Zen Master Hui Neng: The Bright Mirror has no Dust

Hui Neng was born in Tang Dynasty China, around 600 AD. His father died while he was young, forcing him and his mother to scrape out a living selling firewood. One day, after hearing one of his customers chanting the Diamond Sutra, Hui Neng experienced a sudden awakening. When he learned from the customer about Zen Master Hong Ren, the 5th Patriarch of Zen, who taught the Diamond Sutra, the young Hui Neng felt a deep inner call to seek him out. He walked for 30 days to reach Hong Ren’s monastery, where he presented himself to the 5th Patriarch and asked “to become awakened, nothing else”. After a brief exchange, the 5th Patriarch recognised the boy’s brilliance. But, in typical Zen Buddhist style, he sent him to work grinding rice for the temple. Hui Neng continued to work grinding rice for 8 months, during which time he did not so much as enter the Master’s hall. Read More