(alternate spellings or ) (; Pīnyīn: ; Wade–Giles: ; Rōmaji: ), meaning literally: "Faith-Mind Inscription," is a poem attributed to the Third Chinese Chán Patriarch Jianzhi Sengcan (; Pīnyīn: ; Wade–Giles: ; Romaji: ) and one of the earliest Chinese Chan expressions of the Buddhist mind training practice. It is located in section T2010 of the Taisho Tripitaka.
The poem expresses the practice of taking pleasant and unpleasant life experiences with a sense of equanimity. Broadly speaking, the Xinxin Ming deals with the principles and practice of non-duality, that is, with the application of nonduality and the results of its practice.See Pajin (1988). As an early expression of Chan Buddhism, the reveals the Buddhist missionary use of expedient means (upaya) in China by adapting Daoist terminology to the Buddhist context of awakening. It also draws on the Wisdom sutras as well as the Avatamsaka Sutra and Lankavatara Sutra to express the essential unity of opposites and the basic nature of emptiness (). The Xinxin Ming has been much beloved by Chan (Zen) practitioners for over a thousand years and is still studied in Western Zen circles.See, e.g., Soeng (2004), p. xiii: "The poem ... is one of the most beloved texts of the Zen tradition and one of the most familiar of the early Zen texts."
Authorship Although Sengcan has traditionally been attributed as the author, modern scholars believe that the work was written well after Sengcan's death, probably during the Tang dynasty (; pinyin: ) (618–907) (Dumoulin, p 97). Some scholars note the similarity with a poem called the Xin Ming (Mind Inscription or Song of Mind)Sacred Texts Henrik H. Sorensen translation of "Mind Inscription", the possible original source of Xinxin Ming attributed to Niu-t'ou Fa-jung (594–657) of the Oxhead school of Chan and have speculated that the Xinxin Ming is an abridged version of the Mind Inscription. Sharf observes that the Xinxin Ming may have been intended as an "improvement" on the earlier Xin Ming (Mind Inscription).Robert Sharf, Coming to Terms with Chinese Buddhism, A Reading of the Treasure Store Treatise, page 48, University of Hawai'i Press, 2002 The Xinxin Ming can be found in chapter 30 of the Transmission of the Lamp (; Pinyin: ; Wade–Giles: ; ).for a fuller discussion on authorship see Sacred Texts
Themes Bernard Faure observes that the Xinxin Ming exhibits criticism of the Northern School practice known as "maintaining the one" or "guarding the one" (shouyi 守一), which was falling out of fashion with the eclipse of Northern Chan. Such criticism can be seen in the following passage from the Xinxin Ming: "If there is even a trace of ‘is’ or ‘is not,’ the mind will be lost in confusion. Although the two comes from the One, do not guard even this One."Robert Sharf. Coming to Terms with Chinese Buddhism: A Reading of the Treasure Store Treatise, page 184, University of Hawai'i Press, 2002 It has also been pointed out that the Xinxin Ming closely resembles the short Oxhead School work, the Xin Ming (Mind Inscription),The "Hsin-Ming" Attributed to Niu-t'ou Fa-jung, translated into English by Henrik H. Sorensen, in the Journal of Chinese Philosophy, Vol.13, 1986, page 105Robert Sharf. Coming to Terms with Chinese Buddhism, A Reading of the Treasure Store Treatise, page 48, University of Hawai'i Press, 2002 a text taken to contain criticisms of the similar Northern School practice of "maintaining (or guarding) the mind" (shouxin 守心) by some scholars, such as Kuno HōryūJohn McRae. The Ox-head School of Chinese Ch'an Buddhism: From Early Ch'an to the Golden Age, in Studies in Ch'an and Hua-yen, edited by Robert M. Gimello and Peter Gregory, page 208, University of Hawai'i Press, 1983 and Henrik Sorensen.The "Hsin-Ming" Attributed to Niu-t'ou Fa-jung, translated into English by Henrik H. Sorensen, in the Journal of Chinese Philosophy, Vol.13, 1986, page 116, note 57; page 117, note 69
Likewise, Dusan Pajin observes that both the Xinxin Ming and the Xin Ming contain similar admonitions against using the mind to hold the mind and using the mind to maintain tranquility. Pajin also points out that the Xinxin Ming exhibits influences from Daoism and he notes the inclusion in the text of such terms as wuwei (non-action), as well as ziran (naturalness, spontaneity), which Pajin says "has a completely Taoist meaning." Pajin writes that this aligns with the Chan tendency, influenced by Daoism, "to stress spontaneity, at the expense of rules, or discipline." Pajin also writes that the Xinxin Ming's emphasis on faith in mind could be understood as a Chan response to Pure Land practice in which one puts one's faith in Buddha Amitābha.
Meaning of xinxin has commonly been interpreted as "faith" or "trust." For example, one translation is "Faith in Mind" (See The Poetry of Enlightenment: Poems by Ancient Ch'an Masters, Ch'an Master Sheng-Yen).
Yoshida Osamu translates xinxin as "faith-mind,"Three Chan Classics, page 127, Bukkyō Dendō Kyōkai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1999 and says, "Although xin (faith) and xin (mind) in the conventional sense are concerned respectively with object and subject, in ultimate reality they are not different."Three Chan Classics, page 118, Bukkyō Dendō Kyōkai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1999 Similarly, Joanne Miller writes, "Xinxin refers to the conviction that the searching mind is the object of its own search i.e., buddha nature. In terms of a process or a practice, this faith is the experience of the mind when we experience non-duality. In this state, the trusting mind itself becomes the object of trust."Joanne P. Miller. What the Ancestors Knew: Reclaiming Faith in Western Zen Practice, page 76. Resource Publications, 2023 R.H. Blyth also says that the believing mind is not a belief in something. It is not a matter of one thing believing in another. Rather, Blyth quotes the Nirvāṇa Sūtra which says, "The Believing Mind is the Buddha nature." Blyth comments that, "It is perfect because it is single, unique, complete, all-including."R.H. Blyth. Zen and Zen Classics, Volume One: From the Upanishads to Huineng, pages 98-99. Greenpoint Books, 2022
McRae translates xin 信 as "to rely on," noting this entails faith or conviction. However, he also points out, following Yanagida, that in the compound xinxin 信心, the first character can also have a meaning similar to "true," and should be translated along the lines of "perfected." He suggests that the title Xinxin Ming be translated either as Inscription on Relying on the Mind or Inscription on the Perfected Mind.McRae, John. The Northern School and the Formation of Early Ch'an Buddhism, page 316, note 64. University of Hawaii Press, 1986
From the Chan/Zen point of view, the true mind is perfect as it is. It is only false views that obscure the true mind's inherent perfection. As the text states,
Moreover, the passage that follows immediately after explicitly warns against losing the original, true mind:
Whether translated as Faith in Mind, Believing in Mind, Trust in Mind, or The Truthful Mind, the central message of the Xinxin Ming is the same: to point directly to Mind by giving up one-sided views so we can see the One Suchness of reality as it is. Excerpts Opening verse The opening verse, variously translated, sets out the fundamental principle:
The best way [Great Way, the Tao] is not difficult It only excludes picking and choosing Once you stop loving and hating It will enlighten itself. (trans. D. Pajin)
Alternatively:
The Perfect Way knows no difficulties Except that it refuses to make preferences; Only when freed from hate and love, It reveals itself fully and without disguise (trans. by D.T. Suzuki)Suzuki (1960), pp. 76–82; see also, Soeng (2004), pp. 133, 139, 145, 151, 157, 163, 169.
And also:
There is nothing difficult about the Great Way, But avoid choosing! Only when you neither love nor hate, Does it appear in all clarity. (trans. R.H. Blyth, Zen and Zen Classics)
Last verse The poem ends with:
Emptiness here, Emptiness there, but the infinite universe stands always before your eyes. Infinitely large and infinitely small; no difference, for definitions have vanished and no boundaries are seen. So too with Being and non-Being. Don't waste time in doubts and arguments that have nothing to do with this. One thing, all things: move among and intermingle, without distinction. To live in this realization is to be without anxiety about non-perfection. To live in this faith is the road to non-duality, Because the non-dual is one with the trusting mind. Words! The Way is beyond language, for in it there is no yesterday no tomorrow no today. (trans. Richard B. Clarke)
Alternatively:
One in All, All in One— If only this is realized, No more worry about your not being perfect!
Where Mind and each believing mind are not divided, And undivided are each believing mind and Mind, This is where words fail; For it is not of the past, present, and future. (trans. D.T. Suzuki)
And also:
One thing is all things; All things are one thing. If this is so for you, There is no need to worry about perfect knowledge. The believing mind is not dual; What is dual is not the believing mind. Beyond all language, For it there is no past, no present, no future. (trans. R.H. Blyth, Zen and Zen Classics)
Notes
References
Works cited Blyth, R. (1960). Zen and Zen Classics, Vol. I. Hokuseido Press . Clarke, Richard (1973, 1984). Hsin Hsin Ming: Verses on the Faith-Mind. Buffalo, New York: White Pine Press.
Dumoulin, Heinrich (1994, 1998). Zen Buddhism: A History, Volume I, India and China, Simon & Schuster and Prentice Hall International McRae, John R (1986). The Northern School and the Formation of Early Ch'an Buddhism, University of Hawaii Press, Pajin, Dusan (1988). , Journal of Oriental Studies, Vol. XXVI, No. 2, Hong Kong 1988, pp. 270–288. or here Putkonen, Eric (2008). Hsin Hsin Ming: Verses on the Perfect Mind. (interpretation, not a direct translation) Available as a free E-book in PDF format Soeng, Mu (2004). Trust in Mind: The Rebellion of Chinese Zen. Boston: Wisdom Publications. . Suzuki, D.T. (1960). . NY: Grove Press. . Cleary, J. C.; Yoshida, Osamu, trans. (1995). Three Chan Classics (The Faith-Mind Maxim; T 48, no 2010) , Berkeley: BDK America.
External links
Collection of English translations of the Xinxin Ming Full text on Chinese Wikisource The Advaita Show, an audio reading of the Xin Xin Ming Music file of the Song of the Truthful Mind in MP3 format Trust in Mind in "A Collection of Selected Buddhist Texts" by Chung Tai Translation Committee, pages 80–87.