Bodhidharma - The founder of martial arts

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 Bodhidharma

Period- AD 440 to 528

Bodhidharma was the teacher of Dharma, who came from South India, in the Western Region of China. He was the third son of a great king, Lankavatara Sutra (Sugandan). He is the Zen patriarch and father of martial arts.



Bodhidharma was the third son of the Tamil King Sugandan, also known as Simhavarman of Pallava dynasty, a devoted Buddhist who managed state affairs according to the Buddha's teachings. Bodhidharma was born in Kanchipuram in the Southern Indian Kingdom, today's Tamil Nadu state of India, around year 440. Bodhidharma’s original name was Jayavarman, according to the royal lineage, and his name became Bodhitara at a Buddhist monastery, changed by his master Prajanatara. 
Bodhidharma’s Invention’s
1) Tea - It is more likely that he started the practice of drinking tea among the monks so that they would not fall asleep while meditating. The discovery of tea was ever a story of many dimensions, and the telling of the tale depended on the leaf’s use as medicine, food, or drink. Throughout history, tea was intimately related to deities, demigods, and mortals. In Japan, the monastic use of tea as an aid to meditation was celebrated by linking the plant and its origins to Bodhidharma.
2) Martial Arts - Bodhidharma taught Shaolin monks moving exercises, designed to both enhance chi flow and build strength. These sets, modified from Indian yogas. This gave rise to the legendary art of kung fu. This art was based on the movements of the 18 main animals in Indo-Chinese iconography.
It is hard to say just when the exercises became “martial arts”. The Shaolin Temple was in a secluded area where bandits would have traveled and wild animals were an occasional problem, so the martial side of the temple probably started to fulfill self-defense needs. After a while, these movements were codified into a system of self-defense, which ultimately took the form of kung fu and karate in mainland Japan. Thus, the birth of martial art to the world.
Karate, as we know it today, takes its beginnings from India in the age of the birth of the Buddhist religion. Although they didn’t use the word “karate”, the priests of the early Buddhist temple evolved various spiritual disciplinary systems for the refinement of the body. Bodhidharma in China, around 465 AD, received an audience with the emperor and obtained permission to reside at the Shaolin Szu Monastery in Honan Province. This location became the birthplace of martial arts and eventually named karate at mainland Japan.
3) Zen Buddhism - Bodhidharma, the founder of the Zen tradition of Buddhism and the first Patriarch of Zen Buddhism. Bodhidharma started the Dhyan School of Buddhism, which came to be known as Chan in China and Zen in Japan. Bodhidharma is better known as Damo in China and Daruma in Japan. The famous Daruma doll of Japan, considered a good luck charm, is based on Bodhidharma, with its curly beard and large eyes. 

I am Tamanna Mishra; student of Grade 11 in DPS Dubai. A Technology enthusiast, aspiring to be a game developer with the help of AR/VR technology to use at my digital startup.

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