明覺禪師語錄 1.72

1.72

When the Master arrived at Lingyin, the assembly requested him to ascend the seat. A monk asked, "Taking leave from afar of the abbot's quarters at Cuifeng and about to reach the bodhimaṇḍa of Xuedou, what is the Immovable Honoured One?" The Master said, "Set the sail watching the wind." The monk continued, "If so, then looking at the direction one knows where that person goes, but the one who goes does not reach any direction." The Master said, "Head of a dragon, tail of a snake." A monk asked, "What is the intention of the Patriarch coming from the West?" The Master said, "A dot." The monk continued, "There is still this present." The Master said, "Thirty years later." The monk continued, "If so, then Cuifeng today has disintegrated like tiles and melted like ice." The Master said, "There is a little bit." The Master then said, "It is not that I am contending with you, elder monks; nevertheless, in speaking of battle, everyone's strength must be locked point-to-point at the arrowheads, and one must be a thoroughly penetrating fellow to pull it off. If your mental sense-faculty is still obstructed, you must go forward directly to make the decisive choice. Thus Upādhyāya Changsha said: 'The person sitting at the top of a hundred-foot pole, though having gained entry, is not yet genuine. At the top of a hundred-foot pole, one must take a step forward; the worlds of the ten directions are one's entire body.' A monk cited this to ask Nanquan, 'How does one take a step forward at the top of a hundred-foot pole?' Nanquan said, 'Take yet another step forward.' The monk also asked Waguan, who said, 'At the top of a hundred-foot pole, what is the use of stepping forward?' The monk did not accept this, and Waguan struck him at once." The Master said, "Great assembly! The ancients' dynamic adaptability emerged in a single moment; in between there is another assessment that has not yet been spoken. Consider Xuedou today entering Lingyin once more: it is also like being at the top of a hundred-foot pole, taking a step forward according to Nanquan's words; delighted to meet with the great assembly, the worlds of the ten directions are all encompassed at once." He then descended from the seat.