After listening to Huineng's enlightening teachings, the old monk was so enlightened that he bowed his head regardless of his old age.
The Sixth Patriarch hurriedly grabbed him: "Old Master, what are you doing? A mirror cannot be polished, and the truth cannot be clarified. Buddhism is the most egalitarian knowledge. I hope we can discuss it more in the future."
Master Yin Zong stood up, walked to the seat of the Sixth Patriarch, clasped his hands and said, "In Yin Zong, when I preach, I just move bricks and tiles. Every word of Master's sermon is precious, more precious than gold. We were destined to listen to the ancestor of this generation in our previous life. The teachings! I sincerely request the master to stay in this temple forever and guide the monks in their study and practice."
The Sixth Patriarch said with sincerity and fear: "You are the number one mage in Lingnan, and Faxing Temple is the number one temple in the South. How can the Sixth Patriarch be so virtuous and capable? How dare a bird occupy the phoenix nest!"
"Master Sixth Patriarch, if you want to spread Dharma smoothly in the south without obstacles and smooth sailing, you must have a solid foundation. It is our honor for Faxing Temple to be a cornerstone for you." As he said this, Master Yinzong and the monks knelt down. Sorry.
The Sixth Patriarch also knelt before Yin Zong and kowtowed and said: "Buddhism respects the Sangha Treasure. The Sangha Treasure is a symbol of the continuance of the Buddhist path. It is really a sin for disciples who are still laypeople to let the master worship! Please get up quickly and don't harm the disciples." .”
Wherever Yin Zong was willing to get up, he knelt on the ground and said: "Although the monk treasure is important in Buddhism, it is only a formality. It is important to become a monk in the body, and it is even more important to become a monk in the heart. The heart never forgets the suffering sentient beings, and the body works tirelessly to save them. Such hard work in body and mind is the real way to become a monk. Compared with the master, Yin Zong feels inferior." After saying this, Yin Zong bowed again. The Sixth Patriarch had no choice but to bow down.
Seeing them calling each other disciples and bowing to each other, Ying Xing, who came to refill the tea, laughed: "Isn't there a lot of rice on the ground? You two look like little old roosters snatching rice!"
The Sixth Patriarch and Yin Zong smiled at each other, helped each other up, and walked to the chairs hand in hand to sit down.
The Sixth Patriarch took the tea from Ying Xingxuan, took a sip, and said sincerely: "Fifteen years ago, although my disciple was favored by the Fifth Patriarch and entrusted me with his mantle, he never had the chance to bless me as a monk. Now, I I think the opportunity has arrived, but I wonder if this disciple has the honor to ask Master Yin Zong to ordain me?"
Master Yin Zong laughed and said: "It is an honor for a poor monk to be able to give blessings to the Sixth Patriarch. However, how could I, Yin Zong, be so virtuous and capable that I dare to be the Sixth Patriarch's ordination master?"
The Sixth Patriarch said: "Only one who becomes a monk in body and mind can truly become a monk. Disciples follow the master to become a monk in order to promote Buddhism and ask the master to help them become a monk."
Master Yin Zong thought for a while and said, "Well, as a tonsurer in your hair blessing ceremony, I am a formality that cannot be omitted. But I have a small condition, please accept it from the Sixth Patriarch."
The Sixth Patriarch said, "Please speak."
Yin Zong expressed his inner thoughts: "Although you insist on becoming a disciple according to the law, you are a master of the generation, and your morals and knowledge are superior to those of a humble monk. Therefore, when you are ordained, I am your master; after you become a monk, you are my master." Master. Please allow me to serve the Master in the attire of a disciple."
"This..." The Sixth Patriarch hesitated.
Yingxing said: "You eminent Buddhist monks, you should just go and study the Book of Rites with Confucius! Where do you get all these polite words? It makes my teeth drop!"
Yin Zong scolded: "Ying Xing, don't be too presumptuous and make the Sixth Patriarch laugh."
The Sixth Patriarch smiled and said, "Ying Xing, your name is so well chosen. You really deserve to be called Ying Xing."
Yingxing blinked, "You also know the origin of my name?"
The Sixth Patriarch nodded: "The Buddha said in the Nirvana Sutra that the practices practiced by Bodhisattvas include the innocent, upright and upright behavior of a baby. May you keep this straightforwardness and innocence forever."
Yingxing rarely received praise from others. He was so happy that he forgot about himself and said: "You are the first one I discovered. Therefore, you must let me be your great disciple."
Master Yin Zong joked with him: "If you are the disciple, what about me?"
Yingxing took the teapot and ran away.
The Sixth Patriarch turned to Yin Zong: "Master Yin Zong, the matter of tonsure..."
"Okay, let's just decide that the auspicious day for the Sixth Patriarch's tonsure will be the Shangyuan Festival on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month."
…
"Dang, Dang, Dang..." The loud bell rang, and all the monks of Faxing Temple gathered from all corners to the ordination altar under the Bodhi tree. Believers rushed to Faxing Temple from all directions to witness the tonsure ceremony of the patriarch.
The temple was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations. Various colorful flags, large and small, are hung on both sides of the road.
The bodhi tree planted by the master of wisdom medicine one hundred and seventy years ago is even more lush and full of vitality; the inscriptions on the stone tablet under the tree have been redrawn, and the prophetic words written by the master of wisdom medicine one hundred and seventy years ago are as if they were made of gold. , shining brightly.
East Tuye, West Tuye, the spiritual roots of the Bodhi tree are the same; wherever the wind moves, the flags move, the Zen dharma is passed down from generation to generation. As the setting sun shines, the majestic hall is solemn and solemn. Bursts of elegant Sanskrit singing lingered among the flowers and trees, whirling between heaven and earth.
Hundreds of oil lamps were burning in the main hall, and the sandalwood was filled with smoke. On the Buddhist altar, the golden Buddha Sakyamuni smiled happily, holy and kind. Kneeling in front of the Buddha statue is the devout Sixth Patriarch.
Master Yin Zong took a razor and cut off the Sixth Patriarch's hair one by one.
Under the light, long hair fell down one after another.
The eyes of the Sixth Patriarch were filled with tears. In his blurry eyes, his mother's kind face, his father's pain, the back of the Fifth Patriarch... scenes passed before his eyes...
After the tonsure was completed, the Sixth Patriarch sat on the gold-encrusted throne under the courtesy of everyone. He was wearing a cassock passed down from the ancestors of past generations, and his whole body exuded a wonderful brilliance.
Master Yinzong said excitedly: "Two hundred and fifty years ago, the prophecy of Master Navarman and the prayer of Master Zhiyao one hundred and seventy years ago have finally come true today. This is the future of the southern Buddhist world in thousands of years." Some grand events are great blessings to all sentient beings in the world! Master Namo, the Sixth Patriarch!"
All the monks and laymen knelt down together with Master Yin Zong: "Namo Sixth Patriarch, Namo Sixth Patriarch!"
On the 23rd day after the Sixth Patriarch was ordained and became a monk, that is, on the eighth day of the second month in the first year of Yifeng, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty (AD 676), Master Yinzong came forward and invited many virtuous people to confer full ordination on the Sixth Patriarch.
Whether it was a coincidence or an incredible chance, a group of famous Chinese and foreign lawyers gathered in Guangzhou during that period.
Therefore, I respectfully invited lawyer Zhiguang of Xijing (Chang'an) Zongchi Temple to be the ordainer, lawyer Huijing of Suzhou Lingguang Temple to be the karma master, lawyer Tongying of Jingzhou Tianhuang Temple to be the teacher, and lawyer Jitoro of Zhongtianzhu (Central India) to give the ordination. Tianzhu (Western India) Mitra Tripitaka is a witness to the precepts.
In this way, the Sixth Patriarch officially became a monk.
A wandering soul finally has a home, and its fifteen years of hiding has finally come to an end. The Sixth Patriarch has finally returned to his place!
The news of the Sixth Patriarch's appearance in the Southern Kingdom spread quickly throughout the country. Zen monks from all over the world heard the news and followed him to see the shadow.
