Shakyamuni Buddha was the originator and Master in the line of 52 Ancestors or Patriarchs - as they have been called - in the Soto Zen Buddhist tradition. Each successive ancestor represents a generation of the teaching of the UNBORN and how it was passed down to each successive Master in the line of the transmission. Although not much is known about the lives of many of these great Patriarchs, the moment of transmission was preserved due to the diligent efforts of the Master Keizan Zenji when in 1300 he began writing The Denkoroku: The Record of the Transmission of Light to record each moment of enlightenment for future generations of monks.
Origination of Soto Zen Ceremonies
Most of the religious ceremonies used in the Soto Zen Tradition were written by the Master Keizan Zenji who was author of many works including the Sankon-Zazen-Setsu and Denkoroku.
Becoming Chief Abbot of Shogakuji Monastery in 1321, he’d lived a life of great devotion to reach this great pinnacle. In 1267, he was born in the Fukui Prefecture. Entering a monastery in Eiheiji, he learned from Koun Ejyo and Tettsu Gikai. He became one of the greatest of the Soto Zen Ancestors with his greatest work having been to document the line of the transmission of the Way all the way back to Shakyamuni Buddha. The Shogakuji Monastery was later made one of the two primary temples in Japan for the Soto Zen Church.
Transmission of the Way
Recording the actual moment in which the Way was transmitted from one successive generation of Masters to the next The Denkoroku: The Record of the Transmission of Light shows the continuum of Zen Transmission for 52 generations. Every story contains the exact narrative on record as to the exact manner in which each of the great ancestors and patriarchs received the TEACHING and understood the UNBORN.
Saint Daimon Konon, The Thirty Second Ancestor
“When Konin encountered Doshin on the road to Obai, Doshin asked him, ‘What is your clan name?’ Konin said, ‘I have a NATURE but I do not have a conventional clan name.’ Doshin asked, ‘And what is IT?’ Konin replied, ‘It is the BUDDHA NATURE.’ Doshin queried, ‘So you have no clan name?’ Konin answered, ‘Because ORIGINAL NATURE is empty, I do not.’ Doshin fell silent realizing that Konin was a vessel for the Teaching and that it was to him that he would Transmit the Teaching and the Kesa.” The Denkoroku: The Record of the Transmission of Light.
Daimon Konin’s name means ‘He of Magnificent Endurance’ and was from Obal in Kishu. Daimon Konin was only seven years old when he left his mother to become a monk under the training of Doshin. Doshin recognized Konin as the reincarnation of an old man he had instructed to return to him in his next life. He would be waiting for him in order to teach him of the Way.
“The moon is so resplendent, the water so pure,
the autumn sky so clear;
How could there be even a whisp of cloud
To bespeck the GREAT IMMACULACY?”
Keizan Zenji summarizes the teaching of Daiman Konin
Sources: The Denkoroku: The Record of the Transmission of Light – Keizan Zenji, Shasta Abbey Buddhist Monastery
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