Busso
Introduction
Busso (佛祖, "Buddhas and Patriarchs") is the fifty-second fascicle of Dōgen Zenji's Shōbōgenzō. This is a concise but powerful chapter that presents the entire lineage of buddhas and patriarchs — from the seven buddhas of the past through the twenty-eight Indian patriarchs and the twenty-three Chinese patriarchs down to Dōgen's own teacher Rujing — as a single living body of the dharma.
The chapter is structured as a litany of names, each preceded by the honorific "Great Monk" (大和尚), beginning with Vipaśyin Buddha and ending with Rujing, the eighteenth Chinese patriarch. Dōgen states that he "exhaustively bowed to and received these buddhas and patriarchs" while in summer retreat at Tiantong monastery in 1225, under Rujing's guidance. The transmission is not a list of historical figures — it is the direct, ongoing activity of the buddha-dharma, realized in the single moment of face-to-face encounter.
The chapter concludes with Dōgen's signature colophon: "The Treasury of the True Dharma Eye, Fascicle Fifty-Two, Buddhas and Patriarchs. Written on the third day of the first month, in the second year of the Ninji era (1241), at Kannondori Kōshō Hōrin Temple in Uji, Yamashiro Province, and preached to the assembly." The entire lineage, from the ancient buddhas to the present assembly, is one body, one eye, one mind.
The venerable practice of bowing to the buddhas and ancestors is to respectfully behold them by raising and presenting the buddhas and ancestors. This is not limited to the past, present, and future; it must be even more venerable than the buddha-venerable. Precisely by presenting the face of the buddhas and ancestors as it is maintained and upheld, one bows and meets them. The merit of the buddhas and ancestors is manifested and presented, and has been maintained, upheld, embodied, and verified.
Venerable Master Vipaśyin Buddha, also called Expansive Discourse; Venerable Master Śikhin Buddha, also called Fire; Venerable Master Viśvabhū Buddha, also called All-Kindness; Venerable Master Krakucchanda Buddha, also called Golden Ascetic; Venerable Master Kanakamuni Buddha, also called Golden-Colored Ascetic; Venerable Master Kāśyapa Buddha, also called Light-Drinker; Venerable Master Śākyamuni Buddha, also called Able to Endure Silence; Venerable Master Mahākāśyapa; Venerable Master Ānanda; Venerable Master Śāṇavāsa; Venerable Master Upagupta; Venerable Master Dhṛṭaka; Venerable Master Miccaka; Venerable Master Vasumitra; Venerable Master Buddhanandi; Venerable Master Buddhamitra; Venerable Master Pārśva; Venerable Master Punyayaśas; Venerable Master Aśvaghoṣa; Venerable Master Kapimala; Venerable Master Nāgārjuna, also called Dragon Tree, Dragon Victor, Dragon Vigor; Venerable Master Kānadeva; Venerable Master Rāhulata; Venerable Master Saṅghanandi; Venerable Master Gayāśata; Venerable Master Kumārata; Venerable Master Jayata; Venerable Master Vasubandhu; Venerable Master Manorhita; Venerable Master Haklenayaśas; Venerable Master Siṃha; Venerable Master Vaśaṣita; Venerable Master Puṇyamitra; Venerable Master Prajñātāra; Venerable Master Bodhidharma; Venerable Master Huike; Venerable Master Sengcan; Venerable Master Daoxin; Venerable Master Hongren; Venerable Master Huineng; Venerable Master Xingsi; Venerable Master Xiqian; Venerable Master Weiyan; Venerable Master Tansheng; Venerable Master Liangjie; Venerable Master Daoying; Venerable Master Daopi; Venerable Master Guanzhi; Venerable Master Yuanguan; Venerable Master Jingxuan; Venerable Master Yiqing; Venerable Master Daokai; Venerable Master Zichun; Venerable Master Qingliao; Venerable Master Zongjue; Venerable Master Zhijian; Venerable Master Rujing [Twenty-third Generation in the Eastern Land].
In the summer retreat of the first year of Baoqing of the Great Song dynasty, corresponding to the year kinoto-tori, I attended my former teacher, the Ancient Buddha, Venerable Master Tiantong, and exhaustively investigated this matter of bowing to and receiving the buddhas and ancestors. It is only buddha together with buddha.
Translated from classical Japanese based on the text established by the SAT database (Shinshū Taishōzō Taikei Database), University of Tokyo. Shōbōgenzō, fascicle 52. Eihei Dōgen Zenji (1200–1253).