The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp


The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp, often referred to as The Transmission of the Lamp, is a 30 volume work consisting of putative biographies of the Chan patriarchs and other prominent Buddhist monks. It was produced in the Song dynasty by Shi Daoyuan. Other than the Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall, it represents the first appearance of "encounter dialogues" in the Chan tradition, which in turn are the antecedents of the famous kōan stories.
The word Jingde, the first two characters of the title, refers to the Song dynasty reign name, which dates the work to between 1004 and 1007 CE. It is a primary source of information for the history of Chan Buddhism in China, although most scholars interpret the biographies as largely hagiography. The lives of the Zen masters and disciples are systematically listed, beginning with the first seven buddhas. The "Lamp" in the title refers to the "Dharma", the teachings of the Buddhism. A total of 1701 biographies are listed in the book. Volumes 1 to 3 are devoted to the history of Indian Buddhism, and the history of Buddhism in China starts in chapter 4 with Bodhidharma. Volume 29 is a collection of gathas, and volume 30 is a collection of songs and other devotional material.

List of Patriarchs

The Seven Buddhas

  1. Vipashin Buddha
  2. Shikhin Buddha
  3. Vessabhu/Vishvabhu Buddha
  4. Krakucchsnda/Kakusandha Buddha
  5. Kanakamuni/Konagamana Buddha
  6. Kasyapa Buddha
  7. Gotama Buddha

    The Twenty-Eight Indian Patriarchs

  8. Mahakasyapa
  9. Ananda
  10. Sanakavasa
  11. Upagupta
  12. Dhritaka
  13. Michaka
  14. Vasumitra
  15. Buddhanandi
  16. Buddhamitra
  17. Parsva
  18. Punyayasas
  19. Ashvaghosa
  20. Kapimala
  21. Nagarjuna
  22. Kanadeva
  23. Rahulata
  24. Sanghanandi
  25. Gayasata
  26. Kumorata
  27. Jayata
  28. Vasubandhu
  29. Manorhita
  30. Haklena
  31. Aryasimha
  32. Bashyashita
  33. Punyamitra
  34. Prajnatara
  35. Bodhidharma

    Six Chinese Patriarchs

  36. Bodhidharma
  37. Huike
  38. Sengcan
  39. Daoxin
  40. Hongren
  41. Huineng
In addition to the acknowledged Chan patriarchs, the Transmission of the Lamp includes biographies or anecdotes involving a number of other figures known in the Chan/Zen tradition, including members of the Oxhead school, Layman Pang, and influential disciples of Chinese masters who were not recognized as patriarchs.