When writing in the early morning or in the middle of the night, I often think of Hong Yingming's words in "Cai Gen Tan": "In the middle of the night, when people sit quietly and watch their minds, they realize that their delusions are limited but their true nature is revealed. Every time they get great insights from this; Not only did he realize that his delusion was hard to escape, but he also felt greatly ashamed of it. "
In the Ming Dynasty, Hong Yingming liked to sit quietly in the dead of night, observing his own heart, and gradually his delusion disappeared and his true heart was revealed. The spirit is very comfortable, and the thoughts of repentance and good deeds appear.
"Cai Gen Tan" influenced the time and later generations because Hong Yingming was proficient in Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, and had a thorough understanding of it. He also became enlightened through regular meditation and embarked on the path of spiritual practice.
Mr. Nan Huaijin said that without one of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, life will not be complete. Really, everyone is a "miscellaneous family" who can integrate and synthesize Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism without any gaps.
Thirty years ago, when I just entered the society, I came into contact with "Cai Gen Tan" and knew that it was a good book to help people deal with things. I bought it, read it, and practiced according to the words in the book. Although I don't understand much.
"If you want to be a fine person, you must be forged in the fire; if you want to achieve heaven-shaking deeds, you must walk on thin ice." "Where the path is narrow, leave one step behind." If the taste is strong, let others taste it.” “If the good and ugly heart is too clear, things will not be compatible with each other; if the wise and foolish heart is too clear, people will not be close to each other.” Gaining its balance, and benefiting both wise and foolish people, is the natural virtue."
I have memorized and practiced these sentences for thirty years, but I still feel that they are beautifully written and elegant. The artistic conception is profound and lofty, as if it is endless to appreciate and comprehend.
"Don't be surprised by favor or disgrace, just watch the flowers blooming and falling in front of the court; go or stay without intention, just follow the clouds rolling in the sky" has become a favorite quote and written quote by literati and calligraphers.
In fact, there are also more beautiful sentences with similar meanings, such as "The lonely clouds come out of the mountains and Xiu, leaving and leaving without care; the bright moon hangs high in the sky, calmness and restlessness are irrelevant" and "The water bank is silent, and the noisy place has a sense of silence. "The mountains are high and the clouds are not in the way, but sometimes they are inorganic."
I also like "Tao Te Ching". I can deepen my understanding of "Tao Te Ching" through "Cai Gen Tan" and understand "Cai Gen Tan" through "Tao Te Ching". This is how my studies learn from each other, just like the ancients said, "A stone from another mountain can be used to attack jade."
"Tao" is abstract and difficult to understand. I "enlightened the Tao" through practicing Tai Chi routines and pushing hands. At the same time, I also used the "Tao" understood from the "Tao Te Ching" to guide my Tai Chi practice.
From Tao to "The Golden Mean", and then to Buddhism, embarking on the more mysterious road of "the Middle Way". If both sides do not stand, there will be no middle way. The "middle way" is more abstract than the "golden mean" and requires more understanding.
Later I studied Buddhism and discovered that there are also Buddhist principles and Dharma in "Cai Gen Tan". When you feel that Buddhist scriptures are boring, read Cai Gen Tan. In order to confirm "Cai Gen Tan", I read Buddhist scriptures. They even compare the "Tao Te Ching" and the Buddhist scriptures with each other and explain each other.
When writing in the past few years, I often quote sentences from "Cai Gen Tan" to increase the literary grace of the article, because these sentences are concise and contrasting.
Talking about the beauty of "ethereal", I would quote "The wind thins the bamboos, but the wind passes by but the bamboo leaves no sound; the wild geese cross the cold pond, the wild geese pass by but leave no shadow on the pond. Therefore, a gentleman takes matters into his own mind." When things begin to appear, things go away and the mind becomes empty.”
Master Hsing Yun used words to promote Buddhism. He liked the short and concise "Cai Gen Tan" by Hong Yingming, and wrote many "Fo Guang Cai Gen Tan" about practice.
Practitioners will all say, "Follow the circumstances and remain unchanged, and remain unchanged and follow the circumstances." However, everyone has different understandings of what "accommodating" and "unchanging" mean.
Master Hsing Yun said: "'According to fate' means to change one's position and adapt to the environment, but it is never to act casually and live in peace; 'Unchangeable' means to choose the good and stick to it consistently, but it is not to stick to the rules and follow the old rules. Not changed.”