Bodhidharma

10 Life Lessons

The Dharma Master (c. 440 AD - 528 AD) was a South Indian of the Western Region. He was thethird son of a great Indian king of the Pallava dynasty. His ambition lay in the Mahayana path,and so he put aside his white layman's robe for the black robe of a monk. He subsequently crossed distant mountains and seas, traveling about propagating the teaching in China.

Bodhidharma was said to be originally named Bodhitara. His surname was Chadili. His Indian Dhyana teacher, Prajnatara, is said to have renamed him to Bodhidharma.

“Bodhidharma’s name appears sometimes truncated as Bodhi, or more often as Dharma (Ta-mo).”

Here are 10 Life Lesson from him :

Be present with the things that are already present. Your body, your breath, the tingling inside your hands, the sense of sound, the sense of sight when you simply experience and not divide or label, a plant, a flower, the sky…these are utterly present. Awareness does not need the seer or the seen; it is just pure seeing. If you don’t get this, start with Observing Thought.

Lesson 1 : Be utterly present

“Buddha means awareness, the

awareness of body and mind that

prevents evil from arising in either.”

Zen says that Mind does not exist outside, or inside. It does not exist in the past or in the future. Mindis without boundaries, without limits, and has no central locus. Mind is without variation, obstacle, hindrance, impedance, and is without substance, and is not without substance. Since Mind is withinevery thing, thus the Buddha is within everything. Where you see the Buddha, you see Mind.

Lesson 2 : When you see mind, you see Buddha

“The Buddha is your real body, your original mind.”

Our breath is always with us. Sensations are also always present, even if not noticed. So too, emotions are there for the finding, if one chooses to search. As we progress from watching the breath to sensations to emotions, the challenge grows to stay focused. The sensations come andgo, sometimes here, sometimes there. The biggest challenge, however, is to watch our minds. 

Lesson 3 : Watch your breath

“The mind is always present. You just don't see it.”

We are attached to all needs, we never experience real happiness. Real happiness comes from detachment from all needs. In Zen, the main aim is to liberate ourselves from such detachment. Give it our full attention and keep looking for improvements and then, let go and move on to the next phase.

Lesson 4 : Detach from all needs

The essence of theway is detachment.

To go from mortal to buddha, you have to put an end to karma, nurture your awareness and accept what life brings. If you’re always getting angry, you’ll turn your nature against the Way. There’s no advantage in deceiving yourself. Buddhas move freely through birth and death, appearing and disappearing at will. They can’t be restrained by karma or overcome by devils.

Lesson 5 : Put an end to karma

“To go from mortal toBuddha, you have toput an end to karma,

nurture your awareness, and accept

what life brings.”

Words can’t even describe how good it feels to be LIBERATED from the false… and to actually know the TRUTH about who & what you are. It’s genuine empowerment.  It’s complete self acceptance. Life becomes an easy going, amazing FLOW.  There’s NOTHING more important than for us to free ourselves from the FALSE beliefs we take to be true about ourselves, & the world. 

Lesson 6 : Freeing yourself from words

“Freeing oneself fromwords is liberation.”

If we tell our wife that we love her, that is a seed that we have planted. If we go to work late, that is a seed planted. If we say something in anger, that is a seed planted. Our entire life is spent planting seeds, everyday, year after year, waiting for the harvest. You Need To Plant Good Seeds Early In Your Life!!!

Lesson 7 : Plant good seeds early in your life

“If we should be blessed bysome great reward, such as fame or fortune, it's thefruit of a seed planted by us in the past.”

The reason we practice Zen is to understand ourselves completely and help this world. The suffering we experience in our own lives, and indeed the suffering of our world, comes from our inability to connect with our true self, which is originally compassionate and clear. After Buddha’s enlightenment, he said, "How wondrous! Everybody already has it; they just don't know it." 

Lesson 8 : Reason & practice

“Many roads lead to the path, but

basically there areonly two: reason

and practice.”

No matter what is happening around us, we do not have to react impulsively, but can learn to respond. Giving into automatic negative reactions can become addictive and it's important to learn how to diffuse them. Learning how to remain calm in times of stress will not only make things go more smoothly immediately, it can also, over time, help you lead a healthier, happier life.

Lesson 9 : Remain calm in all situations either good or bad

Those who remain unmoved by the wind of joy silently follow the Path.

The monkey mind is the mind that jumps from one thing to the next, fears, demands, grabs and sabotages our lives. But when we take charge of our focus, we still and dissolve the monkey mind, and we also discover a place within which we can always return, for wisdom, strength and comfort.When we allow the external world to consume us, we are simply giving our natural treasures away.

Lesson 10 : Take charge of our focus

“Buddhas move freely through birth and

death, appearing and disappearing at will.”

Take your time in reading them. Inwardly digest them. Chew on them. Be challenged by them. Don’t discard them, but simply ask yourself ‘what is the lesson I have just learned’ once you have read them. Read them more than once. Seek to understand.

“Not creating delusions is enlightenment. Not engaging in ignorance is wisdom.

Not suffering another existence is reaching the Way.”

Thank You Very MuchSompong Yusoontorn