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Zen Buddhism and Bodhidharma

By W. Pachow

Vol. 32 · No. 2 & 3June & September 1956pp. 329–337English

Summary

Pachow recounts the life and teachings of Bodhidharma, the Indian monk traditionally credited with transmitting Chan (Zen) Buddhism to China. The article begins with an overview of Bodhidharma’s journey across the Silk Road and his arrival at the Shaolin Temple, where he taught a meditation practice emphasising direct experience over scriptural study. It analyses Bodhidharma’s famous exchanges with Emperor Wu of Liang and his composition of the two treatises that outline the principles of ‘wall‑gazing’ meditation and the doctrine of no‑mind. Pachow discusses the subsequent development of Chan in China, focusing on the debates between sudden and gradual enlightenment advocated by the Sixth Patriarch Huineng and his rivals. The article traces the spread of Chan to Japan, where it evolved into Zen and influenced samurai culture, arts and philosophy. Pachow emphasises that despite legendary embellishments, the figure of Bodhidharma symbolises the transmission of an anti‑textual, experiential approach to awakening.

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Conclusion

The author concludes that Bodhidharma’s legacy lies less in historical facts and more in the emphasis on personal realisation. Zen’s stress on meditation and the direct pointing to the mind distinguishes it from other schools and continues to inspire practitioners. The narrative underscores the cross‑cultural journey of an Indian monk whose teachings shaped East Asian Buddhism.

Key passages

Chosen by AI from the article's text. Each one is checked word for word against the text before it is shown.

  • “from the beginning of the roth century A. D. this School has gained supremacy over all other Schools in China, so much so that the monks in the monasteries throughout the country claimed in one way or che other the patriarchal lineage of celebrated Dhyana masters.”
  • “Bodhidbarma, the sage from India, was che 28ch Patriarch of che Indian tradition and the Firse Patriarch of the Chinese Dhyana School.”
  • “A special tradition outside the Scriptures; Not to depend on books or letters; To poinr direct to the heart of man; To see (one’s own) nature and hecome Buddha.”

Works cited in this article

  1. The Satra spoken by the Buddha on keeping thought in the manner of great Anapana. Nanjio No. 682
  2. The Sitra on pecception in the law of practice of medita- tion, Nanjio No. 683
  3. Biographies of eminent Buddhist musters. Nanjio No. 1490
  4. Shu-kao-sheng-chuan or che second series of the Biographies of eminent Buddhist masters by Tao Hsuan. Nanjio No, 1493
  5. Fu-fa-tsang-yin-yuan-ching or ‘Siitra on the Nidana of transmitting the Dharmapitaka’ (Nanjio No, 1340)

Discussed in this article

People

  • Bodhidharma 3
  • Ch’i Sung
  • Tao Hsuan
  • Hui Neng
  • Hui K’e
  • Emperor Wu Ti
  • Sheng Fu
  • Kumarajiva 8
  • Na Ch’an-shib
  • An Shih-Kao
  • Chih Yao
  • Buddhabhadra
  • Hui Chiao
  • Chi-chia-yeh
  • Sinha Bhiksu

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Article order

In this issue

Vol. 32 · No. 2 & 3
109–114ForewordNarendra Nath Law115–123The Master's Life in StoneRabis C. Kar124–128Dates of Principal Events in the Buddha's LifePrabodh Chandra Sengupta129–135The Buddha and LanguageFranklin Edgerton136–138Phonetic Convergence in PaliMadhusudan Mallik139–140Pali 'maraji': Sanskrit 'smarajic'Sukumar Sen141–147The Buddhist Social IdealsB. G. Gokhale148–162Buddhist Controversy over the Five PropositionsET. Lamotte163–167Some Buddhist Thinkers of AndhraP. S. Sastri168–169Harsa: A BuddhistDasharatha Sharma170–178Some Buddhist Antiquities and Monuments of RajasthanRatna Chandra Agrawala179–210Buddhism in the Classical AgeSudha Sengupta211–222Buddhism in the Sunga PeriodKunja Govinda Goswami223–248Place of Buddhism in Indian ThoughtNalinaksha Dutt249–253Duhkha-SatyaW. Rahula254–260Nirodha-SatyaAnanta Kumar Nyaya-Tarkatirtha261–264PratityasamutpadaAnukul Chandra Banerjee265–269Buddhist PsychologyBratindra Kumar Sengupta270–285Brahman of Sankara and Sunyata of MadhyamikasAjit Ranjan Bhattacharya286–289A rare type of Bodhisattva-Images from SanchiDebala Mitra290–296Scientific Background of the Buddhist TantrasBiswanath Bhattacharya297–303Buddhism in South-East AsiaRamesh Chandra Majumdar304–312Principle of the King's RighteousnessU. N. Ghoshal313–318Buddhism in Ancient KambujadesaB. N. Puri319–323Harivarman's Theory of CognitionN. Aiyaswami Sastri324–328Narayanpur Image of VinayakaTapo Nath Chakravarti329–337Zen Buddhism and BodhidharmaW. PachowCurrent article338–340Buddhist View re. Eternity of the VedasHeramba Chatterjee341–351Pataliputra: Its Importance in the History of BuddhismBinayendranath Chaudhuri352–353An early Buddha Statue from YunnanWalter Liebenthal354–357A Note on the AryadharmadhatugarbhavivaranaSuniti Kumar Pathak

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