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Dharma transmission (denbo or denpo in Soto
Soto

Soto Zen , or as it is known in Japan, is one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism. The other two are Rinzai school and Obaku sects. The sect was first established as the Caodong sect during the Tang Dynasty in China by Dongshan Liangjie in the 9th century, which Dogen Zenji then brought to Japan in the 13th century....
 and inka in Rinzai and Obaku
Obaku (school of Buddhism)

The , often termed the third sect of Zen Buddhism in Japan, was established in 1661 by a small faction of masters from China and their Japan students at Mampuku-ji in Uji, Japan....
) refers to "the manner in which the teaching, or Dharma
Dharma

The term , is an Indian Indian philosophy and Indian religions term, that means one's righteous duty or any virtuous path in the common sense of the term....
, is passed from a Zen master
Zen master

Zen master , or Zen teacher, is an umbrella title which refers to an individual who teaches Zen Buddhism to others, and it may be used to refer to individuals hailing from any number of countries and traditions....
 to his disciple and heir. The procedure establishes the disciple as a transmitting teacher in his own right and successor in an unbroken line of teachers and disciples, a spiritual "bloodline" (kechimyaku
Kechimyaku

is a Japanese language term for a lineage chart in Zen Buddhism and some other Japanese schools, documenting the "bloodline" of succession of various masters or listing priests in a particular school....
) theoretically traced back to the Buddha
Gautama Buddha

Siddhartha Gautama was a Spirituality teacher in the northern region of the Indian subcontinent who founded Buddhism. He is generally seen by Buddhists as the Supreme Buddhahood of our age....
 himself." According to Zen
Zen

Zen is a school of Mahayana Buddhism, referred to in Chinese as Ch?n. Ch?n is itself derived from the Sanskrit Dhyana, which means "meditation" ....
 schools, the first instance of Dharma transmission occurred as transcribed in the Flower Sermon
Flower Sermon

Within Zen, and thus from an Emic and etic perspective, the origins of Zen Buddhism are ascribed to what is rendered in English as the "Flower Sermon": in which Sakyamuni Buddha Dharma transmission direct praj?a to the disciple Mahakasyapa....
, when the Buddha held up a golden lotus
Lotus

Lotus may refer to:* Nelumbo, plant genus of true Lotus flowers* Lotus position, cross-legged sitting posture for meditation* Lotus Cars, British sports car manufacturer, and former Formula One Team Lotus...
 flower given to him by Brahma
Brahma (Buddhism)

A in Buddhism is the name for a type of exalted passionless deity , of which there are multiple in Buddhist cosmology....
 before an assembly of "gods and men." None who were in attendance showed any sign of understanding except his disciple Mahakasyapa
Mahakasyapa

Mahakasyapa or Kasyapa was a brahman of Magadha, who became one of the principal disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha Buddha and who convened and directed the first Buddhist Councils....
, who offered only a smile.






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Dharma transmission (denbo or denpo in Soto
Soto

Soto Zen , or as it is known in Japan, is one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism. The other two are Rinzai school and Obaku sects. The sect was first established as the Caodong sect during the Tang Dynasty in China by Dongshan Liangjie in the 9th century, which Dogen Zenji then brought to Japan in the 13th century....
 and inka in Rinzai and Obaku
Obaku (school of Buddhism)

The , often termed the third sect of Zen Buddhism in Japan, was established in 1661 by a small faction of masters from China and their Japan students at Mampuku-ji in Uji, Japan....
) refers to "the manner in which the teaching, or Dharma
Dharma

The term , is an Indian Indian philosophy and Indian religions term, that means one's righteous duty or any virtuous path in the common sense of the term....
, is passed from a Zen master
Zen master

Zen master , or Zen teacher, is an umbrella title which refers to an individual who teaches Zen Buddhism to others, and it may be used to refer to individuals hailing from any number of countries and traditions....
 to his disciple and heir. The procedure establishes the disciple as a transmitting teacher in his own right and successor in an unbroken line of teachers and disciples, a spiritual "bloodline" (kechimyaku
Kechimyaku

is a Japanese language term for a lineage chart in Zen Buddhism and some other Japanese schools, documenting the "bloodline" of succession of various masters or listing priests in a particular school....
) theoretically traced back to the Buddha
Gautama Buddha

Siddhartha Gautama was a Spirituality teacher in the northern region of the Indian subcontinent who founded Buddhism. He is generally seen by Buddhists as the Supreme Buddhahood of our age....
 himself." According to Zen
Zen

Zen is a school of Mahayana Buddhism, referred to in Chinese as Ch?n. Ch?n is itself derived from the Sanskrit Dhyana, which means "meditation" ....
 schools, the first instance of Dharma transmission occurred as transcribed in the Flower Sermon
Flower Sermon

Within Zen, and thus from an Emic and etic perspective, the origins of Zen Buddhism are ascribed to what is rendered in English as the "Flower Sermon": in which Sakyamuni Buddha Dharma transmission direct praj?a to the disciple Mahakasyapa....
, when the Buddha held up a golden lotus
Lotus

Lotus may refer to:* Nelumbo, plant genus of true Lotus flowers* Lotus position, cross-legged sitting posture for meditation* Lotus Cars, British sports car manufacturer, and former Formula One Team Lotus...
 flower given to him by Brahma
Brahma (Buddhism)

A in Buddhism is the name for a type of exalted passionless deity , of which there are multiple in Buddhist cosmology....
 before an assembly of "gods and men." None who were in attendance showed any sign of understanding except his disciple Mahakasyapa
Mahakasyapa

Mahakasyapa or Kasyapa was a brahman of Magadha, who became one of the principal disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha Buddha and who convened and directed the first Buddhist Councils....
, who offered only a smile. According to Ronald B. Epstein, the Buddha then said, "I have the right Dharma Eye Treasury, the wondrous mind of nirvana, the reality beyond appearance. The Dharma-door of mind to mind transmission has been entrusted to Kasyapa." Epstein comments, "Thus Mahakasyapa received the transmission of Dharma and became the first Buddhist patriarch." Speculation over what the Buddha transmitted to Mahakasyapa has taken place ever since, though "[e]ndless speculations will not reveal it—it is to be discovered each for him or herself, in the course of Zen training." It should also be stated that, "... dharma transmission really entails no transmission at all in the sense of something being passed from one person to another, only the awakening of the disciple to the true nature of his or her own being and a mystical realization of identity with all the Buddhas and patriarchs."

Inka

Dharma transmission is sometimes juxtaposed with the term inka
Inka

, is a term used in Zen Buddhism to denote a high-level of certification, and literally means "the legitimate seal of clearly furnished proof." In ancient times inka usually came in the form of an actual document, but this practice is no longer commonplace....
, though such a combination of terms can be misleading and cause confusion when not applied to the proper tradition. In the Soto
Soto

Soto Zen , or as it is known in Japan, is one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism. The other two are Rinzai school and Obaku sects. The sect was first established as the Caodong sect during the Tang Dynasty in China by Dongshan Liangjie in the 9th century, which Dogen Zenji then brought to Japan in the 13th century....
 school a student receives Dharma transmission during a denbo ceremony, which is the last ceremony of their shiho
Shiho

refers to a series of ceremonies in Soto Zen Buddhism wherein which a priest receives full ordination?inheriting the dharma from their master and empowered to transmit the precepts and lineage to others....
 ceremony. T. Griffith Foulk writes of the practice as it is in Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
, stating, "The usual practice...is for a Soto monk to be given Dharma transmission by the priest who ordained him (in most cases his own father), after he returns from his minimum period of monastery training. Because Dharma transmission is a prerequisite to becoming the head priest of a Soto branch temple, virtually all Soto priests meet this ritual requirement at a relatively early stage in their careers." Inka most often denotes the completion of some sort of koan
Koan

A koan is a narrative, dialogue, question, or statement in the history and lore of Ch?n Buddhism, generally containing aspects that are inaccessible to rationality understanding, yet may be accessible to intuition ....
 curriculum.

In the Rinzai school of Zen, inka is the official indicator of mastery and denotes an individual who has successfully completed koan study and received the title roshi. According to Peter Matthiessen
Peter Matthiessen

Peter Matthiessen is a two-time National Book Award-winning United States novelist and nonfiction writer as well as an environmental activist. He frequently focuses on Native Americans in the United States issues and history, as in his detailed study of the Leonard Peltier case, In the Spirit of Crazy Horse....
, "In the Rinzai tradition, inka is equivalent to dharma transmission and is bestowed upon completion of formal study." Soko Morinaga
Soko Morinaga

Soko Morinaga was a Rinzai Zen roshi. He was head of Hanazono University and abbot of Daishu-in in Kyoto, one of the twenty-four sub-temples of the Daitoku-ji temple complex....
 agrees with Matthiessen, writing, "Inka is the seal of the authentic transmission of Dharma, which is the Law of the universe and the teaching of Shakyamuni."

In the Kwan Um School of Zen
Kwan Um School of Zen

The Kwan Um School of Zen is an international school of Zen centers and groups, founded in 1983 by Seung Sahn Soen Sa Nim. The school's international head Buddhist temple is located at the Providence Zen Center in Cumberland, Rhode Island, which was founded in 1972 shortly after Seung Sahn first came to the United States ....
, inka is granted to an individual who has completed their koan training and is granted the title Ji Do Poep Sa Nim. Dharma transmission in the Kwan Um School of Zen comes after inka, denoting the individual is now a Soen Sa Nim. Seung Sahn
Seung Sahn

Seung Sahn Haeng Won Dae Soen-sa , born Dok-In Lee, was a Korean people Jogye Zen master and founder of the international Kwan Um School of Zen?the largest school of Zen present in the Western world....
 himself is quoted saying, "Inka and transmission are different. Our 'Ji Do Poep Sa Nim' title is like the Japanese title 'sensei.' In Korea, we call it 'Chong Yong Sun'—your practice is okay, teaching other people is possible. This title has almost disappeared in Korea, although it still exists in China. In Korea we now have the title 'Ip Sung Sunim.'—'head monk.'"

Similarly, in the Sanbo Kyodan
Sanbo Kyodan

Sanbo Kyodan is an independent laypeople school of Japanese Zen in the Soto tradition, employing approaches from both the Rinzai and Soto schools....
 and White Plum Asanga
White Plum Asanga

White Plum Asanga, sometimes termed White Plum Sangha, is the lineage of the late Hakuyu Taizan Maezumi, utilizing a synthesis of Soto and Rinzai and comprised of Maezumi's Dharma heirs and many of their subsequent successors and students....
, Dharma transmission qualifies one as a sensei
Sensei

is a Japanese language Japanese titles used to refer to or address teachers, professors, professionals such as lawyers and Physicians, politicians, clergyman, and other figures of authority....
, while inka denotes a level of mastery wherein which the sensei is granted the title of roshi
Roshi

is a Japanese language honorific title used in Zen Buddhism that literally means "old teacher" or "elder master" and usually denotes the person who gives spiritual guidance to a Zen sangha....
. Thich Nhat Hanh has created a ritual known as "Lamp Transmission", making a teacher a Dharmacharya—an individual with "limited teaching authority." According to author James Ishmael Ford
James Ishmael Ford

James Ishmael Ford is an American Zen Buddhism and Unitarian Universalism. He was born in Oakland, California on July 17, 1948. He earned a BA in psychology from Sonoma State University, as well as an MDiv and an MA in the Philosophy of Religion, both from the Pacific School of Religion....
, "Regarding the issue of Dharma transmission, Thich Nhat Hanh has said no single student will succeed him. Instead his community of practice will itself be his successor. He is quoted as saying Maitreya
Maitreya

Maitreya or Metteyya is a future Buddhahood of this world in Buddhist eschatology. In some Buddhist literature, such as the Amitabha Sutra and the Lotus Sutra, he is referred to as Ajita Bodhisattva....
, the Buddha of future birth, may be a community of practice rather than an individual. What this actually means will only become apparent over the next decades."

See also

  • Dharma
    Dharma

    The term , is an Indian Indian philosophy and Indian religions term, that means one's righteous duty or any virtuous path in the common sense of the term....
  • Inka
    Inka

    , is a term used in Zen Buddhism to denote a high-level of certification, and literally means "the legitimate seal of clearly furnished proof." In ancient times inka usually came in the form of an actual document, but this practice is no longer commonplace....
  • Kechimyaku
    Kechimyaku

    is a Japanese language term for a lineage chart in Zen Buddhism and some other Japanese schools, documenting the "bloodline" of succession of various masters or listing priests in a particular school....
  • Lineage (Buddhism)
    Lineage (Buddhism)

    A lineage in Buddhism is a record of teachers and their disciples, or students. Several branches of Buddhism, including Zen and Tibetan Buddhism maintain records of their historical teachers who, according to the traditional history of that school, have passed the Dharma, or Buddhist teachings, from generation to generation in an unbroken lin...
  • Mushi dokugo
    Mushi dokugo

    Mushi dokugo, sometimes called jigo jisho, is a Japanese language term used in Zen Buddhism which expresses the phenomenon known as "awakening alone, without a master." It is "usually considered suspect since the risk of self-delusion or 'fake-Zen' is always high." According to William M....
  • Shiho
    Shiho

    refers to a series of ceremonies in Soto Zen Buddhism wherein which a priest receives full ordination?inheriting the dharma from their master and empowered to transmit the precepts and lineage to others....
  • Wang (Tibetan Buddhism)


External links

  • Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede discusses lineage and Dharma transmission.
  • Stuart Lachs criticizes Dharma transmission in Zen