Since the Sixth Patriarch Master was taught by the Fifth Ancestor in Huangmei, he returned to Caohou Village in Shaozhou, and no one knew about it at that time. There was a Confucian scholar named Liu Zhiluo in the village, who was very courteous and respectful to the master. Liu Zhiluo had an aunt who was a bhikshuni, whose Dharma name was endless, and often recited the "Great Nirvana Sutra", and when the six ancestors heard it, they knew the wonderful meaning of the scriptures, so they explained it for him. The Endless Tibetan Bhikshuni took the scriptures and asked the six ancestors. The Sixth Patriarch said: "I don't know the words, but please try to ask questions about the meaning of the scriptures." ”

The Endless Tibetan Bhikshuni said, "How can we understand the meaning of the scriptures if we don't know the words?"

The Sixth Patriarch said: "The subtle truth of the Buddhas of the three worlds does not lie in words. ”

When the Endless Tibetan bhikshuni heard this, they were very surprised, so they went around and told the elder master in the middle of it, "This is a man of the Path, and he should be invited to make offerings." As a result, Cao Shuliang, the distant grandson of Emperor Cao Cao of Wei, and local residents all rushed to come to pay homage to the Six Patriarchs.

At that time, the ancient temple of Baolin had become a ruin since the war and war disaster in the last years of the Sui Dynasty. So he rebuilt the Buddhist temple on the original base of the ancient temple and invited the six ancestors to the abbot. Soon, Baoling Temple became a famous temple. The six ancestors lived in the Baolin Temple for more than nine months, and were hunted down by the evil party, the master hid in the mountain in front of the temple, and later the wicked people set fire to the grass and trees in the front mountain, and the six ancestors reluctantly squeezed their bodies into the cracks of the big stone to hide, so as to avoid being killed. That stone still leaves the traces of the knees of the six ancestors who sat on their knees, as well as the cloth pattern of the clothes they wore, so later generations called this stone "refuge stone". Master Huineng remembered what the five ancestors had said, "When you meet, you stop, and when you meet, you hide", so he lived in seclusion in Huaiji, Sihui and two counties.

Fahai Bhikshu, a native of Qujiang County, Shaozhou, Tang Dynasty, asked when he first visited the Six Patriarchs: "What is the truth that the mind is the Buddha?" Pray for the monk's mercy to explain to me. ”

The Sixth Patriarch said: "The previous thought does not give rise to attachment, the present is the heart; If the afterthought is not extinguished, the present is the Buddha; It is the mind that can achieve all appearances, and it is the Buddha who can be free from all appearances. If I were to explain this question in detail, I would not be able to explain it even after an infinite amount of time. "Listen to me:

The mind of thoughtlessness is called wisdom, and the separation of the Buddha is concentration.

Wisdom must be practiced equally, and the mind will naturally be pure.

To be able to comprehend this teaching, it is up to you to get it.

There is no life in the use of fixed wisdom, and the double cultivation of fixed wisdom is positive.

Fahai suddenly realized under the teachings of the six patriarchs, so he said in praise: "The mindless mind is originally a Buddha, and it cannot be enlightened and self-wronged; I have understood the cause of concentration, and when concentration and wisdom are separated from all appearances. ”

Fada Bhikshu, a native of Hongzhou, became a monk at the age of seven and often recited the Myoho-renge-kyo. One day, when he came to worship the six ancestors, his head did not touch the ground. The Sixth Patriarch reprimanded: "What is the difference between bowing and not touching the ground? You will be conceited of one thing in your heart, and what specialty will you study?"

Fada said, "I have been reciting the Myoho-renge-kyo for 3,000 times. ”

The Sixth Patriarch said: "If you read 10,000 and can comprehend the general idea of the scriptures, and do not feel that you are superior to others, then you can walk side by side with me." You are now conceited that you chant a thousand sutras, and you have no idea of your faults. "Now listen to me:

The bow is originally a building of the slow heart, why don't you touch the ground when you bow down? When I have my sinful karma in my heart, it arises, and if I don't have the thought of seeking merit, I can be blessed immeasurably.

The Sixth Patriarch asked again, "What's your name?"

Fada said, "His name is Fada." ”

The Sixth Patriarch said, "Your name is Fada, how can you ever master the Mystic Law?"

So, the Sixth Patriarch said, "Now your name is Fada, and you have never stopped reciting the scriptures diligently, and this is only reciting verbally with the sound of emptiness, and you must pass through the righteous mind to be called a bodhisattva." I have this karma with you today, so now I will show you the meaning of the Dharma, as long as you believe in the Buddha and have no words, the lotus flower of the Myoho will naturally come from the mouth. ”

After hearing this, Fada confessed to the six patriarchs and said, "From now on, I will be humble and respectful to everything, although my disciples recite the Lotus Sutra, they do not understand the meaning of the Sutra, so they often have doubts in their hearts. The wisdom of the monk is profound and broad, please tell me a little about the righteousness in the scriptures. ”

The Sixth Patriarch said, "Fada! The Dharma is inherently very accessible, but your mind can't reach it. There is no doubt about the meaning of the scriptures, but it is you who have doubts in your heart. Do you know what it is interesting to recite this sutra?"

Fada said, "The disciple is dull in nature and has always recited only according to the scriptures, so where will he know what is the purpose of interest?"

The Sixth Patriarch said, "I don't know how to read, so try to read the scripture to me, and I'll tell you about it." So Fada recited the scriptures aloud, and when he read the parables, the six patriarchs said, "Stop! Originally, this sutra was based on the principle that "the Buddha appeared in the world as the cause of a major event", and no amount of metaphors will go beyond this purpose. What are causes? The sutra says, 'All the Buddhas and world-honored ones appeared in the world for a great cause. One of the great things is the Buddha's true knowledge. People in the world are either confused and attached to the appearances outwardly, or they are confused and attached to emptiness in their hearts, and if they can stay away from all attachments to the appearances, and to stay away from the emptiness, this is the internal and external detachment and non-delusion. If you realize this method and your mind suddenly opens up in a single thought, this is the enlightenment of the Buddha's insight. ”

The Sixth Patriarch said: "The meaning of the Buddha is enlightenment, which is divided into four gates: to enable sentient beings to open the 'perception of awareness', to indicate the 'perception of awareness' to sentient beings, to make sentient beings realize the 'perception of awareness', and to make sentient beings enter into the 'perception of awareness'. If you are able to comprehend the enlightenment when you listen to the teachings, it is the 'awareness of awareness,' and the true nature of the original nature is revealed. Be careful not to interpret the scriptures with false knowledge! Don't see that the scriptures say 'enlightenment and enlightenment', and mistakenly think that it is naturally the knowledge of the Buddha, and it has no fate with ordinary people of our generation. If you make such a mistake, you are slandering the Buddhist scriptures and slandering the Buddha. Since he is a Buddha and already has the knowledge of a Buddha, why should he go to 'enlighten the Buddha's knowledge' again? You should now firmly believe that the so-called Buddha's perception is your own mind, and there is no other Buddha outside of your mind. Because all sentient beings themselves have obscured the light of mind, greedy for the realm of dusty labor, and have delusions and disturbances in their hearts, and are willing to be driven by dusty labor and gallop, so they have to work on the Buddha of Great Enlightenment, appear in the world from righteous concentration, and painstakingly preach all kinds of convenient methods, and persuade sentient beings to stop delusional attachments such as greed and love, and not to seek vainly outside the heart, so that there is no difference from the Buddhas, so it is said to be the enlightenment of Buddhahood. ”

The Sixth Patriarch said, "I always advise everyone to open up the Buddha's knowledge in their own hearts. However, when people in the world are not right-minded, ignorant and confused, who create all kinds of sins, who speak good words, who harbor evil thoughts, who are greedy and covetous, who are jealous of the virtuous and jealous, who are flattering, who are self-assured, who infringe on others, and who harm others, this is the way they open up the knowledge of all beings. If you can correct your mind, always generate wisdom, contemplate your own mind, and do good deeds instead of doing evil, then you will open up your own knowledge of Buddhahood. You have to meditate on the enlightenment of the Buddha, and you must not open the perception of sentient beings yourself! To be able to open the Buddha's perception is that the Buddha has come out of the world; To open the perception of sentient beings is to remain in the world of sentient beings. If you just painstakingly and persistently recite the Lotus Sutra and think that this is homework, how is this different from a plough ox cherishing its own tail?"

After hearing this, Fada said, "In this way, as long as you can understand the meaning of the scriptures, then you don't need to chant the scriptures?"

The Sixth Patriarch said, "What is the fault of the Buddhist scriptures themselves? Is it an obstacle to your recitation? It is important to know that attachment and enlightenment lie in the individual, and the damage or gain is due to the self. To recite the scriptures orally and to be able to do what is right is to be able to turn the scriptures; To recite a scripture orally without the mind to do what it means is to be turned away from the text. Then, the Sixth Patriarch said again:

If the heart is obsessed and is turned by the Lotus, if the heart is comprehended, it can be turned into the Lotus.

Although the chanting of the scriptures has not been clear for a long time, it has become an enemy against reason.

What you don't have to think about is right, and what you think about what you have is evil.

No matter whether there is or not, there is no attachment, and you will always drive the big white ox cart.

When Fada heard this poem, he couldn't help but be moved to tears, and immediately realized under the words, and said to the Sixth Patriarch: "It is true that Fada has not been transferred to the Lotus since the past, but has been transferred by the Lotus Flower. ”

Fada asked again: "The sutra says, 'All the loud voices and even the bodhisattvas, even if they try their best to measure together, cannot measure the wisdom of the Buddha. Now only ordinary people can realize their own minds, which is said to be the knowledge of a Buddha, and if they are not a person with a superior root nature, they will inevitably have doubts and slander. And the scriptures say that there are three chariots: the sheep cart, the deer cart, and the ox cart, and the white ox cart, how to distinguish them? May the monk once again give a merciful teaching. ”