圓悟佛果禪師語錄 15.5

15.5

The spoken teachings of the Buddhas and patriarchs are merely fish traps and rabbit snares, relied upon as the gate to enter the principle. Once one is openly and clearly awakened and undertakes it, then upon the correct substance everything is perfectly complete; viewing the spoken teachings of the Buddhas and patriarchs, all are matters on the periphery of shadows and echoes, never to be carried atop the crown of one's head. Contemporary students of Chan mostly do not take their lineage principle as the root, but only strive to hold onto and select words and phrases, discussing closeness and distance, debating gain and loss, taking floating bubbles as real understanding, boasting of how many gong'ans they have skillfully refined, and knowing how to ask the phrases of the five houses' lineage traditions across the regions—wholly drowned in emotional consciousness and deluded about the correct substance, which is truly lamentable. There are genuine lineage masters who, begrudging not their eyebrows, urge them to leave behind such evil knowledge and evil views; yet they turn around and call this the stirring, shaking, and forging of mental activities, turning around only to enter a briar patch. This is what is meant by: 'If at the very outset one does not encounter an adept, into old age one only becomes a curio dealer.'