The way The "goal" Background Chinese texts Classical Post-classical Contemporary Zen in Japan Seon in Korea Thiền in Vietnam Western Zen The Song of Enlightenment (traditional Chinese: 證道歌; simplified Chinese: 证道歌; pinyin: Zhèngdào gē; Wade–Giles: Cheng-dao ke; Japanese: Shōdōka; Korean: 증도가; lit.
The true authorship of the work is a matter of debate, with a number of elements in the writing suggesting either the text has been substantially changed over time or Yongjia was an unlikely author.
A central theme is the contrast between dharma-nature, or reality as it is, versus buddha-nature, or self-nature.
It has been considered a central Zen text from the Song Dynasty to the present day.
It was apparently so highly esteemed that Dahui Zonggao reported that it was translated from Chinese to Sanskrit so it could be studied elsewhere.