1 00:00:00,304 --> 00:00:03,274 The core of the Platform Sutra is not no Bodhi tree 2 00:00:03,504 --> 00:00:04,415 It is these five lines 3 00:00:05,304 --> 00:00:06,754 When you think of the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch 4 00:00:06,863 --> 00:00:08,855 What is the first thing that comes to mind 5 00:00:09,384 --> 00:00:11,074 Probably that famous verse 6 00:00:11,503 --> 00:00:12,695 There is no Bodhi tree 7 00:00:13,144 --> 00:00:14,675 Nor is the bright mirror a stand 8 00:00:15,183 --> 00:00:16,954 This verse is so famous 9 00:00:17,064 --> 00:00:20,835 That many people think it captures the whole sutra 10 00:00:21,103 --> 00:00:23,835 But after reading the Account of Origins closely I found 11 00:00:23,903 --> 00:00:26,742 What truly made me stop and reflect 12 00:00:26,743 --> 00:00:27,954 Was not this verse 13 00:00:28,064 --> 00:00:31,410 But five lines most people have never noticed 14 00:00:31,678 --> 00:00:31,989 Hello 15 00:00:31,998 --> 00:00:32,430 Everyone 16 00:00:32,598 --> 00:00:33,689 I am Leo Wang 17 00:00:34,039 --> 00:00:36,810 You may already know how Huineng received the Dharma 18 00:00:36,838 --> 00:00:38,357 An illiterate woodcutter 19 00:00:38,359 --> 00:00:40,449 Pounded rice for eight months 20 00:00:40,479 --> 00:00:41,269 Wrote a verse 21 00:00:41,598 --> 00:00:43,570 And received the robe and bowl from Hongren the Fifth Patriarch 22 00:00:43,838 --> 00:00:46,677 I covered this story in detail in another video 23 00:00:46,679 --> 00:00:47,890 So I will not repeat it today 24 00:00:48,119 --> 00:00:49,438 Today I want to discuss 25 00:00:49,439 --> 00:00:52,049 A detail almost everyone overlooks 26 00:00:52,439 --> 00:00:55,397 On the night Hongren passed the robe and bowl to Huineng 27 00:00:55,399 --> 00:00:56,710 What exactly happened 28 00:00:57,262 --> 00:01:00,114 The received Account of Origins records 29 00:01:00,262 --> 00:01:02,474 That Hongren taught Huineng the Diamond Sutra 30 00:01:02,782 --> 00:01:06,153 When he reached let the mind arise without dwelling anywhere 31 00:01:06,263 --> 00:01:07,633 Huineng suddenly spoke 32 00:01:07,662 --> 00:01:08,713 And said five lines 33 00:01:09,102 --> 00:01:09,933 Who would have thought that inherent nature 34 00:01:10,263 --> 00:01:11,474 Is pure from the beginning 35 00:01:11,782 --> 00:01:12,573 Who would have thought that inherent nature 36 00:01:12,903 --> 00:01:14,073 Neither arises nor ceases 37 00:01:14,343 --> 00:01:15,133 Who would have thought that inherent nature 38 00:01:15,463 --> 00:01:16,674 Is complete in itself 39 00:01:16,903 --> 00:01:17,733 Who would have thought that inherent nature 40 00:01:18,063 --> 00:01:19,233 Never wavers 41 00:01:19,463 --> 00:01:20,213 Who would have thought that inherent nature 42 00:01:20,502 --> 00:01:21,713 Can give rise to all phenomena 43 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:23,110 Who would have thought 44 00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:25,091 Means I never expected it 45 00:01:25,600 --> 00:01:27,330 Five moments of utter surprise 46 00:01:27,600 --> 00:01:29,571 This is not a student reciting a text 47 00:01:29,719 --> 00:01:33,731 It is someone stunned by what he has seen for himself 48 00:01:34,040 --> 00:01:35,571 Let us examine them one by one 49 00:01:36,438 --> 00:01:37,610 Pure from the beginning 50 00:01:38,039 --> 00:01:39,129 The first surprise 51 00:01:39,559 --> 00:01:40,909 Have you ever had this experience 52 00:01:41,479 --> 00:01:43,649 One day you suddenly become quiet 53 00:01:43,918 --> 00:01:45,489 Not because you did anything 54 00:01:45,559 --> 00:01:47,690 But because you finally stopped 55 00:01:48,039 --> 00:01:49,489 In that moment you discover 56 00:01:49,518 --> 00:01:51,530 You did not create the stillness 57 00:01:51,559 --> 00:01:53,009 It was always there 58 00:01:53,119 --> 00:01:55,289 Your thoughts are usually too loud 59 00:01:55,319 --> 00:01:56,450 And cover it up 60 00:01:56,878 --> 00:01:58,769 This is what Huineng discovered 61 00:01:59,158 --> 00:02:01,530 The ground of mind was never stained 62 00:02:01,839 --> 00:02:03,369 The mind itself is not dirty 63 00:02:03,479 --> 00:02:06,369 Only the labels and judgments you added later are 64 00:02:06,825 --> 00:02:09,596 In the framework we use throughout this series 65 00:02:09,784 --> 00:02:12,075 This is perfected nature 66 00:02:12,425 --> 00:02:14,996 It is not an advanced state you cultivate 67 00:02:15,104 --> 00:02:17,635 It is the factory setting of cognition 68 00:02:17,944 --> 00:02:19,596 You think the system has a virus 69 00:02:19,705 --> 00:02:22,396 But it is only loaded with too much junk software 70 00:02:23,368 --> 00:02:24,459 Neither arising nor ceasing 71 00:02:24,809 --> 00:02:25,980 The second surprise 72 00:02:26,328 --> 00:02:28,540 Everything you see arises and passes away 73 00:02:29,009 --> 00:02:30,320 Flowers bloom and then fade 74 00:02:30,689 --> 00:02:32,380 Thoughts come and go 75 00:02:32,608 --> 00:02:33,860 But have you ever wondered 76 00:02:34,009 --> 00:02:36,059 About that which sees flowers bloom and fade 77 00:02:36,289 --> 00:02:38,580 That which knows thoughts are coming and going 78 00:02:38,849 --> 00:02:40,519 When did it itself ever arise 79 00:02:40,928 --> 00:02:41,839 And when did it ever cease 80 00:02:42,448 --> 00:02:44,260 You may have had a moment like this 81 00:02:44,409 --> 00:02:45,719 You remember yourself ten years ago 82 00:02:46,289 --> 00:02:47,327 Your body has changed 83 00:02:47,328 --> 00:02:48,160 Your ideas have changed 84 00:02:48,488 --> 00:02:50,339 And the people around you have changed 85 00:02:50,488 --> 00:02:52,128 Yet the you who is remembering now 86 00:02:52,129 --> 00:02:54,447 And the you who lived through it ten years ago 87 00:02:54,448 --> 00:02:55,739 Seem to be the same 88 00:02:56,129 --> 00:02:57,339 The contents change 89 00:02:57,409 --> 00:03:00,860 But the awareness that knows they change does not 90 00:03:01,514 --> 00:03:05,045 This has an intriguing echo in modern consciousness research 91 00:03:05,394 --> 00:03:06,965 Cognitive scientists have found 92 00:03:07,074 --> 00:03:10,645 That the brain constantly updates its neural connections 93 00:03:11,074 --> 00:03:13,404 Your brain today and your brain five years ago 94 00:03:13,473 --> 00:03:16,684 Are very different at the level of neural connections 95 00:03:16,914 --> 00:03:19,124 Yet your sense of subjective continuity never broke 96 00:03:19,354 --> 00:03:22,844 You never woke one morning feeling like another person 97 00:03:23,153 --> 00:03:24,985 Where exactly does that continuity reside 98 00:03:25,514 --> 00:03:27,245 Science still has no settled answer 99 00:03:27,514 --> 00:03:31,045 But thirteen centuries ago Huineng pointed to it with four words 100 00:03:31,234 --> 00:03:32,444 Neither arising nor ceasing 101 00:03:33,086 --> 00:03:34,298 Complete in itself 102 00:03:34,646 --> 00:03:35,937 The third surprise 103 00:03:36,327 --> 00:03:39,217 Complete does not mean you already possess every answer 104 00:03:39,327 --> 00:03:42,217 It means you possess the capacity to know anything 105 00:03:42,646 --> 00:03:43,977 Like a mirror 106 00:03:44,047 --> 00:03:46,497 It need not store every image in advance 107 00:03:46,926 --> 00:03:48,886 Yet whatever appears before it 108 00:03:48,887 --> 00:03:50,458 It reflects exactly as it is 109 00:03:50,846 --> 00:03:52,178 What Huineng calls completeness 110 00:03:52,246 --> 00:03:54,817 Is this power of reflection remaining fully intact 111 00:03:55,167 --> 00:03:57,217 It is not a warehouse packed with goods 112 00:03:57,287 --> 00:03:59,578 It is a mirror without a crack 113 00:04:00,355 --> 00:04:01,445 Never wavering 114 00:04:01,755 --> 00:04:03,005 The fourth surprise 115 00:04:03,154 --> 00:04:04,106 Your emotions waver 116 00:04:04,515 --> 00:04:05,766 Your judgments waver 117 00:04:05,795 --> 00:04:07,965 Even your confidence in the future wavers 118 00:04:08,274 --> 00:04:10,326 But that which knows it is wavering 119 00:04:10,515 --> 00:04:11,465 Has it ever moved 120 00:04:12,195 --> 00:04:14,405 The first time I seriously considered this question 121 00:04:14,475 --> 00:04:16,125 I had a very strange feeling 122 00:04:16,274 --> 00:04:18,125 As if you were sitting on a train 123 00:04:18,274 --> 00:04:19,886 While the scenery outside kept moving 124 00:04:20,235 --> 00:04:20,985 After watching it for a while 125 00:04:21,194 --> 00:04:22,646 You start to feel that you are moving 126 00:04:23,074 --> 00:04:24,965 But look down at your own seat 127 00:04:25,074 --> 00:04:26,925 You have stayed there the whole time 128 00:04:27,395 --> 00:04:28,665 The scenery outside is moving 129 00:04:28,915 --> 00:04:29,725 Not you 130 00:04:30,155 --> 00:04:31,646 What Huineng calls unwavering 131 00:04:31,675 --> 00:04:34,845 Invites you to recognize what has remained in its seat all along 132 00:04:35,389 --> 00:04:36,520 Giving rise to all phenomena 133 00:04:37,068 --> 00:04:37,700 The fifth 134 00:04:38,068 --> 00:04:40,520 And the most important surprise 135 00:04:41,068 --> 00:04:44,520 The first four lines say what inherent nature does not do 136 00:04:44,868 --> 00:04:45,260 It is not stained 137 00:04:45,709 --> 00:04:46,099 It does not cease 138 00:04:46,469 --> 00:04:46,899 It lacks nothing 139 00:04:47,229 --> 00:04:47,919 It does not waver 140 00:04:48,428 --> 00:04:51,080 But the final line suddenly reverses direction 141 00:04:51,469 --> 00:04:52,740 It does more than remain unchanged 142 00:04:53,029 --> 00:04:54,640 It can generate everything 143 00:04:54,868 --> 00:04:57,640 In the seed theory discussed earlier in this series 144 00:04:57,709 --> 00:05:03,080 Seeds stored in alaya consciousness produce phenomena when conditions ripen 145 00:05:03,428 --> 00:05:05,308 Huineng says it gives rise to all phenomena 146 00:05:05,308 --> 00:05:07,279 Which directly echoes this mechanism 147 00:05:07,709 --> 00:05:12,039 Your mind is not an empty container waiting to be filled 148 00:05:12,349 --> 00:05:13,919 It is a generator 149 00:05:14,669 --> 00:05:16,279 Everything you can experience 150 00:05:16,428 --> 00:05:19,520 From the color of a flower to the shape of a thought 151 00:05:19,669 --> 00:05:22,157 Emerges from within it 152 00:05:22,545 --> 00:05:23,136 Think about it 153 00:05:23,425 --> 00:05:24,217 Have you ever dreamed 154 00:05:24,665 --> 00:05:27,717 The mountains people sounds and emotions in a dream 155 00:05:27,826 --> 00:05:29,336 Where did all of them come from 156 00:05:29,785 --> 00:05:30,737 There was no external input 157 00:05:31,066 --> 00:05:32,797 You generated all of it 158 00:05:33,066 --> 00:05:35,876 Dreaming is the clearest display of giving rise to all phenomena 159 00:05:36,105 --> 00:05:37,297 And what Huineng means is 160 00:05:37,626 --> 00:05:38,836 When you are awake 161 00:05:38,946 --> 00:05:41,396 The same mechanism is operating at its core 162 00:05:41,545 --> 00:05:42,997 The only difference is that while awake 163 00:05:43,025 --> 00:05:45,824 You assume an independently existing world is out there 164 00:05:45,826 --> 00:05:47,276 Providing the material 165 00:05:47,345 --> 00:05:50,636 So you never ask where that material truly comes from 166 00:05:50,946 --> 00:05:52,396 Taken together these five lines 167 00:05:52,465 --> 00:05:56,477 Are a complete diagnostic report on the ground of Huinengs cognition 168 00:05:56,905 --> 00:06:00,025 Clean undying complete and stable 169 00:06:00,025 --> 00:06:01,396 And continuously generative 170 00:06:02,066 --> 00:06:04,956 This is not a philosophical conclusion derived from books 171 00:06:04,985 --> 00:06:08,029 It is a record written after direct observation 172 00:06:08,298 --> 00:06:10,269 Now you may be wondering 173 00:06:10,657 --> 00:06:14,548 Huineng awakened on hearing let the mind arise without dwelling anywhere 174 00:06:14,697 --> 00:06:15,849 How could an illiterate person 175 00:06:16,178 --> 00:06:17,669 Who had never read a sutra or treatise 176 00:06:17,738 --> 00:06:19,928 Be pierced through by this one line 177 00:06:20,697 --> 00:06:24,109 I think the answer lies precisely in his illiteracy 178 00:06:24,337 --> 00:06:25,269 Think about it 179 00:06:25,337 --> 00:06:27,868 When educated people like us approach Buddhism 180 00:06:27,978 --> 00:06:29,128 What is our greatest obstacle 181 00:06:29,657 --> 00:06:30,829 Too many concepts 182 00:06:31,097 --> 00:06:35,068 Emptiness being the middle way dependent origination emptiness of nature 183 00:06:35,137 --> 00:06:37,229 Each term could fill an entire paper 184 00:06:37,618 --> 00:06:39,188 First we learn all these terms 185 00:06:39,298 --> 00:06:41,909 Then try to capture truth with them 186 00:06:42,337 --> 00:06:43,289 The more terms you learn 187 00:06:43,537 --> 00:06:45,308 The more progress you think you are making 188 00:06:45,537 --> 00:06:46,209 But in reality 189 00:06:46,498 --> 00:06:48,948 Those very terms are becoming obstacles 190 00:06:49,818 --> 00:06:51,789 You use concepts to capture truth 191 00:06:51,858 --> 00:06:54,687 And the concepts themselves become a cage 192 00:06:55,156 --> 00:06:56,526 Huineng did not have this problem 193 00:06:56,995 --> 00:06:58,507 He had no library of concepts in his head 194 00:06:58,836 --> 00:07:00,247 No burden of terminology 195 00:07:00,555 --> 00:07:04,247 So when Hongren said let the mind arise without dwelling anywhere 196 00:07:04,516 --> 00:07:06,247 He did not need to consult a dictionary 197 00:07:06,435 --> 00:07:08,567 Or compare earlier commentaries 198 00:07:08,875 --> 00:07:11,607 He directly felt the state itself 199 00:07:12,036 --> 00:07:13,526 Dwelling nowhere 200 00:07:13,995 --> 00:07:17,150 Yet the mind still gives rise to everything it should 201 00:07:17,739 --> 00:07:19,830 This is the heart of that line from the Diamond Sutra 202 00:07:20,220 --> 00:07:22,219 These eight Chinese characters translated by Kumarajiva 203 00:07:22,220 --> 00:07:25,991 Appear in section ten of the common thirty two section edition 204 00:07:26,419 --> 00:07:29,270 The original context is not teaching a meditation technique 205 00:07:29,299 --> 00:07:32,510 It describes how a bodhisattva should exist 206 00:07:32,820 --> 00:07:34,938 Attached to no fixed standpoint 207 00:07:34,940 --> 00:07:37,390 Yet leaving nothing undone 208 00:07:37,659 --> 00:07:38,571 What Huineng heard 209 00:07:38,739 --> 00:07:40,431 Was not an instruction for practice 210 00:07:40,460 --> 00:07:43,071 But a direct declaration about inherent nature 211 00:07:43,299 --> 00:07:45,578 You do not need to stand on any concept 212 00:07:45,580 --> 00:07:48,751 Your mind naturally gives rise to everything that should arise 213 00:07:49,059 --> 00:07:51,270 This perfectly connects with his words 214 00:07:51,340 --> 00:07:53,370 Giving rise to all phenomena 215 00:07:53,600 --> 00:07:54,310 I often wonder 216 00:07:54,600 --> 00:07:55,999 Why the same sentence 217 00:07:56,000 --> 00:07:57,771 Passes by some people unheard 218 00:07:57,800 --> 00:07:59,591 Yet strikes others like lightning 219 00:08:00,079 --> 00:08:02,558 Perhaps it is not about how profound the sentence is 220 00:08:02,560 --> 00:08:05,651 But the state of the person hearing it 221 00:08:06,040 --> 00:08:08,411 Huineng pounded rice for eight months 222 00:08:08,560 --> 00:08:10,558 For eight months he had no scriptures to read 223 00:08:10,560 --> 00:08:11,959 No fellow practitioners to talk with 224 00:08:11,959 --> 00:08:14,211 Only the same physical labor every day 225 00:08:14,440 --> 00:08:17,570 This resembles a natural state of meditation 226 00:08:17,959 --> 00:08:20,810 His thoughts had been ground into deep stillness 227 00:08:20,959 --> 00:08:22,678 So still that when one sentence entered 228 00:08:22,680 --> 00:08:25,079 No other concept could block it 229 00:08:25,079 --> 00:08:27,557 It went straight to the foundation 230 00:08:28,065 --> 00:08:28,656 At this point 231 00:08:28,865 --> 00:08:31,036 I want to discuss a topic repeated many times 232 00:08:31,065 --> 00:08:34,117 Yet almost always treated only on the surface 233 00:08:34,346 --> 00:08:36,937 What are sudden enlightenment and gradual cultivation really disputing 234 00:08:37,745 --> 00:08:38,697 The usual account says 235 00:08:39,025 --> 00:08:40,636 Shenxiu represents gradual cultivation 236 00:08:40,745 --> 00:08:42,356 Huineng represents sudden enlightenment 237 00:08:42,666 --> 00:08:43,937 The two paths compete 238 00:08:44,306 --> 00:08:45,356 And Huineng wins 239 00:08:45,546 --> 00:08:46,917 It makes a compelling story 240 00:08:46,946 --> 00:08:50,356 But reduces a deep question to a contest 241 00:08:50,625 --> 00:08:52,376 The real difference is not method 242 00:08:52,625 --> 00:08:54,239 It is the premise 243 00:08:54,628 --> 00:08:56,280 Gradual cultivation follows this logic 244 00:08:56,628 --> 00:08:58,520 There is dust on your mind 245 00:08:58,669 --> 00:09:00,800 And you must wipe it away layer by layer 246 00:09:01,149 --> 00:09:02,680 That sounds perfectly reasonable 247 00:09:02,988 --> 00:09:04,099 But it assumes 248 00:09:04,508 --> 00:09:06,559 That the dust truly exists 249 00:09:06,909 --> 00:09:08,420 What if the dust is not real 250 00:09:08,949 --> 00:09:10,020 What if Huineng is right 251 00:09:10,549 --> 00:09:11,819 And the mind is pure from the beginning 252 00:09:12,628 --> 00:09:14,680 Then what you wipe away is not dust 253 00:09:15,029 --> 00:09:17,839 You are struggling against dirt imagined by your own mind 254 00:09:18,348 --> 00:09:20,120 And the more earnestly you wipe 255 00:09:20,149 --> 00:09:23,280 The more you confirm that the dirt is real 256 00:09:23,549 --> 00:09:26,992 Your effort ends up reinforcing the illusion 257 00:09:27,460 --> 00:09:29,512 I have met people who practiced for many years 258 00:09:29,621 --> 00:09:31,311 Yet grew more tense the longer they practiced 259 00:09:31,700 --> 00:09:33,752 Perhaps this is where they became stuck 260 00:09:34,060 --> 00:09:37,472 They took the dust to be removed far too seriously 261 00:09:37,541 --> 00:09:39,431 And forgot to examine 262 00:09:39,460 --> 00:09:41,632 Whether that dust existed at all 263 00:09:42,180 --> 00:09:43,732 The logic of sudden enlightenment is not wiping 264 00:09:44,180 --> 00:09:44,911 It is seeing 265 00:09:45,300 --> 00:09:47,831 You need not remove every grain of dust 266 00:09:48,220 --> 00:09:49,780 You only need to see clearly 267 00:09:49,781 --> 00:09:52,551 That the dust was never there to begin with 268 00:09:53,220 --> 00:09:56,232 This aligns perfectly with the three natures discussed earlier 269 00:09:56,580 --> 00:09:58,632 The dust is imagined nature 270 00:09:58,820 --> 00:10:02,431 A false label placed on the flow of dependent nature 271 00:10:02,861 --> 00:10:05,872 Gradual cultivation tries to peel away each label 272 00:10:06,621 --> 00:10:08,592 Sudden enlightenment sees through them directly 273 00:10:08,621 --> 00:10:11,151 Those labels never belonged to the foundation 274 00:10:11,460 --> 00:10:12,579 You need not peel them off 275 00:10:12,580 --> 00:10:14,772 Because they were never stuck there in the first place 276 00:10:15,001 --> 00:10:17,732 But many people fall into a trap here 277 00:10:18,161 --> 00:10:20,413 They think enlightenment means no more cultivation 278 00:10:20,802 --> 00:10:23,173 Huineng himself never said that 279 00:10:23,442 --> 00:10:24,881 In the later parts of the Platform Sutra 280 00:10:24,881 --> 00:10:27,732 He devotes long passages to the unity of meditation and wisdom 281 00:10:27,881 --> 00:10:30,173 And to no thought no form and no abiding 282 00:10:30,602 --> 00:10:32,612 These are all demanding forms of practice 283 00:10:32,962 --> 00:10:34,153 Sudden enlightenment is not the destination 284 00:10:34,442 --> 00:10:35,372 It is the starting point 285 00:10:35,682 --> 00:10:38,173 First you see the entire map 286 00:10:38,322 --> 00:10:41,877 Then you know how to walk the road step by step 287 00:10:42,306 --> 00:10:43,196 Imagine this 288 00:10:43,585 --> 00:10:46,117 You have been feeling your way through a dark room 289 00:10:46,386 --> 00:10:47,716 Then someone suddenly turns on the light 290 00:10:48,186 --> 00:10:49,157 That is sudden enlightenment 291 00:10:49,465 --> 00:10:52,356 But once the light is on you must still walk for yourself 292 00:10:52,426 --> 00:10:54,237 You still need to move what must be moved 293 00:10:54,345 --> 00:10:56,436 And clean what must be cleaned 294 00:10:56,745 --> 00:10:57,456 The difference is 295 00:10:57,825 --> 00:10:59,277 Now you can see 296 00:10:59,666 --> 00:11:00,864 You stop walking into walls 297 00:11:00,865 --> 00:11:03,237 And stop kicking chairs aside as obstacles 298 00:11:03,546 --> 00:11:05,517 You know where everything is 299 00:11:05,585 --> 00:11:08,059 And every step has a basis 300 00:11:08,328 --> 00:11:10,419 Finally I want to share another perspective 301 00:11:10,528 --> 00:11:14,179 One we have never explored before on this channel 302 00:11:14,489 --> 00:11:15,080 Did you know 303 00:11:15,609 --> 00:11:17,000 The Platform Sutra we read today 304 00:11:17,249 --> 00:11:18,620 And the earliest Platform Sutra 305 00:11:18,688 --> 00:11:20,340 Are not quite the same book 306 00:11:20,609 --> 00:11:23,740 The most popular version today is the Yuan dynasty Zongbao edition 307 00:11:23,849 --> 00:11:26,179 The one you find in bookstores 308 00:11:26,249 --> 00:11:27,320 But in 1900 309 00:11:27,609 --> 00:11:30,207 The Library Cave at the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang was discovered 310 00:11:30,208 --> 00:11:32,460 It contained an earlier manuscript of the Platform Sutra 311 00:11:32,688 --> 00:11:34,500 Scholars call it the Dunhuang version 312 00:11:34,649 --> 00:11:37,458 The two versions differ greatly 313 00:11:37,726 --> 00:11:39,618 Consider the account of receiving the Dharma 314 00:11:40,046 --> 00:11:42,577 The Zongbao version makes it highly dramatic 315 00:11:42,966 --> 00:11:45,378 Hongren calls Huineng inside at midnight 316 00:11:45,407 --> 00:11:46,806 Covers them with his robe 317 00:11:46,806 --> 00:11:47,598 Transmits the Dharma in secret 318 00:11:47,966 --> 00:11:49,537 And sends him away under cover of night 319 00:11:49,926 --> 00:11:52,378 The whole account is tense and secretive 320 00:11:52,446 --> 00:11:54,258 With the mood of a spy thriller 321 00:11:54,566 --> 00:11:55,677 But in the Dunhuang version 322 00:11:55,887 --> 00:11:57,858 The account is far more concise 323 00:11:58,127 --> 00:12:01,378 Details such as covering him with the robe and striking the mortar three times are absent 324 00:12:01,566 --> 00:12:04,893 It reads more like a record than a story 325 00:12:05,202 --> 00:12:08,334 Other details also differ between the Dunhuang and Zongbao versions 326 00:12:08,562 --> 00:12:10,081 For example Huinengs verse 327 00:12:10,082 --> 00:12:13,293 The third line in Dunhuang says Buddha nature is always pure 328 00:12:13,403 --> 00:12:15,773 Zongbao changes it to originally there is not a single thing 329 00:12:16,003 --> 00:12:16,673 In the Dunhuang version 330 00:12:16,922 --> 00:12:18,974 Huineng also writes a second verse 331 00:12:19,243 --> 00:12:20,614 Scholars generally believe 332 00:12:20,643 --> 00:12:23,574 The Dunhuang version is closer to an early oral record 333 00:12:23,643 --> 00:12:26,254 While Zongbao was polished by generations of writers 334 00:12:26,643 --> 00:12:27,474 What does this tell us 335 00:12:27,922 --> 00:12:32,694 The Platform Sutra was repeatedly edited over more than a thousand years 336 00:12:32,843 --> 00:12:36,802 Later editors wanted a more moving and vivid story 337 00:12:36,802 --> 00:12:39,861 So they added considerable literary polish 338 00:12:40,209 --> 00:12:42,981 Knowing this does not diminish the value of the Platform Sutra 339 00:12:43,010 --> 00:12:43,981 Quite the opposite 340 00:12:44,370 --> 00:12:46,340 It gives you another level of discernment 341 00:12:46,569 --> 00:12:48,540 When reading the sutra you can distinguish 342 00:12:48,569 --> 00:12:50,809 What is closer to the earliest record 343 00:12:50,809 --> 00:12:53,261 From what later editors embellished 344 00:12:53,370 --> 00:12:54,001 Once you see the difference 345 00:12:54,290 --> 00:12:55,901 You can read with greater ease 346 00:12:56,170 --> 00:12:58,741 Take the five lines on inherent nature 347 00:12:58,969 --> 00:13:01,580 They do not appear in the Dunhuang version 348 00:13:01,689 --> 00:13:03,700 The Dunhuang account is very brief 349 00:13:03,770 --> 00:13:06,501 The Fifth Patriarch summons Huineng at midnight to hear the Diamond Sutra 350 00:13:06,569 --> 00:13:08,241 Huineng hears it and awakens at once 351 00:13:08,449 --> 00:13:09,460 That is all 352 00:13:09,489 --> 00:13:11,080 It does not name let the mind arise without dwelling anywhere 353 00:13:11,449 --> 00:13:12,781 Nor does it include these five lines 354 00:13:12,890 --> 00:13:17,254 They appear only in later editions such as Huixin and Zongbao 355 00:13:17,482 --> 00:13:18,453 But consider this 356 00:13:18,482 --> 00:13:22,093 Even if later editors added these five lines 357 00:13:22,163 --> 00:13:24,534 The awakening experience they describe 358 00:13:24,602 --> 00:13:26,254 Still deserves careful reflection 359 00:13:26,403 --> 00:13:27,802 Whether these were Huinengs exact words 360 00:13:27,803 --> 00:13:30,761 And whether the experience is real and powerful 361 00:13:30,762 --> 00:13:31,853 Are two separate questions 362 00:13:32,083 --> 00:13:33,921 These five lines have endured for so long 363 00:13:33,923 --> 00:13:35,774 Not because of the name attached to them 364 00:13:35,803 --> 00:13:37,654 But because each one points toward 365 00:13:37,683 --> 00:13:40,570 An inner experience you can verify for yourself 366 00:13:40,839 --> 00:13:45,290 Finally let us organize the whole picture with our usual framework 367 00:13:45,679 --> 00:13:46,690 These five lines 368 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:49,851 Form a five dimensional portrait of inherent nature 369 00:13:50,240 --> 00:13:53,330 The first four describe four sides of one reality 370 00:13:53,760 --> 00:13:56,731 Pure undying complete and unwavering 371 00:13:56,880 --> 00:13:59,371 All describe the ground of your cognition 372 00:13:59,400 --> 00:14:02,330 In its true state unstained by any phenomenon 373 00:14:02,760 --> 00:14:06,930 These are four portraits of perfected nature discussed earlier 374 00:14:07,400 --> 00:14:08,790 It is not something you cultivate 375 00:14:09,160 --> 00:14:10,650 Nor something you create through awakening 376 00:14:10,959 --> 00:14:12,650 It has always been that way 377 00:14:13,000 --> 00:14:15,285 You have simply come to see it 378 00:14:15,674 --> 00:14:17,425 The fifth line giving rise to all phenomena 379 00:14:17,713 --> 00:14:19,204 Points to another dimension 380 00:14:19,514 --> 00:14:21,885 The ground of cognition is not stagnant water 381 00:14:21,993 --> 00:14:23,045 It is alive 382 00:14:23,274 --> 00:14:25,604 It is the generative source of all phenomena 383 00:14:25,914 --> 00:14:27,593 In the language of seed theory 384 00:14:27,593 --> 00:14:31,165 This is how seeds produce phenomena when conditions arise 385 00:14:31,554 --> 00:14:35,324 From parameter space to the world you experience right now 386 00:14:35,353 --> 00:14:36,804 There is no break in between 387 00:14:37,074 --> 00:14:41,889 Everything flows from what is originally pure and neither arises nor ceases 388 00:14:42,359 --> 00:14:44,490 This is what Huineng truly awakened to 389 00:14:44,879 --> 00:14:47,330 It was not that one verse was better than another 390 00:14:47,399 --> 00:14:49,730 Or that one monk defeated another 391 00:14:49,918 --> 00:14:53,769 He directly saw the shape of the ground of his own mind 392 00:14:53,798 --> 00:14:56,850 Then described it faithfully in five lines 393 00:14:57,198 --> 00:14:59,610 Today we discussed only the opening of the Platform Sutra 394 00:14:59,759 --> 00:15:03,210 The Dharma transmission in the Account of Origins and these five core lines 395 00:15:03,678 --> 00:15:04,590 Those five lines alone 396 00:15:04,958 --> 00:15:06,518 Can occupy us for a long time 397 00:15:07,049 --> 00:15:09,119 Which of the five lines on inherent nature 398 00:15:09,147 --> 00:15:10,326 Moves you most deeply 399 00:15:10,850 --> 00:15:13,872 Or have you ever suddenly discovered something 400 00:15:14,138 --> 00:15:15,891 That had been there all along 401 00:15:15,919 --> 00:15:17,772 But you had never noticed before 402 00:15:18,375 --> 00:15:19,931 Tell me in the comments 403 00:15:20,117 --> 00:15:20,822 I am Leo Wang 404 00:15:21,028 --> 00:15:21,825 See you next time