When he heard the stanza, "When your mind clings to nothing in the world, you can gain the buddha-truth," his heart suddenly beat joyfully as if he had been enlightened. He entered the inn and found the person who was reciting. He asked him sincerely, "Sir, can you tell me what you are chanting?"

The person replied, "It's the Diamond Sutra."
Hui Neng asked again, "Can you tell me where you got it?"

"I got it from Dong Chan Temple in Huangmei County in Qizhou [now in Hubei Province in central China]. The temple is under the leadership of Master Hung Jen, the fifth Zen patriarch. I once heard Master Hung Jen give a lecture on the Diamond Sutra, and the master told us to recite the sutra so that we could attain enlightenment."

Upon hearing this, Hui Neng decided to seek out this monk. After he had made proper arrangements to settle his mother, he set out on a mission to Qizhou that forever changed his life.

Life in Dong Chan Temple

One morning when the morning service was over in Dong Chan Temple, a receptionist monk suddenly came into the main hall and reported to Master Hung Jen, "Master, a young man from Guangdong wants to learn the Buddha's teachings from you."

All Master Hung Jen's students were in the main hall, and when they heard this many of them became annoyed. Central China was the focus of Chinese culture at that moment, and people from this area always looked down on people from the outer regions, considering them uncivilized and barbaric. When they heard a southerner was there to learn from the renowned Zen master, they naturally slighted this newcomer and wondered whether he would lower the status of Dong Chan Temple.

Master Hung Jen was rather sad to hear all the noise from his students. He was displeased with their narrow-mindedness. At the same time, he was quite curious about this newcomer and wondered why he had traveled such a long distance, so he decided to meet him.

When Hui Neng came into the main hall he was met with many unfriendly glances, but he simply ignored them and prostrated himself before Master Hung Jen and said, "Master, I am Lu Hui Neng."

Master Hung Jen asked him, "Where are you from?"

Hui Neng replied sincerely, "I am from Xinzhou, and I came here to learn the Buddha's teachings from you."

Master Hung Jen noticed the unusual temperament of this young fellow, so he decided to test him. "So you are a southerner? Can even a barbarian from the south study the Buddha's teachings?"

Hui Neng was unmoved by the sarcasm. "People living in the south and north are indeed different in many ways, but are there any distinctions between the buddha-nature existing in the south and north? My buddha-nature is exactly the same as yours!"

"How dare you talk to the master like this?" "Master, let me throw this barbarian out!" The other students were angered by Hui Neng's impertinence, but Master Hung Jen was actually amazed. He knew from Hui Neng's answer that this was not an ordinary person. He might even be a great monk in the future. At the same time, he was also worried how his other stubborn students would treat this young man. He feared that if he treated him well, others might hurt him out of jealousy. He finally got a good idea to protect Hui Neng. He said to him, "I will assign you to do odd jobs at the temple."

But Hui Neng replied, "Master, my mind is clear without improper thoughts, so I don't know what 'odd' jobs you want me to do?"

Master Hung Jen was surprised at this answer and came to like this young man even more. He knew that if Hui Neng was close to other students, his wisdom might even invite trouble for himself. "You will start working in the kitchen."

From that day on, chopping wood, pounding rice, washing vegetables and cooking meals were all part of Hui Neng's work.

Hui Neng always worked hard. He got up before everyone else and worked late into the night. All sorts of dirty work became his, but he never complained. Master Hung Jen observed him from a distance. He noticed that Hui Neng was willing to take on responsibilities and was quite mature. Furthermore, he was quite at ease even when he was faced with jeers from the other monks, who never helped him with his work.

Master Hung Jen was really pleased with Hui Neng's behavior, but he was uncertain how to make the other students accept him. The master knew right away from his first conversation with Hui Neng that he had the wisdom to become an outstanding monk. Unfortunately, Hui Neng was illiterate, and the other monks really despised him because of that and also because he was from the south. Master Hung Jen's top student, Shen Hsiu, on the other hand, was intelligent and often instructed the other monks. If Hung Jen made Hui Neng the next patriarch instead of Shen Hsiu, he worried that other monks might even harm Hui Neng. After all, there was a vast difference in status between the two monks. However, Master Hung Jen also did not want to bury an outstanding monk like Hui Neng and pass the lineage to an inappropriate one. He finally had a good idea: he told his students to write a poem reflecting on what state their own spiritual cultivation had reached. Whoever showed that he fully understood his own nature, he would be given the robe of the patriarch and the dharma of the esoteric teaching of the Zen school.

When Master Hung Jen announced the news, all the monks at the temple were excited, imagining that one of them had a chance to become the next patriarch. But many of them slowly realized that with Shen Hsiu around, none of them stood a chance of ascending to the position of patriarch. Shen Hsiu too was perplexed whether he should write a poem to his master. He knew that everyone else expected him to write one and hand it in to the master, but he was not sure about his purpose in writing the poem. Was it just to seek the lineage? Then he would just be craving power and prestige and would be no different from any common man. If he did not write one, he would not be able to bear the expectations and pressures put upon him by the other disciples.

After days of constant turmoil, Shen Hsiu finally made up his mind to write a poem and let his master make the decision. But even after he had written one down and walked to his master's door, he was again uncertain if he should hand it over. For four days he walked back and forth to the master's room, but he never had the courage to knock on the door. On the fourth night, an idea suddenly came to his mind: "I can go to the southern hallway and write the poem on a wall. If the master doesn't like it, I'll just remain quiet. If he likes it, I'll admit I wrote it."

Then, he took out his brush and walked to the southern hallway and wrote the poem on the wall. After he finished the poem and returned to his room, his heart was pounding wildly as if he had just committed a crime.

The poem was discovered the next morning and everyone, including Master Hung Jen, went to read it. The poem ran like this:

The body is like a bodhi tree
And the mind a bright mirror.
Constantly and diligently we wipe it,
Lest it should collect any dust.

The students asked Master Hung Jen if the poem was good enough, but the old monk was rather disappointed with it. He felt that Shen Hsiu was not enlightened for he still had too many attachments. But what should he do with the matter in hand? Suddenly he had an idea. "This poem is well written. Everyone should memorize it and follow what the poem says, so no one will fall into the Three Lower Realms of animal, hungry ghost and hell." Master Hung Jen then went back to his room. After hearing his words, all the students started memorizing the poem.

That evening, Master Hung Jen sent for Shen Hsiu. "You wrote the poem, didn't you?" asked the master.

"Yes, I did," Shen Hsiu replied sincerely. "I wrote it so the Master can tell me if I have any wisdom at all."

Master Hung Jen nodded his head and said bluntly, "From the poem, you have just reached the door leading to enlightenment, but you are not yet enlightened. I will give you two days to write another one. If you can do it, I will pass the seat to you."

Shen Hsiu was rather upset. He felt he was not up to the level his master had requested, and he was not even sure if he could write another. A few days later, a novice walked into the kitchen reciting the poem. Hui Neng heard it and asked what it was. The young novice laughed at him. "Don't you know? It's the poem that can prevent you from falling into hell! Shen Hsiu wrote it on a wall and the Master told all of us to memorize it."

Hui Neng felt this rather strange. The poem clearly showed Shen Hsiu had not attained enlightenment, but why did the Master tell them to memorize it? Hui Neng humbly asked the novice to lead him to the hallway so that he too could have the honor of appreciating this great poem. When they reached the hallway, Hui Neng asked the novice to read it for him. After he had heard it, he wished to write his own. The other monks there laughed at him, an illiterate southerner who wanted to write a poem! Nevertheless, Hui Neng begged a district petty officer named Chang, who happened to be there, to write down his poem for him. It ran like this:

Bodhi does not exist in the form of a tree,
Neither is the mind a mirror.
Nothing actually exists there,
So where can the dust collect?

Chang and the other monks were amazed at Hui Neng's stanza, but some also insulted him for simply rewriting Shen Hsiu's poem to create his own. Hui Neng wasn't bothered by the insults and went back to the kitchen. When Master Hung Jen heard about the poem and came to read it, he was very pleased with Hui Neng's enlightenment and decided to give him the patriarch's robe. However, he was also worried that an unavoidable conflict would occur with Hui Neng's receiving the lineage.

Master Hung Jen took off his shoe and rubbed out the poem. Then he told those present, "This is not a good poem, so you can just continue memorizing the original poem."

All those present agreed to the master's comment and derided Hui Neng even more. The next day, Master Hung Jen went to the kitchen and asked Hui Neng, "How long have you been here?"

Hui Neng replied, "I've been here for eight months."
"You have been pounding rice?"
"Yes, but I haven't screened it yet."

Master Hung Jen nodded his head and said, "Very good." But at the same time, he also hit the ground three times with the staff he was holding. Hui Neng realized the meaning of this and saw Master Hung Jen off with his grateful eyes.

Passing the lineage

That night, Hui Neng respectfully went to Master Hung Jen's room at midnight. He said in a low voice, "Master, I am here."

Master Hung Jen replied from his room, "Come in."

When Hui Neng stepped into the room, he saw Master Hung Jen sitting on his bed, wearing a golden robe. The master took off his robe and covered the window with it so that no one would see them. He opened the Diamond Sutra and started lecturing on it to Hui Neng.

As Hui Neng listened to the sutra, his mind was opened. When the master finished reading, Hui Neng said, "Who would have thought one's nature is so pure! Who would have thought one's nature is always there! Who would have thought one's nature is so perfect! Who would have thought one's nature is so firm! Who would have thought one's nature creates such wisdom!"

Master Hung Jen saw that the young monk had became enlightened, so he placed the robe on Hui Neng's shoulders and said to him, "If you can't see your own nature, it is useless for you to study the Buddha's way. But if you can see your intrinsic nature, you are then a buddha."

Thus Master Hung Jen officially passed the title of Zen patriarch to Hui Neng. "I now give you the robe and the bowl first used by Bodhidharma, the first Zen patriarch, when he came to China to spread the Buddha's teachings from India," the master said to him. "Both items have been handed down to each patriarch to authenticate the holder of these items as the patriarch. But now these items have become the cause of conflict. Therefore, you must not pass these tangible things on to the next patriarch. You will transmit only the invisible teachings as the sign. Now you must leave as quickly as possible."

"But I don't know where to go," said Hui Neng.

"Stop when you come to Huai and hide when you come to Hui. I will now see you off."

Both of them walked out to a river and jumped onto a boat, and Master Hung Jen then handled the oar. Hui Neng didn't want his old master do this job for him. "Master, I am in great debt to you. When I was lost, you helped me to cross the river of delusion to the other shore of enlightenment. Now I am enlightened, and I should cross the river of vexation myself. So please allow me to row the boat."

Master Hung Jen laughed and said, "Just allow me do the last 'rowing' for you. Once you get to the other side, you have only yourself to depend on. I will die three years from now. When you reach the south, please don't try to rashly promote the Zen concept of instant enlightenment, since Buddhism is not so easily spread."

The chase

After walking for two months, Hui Neng was coming close to his hometown. Just as homesickness was crawling back into his heart, a sudden cry shattered his dream and brought him back to reality. "Hurry! He's right there!" Hui Neng turned around and saw a group of monks running after him. They were monks from Dong Chan Temple who were after him to take back the robe and the bowl. Hui Neng saw them coming close, so he placed the robe on a rock and shouted at them, "The robe is only a symbol of attaining enlightenment. How can you take it away from me by force? Even if you have the robe, what's the use if you are not certified by the master?"

Hui Neng then hid in a bush nearby. The monk who first appeared was Hui Ming, a former general who had a very hot temper. When Hui Ming saw the robe, he laughed and said, "Ha! Now I have the robe--it is mine!"

Hui Ming reached for the robe, but he was stunned to find that he couldn't pick it up. He even stood on the rock and used both hands, but it was useless.

Hui Ming then gave up the idea of taking the robe away, and he shouted, "Hui Neng, please come out! I am here for the Buddha's teachings, not the robe!"

Hui Neng could tell that Hui Ming was sincere, so he came out and sat on the rock. "Since you want the Buddha's teachings, I want you to clear your mind first."

Hui Ming replied sincerely, "Yes!"

After meditating for some time, Hui Neng said to him, "Without thinking of either good or evil, tell me now, Hui Ming, what is your original existence?"

Hui Ming suddenly became enlightened and prostrated himself before Hui Neng. At that moment, more sounds of shouting could be heard, so Hui Ming told Hui Neng respectfully, "Master, you must leave now, I'll deal with them."

Hui Ming rushed to them and shouted, "I can't find him here, so let's go somewhere else." He led them away in a different direction, and Hui Neng resumed his journey.

He came across a place named Caoxi, where he was invited by the locals to head the local Bao Lin Temple. But one night, he saw a group of monks approaching. Believing they were from Dong Chan Temple, he fled from the temple and kept running.

He came to a place called Sihui. There he suddenly recalled his Master's words to him, "Hide when you come to Hui," and he realized he should hide here. Not long after, he ran into a group of hunters and stayed with them for fifteen years. He would preach to them in ways that they could understand. They sometimes had him watch their nets, but he would free any animals that he found. When he cooked their meals, he put vegetables in the pot for himself to eat. When he finally left them again, he went to Fa Xing Temple in Guangzhou (now in Guangdong Province), where his life made another turn.

Life as a monk

In 666, Hui Neng arrived at Fa Xing Temple just as Dharma Master Yin Zong was giving a lecture. Hui Neng sat quietly at the back of the assembly and listened to the lecture. Suddenly a flag began flapping noisily in the wind. "What a strong wind," one monk complained. "It's blowing the flag around."

Another monk countered, "It's not the wind--the flag itself is moving."
"No, it's not," objected the first monk. "It's the wind!"
"No, it's the flag!"

They went on and on and became louder and louder. Then suddenly came a low, stern voice: "It's neither the wind nor the flags. It's your minds that are moving!"

Everyone turned around and looked at Hui Neng. The abbot also noticed him. "I am impressed with what you just said. I have heard that the sixth Zen patriarch has come south. Are you Hui Neng?"

"Yes, I am Hui Neng, but my knowledge is rather limited," he replied humbly.

Master Yin Zong invited Hui Neng to become the abbot of Fa Xing Temple. The master first shaved Hui Neng's head and gave him a monk's robe to wear. Hui Neng was then officially a monk and could preach the Buddhist teachings as the sixth Zen patriarch.

In 677, when he was forty years old, Master Hui Neng saw that Master Yin Zong was entirely able to take charge of the temple, so he went back to Caoxi and became the abbot of Bao Lin Temple again. The local citizens were overjoyed to see that their beloved master had returned to stay with them. More and more people came to Bao Lin Temple to seek answers from Master Hui Neng, the sixth Zen patriarch, and thus the little village of Caoxi also became famous.

Final days

In 713, Master Hui Neng was seventy-six years old. On the first day of the seventh moon of the lunar calendar, he gathered all the monks in the main hall and announced to them, "I will die in the eighth month this year. If any of you still has any question about the Buddhist doctrine, ask me in time, for there will be no one to teach you after I am gone."

Upon hearing this unexpected announcement from their beloved master, all the monks were sad and some even started crying. After a while, Master Hui Neng said to them, "You may question who will become the next patriarch." This gathered all of their attention. "When the fifth patriarch gave me the robe and bowl," Master Hui Neng continued, "he told me to pass on the invisible teachings of the Buddha. I will not hand over the tangible robe and bowl to the next patriarch. This means that those who are enlightened and understand my teachings will be Zen masters. You should not forget that if you can thoroughly perceive your undefiled innate nature, you will instantly become a buddha. The reason why you fail to perceive your innate buddha-nature is that you are bewildered by ignorance and vexation. Don't search for your buddha-nature outside yourselves. The only way you can trace it is by returning to your own pure mind. Cultivate your spirit diligently. If you squander your life, you will never be able to spiritually gain anything even if I show you the best way to attain enlightenment."

On the eighth day of the seventh moon, Master Hui Neng suddenly told his followers to accompany him back to Xinzhou, his hometown. Even though the local believers begged him to stay, he adamantly refused. He said, "When buddhas appear, they enter nirvana. They come, they go. It's the same for my body--it will eventually die." They left Bao Lin Temple and went to Xinzhou and stayed in Guo En Temple. On the third day of the eighth moon, Master Hui Neng talked with his disciples after the meal and then went to his room. Around midnight he told everyone, "I am leaving now!" Suddenly, an unknown aroma filled the room, the forest turned white and all the animals cried out. Master Hui Neng died in 713 at the age of seventy-six.

Postscript

Hui Neng's story is known to almost everyone in China and Japan. His approach that instant enlightenment is possible has helped innumerable people in gaining a thorough understanding of the buddha-nature and thus attaining enlightenment in one way or another. After his demise, Master Hui Neng's body did not have any sign of decay. His disciples had it wrapped in a layer of gold foil and carried his body back to Bao Lin Temple (now called Nan Hua Temple) in Caoxi. His body is still there.