Hui Neng couldn't bear it, stopped and wanted to turn around. But when I thought about going back this time, I couldn't leave, so I walked out of the yard ruthlessly. The song is faint, like an elf in the moonlight, floating down from the depths of the ethereal universe, echoing in Huineng's soul, with a touch of sadness and confusion...
Hui Neng spent the night in Xiaoxiao. When he was hungry, he picked wild fruits from the mountains to satisfy his hunger. When he was thirsty, he went to the stream to grab a handful of water and drank it. In this way, Huineng walked for more than a month and finally arrived at the boundary of Qizhou Huangmei. What is unfolding in front of you is a roiling river lying in front of you.
On the other side of the river, only two towering peaks can be seen, facing each other by the river.
"Ah, Dongshan has arrived!" This is consistent with what Master Shi Hui of Jintai Temple in Xinzhou told him about the topography of Dongshan in Qizhou. Because Dongshan has two peaks standing side by side, it is also called Shuangfeng Mountain. On the two peaks shrouded in clouds and mist, there are palaces and temples vaguely hidden among the white clouds and green trees. The place of pilgrimage is not far away, and the Buddha who has long been wanted to see is about to appear in front of him. Hui Neng felt inexplicably excited, and the fatigue from the long journey was gone.
After crossing the river, Huineng climbed up the stone steps, and the three characters "Dongzen Temple" came into view.
This Dongchan Temple was originally built by Huan Yi, the governor of Jiangzhou, for Zen Master Mengyuan. It has been continuously expanded through the generations, and its scale has gradually grown. It also became famous because of the arrival of famous monks as abbots, and it became a famous Buddhist temple. At this time, Master Hongren, the Fifth Patriarch, served as the abbot here. After opening a Taoist temple, he opened the door widely and attracted many followers, causing a sensation across the country and attracting believers from all over. There are more than a thousand permanent disciples in the temple.
Huineng entered the "Tiantian Gate" and saw the temple halls with green bricks and green tiles built against the mountain, layer upon layer, showing a bit of solemnity in their simplicity.
Climbing up the stairs, we passed through the winding corridors of the temple. On the way, Huineng marveled in his heart that Dongchan Temple was much more powerful than Jintai Temple in Xinzhou.
Huineng saw the scene inside through a brown door lattice carved with flowers.
In the main hall, red candles were burning high and cigarette smoke was wisps, but there was silence inside.
Nearly a thousand monks lined up in many rows and sat on futons. All eyes were focused on the throne of the pulpit, listening attentively.
On the big red throne of the pulpit, an old monk who was over fifty years old sat cross-legged. His face was slightly round and red, his gray eyebrows rolled to both sides, and his chin had a long beard. He was explaining Buddhism to his disciples. He is the world-famous fifth-generation founder of Zen Buddhism, Master Hongren.
Master Hongren did not stick to old practices and customs, but instead used the Diamond Sutra to teach Buddhism and opened the "Dharma Gate" of Dongshan. He is also known as the "Fifth Patriarch of Dongtu", which laid a solid ideological foundation for the formation of Huineng's line of Zen.
At this time, the voice of Master Hongren, the Fifth Patriarch, was not high, but his voice was loud and long, like the sound of a bell echoing inside and outside the hall.
Hui Neng was separated from the wooden door outside the hall and was more than ten feet away from the Dharma seat on the podium, but he heard Master Hongren's explanation very clearly:
"Buddha Sakyamuni was born in Kunjia Luo Vazi in the Western Heaven. He often preached Buddhism at Lingjiu Mountain. The words he often said, 'I am the only one in heaven and on earth' have become the dogma of my Buddha. 'Only myself' does not mean arrogance. The 'little self'? But the 'big self', which is the Buddha's heart that serves everyone. We point to the sky with our right hand and the earth with our left hand, which means that the sky is high and the earth is thick, which is infinite and can be shared by anyone. To the light of life of the Buddha.”
Huineng was listening outside. As he listened, something seemed to be tugging at his heartstrings, and the echo was very distant and deep.
"The Huayan Sect respects the Huayan Sutra, while the Tiantai Sect uses the Lotus Sutra as its basic classic, and the Pure Land Sect has the Infinite Life Sutra and the Amitabha Sutra. And I think the Diamond Sutra..." The Fifth Patriarch finished. After the Buddhist study, there was a burst of cheers from the monks in the temple.
Shenxiu walked to the stage, cleared his throat, and announced to everyone: "Today's explanation ends here. After you go back, you should carefully digest Master's instructions today, understand them well, and practice Zen diligently."
The monks walked out of the hall one after another and dispersed.
The Fifth Patriarch stood up from his throne and walked down the steps of his throne.
Shenxiu stretched out his hands to the Fifth Patriarch as if to support him: "Master, be careful."
The Fifth Patriarch stepped down from his throne, stood still, and asked, "Shenxiu, how was my lesson today?"
Shenxiu's face was full of flattery: "Every word is precious, and every sentence is so enlightening that it makes people suddenly enlightened. I just feel that wisps of Buddha's light shine directly into my heart."
The Fifth Patriarch smoothed his long beard with his hands, his eyes were fixed, and he said no more.
Jingming, the warrior monk behind Shenxiu, handed the tin staff to the Fifth Patriarch.
The Fifth Patriarch, leaning on his tin staff, walked out of the hall and walked toward the abbot's room, surrounded by Shenxiu, Jingming and other protective monks.
When Huineng, who was deep in thought, woke up, the Fifth Patriarch was already seven or eight feet away from the Main Hall. He quickly shouted from behind: "Master, stay here, Master, stay here!"
"What are you screaming behind the Fifth Patriarch?! Let's go, let's go, let's go!" A monk with a strange face heard Huineng's shouting and strode up from behind. He couldn't help but exclaimed: "Ah, yes Him? Why is it him? "
Shenxiu turned to him and asked: "Yingyin, who is he? What, do you know him?"
"He...he...this is his first time coming to Dongzen Temple, how could I know him!" Yingyin quickly denied (this was Huineng's second contact with Yingyin). Ying Yin had plastic surgery, but Huineng couldn't recognize Ying Yin for a moment. But Yingyin recognized Huineng.
After hearing the sound, the Fifth Patriarch turned around and saw a stranger. Then he stopped.
Huineng bowed to the Fifth Patriarch: "Master, you are polite."
The Fifth Patriarch looked at this strange and uninvited guest with a torch-like gaze: This young man with swarthy skin had protruding forehead and drooping ears. He indeed had the aura of a Buddha, but the blue-black linen clothes on his body were filthy and stained with spots. white. Obviously, this is the salt stain left on the clothes after the sweat on the body has evaporated during the long journey. His clothes were scratched by the thorns on the way and were in tatters. The straw sandals on his feet were also worn and torn, with half of his toes exposed. At first glance, there is not much difference from a wandering beggar.
Seeing his appearance as a mountain villager, the Fifth Patriarch frowned and asked, "What's your name?"
"The surname is Lu and the given name is Huineng."
"Huineng? You are a layman, why did you get a Dharma name?"
"I don't know, my parents gave it to me since I was little."
"Where are you from?"
"Southern Guangdong Xinzhou."
"What are you doing here?"
"Ask the Buddha."
The Fifth Patriarch held his long beard in his hands and stared at the dark-skinned Hui Neng with a scrutinizing gaze. After a while, he shook his head and said: "Xinzhou in southern Guangdong is a desolate and dead land. How can you, the Kuzu bastards, become Buddhas?" Woolen cloth?"
Huineng said loudly and anxiously: "Master, what you said is wrong."
Hui Neng's words shocked everyone in the audience!
In Dongzen Temple, there are more than 800 disciples up and down, and the Fifth Patriarch can be said to be a man of his word here. All the disciples took his words as a guide. No one dared to argue. Now, when this stranger first arrived at Dongzen Temple, he boldly said in front of all the disciples that the Fifth Patriarch, "This is wrong." How could he not shock the monks?
Shenxiu's face sank, his eyes were as sharp as swords, and he scolded: "Bold! Are you coming here to pray for Buddha, or to provoke me?"
Huineng looked calm: "Of course I am praying to the Buddha."
Shenxiu's tone was still so stern: "Since you are praying to the Buddha, you actually have the guts to say that Master made a mistake in what he said?"
All the monks also shouted at Hui Neng.
Facing the scoldings of the monks, Huineng remained calm and replied: "What Master just said is indeed wrong."
Shenxiu scolded loudly: "Are you still being stubborn?"
Hong De, the monk next to the Fifth Patriarch, was Shenxiu's most loyal supporter. He rushed up and slapped Huineng.
"Pa!" Five red fingerprints immediately appeared on Huineng's face.
After Hong De beat the person, he was not willing to let it go and scolded Huineng loudly: "Is it okay to insult my ancestor in Dongchan Temple?"
Huineng didn't refute, let alone fight back, and he didn't even touch his red cheeks with his hands. He still stood with his hands lowered.
"Hong De, don't do this nonsense." The Fifth Patriarch saw that Hong De had gone too far and shouted in a low voice to stop him.
Hong De was still angry, and the veins on his neck were exposed, like curled up earthworms, but he didn't do anything anymore, and just said angrily to Huineng: "This is really an advantage for you."
The Fifth Patriarch looked sharply at Huineng and asked, "Why do you say that what I said was wrong?"
Huineng raised his head and said bluntly: "Master, you said that we people from Lingnan are Geli, which is obviously insulting. You said arbitrarily that we and Geli cannot become Buddhas! This statement is indeed wrong."
"It's bad? How can I be so different?" The Fifth Patriarch raised his voice and emphasized, "You guys are the southern barbarians and have not been civilized. It will be difficult for you to become a Buddha in the future."
When he met the Fifth Patriarch for the first time, facing this authority as high and heavy as Mount Tai, Hui Neng dared to speak his mind: "When people live in the world, they are indeed divided into north and south in terms of geographical territory; but how can Buddhism exist in the world of great unity?" What about the difference between north and south? You and I are indeed different in body shape, but the Buddha's light that shines on us should be the same. Even if an unenlightened person is different from you, Master, what is the difference in the nature of the Buddha? Woolen cloth?"
The Fifth Patriarch was shaken all over. Unexpectedly, the rustic Southern Kudzu would actually say such words. This is the essence of the meaning of "all living beings have Buddha nature" in the "Nirvana Sutra"! The Fifth Patriarch vaguely felt that the person coming today was A Buddhist ritual gift given to Tozen Temple by heaven.
Huineng did not wait for the Fifth Patriarch to speak, and continued: "The appearance of the pearl clam is not good, but due to the gestation of the sea, it often hides priceless pearls in its belly. Liquan Zhicao has no roots, but it absorbs the aura of heaven and earth, the energy of the sun and the moon. The essence has become a treasure in the world. The disciples are all cultivated by the master. Master, you have probably heard the old saying 'A dragon and a snake rise from the great river', right?"
Over the years, in Dongzen Temple, the Fifth Patriarch only heard compliments and praises, but he never saw anyone who had any objections to him. now. This young Nanman boy who had just arrived made extraordinary remarks as soon as they met. This shows that he has wisdom and has even more extraordinary potential at the bottom of his heart. After this meeting, the Fifth Patriarch began to like Huineng from the bottom of his heart. However, he was well aware of the weight and consequences of every expression he made in front of everyone, so he did not express this opinion.
The Fifth Patriarch just asked calmly: "How many years have you studied, and you have become a scholar or a Jinshi?"
Huineng waved his hand and spoke frankly: "My father died when I was three years old, and I was raised by my mother through hardships. Because my family was poor, I never went to school. I only learned from others and only knew a few simple words." Therefore, I have never been selected as a scholar or Jinshi."
The Fifth Patriarch was impressed and said: "You are quite good at talking."
Huineng said sincerely: "I have not seen much of the world and have little experience and knowledge. But what I just said is all from my heart."
The Fifth Patriarch was puzzled: "You are far away in Lingnan, how did you know to come to my Dongchan Temple?"
"It was Master Jikong from Jintai Temple in Xinzhou who asked me to come and join you." Huineng said, taking out a letter from his arms and handing it over respectfully, "This is the letter from Master Jikong to you. .”
The Fifth Patriarch took the letter, opened it and read it. When he saw that it was a letter of recommendation from his disciple, he faced Huineng and said, "As a monk, there is no limit to the sea of suffering. To achieve righteousness, you have to go through thousands of lives and kalpas. Since ancient times, people who follow Buddhism have become Taoists. Models who forget their bodies, get stabbed with blood, and lose their arms are not uncommon. Only by enduring hidden hardships that are unspeakable for ordinary people, doing work that is difficult for ordinary people, and being inspiring and enlightened can you achieve success."
Hui Neng's eyes sparkled, and the corner of his mouth revealed a determined expression: "You can only see your husband's heart when things are difficult, and you can only know the Songbai Cao after the snow. Master, this is why I am here."
Seeing that he was full of determination, the Fifth Patriarch muttered: "This..."
Hui Neng begged, "I want to practice Buddhism and become a Buddha. I hope my master will accept me as his disciple and have my hair ordained."
The Fifth Patriarch wanted to have a further in-depth talk with Hui Neng, but when he saw Shenxiu and other disciples beside him, his face sank and he waved his hands resolutely: "You have never practiced any practice, nor have you sat down for a long time. How could I have your hair cut off so hastily?"
Hui Neng is determined: "But my determination to learn Buddhism will not change."
"Whether you are sincere or not does not depend on your words. It depends on your actions. Let's go to the handyman room in the North Courtyard and start working as a handyman."
Huineng nodded: "Thank you, Master, for your cultivation."
"You can just call me Master when we meet in the future," the Fifth Patriarch tilted his head slightly and said to Shenxiu who was standing beside him, "You are the head of the Dongzen Temple. Please settle down this new layman."
"Okay!" Shenxiu bowed to the Fifth Patriarch and nodded humbly, then turned to Huineng and immediately changed his face to a scolding one, "Let's go, follow me to the miscellaneous room in the North Courtyard."
Huineng followed Shenxiu towards the north courtyard. After walking for more than ten steps, he suddenly turned around and smiled at the Fifth Patriarch with spring in his mouth.
The Fifth Patriarch's heart felt warm: This firewood boy from the south looked simple, honest, and a bit straightforward; but he was actually smart, intelligent and wise. first meet. Dare to challenge authority and reveal one's own nature. How similar is his nature to his own mysteries. It seems that there is another successor to the great cause of Zen Buddhism.
