During the many years that Bodhidharma had studied as a monk, one of his older brothers had become king of India and that older brother’s son had become king after him. The king of India was very fond of his uncle and wanted to make amends for the actions which Bodhidharma’s older brothers had taken against him. He asked Bodhidharma to stay near the capital, where he could protect and care for him, but Bodhidharma knew that he must go to China as his master had said. China was most populated and the most civilized nation of its time. Also Buddhism had entered China several hundred years prior to the arrival of Bodhidharma but it was still struggling to become fully entrenched as an accepted religion.
Seeing that Bodhidharma would not remain, the king of India ordered that carrier pigeons be sent to China with messages asking the people of China to take care of Bodhidharma. These messages made Bodhidharma famous among many Chinese who wondered what was so special about this particular Buddhist monk that the king of India would make such a request
Bodhidharma travelled from south India by sea to Sumatra, Indonesia for the purpose of spreading the Mahayana doctrine. From Palembang, he went north into what are now Malaysia and Thailand. He travelled the region transmitting his knowledge of Buddhism and martial arts before eventually entering China through Vietnam. In China, he was known as Da Mo. Bodhidharma arrived in China practicing Da Sheng (Mahayana) Buddhism.
When Bodhidharma arrived, he was greeted by a large crowd of people who had heard of the famous Buddhist master and wished to hear him speak. Rather than speak, Bodhidharma sat down and began meditating. He meditated for many hours. Upon completing his meditation, Bodhidharma rose and walked away, saying nothing.
His actions had a profound effect upon his audience. Some people laughed, some cried, some were angry and some nodded their heads in understanding. Regardless of the emotion, everyone in the crowd had a reaction.
This incident made Bodhidharma even more famous, so famous that Emperor Wu heard of him. Emperor Wu, who ruled over the southern kingdom of China, invited Bodhidharma to come to his palace. Bodhidharma resided a while in the court of the
Emperor Wu Dai (465-550). Similar Posts :
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Bodhidharma Travel to China
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