..续本文上一页e nature of the mind. He became one of the five main lineage holders of the five branches that sprang from the Sixth Patriarch”s teaching.
He then came to the White Cliff Mountain in Nanyang and stayed for 40 years in practice, attaining great realization. Emperor Xuanzong at the helm of the Tang Dynasty invited the master to come to the capital Changan. The master gave teachings there until the incidence of “An Shi Rebellion”; he then left the capital and resumed his reclusive life in the mountains. Later, Emperor Tang Suzong sought him out to Changan again and revered him as the Grand Preceptor.
Once Emperor Suzong asked him, “What have you learned from the Sixth Patriarch
” He replied, “Your Highness, do you see that piece of the cloud floating in the sky
What I learned from the Sixth Patriarch is to nail it and hang it up there.” Emperor Suzong, failing to understand, asked a few more questions. The Master answered but the Emperor was still lost, so the master ignored him. Embarrassed at being left out, Emperor Suzong said, “Whatever, at least I am the supreme head of the great Tang Dynasty, why don”t you even bother to look at me
” The Master replied with a question: “Your Highness, you do see the void of space, don”t you
” “Yes, I do.” “Then, has the space ever blinked at looking at Your Highness
” Upon hearing this, Emperor Suzong gained some insight. (This passage has in it some deep meaning, how many of you here understand Zen
I wonder.)
After Suzong, Emperor Daizong also invited Master Huizhong to the royal court. The Master was venerated with the highest honor and he took in over 10,000 ordained and lay disciples. When he passed away, a pagoda was erected in his honor in Nanyang, which was renovated later by Emperors Kangxi and Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty. But regrettably, it was destroyed in 1972 during the Cultural Revolution and no longer exists. Thus Master Huizhong is known as the “Grand Preceptor of Nanyang.” But the younger generation of Nanyang knows nothing about this. Isn”t it a shame that such a significant connection to Zen is being overlooked
Besides Master Huizhong, another great Zen Master, Xiangyan Zhixian, also came from this very place of Nanyang. Xiangyan Zhixian first studied with the great Abbott Baizhang and was quick in learning all the sutras and shastras. Although he was clever and expounded the scriptures quite impressively, he had not gained insight of the mind. After Baizhang”s passing, he followed the master”s senior disciple Guishan Lingyou, who posed him a koan: “What is your real self—the self that existed before you came out of your mother”s womb
” At this question, Zhixian was stupefied and did not know what to say. He racked his brains and went through all his books and scriptures he had read. Still, he found no apt answer.
He went to Guishan a couple of times and implored him for an answer. But Guishan refused, saying, “If I give you the answer right out, you”ll blame me later on. What I say belongs to my own understanding. How can that benefit your mind”s eye
” Dejected, Zhixian left Guishan in tears, vowed to give up the study of Buddhism, and said he rather remain a rice-gruel monk for the rest of his life.
Later he arrived at Master Huizhong”s old seat in Nanyang, the Xiangyan Monastery and, feeling quite at home, decided to settle down here for his remaining years. One day, while he was weeding in the field, his hoe hit a shard of earthenware; he picked it up and tossed it offhandedly. The shard landed on a bamboo trunk by the field and made a clear sound. As the sound reverberated in his ear, he was awestruck and suddenly awoke to the Truth. He returned to his hut immediately, bathed, and offered incense. To the direction of Guishan, he paid homage to his teacher, and…
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