The Chinese Buddhist monk Chih-i (538-597) founded one of the most popular schools of Chinese Buddhism, the T'ien-t'ai.

Chih-i, also known as Chih-k'ai, was born Ch'en Wang-tao in South China in 538. He grew up in a chaotic period, during which North China was ruled by invaders from the northern steppes, while the Chinese held out in the south. Chih-i's father was an adviser to the Emperor of the Liang dynasty (502-557). When Chih-i's mother and father died about the time the dynasty was overthrown in 557, he became a Buddhist monk in his home province.

After several years in the South, Chih-i went north to study with Hui-ssu, a famous Buddhist monk. There he encountered a religious tradition which, unlike the scholarly approach of southern Buddhism, encouraged religious observances. He remained in the North until 568, at which time his teacher instructed him to return to the southern capital to...