汾陽無德禪師語錄 3.43

3.43

I have a crooked wooden staff, / its nodes clustered like snail spirals, shaped like mountain ranges; / carried horizontally across the shoulders of the world, brushing aside empty space, / wicked specters, seeing it, all lose their courage. / Truly solid and unyielding, hard as iron, / striking stone, mountains and rivers must burst apart; / sometimes stirring the ocean to subdue fierce dragons, / Gandhakhaḍga instantly ceases. / Distinguishing the stubborn and foolish, clarifying the essential aim of the lineage, / it is not Mañjuśrī idly putting forth effort; / do not trot out talk of mere semblance— / wallowing in dung, when will you ever get out? / This mountain monk sees it and cannot bear to plant [the staff]. / To spur them on, one must be vigorous and swift, / shaking the myriad images so they become suddenly distinct, / crushing Kusāgara into fine powder. / Showing humans and devas that they must know their place, / each hero adds to his brightness and gallantry; / in ancient times, the Golden-Hued One alone held it aloft, / today Fenyang personally holds the seal. / Sealing the minds of the multitude, bright as the sun, / before distinguishing the correct from the depraved, do not chirp in dispute; / prodding and picking, I bid you examine it closely: / who can recognize its whiskers, gills, and eyes? / He who recognizes it—what branch is it? / Speak no more of south, north, east, or west; / were it not personally entrusted by the Light-Drinker, / how could it become a dragon flying up into heaven? / A great man must be fierce and bold, / staunchly resolute, leaving no trace of sacred or profane; / with a direct word, a single flick sweeps away lingering dust, / picking up the staff and pulling it straight over their heads. / The verse says: / “A single staff, craggy and steep, / unbending and straight, its spiraled nodes bursting forth. / Ordinarily carried across the shoulder, / it lifts and turns the great earth, heaven and earth. / Piercing open the dull, obtuse, and stubbornly foolish, / shattering the clever, sharp, and cunning. / Now planted upright in Xihe— / how will those in other quarters take it up?”