Zen Buddhism and Martial Arts

From Buddha World

Bodhidharma is associated with the idea that spiritual, intellectual and physical excellence are an indivisible whole necessary for enlightenment. Such an approach to enlightenment ultimately proved highly attractive to the Samurai class in Japan, who made Zen their way of life, following their encounter with the martial-arts-oriented Zen Rinzai School introduced to Japan by Eisai in the 12th century. Yet in some versions of his legend, Bodhidharma's focus was so single-minded during his nine years of meditation that his legs atrophied. Bodhidharma is credited with the establishment of the Zen sect of Mahayana Buddhism. Bodhidharma arrived in China during the 5th century. He stayed and taught for several years in the Shaolin temple. The pavilion named after Bodhidharma is in the main building of the Shaolin monastery, the First patriarch temple built in his honor stands in the monastery complex some distance from the main building, and the cave behind the building is called the Bodhidharma cave. The koan "What is the intention of the first patriarch coming from the west?" is frequently used to test the student' development in Zen cultivation. Dumoulin (2005) argues that Zen also has roots in yogic practices, specifically kammaṭṭhāna, the consideration of objects, and kasiṇa, total fixation of the mind. Wong Kiew Kit, 4th generation successor of the Southern Shaolin Monastery writes:

It was during this time that the Venerable Bodhidharma came from India to China to spread Buddhism. In 527 CE he settled down in the Shaolin monastery in Henan province, and inspired the development of Shaolin Kung Fu. This marked a watershed in the history of Kung Fu, because it led to a change of course, as Kung Fu became institutionalized. Before this, martial arts were known only in general sense.

Chinese martial arts, like the martial arts of India, have existed before the arrival of Bodhidharma. Bodhidharma's status in martial arts is due to his role in the institutionalization of Chinese martial arts, presumably by introducing exercises, meditation, discipline, newer techniques etc. to the native fighting methods during his tenure at the Shaolin monastery. It has been suggested that these techniques which are the foundation for many martial arts today were never originally intended to be utilized as methods of fighting but were a manner in which the monks could attain enlightenment while preserving their bodies' health. Gichin Funakoshi writes that during lectures on Buddhism, a number of Bodhidharma's followers succumbed to exhaustion. Daruma then presented method of developing the mind and body. With it, the monks were able to recover their spiritual and physical strength. By the end of the Tang dynasty, these exercises were extensively developed by the monks and were used in basic self defense applications that were evasive and non-confrontational. The growing concern for safety and practical self defence led to the development of more efficient martial arts. Techniques were absorbed (mostly from Indian martial arts, Mongolian Shuai Jiao, and Muslim defensive systems) and combined with the arts already created to develop quanfa, known as Luohanquan.