圓悟佛果禪師語錄 19

English (machine translation) 19

Language: English

19.1

Compiled by disciple Shaolong and others of Mount Huqiu in Pingjiang Prefecture during the Song

[Yuanwu] brought up: "In the teachings it is said: 'Before leaving Tuṣita he had already descended into the royal palace; before leaving his mother's womb he had already finished liberating sentient beings.'"

19.4

The Great Image is fundamentally formless; the ultimate void embraces the myriad things. / At the very end it has already gone too far: facing south, one looks at the Northern Dipper. / Royal palace and Tuṣita, saving sentient beings and leaving the womb— / a single consistency from beginning to end, originally without coming or going. / Sweeping away tracks and erasing traces, removing root and stem; lotuses bloom everywhere amid the fire.

19.5

[Yuanwu] brought up: "A monk asked Yunmen, 'When birth and death arrive, how can one evade them?' Yunmen said, 'Where are they?'"

19.6

A fish in a needle's eye swallows the great chiliocosm; a midge disgorges Mount Sumeru. / The great void encompasses all without omission; the myriad entities return entirely to the palm of the hand. / Arising and ceasing, going and coming back; the stone bridge is stepped through and broken, completely black—how could one know that the Flower Peak is Tiantai?

19.7

[Yuanwu] brought up: "When Danxia first met Mazu, he held up his headcloth with both hands. Mazu said, 'I am not your teacher; go to Shitou at Nanyue.' Danxia thereupon went to Shitou and held up his headcloth as before. Shitou said, 'Go to the stable.' Danxia served as a postulant. One day Shitou said to the assembly, 'Today after the meal, there will be communal work weeding the grass in front of the Buddha Hall.' Everyone competed to fetch hoes and shovels, but Danxia alone washed his head, held a razor before Shitou, and knelt on one knee. Shitou said, 'What are you doing?' Danxia said, 'Please, Master, weed the grass.' Shitou smiled, shaved his head, and called him to transmit the precepts. Danxia covered his ears and walked away. He then returned to Mazu's monastery in Jiangxi and rode on the neck of the holy monk [statue]. The assembly was shocked and reported it to Mazu. Mazu came in person to see him and said, 'My son is natural (Tianran)!' Danxia then bowed and said, 'Thank you, Master, for giving me a name.' Mazu asked, 'Where did you come from?' Danxia said, 'From Shitou.' Mazu said, 'The stone path (Shitou) is slippery; did you happen to slip and fall?' Danxia said, 'If I had slipped and fallen, I would not have come.'"

19.8

Asked one, he answers ten; told of the past, he knows the future. / Dragons gallop and tigers surge; jade turns and pearls whirl. / Merely hearing it mentioned, he instantly discerns it; shaking out his robe and setting off at once—how outstanding! / Weeding the grass was certainly extraordinary; giving the name was even more towering. / The two elders disregarded the superficial coat and appreciated this steed of a thousand li. / The true standard remains solemn and intact; face to face, look at the caliber! / Soaring into the clouds with a single leap, confounding the wind and sun.

19.9

[Yuanwu] brought up: "Yunmen instructed the assembly, saying: 'Within heaven and earth, throughout the universe, there is a treasure hidden inside the mountain of form. Put the lantern into the Buddha Hall; take the triple gate and set it on top of the lantern.'"

19.10

Markings of tigers and leopards, horns of the qilin: / dazzling the heavens and searing the earth, piled like mountains and heaped like peaks. / Smashing through the face, overarching form and mounting sound; cutting through nets and cages, dissolving glue and untying bonds. / Halting shields and spears atop the hundred grasses, across ten thousand miles of autumn sky a lone osprey flies.

19.11

[Yuanwu] brought up: "Xuefeng instructed the assembly, saying: 'Taking the entire great earth and gathering it up, it is the size of a grain of millet. Tossed before you, you black lacquer buckets do not understand; beat the drum and invite everyone to look.'"

19.12

A swift flame crosses the blade; a rushing stream traverses the edge. / Singing and clappers follow one another; punches and kicks correspond. / Suddenly bursting forth with heaven-shaking thunder, atop the hundred grasses the colors of spring return.

19.13

[Yuanwu] brought up: "A monk asked Mazu, 'What is the Buddha?' Mazu said, 'Mind itself is Buddha.'"

19.14

A keyless lock, open and clear on all eight sides. / Turning on its own without being pushed, south, north, west, and east. / The ocean god knows its value but knows no price; left for the human world, its light illumines the night.

19.15

[Yuanwu] brought up: "A monk asked Mazu, 'What is the Buddha?' Mazu said, 'Neither mind nor Buddha.'"

19.16

A pearl of the blue sea, jade of Mount Jing; / shining across heaven and earth, recognized only by the discerning. / With a sharp blade, cut away the rootless tree; across ten thousand layered peaks, the mist and smoke clear away.

19.17

[Yuanwu] brought up: "Mazu was walking in the mountains with Baizhang and saw wild ducks fly past. Mazu said, 'What is that?' Baizhang said, 'Wild ducks.' Mazu said, 'Where did they go?' Baizhang said, 'They flew past.' Mazu twisted Baizhang's nose; Baizhang cried out in pain. Mazu said, 'When did they ever fly away?' Baizhang had an awakening at this."

19.18

Wild ducks cross the stream ahead; a thousand peaks take on a chilling hue. / Looking at each other, not knowing where to return, inevitably requiring a strike from the side. / Twisting open the mass of doubt, entanglements vanish; catching the wind, soaring straight down to pierce the azure skies. / Clouded mountains, ocean, and moon are all trivial matters; with a single word returning to the lineage, ten thousand kingdoms pay homage.

19.19

[Yuanwu] brought up: "A monk asked Jingqing, 'Is there still Buddhadharma at New Year's or not?' Jingqing said, 'There is.' The monk said, 'What is the Buddhadharma of New Year's?' Jingqing said, 'The first day brings beginning prosperity.' The monk said, 'Thank you, Master, for answering the question.' Jingqing said, 'Today Jingqing suffered a defeat.' Another monk asked Zhiman of Mingjiao, 'Is there still Buddhadharma at New Year's or not?' Mingjiao said, 'There is not.' The monk said, 'Every year is a good year, and every day is a good day; why is there none?' Mingjiao said, 'Mr. Zhang drinks wine, and Mr. Li gets drunk.' The monk said, 'Old and venerable as you are, you have a dragon's head and a snake's tail.' Mingjiao said, 'Today Mingjiao suffered a defeat.'"

19.20

A securely hidden realm, sport of spiritual powers: / Buddhadharma at New Year's—whether existent or non-existent, both suffer defeat. / Uniformly equal to empty space, how could it permit establishing a handle? / The wind upon the grass, the ancestral order is executed; one only knows that when the thunder ceases, its roar does not pause.

19.21

[Yuanwu] brought up: "A monk asked Langye, 'Originally pure and fundamentally so, how do mountains, rivers, and the great earth suddenly arise?' Langye said, 'Originally pure and fundamentally so, how do mountains, rivers, and the great earth suddenly arise?' That monk had an awakening."

19.22

In cursing each other, you are allowed to mouth off; in spitting on each other, you are allowed to splash water. / A speck of dust is raised, and the great earth is gathered in; a flower blooms, and the world arises. / Cast from a single mold, surpassing all merits; within the words, pushing wide open the gate of great bestowal.

19.23

[Yuanwu] brought up: "A monk asked Changsha, 'Does the original body still attain Buddhahood or not?' Changsha said, 'Do you say the Son of Heaven of the Great Tang still cuts thatch and reaps rice or not?' The monk said, 'Who is the one who attains Buddhahood?' Changsha said, 'It is you attaining Buddhahood—do you know it or not?'"

19.24

When has a great mountain ever lacked soil? How could the Tang emperor reap thatch? / Bowing, stepping forward, and clasping hands—ten myriad stages away to the Western Heaven. / The ancient Buddha is oneself; oneself is the ancient Buddha. / Coral glistens in the spring of the ten continents; the toad's radiance outshines the black dragon's lair.

19.25

[Yuanwu] brought up: "A monk asked Baizhang, 'What is the extraordinary thing?' Baizhang said, 'Sitting alone on Mount Daxiong.' The monk bowed; Baizhang then struck him."

19.26

Adding salt to bean paste; sending charcoal in the snow. / Just as one strokes the tiger's whiskers, there are eyes on the head of the staff. / No wonder he sits alone on Mount Daxiong; he has already stepped through the supreme barrier.

19.27

[Yuanwu] brought up: "A monk asked Xianglin, 'What is the single lamp inside the room?' Xianglin said, 'Three people testify that a tortoise is a turtle.'"

19.28

Bright and pure light, cannot be hidden anywhere in the world. / Sound cannot cast it out; how could form make it evident? / Directly cutting nails and shearing iron, clearing away the paths of ancient and modern. / Towering above Linji and Deshan: 'Three people testify that a tortoise is a turtle.' / Exceptional, exceptional! Every time you drink water, you choke.

19.29

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Magu, carrying his ring-staff, went to see Zhangjing. He circled the rope chair three times, shook his staff once, and stood upright and tall. Zhangjing said, 'So it is, so it is.' Later he arrived at Nanquan, and likewise circled the rope chair three times, shook his staff once, and stood upright and tall. Nanquan said, 'Not so, not so.' Magu said, 'Zhangjing said "so"; why, Venerable Sir, do you say "not so"?' Nanquan said, 'Zhangjing is so, but it is you who are not so. This is driven by the force of the wind; in the end it will come to ruin.'"

19.30

So it is, not so— / remove the dietary taboo. / Attempting to transgress the boundary, / the entire army suffers defeat. / At the staff's head, the ancient water caltrop flower juts forth; / the romance of all the world belongs to the master of the house.

19.31

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "A monk asked Yaoshan, 'On the level field and shallow grass, the stags and deer form herds; how can one shoot the stag of stags?' Yaoshan said, 'Watch the arrow!' The monk threw his body down. Yaoshan said, 'Attendant, drag out this dead fellow!' The monk then got up and ran away. Yaoshan said, 'What does this mud-ball-juggling fellow count for?'"

19.32

The hunter has a divine arrow / that shoots down the stag of stags. / Swiftly taking charge beneath the arrow, / he leaps clear of the road of Caoxi. / Turning his body, he steps upon the topmost barrier; / winning over the rival, startling the herd—in a fleeting instant.

19.33

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Yunmen addressed the assembly, saying, 'Medicine and disease cure each other. The whole great earth is medicine; which is oneself?'"

19.34

Too perilous and sharp, / completely killing and reviving; / beyond all taking charge, / nothing to grasp. / Spirited within the realm, / strategising beyond the thresholds; / falling back three thousand li, / 'The whole great earth is medicine!' / Wrong, wrong! / The sharp sword of the Seven Stars glitters and gleams.

19.35

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Qianfeng addressed the assembly, saying, 'The dharmakāya has three kinds of diseases and two kinds of light. One must penetrate through each and every one before one understands how to sit securely. Even though it is like this, one must further know that there is the transcendent aperture where illumination and function occur simultaneously before one will get it.' Yunmen came forth from the assembly and asked, 'What about the person inside the hermitage: why does he not see things outside the hermitage?' Qianfeng laughed loudly: 'Ha, ha!' Yunmen said, 'This is still the student's place of doubt.' Qianfeng said, 'What kind of mindset do you have?' Yunmen said, 'I also want the Venerable Sir to understand thoroughly.' Qianfeng said, 'Only by being just like this does one understand how to sit securely.'"

19.36

Plucking the strings, he distinguishes the tune; / hearing one, he knows ten. / Holding hands and raising hands, / like pitch thrown into lacquer. / Inside the hermitage not seeing outside the hermitage— / a hole-less iron mallet does not understand. / In human life, acquaintances treasure knowing the tune; / water into water, gold bartered for gold.

19.37

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Lingyun, upon seeing peach blossoms, was enlightened to the Way and had a verse: 'For thirty years I sought a master of swords; / how many times have leaves fallen and twigs sprouted anew? / Ever since I once saw the peach blossoms, / right up to now I have doubted no more.' Xuansha said, 'Quite exact, exceedingly exact; but I dare guarantee that the elder brother has not yet penetrated through.'"

19.38

Laughing at the spring breeze along the path, / from the branch-tips the news leaks out. / Red light illuminates the great void; / does it rely on the power of the warm sun? / The sword-learning lineage teacher no longer doubts, / yet Xuansha's 'not yet penetrated' is utterly novel and wondrous! / Sweeping away the paths of study, scraping flesh and bone, / the dynamic sharpness beyond the norm flashes like lightning.

19.39

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Yunmen asked Dongshan, 'Where have you recently left?' Dongshan said, 'Chadu.' Yunmen said, 'Where were you for the summer?' Dongshan said, 'Baoci in Hunan.' Yunmen said, 'When did you leave there?' Dongshan said, 'August of this year.' Yunmen said, 'I grant you thirty blows of the staff.' The next day Dongshan went to ask, 'Yesterday I received the Master's grant of thirty blows of the staff; I do not yet know where my fault lay.' Yunmen said, 'Rice-bag! You just go about Jiangxi and Hunan like this!' Dongshan was greatly awakened."

19.40

Seeing a hare, he releases the hawk; / as he walks along, he swings his arms. / Stripped bare and utterly destitute, / only then does he scheme for wealth and nobility. / Given thirty blows of the staff, he still hesitates; / pushed again, he finally recognizes the sharp-tipped awl. / Raised alone on a single leg outside the mechanisms, / even the clear-eyed patch-robed monk does not understand.

19.41

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Sansheng asked Xuefeng, 'What does the golden fish that has passed through the net eat for food?' Xuefeng said, 'Wait until you emerge from the net, and then I will tell you.' Sansheng said, 'A kalyāṇamitra of fifteen hundred people, yet you do not even recognise a dialogue topic (huatou).' Xuefeng said, 'This old monk's abbot duties are troublesome.'"

19.42

Appearing and disappearing atop the hundred grasses, / roaming beyond the three realms; / in vain one spreads a net across the heavens, / uselessly casts the hook for catching a giant turtle. / Shaking scales and bristling dorsal fins, he jolts heaven and earth; / eyes fixed, head raised, the surging waves spray. / Staffs fall like rain, shouts roll like thunder; / how could he use contention and warfare to establish merits?

19.43

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "A monk asked Zhaozhou, 'I have heard that you personally met Nanquan; is that so or not?' Zhaozhou said, 'Zhenzhou produces large radishes.'"

19.44

Zhenzhou produces large radishes; / a fierce tiger does not eat prostrate flesh. / Even if one's eyes were like shooting stars, / how could one avoid taking south for north? / Old Zhaozhou / is exceptionally transcendent. / A single phrase originally settled heaven and earth, / yet on the contrary makes the monastic groves noisily clamorous.

19.45

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Grand Master Lu Geng said to Nanquan, 'Dharma Master Sengzhao was also very extraordinary; he was able to say: "Heaven and earth share the same root with me; the ten thousand things are of one substance with me."' Nanquan said, 'Grand Master!' Lu answered. Nanquan pointed to a flower and said, 'People of the world see this single flower as if in a dream.'"

19.46

When mountains are moist, rocks harbor jade; / when forests are lush, abysses conceal pearls. / Seeing this single flower as if in a dream, / clearly the root and substance do not share the same road. / Old Master Wang / casts off all models; / he knows how to call out to the drifting Grand Master Lu / right in the midst of bustling Chang'an.

19.47

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Yunmen addressed the assembly, saying, 'Before the fifteenth day, I do not ask you; after the fifteenth day, bring a phrase forth.' The assembly had no answer. He answered on their behalf, saying, 'Every day is a good day.'"

19.48

Breaking two into one, / dividing three to make six; / stringing together the rosary, the count falls short. / Stretching out the hand, one grasps the Southern Dipper; / turning the body, one brushes against the Northern Dipper. / Throwing wide the doors and windows, directly facing the veranda, / the jade hare and the golden crow revolve like a lamp. / Transmitted or not transmitted? / Attained or not attained? / How could one know that along the path the spring shoots are green?

19.49

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "A monk asked Dongshan, 'What is the Buddha?' Dongshan said, 'Three pounds of flax.'"

19.50

The bell sounds when struck; / the valley receives the echo. / The pool prints the moon; / the mirror contains images. / It was never a matter of spreading business to fit the dynamic; / how could it be scratching beforehand to await the itch? / Touching iron to make gold; / raising the straight to set aside the crooked. / With one arrow, a pair of eagles; / with one slap, a palm of blood. / Do you not see: / vast and wide is heaven's net, / coarse yet it loses nothing!

19.51

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Xuefeng addressed the assembly, saying, 'The Buddhas of the three periods turn the great wheel of the Dharma in the midst of flames.' Xuansha said, 'The flames preach the Dharma for the Buddhas of the three periods; the Buddhas of the three periods stand on the ground listening.'"

19.52

Just when you thought the monkey was white, / there is also a black monkey. / Interchanging to fit the dynamic, / appearing like spirits, vanishing like ghosts. / Raging flames reach to heaven as the Buddha preaches the Dharma; / heaven-reaching raging flames are the Dharma preaching the Buddha. / Before the wind, cutting through the nest of creeping vines, / in a single word he sees through Vimalakīrti.

19.53

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Dongsi asked Yangshan, 'Where are you from?' Yangshan said, 'Guangzhou.' Dongsi said, 'I hear Guangzhou has a bright pearl that settles the sea; is that so or not?' Yangshan said, 'It is.' Dongsi said, 'What color is it?' Yangshan said, 'In the dark of the moon it appears; in the brightness of the moon it hides.' Dongsi said, 'Did you bring it along?' Yangshan said, 'I brought it along.' Dongsi said, 'Why not present it to this old monk?' Yangshan said, 'Very well; yesterday when Huiji arrived at Guishan, he was also demanded of this pearl, so that there was no word to answer and no principle to state.' Dongsi said, 'Truly a lion's cub, a great lion's roar!'"

19.54

One who skillfully handles the sword Tai'e / will certainly not suffer injury to his hand; / one accustomed to braiding the fierce tiger's whiskers / is bound to have a strategy to save his life. / The pearl that settles the sea / is cleverly presented: / free from color, free from sound, free from names. / In the sandalwood forest, burning sandalwood; / in the lion's cave, roaring like a lion.

19.55

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Zhaozhou addressed the assembly, saying, '"The Ultimate Way is without difficulty; it only dislikes picking and choosing. Merely do not harbor hate or love, and it is thoroughly clear." Once there are words, is it picking and choosing, or is it clarity? This old monk is not within clarity; do you people still cherish and protect it or not?' A monk asked, 'Since you are not within clarity, I do not know what is there to cherish and protect?' Zhaozhou said, 'I also do not know.' The monk said, 'Since the Master does not know, why do you say you are not within clarity?' Zhaozhou said, 'It is fine to question the matter; make your prostrations and withdraw.'"

19.56

Utmost simplicity, utmost ease; / same as heaven, same as earth. / Picking and choosing, or clarity— / how could there be cherishing and protecting? / Mouth like an awl, / eyes like eyebrows. / Involving oneself in the vein of speech, / the millipede pities the one-legged dragon. / How laughable: Bian He thrice offering the jade; / even if glorified, he had both feet cut off.

19.57

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Shitou addressed the assembly, saying, 'Words and actions have no relevance.' Yaoshan said, 'Non-words and non-actions also have no relevance.' Shitou said, 'Here, not even a needle can prick in.' Yaoshan said, 'Here, it is like planting flowers upon a rock.'"

19.58

At the bottom of the well, the mud ox roars at the moon; / amid the clouds, the wooden horse neighs in the wind. / Cutting off the universe of heaven and earth, / who distinguishes south, north, west, and east? / Straight within the crooked, crooked within the straight; / wishing to level what is uneven relies on the scale and rule.

19.59

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Xuefeng addressed the assembly, saying, 'At Wangzhou Pavilion I met with you all; at Wushi Ridge I met with you all; in front of the Monks' Hall I met with you all.' Later Baofu brought this up and asked Ehu, 'Setting aside in front of the Monks' Hall for a moment, where was it that he met with them at Wangzhou Pavilion and Wushi Ridge?' Ehu strode quickly back to the Abbot's quarters; Baofu then entered the Monks' Hall."

19.60

A lotus thread tugs the giant whale and turtle; / the needle's tip rolls the mustard seed to hit the mark. / Wangzhou and Wushi Ridge: / before the song is sung, it is already repaid. / The Great Tang beats the drum, and Silla dances; / meeting face-to-face, they do not behold each other.

19.61

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Emperor Daizong asked National Teacher Zhong, 'What will you need a hundred years from now?' The National Teacher said, 'I need a seamless stūpa.' The Emperor said, 'Please, Master, provide the stūpa design.' The National Teacher said, 'Do you understand?' The Emperor said, 'I do not understand.' The National Teacher said, 'I have a Dharma-transmission disciple, Danyuan, who is well versed in this matter; please summon and ask him.' After the National Teacher passed away, the Emperor summoned Danyuan and asked what this meant. Danyuan presented a verse: 'South of Xiang, north of Tan, / therein gold fills an entire realm. / Beneath the shadowless tree, the unified boat; / upon the lapis lazuli palace, no spiritual teacher.'"

19.62

The eight facets are naturally clear and open; / coiling into the void, its posture towering and steep. / Outside and inside, it stands solidly majestic; / how could one divide the six perforations? / Clinging to names and hiding forms, / mistaking the shadow and confusing the shape. / The sleeping dragon is ever fearful, / the azure pool clear. / The unified boat opens the heart's vessel; / in daily function, how could it not be fully present?

19.63

[Yuanwu] brought up [the case]: "Shitou saw Yaoshan sitting and asked, 'What are you doing here?' Yaoshan said, 'I am not doing a single thing.' Shitou said, 'Then you are sitting idly.' Yaoshan said, 'Sitting idly is doing something.' Shitou said, 'You say you are not doing; not doing what?' Yaoshan said, 'Even the thousand sages do not know.' Shitou praised him with a verse: 'Living together from the first, without knowing the name, / following along with conditions, just walking like this. / Since ancient times, even supreme sages did not know; / how could hasty commoners ever understand?'"

19.64

Shaking off the fetters of Buddhas and Patriarchs, / vast and free beyond the carpenter's marking-line. / Not doing a single thing, / completely free and at ease in every direction. / The ancient mirror faces the stand, / clearly distinguishing coming and going. / The shadow of the golden hammer moves; / the iron tree blossoms with flowers. / Following conditions together, he cannot be matched; / the Dharma cloud creates wind and thunder everywhere.

19.65

[Case] brought up: Yunmen instructed the assembly, saying: "Everyone possesses radiance within themselves; yet when they look, they do not see it, and all is murky and dark. What is this radiance?" The assembly made no answer. In their place he said himself: "The monks' hall, the Buddha shrine, the storehouse, the triple gate."

19.66

Beyond the night-shining screen, a thousand peaks stand fine; / Before the luan-mirror stand, the myriad forms are empty. / Sweeping away tracks and obliterating traces, / Not a scruple is set up. / Merely the Buddha shrine, / Merely the fragrant kitchen— / Knocking out the phoenix's five-coloured marrow, / Smashing the black dragon's bright-moon pearl.

19.67

[Case] brought up: When the World-Honoured One was born, he walked seven steps in every direction, looked around in all four quarters, pointed one hand to heaven and one hand to earth, and said himself: "In the heavens above and beneath the heavens, I alone am revered."

19.68

From the right rib was born the golden body; / Nine dragons sprayed fragrant water. / Towering, he strode to the four directions; / All around, lotus flowers arose. / Right at the start he first applied the primary dynamic; / His lofty style endures through antiquity, immovably majestic. / If someone back then had taken it on, / He would have seized that petty thief with ease. / Yi!

19.69

[Case] brought up: When Xuefeng was dwelling in a hermitage, two monks arrived. Xuefeng, seeing them, propped his hands against the hermitage door, leaned forward, and said: "What is this?" The monks also said: "What is this?" Xuefeng lowered his head and returned into the hermitage. Later, the monks came to Yantou. Yantou asked, saying: "What sayings did the old fellow Xue have?" The monks recounted the previous conversation. Yantou said: "What did Xuefeng say?" The monk said: "Xuefeng had no words." Yantou said: "Alas! I regret that I did not tell him the final phrase at that time. If I had told it to him, no one in the world hereafter would have been able to do anything with the old fellow Xue." At the end of the summer, the monk brought up this case and asked for further instruction. Yantou said: "Why did you not ask earlier?" The monk said: "I did not dare act rashly." Yantou said: "Though Xuefeng and I were born on the same bough, we do not die on the same bough. If you want to know the final phrase, it is just this."

19.70

Doubly illuminated and doubly dark, / Standing alone, cutting off divergent quarters. / Seizing the dynamic, confronting face to face— / How could his sharp edge be withstood? / Born on the same bough: / Two mirrors illumine each other, beyond all naming. / Not dying on the same bough: / The iron tree blossoms, spanning past and present. / The final phrase / Is the primary secure pass: / He removes the great table mountain before the gate.

19.71

[Case] brought up: When the venerable Congyi of Tianping was on foot at Xiyuan, he would often say: "These days, do not say one understands the Buddha Dharma; even finding someone who can bring up a topic is hard to come by." One day he passed beneath Xiyuan's Dharma hall. Xiyuan called out loudly, "Congyi!" Tianping raised his head. Xiyuan said: "Wrong." He walked two or three steps, and Xiyuan said again: "Wrong." Xiyuan said: "Regarding the two 'wrongs' just now, was the old monk wrong, or were you, Elder, wrong?" Tianping said: "Congyi was wrong." Xiyuan said: "Wrong, wrong." A moment later, Xiyuan said: "Elder, stay here for the summer for the time being, and wait for me to discuss these two 'wrongs' with you." Tianping departed immediately. Later, while dwelling at Tianping, he instructed the assembly, saying: "In those years when this old monk was on foot, blown by the wind of karma to Xiyuan in Ruzhou, there was a senior monk Siming who examined me with two 'wrongs,' and furthermore waited to keep me for the summer, waiting to discuss them with me. I do not say I was wrong at that time; before I ever set foot south on my journey, I already knew I was wrong."

19.72

Holding the mooring rope and letting the boat go, / Gluing the pegs and tuning the strings. / Distant water cannot put out a nearby fire; / How could a short rope draw from a deep spring? / Old Tianping, / Utterly reckless! / Over two "wrongs," / He regrets his wandering on foot. / The great earth is vast and boundless, grieving people to death; / Without tendons in the eyes, poor for a lifetime.

19.73

[Case] brought up: When Shushan was at Xiangyan's place in ordinary times, one day Xiangyan ascended the hall, and a monk asked: "How is it when one does not admire the various sages and does not value one's own spirit?" Xiangyan said: "The myriad workings cease, and the thousand sages do not carry [one]." Shushan made a gesture of vomiting. Xiangyan said: "Do you not approve, Dharma-uncle?" Shushan said: "It cannot be without fault." Xiangyan said: "Where does the fault lie?" Shushan said: "'The myriad workings cease' still leaves something remaining; 'the thousand sages do not carry [one]' is also attained from others." Xiangyan said: "Could you say something, Dharma-uncle?" Shushan said: "Give me the Dharma seat, and I will speak for you." Thereupon Xiangyan had him ascend the seat, and asked him as before. Shushan said: "Why not say: 'Approbation and consent cannot be whole'?" Xiangyan said: "What is approved, and what is consented to?" Shushan said: "Approving is approving those various sages; consenting is consenting to one's own spirit." Xiangyan said: "For you to speak like this, Dharma-uncle, you must suffer diarrhea for thirty years before you get it." Later, while dwelling at Shushan, he was constantly afflicted with stomach reflux. One day he brought this up and asked Jingqing: "'This sick monk says approbation and consent cannot be whole'—how do you understand this, person of the Way?" Jingqing said: "Fully returning to approbation and consent." Shushan said: "What about 'cannot be whole'?" Jingqing said: "Herein there is no path of approbation." Shushan said: "Only now do you accord with this sick monk's intention."

19.74

The knife does not cut itself, / The finger does not touch itself. / The snow goose is white, the crow is black; / The pine is straight, the bramble is curved. / Just as a speck of dust arrives trailing a shadow, / Fully casting off the entire body leaves no trace. / Approbation does not remain, / Consent is not established. / A single expanse of clear light shoots to the Dipper and the Ox; / In heaven and among humans, one attains freedom.

19.75

[Case] brought up: Zhaozhou asked Nanquan: "What is the Way?" Nanquan said: "The ordinary mind is the Way." Zhaozhou said: "Does it still admit of heading towards it, or not?" Nanquan said: "To intend towards it is immediately to deviate." Zhaozhou said: "Without intending, how can one know it is the Way?" Nanquan said: "The Way does not belong to knowing, nor does it belong to not knowing. Knowing is false awareness, and not knowing is indeterminate. If you directly reach the Way that is beyond doubt, it is wide open like the great void—how could it be forced into right and wrong?" Under these words, Zhaozhou attained great awakening.

19.76

Encountering food, one eats food; / Encountering tea, one drinks tea. / Thousandfold and hundredfold wrapped, / The four seas are one family. / Untying the stickiness, / Removing the bonds; / Speaking without speaking, / Acting without acting. / Vastly open, the original substance is equal to empty space; / The wind follows the tiger, and clouds follow the dragon.

19.77

[Case] brought up: Whenever Baizhang ascended the seat, an old man would regularly listen to the Dharma. One day, when the assembly dispersed, the old man remained alone. Baizhang said: "Who are you?" The old man said: "I am not a human being. Long ago, five hundred lives back in the time of Kāśyapa Buddha, I once lived on this mountain. Because I gave a student an erroneous turning word, I fell into the body of a wild fox for five hundred lifetimes. Now I wish to bring up this case, and ask the Venerable to answer for me." Baizhang said: "Try to bring it up." The old man said: "Does a person of great cultivation still fall into cause and effect, or not? I answered, saying: 'One does not fall into cause and effect.'" Baizhang said: "You ask me, and I will speak for you." The old man then asked: "Does a person of great cultivation still fall into cause and effect, or not?" Baizhang said: "One is not blind to cause and effect." The old man thereupon had an awakening, was freed from the body of a wild fox, and transformed away.

19.78

When fish swim, the water turns turbid; / When birds fly, feathers fall. / Difficult to evade the supreme mirror; / The great void is vast and desolate. / A single departure, far away for five hundred lives, / All because of cause and effect and great cultivation. / Sudden thunder shatters the mountain, and wind shakes the ocean; / Refined a hundred times, pure gold does not change its colour.

19.79

[Case] brought up: Fengxue ascended the seat in the government office of Yingzhou and instructed the assembly, saying: "The Patriarch's mind-seal is shaped like the dynamic of the iron ox: if it moves, the seal is held; if it stays, the seal is broken. Now, just like neither moving nor staying, tell me, is sealing correct, or is not sealing correct?" At that time, Senior Monk Lubi stepped forward and asked: "I have the dynamic of the iron ox; please, Master, do not apply the seal." Fengxue said: "Accustomed to angling for whales sinking in the great deep, / Instead I find a frog hopping, rolling in mud and sand." Lubi hesitated in thought; Fengxue immediately gave a shout and said: "Senior monk, why do you not advance a word?" Lubi deliberated; Fengxue struck him with his whisk and said: "Senior monk, do you still remember the phrase? Try to bring it up." Lubi was about to open his mouth when Fengxue struck him again with the whisk. The prefect said: "One should know that the Buddha Dharma and the king's law are alike." Fengxue said: "What principle do you see?" The prefect said: "When one should decide and does not decide, it invites chaos instead." Fengxue then descended from the seat.

19.80

The style and guidelines of the succession of sages / Never let anyone off from the start. / Intending to mount the iron ox, / Right over the head the seal is broken. / When Lubi should have decided, he pondered instead; / As lightning turns and stars fly, he was captured alive. / Beneath the shout, the thrust and prop are like a thunderclap; / The weapons of the three mysteries shake the monastic grove.

19.81

[Case] brought up: A monk asked Dongshan: "When cold and heat arrive, how can one avoid them?" Dongshan said: "Why not avoid them in the place where there is neither cold nor heat?" The monk said: "What is the place where there is neither cold nor heat?" Dongshan said: "When it is cold, the cold freezes the ācārya to death; when it is hot, the heat scorches the ācārya to death."

19.82

The plate rolls the pearl; / The pearl rolls on the plate. / The straight within the bent; / The bent within the straight. / The antelope hangs by its horns, leaving no trace; / The hunting hounds circle the forest, flustered in vain.

19.83

[Case] brought up: Whenever mealtime arrived, Jinniu would carry the rice bowl in front of the monks' hall himself, clap his hands, laugh heartily, and say: "Children of the Bodhisattva! Come eat rice, come eat rice!" Later, a monk asked Changqing: "What was the meaning?" Changqing said: "Much like rejoicing and praise because of a vegetarian feast." A monk asked Daguang: "I wonder, what was he rejoicing and praising?" Daguang danced. The monk bowed. Daguang said: "How do you understand it?" The monk also danced. Daguang said: "This wild fox spirit!"

19.84

Silk coming and thread going, / Distinctly passing it across. / If you do not intimately know each other, / How can it be verified? / Rejoicing and praising over a feast mixes with mud and soil; / Plagiarising mere words, he puts on a dance. / Wild fox spirit! / The seven-star sharp sword bloodies the long whale.

19.85

[Case] brought up: Shushan instructed the assembly, saying: "Before the Xiantong era, this sick monk understood matters on the side of the dharmakāya; after the Xiantong era, I understood matters beyond the dharmakāya." Yunmen came forward and asked, saying: "What are matters on the side of the dharmakāya?" Shushan said: "A withered post." "What are matters beyond the dharmakāya?" Shushan said: "Not a withered post." Yunmen said: "Does the student still have permission to speak of principle, or not?" Shushan said: "Permitted." Yunmen said: "Regarding 'a withered post,' is that not clarifying matters on the side of the dharmakāya?" Shushan said: "It is." Yunmen said: "Is 'not a withered post' not clarifying matters beyond the dharmakāya?" Shushan said: "It is." Yunmen said: "I wonder, does the dharmakāya still encompass everything, or not?" Shushan said: "The dharmakāya is all-pervading; how could it not encompass all?" Yunmen pointed to the pure water bottle and said: "Is the dharmakāya still present [here], or not?" Shushan said: "Do not seek by the side of the pure water bottle." Yunmen said: "Yes, yes."

19.86

Eyes looking to the southeast, / Intention in the northwest. / Turning the heavenly pivotal mechanism, / Overturning the earthly axis. / Beyond the dharmakāya and on the side of the dharmakāya, / An extraordinary heroic spirit across five hundred years. / Clinging like glue and lacquer, arrowheads meeting head-on; / Clouds rise on the South Mountain, and rain falls on the North Mountain.

19.87

[Case] brought up: On the road to Mount Tai there was an old woman. A monk asked: "Which way does the road to Mount Tai go?" The old woman said: "Go straight ahead." As soon as the monk walked on, the old woman said: "A fine master of that sort, going off just like that." All monks who asked before and after received the same. Later, a monk recounted this to Zhaozhou. Zhaozhou said: "Wait until I see through this old woman for you." He then went and asked: "Which way does the road to Mount Tai go?" The old woman said: "Go straight ahead." As soon as Zhaozhou walked on, the old woman said: "A fine master of that sort, going off like that again." Zhaozhou returned and recounted this to the great assembly, saying: "I have seen through that old woman for you." An elder master brought this up, saying: "At what place was the seeing through?"

19.88

Skillful binding needs no cords or ropes; / Skillful travelling leaves no tracks or ruts. / Without battle, one subdues another's troops; / Confronting directly, one meets dynamic function with swiftness. / The old woman was seen through at Mount Wutai, / But who has thoroughly penetrated the barrier of Zhaozhou?

19.89

He cited: "Yunmen instructed the assembly, saying: 'Hearing sounds one awakens to the Way; seeing forms one clarifies the mind. What is hearing sounds and awakening to the Way, seeing forms and clarifying the mind?' Raising his hand, he said: 'Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara brings money to buy a sesame cake; dropping the hand, it turns out to be a steamed bun.'"

19.90

Seeing forms, the mind appears first; / Hearing sounds, the Way is already evident. / Within the flash of lightning, black and white are distinguished; / Amidst the sound of the ocean tide, the musical tones are discerned. / The Old Man of Shaoyang, his gate of compassion is vast; / In releasing the dynamic trigger, he employs straightaway a thousand-catty crossbow.

19.91

He cited: "Jingqing asked a monk: 'What is that sound outside the gate?' The monk said: 'The sound of raindrops.' Jingqing said: 'Sentient beings are inverted, deluded about themselves and chasing after things.' The monk said: 'What about you, Venerable Sir?' Jingqing said: 'I am on the verge of not being deluded about myself.' The monk said: 'What is the meaning of this?' Jingqing said: 'To step forth from the body may still be easy; to shed the form and speak [the truth] must be difficult.'"

19.92

Flowing with the stream, flowing against the stream; / Transforming things, things are transformed. / Excellent indeed, Avalokiteśvara, / Promptly encountering its convenience! / The phrase 'stepping forth from the body and shedding the form' is distinct and clear; / Outside the gate, as before, is the sound of raindrops.

19.93

He cited: "Nanquan instructed the assembly, saying: 'Last night Mañjuśrī and Samantabhadra gave rise to views of Buddha and views of Dharma. I gave each of them twenty blows with the staff and banished them to the two Iron Surrounding Mountains.' Zhaozhou came forward and said: 'Whom will the Venerable Sir order to take the blows of your staff?' Nanquan said: 'What fault does Old Master Wang have?' Zhaozhou made a prostration; Nanquan stepped down from the seat and returned to the Abbot's quarters."

19.94

The mist rises and the dragon chants; / The wind stirs and the tiger roars. / Two mouths, one tongue; / Different sounds, the same tune. / Mañjuśrī and Samantabhadra have views of Buddha and Dharma; / Nanquan and Zhaozhou have faces of sun and moon. / Acting in accordance with the command, in the space of a gesture or glance, / Banishing them completely to the Iron Surrounding Mountains. / If someone unyielding should suddenly come forward and say: 'What about Chongning?' / One would just say to him: 'Indeed, indeed.'

19.95

He cited: "Xuefeng asked a monk: 'Where did you leave recently?' The monk said: 'Fuchuan (Overturned Boat).' Xuefeng said: 'Not yet having crossed the ocean of birth and death, why did you overturn the boat?' The monk had no words. Fuchuan spoke on his behalf: 'He has no birth and death.' Xuedou spoke on his behalf: 'I have long echoed Xuefeng.'"

19.96

Not yet having crossed the ocean of birth and death, / One should not overturn the boat. / He fundamentally has no birth and death, / Transcendent and free from the two extremes. / Forever like the bright sun shining brightly in the midst of heaven, / Shedding light, it shines before Xuefeng.

19.97

He cited: "A monk asked Yunmen: 'What is the teaching of the [Lord's] entire era?' Yunmen said: 'Expounded in response to one.'"

19.98

The ocean treasury and the dragon palace, / Golden texts and jade tablets. / Accorded with capacity, observing the dynamic potential, / Breaking the barrier, striking the rhythm. / In more than three hundred assemblies, shaking the lineage essentials; / For forty-nine years, sharing the same tongue. / A-la-la! / Expounded in response to one— / Truly fitting words, like cutting through iron.

19.99

He cited: "A monk asked Yunmen: 'When it is not the dynamic potential before one's eyes, nor is it an affair before one's eyes, how is it?' Yunmen said: 'Expounded in reverse.'"

19.100

A thief recognises a thief; / Using a wedge to extract a wedge. / Birds' tracks in the empty clouds; / The mirror's reflection and the moon in the water. / The lion instructing its cub in the secret of obscuring traces; / The old cat climbing a tree, a method to establish one's body. / Lively and leaping! / Expounded in reverse— / Casually overturning the foxes' den.

19.101

He cited: "The World-Honoured One observed the ninety-day retreat in one place. On the day of pravāraṇā, Mañjuśrī suddenly arrived. Kāśyapa asked: 'Where did you spend the retreat this summer?' Mañjuśrī said: 'I spent the retreat in three places.' Kāśyapa thereupon addressed the assembly, wishing to expel Mañjuśrī. Just as he raised the mallet, he saw immeasurable Buddha-lands, in each and every Buddha's place there was a Mañjuśrī, and in each a Kāśyapa raising a mallet, wishing to expel him. The World-Honoured One thereupon said to Kāśyapa: 'Which Mañjuśrī do you wish to expel now?'"

19.102

The great elephant does not tread the rabbit's path; / How can swallows and sparrows know of the wild swan? / Relying on the command, as effortless as a craft perfected like the wind; / Hitting the mark, thoroughly like biting an arrowhead. / The entire world is Mañjuśrī; / The entire world is Kāśyapa. / Facing each other, each fully solemn; / Raising the mallet, where to inflict punishment? / A fine encounter! / The Golden-Hued Ascetic once lost his footing.

19.103

He cited: "Yantou instructed the assembly, saying: 'The Nirvāṇa Sūtra says: The intent of my teaching is like a poison-smeared drum; when it is struck, those who hear it near and far all perish.' A monk asked: 'What is the poison-smeared drum?' Yantou leaned his body down and said: 'Han Xin attending court.'"

19.104

Heaven is high and earth is thick; / The waters are vast and the mountains remote. / Xiao He established the statutes; / Han Xin attended court. / Before the poison-smeared drum is struck, you should immediately comprehend.

19.105

He cited: "Mañjuśrī asked the woman Āmrapālī: 'What is the meaning of birth?' The woman said: 'Birth has the birth of non-birth as the meaning of birth.' Mañjuśrī said: 'What is having the birth of non-birth as the meaning of birth?' The woman said: 'If one can clearly understand that the four conditions of earth, water, fire, and wind have never possessed intrinsic existence, having harmonised and combined, and are able to follow what is suitable, that is the meaning of birth.' Mañjuśrī said: 'What is the meaning of death?' The woman said: 'Death has the death of non-death as the meaning of death.' Mañjuśrī said: 'What is having the death of non-death as the meaning of death?' The woman said: 'If one can clearly understand that the four conditions of earth, water, fire, and wind have never possessed intrinsic existence, having dispersed and separated, and are able to follow what is suitable, that is the meaning of death.'"

19.106

Birth takes non-birth as birth; / Death takes non-death as death. / The root is thoroughly clear; / In an instant, surpassing buddhas and patriarchs. / Dispersing and combining according to what is suitable; / Crisscrossing freely, lively and leaping! / The diamond jewel sword rests against heaven, cold; / Non-Buddhists and heavenly demons all tremble with fear.

19.107

He cited: "Guishan asked Yangshan, saying: 'The weather is cold; people are cold.' Yangshan said: 'Everyone is right here.' Guishan said: 'Why not speak straight out?' Yangshan said: 'Just now was not crooked either; how about you, Venerable Sir?' Guishan said: 'For now one must follow the stream.'"

19.108

The north wind displays its severe might; / Bitterly cold, penetrating flesh and bone. / A single phrase encompasses humans and devas; / When has it ever tolerated trace or omen? / Following the stream, recognise the original body; / Throughout the entire realm, is anything not a priceless jewel?

19.109

He cited: "Guizong instructed the assembly, saying: 'I now wish to explain Chan; all of you come forward.' The assembly came forward. Guizong said: 'Listen to Avalokiteśvara's practice, skilfully responding to every quarter.' A monk asked: 'What is Avalokiteśvara's practice?' Guizong snapped his fingers and said: 'Do you people still hear it?' The monk said: 'I hear it.' Guizong said: 'A bunch of fellows—what are you looking for here?' Striking them with his staff to drive them away, he laughed loudly, 'Haha!', and returned to the Abbot's quarters."

19.110

Without learning, a snap of the fingers transcends; / In perfect penetration, the ear faculty is pure. / Penetrating through hearing and non-hearing— / Wonderful indeed is Avalokiteśvara's practice! / The tip of the staff points out the Vajra King, / Serving as a bridge and ferry across dangerous and evil paths.

19.111

Recorded Sayings of Chan Master Yuanwu Foguo, Fascicle Nineteen

Linked texts (1)

圓悟佛果禪師語錄 — Classical Chinese