Bodhi has no tree, and the mirror is not a stand;
There is nothing in the first place, so how can it cause dust. Shenxiu (606?-706), whose common surname was Li, was from the Wei family in Bianzhou (now the Wei family in Henan). He became a monk in the late Sui Dynasty. Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty was ordained in Luoyang during his Wude years. When he was fifty years old, he succeeded Hongren, the fifth ancestor of Zen Buddhism. After six years, he was promoted to the rank of senior monk. After Hongren died, he founded the Northern sect of Zen Buddhism. His posthumous title is Zen Master Datong.
In the early years of the Tang Dynasty, he had a conversation with his senior brother Huineng and wrote a poem: The body is like a bodhi tree, and the heart is like a mirror stand. I should brush it diligently at all times to avoid dust. It means: The body is the root of enlightenment (Bodhi means enlightenment. In the past, Sakyamuni attained enlightenment and became a Buddha under the Bibolao tree, and later generations called this tree the Bodhi tree). The mind is like a bright mirror, capable of illuminating all things. When the object image comes, the mirror does not increase; when the object image goes away, the mirror does not decrease. The words "body" and "mind" here are actually intertextual and have the same meaning. They are just arranged to conform to the syntax of the poem. Hui Neng (later known as the Sixth Patriarch of Zen Buddhism) wrote this poem: Bodhi has no tree, and the mirror is not a stand. There is nothing in the beginning, so how can it cause dust. It has been widely circulated, so many people in later generations believe that there is no bodhi tree in the world. In fact, people misunderstood his original intention. The bodhi tree not only exists, but is also known as the thinking tree. It is a large evergreen tree of the genus Moraceae. The poem "Bodhi has no tree" written by Huineng is probably an extension of the Buddhist theory "the four elements are empty"! Because his senior brother's body is like a bodhi tree, and his mind is like a mirror stand. He is always diligently brushed to prevent dust. The Sixth Patriarch felt that his Zen enlightenment was not complete, so he chanted: Bodhi has no tree, and the mirror is not a stand. There is nothing in the beginning, so how can it cause dust.
Literally speaking: the bodhi tree is empty, the mirror stand is also empty, the body and mind are empty. How can it cause dust when there is nothing in it?
The Buddha said to me: There is dust in your heart. I wiped hard.
Buddha said: You are wrong, dust cannot be wiped off. So I peeled off my heart.
The Buddha said again: You are wrong again. Dust is not dust at all. How can there be dust?
What does it mean that I can't understand it clearly?
I think this is derived from the two gathas Shenxiu and Huineng.
Shenxiu said: "The body is like a bodhi tree, and the mind is like a mirror. I must brush it diligently at all times to prevent it from causing dust."
Huineng said: "The bodhi tree has no tree, and the mirror is also like a mirror. It is not Taiwan, there is nothing in the first place, how can it cause dust?”
Indeed, it is indeed difficult to understand these two gathas, and it is not easy to understand them correctly.
Enlightenment is impenetrable...
The body is like a bodhi tree, and the mind is like a mirror stand. Brushing it diligently at all times to prevent it from causing dust
The body of all living beings is A tree of enlightened wisdom,
the hearts of all living beings are like a bright mirror.
It must be brushed and wiped constantly to prevent it from being polluted by dirt and obscuring its bright nature.
Bodhi has no trees, and the bright mirror is not a stand. There is nothing in the beginning, so where can it cause dust?
Bodhi has no trees in the first place,
There is no bright mirror. It's not Taiwan.
It is nothingness in the first place,
What kind of dust will be tainted there?
In 2013, we can only understand it literally, and it is difficult to understand it!
The heart is essentially dust-free, and dust is the heart. If there is no intention and no dust, people will die.
In fact, the dust is outside, but the heart is inside. If you always brush it away, the heart will be pure and dust-free;
The dust is inside, but the heart is outside. If you always peel it off, there will be no dust and no heart;
There is dust in the heart, and the dust is the heart.
Why fear the dust in the heart? If there is no dust, there is no heart? Just as Huineng said, the heart of a benevolent person is moved
And as Taoism said Tao can be Tao but is not Tao
Their principles are the same
Buddhism emphasizes the pursuit of cultivating the world with all things in mind
Taoism emphasizes the pursuit of escapism from the world
p>
Buddhists want to transcend this world, while Taoists practice this world. If we look into its principles, it is a kind of practice
But in the end, it is a kind of transcendence
But It is not a deliberate pursuit
The main idea is in the heart
In the world, there is no fixed law, and then you know the law;
The world's affairs are still unfinished, so why not Let it go.
For things and all things in the world, you need a peaceful heart to face it all.