汾陽無德禪師語錄 1.73

1.73

Ascending the hall, he said: "Those who preach the Dharma must be timely, observe faculties and address conditions, and apply medicine in response to the illness. If it is not timely, it is altogether called untimely speech. Therefore it is said: 'If you wish to know the meaning of Buddha-nature, you must observe the conditions of time and season.' If one is not clear about the principles between ruler and minister, father and son, not distinguishing the deviant from the correct, defilement and purity are hard to clarify. It is called: the rustic singing ballads, the imperial way being level and open, the Buddhadharma appearing right before us, seizing and releasing freely, killing and giving life in response to the moment—now illuminating the host within the guest, now illuminating the guest within the host, now illuminating the guest within the guest, now illuminating the host within the host, or combining them to bring thorough integration, or using the sounding pole and the shadowing grass, or having the three mysteries and three essentials within a single phrase. Is there still anyone who asks? Come forth and consult before the assembly."