The four words of Huineng, the sixth ancestor, when he died are:

1. Why bother to observe precepts when you are calm, and why do you practice meditation when you are straight?

To learn Buddhism, you should understand what the precepts are for. Many people learn Buddhism in pursuit of the end. To learn Buddhism, we must first understand that the purpose of practicing Zen and keeping precepts is to be straight, while keeping precepts is to be calm. Keeping precepts and practicing Zen are tools for us to achieve peace of mind and straightness. Many people learn Buddhism, and they just use tools as their purpose, keeping precepts for keeping precepts, and practicing Zen for practicing Zen.

If a person can keep his mind straight, even if he doesn't keep precepts and practice meditation, what's the harm? The premise is that it is really done, and the heart is parallel and straight, so that you can not keep precepts and practice meditation. This sentence is to show everyone, don't be obsessed with the tool itself.

2. kindness is filial to adoptive parents, while righteousness is pity.

To learn Buddhism, you should understand that it is the kindness of your parents at home that should be repaid most. After learning Buddhism, many people only care about Buddhism, but they rarely spend some time to honor their parents and care for people around them.

Buddhism is not born knowledge, but it exists in the world. One should not forget that he is still a person after learning Buddhism, which is also a manifestation of staying close to others.

As a person, you should first deal with the relationship between yourself and the people around you. If you don't take care of the people around you and your parents, even if you worship Buddha wholeheartedly and every day, it will be of no benefit. If you never worship Buddha, you always have good thoughts in your heart, know how to be filial to your parents, show kindness to your children, respect your teachers and respect your elders, and be friendly to your relatives and friends. Even if you don't worship Buddha, you will be better than worshipping Buddha.

3. Bodhi only seeks from the heart, so why bother to seek metaphysics from the outside?

To learn Buddhism, you should know how to seek from the heart, but not from the outside. The outside is full of images. What kind of Buddha is there? The Buddha is not in the sky, and the Buddha is not in the west. The Buddha is in your heart. When you see your self, you will see the Buddha.

Many people are asking for Buddha when they study Buddhism. It is useless to ask for Buddha. To learn Buddhism, you should look at your heart and cultivate yourself more, because you can't ask for it outside, let alone get it.

4. I heard that practicing according to this is only at present in the west.

If you can really understand the wisdom of the Six Ancestors and practice yourself according to this statement, then you don't have to wait until the future, no matter what, you can be happy now.

To learn Buddhism, you should know how to cherish the present, don't pin all your hopes on the future, and don't complain about the environment. To learn Buddhism, you should know how to always think about yourself. Only by correcting yourself is the right way. If you don't work hard at present, you can't change your past habits if you change your environment in the future. Even if you go to the West, you will be as confused and invisible.

The story of Master Hui Neng, the Sixth Ancestor:

Hui Neng, the Sixth Ancestor, was unable to read because he was out of school because of his poor family, but he was filial to his mother and went up the mountain to cut firewood every day to support his old mother.

One day, when he heard a monk chanting in the street, he couldn't help but stop to listen. When he heard the sentence "You should live without a home", he was moved beyond words.

So, the monk told him that it was contained in the Diamond Sutra, and guided him that there was a Zen master in Huangmeishan who was teaching this scroll to teach people the truth of becoming a Buddha.

From then on, he decided to become a monk, but he couldn't let go of his mother. Later, a kind-hearted person helped him take care of his mother, and he settled down to ask for Tao from Hongren.

He grinds rice in the kitchen every day and practices in secret. Finally, he realizes that the so-called "you should live without shelter" means that everything is not centrifugal.

Knowing Huineng's ambition to seek the Tao, Hong Ren called him to his room in the middle of the night and told him, "If you don't know your heart, it's useless to learn Buddhism. If you see your heart clearly, you will become a Buddha."

Soon after, Hong Ren said to his disciples, "I want to pass on Zen to anyone. As long as you express your enlightenment in lyrics and can moderate the essence of Zen, I will give it recognition. "

At that time, there were as many as 8 disciples of Hongren, but at that time, everyone cowered and dared not do it.

Later, a brilliant apprentice finally wrote a poem and posted it on the corridor where Hongren often walked: "I am a bodhi tree, and my heart is like a mirror platform. Always wipe away, don't make dust. "

As soon as this poem was posted, everyone praised it, even Hongren appreciated it, but Huineng said, "Although it is true, it is not very good."

Everyone ignored his comments, because Shenxiu was knowledgeable both at home and abroad, with high expectations, and often preached on behalf of Hongren, while Huineng was regarded as nothing more than an ignorant kid.

So Huineng wrote a poem, asked someone to write it for her, and then posted it next to the beautiful poem: "Bodhi has no trees, and the mirror is not a stage. There was nothing, so there was no dust. "People were surprised, because this song clearly expressed the true meaning of Zen. Hongren's mantle was finally passed on to Huineng.