Wuwu does not cultivate good deeds, Tengteng does not do evil, is silent and stops seeing and hearing, and has a wandering mind without attachment.
——The Sixth Patriarch Huineng in "The Altar Sutra. The Last Verse"
…
Hu Changgang asked: "Why does Zen Buddhism not have written texts?"
The old monk said: "When you enter words, you will enter thinking. Thinking is useless. The rules of thinking will block the world. Only by stepping out of thinking can you observe and directly understand the truth of the world. Worldly knowledge needs to be learned and accumulated. , Buddhism is not like this. Buddhism emphasizes understanding, understanding, and only by knowing the mind can you see your nature.
Therefore, the Zen method emphasizes transmitting from heart to heart, confirming from heart to heart, and self-enlightenment and self-understanding. The ancestors have inherited it from generation to generation, and they all secretly teach the original mind."
Hearing this, Bai Fu remembered that he had asked Abbot Kong what Buddhism was.
Abbot Lokong said: "Don't do any evil and do all the good."
Bai Fu was stunned and said: "Is it that simple?"
Abbot Liao Kong sighed: "It's so simple. Even children can understand it, but not many people can do it."
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Hu Changgang finally asked: "Then how does the master know that the disciple has enlightened and obtained the Dharma?"
The old monk smiled and said: "The floating clouds in the sky are like white clothes, hanging on nails. Master has seen them before."
…
When the old monk finished preaching the Diamond Sutra, the most important Buddhist scripture, and heard that "the mind should be born without dwelling", Hu Changgang had a great enlightenment.
Hu Changgang then told the old monk: "How can one's own nature be inherently pure... The Zen Buddhism understood by my disciples is not separated from the self-nature, never falling into either side, coming and going are related to each other, and achieve the middle moral principle."
As soon as these words came out, the old monk knew that Hu Changgang was enlightened and understood the wonderful meaning of Buddhism. The old monk nodded and smiled, recited Wuxiang Praise, and said to Hu Changgang: "Speaking and understanding the mind, it is like the sun in the void. Only the nature of seeing is transmitted. Dharma, the evil-breaking sect that was born..."
The old monk passed on his mantle and handed over the four volumes of the Lankavatara Sutra, Bodhidharma Fuhu Stick, Incense Board, and Wooden Fish to Hu Changgang. The old monk said:
"The world is about to be in chaos, and Shaolin is afraid that it will be destroyed by the flames of war. These four volumes of the Lankavatara Sutra are handwritten by Patriarch Bodhidharma. Bodhidharma's tiger stick, incense stick, and wooden fish are the things that Patriarch Bodhidharma carries with him to protect the Dharma. From today on, Shaolin's mantle I will pass it on to you. You are the new generation leader of Shaolin. I hope you will protect yourself well, spread your love widely, and spread it to the future without being cut off."
The old monk continued: "In the past, when Patriarch Bodhidharma first came to China, people did not believe that he was the twenty-eighth generation disciple of the Buddha. Therefore, Patriarch Bodhidharma passed down the Buddha's tokens - dharma robes, kapok cassocks and purple gold bowls, as Zen sect tokens. Inherited from generation to generation.
The kapok cassock and the purple gold bowl are used as Zen tokens. Whoever holds them represents the authentic Zen sect. As a result, the achievements of preaching and promoting Buddhism have evolved into Zen disputes.
The Fifth Patriarch, Hongren, gave the mantle to the Sixth Patriarch, Huineng, and ordered him not to pass it on to the next generation. If he passed on this robe, his life would be like a thread hanging on a thread.
Sure enough, as Patriarch Hongren expected, the disciples of the first Zen Master Shenxiu wanted to prove that Shenxiu was the successor of the mantle and that the Shenxiu lineage was the authentic Zen sect. His disciples kept sending people to hunt down the sixth Patriarch Hui Neng and steal the mantle, so that Patriarch Huineng lived in seclusion in the mountains and lived with him. I have been a hunter for fifteen years.
After the Sixth Patriarch Huineng came out of the mountain again, he followed his master's orders and did not rely on his robe and bowl to prove his authentic status as a Zen sect. Instead, he used his profound Buddhist principles to spread the Dharma and preach. From then on, he hid in the Zen sect with his kapok cassock and purple gold bowl.
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The Lankavatara Sutra, Tiger Stick, Incense Board, and Wooden Fish are all tokens of Patriarch Bodhidharma. Whoever holds them also represents who is the direct descendant of Shaolin. Tokens are actually a source of disaster, so do not reveal them to others easily. Otherwise, dangers will lurk everywhere, and your life is hanging by a thread.
They all say that Buddhism is pure, but in fact Buddhism is just vast, so how can it be said to be pure? People with evil intentions often show kindness to others with kind eyebrows and kind eyes.
I'm afraid that someone will harm you, or that the disciples of Shenxiu will hunt down Patriarch Huineng and seize his mantle from the past. You can go down the mountain to fetch water and leave quickly tomorrow morning."
Hu Changgang was stunned and said: "Master, where should I go?"
The old monk said: "When it encounters oil, it stops; when it encounters cotton, it hides. I have arranged a small boat for you among the reeds by the river. You can sail the boat southward and return to Shu from the Yangtze River."
I will not leave this world until three years after you leave. You should cultivate yourself. It is not appropriate to spread the Dharma and preach the Zen method too early, because it is difficult for Buddhism to flourish in the past few years.
When the war in the Central Plains is over and the world is at peace, you can return to Mount Song and present the tokens of Patriarch Bodhidharma to the public. Integrate the surviving Shaolin disciples, rebuild Shaolin, promote Buddhism, and protect the scriptures together!
Just like one lamp burning hundreds of thousands of lamps.”
…
Early on the next morning, Hu Changgang, as usual, wearing a bamboo hat on his head and carrying two large wooden barrels on his shoulders, went down the mountain to carry water. He crossed the suspension bridge over the canyon, then climbed over Mingyue Gang, crossed a stone arch bridge, and came to the usual place.
Guilin stream where water is collected. The stream is gurgling and as clear as a mirror, and the pebbles at the bottom are clearly visible.
Hu Changgang put down the pole and barrel, and took out a backpack from the bottom of the barrel. In the backpack were incense sticks, wooden fish and the "Lenga Sutra" wrapped in oil paper. Hu Changgang put the "Lenga Sutra" in his chest pocket and carried it on his back.
Carrying the bag and Bodhidharma Fuhu Stick in hand, we waded across the Pearl Beach.
After walking for another half an hour, a large river appeared in front of us. The river surged for thousands of miles, spread out mightily in the vast wilderness, and rushed eastward.
There are vast reeds and grass on both sides of the river, and there are no people around. There are only one or two sailboats, which appear and disappear at the intersection of water and sky.
Hu Changgang followed the route indicated by the old monk and came to a reed swamp. A simple ruined monument stood among the reeds. A group of waterbirds circled and chirped in the reeds.
Hu Changgang pulled out the reeds and walked straight along the grass marks by the river, startling a group of gulls and herons. Deep in the reeds,
There is a small ferry, and a small boat is tied to the big stone at the ferry.
Hu Changgang was about to get on the boat when he suddenly stopped. He turned back and knelt on the ground, and kowtowed several times in the direction of the Shaolin Temple. Tears overflowed from the corners of his eyes, and he couldn't bear to leave for a long time.
After standing there for a long time, he gritted his teeth, strode into the boat, untied the rope, and started to paddle into the water.
From the depths of the reed marsh, a hearty laughter came: "Brother Nagaoka, are you okay?"