“The capacity of the mind is broad and huge, like the vast sky. Do not sit with a mind fixed on emptiness. If you do, you will fall into a neutral kind of emptiness. Emptiness includes the sun, moon, stars, and planets, the great earth, mountains and rivers, all trees and grasses, bad people and good people, bad things and good things, heaven and hell; they are all in the midst of emptiness. The emptiness of human nature is also like this.”
Quote by Huineng
Work
The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch
This text is a key work in Zen Buddhism, detailing the teachings of Huike, the Sixth Patriarch, and providing a comprehensive guide to Zen meditation and philosophy. It explores the nature of enlightenment, the role of the teacher-student relationship, and the path to achieving awakening. more
Author
Huineng
Huineng (638-713), also known as the Sixth Ancestor of Chan Buddhism in the Tang Dynasty, was a native of Xinhui, Guangdong. He was a highly influential figure in the history of Chan Buddhism and was revered as the Sixth Ancestor. His life was full of legends, and it is said that he received the robe and bowl from the Fifth Ancestor Hongren under his guidance, becoming the successor of Chan Buddhism. Huineng advocated 'not establishing texts, transmitting outside the teachings', emphasizing 'enlightenment through seeing one's nature'. This thought had a profound impact on the development of Chan Buddhism in later generations. more
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