Vasubandhu
Vasubandhu
c. 316 – c. 396
Vasubandhu, the twenty-first patriarch of the Chan lineage, should be distinguished from the more historically prominent philosopher Vasubandhu of the Yogacara school, though their names and periods may overlap in complex ways within Buddhist chronology. The Chan Vasubandhu is the disciple of Jayata and teacher of Manorhita, positioned in the lineage as a faithful transmitter of direct experience.
As with many of the later Indian patriarchs, the historical details of his life are embedded within hagiographic tradition. The Chan lineage through these figures is not primarily a historical document but a living affirmation that the recognition of mind's true nature has been passed from person to person without break from the time of Shakyamuni to the present. Vasubandhu transmitted this recognition to Manorhita.
Teachings
- sayingOn Consciousness-Only and the Three Natures
All that we experience is nothing but consciousness. What appears as an external world is the transformation of consciousness itself. There are three natures to be understood: the imagined nature, which is the false construction of self and dharmas where none exist; the dependent nature, which is the arising of consciousness through causes and conditions; and the perfected nature, which is the dependent nature free from the imagined. When the imagined is removed from the dependent, what remains is the perfected—suchness itself. This is the meaning of consciousness-only: not that nothing exists, but that nothing exists in the way we imagine it to.
Master Record Sources
- datesZen Editorial Overlay - Originals Curation
c. 316-396 CE
- nameZen Editorial Overlay - Originals Curation
Vasubandhu
- schoolZen Editorial Overlay - Originals Curation
Indian Patriarchs
- teachersZen Editorial Overlay - Originals Curation
Jayata