"In the north, I was promoted as the leader of the monks and could be called the Dharma King." Shenxiu admitted frankly at this moment, "However, in the Dongchan Temple, the fifth ancestor Hongren did not bring the ancestor Bodhidharma from Tianzhu. Pass the cassock and golden bowl to Lao Na."
Wu Zetian chanted for a while and then asked Shenxiu: "Master Emperor, what is the difference between the Buddhism advocated by Huineng and the Zen method you practice?"
Shenxiu explained: "What Lao Na admires is the 'gradual enlightenment' of painstaking and gradual cultivation, while what Huineng advocates is the 'sudden enlightenment' of seeing one's nature and becoming a Buddha."
Wu Zetian stared straight at Shenxiu, "Are you telling me the truth?"
Shenxiu: "The crime of deceiving the emperor is a heinous crime. How can I have the courage to tell lies in front of the Holy One?"
After Wu Zetian thought about it, he suddenly realized: "Ah, you are different schools of Zen Buddhism."
Shenxiu nodded: "Yes. There has long been a saying among the people that 'the south can show off the north' or 'the south is strong and the north gradually'."
Wu Zetian asked: "Master Emperor, compared with you and Huineng, whose Dharma is superior?"
Shenxiu said solemnly: "The past is like smoke, just as Confucius said, the dead are like a husband. Looking back on everything that happened in Dongchan Temple, comparing the two, and asking yourself, Lao Na's understanding of Buddhist principles and Zen principles is indeed Under Huineng. If Lao Monkey's understanding is compared to Mount Li behind the palace, then Huineng's understanding is like the towering Mount Tai. Moreover..."
Wu Zetian: "Besides what?"
Shenxiu said sincerely: "Besides, Huineng was passed down by his ancestors' sacred objects. No matter from which point of view, Huineng is the real Sixth Patriarch of Zen!"
Wu Zetianba blinked: "Where is the Sixth Patriarch Huineng teaching Dharma now?"
Shenxiu pointed to the south: "I heard that there is Baolin Temple in Shaozhou, Lingnan. Lao Na once sent his personal disciples Fada and Zhicheng to test it out. Unexpectedly, they left and never returned. There is no doubt that they heard this at Baolin Temple. After Hui Neng's Dharma studies, he was inspired by his wisdom and Buddha's heart and studied under Huineng. From the whereabouts of Fa Da and Zhicheng, it can be inferred that Huineng's Zen method is more popular. Your Majesty, you really want to learn Buddhism and practice Zen. , just issue an order to summon Huineng to the palace."
Wu Zetian stood up and gently patted Shenxiu on the shoulder: "Master Emperor, you are worthy of being a world-famous Zen sect."
Shenxiu's originally pale face turned red with shame: "The Holy Master praised me so much, which made me so ashamed. I asked myself, I have no virtue and no ability."
"Ah, it turns out that the real Sixth Patriarch of Zen is now in Lingnan." Wu Zetian said with emotion, and then stared at Shenxiu, "Among the three religions of Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism in the world, those with a little talent are often self-righteous, arrogant, and dismissive of each other. Taboo. What's more, you use ruthless hands to kill people. But Emperor Master, your mind is as open as a hammer, and you do not avoid hatred when you promote talents. You are truly a wise man among men and a pioneer among Buddhas!"
Wu Zetian's sudden move made Shenxiu's face flushed right below her ears.
There was a minister named Zhang Shuo in the imperial court who had always respected Buddhism. One day he saw Shenxiu in the palace and said, "Master, I am determined to learn Buddhism, but I have so many things to do in the court. How can I learn Buddhism as soon as possible?" What about Buddhism?”
Shenxiu pointed at his heart: "Learn here."
Zhang said: "You mean learning with your heart?"
Shenxiu said with a chin: "Exactly. Just listen to me and give you a verse."
Zhang said: "Master Emperor, please read the verse."
Shenxiu recited a verse:
All Buddhism,
It is inherent in your own mind.
Ask outside your heart,
She's father ran away.
Zhang said nodded: "I understand."
The verses Shenxiu wrote at this time directly point to the nature of the mind. This is clearly in line with what he wrote many years ago at Dongchan Temple in Hubei Province: "The body is a bodhi tree, and the mind is like a mirror stand. Always brush it diligently to avoid dust." He has made a big step forward in his practice of becoming a Buddha. This is also the result of his hard enlightenment and understanding of nature in Yuquan Temple in Dangyang.
In the late autumn of the second year, when he saw the yellow leaves broken, the wind blowing off the branches, and the vast land becoming desolate, Shenxiu felt that his end was approaching, and suddenly told his disciples: "My achievements have been completed now, and I will soon enter silence." He went to the Heavenly Palace in Dongdu. Sitting in the temple, it was sunset. Live a hundred years. However, it is "rare in ancient times" for a person to live to be seventy years old. Shenxiu lived to be a hundred years old. This advanced age was even rarer in the world at that time.
On the day of the funeral, it was extremely solemn and glorious. Ceremonies and ritual objects were overwhelming, and the streets were connected for ten miles. Tens of thousands of people, both scholars and common people, walked around to see the funeral in Longmen.
Emperor Zhongzong of the Tang Dynasty led his ministers to personally escort the funeral to the head of Wu Bridge in Luoyang.
Emperor Zhongzong of the Tang Dynasty issued an edict to build a thirteen-level pagoda for Shenxiu on the top of Fushan Mountain in Songyang, and conferred upon him the title of "Zen Master Datong."
