圓悟佛果禪師語錄 4.38

4.38

Residing at Tianning Monastery in Dongjing. On the nineteenth day of the fourth month in the sixth year of the Xuanhe reign era, opening the hall for the nation at this monastery, the Master held up the proclamation and said: "Before the present gong'an is spoken of, its literary splendor is already manifest. Where the source is thoroughly penetrated the moment it is brought up, it leaks out layer upon layer. If there are still those who retain their looking and listening, please step forth before the assembly to open the arena." Pointing to the Dharma seat, he said: "The gentle and yielding robe of forbearance; the emptiness of all phenomena as the seat. Having donned this robe, one must occupy this seat; how much more so for the Buddhas and Patriarchs, who rely on this as ladder and raft! Do you see? 'Where there is a branch, take hold of the branch; where there is no branch, take hold of precedent.'" Thereupon he ascended the hall, offered incense, and said: "This single piece of incense is respectfully offered on behalf of the reigning Emperor, praying for the majesty of his sacred life of ten thousand years, ten thousand times ten thousand years. We humbly pray that his sacred brilliance may surpass the sun and moon, that his sagacious lifespan may equal heaven and earth, enduring beyond emptying the city of mustard seeds, and growing ever firmer as the kalpa stone is wiped away." Next, he said: "This single piece of incense is offered on behalf of the imperial relatives in the inner palace, the grand councilors and princes, the junior preceptor, the ministers, the military commissioners and grand commandants, all the civil and military officials of the court, and the titled nobility present at the banquet. We humbly pray that they loftily uphold the sacred sun, eternally assist the radiance of Yao, that their lifespans equal the pine and cedrela, and their blessings and emoluments match the rivers and seas." Holding up a third piece of incense, he said: "Great assembly! Do you see? Formerly in the midst of Baiyun's heaps, the single phrase in the face of the wind was fully brought forth; this morning before the Hall of Longevity, it is presented for the fifth time in sequence. It is offered on behalf of Chan Master Yan, the twelfth generation of Zhenhui Chan Monastery on Mount Wuzu in Qizhou, burned in the censer to repay the milk of Dharma." Venerable Zhihai struck the gavel and said: "Assembly of dragons and elephants at the Dharma banquet, you should observe the primary meaning!" [The Master] said: "Clearly unhidden, completely without leakage. From the first there is no primary or secondary; how could one speak again of observing? Arriving here, the grass bends as the wind blows; the canal is made and the water arrives. Is there anyone who will mutually testify?" A monk asked: "The times are harmonious and the Way flourishes, rejoicing in peace; across ten thousand miles of mountains and rivers, the sun of Shun shines bright. The marvelous song assists the Son of Heaven's longevity; the censer's incense offers an auspicious omen of the realm's pure customs. I wonder, how does the Venerable One raise the song?" The Master said: "Before the Hall of Longevity, auspicious energy increases; the one man possesses blessings that equal heaven and earth." The monk said: "The Master takes the eternal matter of Vulture Peak to celebrate the present ruler who possesses the Way." The Master said: "Exhausting the heart of this very moment." The monk said: "If so, then the golden branch flourishes forever, glorious in the heavenly court; the jade leaf is ever fragrant, spring in the inner palace." The Master said: "Who does not gaze up at the style of this moment?" The monk said: "Having received the Master's instruction on praying for the sacred, how is the matter of the transcendent lineage vehicle?" The Master said: "Seventy-three, eighty-four." The monk said: "The foundation of virtue is eternally firm in the Vajradhātu; ten thousand nations come to court to congratulate sacred brilliance." The Master said: "A single phrase in the face of the wind surpasses the Tamer." The monk said: "One must know the true dynamic marvel of this Way; applied in response to circumstances, it expands and contracts." The Master said: "You must shake off the dust in your eyes even more." The Master then said: "Let the questions cease. Great assembly! The profound dynamic of the secret, marvelous adornment cannot be investigated; the pure, perfect, transcendent realization of the noble ones cannot be compared. The direct transmission of the correct sound at Vulture Peak, the intimate entrustment of the exact purport at Mount Shaoshi—clearly illuminating like the bright sun, vastly expansive like empty space. Cutting off all phenomena without remainder, sheltering all sentient beings in their actions; atop the crown of the head it is unmoving as suchness, beneath the ankle it is clearly, ever cognizant. This morning, fortunately encountering the opening of the hall to pray for the sacred, I clearly lay it bare before the assembly." He then took his staff, struck it once, and said: "Great assembly! Do you know where it lands? The marrow of the Buddhas' minds, the source of the Patriarchs—fully laid open like the character eight, everywhere fully manifesting the supreme marks. Fine or broad, long or short, black or white, square or round—each and every one beyond ensnarement, nowhere with mutual obstruction. Limpid and clear, dense and grand, with no depth that can be deepened, no marvel that can be marveled at. Therefore, when Buddhas bestow their hands, they bestow only this mind; when Patriarchs transmit from one to another, they transmit only this marvel. If those of superior roots and innate wisdom will briefly turn the light back, a thousand eyes can suddenly open, and ten thousand conditions can be penetrated and shed. Have you not seen: Ānanda asked Kāśyapa, 'Apart from the golden robe, what else did the World-Honoured One transmit?' Kāśyapa called, 'Ānanda!' Ānanda replied, 'Yes?' Kāśyapa said, 'Knock down the flagpole in front of the gate.' The three essentials stamped open, the ten directions thoroughly penetrated; directly making it so that inside the city of Rājagṛha, before the Hall of Longevity, auspicious vapor condenses in the ninefold palace, and auspicious light turns toward the Phoenix Pavilion. Each and every one radiates the Treasury of the True Dharma Eye and transmits the marvelous mind of nirvāṇa. And how do you speak a phrase directly manifest and unobscured? Auspicious peace spreads boundless signs; crossing seas and climbing mountains, they look up to the sacred court. With this slight good merit of opening the hall, I offer prayers for the sacred lifespan of the reigning Emperor: humbly wishing that the golden wheel remain eternally firm, the precious imperial reign profoundly flourish, the four seas rejoice in cultural illumination, and ten thousand realms be molded by supreme transformation." He further brought up: "Formerly a monk asked Touzi, 'What is the one great causal condition?' Touzi said, 'Director of Works Yin opened the hall for this old monk.'" The Master said: "Touzi was an ancient Buddha, praised in the monastic groves for his unmatched eloquence and his solid, straightforward application of the Way. See how casually he brought it up; it does not hinder worldly dharma and Buddha-Dharma from blending into a single whole. Although it is like this, it is regrettable that he was not very broad. Today, if someone suddenly asked Tianning, 'What is the one great causal condition?' I would say to him: 'Holding the golden wheel in hand to purify the four seas, may the sacred person endure for myriads and hundreds of millions of years!'"