When the mage heard this, he stood there as if he was electrocuted.
A few wasps, probably trying to make a nest, smelled the smell of paper in the scroll, and landed on it to nibble on the paper.
The young Zen monk sighed and said with a pun: "Hey, you bees, the world is so vast. Instead of going to the flowers to collect nectar, you have to chew on ancient paper. It's okay if you can digest the ancient paper, but I just use it as a nest and trap myself in a narrower world. What a pity!"
The middle-aged mage stared blankly at the young Zen monk with thunder in his ears.
The young Zen monk blushed and said shyly to himself: "I am not as generous as the old lady. I just realized that I have not yet paid homage to the Sixth Patriarch. I wonder if I am qualified to study under his disciples."
At this time, Yingxing walked to the middle-aged mage's book bundle and caught a small insect - a silverfish - a bookworm from the yellowed ancient papers. He smiled and said to it: "Hey, you little guy, you are also full of scriptures. Can you also be called a 'little mage'?"
The middle-aged mage's face was full of embarrassment and dissatisfaction.
The baby went his own way and continued to say to the little silverfish: "You are so lucky. What you eat in your stomach is Buddhist scriptures, so you are arrogant and boastful all day long, but you are respected by people. But the other bookworm, It is not as lucky as you. It is full of martial arts secrets and is arrogant, thinking that its kung fu is the best in the world. When it goes out to walk in the world, it encounters flies, flies bully it, encounters bed bugs, bed bugs oppress it, even the dark Even a dung beetle can beat it until its nose is bruised and its face is swollen. It was so angry that it found the owner of the martial arts secret book and complained, 'I have a belly full of martial arts tricks, and I can use them invincibly, but the tricks used by those little bugs are very ordinary. But why do I always get beaten up by them?" The master smiled and said, "If you eat but don't change, no matter how many and clever tricks you have, what's the use?"
The middle-aged mage trembled inwardly after hearing this. Yes, just like the silverfish, you have learned a lot of knowledge, but when troubles arise, you can't use them at all. You also understand every principle of Buddhism, but whenever good times or bad times come, you can't use them at all. Your heart will drift along involuntarily. By the time you realize it and regret it in every possible way, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, it will be too late!
At this moment, the donkey tied to the tree probably felt uneasy and tried hard to break free from the restraints of the reins.
The young Zen monk made use of the topic: "A closing sentence can be tied to the donkey's peg for eternity. The scriptures are originally tools to indicate the truth. If you regard it as the truth itself, you will not fix yourself on the donkey's peg. If you want to break free, But it’s even harder!”
The middle-aged mage was no longer hungry, but full - he was ashamed and filled with anger at his own incompetence. He wished he could find a crack in the ground and crawl in, so as not to be embarrassed in front of an old woman and two young men...
Naturally, he couldn't find the crack in the ground, and even if he found it, he wouldn't be able to get in. So, he had no choice but to pick up the burden and run away in panic like a thief who was discovered!
After the middle-aged mage left, Yingxing stretched out his arms and cheered in victory. When he was happy enough, he turned to the young Zen monk and said, "You are very good. What is your name?"
The young Zen monk said: "Huairang."
"You sit here for a while while I load the salt, and I'll take you up the mountain."
Huairang said, "Thank you, senior brother, for your kindness. I think I can touch the place myself."
"With me leading the way, you won't make any detours. Besides, with my introduction, my master, the Sixth Patriarch, is more likely to accept you as his disciple."
Huairang said solemnly: "Brother, I'm hungry. Can you eat for me? Therefore, you have to walk your own path. In this way, although it may be a detour, you will have a deeper experience and at least you will exercise your foot strength."
With that said, Huairang got up and walked towards Baolin Temple.
Yingxing couldn't help being stunned. He looked at Huairang's back and murmured: "This guy, like his last name, seems to have a lot of background..."
Indeed, this humiliation has a very good origin.
According to Volume 3 of "Ancestral Collection", on the eighth day of April in the second year of Yifeng, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty (AD 677), on the Christmas day of Buddha Sakyamuni, six white auspicious energies burst out from Ankang, Jinzhou (now Hanyin, Shaanxi). , soaring straight into the sky.
Since ancient times, almost all emperors and emperors in China have liked all kinds of auspiciousness and good omens, so the governor did not dare to neglect and reported to the court immediately.
Li Zhi, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty, asked Tai Shi Ling: "How can this energy be auspicious?" White energy can't come out of the earth for no reason, right?
Tai Shiling explained: "The auspiciousness of the birth of Sakyamuni Buddha is naturally related to Buddhism. The six white auspiciousness symbolizes the six realms and six paths of Buddhism, and indicates the birth of an eminent monk. It lies in the boundary between Jinzhou and Ankang."
At this time, Han Kai, the governor of Jinzhou, also recorded the memorial after seeing the auspicious prime minister.
Therefore, Emperor Gaozong sent an order to Han Kai to personally go to the family where the baby was born to express his condolences and congratulations. Han Kai traced the origins and found a family named Du Guangqi.
The person who was born in response to the auspiciousness is Huairang.
Huairang went to become a monk at Yuquan Temple in Jingzhou when he was 15 years old. At that time, Yuquan Temple was a famous temple in the world. Scholars and monks gathered there, and it became a common practice to study the teachings and practice the precepts.
Huairang studied teaching and practiced law here for seven or eight years, but his heart was still covered with darkness, his heart and mind were not clear, and his nature was not yet revealed. He knew in his heart that the current practice methods did not penetrate the fundamentals of Buddhism and were not the best way to enter Zen. Regarding the understanding of Zen, it can be said that it is not essential and is not suitable for me.
Therefore, he resolutely gave up the step-by-step life of a famous mountain temple and came to Zhongyue together with a fellow monk, Zen Master Tanran.
At that time, the abbot of Songshan was Zen Master Lao'an, one of the ten disciples of the Fifth Patriarch Hongren, who was as famous as Shenxiu and the Sixth Patriarch.
Zen Master Lao An kept Kan Ran, but only glanced at Huairang and said, "I am not your master. Your master is in Caoxi."
When sending him to Caoxi, Zen Master Lao An said inexplicably: "Back then, my brother the Sixth Patriarch ate a Tao (rice) seed, and today I give him a Buddha seed!"
Encouraged by Zen Master Lao'an, Huairang traveled thousands of miles from the prosperous Central Plains to the remote and barbaric land of Lingnan.
It was sunset when he walked along the clear Caoxi River to the gate of Baolin Temple.
The Sixth Patriarch seemed to have known that he was coming for a long time, and happened to be standing on the high steps outside the temple gate.
The setting sun sprinkles gold, paving the long stone steps of Baolin Temple with a layer of gold dust, like a splendid road to heaven.
Indeed, in Huairang's view, this is nothing more than a golden road leading to heaven.
I don’t know whether it is the Sixth Patriarch’s body that is really shining, or whether it is the afterglow of sunset reflecting from the side. There is a golden halo around the outline of the Sixth Patriarch’s body, making him look somewhat mysterious, somewhat sacred, somewhat kind, and somewhat majestic. How cool, how compassionate...
"Where are you from?" This ordinary sentence is full of infinite Zen meaning because it was spoken by the sixth generation founder of Zen Buddhism.
If you feel something, if you have awareness, if you have gain, if you have enlightenment, but you have no way to start, you can't get in.
He was a little shy, and there was a faint blush on his face. He lowered his head in embarrassment and murmured: "Disciple Huairang comes from Songshan Mountain."
"What kind of thing is coming?" the Sixth Patriarch asked strangely.
Huairang couldn't help but sweat like rain - there seemed to be a lump in his chest, but he just couldn't pour it all out at once. He felt guilty and hung his head deeply.
The Sixth Patriarch patted him on the shoulder kindly: "You can stay here for now." After saying that, he drifted away, his loose robes swinging in the wind, as if he was about to fly towards the setting sun.
Huairang said to himself: "What kind of thing is coming..."
On this day, a short, fat, arrogant young monk walked into the mountain gate of Baolin Temple with his head raised.
This monk's name was Fada. He was from Fengcheng, Hongzhou. He became a monk at the age of seven. He had been reciting the Lotus Sutra. After receiving full ordination, he went to Caoxi. He believed that he had been reciting the Lotus Sutra and had great merit. Because of his arrogance, his Zen staff made a thumping noise on the ground, as if to tell others, I'm coming, you all, get out of my way!
Fa Hai, who had become the secretary of the Sixth Patriarch, greeted him warmly, saluted and asked, "Monk, where are you from? Do you need my help with anything?"
The young monk did not return the gift, but said arrogantly: "I heard that you got an illiterate homeless man to pretend to be the Sixth Patriarch. Take me to see how high his Mount Sumeru is!"
Fa Hai was not angry, neither arrogant nor impetuous, and said: "Whether the Sixth Patriarch is literate or not, it doesn't mean that you can't read if you say you can't, but the Sixth Patriarch is definitely not pretending. If you are willing to see my master, I can inform you first."
The young monk snorted disdainfully.
Fahai came to the abbot's courtyard, where the Sixth Patriarch was sitting on a wicker chair under the shade of a tree discussing matters with his senior brother Xingsi.
Fahai had just whispered a few words to his master when the sound of the young monk's Zen staff pounding the ground could be heard, shaking the air in the courtyard.
The Sixth Patriarch and Xingsi looked at each other and smiled, as if they were used to this kind of behavior.
Under the corridor, Yingxing was boiling water on the stove. The water in the pot was gurgling and steaming.
Xingsi pointed to the kettle and said meaningfully: "When the water is boiled to 20%, it will be tea, and if it is boiled to 10%, it will be soup."
Yingxing asked: "What should we do?"
Xingsi said decisively: "It's too hot. Pour a ladle of cold water on its head!"
The Sixth Patriarch said: "It is better to draw fuel from the bottom of the cauldron than to stop it from boiling."
While they were talking, the young monk had already walked up to them. Seeing that the Sixth Patriarch and others were turning a blind eye to him and that their words were alluding to him, he banged his Zen staff on the ground hard to attract their attention.
Perhaps due to the vibration of the Zen staff, a leaf withered and yellow due to disease fell to the ground.
The Sixth Patriarch picked it up and sighed at the leaves: "It's a great time, but if you don't grow well, you will get sick and turn yellow. It's a pity, it's a pity!"
Fahai glanced at the monk and said, "Who asked him to cause pests to himself? He deserves it!"
The Sixth Patriarch smiled and said, "Well, Fahai, tell me, some of the branches and leaves of this tree are flourishing, and some are yellow and shriveled. Is it better to flourish or to wither?"
Fahai smiled and said: "Of course the leaves are full of vitality and flourishing."
The Sixth Patriarch nodded and said: "If so, if so, then go to Rong."
The Sixth Patriarch asked Xingsi again: "Is it better to flourish or to wither?"
This is definitely not a redundant repetition, but another Zen idea.
Xingsi actually replied: "It's good to wither."
The Sixth Patriarch actually nodded: "If so, if so, then let it wither and fade away naturally."
Ask Yingxing again.
Ying Xing was extremely smart and thought he would be able to give a better answer, so he said without thinking: "Let the withered people wither, and the prosperous people, let them prosper."
Ying Xing thought his answer was so perfect and free! Even the proud young monk showed admiration in his eyes.
However, the Sixth Patriarch shook his head and said: "No, no. Let nature take its course and comprehend the meaning of Zen in nature, which is advocated by almost every generation of Patriarchs. However, Zen is not pure nature, and Zen practitioners It opposes laissez-faire and emphasizes human initiative and initiative. We humans, as children of nature, abandon evil and promote good, and transform ourselves are nature; we control our own destiny and make it more consistent with the laws of life in the universe, which is the real Let nature take its course. This is why Zen masters are truly wise!"
As he spoke, the Sixth Patriarch's eyes were like warm fingers, caressing the young monk's face. He suddenly understood the Sixth Patriarch's words, but he could not let go of his arrogance and reluctantly knelt down to the Sixth Patriarch and said: "Wandering Monk Fada, come and worship the mountain.”
The reason why he said "worship the mountain" instead of worshiping the ancestors shows that he still looks down on the Sixth Patriarch in his heart. When he kowtowed, his forehead did not touch the ground.
Yingxing jumped over, pointed at his forehead and said: "You are young, and it is already a big mistake to be arrogant and rude when meeting an elder; and then you kowtow without touching the ground, which is even more wrong. You have no intention." To show respect, it is better not to kowtow!"
Fada, relying on his own cleverness, said disapprovingly: "The four elements of a monk are empty, so why bother to stick to formalities? Besides, if I kowtow without touching the ground and prostrate, it is equivalent to touching the ground and prostrate, so why do you need to be so clear about it?"
Xingsi smiled and said: "You are quite talented in eloquence. Transcending all forms in the world and not being trapped by forms is indeed Zen."
Fada became more and more proud and glanced sideways at the Sixth Patriarch. Unexpectedly, Ying Xing jumped up unexpectedly and slapped him hard - "Pa"!
Fada was furious and shouted: "Monk, why are you so rude? You actually hit someone!"
Yingxing responded tit-for-tat and said, "If I hit you, it means I didn't hit you. Why should you be so serious about saying goodbye?"
Using his spear and piercing his shield, Fada was stunned.
Yingxing once suffered a blow from the Sixth Patriarch for this kind of thing, but this time he finally got his capital back from Fada. He said reluctantly: "Besides, as a monk, the four elements are empty. Your body belongs to the earth and should have been empty long ago. I am emptying you. What are you calling for? If you feel pain, it means that you have not cultivated to the point where the four elements are empty. I am helping you." You are practicing!"
Fada looked embarrassed, and everyone couldn't help but laugh.
Yingxing added: "If you feel different when you are being beaten now, and you can feel the difference between being beaten and not being beaten, then it proves that you did not touch the ground with your forehead when you kowtowed just now, and you were deliberately rude. Rude people should not be beaten. What?"
Fada was speechless, and his arrogance completely subsided.
The Sixth Patriarch spoke: "Where are you from? You must be hiding something in your heart!"
"I am from Hongzhou, Jiangxi. I became a monk when I was seven years old. I once read the Tripitaka in retreat, and I have thousands of scriptures in my chest. I have recited the Lotus Sutra alone more than 3,000 times so far!" As he spoke, Dharma said. Da raised his head again, very proud of his hard work.
"If you recite ten thousand chapters and get the meaning of the sutra without thinking that you are victorious, then go with me. You have done this without realizing it. (If you recite the sutra ten thousand times and understand the main idea of the sutra, you will not realize it.) If you think you have something special and great, then you can walk hand in hand with me. But now you have failed to live up to the original intention of chanting sutras, and you don’t even know your fault)." The Sixth Patriarch said, filling an empty bowl with tea. , "This tea bowl has been filled with tea hundreds of thousands of times. Has it ever tasted the taste of tea? I have read the sutra thousands of times on the brush that printed the Lotus Sutra, but I have never seen it. Become a Buddha! Similarly, if you are as arrogant as you, it will be useless to recite it ten thousand times!"
After hearing this, Fada could not help but lower his head.
The Sixth Patriarch continued: "Monks prostrate themselves not only to express respect for others, but also to subdue their own arrogance. This is because once the habit of arrogance remains in the minds of monks, they will not be able to understand it unless they eliminate the 'self-grasping' to the truth of the universe and life. You just recite Buddhist scriptures verbally without understanding the meaning of the scriptures."
The Sixth Patriarch took a sip of tea, tapped his hands on the stone table, and said a verse in time with the rhythm:
The gift book folds slowly,
Are you still making fun of yourself?
If I sin, I will live;
The merits of death are incomparable.
The Sixth Patriarch then asked, "What is your name?"
The young monk said: "Fada."
The Sixth Patriarch said: "Your name is Fa Da. How have you ever attained Fa?"
Then the Sixth Patriarch said another verse:
Your name is Fada now.
Recite diligently without rest.
Reciting in vain but following the sound,
The name of Mingxin is Bodhisattva.
You have a reason now,
I will tell you now.
But I have no words to believe in Buddhism,
Lotus blossoms come from the mouth.
