Where is the mantle of the Six Ancestors now?

The mantle of the Six Ancestors has never been passed on to anyone. The mantle has been preserved in Caoxi Baolin Temple, which is now Nanhua Temple in Shaoguan City, Guangdong Province.

"Some people say that it was taken by Wu Zetian". As Shaoguan people, we have never heard of it.

Why didn't the Six Ancestors teach the mantle again?

six ancestors altar sutra (fahaiben). Fahai is a disciple of the Six Ancestors, and Fahai recorded some of the teachings of Master Huineng and his disciples in vernacular.

Master Huineng said, "Ten disciples! When you teach Buddhism in the future, you should teach a volume of altar sutra from generation to generation, so as not to lose my fundamental purpose. It is not my purpose not to inherit and teach the altar sutra. Now that you have it, you should pass it on from generation to generation, so that people who see the altar sutra will be like those who see me personally. "

After ten monks listened to the instruction, each copied an altar sutra and handed it down from generation to generation. Those who got the altar sutra will surely see their original Buddha nature.

Master Huineng died on August 3rd, the second year of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty. On July 8, I asked my disciples to come to my side to say goodbye. Master Huineng built a tomb tower in Guoen Temple in Qinzhou in the first year of congenital, and said goodbye to his disciples in July of the second year of congenital. Master Huineng said, "Come here, I will live until August, and I will leave the world. If you have any questions, please ask them early. I can also dispel your doubts, clear up all your confusion and make you stable and happy. After I left, no one will teach you anymore. "

Master Huineng said, "I didn't expect that God, a young monk, could be as good as bad, and he was indifferent to ruin and praise. You are sad and crying, which means that you don't know where to go after my death; If I knew where I would go after my death, I wouldn't be sad and cry. Buddha nature has no life and no death, no going and no coming. My physical body has moved, but the Buddha's body is forever, not dead. Please sit down, and I'll tell you a hymn called {True and False Moving Poems}. You recite it all. Understand the meaning of these poems, and you will understand what I mean; If I practice according to these poems, I will not lose my purpose. "

Monks pay homage together and ask Master Huineng to keep these poems. They should accept and master them with reverence and piety. These poems are:

"Nothing is true, you can't take what you see as true. If you think what you see is true, then your understanding is not true.

If you want your knowledge to become true, if you leave the fake, your mind will be true. If you don't leave the fake, where can you find the truth?

a living person knows to move! If there is no life, you can't move. If you sit still and practice, it will be the same as a dead thing without life.

If you want to see the truth, there will be the truth in the living body, which is the Buddha's nature, and the inanimate things have no Buddha's nature.

Being good at distinguishing the appearance of various things, but also sticking to the truth as the highest truth, if you understand this view, it is true as wisdom that has played a role.

Tell you people who learn Taoism that you must use your heart to make unremitting efforts. Don't be at the door of Mahayana, but you have the foolish' wisdom' of clinging to life and death.

If people in the future can echo with us, they should discuss the doctrine of epiphany with them. If they really can't echo, don't hurt the harmony by crossing their hands.

There is no dispute about the teachings of Buddhism, and it is immoral to argue. The delusional people argue about the high and low Buddhism, which is equivalent to dragging their own Buddha nature into the path of life and death. "

Fahai, who is highly respected, walked up to the master and said, "Master! Who are you going to pass on the mantle and Buddhism after you leave us? "

Master Huineng said, "The Buddhism has been passed down, so you don't have to ask who it was passed down to now. Twenty years after my death, there will be evil laws to disturb Buddhism and confuse my purpose. At that time, someone will stand up, risk his life, correctly evaluate the right and wrong of various Buddhist factions, and strive to establish my purpose. He is the true heir of my Buddhism. As for the mantle, it should not be taught in the first place. If you don't believe me, I can recite to you the eulogy of the five ancestors of the first generation. If you follow the meaning of the praise of the first ancestor, Master Dharma, you should not preach anything. Now listen to me recite it to you. Praise:

The first ancestor Bodhi Dharma's teacher said:

I came to China City to preach and save the lost beings. A flower blooms with five leaves, and my wish will come true naturally.

The second ancestor Huike's teacher's ode said: Originally, because there was a field, flowers could grow according to the ground. If there was no soil, where would flowers grow?

The teacher of the third ancestor, Sencan, said: Although planting flowers depends on fields, flowers can only grow on the ground. If the flowers are not natural, they can't grow when planted underground.

The eulogy of the teacher of the fourth ancestor Daoxin said: Flower seeds are inherently natural, and they can be born if planted in the ground. If the karma doesn't match, nothing can be born.

The ode of the fifth ancestor, Mr. Hongren, said: I intended to plant seeds, but I didn't intend to plant flowers in the neighboring country. If I didn't intend to plant seeds, I wouldn't have peanuts in my heart.

The eulogy of the sixth ancestor Huineng said: The heart is full of love and seeds, and the Buddha's dharma will be born when it rains and dew. since the enlightenment's heart is full of seeds, and Bodhi will bear fruit naturally.