Home / Authors / Bodhidharma

Bodhidharma

Bodhidharma Quotes

Biographer

Bodhidharma, also known as Daruma, is one of the founders of Chan Buddhism (Zen). He is believed to be from South India and is venerated as the 'First Patriarch of Chan in the East'. His life story is largely mythologized, and his exact birth and death dates are unknown.

Filter quotes by topic

All Mind Ifs Way Dharma Knows Awareness Body Delusion Form People Real Understanding Evil Karma Long Looks Mortals Practice Reality Suffering

Famous Bodhidharma Quotes

“To go from mortal to Buddha, you have to put an end to karma, nurture your awareness, and accept what life brings.”

Life Ends Accepting Awareness Karma Mortals Nurture Dharma Goes Around Comes Around

Book:The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

Source: The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

“Buddha means awareness, the awareness of body and mind that prevents evil from arising in either.”

Mind Mean Body Evil Awareness Mind And Body

Book:The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

Source: The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

“Not thinking about anything is zen. Once you know this, walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, everything you do is zen. To know that the mind is empty is to see the buddha.... Using the mind to reality is delusion. Not using the mind to look for reality is awareness. Freeing oneself from words is liberation.”

Thinking Knows Mind Looks Reality Lying Awareness Walking Sitting Standing Empty Oneself Liberation Delusion Lying Down

Book:The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

Source: The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

“A buddha is someone who finds freedom in good fortune and bad. Such is his power that karma can't hold him. No matter what kind of karma, a buddha transforms it. Heaven and hell are nothing to him. But the awareness of a mortal is dim compared to that of a buddha, who penetrates everything, inside and out.”

Kind Matter Heaven Hell Awareness No Matter What Fortune Karma Mortals Penetrate Good Fortune Heaven And Hell

Author:Bodhidharma

“If you see your nature, you don't need to read sutras or invoke buddhas. Erudition and knowledge are not only useless but also cloud your awareness. Doctrines are only for pointing to the mind. Once you see your mind, why pay attention to doctrines?”

Ifs Needs Mind Nature Pay Attention Awareness Clouds Doctrine Pay Attention Useless Pointing Invoke Erudition

Book:The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

Source: The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

“But this mind isn't somewhere outside the material body of the four elements. Without this mind we can't move. The body has no awareness. Like a plant or a stone, the body has no nature. So how does it move? It's the mind that moves.”

Mind Doe Body Moving Four Awareness Materials Elements Stones Plant Four Elements

Book:The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

Source: The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

“The awareness of mortals falls short. As long as they're attached to appearances, they're unaware that their minds are empty. And by mistakenly clinging to the appearance of things they lose the Way.”

Way Mind Long Fall Loses Awareness Empty Appearance Mortals Clinging

Author:Bodhidharma

“But when you first embark on the Path, your awareness won't be focused. You're likely to see all sorts of strange, dreamlike scenes. But you shouldn't doubt that all such scenes come from your own mind and nowhere else.”

Mind Firsts Path Doubt Awareness Strange Scene Focused

Book:The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

Source: The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

“Delusion means mortality. And awareness means Buddhahood.”

Mean Awareness Delusion Mortality

Book:The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

Source: The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

About the Author

Known for: Biographer
Quotes: 104

Related Topics

Mind Ifs Way Dharma Knows Awareness Body Delusion Form People Real Understanding Evil Karma Long Looks Mortals Practice Reality Suffering

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

The Zen Teaching of BodhidharmaRelated source material

Similar Authors

Tenzin PalmoBrowse related quotes
Geshe Kelsang GyatsoBrowse related quotes
Sri Nisargadatta MaharajBrowse related quotes
Thubten YesheBrowse related quotes
MoojiBrowse related quotes
DogenBrowse related quotes
Ajahn ChahBrowse related quotes
Huangbo XiyunBrowse related quotes
Shunryu SuzukiBrowse related quotes
HuinengBrowse related quotes