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legend says that in the distant future, after the Dharma has died away, a new
Buddha named Maitreya will arise in the world. At that time, Maitreya will come to
this mountain and awaken Mahakasyapa who will pass on to him the robe which he
had worn throughout his life which had been given to him by his Teacher,
Sakyamuni.
In the Daibonten-o-monbutsu-ketsugi-kyo, Sutra of Questions and Answers
between Mahabrahman and the Buddha, there occurs this famous passage.
Then Sakyamuni Buddha, on Vulture Peak Mountain in the western lands, in
the midst of an assembly of millions, held up an udumbara flower and
blinked. At that moment the Venerable Mahakasyapa smiled. Then Sakyamuni
Buddha said, “I hold the Treasury of the Eye of True Utter Reality, the
luminous Awareness beyond reference point. This I transmit to
Mahakasyapa.”
This is what Mahakasyapa is primarily remembered by in the Zen tradition:
the wordless Transmission between Teacher and student. In Menju: Face-to-Face
Transmission, Dogen zenji says,
Sakyamuni Buddha’s direct meeting with Mahakasyapa intimately entrusted
him with this transmission. Even Ananda or Rahula are not equal to this
intimate endowment to Mahakasyapa. The great bodhisattvas are unable to
match the intimacy of the transmission to Mahakasyapa and are unable to sit
in Mahakasyapa’s seat. The Generous One and Mahakasyapa sat together on
the same seat and wore the same robe, thus fulfilling the Awakening activity
of life. Thus Venerable Mahakasyapa intimately received the Generous One’s
transmission directly face to face, mind to mind, body to body, and eye to
eye. Mahakasyapa offered Sakyamuni Buddha veneration and prostrations.
Mahakasyapa pulverized his bones and shattered his body through a thousand
myriad changes. His face was no longer a face and so he received the
Tathagata’s face by means of face-to-face transmission.
In the Denkoroku, Keizan Jokin zenji says, “what happened before the
assembly on Vulture Peak, the Transmission spoken of there, only confirms what
occurred at the Tashi tower.”
From the first meeting between Sakyamuni Buddha and Mahakasyapa there
was a process of alignment, the entwining of vines that Dogen zenji spoke of in
Katto. Raising the flower and blinking, Sakyamuni points. Seeing, Mahakasyapa
understands. And smiles.
Mahakasyapa gave us the Transmission of the continuous practice of the
ceaseless activity of Reality as a smile.
Please, this evening, enjoy yourselves.