Bodhidharma – the founder of Gongfu
Freeing oneself from words is liberation. – Bodhidharma
(By Tsem Rinpoche and Pastor Adeline)
Introduction
The Buddhist monk Bodhidharma (5th – 6th century, Simple Chinese: 菩提达摩 or 菩提達磨) was a student of Prajnatara of India, the 27th patriarch in a transmission of Buddhist teachings. As such he is considered to be the 28th patriarch in an uninterrupted lineage of great masters that extends back all the way to Buddha Shakyamuni himself. Since Bodhidharma is credited with transmitting these teachings in China, he is regarded as the first Chinese patriarch of what would become Chan Buddhism. Bodhidharma is also believed to have founded the Chinese martial arts of the Shaolin School, which led to the creation of the world-famous Shaolin Gongfu.
Information on Bodhidharma that has survived over the years is limited, and the major sources of this master’s life conflict with each with regards to his origins, journey to China, death and other significant events. In addition to this, there are even two proposed sets of dates for his birth and death, i.e. c. 440-528 CE and c. 470-543 CE. so he is generally believed to have lived during the 5th and 6th centuries.
North Shaolin Monastery
According to the principal Chinese sources, Bodhidharma came from the ‘Western Regions’ which refers to Central Asia. He is believed to have been born in Kanchipuram city, which was located near Madras (modern day Chennai) in India. He was born into the warrior cast as a prince, and was known as Bodhitara. He was the third son of the king of Kanchipuram, and had a keen interested in the Buddha’s teachings. At the young age of 7, he had already begun to show great wisdom.
Bodhitara began to train under Prajnatara and subsequently became a monk. He was given the name Bodhidharma and began living in the monastery where he learnt the Buddhadharma. After the passing of his father, Bodhidharma began to spread the Dharma throughout India. With the pure motivation to fulfil his master’s last request, Bodhidharma then travelled to China after Prajnatara’s death in order to spread the Dharma and further revive Buddhism there. Prajnatara’s wish was for Bodhidharma to teach the Chinese the various lessons and rigorous discipline required for a perfect meditative state leading to liberation from samsara – a state of spiritual attainments where one is no longer attached to the materialistic world.
Emperor Wu Di
Bodhidharma is believed to have travelled from Madras to Guangzhou, China, via sea and then by land to Nanjing in three years. Hearing the news of his arrival in a different part of China, the devoted Buddhist Emperor Wu Di requested an audience with him. During the initial meeting, Emperor Wu Di listed everything he had done for the spread of Buddhism in China, and asked Bodhidharma to tell him what merits he would have accumulated from doing so. In the Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall, the conversation was recorded as follows:
Emperor Wu: “How much karmic merit have I earned for ordaining Buddhist monks, building monasteries, having sutras copied, and commissioning Buddha images?”
Bodhidharma: “None. Good deeds done with worldly intent bring good karma, but no merit.”
Emperor Wu: “So what is the highest meaning of noble truth?”
Bodhidharma: “There is no noble truth, there is only emptiness.”
Emperor Wu: “Then, who is standing before me?”
Bodhidharma: “I know not, Your Majesty.”
This encounter was included as the first gong-an of the Blue Cliff Record (Simplified Chinese: 碧巖錄; pinyin: bìyánlù).
Emperor Wu Di did not think highly of the teachings
Emperor Wu Di was not impressed by Bodhidharma’s reply, and therefore did not think highly of the teachings he had brought from India. Bodhidharma faced fierce skepticism and opposition when he first started to spread Buddhism in China, mainly due to his claim that the Buddhist texts were only guides for achieving enlightenment. Rather, he taught that enlightenment itself can only be attained by practicing dhyana, or cultivated states of mind which lead practitioners to a perfect state of awareness and equanimity. At that time in China, meditation was not generally practiced but the veneration of Buddhist texts was prevalent.
Shaolin Monastery
As Bodhidharma’s teachings were based on meditation, he was ostracised and rejected, causing him to live as a beggar for many months. Bodhidharma travelled to Luoyang and then moved on to Henan, after which he arrived at the Shaolin Monastery located on Songshan. However, Bodhidharma was not accepted by Shaolin Monastery in the beginning, so he lived in a nearby cave where he meditated in complete silence for nine years while facing the cave wall.
News about Bodhidharma travelled and the Shaolin monks were impressed. They eventually granted him entry to the monastery. The monks requested Bodhidharma to teach meditation which he did, but he soon realised that the monks did not have the stamina needed for meditation. Many would often fall asleep or get sick during the meditations. As the monks were unable to endure the rigorous and long sessions of meditation, Bodhidharma began teaching them both physical exercise and Indian breathing techniques.
According to Bodhidharma, once the physical body is pushed beyond its limits, the mind would begin to take over. Thus the mind can help push the body engage in the strenuous physical discomfort that is required for training in meditation. Furthermore, he taught that once the mind has reached this level of strength, then it would be transformed forever, and its capacity to focus and concentrate would likewise be fortified. Over time his theory was proven right, the minds of the Shaolin monks became incredibly strong, and their focus in meditation became unparalleled and more disciplined.
Bodhidharma created an exercise regime for the monks which involved physical techniques that were efficient, strengthened the body, and could be used in self-defense on a practical level. Primarily, the practises were instituted to make the monks physically stronger to cope with their isolated lifestyle, and the demanding meditation training that they wished to engage in. Eventually, the techniques came to serve a dual purpose: training the body for meditation, while also becoming a very efficient form of self-defence, which later evolved into a martial art. These techniques helped the monks defend themselves against invading warlords and bandits, but they would never hurt or injure others needlessly. In fact one of Bodhidharma’s oldest axiom reads “one who engaged in combat has already lost the battle.”
Thereafter, Bodhidharma continued to develop a system of 18 dynamic tension exercises which were printed as Yi Gin Ching (Changing Muscle/Tendon Classic) in 550 CE. It is known as the Luohan (arhat) 18 Hand Movements today which serves as the basis of both Chinese Temple Boxing and the Shaolin Martial Arts. An ancient Sanskrit text recorded that Bodhidharma settled in the Shaolin Monastery of Songshan in 526 CE.
Spiritual Approach
Bodhidharma was believed to have introduced the Lankavatara Sutra to Chinese Buddhism. This sutra was a development of the Yogacara (“Mind-only”) school of Buddhism established by the great masters Asanga and Vasubandhu, and Bodhidharma is described as a “master of the Lankavatara Sutra”.
Bodhidharma’s approach tended to reject devotional rituals, doctrinal debates and verbal formalisations. Rather, he favoured meditation, through which people are able to intuitively grasp the Buddha nature within. In contrast with other prevalent Buddhist schools such as the Pure Land schools, Bodhidharma emphasised personal enlightenment rather than the promise of reaching a pure land.
Conclusion
Bodhidharma considered spirituality, intellectualism and physical excellence as an indivisible whole that is necessary for enlightenment. He was an energetic master who urged all Buddhists, lay or ordained, to do their best in their lifetime in order to become awakened and allow their Buddha nature to shine forth. In Chan texts, he is referred to as “The Blue-Eyed Barbarian” (Simplified Chinese: 碧眼胡; pinyin: bìyǎnhú), therefore his is often depicted as an ill-tempered, bearded, wide-eyed non-Chinese person throughout Buddhist art. Bodhidharma is believed to have remained at the Shaolin Monastery until his death, aged 150 years, and is thought to have died after being poisoned.
References:
- http://www.i-budo.com/library/zen-masters/bodhidharma/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhidharma
- http://www.historyoffighting.com/bodhidharma.php
- http://isha.sadhguru.org/blog/yoga-meditation/history-of-yoga/bodhidharma/
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bodhidharma
- http://www.zen-buddhism.net/famous-zen-masters/bodhidharma.html
- https://pacificasiamuseum.usc.edu/files/2016/06/PAM_InsightBrochure_web.pdf
For more interesting information:
- Bodhidharma
- The Six Patriarchs of Chan Buddhism
- Amongst White Clouds -Amazing!
- Ji Gong – The Crazy Monk of China
- Empty Cloud
- After the Monastery
- Bill Porter (Red Pine): The Translator of Chinese Poems and Promoter of Zen Buddhism
- Shaolin Monastery
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I was surprised that I didn’t leave a comment in this article. I’ve read this article several times. When I read again, the below comes in my mind :-
One of Zong Rinpoche’s (Tsem Rinpoche’s root guru) previous lives was the famous Indian master Bodhidharma who was famous to have brought Zen/Chen Buddhism to China and is regarded as the first patriarch of this tradition in China. He has an exceptional story of transmitting the teachings without words.
Actually this was written by Pastor David and then reposted by Sarah again. https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/external-article/bodhidharma#:~:text=One%20of%20Zong%20Rinpoche's%20(Tsem,transmitting%20the%20teachings%20without%20words.
Thank you so much Pastor Adeline for this write up and it refreshed my memory about this Master and His connection with Shaolin Monks. Besides, we need this human body to meditate and gain hindsight & reached higher consciousness and hence, the importance to get our body in shape, literally speaking.
Rinpoche mentioned that we have to read past Masters’s biography whenever we needed inspiration and one can directly guess the reason I read this article again.
It is always fascinating to read about Bodhidharma and the way in which he delivers the Dharma because it is incredibly different from what you would expect from a great Indian master. His anti-dogmatic approach is a huge shock to the system for the Chinese but it turns out to be very beneficial in establishing a whole movement in China.
The whole Shaolin martial arts began actually by Bodhidharma’s intent of teaching a different method to establishing better concentration through strengthening the body by way of martial arts. I thought that was such a novel approach and an ingenious way of promoting better concentration among the monks. This goes to show what an ingenious teacher Bodhidharma was and accomplished at finding the best method for his students.
开始想知道“菩提达摩” 大师时是因 “壁觀”，壁觀是达摩禅的核心内容，当时候認為打坐時面對牆壁就稱為壁觀，而后了解到“壁”是這念心像牆壁一樣不動，哇！可以把心修到像牆壁一樣不動，这位大师太棒了，那是当时很想学的一门功课，之后看了达摩大师一些书，更喜欢大师的”二入四行“，不过，后来因”功力“ 不够，越看越不明白就放弃。重要的是达摩大师对中国禅宗，对整个佛教界产生重大而深远的影响。大家可上网阅读达摩大师的故事，了解大师对中国佛教的影响.
Thank you Rinpoche and Pastor Adeline sharing this interesting post about Bodhidharma, a great master favoured meditation and introduced the Lankavatara Sutra to Chinese Buddhism.
Here are a few points I have learned from this post:
1. Bodhidharma had strong imprints of Dharma from the past and therefore he is interested in Buddha’s teachings and show his great wisdom. at a very young age.
2. His strong guru devotion and determination in learning and spreading the dharma based on meditation though he confronted with difficulties such as Emperor Wu Di was not impressed by his teachings, being ostracized and rejected and lived as a beggar for many months. Notwithstanding, he continued and never give up to practice meditation in complete silence for nine years in cave wall when he was not accepted by Shaolin Monastery at the beginning .
3. When Bodhidharma was allowed enter to the monastery, he had put a lot of efforts to help the monks in improving their physical body as well as their mind through the meditation. Then, Bodhidharma continued to develop a system of 18 dynamic tension exercises which were printed as Yi Gin Ching (Changing Muscle/Tendon Classic) in 550 CE. It is known as the Luohan (arhat) 18 Hand Movements today which serves as the basis of both Chinese Temple Boxing and the Shaolin Martial Arts.
Thank you Pastor Adeline for sharing this article about Bodhidharma. Although his method may be different from the ones that we are currently practising but it will still bring a practitioner to enlightenment. Bodhidharma favoured meditation, through which people are able to intuitively grasp the Buddha nature within. Over time his theory was proven right, the minds of the Shaolin monks became incredibly strong, and their focus in meditation became unparalleled and more disciplined.
With folded palms,
Vivian
In this history where is matang matiya madchand
I think Bodhidharma’s approach to meditation is very practical. When the monks has better health then they had better constitution, then doing so it helps them to focus better. Better concentration then when they meditate, they can get results from the meditation.
In the esoteric oral tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, a version of Dampa Sangye’s life-story has him traveling to China and teaching there for 12 years, where he was known as Bodhidharma the founder of Zen.
Dampa Sangye (Wylie: dam pa sangs rgyas “Excellent Buddhahood”, d.1117, also called “Father Excellent Buddhahood”, Wylie: pha dam pa sangs rgyas[1]) was a Buddhist mahasiddha of the Indian Tantra movement who transmitted many teachings based on both Sutrayana and Tantrayana to Buddhist practitioners in Tibet in the late 11th century.
He travelled to Tibet more than five times. On his third trip from India to Tibet that he met Machig Labdrön.
Dampa Sangye appears in many of the lineages of Chöd and so in Tibet he is known as the Father of Chod, however perhaps his best known teaching is “the Pacification” (Tibetan: ཞི་བྱེད།, Wylie: zhi byed, THL Zhijé). This teaching became an element of the Mahamudra Chöd lineages founded by Machig Labdrön.
The Shaolin Temple and the Gongfu practiced by the Shaolin monks have been the epitome of Buddhism for many of us who had been indoctrinated by the movies since young. But little did we know about the founder of the martial arts practiced by Shaolin monks. Bodhidharma, although propelled Yogacara (“Mind-only”) school of Buddhism that focuses on meditation, he integrated physical discipline into the spiritual practice as well. He believed that “once the physical body is pushed beyond its limits, the mind would begin to take over. Thus the mind can help push the body to engage in the strenuous physical discomfort that is required for training in meditation. Furthermore, he taught that once the mind has reached this level of strength, then it would be transformed forever, and its capacity to focus and concentrate would likewise be fortified.” While many practitioners may differ from Bodhidharma’s brand of belief that spirituality, intellectualism and physical excellence are indivisible and necessary for enlightenment, it is proven that Shaolin had produced many talents over the centuries who are spirituality, intellectualism and physical outstanding. Thank you, Pastor Adeline for this nice post.
This is interesting. I always thought Shao Lin was more of being warrior monks protecting the locals and not fully understanding the dharma behind it. That they were practicing some of perfections like single-pointed meditation, concentration and patience.
Also, I did not know much or rather know very little about Bodhidharma and his role in Shao Lin. The notion that it is a meshing of spirituality, intellectualism and physical excellence as a whole, that makes for a well rounded path for dharma practitioners.
Thank you, Pastor Adeline for this sharing.
When I was young, my then bachelor uncle used to take my cousins, brother and I to watch lots of Shaolin Kungfu movies at the cinema which was the trend back then. We were totally entertained. I saw Buddhism infused in some of the movies but never quite understood the how or the whys.
But I did learn a lot good “teachings” such as good vs. bad, practise makes perfect, the “strength” of single pointed concentration, impartiality, filial piety, long-term planning, sacrifice, etc. I must say, knowingly or unknowingly, these movies have had an impact on my previous actions.
Learning about Bodhidharma puts a lot of perspective as to what the Shaolin monastery tradition is all about. Thank you Pastor Adeleine for this summary.