Hello and welcome.
My name is Silas Day and I am very excited to continue my wisdom series with you.
Today we will be looking at a member of the Xin and Chan tradition,
The master and teacher Huineng.
Huineng is known as the sixth patriarch or sixth master of the Chan tradition,
Which would later be transmitted to Japan and become known as Xin.
He lived from 638 to 713 and was a central figure throughout the tradition in the coming centuries.
He is said to have composed or taught the teachings contained in the texts,
The platform sutra,
And transmission of the lamp,
Both of which are profound teachings from the Mahayana and Xin schools of Buddhism.
Not a lot is known about the actual figure of Huineng,
As most of his life that was written down is somewhat mythical and legendary.
One interesting thing about Huineng is that if you wish to go see his body,
You can.
It was mummified and placed in glass,
Where it remains to this day at Nanhua Temple.
Yet,
Regardless of the historicity of Huineng as a person in time and space,
His teachings and wisdom are still invaluable to us.
So,
Let's take some time to look at some of Huineng's words and sayings,
Meditating on them,
And letting them flow in with curiosity,
Without resistance,
Letting them sink all the way down to our marrow so that we may know them in our own unique and personal way.
Within our impure mind,
The pure one is found.
An ordinary man is a Buddha.
Desire and passion is awakening.
One thought of folly makes a man an ordinary man.
The next awakened thought,
And he is a Buddha.
Neither is there Bodhi tree,
Nor yet a mirror bright.
Since in reality,
All is void,
Whereon can the dust fall?
By amending our mistakes,
We get wisdom.
By defending our faults,
We betray an unsound mind.
Confused by thoughts,
We experience duality in life.
Unencumbered by ideas,
The enlightened see the one reality.
To meditate means to realize inwardly the imperturbability of the essence of mind.
The reason why we are perturbed is because we allow ourselves to be carried away by the circumstances we are in.
Those who are able to keep their mind unperturbed,
Irrespective of circumstances,
Have attained inner peace.
The complete teachings of all Buddhas,
Past,
Present,
And future,
Are to be found within the essence of every human being.
The truth is to be lived,
Not just mouthed.
When our minds work freely without any hindrance,
And is at liberty to come or to go,
We attain concentration of wisdom or awakening.
Such a state is called the function of thoughtlessness,
But to refrain from thinking of anything so that all thoughts are suppressed is to be dharma-ridden and is an erroneous view.
Sit all together in meditation.
Become peacefully calm and quiet,
Without motion,
Without stillness,
Without birth,
Without destruction,
Without coming or going,
With no judgments of right or wrong,
Neither staying nor going.
This,
Then,
Is the great way.
Good friends,
How then are meditation and wisdom alike?
They are like the lamp and the light it gives forth.
If there is a lamp,
There is light.
If there is no lamp,
There is no light.
The lamp is the substance of light.
The light is the function of the lamp.
Thus,
Although they have two names,
In substance they are not two.
Meditation and wisdom are also like this.
As one lamp serves to dispel a thousand years of darkness,
So one flash of wisdom destroys ten thousand years of ignorance.
To be bigoted and argue with others is to subject one's essence of mind to the bitterness of mundane existence.
Truth has nothing to do with words.
Truth can be likened to the bright moon in the sky.
Words in this case can be likened to a finger.
The finger can point to the moon's location.
However,
The finger is not the moon.
To look at the moon,
It is necessary to gaze beyond the finger.
What I can tell you is not esoteric.
If you turn your light inward,
You will find what is esoteric within.
To meditate means to realize inwardly the imperturbability of the essence of mind.
One realizes it,
While another is ignorant of it.
Talk alone will not enable us to realize the essence of mind.
Good friends,
We say our mind is great,
The mind pervades the whole universe.
If at all times and at all places we steadily keep our thought free from foolish desire,
Then we are practicing wisdom.
You should practice wisdom and realize the essence of mind.
When rain comes in,
A deluge,
Plants which are not deeply rooted,
Are washed away.
The same is for deeply rooted wisdom.
These are some of the sayings and wisdoms from the Xin and Chan master Huinang.
I highly recommend you looking into his teachings,
The platform sutra and transmissions of a lamp,
If any of these phrases intrigued,
Inspired,
Or caught your interests,
For his writings are deeply inspiring and can help anyone on any path of mysticism,
Practice,
Or religiosity.
As well,
If you enjoyed this content,
Please let me know and I will happily make more as it is an area of great interest to me.
I'm Silas Day and have a wonderful day.
