Shorn of its entertaining anecdotes the legend of Bodhidharma may seem somewhat less exciting, but perhaps that helps it the better to serve as a guide towards the spiritual tranquility of meditation. The Ch'an school takes its name from the Sanskrit word Dhyana, meaning meditation.
一般說到禪，總會想到喝佛罵祖（禪宗後期使人明心見性的方法之一）的禪僧，要不就是令人摸不著頭緒的公案、參話頭（以一句話或一個字來點化人），不過達摩的禪可是十分「素樸」。