The Journey of a Zen Master and the Birth of Kung Fu
Bodhidharma and the Legacy of Shaolin Temple
In the year 496, the emperor of China ordered the construction of the Shaolin Temple on Mount Sung in Honan Province, southeast of Loyang. Many people today believe the temple was built for Bodhidharma, the legendary monk who brought Zen Buddhism to China, but in reality, it was constructed for another Indian meditation master. Despite its historical significance, the temple now stands as a major tourist attraction.
Over the past 1,500 years, many Zen masters have come and gone from Shaolin, but Bodhidharma remains its most famous resident. According to legend, he spent nine years meditating in a cave about a mile from the temple, facing a rock wall on Mount Sung's western Shaoshih Peak. Over time, Shaolin became renowned for its monks' kung fu training, and Bodhidharma is honored as the founder of this martial art. Although he likely taught his disciples some form of yoga, early records do not mention him teaching any specific exercises or martial arts.
By the year 500, Loyang had grown into one of the world's largest cities, with a population exceeding half a million. When Emperor Hsuan-wu died in 516, Empress Dowager Ling took control of the government and ordered the construction of Yung-ning Temple. This grand temple, with its 400-foot-high pagoda, nearly exhausted the imperial treasury. According to Yang Hsuan-chih's account of Loyang's temples written in 547, the golden wind-chimes on the temple's eaves could be heard from three miles away, and the pagoda's spire was visible from over thirty miles away.
Bodhidharma is believed to have visited the capital around 520. He remarked that Yung-ning Temple was the most impressive structure he had ever seen. During his stay in the capital, he likely resided at Yung-ming Temple, a monastery built a few years earlier by Emperor Hsuan-wu to accommodate foreign monks. Before the mass evacuation of Loyang during the collapse of the Northern Wei in 534, Yung-ming Temple housed over 3,000 monks from various countries, including Syria.
Despite Buddhism's growing popularity in China, Bodhidharma found few disciples. Besides Sheng-fu, who moved south shortly after his ordination, only Tao-yu and Hui-k'o are mentioned as his students. They studied with him for five to six years. Tao-yu, who understood the Way, never taught. Bodhidharma passed on the robe and bowl of his lineage, and possibly a copy of Gunabhadra's translation of the Lankavatara Sutra, to Hui-k'o. However, in the sermons attributed to Bodhidharma, he mainly quotes from the Nirvana, Avatamsaka, and Vimalakirti sutras.
According to Tao-yuan, Bodhidharma died in 528 on the fifth day of the tenth month, reportedly poisoned by a jealous monk. An earlier biography by Tao-hsuan only mentions that Bodhidharma died on the banks of the Lo River without specifying the date or cause. Tao-yuan claims Bodhidharma was buried near Loyang at Tinglin Temple on Bear Ear Mountain. Three years later, an official reported seeing Bodhidharma in Central Asia carrying a staff with a single sandal. When monks opened Bodhidharma's tomb, they found only the sandal, leading to the enduring image of Bodhidharma carrying a staff with a sandal hanging from it.
In 534, following the assassination of Emperor Hsiao-wu, the Northern Wei dynasty split into the Western and Eastern Wei dynasties, and Loyang came under attack. Many monks, including Hui-k'o, moved to the Eastern Wei capital of Yeh. There, Hui-k'o met T'an-lin, who had been writing prefaces and commentaries on new translations of Buddhist sutras. After meeting Hui-k'o, T'an-lin became interested in Bodhidharma's teachings and added a preface to the Outline of Practice. In this preface, he noted that Bodhidharma came from Southern India and found only two worthy disciples, Hui-k'o and Tao-yu. He also mentioned that Bodhidharma taught wall meditation and the four practices described in the Outline.Start writing...
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