Religion in DUNE

Contents
1

Zen

1.1

Etymology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.2

Zen practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.2.1

Observing the breath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.2.2

Observing the mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.2.3

Intensive group meditation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.2.4

Insight - Kan practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.2.5

Zen chanting and liturgy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.2.6

Lay services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zen teachings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.3.1

Rinzai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.3.2

Soto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.3.3

Sanbo Kyodan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Zen scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.4.1

The role of scripture in Zen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.4.2

Grounding Chn in scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.4.3

Zen literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.5

Zen organization and institutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.6

Zen narratives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.7

History of Zen

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.7.1

Chinese Chn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.7.2

Spread of Chn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

10

1.8

See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

11

1.9

Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

11

1.3

1.4

1.10 References

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1.10.1 Published sources

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

12

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

17

1.11 Further reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

18

1.12 External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

19

List of Dune religions

20

2.1

Buddislam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

20

2.1.1

20

1.10.2 Web sources

12

Zenshiism

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
i

ii

CONTENTS
2.1.2

Zensusm

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

20

2.1.3

Zensunni . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

20

2.2

Judaism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

21

2.3

Mahayana Christianity

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

22

2.4

Mahayana Lankavatara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

22

2.5

Muadru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

22

2.6

Navachristianity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

22

2.7

Third Islam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

22

2.8

Zen Hekiganshu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

22

2.9

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

22

Glossary of Dune terminology

24

3.1

A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

24

3.2

B. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

25

3.3

C. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

25

3.4

D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

26

3.5

E. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

26

3.6

F. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

26

3.7

G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

26

3.8

H . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

27

3.9

I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

27

3.10 J . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

27

3.11 K . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

27

3.12 L . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

27

3.13 M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

28

3.14 N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

28

3.15 O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

28

3.16 P . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

28

3.17 Q . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

29

3.18 R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

29

3.19 S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

29

3.20 T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

30

3.21 U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

30

3.22 V . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

30

3.23 W . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

30

3.24 Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

31

3.25 Z . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

31

3.26 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

31

3.27 See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

31

Bene Gesserit

32

4.1

32

Plotlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

CONTENTS

4.2

4.3

4.4

iii

4.1.1

Original Dune series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

32

4.1.2

Sequels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

33

4.1.3

Legends of Dune . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

34

4.1.4

Great Schools of Dune . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

34

Goals, strategies, and ritual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

34

4.2.1

Breeding program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

34

4.2.2

Avoiding direct power

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

35

4.2.3

Missionaria Protectiva . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

35

4.2.4

Spice agony . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

36

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

36

4.3.1

Other Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

36

4.3.2

The Voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

37

4.3.3

Acute observation and Truthsay

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

37

4.3.4

Simulow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

37

4.3.5

Prana-bindu training and the weirding way . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

38

4.3.6

Internal organic-chemical control

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

38

4.3.7

Sexual talents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

38

Weaknesses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

39

4.4.1

Addiction to melange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

39

4.4.2

Abomination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

39

Powers

4.5

Litany against fear

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

39

4.6

Origin of the name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

39

4.7

See also . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

40

4.8

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

40

4.9

External links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

40

4.10 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

41

4.10.1 Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

41

4.10.2 Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

42

4.10.3 Content license . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

43

Chapter 1

Zen
For other uses, see Zen (disambiguation).
doctrine* [5]* [6] and favors direct understanding through
Zen (Chinese: ; pinyin: Chn) is a school of zazen and interaction with an accomplished teacher.* [7]
The teachings of Zen include various sources
of Mahayana thought, especially Yogcra, the
Tathgatagarbha stras and the Huayan school, with
their emphasis on Buddha-nature, totality, and the
Bodhisattva-ideal.* [8]* [9] The Prajpramit literature* [10] and, to a lesser extent, Madhyamaka have
also been inuential in the shaping of the paradoxical
languageof the Zen-tradition.

1.1 Etymology
The word Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation
of the Middle Chinese word (djen) (pinyin: Chn),
which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyna(
),* [1] which can be approximately translated as
absorptionor "meditative state".* [11]

1.2 Zen practice

See also: Dhyna in Buddhism
Central to Zen is the practice of dhyana or meditation.

1.2.1 Observing the breath

Bodhidharma and Dazu Huike

Mahayana Buddhism* [note 1] that originated in China

during the Tang dynasty as Chan Buddhism. It was
strongly inuenced by Taoism, and developed as a distinguished school of Chinese Buddhism. From China, Chan
Buddhism spread south to Vietnam, northeast to Korea
and east to Japan, where it became known as Japanese
Zen.* [2]

During sitting meditation, practitioners usually assume a

position such as the lotus position, half-lotus, Burmese, or
seiza postures, using the dhyna mudr. To regulate the
mind, awareness is directed towards counting or watching the breath or by bringing that awareness to the energy center below the navel (see also anapanasati).* [web
1] Often, a square or round cushion placed on a padded
Zen emphasizes rigorous meditation-practice, insight into mat is used to sit on; in some other cases, a chair may be
Buddha-nature, and the personal expression of this insight used. This practice may simply be called sitting dhyna,
in daily life, especially for the benet of others.* [3]* [4] which is zuchn () in Chinese, and zazen () in
As such, it de-emphasizes mere knowledge of sutras and Japanese.
1

CHAPTER 1. ZEN
of Anuttar Samyaksabodhi. One distinctive aspect of
Zen meditation in groups is the use of a kyosaku, a at,
wooden slat used to strike meditators with the intention
of keeping them focused and awake.

1.2.4 Insight - Kan practice

Main article: Kan
At the beginning of the Song Dynasty, practice with

Venerable Hsuan Hua meditating in the Lotus Position. Hong

Kong, 1953.

1.2.2

Observing the mind

In the Soto school of Zen, meditation with no objects,

anchors, or content, is the primary form of practice. The
meditator strives to be aware of the stream of thoughts, allowing them to arise and pass away without interference.
Considerable textual, philosophical, and phenomenological justication of this practice can be found throughout
Dgen's Shbgenz, as for example in thePrinciples of
Zazen* [web 2] and theUniversally Recommended Instructions for Zazen.* [web 3] In the Japanese language,
this practice is called Shikantaza.

1.2.3

Intensive group meditation

Intensive group meditation may be practiced occasionally

in some temples. In the Japanese language, this practice is called Sesshin. While the daily routine may require monks to meditate for several hours each day, during the intensive period they devote themselves almost exclusively to the practice of sitting meditation. The numerous 3050 minute long meditation periods are interwoven
with rest breaks, meals, and short periods of work that
are performed with the same mindfulness; nightly sleep is
kept to seven hours or less. In modern Buddhist practice
in Japan, Taiwan, and the West, lay students often attend
these intensive practice sessions, which are typically 1, 3,
5, or 7 days in length. These are held at many Zen centers,
especially in commemoration of the Buddha's attainment

Chinese character fornothing, Chinese: w (Japanese: mu).

It gures in the famous Zhaozhou's dog kan

the kan method became popular, whereas others practicedsilent illumination.* [12] This became the source
of some dierences in practice between the Linji and
Caodong traditions.
A kan, literally public case, is a story or dialogue,
describing an interaction between a Zen master and a student. These anecdotes give a demonstration of the master's insight. Koans emphasize the non-conceptional insight that the Buddhist teachings are pointing to. Koans
can be used to provoke the great doubt, and test a
student's progress in Zen practice.
Kan-inquiry may be practiced during sitting meditation
(zazen), walking meditation (kinhin), and throughout all
the activities of daily life. Kan practice is particularly
emphasized by the Japanese Rinzai school, but it also occurs in other schools or branches of Zen depending on the
teaching line.* [13]
The Zen student's mastery of a given kan is presented to
the teacher in a private interview (referred to in Japanese
as dokusan ( ), daisan ( ), or sanzen ( )).
While there is no unique answer to a kan, practitioners are expected to demonstrate their understanding of
the kan and of Zen through their responses. The teacher
may approve or disapprove of the answer and guide the
student in the right direction. The interaction with a Zen-

1.3. ZEN TEACHINGS

teacher is central in Zen, but makes Zen-practice, at least is rmly grounded in the Buddhist tradition.* [17] It was
in the west, also vulnerable to misunderstanding and ex- thoroughly inuenced by the Chinese understanding of
ploitation.* [14]
Yogacara and the Buddha-nature doctrine,* [18]* [19] Zen
integrates both Yogacara and Madhyamaka,* [20] and the
inuence of Madhyamaka can be discerned in the stress
on non-conceptual insight and the paradoxical language
1.2.5 Zen chanting and liturgy
of the koans.* [18]* [web 4]* [21]* [note 2] Most essential
are the most fundamental teaching that we are already
See also: Buddhist chant
originally enlightened",* [22] and the Bodhisattva ideal,
which supplements insight with Karu, compassion with
A practice in many Zen monasteries and centers is a daily
all sentient beings.* [23]
liturgy service. Practitioners chant major sutras such as
the Heart Sutra, chapter 25 of the Lotus Sutra (often To point out 'essential Zen-teachings' is almost impossicalled the Avalokiteshvara Sutra), the Song of the ble, given the variety of schools, the extended history of
Jewel Mirror Awareness, the Great Compassionate Heart 1500 years, and the emphasis on suchness, reality just-asDharani (Daihishin Dharani), and other minor mantras. it-is, which has to be expressed in daily life, not in words.
But common to most schools and teachings is this emThe Butsudan is the altar in a monastery where oerings
phasis on suchness and Buddha-nature, the Bodhisattvaare made to the images of the Buddha or Bodhisattvas.
ideal, and the priority of zazen.
The same term is also used in Japanese homes for the
altar where one prays to and communicates with deceased Zen teachings can be likened to the nger pointing
family members. As such, reciting liturgy in Zen can be at the moon.* [24] Zen teachings point to the moon,
seen as a means to connect with the Bodhisattvas of the awakening, a realization of the unimpeded interpenpast. Liturgy is often used during funerals, memorials, etration of the dharmadhatu".* [25] But the Zen-tradition
and other special events as means to invoke the aid of also warns against taking its teachings, the pointing nger,
to be this insight itself.* [26]* [web 5]* [web 6]* [27]
supernatural powers.
Chanting usually centers on major Bodhisattvas like The various traditions lay various emphases in their
Avalokiteshvara (see also Guan Yin) and Manjusri. Ac- teachings and practices:
cording to Mahayana Buddhism, Bodhisattvas are beings
who have taken vows to remain in Samsara to help all
There are two dierent ways of underbeings achieve liberation from the cycle of birth, death
standing and actually practicing Zen. These
and rebirth. Since the Zen practitioner's aim is to walk
two dierent ways are termed in Chinese pen
the Bodhisattva path, chanting can be used as a means
chueh and shih-chueh respectively. The term
to connect with these beings and realize this ideal within
pen chueh refers to the belief that ones mind
oneself.
is from the beginning of time fully enlightened, while shih-chueh refers to the belief that
at some point in time we pass from imprison1.2.6 Lay services
ment in ignorance and delusion to a true vision of Zen realization: Our enlightenment
Though in western Zen the emphasis is on zenis timeless, yet our realization of it occurs in
meditation, and the application of Zen-teachings in daily
time.According to this belief experiencing a
life, Japanese Zen also serves a function in public relimoment of awakening in this life is of central
gion. Funerals play an important role as a point of contact
importance.* [28]
between the monks and the laity. Statistics published by
the St school state that 80 percent of St laymen visit
their temple only for reasons having to do with funerals 1.3.1 Rinzai
and death. Seventeen percent visit for spiritual reasons
and 3 percent visit a Zen priest at a time of personal trou- Main article: Rinzai school
ble or crisis.* [15]

1.3 Zen teachings

Main article: Doctrinal background of Zen

Rinzai is the Japanese line of the Chinese Linji school,

which was founded during the Tang Dynasty by Linji
Yixuan.The Rinzai-tradition emphasizes kensho, insight
into one's true nature.* [29] This is followed by so-called
post-satori practice, further practice to attain Buddhahood.* [30]* [31]* [32]

Though Zen-narrative states that it is aspecial transmis- Other Zen-teachers have also expressed sudden insight
sion outside scriptureswhichdid not stand upon words followed by gradual cultivation. Chinul, a 12th-century
,* [16] Zen does have a rich doctrinal background, which Korean Seon master, followed Zongmi, and also empha-

CHAPTER 1. ZEN

and doctrines of Mahyna Buddhism.* [39] Unsui, Zenmonks, are expected to become familiar with the classics of the Zen canon.* [40] A review of the early historical documents and literature of early Zen masters clearly
reveals that they were well versed in numerous Mahyna
*
*
4]* [note 5]* [5]* [note 6] inTo attain this primary insight and to deepen it, zazen and Buddhist stras, [5] [note
*
kan-study is deemed essential. This trajectory of ini- cluding Madhyamaka. [18]
tial insight followed by a gradual deepening and ripen- Nevertheless, Zen is often pictured as antiing is expressed by Linji in his Three mysterious Gates, intellectual.* [39] This picture of Zen emerged during
and the Four Ways of Knowing of Hakuin.* [23] Another the Song Dynasty (9601297), when Chn became the
example of depiction of stages on the path are the Ten dominant form of Buddhism in China, and gained great
Ox-Herding Pictures which detail the steps on the Path. popularity among the educated and literary classes of
Chinese society. The use of koans, which are highly
stylized literary texts, reects this popularity among
the higher classes.* [43] The famous saying do not
1.3.2 Soto
establish words and letters, attributed in this period to
Bodhidharma,* [44]
Main article: St
sized that insight into our true nature is sudden, but is to
be followed by practice to ripen the insight and attain full
Buddhahood. This is also the standpoint of the contemporary Sanbo Kyodan, according to whom kensho is at
the start of the path to full enlightenment.* [33]

...was taken not as a denial of the recorded

St is the Japanese line of the Chinese Caodong
words
of the Buddha or the doctrinal elaboschool, which was founded during the Tang Dynasty by
rations
by learned monks, but as a warning to
Dongshan Liangjie. The St-school has de-emphasized
those
who
had become confused about the relakans since Gent Sokuch (circa 1800), and instead emtionship
between
Buddhist teaching as a guide
*
phasized shikantaza. [34] Dogen, the founder of Soto in
to
the
truth
and
mistook it for the truth itJapan, emphasised that practice and awakening cannot
*
self.
[45]
be separated. By practicing shikantaza, attainment and
Buddhahood are already being expressed.* [35] For Dogen, zazen, or shikantaza, is the essence of Buddhist prac- What the Zen tradition emphasizes is that the
enlightenment of the Buddha came not through
tice.* [36]
conceptualization, but rather through direct insight.* [46]
Gradual cultivation is also recognized by the Caodong- But direct insight has to be supported by study and
teacher Tozan. The rst syllable of his name is part of understanding (hori* [47]) of the Buddhist teachings
the word Soto.* [web 7]
and texts.* [48]* [note 7] Intellectual understanding
without practice is called yako-zen, wild fox Zen,
but one who has only experience without intellectual
1.3.3 Sanbo Kyodan
understanding is a zen temma, 'Zen devil'".* [50]
The Sanbo Kyodan combines Soto and Rinzai teachings.* [33]* [37] It is a Japanese lay organization, which is
highly inuential in the West through the work of Hakuun
Yasutani, Philip Kapleau, Yamada Koun, and Taizan
Maezumi. Yasutani mentions three goals of Zen: development of concentration (joriki), awakening (kenshogodo), and realization of Zen in daily life (mujodo no
taigen).* [33] Kensho is stressed,* [37] but also post-satori
practice.* [38]* [note 3]

1.4.2 Grounding Chn in scripture

The early Buddhist schools in China were each based on

a specic sutra. At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty,
by the time of the Fifth Patriarch Hongren (601674),
the Zen school became established as a separate school
of Buddhism.* [51] It had to develop a doctrinal tradition
of its own to ascertain its position,* [43] and to ground its
teachings in a specic sutra. Various sutras were used for
this, even before the time of Hongren: the rmldev
Stra (Huike),* [52] Awakening of Faith (Daoxin),* [52]
1.4 Zen scripture
the Lankavatara Sutra (East Mountain School),* [52]* [5]
the Diamond Sutra* [53] (Shenhui),* [52] the Platform
Main article: Zen and Sutras
Sutra.* [5]* [53] None of these sutras was decisive though,
since the school drew inspiration from a variety of
sources.* [54] Subsequently, the Zen tradition produced
a rich corpus of written literature which has become
1.4.1 The role of scripture in Zen
a part of its practice and teaching.
Other inuential sutras are the Vimalakirti Sutra,* [55]* [56]* [57]
Contrary to the popular image, literature does play a role Avatamsaka Sutra,* [58] the Shurangama Sutra,* [59] and
in the Zen-training. Zen is deeply rooted in the teachings the Mahaparinirvana Sutra.* [60]

1.7. HISTORY OF ZEN

1.4.3

Zen literature

See also: Zen literature

5
Zen.* [72]* [73]* [43]* [74]* [75]* [76]
Modern scientic research on the history of Zen discerns
three main narratives concerning Zen, its history and its
teachings: Traditional Zen Narrative (TZN),* [77]* [web
9] Buddhist Modernism (BM),* [71] Historical and Cultural Criticism (HCC).* [77] An external narrative is
Nondualism, which claims Zen to be a token of a universal nondualist essence of religions.* [78]* [79]

The Zen-tradition developed a rich textual tradition,

based on the interpretation of the Buddhist teachings and
the recorded sayings of Zen-masters. Important texts are
the Platform Sutra (8th century), attributed to Huineng
;* [43] the Chn transmission records, teng-lu,* [61] such
as The Records of the Transmission of the Lamp (Chingte ch'uan-teng lu), compiled by Tao-yn and published 1.7 History of Zen
in 1004;* [62] the y-l" genre* [63] consisting of the
recorded sayings of the masters, and the encounter dialogues; the koan-collections, such as theGateless Gate 1.7.1 Chinese Chn
and theBlue Cli Record. 'and Dogen's Shobogenzo.
Main article: Chinese Chn
See also: Silk Road transmission of Buddhism

1.5 Zen organization and institutions

Periodisation

Main articles: Zen organisation and institutions, Zen The history of Chn in China can be divided in several peranks and hierarchy, Dharma transmission and Zen riods. Zen as we know it today is the result of a long hislineage charts
tory, with many changes and contingent factors. Each period had dierent types of Zen, some of which remained
*
*
Religion is not only an individual matter, but also a inuential while others vanished. [43] [80]
collective endeavour.* [64] Though individual experi- Ferguson distinguishes three periods from the 5th century
ence* [65] and the iconoclastic picture of Zen* [66] are into the 13th century:
emphasised in the Western world, the Zen-tradition is
maintained and transferred by a high degree of institu1. The Legendary period, from Bodhidharma in
tionalisation and hierarchy.* [67]* [68] In Japan, moderthe late 5th century to the An Lushan Rebellion
nity has led to criticism of the formal system and
around
765 CE, in the middle of the Tang Dythe commencement of lay-oriented Zen-schools such
nasty.
Little
written information is left from this
*
as the Sanbo Kyodan [37] and the Ningen Zen Ky*
period.
[81]
It
is the time of the Six Patriarchs,
*
odan. [web 8] How to organize the continuity of the
including
Bodhidharma
and Huineng, and the legZen-tradition in the West, constraining charismatic auendarysplit
between
the
Northern and the Souththority and the derailment it may bring on the one
*
ern
School
of
Chn.
[43]
*
*
*
hand, [69] [70] [14] and maintaining the legitimacy and
authority by limiting the number of authorized teachers
2. The Classical period, from the end of the An
on the other hand,* [64] is a challenge for the developing
Lushan Rebellion around 765 CE to the beginning
Zen-communities in the West.
of the Song Dynasty around 950 CE.* [81] This is
the time of the great masters of Chn, such as Mazu
Daoyi and Linji Yixuan, and the creation of the yl genre, the recordings of the sayings and teachings
1.6 Zen narratives
of these great masters.
Main article: Zen Narratives
The Chn of the Tang Dynasty, especially that of
Mazu and Linji with its emphasis on shock techniques, in retrospect was seen as a golden age of
Chn.* [43] This picture has gained great popularity
in the West in the 20th century, especially due to
the inuence of D.T. Suzuki,* [71] and further popularized by Hakuun Yasutani and the Sanbo Kyodan.* [65] This picture has been challenged, and complemented, since the 1970s by modern scientic research on

3. The Literary period, from around 950 to

1250,* [81] which spans the era of the Song Dynasty
(960-1279). In this time the gongan-collections
were compiled, collections of sayings and deeds
by the famous masters, appended with poetry and
commentary. This genre reects the inuence of
literati on the development of Chn. This period
idealized the previous period as the golden
ageof Chn, producing the literature in which
the spontaneity of the celebrated masters was
portrayed.

CHAPTER 1. ZEN

Although McRae has reservations about the division of Origins and Taoist inuences (c. 200-500)
Chn-history in phases or periods,* [82] he nevertheless
distinguishes four phases in the history of Chn:* [83]
See also: Han Dynasty, Silk Road transmission of
Buddhism and Six Dynasties
1. Proto-Chn (c. 500-600) (Southern and Northern Dynasties (420 to 589) and Sui Dynasty (589 The practice of Buddhist meditation was practiced in
618 CE)). In this phase, Chn developed in mul- China centuries before the rise of Chn by people such as
tiple locations in northern China. It was based on An Shigao (c. 148-180 CE) and his school who translated
the practice of dhyana, and is connected to the g- various meditation treatises (Chn-jing, ). Other imures of Bodhidharma and Huike. Its principal text portant translators of meditation texts were Kumrajva
is the Two Entrances and Four Practices, attributed (334413 CE) and Buddhabhadra. These Chinese transto Bodhidharma.* [84]
lations of mostly Indian Yogacara meditation manuals
basis for the meditation techniques of Chinese
2. Early Chn (c. 600-900) (Tang Dynasty (618907 were the
*
Chan.
[web
10]
CE)). In this phase Chn took its rst clear contours.
Prime gures are the fth patriarch Daman Hongren (601674), his dharma-heir Yuquan Shenxiu
(606?706), the sixth patriarch Huineng (638
713), antagonist of the quintessential Platform Sutra, and Shenhui (670-762), whose propaganda elevated Huineng to the status of sixth patriarch. Prime
factions are the Northern School, Southern School
and Oxhead School.* [85]

When Buddhism came to China from Gandhara (now

Afghanistan) and India, it was initially adapted to the Chinese culture and understanding. Buddhism was exposed
to Confucianist* [92] and Taoist* [93]* [94]* [95]* [96] inuences.* [note 10] Goddard quotes D.T. Suzuki,* [note
11] calling Chn anatural evolution of Buddhism under
Taoist conditions.* [97] Buddhism was rst identied to
be a barbarian variant of Taoism":* [95]

3. Middle Chn (c. 750-1000) (from An Lushan ReJudging from the reception by the Han of
bellion (755-763) till Five Dynasties and Ten Kingthe Hinayana works and from the early comdoms period (907960/979)). In this phase develmentaries, it appears that Buddhism was beoped the well-known Chn of the iconoclastic zening perceived and digested through the medium
masters. Prime gures are Mazu Daoyi (709788),
of religious Daoism (Taoism). Buddha was
Shitou Xiqian (710-790), Linji Yixuan (died 867),
seen as a foreign immortal who had achieved
and Xuefeng Yicun (822-908). Prime factions are
some form of Daoist nondeath. The Buddhists
the Hongzhou school and the Hubei faction* [note
mindfulness of the breath was regarded as an
8] An important text is the Anthology of the Paextension of Daoist breathing exercises.* [60]
triarchal Hall (952), which gives a great amount of
encounter-stories, and the well-known genealogy
of the Chn-school.* [88]
Taoist terminology was used to express Buddhist doctrines in the oldest translations of Buddhist texts,* [95]
4. Song Dynasty Chn (c. 950-1300). In this phase
a practice termed ko-i, matching the concepts,* [98]
Chn took its denitive shape, including the picwhile the emerging Chinese Buddhism had to compete
ture of the golden ageof the Chn of the Tangwith Taoism and Confucianism.* [92]
Dynasty, and the use of koans for individual study
and meditation. Prime gures are Dahui Zonggao The rst Buddhist recruits in China were Taoists.* [95]
(10891163), who introduced the Hua Tou prac- They developed high esteem for the newly introduced
tice, and Hongzhi Zhengjue (1091-1157), who em- Buddhist meditational techniques,* [99] and blended
phasized Shikantaza. Prime factions are the Linji them with Taoist meditation.* [100] Representatives of
school and the Caodong school. The classic koan- early Chinese Buddhism like Sengzhao and Tao Sheng
collections, such as the Blue Cli Record were as- were deeply inuenced by the Taoist keystone works of
sembled in this period,* [89] which reect the in- Laozi and Zhuangzi.* [101] Against this background, esuence of the literation the development of pecially the Taoist concept of naturalness was inherited
Chn.* [90]* [44] In this phase Chn is transported to by the early Chn disciples:* [102] they equated - to some
Japan, and exerts a great inuence on Korean Seon extent - the ineable Tao and Buddha-nature,* [103] and
thus, rather than feeling bound to the abstract wisdom
via Jinul.
of the stras, emphasized Buddha-nature to be found
*
Neither Ferguson nor McRae give a periodisation in everydayhuman life, just as the Tao. [103]
for Chinese Chn following the Song-dynasty, though In addition to Taoist ideas, also Neo-Taoist concepts were
McRae mentions
taken over in Chinese Buddhism.* [98] Concepts such as
Ti -yung (Essence and Function) and Li-shih
[5.]at least a postclassical phase or perhaps
(Noumenon and Phenomenon) were rst taken over by
multiple phases.* [91]* [note 9]
Hua-yen Buddhism,* [98] which consequently inuenced

1.7. HISTORY OF ZEN

Chn deeply.* [58] The two truths doctrine was a point of

confusion. Chinese thinking took this to refer to two ontological truths: reality exists on two levels, a relative level
and an absolute level.* [104] Taoists at rst misunderstood
sunyata to be akin to the Taoist non-being.* [105] In Madhyamaka the two truths are two epistemological truths:
two dierent ways to look at reality. Based on their understanding of the Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra the
Chinese supposed that the teaching of the Buddha-nature
was, as stated by that sutra, the nal Buddhist teaching,
and that there is an essential truth above sunyata and the
two truths.* [60]
Legendary or Proto-Chn - Six Patriarchs (c. 500600)
Main articles: Bodhidharma, Southern and Northern Dynasties and Sui Dynasty
Traditionally the origin of Chn in China is credited

Blue-eyed Central Asian monk and East-Asian monk. A fresco

from the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves, dated to the 9th or
10th century (Kara-Khoja Kingdom).

Bodhidharma is depicted as a rather ill-tempered, profusely bearded and wide-eyed barbarian. He is referred
asThe Blue-Eyed Barbarian" (:Byn h) in Chinese Chan texts.* [web 11] Only scarce historical information is available about him, but his hagiography developed when the Chan tradition grew stronger and gained
prominence in the early 8th century. By this time a
lineage of the six ancestral founders of Chn in China
was developed.* [43] The short text Two Entrances and
Four Acts, written by T'an-ln (; 506574), contains
teachings which are attributed to Bodhidharma. The text
is known from the Dunhuang-manuscripts.
The actual origins of Chn may lie in ascetic practitioners of Buddhism, who found refuge in forests and
mountains.* [108] Huike,a dhuta (extreme ascetic) who
schooled others* [108] and used the Srimala Sutra,* [52]
one of the Tathgatagarbha stras ,* [109] gures in the
stories about Bodhidharma. Huike is regarded as the second Chn patriarch, appointed by Bodhidharma to succeed him. One of Huike's students, Sengcan, to whom is
Bodhidharma. Woodcut print by Yoshitoshi (Japanese), 1887.
ascribed the Xinxin Ming, is regarded as the third patrito Bodhidharma, an Iranian language speaking Central arch.
Asian monk* [106] or an Indian monk.* [107] The story of
his life, and of the Six Patriarchs, was constructed during
the Tang Dynasty to lend credibility to the growing Chn- Early Chn - Tang Dynasty (c. 600900)
school.* [43]
Bodhidharma is recorded as having come into China dur- See also: Tang Dynasty
ing the time of Southern and Northern Dynasties to teach
a special transmission outside scriptureswhich did With the fourth patriarch, Daoxin ( 580651),* [52]
not stand upon words.* [16] Throughout Buddhist art, Chn began to take shape as a distinct school. The

8
link between Huike and Sengcan, and the fourth patriarch Daoxin is far from clear and remains tenuous
.* [108] With Daoxin and his successor, the fth patriarch Hongren ( 601674), there emerged a new
style of teaching, which was inspired by the Chinese text
Awakening of Faith in the Mahayana.* [52] A large group
of students gathered at a permanent residence, and extreme ascetism became outdated.* [108] The period of
Daoxin and Hongren came to be called the East Mountain
Teaching, due to the location of the residence of Hongren
at Huamgmei.* [110]* [43]

CHAPTER 1. ZEN
to a loss of control by the Tang-dynasty, and changed the
Chan scene again. Metropolitan Chan began to lose its
status, while other schools were arising in out-lying areas controlled by warlords. These are the forerunners of
the Chan we know today.* [113]

The most important of these schools is the Hongzhou

school () of Mazu, to which also belong Shitou,
Baizhang, Huangbo and Linji. This school became the
archetypal expression of Zen, with its emphasis on the
personal expression of insight, and its rejection of positive statements of this insight.* [108] Shitou is regarded
The termEast Mountain Teachingwas used by Shenxiu as the Patriarch of Caodong (Jp. St), while Linji is re( 606?706), the most important successor to Hon- garded as the founder of Rinzai-Zen.
gren. By this time the group had grown into a matured During 845-846 Emperor Wuzong persecuted the Budcongregation which became signicant enough to be dhist schools in China.* [114] This persecution was devreckoned with by the ruling forces.* [52] In 701 Shenxiu astating for metropolitan Chan, but the Chan school of
was invited to the Imperial Court by Empress Wu, who Ma-tsu and his likes survived, and took a leading role in
paid him imperial reverence. This gave his school the the Chan of the later Tang.* [114]
support and the legitimation of the imperial court.* [111]
The school was typied by a loose practice,* [54] This surviving rural Chan developed into the Five Houses
aiming to make meditation accessible to a larger audi- of Chn (Ch. ) of Zen, or ve schools. These
ence.* [54] Shenxiu used short formulas extracted from were not originally regarded as schoolsor sects
various sutras to package the teachings,* [54] a style , but historically they have come to be understood that
which is also being used in the Platform Sutra.* [54] way. Most Zen lineages throughout Asia and the rest of
Members of the East Mountain Teachingshifted the the world originally grew from or were heavily inuenced
alleged scriptural basis, realizing that the Awwakening of by the original ve houses of Zen.
Faith is not a sutra but a sastra, commentary, and fabricated a lineage of Lankavatara Sutra masters, as being the
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (907
sutra that preluded the Awakening of Faith.* [52]
960/979) See also: Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms
This growing inuence, and the need to be supported Period
by patrons, is reected in the campaign of Shenhui
(670-762) for imperial patronage.* [52] Shenhui was a
After the fall of the Tang Dynasty, China was without
successor to Hui-neng ( ; 638713), a minor stueective central control during the Five Dynasties and
*
*
dent of Hongren. [110] [43] At 731 Shenhui started to
Ten Kingdoms Period. China was divided into several
propagate that Huineng was the real successor of Honautonomous regions. Support for Buddhism was limgren's, instead of the then publicly recognized successor
ited to a few areas. The Hua-yen and T'ient-tai schools
*
*
Shenxiu. [43] [110] A dramatic story of Huineng's life
suered from the changing circumstances, since they
was created, as narrated in the Platform Sutra, which tells
had depended on imperial support. The collapse of
that there was a contest for the transmission of the title
T'ang society also deprived the aristocratic classes of
of patriarch. After being chosen by Hongren, the fth
wealth and inuence, which meant a further drawback
patriarch, Huineng had to ee by night to Nanhua Temfor Buddhism. Shenxiu's Northern School and Henple in the south to avoid the wrath of Hongren's jealous
shui's Southern School didn't survive the changing cir*
*
senior disciples. [43] [110] The Diamond Sutra was incumstances. Nevertheless, chn emerged as the domicorporated into the story as being the favorite sutra of
nant stream within Chinese Buddhism, but with various
Huineng, thereby swifting the alleged textual basis of the
schools developing various emphases in their teachings,
*
Chn-school again. [112] Shenhui succeeded in his camdue to the regional orientation of the period. The Fayan
paign, and Huineng came to be regarded as the Sixth Paschool, named after Fa-yen Wen-i (885-958) became the
*
*
triarch. [110] [43] Shenxiu's Northern School was denidominant school in the southern kingdoms of Nan-T'ang
grated asgradual, in opposition to the self-acclaimed
(Jiangxi, Chiang-hsi) and Wuyue (Che-chiang).* [115]
"sudden" approach of Shenhui's Southern School. Shenhui's story was so inuential that all surviving schools regard Huineng as their ancestor. * [43]* [110]
Literary Chn - Song Dynasty (c. 9601300)
Classical or Middle Chn (c. 750-1000)

See also: Song Dynasty

An Lushan Rebellion (755-763) till end of Tang Dy- The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period was folnasty (907) The An Lushan Rebellion (755-763) led lowed by the Song Dynasty, which established a strong

1.7. HISTORY OF ZEN

central government. During the Song Dynasty, Chn ()
was used by the government to strengthen its control over
the country, and Chn grew to become the largest sect
in Chinese Buddhism. An ideal picture of the Chn of
the Tang period was produced, which served the legacy
of this newly acquired status, and the period of the Tang
Dynasty came to be regarded as the golden ageof
Chan.* [116]* [43] With the establishment of the Wu-shan
(Gozan) system during the Southern Sung, the Chinese
bureaucratic system entered into Zen temples throughout
the country, and a highly organized system of temple rank
and administration developed.* [117]
The Linji school became the dominant school within
Chn, due to support from literati and the court.* [118]
Before the Song Dynasty, the Linji-school is rather
obscure, and very little is known about its early history.* [110] The rst mention of Linji is in the Zutang ji,
compiled in 952, 86 years after Linji's death.* [118] But
the Zutang ji pictures the Xuefeng Yicun lineage as heir
to the legacy of Mazu and the Hongzhou-school.* [118]
According to Welter, the real founder of the Linji-school
was Shoushan (or Baoying) Shengnian ()(926993), a fourth generation dharma-heir of Linji. The
Tiansheng Guangdeng lu ( ), Tiansheng
Era Expanded Lamp Record, compiled by the ocial Li Zunxu ()(988-1038) conrms the status
of Shoushan Shengnian, but also pictures Linji as a major Chan patriarch and heir to the Mazu, displacing the
prominence of the Fayan-lineage.* [118] It also established the slogan of a special transmission outside the
teaching, supporting the Linji-school claim of Chan
as separate from and superior to all other Buddhist teachings.* [119]

9
The Yuan Dynasty was the empire established by Kublai
Khan, the leader of Mongolian Borjigin clan, after
Mongol conquered the Jin and the Southern Song dynasty
in China. Chn-teachings started to be mixed with Pure
Land teachings, as in the teachings of Zhongfeng Mingben (1263-1323).

Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)

See also: Ming Dynasty

Chn Buddhism enjoyed something of a revival in the

Ming Dynasty with teachers such as Hanshan Deqing (
), who wrote and taught extensively on both Chn
and Pure Land Buddhism; Miyun Yuanwu (),
who came to be seen posthumously as the rst patriarch
of the baku Zen school; as well as Yunqi Zhuhong (
) and Ouyi Zhixu ().
Chn was taught alongside Pure Land Buddhism in many
Chinese Buddhist monasteries. In time much of the distinction between them was lost, and many masters taught
both Chn and Pure Land.* [121]
With the downfall of the Ming Dynasty several Chinese Chn-masters ed to Japan, founding the baku
school.* [122]

Qing Dynasty (1644-1912)

See also: Qing Dynasty

The Qing Dynasty was the last imperial dynasty of China.

In the beginning of the Qing Dynasty Chn was reinvented, by the revival of beating and shouting practicesby Miyun Yuanwu (15661642), and the publication of the Wudeng yantong (The strict transmission of the ve Chan schools) by Feiyin Tongrong
s (15931662), a dharma heir of Miyun Yuanwu. The
book placed self-proclaimed Chan monks without proper
Dharma transmission in the category of lineage unknown(sifa weixiang), thereby excluding several prominent Caodong-monks.* [123]

During the 12th century, a clear dierence between the

Linji and the Caodong schools emerged. The two schools
were competing for support of the literati, who became
more powerful when the Song-government started to limit
her inuence on society. Hongzhi Zhengjue (1091-1157)
of the Caodong-school emphasized silent illumination or
shikantaza as a means for solitary practice, which could
be undertaken by lay-followers. Dahui Zonggao (1089
1163) introduced k'an-hua practice,observing the wordhead, as a means of solitary practice.* [120]
Modern times See also: Republic of China (1912
During the Song, both schools were exported to Japan, 1949), China and Taiwan
where they eventually became two clearly distinguished After further centuries of decline during the Qing Dynasty (16441912), Chn was revived again in the early
schools or sects.
20th century by Hsu Yun () (1840-1959), a wellknown gure of 20th-century Chinese Buddhism. Many
Chn teachers today trace their lineage back to Hsu Yun,
Post-Classical Chn (c. 1300 till present)
including Sheng-yen () and Hsuan Hua (), who
This was dierent from China, where the Buddhist have propagated Chn in the West where it has grown
schools tended to coalesce into a syncretic Chinese Bud- steadily through the 20th and 21st centuries.
dhist school.

Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) See also: Yuan Dynasty

Chn was repressed in China during the 1960s in the Cultural Revolution, but subsequently has been re-asserting
itself on the mainland, and has a signicant following in
Taiwan and Hong Kong as well as among Overseas Chinese.

10

CHAPTER 1. ZEN
by Chinese monks.

Seon in Korea
See also: Korean Seon and Buddhism in Korea
Seon was gradually transmitted into Korea during the late

Shuixin Chn Temple in Anhai Town, Fujian

1.7.2

Spread of Chn

Thin in Vietnam
See also: Vietnamese Thin and Buddhism in Vietnam
According to traditional accounts of Vietnam, in 580 an

Seon monk in Seoul, South Korea

Silla period (7th through 9th centuries) as Korean monks

of predominantly Hwaeom ( ) and Consciousnessonly () background began to travel to China to learn
the newly developing tradition. Seon received its most
signicant impetus and consolidation from the Goryeo
monk Jinul () (11581210), who established a reform movement and introduced koan practice to Korea.
Jinul established the Songgwangsa ( ) as a new
center of pure practice.

Zen in Japan

Thin monks performing a service in Hu.

Indian monk named Vinitaruci (Vietnamese: T-ni-alu-chi) travelled to Vietnam after completing his studies with Sengcan, the third patriarch of Chinese Chn.
This, then, would be the rst appearance of Vietnamese
Thin Buddhism. Other early Vietnamese Chn schools
included the V Ngn Thng, which was associated with
the teaching of Mazu, and the Tho ng, which incorporated nianfo chanting techniques; both were founded

See also: Buddhism in Japan and Japanese Zen

Zen was not introduced as a separate school until the
12th century, when Myan Eisai traveled to China and
returned to establish a Linji lineage, which eventually
perished.* [web 12] Decades later, Nanpo Shmy (
) (12351308) also studied Linji teachings in
China before founding the Japanese Otokan lineage, the
most inuential and only surviving lineage of Rinzai in
Japan.* [web 12] In 1215, Dgen, a younger contemporary of Eisai's, journeyed to China himself, where he became a disciple of the Caodong master Tiantong Rujing.

1.8. SEE ALSO

11
came aware of Zen as a distinct form of Buddhism, the
visit of Soyen Shaku, a Japanese Zen monk, to Chicago
during the World Parliament of Religions in 1893 is often pointed to as an event that enhanced its prole in the
Western world. It was during the late 1950s and the early
1960s that the number of Westerners, other than the descendants of Asian immigrants, pursuing a serious interest in Zen began to reach a signicant level. Especially
Japanese Zen has gained popularity in the West. The various books on Zen by Reginald Horace Blyth, Alan Watts,
Philip Kapleau and D. T. Suzuki published between 1950
and 1975, contributed to this growing interest in Zen in
the West, as did the interest from beat poets such as Jack
Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and Gary Snyder.* [124]

1.8 See also

List of Buddhists
Outline of Buddhism
Timeline of Buddhism
Chinese Chn
101 Zen Stories
Sojiji Temple, of the Soto Zen school, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama,
Japan

After his return, Dgen established the St school, the

Japanese branch of Caodong.
The three traditional schools of Zen in contemporary
Japan are the St (), Rinzai (), and baku (
). Of these, St is the largest, Rinzai is middle, and
baku the smallest. These are further divided into subschools by head temple, with 2 head temples for St
(Sji-ji and Eihei-ji, with Sji-ji having a much larger
network), 14 head temples for Rinzai, and 1 head temple (Manpuku-ji) for baku, for a total of 17 head temples. The Rinzai head temples, which are most numerous,
have substantial overlap with the traditional Five Mountain System, and include Myoshin-ji, Nanzen-ji, Tenryji, Daitoku-ji, and Tofuku-ji, among others.
Besides these traditional organizations, there are modern
Zen organisations which have especially attracted Western lay followers, namely the Sanbo Kyodan and the FAS
Society.

Zen in the Western world

See also: Buddhism in the West and Zen in the United
States
Although it is dicult to trace when the West rst be-

1.9 Notes
[1] Dumoulin writes in his preface to Zen. A History. Part
One: India and China: Zen (Chin. Ch'an, an abbreviation of ch'an-na, which transliterates the Sanskrit Dhyna
(Devanagari: ) or its Pali cognate Jhna (Sanskrit;
Pli ) , terms meaning meditation) is the name
of a Mahayana Buddhist school of meditation originating
from India and passed to China. It is characterized by the
practice of meditation in the lotus position (Jpn., zazen;
Chin., tso-ch'an and the use of the koan (Chin., kung-an),
as well as by the enlightenment experience of satori* [1]
[2] According to Kalupahana, the inuence of Yofacara is
stronger in the ts'ao-tung school and the tradition of silent
meditation, while the inuence of Madhyamaka is clear in
the koan-tradition and its stress on insight and the use of
paradoxical language.* [21]
[3] Yasutani discerns ve kinds of Zen:* [33]
(a) Bompu Zen: aimed at bodily and mental health
(b) Gedo Zen:, practices like dhyana, Yoga and Christian contemplation which are akin to Zen, but not
Buddhist
(c) Shojo Zen: the Hinayana, aimed at one's own liberation
(d) Daijo Zen: the Mahayana, aimed at attaining kensho
and the realisation of Zen in daily life
(e) Saijojo Zen: in which practice is enlightenment

12

[4] Sasaki's translation of the Linji yulu contains an extensive

biography of 62 pages, listing inuential Chinese Buddhist
texts which played a role in Song dynasty Chn.* [41]
[5] Albert Low: It is evident that the masters were well
versed in the sutras. Zen master Tokusan, for example,
knew the Diamond Sutra well and, before meeting with his
own Zen master, lectured upon it extensively; the founder
of the Zen sect, Bodhidharma, the very one who preached
selfrealization outside the scriptures, nevertheless advocated the Lankavatara Sutra; Zen master Hogen knew the
Avatamsaka Sutra well, and koan twenty-six in the Mumonkan, in which Hogen is involved, comes out of the
teaching of that sutra. Other koans, too, make reference
directly or indirectly to the sutras. The autobiography of
yet another Zen master, Hui Neng, subsequently became
the Platform Sutra, one of those sutras so condemned by
those who reject intellectual and sutra studies* [42]
[6] Poceski:Direct references to specic scriptures are relatively rare in the records of Mazu and his disciples, but that
does not mean that they rejected the canon or repudiated
its authority. To the contrary, one of the striking features
of their records is that they are lled with scriptural quotations and allusions, even though the full extend of their
usage of canonical sources is not immediately obvious and
its discernment requires familiarity with Buddhist literature.See source for a full-length example from one
of Mazu's sermons, in which can be found references
to the Vimalakrti Scripture, the Huayan Scripture, the
Mahsamnipata-stra, the Foshuo Foming Scripture
, the Lankvatra scripture and the Faju jing.* [5]
[7] Hakuin goes as far as to state that the buddhat path even
starts with study: "[A] person [...] must rst gain wideranging knowledge, accumulate a treasure-store of wisdom by studying all the Buddhist sutras and commentaries, reading through all the classic works Buddhist and
nonBuddhist and perusing the writings of the wise men
of other traditions. It is for that reason the vow states
the Dharma teachings are innite, I vow to study them
all.""* [49]
[8] McRae gives no further information on this Hubei faction. It may be the continuation of Shenxiu'sNorthern
School. See Nadeau 2012 p.89.* [86] Hebei was also the
place where the Linji branch of chn arose.* [87]
[9] During the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) and the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) Chn was part of a larger, syncretic
Buddhist culture. A nal phase can be distinguished from
the 19th century onward, when western imperialism had
a growing inuence in South-East Asia, including China.
A side eect of this imperial inuence was the modernisation of Asian religions, adapting them to western ideas
and rhetorical strategies.* [71]
[10] See also The Tao of Zen, which argues that Zen is almost
entirely grounded in Taoist philosophy, though this fact is
well covered by Mahayana Buddhism.* [96]
[11] Godard did not provide a source for this quote.

CHAPTER 1. ZEN

1.10.1 Published sources

Citations
[1] Dumoulin 2005a, p. xvii.
[2] Harvey 1995, p. 159169.
[3] Yoshizawa 2010, p. 41.
[4] Sekida 1989.
[5] Poceski Year unknown.
[6] Borup 2008, p. 8.
[7] Yampolski 2003a, p. 3.
[8] Dumoulin 2005a, p. 48.
[9] Lievens 1981, p. 5253.
[10] Dumoulin 2005a, p. 4145.
[11] Kasulis 2003, p. 24.
[12] Blyth 1966.
[13] Loori 2006.
[14] Lachs 2006.
[15] Bodiford 1992.
[16] Dumoulin 2005a, p. 85-94.
[17] Lai 1985, p. 17-18.
[18] Cheng 1981.
[19] Lai 1985.
[20] Newland 2001, p. 137.
[21] Kalupahana 1994, p. 228-236.
[22] Schltter 2008, p. 3.
[23] Low 2006.
[24] Suzuki 1997, p. 154.
[25] Buswell 1993, p. 245.
[26] Abe 1996, p. 19.
[27] Luk Year unknown, p. 59-60.
[28] Lachs 2012, p. 4.
[29] Dumoulin 2005b, p. 380.
[30] Sekida (translator) 1996.
[31] Cleary 2010, p. xii-xiii, quoting Hakuin.
[32] Yen 1996, p. 54).
[33] Kapleau 1989.

1.10 References

[34] Heine 2000, p. 245.

[35] Tomoaki 2003, p. 280.

1.10. REFERENCES

13

[36] Tomoaki 2003, p. 284.

[74] McRae 2005.

[37] Sharf 1995c.

[75] Heine 2007.

[38] Maezumi 2007.

[76] Jorgensen 1991.

[39] Low 2000.

[77] Heine 2008, p. 6.

[40] Sharf 1995c, p. 427.

[78] Wolfe 2009, p. iii.

[41] Sasaki 2009.

[79] Katz 2007.

[42] Low 2000, p. 4.

[80] Ferguson 2000.

[43] McRae 2003.

[81] Ferguson 2000, p. 3.

[44] Welter 2000.

[82] McRae 2003, p. 11-15.

[45] Welter 2000, p. 94.

[83] McRae 2003, p. 11-21.

[46] Yanagida 2009, p. 62.

[84] McRae 2003, p. 13, 15-17.

[47] Hori 2000, p. 296.

[85] McRae 2003, p. 13, 17-18.

[48] Hori 2000, p. 295-297.

[86] Nadeau 2012, p. 89.

[49] Yoshizawa 2009, p. 42.

[87] Yanagida 2009, p. 63.

[50] Hori 2000, p. 297.

[88] McRae 2003, p. 13, 18-19.

[51] Ferguson 2000, p. 17.

[89] McRae 2003, p. 13, 19-21.

[52] Lai 2003, p. 17.

[90] Gimello 1994.

[53] McRae 2003, p. 62.

[91] McRae 2003, p. 13.

[54] Lai 2003, p. 18.

[92] Brown Holt 1995.

[55] Domoulin-2005a, p. 49-51.

[93] Goddard 2007, p. 10.

[56] Snelling 1987, p. 157-158.

[94] Verstappen 2004, p. 5.

[57] Low 2000, p. 83-112.

[95] Fowler 2005, p. 79.

[58] Dumoulin 2005a, p. 45-49.

[96] Grigg 1994.

[59] Low 2000, p. 135-154.

[97] Goddard 2007, p. 11.

[60] Lai 2003.

[98] Oh 2000.

[61] Welter 2000, p. 82-86.

[99] Dumoulin 2005a, p. 65.

[62] Welter 2000, p. 83.

[100] Dumoulin 2005a, p. 64.

[63] Chappell 1993, p. 192.

[101] Dumoulin 2005a, pp. 70&74.

[64] Kon 2000.

[102] Dumoulin 2005a, p. 167.

[65] Sharf 1995b.

[103] Dumoulin 2005a, p. 168.

[66] McRae 2002.

[104] Lai 2003, p. 11.

[67] Borup 2008.

[105] Lai 2003, p. 8.

[68] Hori 1994.

[106] Broughton 1999, p. 54-55.

[69] Bell 2002.

[107] Broughton 1999, p. 8.

[70] Lachs 1999.

[108] Whalen Lai 1985.

[71] McMahan 2008.

[109] McRae 2004.

[72] Sharf 1993.

[110] Dumoulin 2005a.

[73] Sharf 1995.

[111] McRae 2003, pp. 3336.

14

[112] Lai 2003, p. 17-18.

[113] Yampolski 2003a, p. 11.
[114] Yampolski 2003a, p. 15.
[115] Welter 2000, p. 86-87.
[116] McRae 1993, pp. 119120.
[117] Yampolski 2003b, p. 266.
[118] Welter year unknownb.
[119] Young 2009.
[120] Schltter 2008.
[121] Sharf 2002.
[122] Dumoulin 2005b, p. 299.
[123] Meng-Tat Chia 2011.
[124] Aitken 1994.

Source list
Abe, Masao; William R. LeFleur (translator)
(1989), Zen and Western Thought, University of
Hawaii Press
Abe, Masao; Heine, Seteven (1996), Zen and Comparative Studies, University of Hawaii Press
Aitken, Robert (1994), Foreword to A Buddhist
Bible, Boston, Massachusetts: Beacon Press
Anderson, Reb (2000), Being Upright: Zen Meditation and the Bodhisattva Precepts, Rodmell Press
Arokiasamy, Arul M. (2005), Zen: Awakening to
Your Original Face, Chennai, India: Thiruvanmiyur

CHAPTER 1. ZEN
Brown Holt, Linda (1995), From India to China:
Transformations in Buddhist Philosophy, Qi: The
Journal of Traditional Eastern Health & Fitness
Buswell, Robert E. (1991), The Short-cutApproach of K'an-hua Meditation: The Evolution of
a Practical Subitism in Chinese Ch'an Buddhism.
In: Peter N. Gregory (editor) (1991), Sudden and
Gradual. Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese
Thought, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited
Buswell, Robert E (1993), Ch'an Hermeneutics: A
Korean View. In: Donald S. Lopez, Jr. (ed.)(1993),
Buddhist Hermeneutics, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass
Blyth, R. H. (1966), Zen and Zen Classics, Volume
4, Tokyo: Hokuseido Press
Chappell, David W. (1993), Hermeneutical Phases
in Chinese Buddhism. In: Donald S. Lopez, Jr.
(ed.)(1993), Buddhist Hermeneutics, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass
Cheng, Hsueh-Li (1981), The Roots of zen Buddhism, Journal of Chinese Philosophy 8: 451478
Cleary, Thomas (2010), Translator's introduction.
The Undying Lamp of Zen. The Testament of Zen
Master Torei, Boston & London: Shambhala Publications
Collins, Randall (2000), The Sociology of Philosophies: A Global Theory of Intellectual Change,
Harvard University Press
Dumonlin, Heinrich (2000), A History of Zen Buddhism, New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

Batchelor, Martine (2004), The Path Of Compassion: The Bodhisattva Precepts, Rowman Altamira

Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005a), Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 1: India and China, World Wisdom
Books, ISBN 978-0-941532-89-1

Bell, Sandra (2002), Scandals in emerging Western Buddhism, Westward Dharma: Buddhism beyond Asia (PDF), Berkeley: University of California
Press, pp. 230242

Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005b), Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 2: Japan, World Wisdom Books,
ISBN 978-0-941532-90-7

Bodiford, William M. (1992), Zen in the Art of

Funerals: Ritual Salvation in Japanese Buddhism,
History of Religions 32 (2): 150
Bodiford, William M. (1993), St Zen in Medieval
Japan, University of Hawaii Press, ISBN 0-82481482-7
Borup, Jrn (2008), Japanese Rinzai Zen Buddhism:
Myshinji, a Living Religion, Brill Publishers
Broughton, Jerey L. (1999), The Bodhidharma
Anthology: The Earliest Records of Zen, Berkeley:
University of California Press, ISBN 0-520-219724

Faure, Bernard (2000), Visions of Power. Imaging

Medieval Japanese Buddhism, Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press
Ferguson, Andy (2000), Zen's Chinese Heritage,
Boston, MA: Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171163-7
Ford, James Myoun, A Note On Dharma Transmission And The Institutions Of Zen
Foulk, T. Grith (n.d.), History of the Soto Zen
School
Fowler, Merv (2005), Zen Buddhism: Beliefs and
Practices, Sussex Academic Press

1.10. REFERENCES
Gimello, Robert M. (1994), Marga and Culture:
Learning, Letters, and Liberation in Northern Sung
Ch'an. In: Buswell & Gimello (editors)(1994), Paths
to Liberation. Pages 475-505, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers
Goddard, Dwight (2007), History of Ch'an Buddhism previous to the times of Hui-neng (Wielang)", A Buddhist Bible, Forgotten Books
Gregory, Peter N. (1991), Sudden Enlightenment
Followed by Gradual Cultivation: Tsung-mi's Analysis of mind. In: Peter N. Gregory (editor)(1991),
Sudden and Gradual. Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese Thought, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited
Gregory, Peter N. (1993), What Happened to the
Perfect Teaching"? Another lOok at Hua-yen
Buddhist hermeneutics. In: Donald S. Lopez, Jr.
(ed.)(1993), Buddhist Hermeneutics, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass

15
Hu Shih (1953),Ch'an (Zen) Buddhism in China.
Its History and Method, Philosophy East & West
3 (1): 324
Huaijin, Nan (1997), Basic Buddhism: Exploring
Buddhism and Zen, York Beach: Samuel Weiser
Issh, Miura; Sasaki, Ruth F. (1993), The Zen Koan,
New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, ISBN 015-699981-1
Jaksch, Mary (2007), The Road to Nowhere. Koans
and the Deconstruction of the Zen Saga (PDF)
Jorgensen, John (1991),Heinrich Dumoulin's Zen
Buddhism: A History, Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 18 (4)
Kalupahana, David J. (1992), The Principles of Buddhist Psychology, Delhi: ri Satguru Publications
Kalupahana, David J. (1994), A history of Buddhist
philosophy, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers
Private Limited

Grigg, Ray (1994), The Tao Of Zen, Charles E. Tuttle Company

Kapleau, Philip (1989), The three pillars of Zen

Harvey, Peter (1995), An introduction to Buddhism.

Teachings, history and practices, Cambridge University Press

Kasulis, Thomas P. (2003), Ch'an Spirituality. In:

Buddhist Spirituality. Later China, Korea, Japan and
the Modern World; edited by Takeuchi Yoshinori,
Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass

Haskel, Peter (1984), Bankei Zen. Translations

from The Record of Bankei, New York: Grove Weidenfeld

Katz, Jerry (2007), One: Essential Writings on Nonduality, Sentient Publications

Heine, Steven; Wright, Dale S. (2000). The Koan:

Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-511748-4.
Heine, Steven (2007),A Critical Survey of Works
on Zen since Yampolsky., Philosophy East & West
57 (4): 577592

Kon, Alioune (2000), Zen In Europe: A Survey of

the Territory
Lachs, Stuart (2002), Richard Baker and the Myth
of the Zen Roshi
Lachs, Stuart (2006), The Zen Master in America:
Dressing the Donkey with Bells and Scarves

Heine, Steven (2008), Zen Skin, Zen Marrow

Lachs, Stuart (2011), When the Saints Go Marching

In: Modern Day Zen Hagiography (PDF)

Hisamatsu, Shin'ichi; Gishin Tokiwa; Christopher

Ives (2002), Critical Sermons of the Zen Tradition:
Hisamatsu's Talks on Linji, University of Hawaii
Press

Lachs, Stuart (2012), Hua-tou : A Method of Zen

Meditation (PDF)

Hori, Victor Sogen (1994),Teaching and Learning

in the Zen Rinzai Monastery (PDF), Journal of
Japanese Studies 20 (1): 535
Hori, Victor Sogen (2000), Koan and Kensho in the
Rinzai Zen Curriculum. In: Steven Heine and Dale S.
Wright (eds)(2000):The Koan. Texts and Contexts
in Zen Buddhism, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Hori, Victor Sogen (2005), Introduction. In: Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005), Zen Buddhism: A History.
Volume 2: Japan. World Wisdom Books.ISBN 9780-941532-90-7. Pagina xiii - xxi (PDF)

Lai, Whalen (1985), Ma-Tsu Tao-I And The Unfolding Of Southern Zen, Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 12 (2/3): 173192
Lai, Whalen (2003), Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey. In Antonio S. Cua (ed.): Encyclopedia of
Chinese Philosophy (PDF), New York: Routledge,
archived from the original (PDF) on November 12,
2014
Lathouwers, Ton (2000), Meer dan een mens kan
doen. Zentoespraken, Rotterdam: Asoka
Liang-Chieh (1986), The Record of Tung-shan,
Kuroda Institute (translator: William F. Powell)

16
Lievens, Bavo (1981), Ma-tsu. De gesprekken, Bussum: Het Wereldvenster
Loori, John Daido (2006), Sitting with Koans: Essential Writings on Zen Koan Introspection, Wisdom
Publications, ISBN 0-86171-369-9
Low, Albert (2000), Zen and the Sutras, Boston:
Turtle Publishing

CHAPTER 1. ZEN
Newland, Guy, Schijn en werkelijkheid. De twee
waarheden in de vier boeddhistische leerstelsels,
KunchabPublicaties
Oh, Kang-nam (2000), The Taoist Inuence on
Hua-yen Buddhism: A Case of the Scinicization of
Buddhism in China, Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal
(13)

Low, Albert (2006), Hakuin on Kensho. The Four

Ways of Knowing, Boston & London: Shambhala

Pajin, Dusan (1988), On Faith in Mind - Translation and Analysis of the Hsin Hsin Ming, Journal
of Oriental Studies 26 (2): 270288

Luk, Charles (translator) (n.d.), The Surangama Sutra (PDF), Buddha Dharma Education Association
Inc.

Poceski, Mario (n.d.), Attitudes Towards Canonicity

and Religious Authority in Tang Chan

Maezumi, Taizan; Glassman, Bernie (2007), The

Hazy Moon of Enlightenment, Wisdom Publications
Matthiessen, Peter (1987), Nine-headed dragon
river: Zen journals, 1969-1985, Shambhala
McCauley, Charles (2005), Zen and the Art of
Wholeness, iUniverse
McMahan, David L. (2008), The Making of Buddhist Modernism, Oxford University Press, ISBN
978-0-19-518327-6
McRae, John (1991), Shen-hui and the Teaching
of Sudden Enlightenment in Early Ch'an Buddhism.
In: Peter N. Gregory (editor)(1991), Sudden and
Gradual. Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese
Thought, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited
McRae, John (2003), Seeing Through Zen, The University Press Group Ltd External link in |title= (help)
McRae, John (2004), The Sutra of Queen rml
of the Lion's Roar and the Vimalakrti Sutra (PDF),
Berkeley, CA: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, ISBN 1886439311
McRae, John (2005), Critical introduction by John
McRae to the reprint of Dumoulin's A history of Zen
(PDF)
McRae, John (2008), The Platform Sutra of the Sixth
Patriarch, translated from the Chinese of Zongbao
(Taish Volume 48, Number 2008) (PDF)
Meng-Tat Chia, Jack (2011), A Review of Enlightenment in Dispute: The Reinvention of Chan
Buddhism in Seventeenth-Century China (PDF),
Journal of Buddhist Ethics 18
Mumon, Yamada (2004), The Ten Oxherding Pictures, University of Hawai'i press (translator: Victor
Sgen Hori)
Nadeau, Randall L. (2012), The Wiley-Blackwell
Companion to Chinese Religions, John Wiley & Sons

Sato, Kemmy Taira, D.T. Suzuki and the Question

of War (PDF)
Sasaki, Ruth Fuller (2009), The Record of Linji.
Translation and commentary by Ruth Fuller Sasaki.
Edited by Thomas Yh Kirchner (PDF), Honolulu:
University of Hawaii Press
Schltter, Morten (2008), How Zen became Zen.
The Dispute over Enlightenment and the Formation
of Chan Buddhism in Song-Dynasty China, Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, ISBN 978-08248-3508-8
Sekida, Katsuki (1989), Zen Training: Methods and
Philosophy, Shambhala
Sekida, Katuski (1996), Two Zen Classics. Mumonkan, the gateless gate. Hekiganroku, the blue cli
record, New York & Tokyo: Weatherhill
Sharf, Robert H. (1993),The Zen of Japanese Nationalism, History of Religions 33 (1): 143
Sharf, Robert H. (1995), Whose Zen? Zen Nationalism Revisited (PDF)
Sharf, Robert H. (1995b), Buddhist Modernism
and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience(PDF),
NUMEN 42
Sharf, Robert H. (1995c),Sanbokyodan. Zen and
the Way of the New Religions (PDF), Japanese
Journal of Religious Studies 22 (3-4)
Shimano, Eido T. (1991), Points of Departure: Zen
Buddhism With a Rinzai View, Livingston Manor,
NY: The Zen Studies Society Press, ISBN 09629246-0-1
Snelling, John (1987), The Buddhist handbook. A
Complete Guide to Buddhist Teaching and Practice,
London: Century Paperbacks
Suzuki, Shunryu (1997), Branching streams ow in
the darkness: Zen talks on the Sandokai, University
of California Press

1.10. REFERENCES
Swanson, Paul L. (1993), The Spirituality of
Emptiness in Early chinese Buddhism, in Takeuchi
Yoshinori, Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast
Asian, Tibetan, Early Chinese, New York: Crossroad

17
Wolfe, Robert (2009), Living Nonduality: Enlightenment Teachings of Self-Realization, Karina Library

Tetsuo, Otani (2003), To Transmit Dogen Zenji's

Dharma (PDF)

Wright, Dale S. (2010),Humanizing the Image of

a Zen master: Taizan Maezumi Roshi, in Steven
Heine and Dale S. Wright, Zen Masters, Oxford:
Oxford University Press

Tomoaki, Tsuchida (2003), The Monastic spirituality of Zen Master Dogen, in Takeuchi Yoshinori, Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast Asian,
Tibetan, Early Chinese, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass

Yampolski, Philip (1967), The Platform Sutra of

the Sixth Patriarch. Translated with notes by Philip
B. Yampolsky, Columbia University Press, ISBN 0231-08361-0

Torei (2010), The Undying Lamp of Zen. The

Testament of Zen Master Torei, Boston & London:
Shambhala (translator: Thomas Cleary)

Yampolski, Philip (2003a), Chan. A Historical

Sketch., in Takeuchi Yoshinori, Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast Asian, Tibetan, Early Chinese,
Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass

Tweed, Thomas A. (2005), American Occultism

and Japanese Buddhism. Albert J. Edmunds, D.
T. Suzuki, and Translocative History (PDF),
Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 32 (2): 249
281, archived from the original (PDF) on May 22,
2012

Yampolski, Philip (2003b), Zen. A Historical

Sketch, in Takeuchi Yoshinori, Buddhist Spirituality. Indian, Southeast Asian, Tibetan, Early Chinese,
Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass

Verstappen, Stefan H. (2004), Blind Zen

Victoria, Brian Daizen (2006), Zen at war (Second
ed.), Lanham e.a.: Rowman & Littleeld Publishers, Inc.
Victoria, Brian Daizen (2010), The Negative
Sideof D. T. Suzukis Relationship to War
(PDF), The Eastern Buddhist 41 (2): 97138
Waddell, Norman (2010), Foreword to Wild Ivy:
The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin
, Shambhala Publications

Yanagida, Seizan (2009), Historical Introduction to

The Record of Linji. In: The record of Linji, translated by Ruth Fuller Sasakia e.a. Pages 59-115
(PDF), University of Hawaii Press
Yen, Chan Master Sheng (1996), Dharma Drum:
The Life and Heart of Ch'an Practice, Boston & London: Shambhala
Yoshizawa, Katsuhiro (2009), The Religious Art of
Zen Master Hakuin, Counterpoint Press
Young, Stuart (2009), Linji Lu and Chinese Orthodoxy. Review of Albert Welter. The Linji lu and
the Creation of Chan Orthodoxy: The Development
of Chan's Records of Sayings Literature.

Wai-tao (translator) (1994), The Diamond Sutra

, A Buddhist Bible, Boston, Massachusetts: Beacon
Press
1.10.2
Wayman, Alex and Hideko (1990), The Lion's roar
of Queen Srimala, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers
Welter, Albert (n.d.), The Textual History of the Linji
lu (Record of Linji): The Earliest Recorded Fragments
Welter, Albert, The Formation of the Linji lu: An
Examination of the Guangdeng lu/Sijia yulu and Linji
Huizhao Chanshi yulu. Versions of the Linji lu in
Historical Context (PDF)
Welter, Albert (2000), Mahakasyapa's smile. Silent
Transmission and the Kung-an (Koan) Tradition. In:
Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright (eds)(2000): The
Koan. Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism, Oxford:
Oxford University Press

Web sources

[1] Sheng, Yen. Fundamentals of Meditation.

[2] Soto Zen Text Project. Zazengi translation. Stanford
University. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
[3] Soto Zen Text Project. Fukan Zazengi. Stanford University. Retrieved 2008-03-26.
[4] Dan Arnold, Madhyamaka Buddhist Philosophy, Internet
Encyclopedia of Philosophy
[5] Pointing at the moon. Khandro.net. Retrieved 201302-04.
[6] Lankavatara Sutra, chapter LXXXII, p.192 Suzukitranslation, p.223/224 in brackets. Lirs.ru. 2008-06-16.
Retrieved 2013-02-04.
[7] Soto Zen. The Soto Zen Buddhist Association. Retrieved February 19, 2013.

18

CHAPTER 1. ZEN

[8] aqua-palette,Inc.Ningen Zen. Ningen Zen. Retrieved

2013-02-04.
[9] Andre van de Braak, ''ZEN SPIRITUALITY IN A SECULAR AGE. Charles Taylor and Zen Buddhism in the
West''". Retrieved 2013-02-04.
[10] Thich Hang Dat, A REAPPRAISAL OF KUMRAJVA
S ROLE IN MEDIEVAL CHINESE BUDDHISM:
AN EXAMINATION OF KUMRAJVAS TRANSLATION TEXT ON THE ESSENTIAL EXPLANATION OF THE METHOD OF DHYANA
[11] Soothill, William Edward; Hodous, Lewis (1995), A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms, London: RoutledgeCurzon
[12] Rinzai-Obaku Zen - What is Zen?
Zen.rinnou.net. Retrieved 2013-02-04.

- History.

1.11 Further reading

Modern classics
Sowing the seed

Overview
Heine, Steven (2007),A Critical Survey of Works
on Zen since Yampolsky (PDF), Philosophy East
& West 57 (4): 577592
Formation of Chn in Tang & Song China
Mcrae, John (2003), Seeing through Zen. Encounter,
Transformation, and Genealogy in Chinese Chan
Buddhism. The University Press Group Ltd .ISBN
978-0-520-23798-8
Welter, Albert (2000), Mahakasyapa's smile. Silent
Transmission and the Kung-an (Koan) Tradition. In:
Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright (eds)(2000): The
Koan. Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism, Oxford:
Oxford University Press
Schltter, Morten (2008), How Zen became Zen.
The Dispute over Enlightenment and the Formation
of Chan Buddhism in Song-Dynasty China, Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, ISBN 978-08248-3508-8

D.T. Suzuki, Essays in Zen Buddhism, First Series Japan

(1927), Second Series (1933), Third Series (1934)
R. H. Blyth, Zen and Zen Classics, 5 volumes (1960
1970; reprints of works from 1942 into the 1960s)
Alan Watts, The Way of Zen (1957)

Bodiford, William M. (1993), St Zen in Medieval

Japan, University of Hawaii Press, ISBN 0-82481482-7

Lu K'uan Yu (Charles Luk), Ch'an and Zen Teach- Modern times

ings, 3 vols (1960, 1971, 1974), The Transmission
of the Mind: Outside the Teaching (1974)
Victoria, Brian Daizen (2006), Zen at war (Second
ed.), Lanham e.a.: Rowman & Littleeld PublishGrowing roots
ers, Inc.
Paul Reps & Nyogen Senzaki, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones
(1957)
Philip Kapleau, The Three Pillars of Zen (1966)
Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (1970)
Katsuki Sekida, Zen Training: Methods & Philosophy (1975)
Classic historiography
Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005), Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 1: India and China. World Wisdom
Books.ISBN 978-0-941532-89-1

Sharf, Robert H. (1995a), Whose Zen? Zen Nationalism Revisited (PDF)

Orientalism and East-West interchange
Borup, Jorn (n.d.), Zen and the Art of inverting Orientalism: religious studies and genealogical networks
King, Richard (2002), Orientalism and Religion:
Post-Colonial Theory, India and The Mystic East
, Routledge
McMahan, David L. (2008), The Making of Buddhist Modernism. Oxford University Press.ISBN
978-0-19-518327-6

Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005), Zen Buddhism: A

History. Volume 2: Japan. World Wisdom Contemporary practice
Books.ISBN 978-0-941532-90-7
Borup, Jrn (2008), Japanese Rinzai Zen Buddhism:
Critical historiography
Myshinji, a Living Religion, Brill

1.12. EXTERNAL LINKS

Hori, Victor Sogen (1994),Teaching and Learning
in the Zen Rinzai Monastery (PDF), Journal of
Japanese Studies Vol (1): 535
Buswell, Robert E. (1993a), The Zen Monastic Experience: Buddhist Practice in Contemporary Korea,
Princeton University Press

1.12 External links

thezensite
Zen Buddhism WWW Virtual Library
Chart of (Asian) Zen schools
Sweeping Zen: Who's who in Zen
Glossary of Japanese Zen terms

19

Chapter 2

List of Dune religions

The Religions of Dune are a key aspect of the ctional
setting of the Dune universe created by Frank Herbert.
Many of the names of religions mentioned in the novels
indicate they are blends of current belief systems, some
syncretic.

want our ideas changed. We feel threatened by such

demands. I already know the important things!"
we say. Then Changer comes and throws our old
ideas away. The Zensu Master

Uproot your questions from their ground and the

According to Appendix II: The Religion of Dune in the
dangling roots will be seen. More questions!
1965 novel Dune, after the Butlerian Jihad, the Bene
Mentat Zensu admonition
Gesserit composed the Azhar Book, a bibliographic
marvel that preserves the great secrets of the most ancient faiths. Soon after, a group made up of the leaders Heretics of Dune states that this was the religion of
of many religions (calling itself the Commission of Ec- the Bene Tleilaxu, who had originally been part of the
umenical Translators) created the Orange Catholic Bible, Zensunni Wanderers.
the key religious text of the Dune universe, which contains elements of most ancient religions.* [1]

2.1.3 Zensunni

Zensunni is a syncretic religious belief combining principles of Zen Buddhism and Sunni Islam. In the ctional far
future of human civilization portrayed in the series, variThe term for those religions derived from a syncretic fu- ous ethnic and political groups adhere to this worldview,
sion of denominations of Buddhism and Islam. The con- including the Fremen, originally theZensunni Wandernection of the Zensunni with Buddislam suggests the lat- ers.
ter arose during the Third Islamic Movement associated
with the Maometh Saari (see below under Third Islam). In Terminology of the Imperium (the glossary of the novel
Dune), Frank Herbert provides the following denition:

2.1 Buddislam

2.1.1

Zenshiism

A hybrid of the religious principles of Zen (a school of

Mahayana Buddhism) and Shia Islam. It does not occur in
the original Dune series, appearing only in the later books
by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson and mentioned to
be deant fanatics unlike the Zensunni pacists; Zenshiite
slaves are behind the uprising on Poritrin.

2.1.2

Zensusm

ZENSUNNI: followers of a schismatic sect

that broke away from the teachings of Maometh
(the so-calledThird Muhammed) about 1381
B.G. The Zensunni religion is noted chiey for
its emphasis on the mystical and a reversion to
the ways of the fathers.Most scholars name
Ali Ben Ohashi as leader of the original schism
but there is some evidence that Ohashi may have
been merely the male spokesman for his second
wife, Nisai.

According to Terminology of the Imperium, the planet

Poritrin is considered by many Zensunni Wanderers
as their planet of origin, although clues in their language
and mythology show far more ancient planetary roots
.* [2] The former Imperial capital (and later prison world)
Salusa Secundus was the second stopping point in mi The person who takes the banal and ordinary and grations of the Wandering Zensunni. Fremen tradition
illuminates it in a new way can terrify. We do not says they were slaves on S.S. for nine generations.* [3]

Zensusm is a hybrid of Zen and Susm, a form

of Islamic mysticism which, based on epigrams in
Chapterhouse: Dune, would have gured in Dune 7.
There are only two Zensu epigrams in Chapterhouse:
Dune:

20

2.2. JUDAISM
Thethird stopping placeis noted as Bela Tegeuse,* [4]
and Harmonthep was the sixth stop.* [5]
The ascension of Paul Atreides as Emperor in Dune and
the expansion of Fremen inuence throughout the Imperium widely popularized the study of Zensunni beliefs.
It is noted in Terminology of the Imperium that the Orange Catholic Bible contains elements of most ancient
religions, including ... Zensunni Catholicism".* [1]
Herbert sprinkled Zen ideas throughout Dune",* [6] as
when Reverend Mother Mohiam queries Paul:
Ever sift sand through a screen?" she
asked.
The tangential slash of her question
shocked his mind into a higher awareness:
Sand through a screen, he nodded.
We Bene Gesserit sift people to nd the
humans.
This is a Zen kan, or a story, dialogue, question, or statement: "...that sounds like gibberish, but also like it might
be incredibly profound, provided you think about it long
enough.* [6] A kan generally contains aspects that are
inaccessible to rational understanding, yet may be accessible to intuition. Zen masters developed this trick to
'open up' the mind of their students without lling it with
their own opinions.* [6] Herbert himself noted in "Dune
Genesis, his own analysis of the development of the
novel, that:* [7]
As in an Escher lithograph, I involved
myself with recurrent themes that turn into
paradox. The central paradox concerns the human vision of time. What about Paul's gift of
prescience the Presbyterian xation? For the
Delphic Oracle to perform, it must tangle itself in a web of predestination. Yet predestination negates surprises and, in fact, sets up a
mathematically enclosed universe whose limits are always inconsistent, always encountering the unprovable. It's like a kan, a Zen mind
breaker.
In the Brian Herbert/Kevin J. Anderson Legends of Dune
prequel trilogy, before and during the Butlerian Jihad the
Zensunnis were brought as slaves from their homeworlds
(like Harmonthep) to places like Poritrin. After the slave
revolt on Poritrin, many Zensunnis escaped to Arrakis;
these Zensunni wanderers would become the rst Fremen.

21
handmaiden.
FIQH: knowledge, religious law; one of the halflegendary origins of the Zensunni Wanderers'
religion.
ILM: theology; science of religious tradition; one
of the half-legendary origins of the Zensunni
Wanderers' faith.
MISR: the historical Zensunni (Fremen) term for
themselves: The People.
SHAH-NAMA: the half-legendary First Book of
the Zensunni Wanderers.
ULEMA: a Zensunni doctor of theology.
These concepts are all more or less identiable with Islamic concepts:
Auliya (Arabic: )is the Arabic word for saints,
Fiqh (Arabic: )is Islamic jurisprudence,
Ilm (Arabic: )is the Arabic word for theological
knowledge, theology, Ilm
Mir (Arabic: )the Arabic word for a settlement
and also the Arabic name for the nation of Egypt
(providing a play on thegypsieswho were thought
incorrectly by Europeans to have come from Egypt);
the Shahnameh (Book of Kings), is a Persian epic account of the Persian Shahs through the twelfth century,
Ulema (Arabic: )are Muslim doctors of the
science of religious law.

2.2 Judaism
In Chapterhouse: Dune it is revealed that Jewish communities continue to exist, scattered across the galaxy.
In sharp contrast to the drastic changes which have occurred in other religions in the 25,000 years between the
20th century and the time of the Honored Matres invasion, Judaism has undergone comparatively little change.
Jewish characters also feature in Brian Herbert and Kevin
J. Anderson's sequels, Hunters of Dune and Sandworms
of Dune.

These Jewish communities are led by rabbis, at least

some of whom have working relationships with the Bene
Gesserit. Heretics of Dune suggests that Jewish thought
may have inuenced the development of Bene Gesserit
philosophy. The Jewish community described in the novels denes itself as part of Secret Israel, which, in
conjunction with the sparse historical information given
Terminology of the Imperium also denes several Zen- in the novel, suggests that the Jewish people had decided
sunni terms:
to conceal themselves to follow their religion and avoid
the recurrent atrocities of their past. Long ago, the Bene
AULIYA: In the Zensunni Wanderers' reliGesserit and the hidden Jewish communities came to an
gion, the female at the left hand of God; God's
understanding of sorts: the Bene Gesserit would provide

22
aid to hidden Jews if they were ever threatened, and help
hide the fact that the Jewish religion survives in secret; in
return, if ever a Bene Gesserit acolyte is lost and threatened on an isolated planet, the local Jewish community
give her aid and shelter. A simple arrangement, but one
which endured between both groups for millennia. Moreover, the Torah and Talmudic Zabur are listed in Appendix II of Dune as having contributed to the Orange
Catholic Bible; the appendix also notes that these books
were preserved on Salusa Secundus.

2.3 Mahayana Christianity

A hybrid of Mahayana Buddhism and Christianity, which
presumably interpreted Jesus Christ as a Buddha.

2.4 Mahayana Lankavatara

This is a minority religion in the Imperium, which is
clearly based on the Lankavatara Sutra, a text of the
Mahayana.

2.5 Muadru
The Brian Herbert/Kevin J. Anderson Legends of Dune
prequel trilogy notes that Muadruis an ancient religion predating the Old Empire before the Time of the
Titans. Its prophetic writings are used out of context by
Iblis Ginjo during the Butlerian Jihad; there is also some
indication that the Muadru and the Cogitors shared the
same origin. In Paul of Dune, Paul Atreides shows Count
Fenring an ancient Muadru room buried deep under his
Arrakeen residence. He further explains to him that the
Muadru are an ancient people who once settled through
the entire galaxy but became suddenly extinct. They are
believed to have settled on Arrakis while it was still a verdant planet and to have introduced the sandworms there
long before the arrival of the Zensunni Wanderers.

CHAPTER 2. LIST OF DUNE RELIGIONS

duism and Mahayana Buddhism, often being used in the
same sense as 'neo'. Thus, Navachristianity may simply
mean 'neo-Christianity', or represent a blend of Christianity with the religions of the Indian subcontinent; it
should be noted, that in light of the syncretic forms of
Buddhism listed, the Indian religion most likely is the
little-mentioned faith of Hinduism.

2.7 Third Islam

According to Appendix II: The Religion of Dune, there had
been three Islamic Movements in the time before the Corrino Imperium, andThird Islamis just a shorthand term
for The Third Islamic Movement. Clearly, the First
Islamic Movement was that of the Prophet Muhammed.
Herbert does not go into details about the Second Movement, though it can be inferred that it too had a prophet
named Muhammed (it may be suggested too that the
Muadh Quranof Caladan was the scripture of Second Islam). Third Islam's prophet was Maometh (a
form of Muhammed) and it was from his teachings in the
Maometh Saari that the Zensunni Wanderers schismed.
As this happened in 1381 B.G., it follows that the Third
Islamic Movement occurred before this date; the association of the syncretic Zensunni with Third Islam implies
that the latter saw the fusing of Buddhism with Second
Islam. The scripture of the Maometh Saari likely derives
its name from the Arabic saari, meaning woven
cloth, and alludes to the interweaving of koranic surah
or ayat with Buddhist sutras (note that sutra itself means
a thread).

2.8 Zen Hekiganshu

This is Herbert's rendering of the Hekiganroku, a Chinese

collection of Zen (i.e., Chan) koans compiled in China
during the Song dynasty in 1125, which formed the basis
of an associated cult in the Dune cosmos (or so we may
infer). Curiously, Herbert renders the roku ending as shu,
which appears to be the character , meaning documentand is notably used in the alternate title for the
Classic of History, Shangshu. Thus, in traditional Chinese the phrase Zen Hekiganshu would be Chn Byn2.6 Navachristianity
sh (). The connection between Buddislam and
this sect is unexplained, but contextually, the inference is
According to the Legends of Dune trilogy, Navachristian- that the Zen Hekiganshu tradition rejected any fusion with
ity is the religion of the ruling class on Poritrin. However, Islam, thus retaining its purity and minority status.
according to Dune it is found on the planet Chusuk, but
there is no explanation of its tenets. Three tenable etymologies have been suggested. One treats it as a portmanteau of Navajo with Christianity and assumes Herbert 2.9 References
was alluding to a movement comparable with the Native
American Church; another treats it as a worn down fusion [1] Herbert, Frank. Dune, Terminology of the Imperium (Orange Catholic Bible).
of Nauvoo with Christianity in reference to the American
religious movements begun there; the third derivesnava- [2] Herbert, Frank. Dune, Terminology of the Imperium
(Poritrin).
" from 'new' in Sanskrit, the liturgical language of Hin-

2.9. REFERENCES

[3] Dune, Terminology of the Imperium (Salusa Secundus).

[4] Dune, Terminology of the Imperium (Bela Tegeuse).
[5] Dune, Terminology of the Imperium (Harmonthep).
[6] Frank Herbert's inspirations for Dune: Zen Buddhism ~
Moongadget.com
[7] Herbert, Frank (July 1980). "DuneGenesis. Omni.
FrankHerbert.org. Archived from the original on 201201-07. Retrieved 2014-02-14.

23

Chapter 3

Glossary of Dune terminology

O

This is a list of terminology used in the ctional Dune universe created by Frank Herbert, the primary source being
Terminology of the Imperium,the glossary contained
in the novel Dune (1965).

P
Q

Dune word construction could be classied into three domains of vocabulary, each marked with its own neology:
the names and terms related to the politics and culture
of the Galactic Empire, the names and terms characteristic of the mystic sodality of the Bene Gesserit, and the
barely displaced Arabic of the Fremen language. Fremen share vocabulary for Arrakeen phenomena with the
Empire, but use completely dierent vocabulary for Bene
Gesserit-implanted messianic religion.* [1]

R
S
T
U
V

Due to the similarities between some of Herbert's terms

and ideas and actual words and concepts in the Arabic
language as well as the series' "Islamic undertones" and
themes a Middle Eastern inuence on Herbert's works
has been noted repeatedly.* [1]* [2]

Contents :

X
Y

References
A
B

3.1 A

Aba A loose, usually black robe worn by Fremen

women and Bene Gesserit sisters.* [3]

Abomination Bene Gesserit term for one who is

pre-born and thus susceptible to being taken over by
the ancestral personalities in Other Memory.* [4]

E
F
G

Ajidamal (or Amal) Disastrously-awed synthetic

melange created by the Tleilaxu Project Amal before the process of producing spice in axlotl tanks is
perfected.* [5]

H
I
J

Akarso Plant native to Sikun (of 70 Ophiuchi A)

characterized by almost oblong leaves. Its green and
white stripes indicate the constant multiple, condition of parallel active and dormant chlorophyll regions.* [3]

K
L
M

Al-Lat Mankind's original sun; by usage: any

planet's primary.* [3]

N
24

3.3. C
Ampoliros Legendary 'Flying Dutchman' of
space;"* [3] Lady Jessica refers to the pre-Guild legend in Dune:Like the men of the lost star-searcher,
Ampoliros sick at their guns forever seeking, forever prepared and forever unready.
Amtal (or Amtal Rule) Common rule on primitive worlds under which something is tested to determine its limits or defects. Commonly: testing to
destruction.* [3] "To know a thing well, know its
limits. Only when pushed beyond its tolerances will
true nature be seen. The Amtal Rule.* [6]
Arafel The cloud-darkness of holy judgment
*
[7] or cloud darkness at the end of the universe;"* [7]* [8] the end of mankind (as it was)
averted by Leto II's Golden Path.* [7]
Axlotl tank Biological tank in which gholas and
melange may be produced.* [9]
Assassin's Handbook Third-century compilation of poisons commonly used in a War of Assassins. Later expanded to include those deadly devices
permitted under the Guild Peace and Great Convention.* [3]
Ayat The signs of life. (See Burhan.)"* [3]

25
Bi-la kaifa A Fremen religious phrase meaning
Amen,which translates literally toNothing further need be explained.* [3]
Buddislam - Term for those religions derived from a
syncretic fusion of denominations of Buddhism and
Islam.
Burhan -The proofs of life. (Commonly: the ayat
and burhan of life. See Ayat.)"* [3]
Burseg Military general.* [4]
Butlerian Jihad Mankind's crusade against
computers, thinking machines, and conscious
robots.* [10]

3.3 C
Caid Sardaukar ocer rank given to a military
ocial whose duties call mostly for dealings with
civilians; A military governorship over a full planetary district; Above the rank of Bashar but not equal
to a Burseg.* [3]
Carryall Aircraft used on Arrakis to transport
large spice mining, hunting and rening equipment.
*
[3]
Chakobsa Language of the Fremen of Arrakis.* [4]

3.2 B

Chaumas Poison in solid food as distinguished

from poison administered in some other way.* [3]

Baliset Nine-stringed musical instrument, lineal descendant of the zithra, tuned to the Chusuk
scale and played by strumming. Favorite instrument
of Imperial troubadours.* [3] Gurney Halleck is a
master playing the baliset in the series.* [4] In David
Lynch's 1984 adaptation of Dune, a cosmetically altered Chapman Stick was used to portray the instrument. In the miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune,
the baliset resembles a renaissance-era lute, with the
pegbox bent back almost 90.

Chaumurky Poison administered in a drink.

*
[3]

Baraka A living holy man of magical powers.

*
[3]

Cogitor One of several ancient philosophers

whose brains are transplanted into uid-lled canisters so that they can analyze the universe indenitely.* [11]

Bashar Military rank, slightly above a traditional

Colonel and primarily used for military leader of a
planetary subdistrict; alternately, Colonel Bashar, or
Supreme Bashar for a military's most senior commander.* [4]
Bene Gesserit Secretive and powerful matriarchal
order whose members possess extraordinary physical and mental powers.* [4]
Bene Tleilax (or Tleilaxu) Secretive and powerful
patriarchal race known for their genetic manipulation technologies.* [9]

CHOAM (Combine Honnete Ober Advancer Mercantiles) the universal development corporation
controlled by the Emperor and Great Houses with
the Guild and Bene Gesserit as silent partners.* [3]
This corporation essentially controls the economy of
the known universe, with shares and directorships
determining each House's income and nancial
leverage.

Cone of silence Sound-deadeningeld of a distorter that limits the carrying power of the voice or
any other vibrator by damping the vibrations with
an image-vibration 180 degrees out of phase.* [3]
Used for privacy, the eld does not visually obscure
lip movement.* [4]
Coriolis storm Sandstorms on Arrakis in which
winds across the open atlands are amplied by the
planet's own revolutionary motion to reach speeds
up to 700 kilometres per hour.* [3]

26
Crysknife Weapon made from the tooth of a
sandworm from Arrakis.* [3]
Cutterray Short-range version of a lasgun used
mostly as a cutting tool and surgeon's scalpel.* [3]
Cymek Type of cyborg; specically, a human
brain implanted into a large, weaponized machine
body.* [11]

3.4 D
D-wolves Guardians of the Sareer on Arrakis in
the time of Leto II Atreides; ferocious wolves descended from Gaze Hounds and ordinary wolves,
noted for their keen eyesight.* [7]
Damper, Ixian Portable device which hides
words from anyone without the proper coded translator, and projects distortions that hide the precise
movements of lips and the sounds of voices. It
is described as a black discbuoyed midair by
suspensors.* [8]
Deathstill Fremen device used to extract all moisture from a living or dead human or creature.* [4]
This is traditionally done to reclaim precious water from the dead, who no longer require it; but in
Children of Dune the device is used as a method of
execution.
Distrans Steganographic device producing a
temporary neural imprint on the nervous system
of Chiroptera (bats) or birds. The creature's normal
cry then carries the message imprint, which can be
sorted from that carrier wave by another distrans.
*
[3]

3.5 E
Elacca drug Narcotic produced from thebloodgrainedelacca wood of Ecaz; users' skin shows
a characteristic carrot color. The drug's eect is
to remove most of the will to self-preservation;
commonly used to prepare slave gladiators for the
ring.* [3]

3.6 F

CHAPTER 3. GLOSSARY OF DUNE TERMINOLOGY

Faufreluches The rigid rule of class distinction
enforced by the Imperium. 'A place for every man
and every man in his place.'"* [3]
Fedaykin /fdakn/* [12] Fremen death
commandos; historically: a group formed and
pledged to give their lives to right a wrong.* [3]
In Dune, they are personally trained by, and ercely
loyal to, Paul Atreides.* [4] The term is derived
from the Arabic Fedayeen.* [13]
Fish Speakers All-female military force created by
Leto II Atreides to enforce his rule over the known
universe.* [7]
Fogwood Wood native to Ecaz, capable of being
shaped by thought alone.* [14]
Fremen Nativeinhabitants of Arrakis.* [4]
Fremkit Fremen desert survival kit. Notable contents include an inatable stilltent, a sand snorkel, a
thumper, and maker hooks.* [4]
Futar Primitive and erce humanoid creatures, a
genetic mix of man and cat, articially created out
in the Scattering to hunt Honored Matres.* [8]

3.7 G
Galach Universal language of the Dune universe.* [3]
Ghola A type of Clone grown in an axlotl tank
from genetic material retrieved from the cells of a
deceased subject.* [9]
Glowglobe "Suspensor-buoyed illuminating device, self-powered (usually by organic batteries).
*
[3]
Golden Path Leto II's strategy to prevent humanity's destruction.* [15]
Gom jabbar Specic poison needle tipped
with meta-cyanide used by Bene Gesserit Proctors
in their death-alternative test of human awareness.
*
[3]

Face Dancers Creatures created by the Bene

Tleilax that are able to mimic other humans exactly
and go undetected by all known means, except by
Bene Gesserit Truthsayers.* [9]

Great Convention Universal truce enforced under the power balance maintained by the Guild, the
Great Houses, and the Imperium. Its chief rule prohibits the use of atomic weapons against human targets.* [3]

Famine Times Years after the reign of Leto II,

marked by chaos and famine on many worlds, that
led to The Scattering.* [7]

Guild Navigator Melange-mutated humans able to

safely navigate interstellar space (using prescience)
in ships called Heighliners.* [4]

3.11. K

3.8 H
Handlers Humanoid race who bred and trained
Futars to hunt Honored Matres.* [6]
Harvester (also Harvester Factory or Crawler)
Large (often 120 metres by 40 metres) spice mining machine ... [with a] buglike body on independent tracks.* [3]
Heighliner Enormous carrier starships used by the
Spacing Guild for interstellar travel.* [3]
High Council The Landsraad inner circle empowered to act as supreme tribunal in House to
House disputes.* [3]
Holtzman eect Scientic phenomenon that makes
(among other things) instantaneous space travel and
defensive force shields possible.* [4]
Honored Matres Violent matriarchal order formed
in The Scattering.* [8]
Hunter-seeker Ravening sliver of suspensorbuoyed metal guided as a weapon by a nearby control
console; common assassination device.* [3] Floating in mid-air, it kills by entering the body and following nerve pathways to vital organs. A hunterseeker is employed in Dune in an assassination attempt on Paul Atreides.* [4]

27
Judge of the Change An ocial appointed
by the Landsraad High Council and the Emperor to
monitor a change of ef, a kanly negotiation, or formal battle in a War of Assassins. The Judge's arbitral authority may be challenged only before the
High Council with the Emperor present.* [3]

3.11 K
Kanly Formal feud or vendetta under the rules
of the Great Convention carried on according to the
strictest limitations.* [3]
Kralizec Long-foretold Typhoon Struggleor
nal battle at the end of the universe.* [15]
Krimskell ber/Krimskell rope The 'claw ber'
woven from strands of the hufuf vine from Ecaz.
Knots tied in krimskell will claw tighter and tighter
to preset limits when the knot-lines are pulled.* [3]
Kwisatz Haderach The Shortening of the Way
orThe one who can be two places simultaneously
. Bene Gesserit label applied to the unknown for
which they sought a genetic solution: a male Bene
Gesserit whose organic mental powers would bridge
space and time.* [3]

3.12 L
Landsraad The Assembly of all nobles in the Imperium.* [4]

3.9 I
Inkvine Creeping plant native to Giedi Prime
and frequently used as a whip in its slave pens. Victims are marked by beet-colored tattoos that cause
residual pain for many years.* [3]
Ixian damper Portable device which hides words
from anyone without the proper coded translator,
and projects distortions that hide the precise movements of lips and the sounds of voices. It is
described as a black discbuoyed midair by
suspensors.* [8]
Ixian Probe Device used to capture the thoughts of
a person (living or dead) for analysis; can be blocked
by the substance shere.* [8]

3.10 J
Jihad, Butlerian Mankind'scrusade against computers, thinking machines, and conscious robots.
*
[3]

Lasgun Handheld energy weapon, technically a

continuous-wave laser projector;"* [3] also lasegun.
Laza tiger A breed of tiger brought to Salusa Secundus almost eight thousand yearsbefore the
events of Children of Dune. Genetic manipulation of the ancient Terran stock had erased some
of the original tiger features and rened other elements. The fangs remained long. Their faces were
wide, eyes alert and intelligent. The paws were enlarged to give them support on uneven terrain and
their sheathed claws could extend some ten centimeters, sharpened at the ends into razor tips by abrasive compression of the sheath. Their coats were a
at and even tan which made them almost invisible
against sand.* [15]
Little Maker The half-plant-half-animal deepsand vector of the Arrakis sandworm,whoseexcretions form the pre-spice mass.* [3]
Lost Tleilaxu Oshoot race of the Bene Tleilax,
formed in The Scattering.* [16]
Levenbrech A military rank that is roughly in between a sergeant and a lieutenant.* [15]

28

3.13 M
Mahdi In the Fremen messianic legend, 'The
One Who Will Lead Us to Paradise;'"* [3] applied
to Paul Atreides by the Fremen when they determine
that he is their messiah. The term is the same as that
used in Islam for a messianic gure who will appear
shortly before the Day of Judgment in Islamic eschatology.
Maker hooks The hooks used for capturing,
mounting, and steering a sandworm of Arrakis.* [3]
Maula pistol Spring-loaded gun for ring poison
darts; range about 40 metres.* [3]
Melange Known colloquially as the spice, a
highly-addictive drug essential to space travel, extended life, and therefore to the survival of the universe.* [4]

CHAPTER 3. GLOSSARY OF DUNE TERMINOLOGY

3.15 O
Obliterators Weapons of mass destruction stolen
by Honored Matres from their outside enemy;"
they combust the atmosphere of a planet and subsequently its surface.* [16]
Other Memory The combined ego and memories
of all female ancestors, which a Bene Gesserit may
be trained to access.* [4]
Ornithopter (or 'Thopter) Aircraft capable
of sustained wing-beat ight in the manner of
birds;"* [3] one of the primary modes of transportation on the desert planet Arrakis.* [4]

3.16 P

Mentats Individuals trained as human computers,* [3] their minds developed to staggering
heights of cognitive and analytical ability.

Palm lock Lock or seal which can be opened

only by contact with the palm of the human hand to
which it has been keyed.* [3]

Missionaria Protectiva An arm of the Bene

Gesserit charged with spreading contrived myths,
prophecies and superstition on primitive worlds so
that the Bene Gesserit may later exploit those regions.* [3]

Phibian Primitive and amphibious humanoid creatures, a genetic mix of man and sh.* [16]

Muad'Dib The adapted kangaroo mouse of Arrakis, a creature associated in the Fremen earthspirit mythology with a design visible on the planet's
second moon. This creature is admired by Fremen
for its ability to survive in the open desert.* [3] In
Dune, Paul Atreides takes Muad'Dibas his Fremen name, which takes on greater signicance when
he is perceived as a messiah.
Muadru Ancient religion predating the Old Empire before the Time of the Titans.* [11]

3.14 N
na-Baron Noble title given to a Baron's heirapparent.* [3]
No-chamber Construct that hides anything inside
from prescient and ocular vision, as well as other
methods of detection.* [8]
No-ship No-chamber in spaceship form, with
enough limited prescience to be capable of interstellar travel without a Guild Navigator.* [8]
Nullentropy Technology akin to the science ction concept of stasis, in which the natural processes
of time, such as decomposition, are ceased. In this
way, perishable matter such as food and even human cells may be stored for millennia and remain
undamaged.* [6]* [8]

Plasteel Extremely tough form of steel, stabilized with stravidium bers grown into its crystal
structure.* [3]
Plaz (or windowplaz) Synthetic glass, used for
windows (especially in aircraft and spaceships) due
to its superior strength.* [8]
Poison snooper Radiation analyzer within the
olfactory spectrum and keyed to detect poisonous
substances.* [17]
Powindah Tleilaxu term for all outsiders, whom
they consider uncleansinners and heretics.* [8]
Prana-bindu Training providing a Bene Gesserit
with complete muscle control (Prana nervature relates to nervous system control).* [4]
Pre-spice mass The stage of fungusoid wild
growth achieved when water is ooded into the excretions of Little Makers. At this stage, the spice
of Arrakis forms a characteristic 'blow,' exchanging
the material from deep underground for the matter
on the surface above it. This mass, after exposure to
sun and air, becomes melange.* [3]
Probe, Ixian Device used to capture the thoughts
of a person (living or dead) for analysis; can be
blocked by the substance shere.* [8]
Probe, T Device used to capture the thoughts
of a person (living or dead) for analysis; unlike an
Ixian Probe, it cannot be blocked by the substance
shere.* [8]

3.19. S
Pundi rice A mutated rice whose grains, high in
natural sugar, achieve lengths up to four centimeters;
chief export of Caladan.* [3]

29
Scattering, The Event after the reign of Leto II in
which trillions of people left the settled worlds of the
Old Empire, striking o into unknown space.* [8]
Selamlik Imperial audience chamber.* [3]

3.17 Q
Qanat Open canal for carrying irrigation water
under controlled conditions through a desert.* [3]

3.18 R
Residual poison Innovation attributed to the
Mentat Piter De Vries whereby the body is impregnated with a substance for which repeated antidotes
must be administered; withdrawal of the antidote at
any time brings death.* [3]
Reverend Mother Bene Gesserit who has survived
a ritual wherein she consciously transforms a toxic
dose of melange into a non-poisonous substance
at the molecular level, thereby raising herself to a
higher level of awareness and enabling her to access
Other Memory.* [3]

3.19 S
Sietch redirects here. Or see Sech (disambiguation)

Salusan bull Fierce and very aggressive creature

with compound eyes and multiple horns, used in
bullghting on Caladan and originating from Salusa
Secundus.* [5]
Sandworm Giant sand-dwelling creatures native to
Arrakis. Called Shai-Hulud by the Fremen and worshipped as deities.* [4]

Semuta Second narcotic derivative (by crystal

extraction) from the burned residue of elacca wood
[from Ecaz]. The eect (described as timeless, sustained ecstasy) is elicited by certain atonal vibrations
referred to as semuta music.* [3]
Shai-Hulud Fremen name for the sandworms of
Arrakis.* [4]
Shere Signicant presence of this substance in the
body will block the use of an Ixian Probe (but not a
T-Probe) from recovering memories.* [8]
Shigawire Metallic extrusion of a ground vine
(Narvi narviium) grown only on Salusa Secundus
and III Delta Kaising. It is noted for extreme tensile
strength* [3] and is used as a recording medium as
well as a garrote weapon.
Sietch Cave warren inhabited by a Fremen tribal
community; in the Fremen language, Place of assembly in time of danger.* [3]
Sietch orgy (or sietch tau orgy) Fremen ritual of
unrestrained sexual indulgence which takes place after a Reverend Mother shares the changed Water of
Life with her community.* [4]
Siridar A planetary governor.* [18]
Slig Livestock animal, hybrid of a large slug and a
pig, considered a delicacy.* [8]
Solido Three-dimensional image from a solido
projector using 360-degree reference signals imprinted on a shigawire reel.* [3]

Sapho High-energy liquid extracted from barrier roots of Ecaz. Commonly used by Mentats who
claim it amplies mental powers. Users develop
deep ruby stains on mouth and lips.* [3]

Soostone Valuable iridescent gem produced on

Buzzell by the abraded carapaces of monoped sea
creatures called Cholisters, much in the manner of
pearls.* [8]

Sardaukar Ferocious soldier-fanaticsof the

Padishah Emperor, later disbanded by Leto II.* [3]

Spacing Guild Powerful organization with a

monopoly on space travel and transport due to their
Navigators.* [4]

Sareer Last desert of Arrakis in the time of Leto

II Atreides, location of his Citadel; guarded by Dwolves.* [7]
Sayyadina Among the Fremen, the Sayyadina (
Friend of Godin Chakobsa) is a priestess who has
not yet passed within to become a Reverend Mother.
When a Sayyadina undergoes the spice agony, another is then consecrated into the Sayyadina to continue the line of succession.* [4]

Spice Common name for melange, a highlyaddictive drug essential to space travel, extended
life, and therefore to the survival of the universe.* [4]
Spice agony Fremen version of the ritual used by
the Bene Gesserit to create Reverend Mothers, using
the Water of Life instead of melange.* [4]
Steersman Title given to Guild Navigators.* [4]

30
Stillsuit Body-enclosing garmentof Fremen design which performs thefunctions of heat dissipation and ltering bodily wastes,as well as retaining
and reclaiming moisture.* [3]
Stilltent Small, scalable enclosure of microsandwich fabric designed to reclaim as potable water the ambient moisture discharged within it by the
breath of its occupants.* [3]

CHAPTER 3. GLOSSARY OF DUNE TERMINOLOGY

Daniel and Marty in their attempt to track and capture the no-ship Ithaca.* [16]
Thinking machines Intelligent and sentient machines created in the likeness of a human mind
and thus abolished in the Butlerian Jihad.* [4]
Thopter (Ornithopter) Aircraft capable of sustained wing-beat ight in the manner of birds.* [3]

Stone burner Atomic weapon, the explosion and

radiation of which can be precisely adjusted depending on the desired eect. A stone burner with
sucient fuel can burn through the crust of a planet
to the mantle or core, potentially causing a release of
energy destroying the surface of the planet on which
the weapon is deployed. Stone burners emit JRays,a form of radiation that has an anity for
destroying the eyes of anyone surviving the initial
radiation blast.* [9]

Thorse A six-legged pack animal bred for its stability.* [7]

Suboid Bioengineered Ixian workers.* [5]

Tleilaxu (or Bene Tleilax) Secretive and powerful

patriarchal race known for their genetic manipulation technologies.* [9]

Suk School Prominent medical school whose doctors are the universe's most competent and trusted;
those who have received the Suk Imperial Conditioningbear a diamond tattoo on their foreheads,
wear their hair in a special silver ring, and are incapable of inicting harm. However, the fallibility of
Suk training is proven in Dune (1965) when Baron
Vladimir Harkonnen and his twisted Mentat Piter
De Vries manage to subvert this conditioning and
coerce Suk Dr. Wellington Yueh into helping him
in his attempt to destroy House Atreides.* [4]
Suspensor Any of a number of 'hovering' devices
which utilize thesecondary (low-drain) phase of a
Holtzman eld generatorto nullify gravitywithin
certain limits prescribed by relative mass and energy consumption.* [3] In Dune, the obese Baron
Harkonnen uses suspensors to support his massive
weight.* [4] Hunter-seekers also use suspensor elds
for propulsion, which make them slippery and hard
to grasp.* [4]

3.20 T
T-Probe Device used to capture the thoughts of
a person (living or dead) for analysis. Shere only
prevents the T-Probe from recovering memories directly (as it does for the Ixian Probe) and does not
impede any of the other features. The model created
by the operation of this probe can be interrogated to
give an idea of how the person would have reacted to
a set of stimuli, possibly giving insight into a shereloaded prisoner.* [8]
Tachyon net (or tachyon web) Technology (involving faster-than-light tachyon particles) used by

Thumper Short stake with a spring-driven

clapper at one end, placed in the sand to 'call'
sandworms, who are attracted to vibration and
sound.* [3]
Titans Ancient dictators whose brains were transplanted into fearsome, weaponized machine bodies
to achieve immortality.* [11]

Truthsayer Bene Gesserit Reverend Motherqualied to enter truthtrance and detect insincerity or
falsehood.* [3]

3.21 U
Umma One of the brotherhood of prophets; a
term of scorn in the Imperium, meaning any 'wild'
person given to fanatical prediction.* [3]
Usul Fremen word, meaningThe base of the pillar.* [3] This is the secret sietch name(known
only to his tribe) given to Paul Atreides upon his
joining the Fremen.

3.22 V
Verite Will-destroying narcotic from Ecaz that
renders a person incapable of falsehood.* [3]
Voice Training that allows the Bene Gesserit to
control others merely by selected tone shadings of
the voice.* [3]

3.23 W
War of Assassins Regulated form of warfare between noble houses, intended to reduce involvement of innocent bystanders.The rules require
formal declarations of intent and restrict permissible weapons.* [3]

3.27. SEE ALSO

Water of Life Toxic liquid exhalation of a drowning sandworm, used by Fremen Reverend Mothers
in the spice agony.* [3]

31

[8] Herbert, Frank (1984). Heretics of Dune.

[9] Herbert, Frank (1969). Dune Messiah.
[10] Herbert, Frank (1965). Dune, Terminology of the Im-

Weirding way Fremen term for Bene Gesserit abilperium (Jihad, Butlerian).
ities, in particular the specialized martial art component of prana-bindu.* [4]
[11] Herbert, Brian and Anderson, Kevin J. (2002-2004).
Legends of Dune.

Whale fur Valuable commodity noted to be the

original source of House Harkonnen's wealth.* [18] [12] Audio excerpts from a reading of Dune by Frank Herbert. Usul.net. Retrieved October 6, 2010.
Princess Irulan is described wearing whale fur multiple times, including during her meeting with her fel- [13] Herbert, Frank (1965). Afterword: by Brian Herbert
low conspirators in Dune Messiah.* [5] The Prelude
(2005)". Dune, 40th Anniversary Edition (Dune Chronito Dune prequel series establishes it to be the fur of
cles: Book 1). Ace Books, NY. pp. 523525. ISBN 0the Bjondax whales of Lankiveil, a planet controlled
441-01359-7.
by the Harkonnens.* [5]
Windowplaz (or simply plaz) Synthetic glass,
used for windows (especially in aircraft and spaceships) due to its superior strength.* [5]

[14] Herbert, Frank (1965). Dune, Terminology of the Imperium (Ecaz).

[15] Herbert, Frank (1976). Children of Dune.

[16] Herbert, Brian and Anderson, Kevin J. (2006) Hunters of

Windtrap Type of air wellplaced in the path of

Dune.
a prevailing wind and capable of precipitating moisture from the air caught within it, usually by a sharp [17] Herbert, Frank (1965). Dune, Terminology of the Imperium (Snooper, Poison).
and distinct drop in temperature within the trap.
*
[3]

3.24 Y
Yali A Fremen's personal quarters within the
sietch.* [3]

[18] Herbert, Frank (1965). Appendix IV: The Almanak

en-Ashraf (Selected Excerpts of the Noble Houses):
VLADIMIR HARKONNEN. Dune.

3.27 See also

Technology of the Dune universe

3.25 Z
Zensunni Ancient religious sect, ancestors of the
Fremen.* [4] (See also Zen Buddhism and Sunni Islam.)

3.26 References
[1] Csicsery-Ronay, Jr., Istvan (November 28, 2008). The
Seven Beauties of Science Fiction. Wesleyan. ISBN
0819568899.
[2] Bahayeldin, Khalid (January 22, 2004). Arabic and Islamic themes in Frank Herbert's Dune". Baheyeldin.com.
Retrieved July 21, 2009.
[3] Herbert, Frank (1965). Terminology of the Imperium
. Dune.
[4] Herbert, Frank (1965). Dune.
[5] Herbert, Brian and Anderson, Kevin J. (1999-2001).
Prelude to Dune.
[6] Herbert, Frank (1985). Chapterhouse: Dune.
[7] Herbert, Frank (1981). God Emperor of Dune.

Chapter 4

Bene Gesserit
For a comprehensive roster, see List of Dune Bene 4.1.1 Original Dune series
Gesserit.
In Frank Herbert's 1965 novel Dune, the Bene Gesserit
The Bene Gesserit (/bni dsrt/ BEN-ee-JESS-r- are a secretive matriarchal order who have achieved
it)* [1] are a key social, religious, and political force in somewhat superhuman abilities through physical and
Frank Herbert's ctional Dune universe. The group is de- mental conditioning and the use of the drug melange. Unscribed as an exclusive sisterhood whose members train der the guise of humbly servingthe Empire, the Sistheir bodies and minds through years of physical and terhood is in fact a major power in the universe, using its
mental conditioning to obtain superhuman powers and many areas of inuence to subtly guide humanity along
abilities that can seem magical to outsiders. Acolytes the path of its own plan for humanity's future. Herbert
who have acquired the breadth of Bene Gesserit abilities notes that over 10,000 years before the events of Dune, in
are called Reverend Mothers within the organization's the chaotic time after the Butlerian Jihad and before the
ranks.* [2] Some of these ctional powers are analyzed unveiling of the Orange Catholic Bible, the Bene Gesserit
and deconstructed from a real-world scientic perspec- consolidated their hold upon the sorceresses, explored
tive in the book The Science of Dune (2008).* [3]* [4]* [5] the subtle narcotics, developed prana-bindu training and
conceived the Missionaria Protectiva, that black arm of
Sometimes calledwitchesdue to their secretive nature superstition. But it is also the period that saw the comand misunderstood powers, the Bene Gesserit are loyal posing of the litany against fear and the assembly of the
only to themselves. However, to attain their goals and Azhar Book, that bibliographic marvel that preserves the
avoid outside interference, they often screen themselves great secrets of the most ancient faiths.* [7]
with the illusion of being loyal to other groups or individuals. Their every move is calculated toward a result. Millennia later in Dune, the Bene Gesserit base of power
As the skills of a Bene Gesserit are as desirable as an al- is the Mother School on the planet Wallach IX, whose
liance with the Sisterhood itself, they are able to charge a graduates are t mates for Emperors, and whose specially
fee to school the women from Great Houses, and install trained Truthsayers can detect falsehood. But beyond the
some of their initiates as wives and concubines to their outer virtues of poise, self-control, and diplomacy, Bene
advantage.* [2]* [6] In 1965's Dune, the Princess Irulan is Gesserit training includes superior combat skills and precise physiological control that grants them direct control
quoted (via epigraph):
over conception and embryotic sex determination, ageing,
and even the ability to render poisons harmless within
The Reverend Mother must combine
their bodies. The Bene Gesserit power of Voice allows
the seductive wiles of a courtesan with the
them to control others by merely modulating their vocal
untouchable majesty of a virgin goddess,
tones. Sisters who survive a ritualized poisoning known
holding these attributes in tension so long as
as the spice agony achieve increased awareness and abilthe powers of her youth endure. For when
ities through access to Other Memory, and are subseyouth and beauty have gone, she will nd
quently known as Reverend Mothers. Every member of
that the place-between, once occupied by
the Bene Gesserit is conditioned into singular loyalty to
tension, has become a wellspring of cunning
the order and its goals with allegiances to even family beand resourcefulness.
ing secondary, and no goal is more paramount than the
from Muad'Dib, Family Commentaries by
Sisterhood's large-scale breeding program. It aims to crethe Princess Irulan
ate a superbeing that can tap into abilities even the Bene
Gesserit cannot, a being whom they can use in order to
gain more direct control over the universe. To this end,
the Bene Gesserit have subtly manipulated bloodlines for
generations, using breeding sisters tocollectthe genes
4.1 Plotlines
they require.
32

4.1. PLOTLINES

33

a bold plan to release humanity from the oracular hold of

Leto II by goading the Honored Matres into destroying
Rakis. Meanwhile, the Bene Gesserit have terraformed
Chapterhouse into a desert planet like Rakis, and bring
a single sandworm there to begin a new spice cycle. In
Chapterhouse: Dune (1985), the Honored Matres begin to destroy all of the Bene Gesserit-controlled planets
and enslave the populaces of the other planets they conquer. The Matres themselves are being hunted by a far
more powerful force from out in the Scattering. The new
Mother Superior Darwi Odrade recognizes that the threat
of this unknown enemy is greater than that of the Honored Matres, and forms another bold plan. The captive
Honored Matre Murbella, who has been assimilated into
Reverend Mother Mohiam (Zuzana Geislerov) and other Bene the Bene Gesserit and gained the full powers of a RevGesserit, from the Dune miniseries (2000)
erend Mother, defeats the leader of the Honored Matres
in combat and thus becomes Great Honored Matre. She
immediately succeeds Odrade as Mother Superior of the
The Bene Gesserit super-being whom they call the Bene Gesserit, joining the two forces under a single leader
Kwisatz Haderach arrives a generation earlier than ex- in an uneasy truce that is hoped will be able to defeat the
pected in the form of Paul Atreides, who is free from unknown enemy.
their direct control though his mother is the Bene Gesserit
Lady Jessica. In Dune, Paul seizes control of the harsh
desert planet Arrakis, the only source of the all-important 4.1.2 Sequels
spice melange; by threatening to destroy all spice production, he maneuvers himself into the Imperial throne. In Hunters of Dune, the 2006 continuation of the seWith Paul holding a tight monopoly on melange, a decade ries by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, Murbella
later the Bene Gesserit participate in a conspiracy to top- adopts the new title of Mother Commander and struggles
ple his rule in Dune Messiah (1969). Even after a blinded to bring the opposing factions of her New Sisterhood toPaul walks into the desert to die, his sister Alia rules his
gether. Among the Bene Gesserit, some are willing to
empire and keeps the Bene Gesserit at bay until Paul's accept the merger with the Honored Matres, while othyoung son Leto II takes control himself in Children of
ers oppose allying with their enemies; a group of disDune (1976). Over 3,500 years later, Letonow a hybrid senters led by Reverend Mother Sheeana had previously
of human and sandwormstill dominates the universe as
ed Chapterhouse aboard a no-ship upon Murbella's asthe tyrant God Emperor in God Emperor of Dune (1981). cension to leadership. Within the Honored Matres,
Through prescience, he has foreseen humanity's possible
many admire Murbella's strength and abilities and dedestruction, and has forced humanity into what he calls sire Bene Gesserit training, but resist assimilation. Adthe Golden Path, a plan which he believes will assure ditionally, a number of Honored Matres refuse to actheir survival. Having halted all spice production and thus knowledge Murbella as their leader; the largest such rebel
making his own stockpile the only source of melange left group is led by Matre Superior Hellica on Tleilax. As
in the universe, Leto is able to maintain rm control over Murbella amasses weaponry for the coming battle with
the various factions and eects a forced tranquility. the unknown enemy, she trains an elite force of comHe has taken the Bene Gesserit breeding program from mando troops with the combined battle talents of Bene
them and uses it for his own mysterious purposes, and Gesserit, Honored Matres, and even the Swordmasters of
their limited spice supply is subject to their obedience to Ginaz. These Valkyriesare able to eect Hellica's
Leto, and his prescient vision. Recognizing that his work defeat, galvanizing many dissenters into nally joining
is nally done, Leto allows himself to be assassinated.
Murbella's cause against the unknown enemy, now reFifteen hundred years later in Heretics of Dune (1984),
the Bene Gesserit have regained their power and relocated to a hidden homeworld they call Chapterhouse,
and the spice cycle has been renewed on Arrakis, now
called Rakis. New opposition arrives in the form of a violent matriarchal order calling themselves the Honored
Matres, a ruthless and brutal force who seek domination over the Old Empire and who do not use or rely
on melange for their powers. As the Matres all but exterminate the Tleilaxu race and next target the Sisterhood, Bene Gesserit Mother Superior Taraza implements

vealed to be the resurrected thinking machines thought

destroyed 15,000 years before. In the 2007 sequel,
Sandworms of Dune, the thinking machines have unleashed decimating viruses on planet after planet, while
Face Dancers inltrate human civilization in their own
insidious plot to take over the universe. The New Sisterhood's eet of warships succumbs to Face Dancer sabotage, but is saved from thinking machine attack by a host
of Guild Navigators in heighliners, brought together by
the Oracle of Time, Norma Cenva. Thinking machine
leader Omnius is wiped out of existence by the Oracle,

34

CHAPTER 4. BENE GESSERIT

and the Face Dancer threat eliminated. As Murbella joins

Duncan Idaho in his plan to rule a universe in which humanity and thinking machines co-exist, Sheeana introduces sandworms to the former thinking machine planet
Synchrony, where she will found an orthodox Sisterhood.

4.1.3

Legends of Dune

In the Legends of Dune prequel trilogy (20022004) by

Brian Herbert and Anderson it is revealed that the Sorceresses of Rossak, who possess destructive telekinetic
powers existing only in women and have a breeding plan
to create more powerful telepaths, had been the predecessors of the Bene Gesserit. As a Sorceress is always killed
when she unleashes her full power, they sacrice themselves to destroy some of the Titans and Neo-Cymeks
during the Butlerian Jihad, over 10,000 years before the
events in Dune. Later, they expand their genetic program to preserve human bloodlines when humanity is endangered by a widespread plague called the Demon
Scourge,genetically engineered and unleashed by the
thinking machines. Raquella Berto-Anirul becomes their
leader after surviving a poisoning attempt by being the
rst to internally render the toxin harmless. The ordeal
also makes Raquella the rst to access Other Memory
and use the power of Voice; she later establishes the Bene
Gesserit, instituting a similar ritualized poisoning to unlock the same abilities in others.

4.1.4

Great Schools of Dune

In Sisterhood of Dune (2012), 80 years have passed since

the end of the Butlerian Jihad, and an aging Raquella remains the only Sister to have survived the Agony. Ambitious young Valya Harkonnen has hopes of using her Bene
Gesserit training to complete her family's vendetta against
Vorian Atreides and his entire bloodline. Valya is one
the Sisters trusted with the records of Raquella's breeding program, which are maintained by a secret cache
of forbidden computers, concealed in a cave outside the
Sisterhood School on Rossak. Raquella's granddaughter
Dorotea undergoes the Agony and becomes a Reverend
Mother, discovering the truth about her parentage and the
existence of computers. As a devout anti-technology Butlerian, she assists Emperor Salvador Corrino in his raid on
the Rossak school. Salvador has several dozen Sisters executed and disbands the Sisterhood, except for Dorotea's
Orthodox followers, who return to the Imperial capital on
Salusa Secundus to serve as court Truthsayers.
Raquella has reestablished her school on Wallach IX in
Mentats of Dune (2014), thanks to the help of industrialist
Josef Venport. Valya, now a Reverend Mother, retrieves
the hidden computers from Rossak and hopes to succeed
the declining Raquella as Mother Superior. Raquella believes that the only hope for the Sisterhood to survive is
for the Wallach IX sisters to reconcile with Dorotea's fac-

tion on Salusa Secundus; her health failing, she summons

Dorotea to the School and forces Dorotea and Valya to put
their dierences aside and agree to work together for the
good of the Sisterhood. Naming them co-leaders, Raquella dies; Valya however, still bitter about Dorotea's betrayal, uses her newly discovered power of Voice to force
Dorotea to commit suicide. Valya declares herself to be
the sole Mother Superior, and ingratiates herself to the
new Emperor, Roderick Corrino.

4.2 Goals, strategies, and ritual

4.2.1 Breeding program
The ultimate goal of the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood, up
to the end of the novel Dune, is the creation of a male
Bene Gesserit they call the Kwisatz Haderach (/kwsts
hdrk/* [8]). They intend to achieve this superbeing
through a massive human breeding program, which they
have conducted for countless generations; using careful manipulations of relationships and breeding sisters to
collectkey genes, the Bene Gesserit have controlled and
nessed bloodlines through the ages. Also called the
one who can be two places simultaneouslyor the one
who can be many places at once,the Kwisatz Haderach
(dened by Herbert as The Shortening of the Way),
with supreme prescience and access to both male and female lines in Other Memory, will be an overt gure in the
Bene Gesserit's manipulations, thrust upon the universe
as a messiah.* [9]
In Dune, the Bene Gesserit breeding scheme is, in theory,
to have come to full fruition from the union of an Atreides
daughter (planned to be born of the Bene Gesserit Lady
Jessica and the Duke Leto Atreides) and Feyd-Rautha
Harkonnen, nephew of the Baron Vladimir Harkonnen
(himself secretly the natural father of the Lady Jessica).
This plan is disrupted when Jessica chooses to conceive
an Atreides son rather than the daughter she had been ordered to produce. This son, Paul Atreides, later proves
to be the Kwisatz Haderach, born a generation early. Political intrigue results in Paul's rise to power as Emperor
of the Known Universe, secured by his stranglehold on
the melange supply. A decade later in Dune Messiah, the
Bene Gesserit are frustrated to be at the mercy of their
own creation, but a conspiracy to remove Paul from power
fails. He realizes, however, that while prescience grants
control, that control paradoxically traps the prescient in
a foreseen future that they can not change. Despising the
religion that has risen up around him and seeing where
it will lead, Paul walks into the desert seeking death in
hopes that he can change the course of the future. Paul's
son Leto II is also a Kwisatz Haderach; seeing the same
future, Leto decides to do what his father could not. He
takes control of both the empire and the Bene Gesserit
breeding program in Children of Dune, and begins his
own transformation into a human-sandworm hybrid to

4.2. GOALS, STRATEGIES, AND RITUAL

give himself the time he needs for his Golden Path to be
fully realized. Thirty-ve hundred years later, his breeding plan produces Siona Atreides, the rst in a line of humans who are able to disappear from prescient sight, and
Leto allows himself to be assassinated. After 1,500 more
years (as chronicled in Heretics of Dune and Chapterhouse
Dune), the Bene Gesserit have restored their breeding
program. However, they are too terried of the consequences of producing another Kwisatz Haderach, so instead breed for special individuals of great talent and usefulness in order to amplify certain human characteristics
and preserve them. Now aware of Leto's Golden Path,
the Bene Gesserit widen their goals of advancing humanity and saving it from extinction.

35
of Hidden Rank,and Herbert notes that every one of
their ve daughters are Bene Gesserit-trained.* [10]* [11]
In fact, Shaddam is kept without a male heir on specic
orders from the Sisterhood, and is bound by an agreement
that only a daughter will ascend his throne.* [12]* [13] The
Bene Gesserit had also placed their acolyte Jessica (herself the product of a secret Bene Gesserit liaison with the
Baron Harkonnen) as the concubine to Duke Leto Atreides, and married the Bene Gesserit Margot to Shaddam's
close friend and minion Count Fenring.* [2] After Shaddam's eldest daughter Princess Irulan is forced into marriage to Paul to secure his claim to the Imperial throne, in
Children of Dune Irulan's loyalty to the Sisterhood gives
them false hope that she can help them topple Paul, or at
least control his ospring. Later in God Emperor of Dune,
Herbert establishes that despite Leto's many restrictions
on them, the Bene Gesserit still train young noblewomen
for a price.* [6] In fact, when Leto meets Hwi Noree, the
Ixian ambassador obviously bred and trained to charm
him, he realizesthat part of her education had been conducted by the Bene Gesserit. She had their way of controlling her responses, of sensing the undertones in a conversation. He could see, however, that the Bene Gesserit
overlay had been a delicate thing, never penetrating the
basic sweetness of her nature.* [14]

The behind-the-scenes intrigues of the breeding program

are illuminated in the Prelude to Dune prequel trilogy
(19992001) as the program nears fruition in the time immediately prior to the novel Dune. The origins of the program are explored in the Legends of Dune prequel series.
Over 10,000 years before the events of Dune, the Sorceresses of Rossak had started keeping detailed breeding
records circa 400 B.G., trying to improve the potency and
prevalence of their telekinetic powers. In 108 B.G., the
Sorceresses begin collecting genetic samples of various
human bloodlines, which were in jeopardy from a catastrophic virus genetically engineered and unleashed by the
thinking machines.
4.2.3 Missionaria Protectiva
In Sandworms of Dune (2007), written by Brian Herbert
With the Lady Jessica and Arrakis, the
and Kevin J. Anderson, Duncan Idaho is revealed to be
Bene Gesserit system of sowing implantthe nal Kwisatz Haderach destined to bring together hulegends through the Missionaria Protectiva
mans and thinking machines. While he is not a product
came to its full fruition. The wisdom of
of a breeding program, his multiple rebirths and deaths
seeding the known universe with a prophecy
as a ghola throughout the series had given him the opporpattern for the protection of B.G. personnel
tunity to gain experience and develop himself as no other
has long been appreciated, but never have
human could.
we seen a condition-ut-extremis with more
ideal mating of person and preparation. The
prophetic legends had taken on Arrakis even
4.2.2 Avoiding direct power
to the extent of adopted labels (including
Reverend Mother, canto and respondu, and
The Bene Gesserit choose to use indirect methodologies
most of the Shari-a panoplia propheticus).
to further their goals, rather than wield overt power themAnd it is generally accepted now that the
selves. They have noted the Taoist principle that whatLady Jessica's latent abilities were grossly
ever rises must fall; and so rather than taking direct conunderestimated.
trol of the human race, they instead manipulate the social
from Analysis: The Arrakeen Crisis by the
and political order with subtlety and insinuation, often usPrincess Irulan [Private circulation: B.G. le
ing extraordinarily long-term stratagems spanning genernumber AR-81088587]* [2]
ations. The Bene Gesserit avoid appearing too rich or
powerful, or revealing the extent of their powers, to prevent being seen as overtly responsible for the rise and fall The Bene Gesserit practice religious engineering
of governments and empires, and to avoid any organized through a faction called the Missionaria Protectiva, which
backlash. To this end, the Bene Gesserit provide some of spreads infectious superstitions on primitive worlds,
their trained initiates as wives and concubines, and will thus opening those regions to exploitation by the Bene
train the daughters of noble families for a fee.* [2]* [6]
Gesserit.* [15] Collectively known as Panoplia ProphetIn Dune, Padishah Emperor of the known universe
Shaddam IV keeps the wise but calculating Bene Gesserit
Truthsayer Mohiam by his side at all times. The Emperor's deceased wife, Anirul, had been aBene Gesserit

ica, these myths, prophecies, and superstitions provide

the opportunity for a Bene Gesserit to later cast herself
as a guide, protector, or some other gure in fulllment
of a prophecy in order to manipulate the religious sub-

36

CHAPTER 4. BENE GESSERIT

jects for protection or other purposes. These myths also

exploit religion as a powerful force in human society; by
controlling the particulars of religion, the Bene Gesserit
have a manipulative lever on society in general. The Bene
Gesserit also employ the Missionaria Protectiva to prepare the Empire for its Kwisatz Haderach.
In Dune, Jessica and Paul take refuge among the Fremen
after the attack on House Atreides. With his mother's
guidance, Paul is able to make use of the planted myths by
claiming to be the "Mahdi", a messianic gure from legendary material planted among the Fremen by the Missionaria Protectiva. That the Mahdi legend has been
planted on Dune indicates to Jessica that conditions on
Dune are truly awful, since this legend is reserved for
only the harshest environments where a Bene Gesserit
would need the maximum advantage over surrounding inuences. Paul's meteoric rise to power is greatly facilitated by his association with the Mahdi legend. Later in
Heretics of Dune, the Bene Gesserit plan to use Reverend
Mother Sheeana's ability to control the great sandworms
to build her into a religious gure around whom they can
fashion a mass devoted following, uniting many factions
in the universe under the Bene Gesserit and against the
forces of the Scattering.

In Dune, Jessica endures the agony while pregnant with

her daughter, Alia. This has a profound eect on the
unborn Alia, who is consequently born a full Reverend
Mother with the complete Other Memory of both her
female and male ancestors. The Bene Gesserit refer to
children born this way as "Abominations.Without the
benet of a fully formed adult ego of her own, Alia is
susceptible to the inuence of her ancestral memories.
This ultimately leads to her downfall, as she is eventually
possessed by the persona of her evil grandfather Baron
Vladimir Harkonnen, whom she herself had murdered as
a child in the events of Dune.
The origin of the ritual is explained in the prequel novel
Dune: The Battle of Corrin (2004) when Raquella BertoAnirul is poisoned by Rossak Sorceress Ticia Cenva with
the Rossak Drug. Raquella manages to internally convert
the poison into a harmless substance and is thus the rst
to experience the awakening of Other Memory. Raquella
later establishes the Bene Gesserit, presumably perfecting
the technique and training others to survive the ordeal.

4.3 Powers
4.3.1 Other Memory

4.2.4

Spice agony

One of the 'powers' of a Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother

is her Other Memory: the combined ego and memories
of all her female ancestors, passed on through genetic
memory, and thus, up to the point where each following ancestor was born and the physical contact with the
mother broken. The ego/memory combination remains a
distinct identity within the Reverend Mother's mind, and
is able to inject itself into her awareness at appropriate or
emotional moments, though the Reverend Mother's ego
is always dominant. The prequel novel Dune: The Battle
of Corrin by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson establishes that the rst Bene Gesserit to access Other Memory
had been Raquella Berto-Anirul, the founder of the order.

The spice agony is an ordeal in which an acolyte of the

Bene Gesserit takes a poisonous awareness spectrum
narcotic and, by internally changing the substance and
neutralizing its toxicity, gains access to Other Memory,
the combined ego and memories of all her female ancestors. In Dune, Lady Jessica notes that the ritual originated with thediscovery of the poison drug on Rossak";
the Sisterhood had used some form or descendant of this
drug until the discovery of the so-called Water of Life
on Arrakis. The Water of Life is produced by drowning a little maker(small sandworm) in water, making
it give up its bile (which in itself is a concentrated form
of melange). In the Fremen version of the rite, after the A Reverend Mother has access only to her female linordeal the Reverend Mother also provides the changed eage in Other Memory; her male line is unavailable to her,
water for the sietch orgy.
present as a dark void that terries her. Until the time of
An acolyte unable to eect this change dies. Only women God Emperor of Dune, the purpose of the Bene Gesserit
have ever survived the agony, but through their breeding breeding scheme is to breed a Kwisatz Haderach, a male
program the Bene Gesserit seek the male Kwisatz Hader- with Other Memory who can see both lines, male and feach who will be able to change an illuminating poison. male. Male memory will be complete until moment of
The Bene Gesserit try over many generations through conception, when physical contact with the father is lost.
selective breeding to produce such a being. A Kwisatz
Haderach is given abilities dierent from those of a Reverend Mother. During the spice agony, there are two areas of the soul that the acolyte may visit the part that
gives, and the part that takes; a Reverend Mother cannot
access the memories of her male ancestors, and is terried by the psychic space within her that the masculine
memories inhabit. Until Paul Atreides, all men who had
attempted the spice agony had died.

Reverend Mothers may also pass their own ego/memory

combination to other Reverend Mothers at will, merely
by touching foreheads. When a Reverend Mother dies
in the presence of another Reverend Mother, the second
will accept the ego/memory of the rst to prevent the loss
of the dying Reverend Mother's experience and ancestral memories. Especially when the Mother Superior perishes, it is important to take her ego/memory so that her
plans and strategies may continue uninterrupted. This is

4.3. POWERS

37

rst explored in Dune, when Jessica accepts the life experience of the dying Fremen Reverend Mother Ramallo.
In Chapterhouse Dune, Darwi Odrade is Mother Superior, a contentious choice ratied by the fact that she was
present at the previous Mother Superior's death, and has
her in Other Memory; she represents the most continuous line of leadership. Under extreme conditions, a large
community of Bene Gesserit will practice Extremis Progressiva, a mass sharing of ego/memories with each other
to spread all the ego/memories amongst everyone; thus,
if one survives, they all survive. In Chapterhouse Dune,
the Bene Gesserit school on Lampadas, under attack by
the Honoured Matres, undertakes Extremis Progressiva;
Lucilla escapes with theLampadas Horde, hoping to
return to the Bene Gesserit with them.

siah, Paul trains some guards to resist the Voice so that

he may imprison Bene Gesserit. By the time of Children
of Dune, Gurney Halleck has also been trained by Jessica
to resist the Voice completely.

4.3.2

4.3.3 Acute observation and Truthsay

The Voice

Bene Gesserit are trained in what they call the Voice

a means to control others merely by selected tone
shadings of the voice.* [16] By modulating the subtleties
of her voice, a Bene Gesserit can issue commands on a
subconscious level, compelling obedience in others that
they cannot resist, whether they are consciously aware of
the attempt or not. This control can be as subtle as inuencing thoughts and motivations, or as strong as forcing
physical actions and even temporary paralysis in the subject. To eect this, the Bene Gesserit must register
the intended target by analyzing his or her personality and
vocal patterns through observation or seemingly innocuous direct questions.* [17]* [18] Training in the Voice is
independent of the Reverend Mother ritual, so individuals outside the order may even be instructed in its use.
Prior to Dune, Jessica has begun teaching it to Paul; after the Reverend Mother Mohiam tests him in the novel,
she urges Jessica to ignore the regular order of training. His own safety requires the Voice. He already has
a good start in it, but we both know how much more he
needs ... and that desperately.* [2] Jessica herself later
notes of Paul's novice attempt: The tone, the timbre
excellent imperative, very sharp. A slightly lower pitch
would have been better, but it could still fall within this
man's spectrum.* [2] The Voice may also be subtly employed in any manner of conversation, public speaking, or
debate to help soothe, convince, persuade, inuence, or
otherwise enhance the eect of the words being spoken.
The Voice is useless against targets who cannot hear the
speaker; both Baron Harkonnen in Dune and House Corrino in Children of Dune employ deaf people to guard
Jessica, knowing that she cannot control them via the
Voice.* [2] Being a manipulation of the target's subconscious mind, the Voice is of limited utility against an extremely disciplined mind, such as a Reverend Mother or
a strong Mentat; if the target understands what the Voice
is and how it works, and is aware that it is being used, he
may resist it. One trained in the use of the Voice may
easily detect its use by others, even subtly. In Dune Mes-

In Heretics of Dune Reverend Mother Odrade explains to

Sheeana that planetary populations exposed to long term
Voice control learn ways to adapt to it, and can no longer
be manipulated. This is why the Honored Matres have
been driven back into the Old Empire; over-controlling,
they have built up both resistance and rebellion, and are
now on the run from their former subjects.
The prequel Dune: The Battle of Corrin establishes that
the rst Bene Gesserit to use the Voice is Raquella BertoAnirul, the founder of the order.

Bene Gesserit are trained in the minutiae of observation, noticing details that the common person would
miss in the people and environment around them. When
combined with their analytical abilities, this hyperawarenessmakes the Bene Gesserit capable of divining secrets and arriving at conclusions that are invisible
to everyone else. Slight dierences in air currents or the
design of a room might allow a Bene Gesserit to detect
hidden portals and spyholes; minute variations in a person's vocal inection and body language allow a Bene
Gesserit to deeply understand a person's emotional state,
and manipulate it. Knowing that any schooling impresses
a particular pattern in its students, they are able to use
these clues to predict and anticipate actions. Despite efforts of concealment, the Bene Gesserit can easily determine a subject's origins and root language by analyzing
their speech patterns, cadence, and pacing, as Jessica does
when she realizes that a visiting Spacing Guild banker is
a Harkonnen agent.* [2]
Bene Gesserit specically trained as Truthsayers are
able to determine whether someone is lying by analyzing
their speech, body language, and physical signs like pulse
and heart rate. In principle all humans have such perception, but extensive training is required to develop this
latent talent to the point of great usefulness. Truthsayers
are used widely in politics and trade; the Padishah Emperors are never without one. Combined with the Voice,
Truthsay is also useful for interrogation and torture.

4.3.4 Simulow
Bene Gesserit also have the ability to practice simulow,
literally the simultaneous ow of several threads of consciousness at any given time; mental multitasking, as it
were. The combination of simulow with their analytical
abilities and Other Memory are responsible for the frightening intelligence of the average Bene Gesserit, though
this ability is less powerful than the analytical abilities of

38

CHAPTER 4. BENE GESSERIT

a Mentat. This simulow can also be held with Other der it harmless. It is hinted that should a Bene Gesserit
Memory; Reverend Mother Darwi Odrade practiced both wish to, she could slow her aging process dramatically,
forms in Heretics of Dune.
controlling every aspect of her metabolism. Of course,
no Bene Gesserit would ever do this, as it would call too
much attention to the Sisterhood and reveal too much of
4.3.5 Prana-bindu training and the weird- their abilities.* [19] In Children of Dune, Jessica realizes
ing way
that her daughter Alia has done this, which is her rst sign
that her daughter is sinking into Abomination.
The Bene Gesserit develop their physical abilities as well
One of the most signicant biological abilities of the Bene
as their mental abilities. A trained Sister has full control
Gesserit is their control of their own menstrual cycles, and
over each muscle in her body through training known as
their ability to control (at conception) their child's sex.
prana-bindu. This allows her to bend the last joint in her
Jessica was ordered to bear only daughters to the Atreides,
little toe while remaining otherwise motionless, bend and
but deed her Bene Gesserit sisters (out of her love for the
contort her body in ways that most would consider imDuke) and had a son, Paul Atreides. The Bene Gesserit
possible, or put a remarkable amount of force behind a
conspired against the Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV's
physical blow. The mental part of prana-bindu, or pranadesire to have a male heir and instructed his Bene Gesserit
nervature (prana stands for breath, bindu stands for muswife to give him only daughters, such as Princess Irulan.
culature) is the precise control of the totality of nerves
in the human body. In Dune, Reverend Mother Mohiam
tests Paul with a nerve induction device (the box) that
causes the sensation of intense pain. Paul learns that he 4.3.7 Sexual talents
is not the only one to have tried it, but is perhaps specially resistant; this conversation points to a widespread The Bene Gesserit are notable for their extensive skill
use of it as a tool among the Bene Gesserit to measure in seduction, sex and sexual imprinting. The most talself control, nerve control, and as Mohiam puts it, crisis ented and most highly trained are known as Imprinters.
Men in a position of power or future power, or those
and observation.
with specic qualities that the order wishes to incorpoUnarmed attacks are part of a specialized Bene Gesserit rate into their breeding program, are typical targets of a
martial art which incorporates the prana-bindu methods Bene Gesserit imprinter. Men seduced by an imprinter
of optimized muscle control. These enable one to deliver are permanently aected (imprinted) by the intense sexpowerful blows and to move with extreme precision and ual experience and are thereafter consciously or subconspeed. The basic principle behind it is that, as Farad'n of sciously favorable to the Sisterhood. An imprinter can be
House Corrino says, My mind aects my reality.A successfully resisted if the subject has been psychologipractitioner of the art has to know that the action he or she cally pre-conditioned to do so, and the subject's automatic
wantsto perform has already been performed. For ex- defensive response may even be entirely subconscious.
ample, to imagine oneself behind an opponent at the current moment in time; when trained well, this knowledge In Dune, Lady Fenring is instructed by the Bene Gesserit
to seduce Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen in order topreserve
will place you at the spot desired.
the bloodlineby retrieving his genetic material through
The Fremen refer to this ghting ability as the "weirding conception. She also intends to plant deep in his deepway"; in Dune, the Fremen use the wordweirdingin- est self the necessary prana-bindu phrases to bend him,
stead of Bene Gesserit, calling Jessica a weirding which she later refers to as the Hypno-ligation of that
womanand noting he has the weirding voicewhen Feyd-Rautha's psyche.When Paul later ghts Feyd to
Paul wields this power.
the death, Jessica advises her son to temporarily stun him
using the word-sound Uroshnor, typically implanted in
a dangerous person who has been prepared by the Bene
4.3.6 Internal organic-chemical control
Gesserit. Paul, however, refuses to use this advantage.
Just as the prana-bindu allows the Bene Gesserit to precisely control each muscle and nerve, they also have complete conscious control over the functions of their internal
organs and body chemistry. A Sister can completely control her breathing and heart rate to the degree that she
can appear dead to most tests even after intense physical
exertion. They can control their need for food and water
to the extremes of hunger and thirst, and even commit
suicide at will by simply stopping their hearts or shutting
down their brains. The Bene Gesserit are therefore immune to poisons, as they can simply change the chemical
makeup of any harmful substance in their body and ren-

In Heretics of Dune, Reverend Mother and Imprinter

Lucilla is charged with the seduction-imprinting of the
Duncan Idaho ghola so that the Sisterhood may assert
some control over him; he ultimately avoids her. Lucilla
also mentions the hundreds of sexual positions and variations she knows. In Heretics, the Honored Matres have
themselves rened this ability to such an intense level
that the targeted male becomes completely enslaved. The
captured Honored Matre Murbella attempts this on Duncan; his own imprinting ability, secretly conditioned into
him by his Tleilaxu creators, suddenly manifests itself.
Murbella and Duncan basically imprint each other, nei-

4.5. LITANY AGAINST FEAR

39

ther having complete control over the other. In Chap- ther, the Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, who wants nothing
terhouse Dune the order has learned the Honored Matre more than the destruction of the Atreides, and is given
method from Murbella and use it for their own purposes, another opportunity, from the inside, to realize it.
specically to awaken the memories within the Miles Teg
ghola.
It is with reason and terrible experience
that we call the pre-born Abomination. For
who knows what lost and damned persona out
of our evil past may take over the living esh?"
4.4 Weaknesses
Leto II quoting from the Azhar Book, Children of Dune (1976)

4.4.1

Addiction to melange

Reverend Mothers are dependent on melange to give

them their abilities. Any person who consumes melange
regularly becomes addicted to it and requires it for survival; however, one who has gone through the agony has
a far greater need. Though the eects of melange are
highly favorable, including vastly increased lifespan and
mental powers, withdrawal results in death. Melange is
expensive and thus is a continual drain on the Sisterhood's
wealth; the most signicant threat to the Bene Gesserit is
the potential loss of their supply. Paul Atreides and then
his son Leto II assert control over the Bene Gesserit and
keep them in check by grasping control of the planet Arrakis and the spice supply in a show of hydraulic despotism.

Paul Atreides and Chani's twins, Leto II and Ghanima,

are also pre-born, but before they become possessed, they
stumble across solutions: Leto, forced to undergo a radical spice agony, constructs an executive of benevolent
ancestral egos (such as Paul and Paul's father Leto I) who
protect him; Ghanima, as part of their plan to fake Leto's
death, consciously blocks the memory of Leto and their
plan, inadvertently developing a mental discipline capable of protecting her undeveloped ego. She also uses the
ego of her mother, Chani, as adoor guardof her other
alter egos, only peeking behind the doorwhen she
needs advice from Other Memory.

4.5 Litany against fear

The litany against fear is an incantation used by the

Bene Gesserit throughout the series to focus their minds
A Bene Gesserit who survives the ritual spice agony gains and calm themselves in times of peril. The litany is as
access to Other Memory, the combined ego and mem- follows:
ories of all her female ancestors. An adult Reverend
I must not fear.
Mother can manage the presence of these subordinate inFear
is the mind-killer.
ner voices because she has a full personality of her own
Fear
is the little-death that brings total obliterand a solid sense of self. However, if a Bene Gesserit
ation.
undergoes the agony while pregnant, the fetus will also
I will face my fear.
experience it, acquiring full consciousness and access to
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
Other Memory. Since the child has not yet developed a
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner
suciently strong ego before being exposed to her tide of
eye to see its path.
ancestors, she is more susceptible to their inuence, and
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
there is a danger that she will ultimately be overcome and
Only I will remain.* [2]
possessed by a strong ancestral ego. The Bene Gesserit
call this Abomination,and such children are killed
immediately. They are also referred to as "pre-born" in Lady Jessica teaches it to her son Paul, who uses it in
Dune when faced with Mohiam's test of his ability to
Children of Dune.
withstand excruciating pain. The litany is shortened in
In Dune, Lady Jessica is pregnant when she undergoes
David Lynch's 1984 lm.
the spice agony while among the Fremen; her resulting
daughter, Alia, is born a full Reverend Mother, the mind
of an adult in a child's body. She pretends to be a child,
but others notice that she is dierent. The Bene Gesserit 4.6 Origin of the name
are eventually outraged and horried by Alia's existence,
but she is out of their control. Mohiam says, I've said The phrase bene gesserit is Latin. It comprises the adverb
too much, but the fact remains that this child who is not bene, meaning eitherwellorproperlyand the verb
a child must be destroyed. Long were we warned against gero, gerere meaning either to governor to bear or
such a one and how to prevent such a birth, but one of our carry. The verb is in the third-person singular* [20] of
own has betrayed us.In Children of Dune, an adult Alia the future perfect active indicative tense, and translates
eventually succumbs to the ancestral ego of her grandfa- as "(She) will have conducted (herself) well. Cf. the

4.4.2

Abomination

40
phrase Quam diu se bene gesserint (literally: As long
as they will have conducted themselves properly) in the
Act of Settlement 1701. It is usually translated asfor the
duration of good behaviour, referring to the life tenure
of judges.* [21]

CHAPTER 4. BENE GESSERIT

[11] Herbert, Frank (1965). Dune. Paul has only one major
chance to ally himself with a powerful Great House,
perhaps even with the Imperial family. There are marriageable princesses, after all, and every one of them Bene
Gesserit trained.

In Dreamer of Dune, Brian Herbert's 2003 biography of [12] Herbert, Frank (1965). "In My Father's House (Epigraph,
Princess Irulan)". Dune. But we denied [Shaddam] a legal
his father, the younger Herbert speculates that the name
son ... My mother obeyed her Sister Superiors where the
Gesseritis supposed to suggest to the reader the word
Lady Jessica disobeyed.
"Jesuit" and thus evoke undertones of a religious order.
Like the Jesuits, the Bene Gesserit have been accused of [13] Herbert, Frank (1965). "In My Father's House (Epigraph,
Princess Irulan)". Dune. [Shaddam] blamed my mother
using casuistry to obtain justications for the unjustiand the compact forced on him to place a Bene Gesserit
able.* [22]* [23]
on the throne.

4.7 See also

List of Dune Bene Gesserit

4.8 References
[1] Dune: Creating the Audiobooks (Ocial promotional
video, includes images of Frank Herbert's pronunciation
notes for some terms). Macmillan Audio. December 23,
2008. Event occurs at 4:13. Retrieved January 23, 2010.
[2] Herbert, Frank (1965). Dune.
[3] Kevin Grazier, PhD (2008). The Science of Dune. Dallas,
TX: BenBella Books. ISBN 1-933771-28-3.
[4] "The Science of Dune". SmartPopBooks.com. January
2008. Retrieved September 13, 2010.
[5] Evans, Clay (March 14, 2008). Review: Exploring Frank Herbert's 'Duniverse'". DailyCamera.com
(Internet Archive). Archived from the original on March
19, 2008. Retrieved March 19, 2008.
[6] Herbert, Frank (1981). God Emperor of Dune. [New conservation measures] include ... an increase in the rates
charged for our usual services. We expect to double the
fees for the schooling of Great House females across the
next four reporting periods.

[14] Herbert, Frank (1981). God Emperor of Dune.

[15] Herbert, Frank (1965). Terminology of the Imperium:
MISSIONARIA PROTECTIVA. Dune.
[16] Herbert, Frank (1965). Terminology of the Imperium:
VOICE, THE. Dune.
[17] Herbert, Frank (1965). Dune. [Paul] had used the questions and hyperawareness to do what his mother called
'registering' the person. He had Kynes now tune of
voice, each detail of face and gesture.
[18] Herbert, Frank (1965). Dune. Jessica put all the royal arrogance at her command into her manner and voice. Reply
was urgent, but she had not heard enough of this man to be
certain she had a register on his culture and weaknesses ...
I have his voice and pattern registered now, Jessica thought.
I could control him with a word ...
[19] Herbert, Frank. Children of Dune. These words spoken so easily touched on a subject the Bene Gesserits
made almost unthinkable. Many Reverend Mothers could
choose that course ... or try it. The manipulation of internal chemistry was available to initiates of the Sisterhood.
But if one did it, sooner or later all would try it. There
could be no concealing such an accumulation of ageless
women. They knew for a certainty that this course would
lead them to destruction. Short-lived humanity would turn
upon them. No it was unthinkable.
[20] Third Person Singular person = He, She, or It.

[7] Herbert, Frank (1965). Appendix II: The Religion of

Dune. Dune.

[21] Latin Word Study Tool: Gero, Lewis & Short Latin Dictionary. Retrieved 19 December 2014.

[8] Audio excerpts from a reading of Dune by Frank Herbert. Usul.net. Retrieved October 6, 2010.

[22] Pascal, Blaise (1898) [1657]. The Provincial Letters

of Blaise Pascal. eBooks@Adelaide. M'Crie, Thomas
(trans.). London: Chatto & Windus.

[9] Herbert, Frank (1965). Terminology of the Imperium:

KWISATZ HADERACH. Dune. KWISATZ HADERACH:Shortening of the Way.This is the label applied
by the Bene Gesserit to the unknown for which they sought
a genetic solution: a male Bene Gesserit whose organic
mental powers would bridge space and time.
[10] Herbert, Frank (1965). Appendix IV: The Almanak
en-Ashraf (Selected Excerpts of the Noble Houses):
SHADDAM IV". Dune. [Shaddam] had ve daughters
(Irulan, Chalice, Wensicia, Josifa, and Rugi) and no legal
sons ... His wife, Anirul, a Bene Gesserit of Hidden Rank,
died in 10,176.

[23] Franklin, James (2001). The Science of Conjecture: Evidence and Probability Before Pascal. Baltimore: Johns
Hopkins University Press. pp. 8388.

4.9 External links

Bene Gesserit Sayings. DuneMessiah.com
(Internet Archive). Archived from the original on
July 31, 2008. Retrieved July 31, 2008.

4.10. TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

41

4.10 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

4.10.1

Text

Zen Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zen?oldid=715597282 Contributors: Eloquence, BF, Mav, MarXidad, William Avery, SimonP,
Shii, Ktsquare, Zadcat, Rs~enwiki, Olivier, Xlation, Spi~enwiki, Paul Barlow, Kwertii, Sigg3.net, Jketola, Menchi, Ixfd64, Zeno Gantner, Tabrez, TakuyaMurata, Delirium, Logotu, Skysmith, Kosebamse, Looxix~enwiki, Ahoerstemeier, Jpatokal, Pweemeeuw, Bueller
007, Usedbook, Peter Kaminski, Marteau, Whkoh, Kh7, FQuist~enwiki, Rossami, Nikai, Jiang, Thegline, Mxn, Monkey~enwiki, Dysprosia, Zenzee, Andrewman327, WhisperToMe, Wik, K1Bond007, Thirdreel, Acmuller, Topbanana, Khranus, Secretlondon, Shantavira,
Sewing, Twang, Phil Boswell, Robbot, RedWolf, Goethean, Sam Spade, Mayooranathan, Cornellier, Hidoshi, Texture, Gidonb, Blainster, Hippietrail, DHN, Gbog, Jondel, Sunray, Hadal, UtherSRG, Mandel, Davidcannon, Arun, Exploding Boy, Gwalla, Nat Krause,
Luis Dantas, Lupin, Zigger, Monedula, Bradeos Graphon, Ds13, Henry Flower, Jiawen, Digital innity, Gilgamesh~enwiki, Per Honor
et Gloria, Mboverload, Eequor, Kukkurovaca, Munge, Stevietheman, Auximines, Andycjp, Gdr, Sonjaaa, Amarvc, Quadell, Antandrus,
Timlane, Beland, Loremaster, Kusunose, Jossi, DNewhall, Lynda Finn, Chaizzilla, Reagle, Sam Hocevar, KeithTyler, Aponar Kestrel,
Russco, Mike Rosoft, MattKingston, Reinthal, RossPatterson, Discospinster, Rich Farmbrough, Guanabot, Cacycle, FiP, FWBOarticle,
Dbachmann, Mani1, Bender235, Sunborn, Kaisershatner, Fenice, Elwikipedista~enwiki, Aecis, Joel Russ, El C, Kwamikagami, Mwanner, Bendono, Spoon!, Causa sui, Bobo192, Nigelj, Robotje, John Vandenberg, Snakeg, Shenme, Whiskers, Nk, Cherlin, Sam Korn,
Allenjwsc, Ogress, HasharBot~enwiki, Paulehoman, ADM, Alansohn, Gary, Bjornar, Andkaha, Connel MacKenzie, Mr Adequate,
Dready, Bathrobe, Loris, Punarbhava, Balster neb, Mattrock, Celzrro, InShaneee, Hu, Bart133, Yau~enwiki, Bootstoots, Gsandi, Wtmitchell, Djlayton4, Velella, Stefankamph, RJFJR, Grenavitar, ReubenGarrett, T3gah, LordAmeth, MIT Trekkie, Kazvorpal, Phi beta,
Oleg Alexandrov, Lkinkade, Weyes, Angr, Woohookitty, Miaow Miaow, Je3000, Al E., Jleon, Wikiklrsc, SDC, Mekong Bluesman,
Paxsimius, Mandarax, Saposcat, Graham87, Cuvtixo, DarkSerge, BD2412, Galwaygirl, Xxshockx, Shadowhillway, Porcher, Rjwilmsi,
Koavf, Evil Eccentric, Dr8, Heah, Ligulem, Gurkhaboy, Elephantus, Sango123, FuelWagon, FlaBot, Joe07734, Flowerparty, RexNL,
Mitsukai, Jrtayloriv, Barry108, OrbitOne, Le Anh-Huy, Chobot, Madden, Bgwhite, Vmenkov, IBlender, YurikBot, Wavelength, RobotE,
Vuvar1, Jimp, Wikky Horse, RussBot, Adamberry2, Pigman, ASB, Firas@user, Manop, Gaius Cornelius, Neilbeach, Kennethtennyson,
Haakonsson, ENeville, Tktruong2, Wiki alf, Joel7687, Sylvain1972, JFD, RUL3R, Mkill, Wangi, Basic-element, Wknight94, Mr. KnowIt-All, Ninly, Langdell~enwiki, Closedmouth, Chery, Nickrophelia, BorgQueen, GraemeL, Clair de Lune, TheTerrorized, Internutthead,
Rowsees, Azadkhayal, SkerHawx, Appleby, Tom Morris, Ritabrata, Aihre, Jsnx, SmackBot, Thisismysn000, YellowMonkey, Vajrabell,
Logologics, Nihonjoe, Robotbeat, InverseHypercube, Donald Hwong, Argyll Lassie, Pgk, Saimdusan, AndyZ, Lostinthesound, MeiStone,
Jagged 85, Sciintel, Atomota, Cessator, Kintetsubualo, KrazyA1pha, Teishin, CrypticBacon, Aksi great, JFHJr, Gilliam, Ohnoitsjamie,
Hmains, Betacommand, Angelbo, Andy M. Wang, Lapsus Linguae, Amatulic, Endroit, Bluebot, Columbiafan, Thumperward, Janm67,
MalafayaBot, OrangeDog, Freedom skies, Roscelese, Kamosuke, Neo-Jay, Nbarth, ACupOfCoee, Lightspeedchick, Csbodine, Mladilozof, Zsinj, OrphanBot, Shards, BertMayo, Atomist, Alex Schrder, Rrburke, Karthik.raman, Soosed, HeteroZellous, Kvcad, Nakon,
FrankWilliams, LoveEncounterFlow, Osensei, Vina-iwbot~enwiki, Surrealization, Will Beback, SashatoBot, ArglebargleIV, Krashlandon,
AThing, MegA, Harryboyles, Tmciolek, Rodney Boyd, Khazar, Euchiasmus, Jikaku, Egoiste79, Soumyasch, Tdudkowski, IronGargoyle,
Gregory Wonderwheel, Defyn, Bertmayo, Beetstra, Stainedglasscurtain, Isshoni~enwiki, Intranetusa, Kripkenstein, Blind Man Walking,
Drpaluga, Phuzion, Hu12, DabMachine, Mackan, Quaeler, Dharmageek, Wandering Star, Joseph Solis in Australia, Jcbaran, DogFog,
HongQiGong, Timwarneka, Tawkerbot2, Daniel Schwab, JForget, Postmodern Beatnik, CmdrObot, Dread Specter, Aherunar, Sodaiho,
BeenAroundAWhile, Lighthead, Krillejs, Furitora, Editorius, David Traver, Casper2k3, Guitarmankev1, Whereizben, Gregbard, Vanished
user fj0390923roktg4tlkm2pkd, Jac16888, Asiguere, Atmosphear, Peterdjones, Gogo Dodo, Eu.stefan, Synergy, Gvil, CenkX, Omicronpersei8, Nearfar, Satori Son, Thijs!bot, Epbr123, Peter morrell, Headbomb, Marek69, Top.Squark, Madhyama, CharlotteWebb, Nick
Number, Ericmachmer, MichaelMaggs, SusanLesch, Natalie Erin, Escarbot, DorisH, Hires an editor, Taurion, Luna Santin, Seaphoto,
Misterincredible, Ryokan108, Larry Rosenfeld, Fayenatic london, Scepia, Toohool, Durruti36, Malcolm, Marsvilletv, Qwerty Binary, Golgofrinchian, Ioeth, Sean Lute, 24630, Jcap11, Zenstudent, Leolaursen, Acroterion, Magioladitis, Swikid, Bongwarrior, VoABot II, CiteCop,
Dekimasu, Hillgentleman, JamesBWatson, Rentwa, Steven Walling, BongSoo, Sanyasi, P.B. Pilhet, $yD!, Cpl Syx, Hkelkar, ZenPractioner,
DerHexer, Khalid Mahmood, Pan Dan, Nevit, Epskionline, Outlook, Peter jackson, B9 hummingbird hovering, BernieGlassman, Pauly04,
MartinBot, Dennisthe2, U.b.i.k., Thinman10, Keith D, R'n'B, CommonsDelinker, Lifebonzza, Roostafari, Ch'an, Pomte, J.delanoy, AstroHurricane001, AAA!, Rrostrom, Nightshadow28, ChrisfromHouston, Tikiwont, Mind meal, Zenzenzen, Cpiral, Maproom, Katalaveno,
Smartkishore, Madman885, Jinying11, NewEnglandYankee, DadaNeem, SJP, Rumpelstiltskin223, Jackaranga, Mamin27, Kidlittle, N
Fwio, Osip7315, Treisijs, Zenuk, Cameronbro, BrianEd, CardinalDan, Idioma-bot, ACSE, Caspian blue, VolkovBot, Larryisgood, A
Ramachandran, Je G., Another fake account, Zenman (usurped), Made in the asu, Wisdum, Philip Trueman, Scott Armstrong, DoorsAjar, Knverma, Maximillion Pegasus, Malinaccier, Pojanji, Rei-bot, Una Smith, DennyColt, JhsBot, Broadbot, PeteDead, Buddhipriya,
LeaveSleaves, PDFbot, Qbert203, LBehounek, Ferdinand1, Madhero88, Wademingzi, Billinghurst, Synthebot, 65m, Giardia, Mynelly,
GlassFET, Multiplestars~enwiki, Daito-zenei, Rheimbuch, Master of the Orchalcos, Brianga, Monty845, Azukimonaka, Symane, PericlesofAthens, SieBot, Gsus x, Brenont, Timmymack, Wikimelee, WereSpielChequers, Lapsha, Dawn Bard, Caltas, Yintan, Michaaeel,
Levitatingyogi, Zentek, Oda Mari, Janopus, Zillionaire2, Amphitere, Martyvis, Javierfv1212, ZenOne2, Lightmouse, Sendaba, PalaceGuard008, Floating abu, Anxiousmofo, Troylennerd, Philo2, JohnSawyer, JohnnyMrNinja, Dcattell, Angelo De La Paz, ImageRemovalBot, Soporaeternus, Martarius, ClueBot, Wikieditwww, Havers, The Thing That Should Not Be, Plastikspork, Mmrempen, Sevilledade,
CptCutLess, Susanna Margaret, Zen Mind, Grunty Thraveswain, Excirial, Zuzuzpetals, Jusdafax, Nicholashurley, Sun Creator, Technobadger, NuclearWarfare, Arjayay, ParallaxPress, SchreiberBike, BOTarate, Uleglass, Dwwren, Phlar, Aitias, Change on install, MetaphysicalAwarenessCom, SoxBot III, Editor2020, Crowsnest, Rossen4, Numen17, DumZiBoT, Zenwhat, Ja1234, Mokudo, XLinkBot, Zbrowman, Arthur chos, Nh.jg4, Snowmonster, Avoided, Vy0123, Zenquaker, Wnzrf, Carol mai 94112, Ddevilbiss, Addbot, Sc7493, DOI
bot, Ronhjones, Fieldday-sunday, Tengu800, Cst17, MrOllie, Download, BepBot, Glane23, AnnaFrance, LinkFA-Bot, Jaydec, 5 albert
square, Rtz-bot, TheFreeloader, Numbo3-bot, Tide rolls, Lightbot, Totorotroll, Zorrobot, Jrs1231, Dharma-eye, Luckas-bot, ZX81, Yobot,
The Earwig, N. Wang, GateKeeper, Hinio, ProfessorCorso, DropShadow, AnakngAraw, TestEditBot, N1RK4UDSK714, AnomieBOT,
Riopaso, Galoubet, Tucoxn, Profangelo, Chip-brain, Asoer, RandomAct, Materialscientist, Espretu, Citation bot, E2eamon, Crimsonmargarine, Raven Stahlnecker, Francis8590, Dcapurro, Dewan357, LilHelpa, Xqbot, Sionus, Intelati, Jackel246, Capricorn42, 4twenty42o,
Nqwce, , Teamjenn, Bodinagamin, Xango2001, Makeswell, Johnkintaro, OldMonkeyPuzzle, RickN555, Omnipaedista, Justthisone, Tramtram, RibotBOT, SassoBot, Wiki101master, Sophus Bie, White whirlwind, Bingalls732, HK Arun, Richardsteel, Tktru,
Haerdt, Dohaeng, Tomkorp, FrescoBot, LucienBOT, Mantipedia, Gkrunker, Mlatorra, Rkr1991, ZenerV, Guru coolguy, KnowledgeAndVision, HarveyHilbert, Citation bot 1, The kicker, Markblohm, Marixist101, Pinethicket, Micromesistius, Bizdean, Jonesey95, Prott83,
MJ94, Triplestop, Skyerise, Jschnur, Walthersell, Joegknapp, Serols, Shambhalian, Carel.jonkhout, Zen.Trixter, Phoenix7777, Adversarian, Jauhienij, C messier, Tim1357, Orenburg1, FoxBot, Ale And Quail, Lotje, ZhBot, Aoidh, Micktheclick, Diannaa, 564dude, Suu-

42

CHAPTER 4. BENE GESSERIT

sion of Yellow, Sjg1138, Jarpup, Kontoreg, Guerillero, Bernd.Brincken, RjwilmsiBot, TjBot, Bento00, PPdd, CalicoCatLover, EmausBot, John of Reading, Rajnoosh22, Look2See1, Gildedtiger, Dewritech, Whroll, Moondances, Thigle, Tommy2010, Wikipelli, K6ka,
Zenra, Yogainfo, Porius1, Emily Jensen, Fred Gandt, Elektrik Shoos, H3llBot, , Kickass003, Adven07, Brandmeister, L Kensington, Shrigley, Donner60, Culturetw, Javiercorrector, Wmerklee, Splashen, Manytexts, Mjbmrbot, Helpsome, ClueBot NG, Mallexikon,
SheenShin, Lyla1205, Mcontreras12, KWcrew1983, Zzzzz99, Snotbot, Tideat, DRDavid9, O.Koslowski, Widr, Miracle dream, Helpful
Pixie Bot, Williamwestpress, Nyannyannyan~enwiki, Jgrove6875, DBigXray, BG19bot, Steve Milburn, Amatieris, , ElphiBot, Alangar
Manickam, Cold Season, Cayhelm, Mark Arsten, LhunGrub, Mankrik, Joshua Jonathan, Nohemgotadagua, KateWoodhouse, Rayodelsol, Ewkpates, Rutebega, Wheeke, EricEnfermero, BattyBot, SifuBok, Nyankoneko, Whisperingeyes123456, Teammm, QuelBeast, Zen
Light, Massimorip, Cyberbot II, Khazar2, EuroCarGT, Kansubrave, Dexbot, Numbermaniac, DanM9012, Lugia2453, Jackcalz, Tharkisala,
Reatlas, Gravitynano, Zenith17, PinkAmpersand, Shhhhwwww!!, Tentinator, Finnusertop, Ginsuloft, Ccsfhdfudfh, JimRenge, Warrior of
Zen, Stylemehor, Talk213, Niallsbae, Monkbot, Jaydacious, Droigheann, S$*snie*$S, Dguzzo, MasterChief1986, Zeus000000, Psychedgrad, Flower f5a9b8, Piledhighandeep, MATIAZ453, Julietdeltalima, Butt stalion the diamond pony, Jugheadlikespie, Joshhertz, Yolobros,
Tiger7253, KasparBot, Mikekuang108, Joshwond, Dharmalion76, Excalique, Donaudampfschi, GSS-1987, Namasteahimsa, Muvendar,
Macky543 and Anonymous: 1034
List of Dune religions Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Dune_religions?oldid=709390422 Contributors: Andrevan, David
Gerard, Mboverload, Kuralyov, MakeRocketGoNow, Brianhe, Rich Farmbrough, Xezbeth, Ogress, Wendell, Grutness, Max rspct, Geraldshields11, Voldemort, FeanorStar7, Briangotts, Pictureuploader, Marudubshinki, Salanth, Str1977, Ytrottier, SMcCandlish, JDspeeder1,
SmackBot, Kevinalewis, Drsmoo, Robosh, Doceddi, Noclevername, SandChigger, TAnthony, RebelRobot, NLOleson, Gwern, Goustien,
Parkwells, Editor2020, Olybrius, Kbdankbot, Yobot, AnomieBOT, Kristen Eriksen, Ekwos, Thejoystick, FreeKnowledgeCreator, FrescoBot, LittleWink, Polisher of Cobwebs, Mogism and Anonymous: 47
Glossary of Dune terminology Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_Dune_terminology?oldid=702446208 Contributors:
Carlossuarez46, Donreed, Xyzzyva, Rich Farmbrough, Vsmith, Xezbeth, Night Gyr, Apostrophe, Anthony Appleyard, Rjwilmsi, Midgley, Lockesdonkey, Arthur Rubin, SMcCandlish, Allens, robot, SmackBot, HalfShadow, Chris the speller, MalafayaBot,
Trekphiler, Pete Fenelon, Kendravixie, Johanna-Hypatia, Hotspur23, Picaroon, Otto4711, Editor at Large, MetaManFromTomorrow, QuiteUnusual, Deective, The Transhumanist, TAnthony, Akuyume, Magioladitis, Appraiser, Iwtblj, JaGa, SquidSK, Gwern, Macmelvino,
BlueBerry.Pickn, Bunker by, DrKay, Andy5421, ParaDoctoral, Whyhellomynameisjared, Hammersoft, Temporarily Insane, TheRhani,
Dereksn, Anchor Link Bot, Randy Kryn, Sfan00 IMG, Auntof6, Kbdankbot, Addbot, AgadaUrbanit, Lightbot, Donfbreed, Mighty Gaz,
Scienceg33k, Tom714uk, IKAl, Asw138, Evanh2008, Curb Chain, BG19bot, Bonechamber, L'Oncle Picsou, Earaps and Anonymous:
49
Bene Gesserit Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bene_Gesserit?oldid=713699914 Contributors: Mav, Andre Engels, Xaonon, Edward, Redbeard~enwiki, MartinHarper, Justin Johnson, Karada, Logotu, Julesd, Tim Retout, Jonadab~enwiki, Lfh, Dysprosia, Finlay
McWalter, Robbot, Popageorgio, ChrisG, Benwing, Naddy, Merovingian, Jondel, Dbroadwell, GreatWhiteNortherner, David Gerard,
Xyzzyva, Omegium, Areicher, Philgp, Get-back-world-respect, AlistairMcMillan, Raphink, Andycjp, Sam Hocevar, D Thong, Subsume,
Flex, T-Boy, Oska, YUL89YYZ, Dbachmann, Pavel Vozenilek, Sietse Snel, RoyBoy, Redlentil, Apostrophe, Jaredfaulkner, Licon, Anthony Appleyard, Lordthees, Phiddipus, Amorymeltzer, DrGaellon, Angr, FeanorStar7, Sburke, Gimboid13, Dushkin, Marudubshinki,
Calrfa Wn, Cuchullain, BD2412, Hectorblanco~enwiki, JWWalker, Edogy, Staecker, Mike Peel, Bensin, Dionyseus, FlaBot, RobertG,
Crazybee, Gurch, Whateley23, Str1977, Vidkun, ScottAlanHill, Slimey.limey, Skoosh, Wavelength, Hairy Dude, Eliteje123, FrenchIsAwesome, OldRight, Akamad, Imladros, Brian Sisco, Clueponic, Mddake, Alex Law, Smaines, Oehg, Toddgee, Ajsdecepida, KingCarrot, Katieh5584, Groyolo, That Guy, From That Show!, robot, Nuance13x, SmackBot, Antrophica, HalfShadow, Chris the
speller, Vorb~enwiki, Thumperward, Julian Morrison, Chinawhitecotton, Kotra, MBlume, Crab182, Stroika, LizFL, RiseRover, Kukini,
Wtwilson3, Hotspur23, Mrlopez2681, Dustin Pearson, Breno, Cornel c ilie, Muadd, Ryulong, JoeBot, RugerMK1, Nessus87, Tawkerbot2,
Estban, Rasd, Enigmatical, Cydebot, CFMWiki1, SithiR, Kweeiw, Rioux15, Missvain, MainlyTwelve, Davidhorman, Muaddeeb, Noclevername, AntiVandalBot, Konman72, Dreammyth, Shabib01, SandChigger, Deective, J Greb, TAnthony, Wasell, Chronolegion, Jacce,
Albmont, MyNameIsNeo, WLU, Laura1822, Gwern, PC78, Flexjobb, The Levi, Andy5421, Iain marcuson, Belovedfreak, Nashville Monkey, John Darrow, TheRhani, Michaelpremsrirat, Fredrick day, Psyche825, McM.bot, Synthebot, Rachkovsky, Skylark42, TanyaErikson,
Anchor Link Bot, Hamiltondaniel, Fredmdbud, Sfan00 IMG, PopCultureIsGood, Mild Bill Hiccup, Gordon Ecker, DragonBot, Ktr101, Primalmoon, Kbdankbot, Addbot, DougsTech, Benn, Zoso Belly, Yobot, TakaTahuNuva, AnomieBOT, Archon 2488, Msablaya, SassoBot,
Biem, FrescoBot, Skyerise, MastiBot, Revanneosl, Dinamik-bot, Medeis, Bamyers99, H3llBot, Polisher of Cobwebs, Mcc1789, ClueBot NG, Helpful Pixie Bot, Hodeken, Khazar2, SNAAAAKE!!, Dark Silver Crow, Derpaherp120148194812597, Fixuture, Sandburger,
Catobonus, GandalfPotter and Anonymous: 206

4.10.2

Images

File:Ambox_important.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work, based o of Image:Ambox scales.svg Original artist: Dsmurat (talk contribs)
File:Bodhidharma.and.Huike-Sesshu.Toyo.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Bodhidharma.and.
Huike-Sesshu.Toyo.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: http://images.rollbamaroll.com/images/admin/sesshu1.jpg Original artist:
?
File:BodhidharmaYoshitoshi1887.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/BodhidharmaYoshitoshi1887.
jpg License: Public domain Contributors: en.wikipedia Original artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
File:Buddha-flower-color.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Buddha-flower-color.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Walter Grassroot
File:Buddhist_Monk_Service_Hue_Vietnam.jpeg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Buddhist_Monk_
Service_Hue_Vietnam.jpeg License: CC BY 2.0 Contributors: http://www.flickr.com/photos/10215888@N03/2101713028/ Original
artist: Flickr user mrbold_ickr
File:Central_Asian_Buddhist_Monks.jpeg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Central_Asian_Buddhist_
Monks.jpeg License: Public domain Contributors: <a data-x-rel='nofollow' class='external text' href='http://dsr.nii.ac.jp/toyobunko/
LFc-42/'>Chotscho: Facsimile Reproduction of Important Findings of the First Royal Prussian Expedition to Turfan in East Turkistan</a>,
Berlin, 1913. A catalogue of the ndings of the Second German Turfan Expedition (19041905) led by Albert von Le Coq, containing

4.10. TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

43

colour reproductions of the murals, which were destroyed in WW2. (National Institute of Informatics Digital Silk Road Project Digital
Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books) Original artist: of the paintings - Unknown. Of the book, Albert von Le Coq.
File:Commons-logo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
File:Dharma_Wheel.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Dharma_Wheel.svg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0
Contributors: Own work Original artist: Shazz, Esteban.barahona
File:Folder_Hexagonal_Icon.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/48/Folder_Hexagonal_Icon.svg License: Cc-bysa-3.0 Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
File:F.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/F%C3%A6.png License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own
work Original artist: Stefano Vincenzi
File:Hsuan_Hua_Hong_Kong_1.jpeg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6d/Hsuan_Hua_Hong_Kong_1.
jpeg License: Public domain Contributors: Photograph by an unknown photographer in Hong Kong. Photo provided by City of Ten
Thousand Buddhas. Digital image found at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/49418523@N07/4544489328/ Original artist: Unknown photographer
File:Mohiam+BeneGesserit-1984.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/09/Mohiam%2BBeneGesserit-1984.jpg
License: Fair use Contributors:
Uploaded by TAnthony Original artist: ?
File:Mohiam+BeneGesserit-2000.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/88/Mohiam%2BBeneGesserit-2000.jpg
License: ? Contributors:
Uploaded by TAnthony Original artist: ?
File:Monk_seon.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/7d/Monk_seon.jpg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors:
I created this work entirely by myself.
Original artist:
Drpaluga (talk)
File:Question_book-new.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/99/Question_book-new.svg License: Cc-by-sa-3.0
Contributors:
Created from scratch in Adobe Illustrator. Based on Image:Question book.png created by User:Equazcion Original artist:
Tkgd2007
File:Shuixin_Zen_Temple_-_DSCF8739.JPG Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Shuixin_Zen_Temple_
-_DSCF8739.JPG License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: User:Vmenkov
File:Sunriseatsojiji.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/63/Sunriseatsojiji.jpg License: CC-BY-3.0 Contributors:
? Original artist: ?
File:Wikiquote-logo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Wikiquote-logo.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
File:Wiktionary-logo-en.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Wiktionary-logo-en.svg License: Public
domain Contributors: Vector version of Image:Wiktionary-logo-en.png. Original artist: Vectorized by Fvasconcellos (talk contribs),
based on original logo tossed together by Brion Vibber
File:Wu_(negative).svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Wu_%28negative%29.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Based on the png http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/Wu_%28negative%29.png uploaded by
Eequor Original artist: Grith Rees
File: -ouyang.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/%E7%A6%AA-ouyang.png License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Asoer

4.10.3

Content license

Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0