When the Sixth Patriarch Huineng said this, he told the villagers with emotion his experience of becoming the Sixth Patriarch——
I lost my father when I was three years old, and I have been dependent on my mother since I was a child.
When he grew up to twelve years old, he followed his mother to cultivate lychee crops and other crops, and then went to places about five kilometers away from the village called Lat Road, Zhuhaoling, Longshan Foothills and Tianlu Mountain to chop firewood and then carry them. Go to Xinzhou County to sell.
Day after day, year after year, in the blink of an eye, it was the year of Xinyou, twenty-four years old. In this year, just when my mother was about to arrange my marriage, unexpectedly, my future grandfather fell ill.
The doctor prescribed a medicine, including Ganoderma lucidum, which was in short supply in local pharmacies and said it was available in Guangzhou Gan Pharmacy.
So, I went to Guangzhou. After buying Ganoderma lucidum, the waiter at the shop kindly asked me to come in and have a cup of tea before I left.
Just as I was going in to drink tea, a burst of sutra chanting suddenly came from the guest room. I listened carefully. When the guest said, "There should be no place to live but the mind is born," I seemed to have realized something. Just as the guest came out of the guest room. .
I stepped forward and saluted the guest and said, "May I ask Master, what sutra did you recite just now? Where did you learn it?"
The guest replied: "What I just recited was the Diamond Sutra. I invited it from Master Hongren, the fifth ancestor of Dongchan Temple in Huangmei County, Hubei Province. His place is prosperous and has more than a thousand disciples. Why do you ask this question? Do you also Do you want to study the scriptures?"
I said: "I think so, but." I didn't say any more and looked sad.
The guest was a Buddhist who was passing by on business. Seeing that I was about to speak but stopped, he asked: "Since you want to learn Buddhism, why are you silent and frowning? Is there something that is difficult to say?"
I replied: "I sincerely believe in Buddhism, but I have a mother in her fifties who is poor and has some concerns about her life."
Seeing that I was a filial son and sincere, the guest took out ten taels of silver from his pocket and said to me, "Since you are determined to learn Buddhism, I will give you these taels of silver to support your mother's living expenses."
I felt ashamed at this moment, but said disrespectfully: "Why are you so embarrassed?"
The guest said: "I am Xinzhou An Daocheng, a Buddhist disciple who is based on compassion. Please accept it. I also go to Dongchan Temple to listen to Master Hongren's lectures when I have time. If you are willing to go, wait for me in Guangzhou After I finish handling the goods, I can go back to Xinzhou with you."
I took the silver, thanked shopkeeper An, took his boat back to Xinzhou County, and went home happily.
After I returned home, I told my mother everything about my trip to Guangzhou to buy medicine and the encounter with Shopkeeper An, who recited sutras and gave me money, and asked her to allow me to go to Huangmei to study Buddhist scriptures.
At first, my mother and uncle did not agree with me going. But I insisted on going. The uncle deliberately made things difficult and said: "If you insist on going and ask me to agree, you can go immediately if you can bow to the big stone beside my village."
My uncle deliberately made things difficult, which made me feel huge resistance. But then I thought about it: Sincerity is what matters. Gold and stone are open! Then give it a try.
So he immediately took the incense, lit it, and put it in front of the stone at the edge of the village. He knelt down and worshiped three times. After praying, he looked around and saw that the stone really had cracks and gradually separated into two pieces. (This stone is still in the old Tulang Village. It was named Bie Mu Shi), and I happily went back to tell my uncle.
As he had already promised, my uncle had no choice but to agree.
In this way, I bid farewell to my mother, traveled through mountains and rivers, stayed at dawn and overnight, and went through all the hardships to arrive at Huangmei East Zen Temple in Hubei Province to pay my respects to the Fifth Patriarch. The Fifth Patriarch once tested me and said: "Southerners do not have Buddha nature."
At that time, I replied: "People are divided into north and south. How can Buddha nature be divided into north and south?"
After my rebuttal, the Fifth Patriarch knew that I was of the Dungen caste and was very out of reach of others.
In order to test my determination, the Fifth Patriarch asked me to go to the rice pounding house to do chores of chopping firewood and pounding rice.
I worked diligently in the rice pounding room and listened to my senior brother’s lectures whenever I had time. If I didn’t understand something, I would ask him for advice. Soon, I got along with everyone in harmony, and more than eight months passed without me realizing it.
One day, the Fifth Patriarch Hongren realized that he was old and wanted to choose a successor to inherit the mantle. He summoned his disciples and performed a verse to indicate what he had realized. If he could understand his mind and nature, he would pass on the mantle and become the sixth generation Patriarch.
At that time, Senior Brother Shenxiu wrote a verse on the wall:
The body is like a Bodhi tree,
The heart is like a mirror.
Always wipe the Buddha diligently,
Keep it out of the dust.
The Fifth Patriarch Hongren read it and thought that this verse was only outside the door but not inside the door, and had never seen its nature. He asked the public to only recite it. If you practice according to it, you will understand the nature and understand the mind in the future, and achieve Buddhahood.
One day, the young monk Shenqing was reciting this verse in the dormitory. I heard this and went up to ask for the reason. I learned that it was Master Hongren who was examining the verses to select his heirs, so I asked Shenqing to take me to watch.
When I walked to the corridor where I was writing verses, I happened to see an official who came to the temple to offer incense, known as Zhang Biejia, and he was reading the verse on the wall.
After listening to it, I felt that this verse had never seen its nature, and then I felt something in my heart and said leisurely: "I also have a verse, can you write it for me?"
That Zhang Biejia said: "You look like a handyman, why can't you compose verses?"
I replied: "The lower class people have superior wisdom, and the superior people have no conscious wisdom. I will read it to you, and you can write it down for me."
Zhang Biejia said hesitantly: "Oh... you are right, okay then, you read me to write."
"Okay." I immediately said:
Bodhi has no tree,
The bright mirror is also not a platform.
Originally there was nothing,
Where to stir up dust.
After Zhang Biejia finished writing the verse, everyone present was very surprised. It was indeed remarkable that a rice pounder could produce such a good verse, and everyone praised him.
Master Hongren heard about it and came to watch it. He also felt that this verse was extraordinary and was secretly happy in his heart.
However, when I saw everyone praising and commenting here, I was afraid that some people would be jealous and hurt me, so I took off one of my shoes, spitted and wiped it with the sole of my shoe, and said, "This verse has no sex, it is ordinary." That is, Erase all the verses. Everyone present was surprised, for no apparent reason.
But I was secretly happy, and I understood in my heart that Master was transmitting the Buddha's teachings orally, and that I would be at his feet, so I happily returned to the dormitory.
The next day, I pounded rice in the dormitory as usual.
I am small and weak, so I often carry stones on my back to increase the pressure of stepping on the hammer. Due to the friction between the stones and my clothes and flesh for a long time, my clothes are torn and my skin and flesh are damaged. The eggs are bitten by flies and turn into maggots. They squirmed among them, and sometimes a few fell to the ground, but I picked them up and put them back on my back, saying to myself: "Maggot, you don't eat the flesh on your body, but you eat the dust on the ground."
At this time, Master Hongren happened to walk into the dormitory. When he saw me, he said, "A man who seeks the Tao has forgotten his body for the sake of the Dharma? Thank you for your hard work. Is the three cylinders of rice ready?"
I replied: "I have forgotten my body for the sake of the Dharma. How can I say it's hard work? The three vats of rice are ripe but still need to be sifted."
Master Hongren pointed to the sieve hanging on the wall next to the sieve with his tin stick and said, "Here is the sieve. Get it yourself." As he said this, he hit the sieve with the tin stick three times and left the sieve without saying a word.
I thought in my mind that the conversation between Master and me was full of mysteries.
The master asked himself whether he was familiar with the people who were seeking the Tao. That is to say, you come to study scriptures and Buddhism. How did you learn? Is there any achievement? And his own answer that the rice in the three jars is ripe but not yet sifted is also a metaphor, "I have basically achieved success in studying the scriptures and can understand the mind and understand the mind, but I still need the guidance of the master." It is self-evident that the master struck the stone three times, isn't that called Should I go see him in the middle of the night? The more I think about it, the happier I am.
At the third watch of the night, I walked into the Fifth Patriarch's room and knelt on the ground. When the Fifth Patriarch saw me, he deliberately asked: "At midnight, what are you doing here?"
I said, "I'm here to seek advice from you. During the day, if you hit the stone three times, wouldn't that be a signal to call me here in the middle of the night?"
The Fifth Patriarch smiled with satisfaction, then closed the door, covered the window with his cassock, and explained the Diamond Sutra to me in a low voice, which made me realize immediately and understand that all dharmas are inseparable from the self-nature.
I said to the Fifth Patriarch: "It turns out that the original nature is contentment, it turns out that the original nature is pure, it turns out that the original nature is neither born nor destroyed, and can give birth to all things."
The Fifth Patriarch knew that I had realized my true nature, and happily said to me in detail: "Cultivation of virtue has merit, and the virtue of nature will be revealed. Start cultivating from nature, and cultivate your own nature. If you don't understand your own mind and your true nature, it will be useless to study the Dharma. If one understands one's own mind and recognizes one's own true nature, then he is the master of gods, humans, and Buddha."
After receiving the Dharma at the third watch, no one knew it. The Fifth Patriarch gave me the teaching and the ancestral mantle again, and said to me: "You will be the Sixth Patriarch from now on. From now on, you must protect yourself and your thoughts, and help all sentient beings." , spread in the future, don’t let it be cut off.” He also asked me to remember this verse and understand its meaning:
There is love to plant seeds,
Cause and effect come back to life.
Heartless and seedless,
There is no sex and no birth.
I said at that time: "I will follow Master's teachings."
The Fifth Patriarch also said: "This mantle and bowl is a token passed down from generation to generation by Patriarch Bodhidharma. However, the mantle is the source of disputes, so it has been passed down to you. Do not pass it on any more. If you pass on this mantle, your life will be like a thread hanging on a thread. You must leave quickly." here."
I said, "How should I go now? Where is the best place to go?"
The Fifth Patriarch said: "When you are pregnant, you stop, and when you meet, you hide. Where did you come from and where are you going? After arriving in Lingnan, you should stay away for a while to prevent anyone from being jealous and harming you. Only when the time is right can you come out. Find a master to be tonsured and ordained.”
I said, "Thank you, Master, for teaching me the Dharma and teaching me."
After I finished speaking, the Fifth Patriarch urged me to leave this place as soon as possible.
Master sent me down the mountain to find a way to start my journey.
The two of us, master and disciple, walked out of the temple gate and saw the bright moon in the sky. We walked on the rugged mountain road by the moonlight and soon arrived at the mouth of the river. We happened to see an empty boat parked by the river.
Master asked me to get on the boat and sit down together. He was about to rock the boat and said, "Let me ferry you across." I said, "There is no need to bother Master. Master is old. I am lost in time and want to ferry you across. I came here to ask for help." Thank you, Master, for enlightening me and teaching me the mantle. Now that I have become enlightened, I should transform myself by myself."
The master said: "You are right. I am relieved. From now on, it will be up to you to spread the Zen Buddhism."
When the boat reached the river, I stepped ashore and reluctantly watched Master row the boat back to the river.
I watched Master rock the boat and land at the mouth of the river. Then set off south.
One day, when I was walking to Dayu Mountain, I suddenly heard the sound of many people behind me, so I caught up with them not far away.
The person running at the front was named Chen Huiming, and he could catch up within a short distance. He shouted loudly: "You cat, please leave your ancestral mantle quickly."
When I heard the shouts and approached, I put my mantle on a big stone and walked into the grass to hide.
Huiming came closer and saw the bowl placed on the stone, so he started to take it. Unexpectedly, he tried his best to pick it up but couldn't move it. He suddenly became frightened, turned around and shouted: "Master, Master, Master, Master!" Come out quickly, I am here for the Dharma, please come out and see me."
I heard that his tone was calm and different from the previous shouts, so I came out and sat cross-legged on the stone and said to Huiming confidently: "This garment is a token passed down from generation to generation. How can I compete with it?"
Huiming said, "I came here to seek the Dharma and asked Master to give me the Dharma."
I said: "As a monk, you should not think about good or evil. That means you are spotless, the six knots are lifted, the three karmas are pure, and you take killing and stealing as a precept. What you just did has violated the precept..."
I explained a lot of principles in succession, which made Huiming suddenly realize it. He left the foot of Huanhuan Ridge and saw people coming towards him. He loudly said to the visitor: "I was walking at the front, and he turned around when there was no trace of Huineng." Let’s look for those who come back elsewhere!”
Therefore, he deceived the large group of monks who were chasing him.
It is said that the group of monks chased him back and forth, and many people died in the process. Later, I don’t know whether it was fear or nostalgia, but many places set up places on the roadside to offer incense, and this is where Buddhist statues on the roadside came from.
When I went to Caoxi, there were still evil people pursuing me with the intention of harming me. I remembered what Master said, "stop when you are pregnant, and hide when you meet." So I went to Huaiji, Sihui and other places to take refuge among the hunters.
Sometimes there are evil people chasing me, but they are all avoided one by one. At appropriate times, I also preached the Dharma to people and encouraged them to do good deeds.
The hunter and I went up to the mountains to hunt. When I was guarding the net, I lifted up the bottom of the net and released all the creatures that the hunter had chased down. For this reason, I was also punched and kicked by those people. Whenever I have a meal, I don’t eat the meat in the pot, only the side dishes.
Later, I came to Huaijiyan Rock, which is a large and high cave. It is the only habitat for the South Sea swiftlets to come to the mainland.
Every year, swiftlets from South Asia fly in and lay eggs on the roof of the cave, so there are many bird's nests in the steep rock walls and crevices.
Some local villagers have unique skills inherited from their ancestors and have extraordinary abilities in rock climbing. They can climb cliffs more than ten feet high with bare hands and make a living by collecting bird's nests.
I passed by the village next to Yanyan and heard someone crying loudly in the house. My curiosity drove me to go inside to find out what happened.
It turned out that the villager's only son ate too much barbecue food a few days ago, so he had a high fever for three days and three nights. His cheeks were red and his forehead was frighteningly hot.
I took many doses of traditional Chinese medicine prescribed by a nearby doctor but no effect was seen. I knelt down to burn incense and prayed to God and Buddha, but no Bodhisattva appeared.
Seeing that their son's condition was gradually deteriorating and he was dying and waiting for the arrival of death, the old couple was helpless and couldn't help crying at home.
After I learned about it, I knew that his son was suffering from a severe fever. After comforting the two old people with kind words, I immediately went to the nearby mountains to collect appropriate Chinese herbal medicine, which cured the illness of the two old people's only son.
The two old men were so grateful that they took out a few bird's nests they had collected in the room and gave them to me.
I said the bird's nest was too expensive and refused to accept it. I said I was strong and didn't need to take so many supplements.
But the two old men stubbornly insisted that I accept it, and they took turns telling me emotionally that you saved my son's life, and this is a gift from heaven. Although bird's nests are precious, how can they be as precious as my son's life? Besides, these bird's nests are just some local products, we picked them from the steep rock walls. If you don't accept it, you are looking down on us country people. You young people don’t need to take this supplement, but the elderly in your family can take it.
These words of the two elderly people touched my homesickness. My mother is old and frail. If she can take this supplement, it will be of great benefit to her body. Therefore, under the irresistible kindness of the other party, I had to accept it. I laid these bird's nests.
The words of the two elderly people made me miss my mother even more, so I decided to go back to my hometown to visit my long-lost mother.
When I first returned home, not long after, Agui, who was working as a waiter at the Yuelai Hotel in Jiwei Town, and was my mother's cousin, came to tell me that he was telling me to run away quickly, saying that he was one of the northern warriors staying in the hotel. The monk is coming to capture me.
In desperation, I braved the storm and carried my mother on my back to hide in the mountains.
On the way to Tianlu Mountain, I rescued a hunter who was bitten by a poisonous snake. His name was Liang Yaocheng. Later, we, mother and son, stayed at Uncle Acheng's house.
Uncle Ah Cheng regards me as his savior and treats us, mother and son, very well, like a family.
In Tianlu Mountain, while practicing meditation, I treated my mother's illness. I also used Zen methods to resolve the grievances between villages, and guided them to change their lifestyles. They hunted less, killed less, plowed mountains, cultivated fields, and planted rice. Plant green plums, tea, mushrooms and fungus.
Brew mushrooms, fungus, and unsellable or excess green plum fruits into cool fruits and transport them to Tiantangweiping for sale.
At that time, Wang Tianlei, a hunter in the mountains, said with emotion: "I thought you were destroying our jobs by telling us to hunt less and kill less, but it turns out you gave us a better iron rice bowl."
Wang Tianlei’s brother Wang Tianbao said: “If it continues to develop in the future, maybe it will become a golden rice bowl!”
I said in a Zen-like tone at the right time: "You regard the resources on Tianlu Mountain as an ordinary rice bowl, then it can only be an ordinary rice bowl. But if you regard it as a cornucopia, then it is an ordinary rice bowl." It’s a cornucopia.”
At that time, I was actually the Sixth Patriarch. I used the Zen method of "clearing the mind and seeing one's nature" to make people in two villages on Tianlu Mountain turn their conflicts into jade and silk. I also found a new way out of life.
…
Later, my mother became seriously ill and I came back to take care of her funeral affairs. The villagers also saw it, so I won’t say anything about it here.
I have just completed three years of mourning for my mother in Longshan, and the Chinese New Year is approaching. I think that after the Chinese New Year, it’s time to go out and spread the Dharma.
Unexpectedly, one night near the Spring Festival, after meditating in this hut as usual, I walked out the door. I saw an old monk chanting in the distance and calling me Dharma King. I couldn't help but go back. In the thatched house, I picked up the baggage containing the ancestor's cassock and followed the old monk straight down the mountain...
In the first year of Yifeng of the Tang Dynasty (AD 676), on the eighth day of the first lunar month, I came to Faxing Temple in Guangzhou. Master Yinzong tonsured my hair and gave me full ordination. From then on, as the sixth generation patriarch, I began to give lectures to monks, squires, etc. Discuss the Dharma and promote prosperity, and the name of the Sixth Patriarch is spread throughout the world.
In the third year of Yifeng (677 years of Ding Chou), I bid farewell to the monks of Faxing Temple and went to Baolin Temple in Caoxi to build the Baolin Taoist Temple. I preached the Dharma and benefited living beings with the belief that "the nature of Bodhi is originally pure, but with this heart, I can become a Buddha." "Sudden Enlightenment" Zen method, promoting the wonderful principles of superior Buddhism...
…
When the Sixth Patriarch Huineng said this, he looked outside the hall and said: "Dear fellow villagers, it's getting late. Thank you very much for coming to listen to me preaching Zen. Thank you for your hard work. I have asked the cook to add more dishes tonight. Entertaining the folks is my, Huineng’s, kindness to the folks.”
The villagers present at the scene were all moved to tears after listening to the Sixth Patriarch Huineng's arduous journey to becoming an ancestor. They also felt sorry that Huineng could not get married and traveled far away to seek Buddhism. They also gave birth to a child in Xialu Village. He is proud to be the sixth ancestor of Zen Buddhism.
