How long did Liu Zuhui hide in Huaiji and The Fourth Society? What are the main things to do during this period?

After Huineng took over the mantle of the Five Ancestors of Huangmei Wuzu Temple in Hubei Province, he followed the instructions of the Five Ancestors to "stop whenever huaihuai is to stop, and when it meets, it is hidden" and fled back to Lingnan, hiding in the area of Huaiji and Sihui (present-day Huaiji County and Sihui City in Zhaoqing, Guangdong). So, how long has he been hiding in Huaiji and the Fourth Society? What did he do during this period?

In what year can Liu Zuhui leave his hometown and go north to Huangmei, Hubei?

In order to find out when Liu Zuhui was able to hide in Huaiji and Sihui, we must first determine when he left his hometown and went north to Huangmei to worship wuzu, and there are many statements in the literature:

1. The Six Ancestors Master Dharma Treasure Altar Sutra Brief Sequence Yun: "(Hui Neng) is long, twenty years old and four, smelling the Tao." Go to Huangmei to ask for yinke, the five ancestral instruments; pay the fa yi, and order the heir to the ancestral throne. Shi Long Shuo first year Xin Youyi also. "Here are two dates that can be mutually verified: one is that Huineng went to Huangmei at the age of 24; the other is that this year is the first year of Long Shuo. According to Huineng, he was born in 638 (the twelfth year of Tang Zhenguan), that is, at the age of 1, and at the age of 24, it should be 661 AD. The first year of Tang Longshuo was also 661 AD

2. "Biography of Master Caoxi" says: "In his year, the master marched to Caoxi and married Liu Zhiluo, a villager, in the spring and autumn of the thirty years." According to Huineng's birth year, the 30-year-old huangmei should be 667 AD.

3. The "Zutang Collection" says: "Sometimes there are Lu Xing, Chinese New Year's Eve two, who come from Lingnan to pay homage to the master. "The 32-year-old huangmei should be in 669 AD.

4. The "Jingde Chuan Lantern Record" says: "(Hui Neng) directly created the Eastern Zen of Huangmei, that is, the second year of Tang Xianheng." "The second year of Tang Xianheng is 671 AD.

5. Some historical books do not have the specific year of Huineng to Huangmei, but only give a rough time period. For example, Zanning's "Biography of Huineng": "Xian Hengzhong, to Shaoyang, meet Liu Zhiluo". Wang Wei's "Six Ancestors Can Zen Inscription": "Years and years, Huang Mei Nin Master." "The Five Lantern Society" also Yun Xianheng during the Huineng to HuangMei Gurudwara Five Ancestors. The various editions of the Tantra only deal with Huineng's journey to Huangmei, but do not involve the time of Huangmei.

Comparing the above statements, the author believes that Huineng should be 24 years old, the first year of Tang Longshuo, that is, in 661 AD, to go north to the Five Ancestors of Huangmei Gurudwara.

How long can the Second and Sixth Ancestors Hui hide in Huaiji and the Fourth Hui?

If Huineng departed from Xinzhou in early 661 and arrived in Huangmei through a one- to two-month journey (both Hui xinben and Zongbaoben's Tantra Sutra are called "not after thirty days"), and arrived in Huangmei for about eight months at the Wuzu Temple in Huangmei, that is, after receiving the Fa, the journey time was also about one to two months, then at the end of the year, he would enter Huaiji and Sihui; if Huineng set off at the end of 661, he would arrive at Huaiji and Sihui in 662.

As for how long has Huineng "hidden" in Huaiji and Sihui? Various literature and historical records vary greatly. There are several ways to say this:

1. The Dunhuang "TanJing" does not say that Huineng "hid" in Huaiji and Sihui for several years, but because the Five Patriarchs Hongren told Huineng to "go south to the south and do not carry out the three years" when he was parting, it is a metaphor for Huineng to "hide" in Huaiji and Sihui for 3 years.

2. "Zutang Collection" Yun: Hui Neng "inherits the law of clothing, and then resigns with kindness." After the four meetings of the hidden, between the Huai ji, the beginning and the end of the four years. "Say hui can be in Huaiji, four will be 4 years."

3. Hui Xin's Tan Jing states that Hui Neng "went to Caoxi and was chased by the wicked, but took refuge in Sihui County, and after five years, he was often among hunters." The Biography of Master Cao Xi also says that Huineng "took refuge in the boundaries of The Four Huis and Huaiji Counties in Guangzhou, and after five years, he was among the hunters." That is to say, Huineng has been in Huaiji and Sihui for 5 years.

4. The Qi Song Ben and Zong Bao Ben "Tan Jing" record that "Hui Neng went to Cao Xi to avoid, and was chased by the wicked." But in the Fourth Meeting, the contingent of asylum hunters, after fifteen years." It is believed that Huineng has been in Huaiji and Sihui for 15 years.

5. Wang Wei's "Inscription of the Zen Master of the Six Ancestors" says that "the Zen master cherished the treasure and lost the country, and sold his voice in a foreign land." ... And so on for sixteen years.". Liu Zongyuan's "Monument to the Zen Master of the Great Jian" also believes that Huineng "hid in the South China Sea, unknown to people, for another sixteen years." Fahai's "Brief Introduction to the Six Ancestral Masters' Dharma Treasure Altar" also says that Huineng "returned to the south and retreated for sixteen years." That is to say, Huineng hid in the Sihui area for 16 years.

6. The Book of The Magic Treasures of the Past Dynasties says that Huineng will be in Huaihui for 17 years.

Comparing the above statements, the author thinks that 15 years or 16 years is more realistic (in fact, these two theories can be regarded as one theory, because at best there is only a difference between the time when Hui Neng arrived at the end of the year or the beginning of the following year), the reason: Looking at the several major years of Hui Neng's life: born in 638, 24 years old to the North Huangmei To receive the Fa, 39 years old to shave the Fa Temple, 37 years to promote the Fa, 76 years to die, therefore, in the Huaiji and Sihui area for 15 or 16 years and 24 years old to 39 years old to become a monk, one of them; As the Fa-hai who accompanied Huineng, and the great literary heroes Wang Wei and Liu Zongyuan, who were not far from Huineng's death, praised Huineng's life in the form of inscriptions, which should be more credible than other records.

What can the Three and Six Ancestors hui do during this period?

Judging from the existing literature, there is little mention of what Huineng did during this time, and the Tantra only says that he was in the company of hunters and ate "pot side dishes" or "meat side dishes". However, the author feels that this period of time still has a great influence on the formation of Huineng Zen thought:

First of all, Huineng spent fifteen or six years in the Huaiji and Sihui areas, which is not a short time, and should be the best time to enlighten the Buddhist principles: on the one hand, some buddhist scriptures studied in the early stage laid the foundation for the establishment of the Southern Zen theory, and the hiding in Huaiji and Sihui gave him enough time and spirit to peck, digest, and absorb the essence of these Buddhism. On the other hand, he was with the common people at the lower levels of society and drew a lot of beneficial nutrients from society. In this regard, Wang Wei's analysis in the "Inscription of the Zen Master of the Six Ancestral Neng" is pertinent and unique: "The Zen master cherished the treasure and lost the country, and sold the voice to a foreign land. All sentient beings are pure lands, and the miscellaneous dwellings stop at the weavers; the world affairs are the doors, and the mixed farmers and merchants are laborers." These "sentient beings" and "worldly affairs" are the inexhaustible social nutrition that the Six Ancestors can take.

Secondly, Huineng's period of Huaiji and the Four Meetings was also the period when he practiced Buddhist theory. Huineng often accompanied hunters in the Huaiji and Sihui areas, which was obviously a big test for the six ancestors: on the one hand, hunters were engaged in hunting and killing; on the other hand, Mahayana Buddhism sang about pudu sentient beings, and even living beings should be loved. Faced with these dilemmas, Huineng tried his best to practice the Buddhist Zen concept, often explaining the Buddhist principles to hunters, advising hunters to diversify their rice crops and kill as little as possible. And whenever he encounters a prey in the net, he privately lets it go, and whenever he eats with the hunter, he only eats "meat side dishes". In addition, the folk in the Huaihui area also popular legends such as the use of Buddhism by the Six Patriarchs to eliminate harm for the people, all of which reflect the application of Buddhist theories in practice by the Six Patriarchs.

It was precisely in Huaiji and Sihui that this special experience of enlightening and practicing the Buddhist Zen concept made his Southern Zen theory gradually enriched and developed, and gradually perfected the system and perfection. As someone said: "It is necessary to pay attention to the role of this fifteen-year period in the formation of Huineng Zen culture, and to note the important impact of Huineng on the formation of the value orientation of Zen culture due to the long-term common life with laborers, which enables Huineng to further understand their cultural psychology." In fact, during this period of time, the construction of the Huineng Zen cultural system has been completed. ”