someone chanting the Diamond Sutra. The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch contains several references to self-awakening. For example, in chapter one Huineng says, "When one is deluded, one thinks teachers take , but when one is enlightened, one realizes one crosses over by oneself." And in chapter two, Huineng states:
Middle Chan
Middle Chan sources express nuanced views regarding the role of teachers. In the teachings of the Hongzhou master Baizhang Huaihai contained in the Baizhang guanglu, alongside the recommendation to call on good teachers, one finds, "foremost of all, you must have eyes yourself." In a negative statement regarding teachers, Baizhang says, "When you call on teachers and seek some knowledge or understanding, this is the demon of teachers, because it gives rise to verbalization and opinion." Baizhang's student Huangbo Xiyun explained that people of sharp abilities do not seek from others. Huangbo taught that "investigating Chan and studying the Way" were just words to entice people of dull spiritual faculties. When Huangbo's student Pei Xiu inquired about which Dharma is taught to people of the highest faculties, Huangbo answered, "If they are people of superior spiritual faculties, then where would they be looking for someone to follow?" The modern Korean commentator Seon Master Subul connects this passage from Huangbo's Chuanxin fayao with "awakening on one's own without a teacher".The iconoclastic Linji Yixuan is said to have rejected his master Huangbo's certification. He also advised his audience, "Followers of the Way, don't let just any old teacher put his stamp of approval on your face," going on to mock as "blind idiots" those who showed deference to teachers. Linji insisted that Chan practitioners must be non-dependent, "leaning on nothing." He explained to his listeners that instead of hurrying around in search of buddhas, patriarchs, and good teachers, they should turn their own light in upon themselves. The Japanese commentator on the Linji lu, Kensō Chitetsu, identifies Linji's teaching of "solitary brightness" with "the ārya knowledge of awakening on one's own."
Song dynasty Chan
Critical attitudes towards dependence on teachers can be found in materials from the Song dynasty. The Song master Foyan Qingyuan, while at times recommending association with good companions and teachers, also emphasized independence and autonomy in his teachings. According to Cleary, Foyan "made no attempt to recruit disciples," wishing instead for people to be able to stand on their own feet. For example, Foyan said, "What do you go to a 'Zen center' for? You should make a living on your own, and not listen to what others say." Foyan was critical of over-reliance on teachers, as can be seen in the following story told by Foyan:The second ancestor of Zen used to give talks wherever he happened to be, and all who heard him attained true awareness. He didn't establish any slogans or talk about causes and effects of practice and realization. In his time there was a certain meditation teacher who sent a top disciple to listen in on the Zen ancestor. The disciple never came back. The meditation teacher was furious, and took the occasion of a congress to upbraid his former disciple for disloyalty. The former disciple said, "My perception was originally true, but it was distorted by a teacher." Later someone asked a Zen master, "Where is my power of perception?" The Zen master said, "It is not obtained from a teacher." This is the way to attain Zen. An ancient said, "The Way is always with people, but people themselves chase after things."
Ming dynasty Chan
Stuart Lachs observes that a range of views existed during the Ming dynasty regarding dharma transmission. Some maintained that dharma transmission should be granted to disciples who were not enlightened but were nonetheless capable of managing temple affairs, a practice referred to as the "seal of the winter melon." On the other hand, the Caodong master Wuyi Yuanlai was critical of giving dharma transmission merely to perpetuate Chan institutions, describing it as "adding water to dilute the milk." The view of Wuyi was that by his time all Chan lineages had been cut off. However, he felt that if one's awakening and understanding matched that of the previous Chan schools, those schools could still be considered alive. For Wuyi, the essence of the Chan school was thus in the matching of enlightened minds, rather than in formal transmission. As such, Wuyi felt having insight without formal transmission was preferable to having transmission without insight, as the former does no harm to the Dharma, while the latter deceives the Buddha, the world, and oneself.A common view in the Ming was that since enlightenment is in the mind, if one was without any doubts about one's awakening, one did not have to seek confirmation from another. During the Ming, important masters like Hanshan Deqing, Zibo Zhenke, and Yunqi Zhuhong did not belong to any formal lineage. According to Jiang Wu, these eminent Ming Chan monks emphasized self-cultivation while criticizing nominal forms of recognition. Lachs observes that of the famous four eminent masters of the Ming dynasty, three never obtained formal certificates of dharma transmission. Wu writes that for such monks at this time:
...training through self-cultivation was encouraged, and nominal and formulaic instructions from pretentious masters were despised. Eminent monks, who practiced meditation and asceticism but without proper dharma transmission, were acclaimed as acquiring 'wisdom without teachers', a laudable title for them but a misfortune in the eyes of the more orthodox Chan masters in later generations, for whom dharma transmission defined their identity as Chan monks in a certain lineage. The negative attitude toward the role of teacher can be seen from Hanshan Deqing’s perspective. Though never receiving dharma transmission, he was often asked to write prefaces to the records of transmission in some obscure lineages. His writings testify that although the practice of dharma transmission was revived, Hanshan Deqing questioned its value seriously. For him, the enlightenment of the mind was more important than the nominal claim of dharma transmission. Because true enlightenment experience was valued, a few self-proclaimed Chan masters in the late Ming gained reputations as eminent monks without acquiring dharma transmission.Examples can be found of monks during the Ming dynasty who relied on guidance from the scriptures in lieu of teachers. For instance, Hanshan Deqing is said to have confirmed his own awakening through his reading of the Śūraṅgama Sūtra rather than the traditional method of relying on a master. Hanshan wrote that "After my great awakening, having no one to confirm and testify to it, I opened the Śūraṅgama Sūtra to verify my experience. I had not listened previously to lectures on this Sūtra and so did not know its meaning. Now by using the power of the direct reasoning of the nondiscriminating mind and without even the slightest use of its consciousness since there was no room for thinking, I gained after eight months a complete comprehension of its profound meaning without having a single doubt left."
Similarly, the Ming Chan monk Hanyue Fazang had an awakening as a young man but could not find any masters to confirm his experience. He turned to the writings of the Song dynasty master Juefan Huihong, the Linji zongzhi and the Zhizheng zhuan, and relying on these texts, was able to verify his awakening and even declared himself to be Huihong's heir, although the two men were separated by many centuries. This phenomenon, known as "transmission by remote succession," was common in the late Ming when masters were unable to find proper teachers. Hanyue later wrote in his Guiding Words on the Zhizheng zhuan, "from now on, people who attain enlightenment without a master can use this text to verify their enlightenment."