The Quei Yuan Jing(complete title: Transmission of the Lamp of the Pure Land as an Extraordinary Skillful Means: Mirror of the Return to the Origin, or the Veritable Record of Three Patriarchs), a play written by the seventeenth-century Chinese Buddhist monk Zhida. The Quei Yuan Jing’s storyline centers on the transmission of the Pure Land Buddhist teachings by recounting the biographies of three masters from different periods in Chinese history: Lushan Huiyuan, Yongming Yanshou, and Yunqi Zhuhong. Zhida also wrote three paratexts, Xiju rongtong (Blending in Harmony with Theater), Kewen jueyi (Dispelling a Guest’s Suspicion) and Wenda yinyuan(Questions and Answers about Causes and Conditions) to explain the principle of integrating drama and Buddhism.
In terms of content, Quei Yuan Jing only uses real events in the play, supplemented by a large number of Buddhist dharma, Buddhist names, Buddhist praises and Buddhist scenes, to create a solemn and solemn style. In terms of "popularity", it does not talk about the profound Buddhist teachings, but uses simple and easy-to-understand content to express that as long as you recite the Buddha's name wholeheartedly, you can be reborn in the Western Pure Land. In terms of "melody", the names of some tunes were changed to Buddhist terms; verses, mantras, incense, etc. were interspersed; and the joyful scene of the Pure Land was repeatedly preached.
This treatise takes Quei Yuan Jing as the research object, and discusses the whole play while considering related matters. Chapter 1 mainly explains the research motivation and purpose, literature analysis, restearch methods, structure, and research limitations of this paper. Chapter 2 discusses the writing background of the author of Quei Yuan Jing from the cultural context of Buddhism in the late Qing and early Ming dynasties, and also discusses the source of materials and editions of Quei Yuan Jing. Chapter 3 explains the theme of Quei Yuan Jing with stories about persuading people to recite Buddha's name and retribution of karma, and also narrates the content of Quei Yuan Jing. Chapter 4 analyzes the creative form of Quei Yuan Jing from the perspective of opera. Chapter 5 is the conclusion of this dissertation, summarizing the influence of Quei Yuan Jing and affirming its contribution to the spread of Pure Land thought.