Suio Genro Daruma Painting with Inscription

[Iaido dude]

 

Suio Genro (遂翁元盧, 1717-1790) became a disciple of Hakuin Ekaku at age 30. After the death of his master, he took over the Shōinji Temple. His calligraphy and painting reflect his master's style and depictions, especially of Daruma. This example, a favorite in my collection, is a decided departure from the depiction of a somewhat comically "clueless" patriarch and has much of the fierceness of Fugai Ekun's depiction especially in the eyes, and the flying white strokes that define the body are more angular and powerful. This is a more commanding and intimidating visage, which appears to have been inspired by both masters. However, his calligraphic style owes much to Hakuin. The inscription is of the classic Zen teaching regarding the non-verbal transmission of the mind/heart from master to disciple, traditionally attributed to Daruma. The third and fourth lines frequently accompany the Daruma paintings of Hakuin and Yamaoka Tesshu.

 

A special transmission outside the scriptures, (kyōge betsuden 教外別傳)

not founded upon words and letters, (furyū monji 不立文字)
[Zen] points directly to the human heart/mind, (jikishi ninshin 直指人心)
see into your nature, become Buddha! (kenshō jōbutsu 見性成佛)

What does it mean to have a non-verbal transmission? I have asked Kenneth Kushner Roshi (Chosei Zen Dojo, Madison, WI) about this in relation to koan study. Rather than the common understanding of koans as puzzles or riddles, they are most commonly a record of direct encounters between master and student in a question/answer format, collected and widely distributed for centuries as a way to bring the immediacy of the Zen teaching character of great masters into the practice of future generations. It is the closest we can know of having an actual conversation with important Zen masters and Patriachs of the foundational Ch'an Buddhist lineage. The Rinzai school places a greater emphasis on koan study than the Soto school. Kushner Roshi says that when a student provides the "answer" to an assigned koan in face-to-face meetings, it is not through an intellectual or clever verbal explanation that the teacher recognizes a penetration of the koan. Rather, the enlightenment experience of seeing to the nature of the self (kensho) is expressed through evidence of a transformative and often physical experience that is ineffable, but that this is readily apparent to the teacher. Having not embarked on koan study, it is difficult for me to describe what this experience is like. However, even if I were engaged in such study, it is likely that I would not be able to do much better by way of explanation. This is truly a "special transmission" that is "not founded upon words and letters."

Fugai Ekun 

 

Yamaoka Tesshu                   

 

Hakuin Ekaku

Edited November 11 by Iaido dude

[Iaido dude]