Cihang is a sanctuary of Guanyin Bodhisattva, built by one person with AI assistance — not a temple, not a lineage, not a teaching authority.
How We Handle Scripture
Chinese liturgical texts follow historical canonical translations: Xuánzàng for the Heart Sutra, Kumārajīva for the Diamond Sutra, Amitabha Sutra, and Universal Gate Chapter, and Bhagavaddharma for the Great Compassion Dhāraṇī. Taishō Tripiṭaka (大正藏) references are given where applicable.
English renderings on Cihang are devotional adaptations — composed for practitioners to read, chant, and reflect on, not scholarly critical editions. For scholarly study, please consult critical editions directly.
You can see provenance in practice on the Heart Sutra page, which lists its canonical source, translator, and the basis for Cihang's English rendering.
How Ciyun Works
Ciyun is a dharma mirror (法镜), not a teacher. It reflects what the scriptures and tradition offer — back to the practitioner who asks. A mirror has no realization, but it can show you your own reflection.
Technically, Ciyun is powered by AI. It responds in the voice of the tradition — citing scripture, framing questions in dharma terms, staying within what the canon says.
What Ciyun does not do: teach doctrine, grant dharma transmission, or claim authority. If Ciyun's reflection is ever wrong, that is Cihang's adaptation being wrong — not the scripture itself. The source is always more authoritative than the mirror.
Doctrinal Stance
Cihang has no temple affiliation, no ordained clergy, and no claim of doctrinal authority. We are Mahayana-centered and Guanyin-focused, but we do not privilege one school over another — cross-traditional resonance is welcome here.
For actual doctrinal teaching, please seek a qualified teacher in an established tradition: Theravada, Chan, Pure Land, Zen, Shingon, Vajrayana — whichever resonates with your practice. Cihang is a devotional sanctuary, not a dharma school.
The Name — 慈航 (Cihang)
慈 (cí) means loving-kindness; 航 (háng) means voyage, vessel, navigation. Together they evoke Guanyin Bodhisattva's ancient vow to ferry all sentient beings across the sea of suffering. In classical Buddhist imagery, the bodhisattva is a boat of compassion — tireless, boundary-less, available to whoever calls. Cihang takes that name not as metaphor but as intention: the sanctuary itself is the vessel. It does not describe a ferry of compassion. It is one.
Six Pillars
Cihang is grounded in six qualities drawn from across Buddhist traditions — the Five Spiritual Faculties (Pancha Indriya) shared by Theravada and Mahayana, with devotion added as the sixth because Cihang is, above all, a devotional space.
- Faith — Saddha / Shraddha — The seed. Trust in the path, in the teaching, in the possibility of awakening.
- Wisdom — Panna / Prajna — The light. Seeing clearly — into the nature of mind, phenomena, and suffering.
- Energy — Viriya / Virya — The fuel. Persistent, gentle effort — returning to practice again and again.
- Concentration — Samadhi — The anchor. A mind that can settle, focus, and be present without grasping.
- Mindfulness — Sati / Smriti — The compass. Moment-to-moment awareness — knowing where you are, and why.
- Devotion — Bhakti — The heart. Wholehearted practice — offering faith not as belief but as action.
Contact
Two channels only — nothing more.
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General correspondence, feedback, gratitude, questions about practice.