Bodhidharma

Bodhidharma is a semi-legendary Buddhist monk traditionally credited with transmitting Chan Buddhism to China and regarded as its first patriarch. Accounts of his life combine sparse historical evidence with later religious traditions.

Chan Buddhism: A Chinese Buddhist tradition emphasizing meditation, direct insight, and transmission beyond scriptural study. Bodhidharma is traditionally named its first patriarch and transmitter in China.
Mahayana: A major Buddhist tradition centered on the bodhisattva ideal and the possibility of awakening for all beings. Bodhidharma’s teachings are situated within this broad Buddhist tradition.
Daoxuan: A seventh-century Chinese Buddhist monk who compiled biographies of eminent monks. His records preserve early accounts relevant to Bodhidharma’s life and reputation.
Bodhidharma’s historical existence: The historical question of whether Bodhidharma was a single monk and what can be known about his life. Sparse early records contrast with the detailed biography found in later tradition.
Shaolin Monastery: A Buddhist monastery in Henan, China, founded in the fifth century and later associated with martial arts. Later legends connect Bodhidharma’s residence there with the monastery’s martial traditions.
Dhyana: A Sanskrit term for meditative absorption, rendered as chán in Chinese and zen in Japanese. The name Chan derives from this meditation tradition associated with Bodhidharma.
Tanlin: A sixth-century Chinese Buddhist monk associated with an early preface to a text attributed to Bodhidharma. His preface offers an early account of Bodhidharma’s teachings and disciple Huike.
Bodhidharma in popular culture: The modern and traditional representations of Bodhidharma in art, folklore, and popular media. Popular images often emphasize legendary traits absent from the earliest accounts.
Treatise on the Two Entrances and Four Practices: A text describing two approaches to awakening and four practices, traditionally attributed to Bodhidharma. It is among the writings most closely associated with his early teachings.
Bodhisattva: A being who seeks awakening for the benefit of all sentient beings, central to Mahayana Buddhism. Mahayana ideals frame the religious world in which Bodhidharma is remembered.

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