Platform Sutra 10.3:
The Sixth Patriarch Sutra says, “Once, when the Fifth Patriarch was reading the Diamond Sutra, when he got to ‘They should give birth to a mind that isn’t attached to anything,’ the Sixth Patriarch (Hui-neng) was suddenly enlightened and said, ‘How could I have known my own nature was already pure? How could I have known my own nature was neither created nor destroyed? How could I have known my own nature was already perfect? How could I have known my own nature does not change?’ The Fifth Patriarch said, ‘Not to recognize your own mind is to study the Dharma to no avail. If, as I was speaking, you recognized your own mind and saw your own nature, you are a leader of men and gods.’” (1)
Platform Sutra 25:
As Hui-neng prepared to leave the Fifth Patriarch, he said, “When we are deluded, our teacher liberates us. When we are enlightened, we liberate ourselves.” (Sixth Patriarch Sutra: 1)
Platform Sutra 7:
Platform Sutra: In an effort to demonstrate his understanding of Zen, Shen-hsiu wrote: “The body is a bodhi tree / the mind is like a mirror / always wipe it clean / don’t let it gather dust.” To which Hui-neng replied, “Bodhi isn’t a tree / what’s clear isn’t a mirror / actually there isn’t a thing / where do you get this dust?” (Sixth Patriarch Sutra: 1) And to this, Feng-kan added, “Actually there isn’t a thing / much less any dust to wipe away / who can get this straight / doesn’t need to sit there stiff.” (The Collected Songs of Cold Mountain, p. 263)