I heard something like the Buddha held up a flower but didn’t say anything and only one bhikkhu smiled, indicating enlightenment. Can someone point me to the source of this?
Hi Tom,
It’s Zen Buddhism’s origin story.
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There is an EBT sutta which depicts the instructions given by Buddha to Ven Maha Kassapa. In it the Buddha instructs him on mindfulness of the body - not any special technique.
With metta
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“Therefore, Kassapa, you should train yourself thus: “I will arouse a keen sense of shame and fear of wrongdoing towards elders, the newly ordained, and those of middle status.” Thus should you train yourself.
“‘Therefore, Kassapa, you should train yourself thus: “Whenever I listen to any Dhamma connected with the wholesome, I will listen to it with eager ears, attending to it as a matter of vital concern, applying my whole mind to it.” Thus should you train yourself.
“‘Therefore, Kassapa, you should train yourself thus: “I will never relinquish mindfulness directed to the body associated with joy.” Thus should you train yourself.’
“Then, having given me this exhortation, the Blessed One rose from his seat and departed. For seven days, friend, I ate the country’s almsfood as a debtor, but on the eighth day final knowledge arose.’ SN16.11
With metta
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Since Zen purports to be a special transmission outside scriptures which does not stand upon words I find SN 35:153 intriguing:
“Is there a method of exposition, bhikkhus, by means of which a bhikkhu—apart from faith, apart from personal preference, apart from oral tradition, apart from reasoned reflection, apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it — can declare final knowledge thus: ‘Destroyed is birth, the holy life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, there is no more for this state of being’?”
(…)
There is a method of exposition by means of which a bhikkhu—apart from faith … apart from acceptance of a view after pondering it—can declare final knowledge thus: ‘Destroyed is birth … there is no more for this state of being.’ And what is that method of exposition? Here, bhikkhus, having seen a form with the eye, if there is lust, hatred, or delusion internally, a bhikkhu understands: ‘There is lust, hatred, or delusion internally’; or, if there is no lust, hatred, or delusion internally, he understands: ‘There is no lust, hatred, or delusion internally.’ Since this is so, are these things to be understood by faith, or by personal preference, or by oral tradition, or by reasoned reflection, or by acceptance of a view after pondering it?”
“No, venerable sir.”
“Aren’t these things to be understood by seeing them with wisdom?”
“Yes, venerable sir.”
“This, bhikkhus, is the method of exposition by means of which a bhikkhu can declare final knowledge thus: ‘Destroyed is birth … there is no more for this state of being.’
I recommend the whole sutta. I wonder if it has been a source of inspiration for Zen.
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