圓悟佛果禪師語錄 6

English (machine translation) 6

Language: English

6.1

Compiled by his disciple Shaolong and others of Mount Huqiu in Pingjiang Prefecture, Song Dynasty

Spoken at Tianning Temple in Dongjing. Requested by Imperial Noble Consort Wang, ascending the hall, a monk asked: "Like the heavens universally covering, we constantly see the brightness of the sun and moon; like the earth universally supporting, the mountains and rivers remain secure for myriad kalpas. Just at such a moment, by whose gracious power is this received?" The Master said: "Amidst clusters of a thousand blossoms, a single blossom's spring." The monk advanced and said: "It may indeed be said that since the rustic knows the power of Yao and Shun, his songs today rejoice in peace and prosperity." The Master said: "One must also recognize this grace before it can be attained." The monk advanced and said: "Who does not gaze up with reverence?" The Master said: "Quickly make three prostrations." The Master then said: "Bursting forth, it is hard to discern; in just the blink of an eye, maintained like a flash of lightning, a patch-robed monk finds nowhere to anchor. Leaving an opening, an error is seen in turn; not falling into steps and gradations, it still takes shape on the lips. Reaching here, what is right? A cart is not pushed sideways; the principle is not crookedly judged. A thousand blossoms manifest their forms; myriad kalpas, a single spring. Everywhere reveals what is extraordinary; in each and every thing the superior is displayed. Could this be the Buddhadharma at the head of the new year? Yet one cannot draw near to it. Could it be transcendent upholding? Yet it cannot be brought out through debate. Could it be responding to capacity and circumstance, comparing that time with the present time? That does not avoid dragging through mud and wading through water. Could it be standing like a ten-thousand-fathom wall beneath a single stroke of the brush? That is merely crying out to empty space. As it is said, 'The Dharma follows the practice of the Dharma; the Dharma banner is established everywhere.' Encountering an extraordinary person, one brings it out; meeting an extraordinary dynamic, one upholds it. Moreover, when one person shines brightly, myriad kalpas open in turn, and the nine realms of existence all revere the majestic light. A single word, a single phrase reveals the dynamic and the circumstance; appearing and disappearing, pressing and nudging—all flow forth from within great liberation. And tell me, ultimately relying on what does one attain such an extraordinary state? If you know it is there, it requires no formal words; but if not yet so, a message is disclosed: Pure wisdom adorns the gathering of merits; on the summit of Zhurong Peak stands a ten-thousand-year pine." He further made a verse, saying: "The Great Dao is empty and profound, prior to heaven and earth; / Creeping insects, grasses, and trees are all molded by it. / Its divine efficacy has reached the peak of the three thousand realms, / Its sagacious lifespan still surpasses hundred-millions of years."

6.4

When the fellow companions of the Way tonsured Li Daoshan, ascending the hall, [the Master] said: "Only when the diamond true eye is opened on the crown of the head can one discern the great potential; a fellow who kills without batting an eye attains Buddhahood on the spot—only then is the great function clarified. Even if it is directly like this, it is still only our school's erecting the Dharma banner, establishing the ancestral style, and having an orientation. Yet is there still any transcendent affair? If you know the transcendent affair, even if throughout heaven and earth, the great earth, grasses, trees, and monastic groves, each and every one were to manifest hundreds of thousands of millions of Śākyamuni bodies, it would not take a single pinch; as for eloquence like a cascading river or dynamic sharpness like a sheer precipice, all four kinds of noble ones and six kinds of ordinary beings would at once be widely opened—if brought forward, it would not take a single press. And tell me: based on what is it so? As it is said, a great person possesses great views; great wisdom attains great function. In the den of ignorance, one emits immeasurable precious light; within the realms of sentient beings, one performs inconceivable deeds. Just like Danxia: the moment it was raised, he knew where it settled, no longer touching upon lips, no longer falling into verbal explanations; only like getting past his stubborn obstacle did he fully grasp it. Just before he cut the weeds, where was he? Since he wanted to cut weeds and speak the precepts, when he covered his ears with both hands, where did he land? A person beyond measure has deeds beyond measure. Just as for the phrase fitting the occasion, how do you speak it? A few sounds of the clear chime lie outside right and wrong; a leisurely man stands between heaven and earth." He further made a verse, saying: "Danxia cut the weeds and burned the wooden Buddha; / The palace envoy gave up conditions and blew upon the cloth fleece. / Startling the herd and conquering the foe, a true lion; / A single fishhook must hook twelve giant turtles."

6.5

Requested by the Grand Defender in Charge of the Secretariat, ascending the hall, [the Master said]: "A single phrase manifestly brilliant right here: throughout the realm it has completely cut off all traps and cages. It does not flow from the marrow of the buddhas' minds, nor was it established before heaven and earth were born. It is just now, stern, solitary, and precarious, clear and pure, cutting off all reflection. If one possesses the eye that transcends directions and has dynamic sharpness beyond conventions, before the pattern and colors are displayed, one has already completely seen through it. By the time words and phrases are displayed, dynamics and circumstances established, questions and answers formed, and this and that distinguished, it directly becomes a thousand layers and a hundred folds, a hundred folds and a thousand layers, gathering up both middling and inferior capacities here at once. Is there anyone who bears witness on the spot and attains liberation directly under it? Try coming forward and bringing news of it! If not: prior to King of the Awesome Voice, it is brisk and lively; right up to the present, it is clean and bare." He further made a verse, saying: "The Dharma realm broadly embraces all; / The udumbara blossoms burst into bloom. / Universally perfumed by the power of prajñā, / Myriad virtues adorn themselves."

6.6

Requested by the Imperial Noble Consort of the Inner Palace, ascending the hall, [the Master] said: "A single phrase emerges from the crowns of the heads of a thousand sages; a subtle dynamic issues from an inexhaustible treasure store. Completely without reliance, totally devoid of clue or trace, neither form nor mind, neither suchness nor difference—exhausting empty space and spanning the entire Dharma realm, all of it is a great gate of liberation. All of you, drifting about in its coming and going, do you still feel your hair standing on end? If beneath your own feet, when not a single thought arises, the entire body is fully revealed, then it is clean, bare, brisk, and lively: to go if you want to go, to stay if you want to stay, to use if you want to use, to cease if you want to cease, not pointing to a second head, not falling into a second view. Arriving here, from ancient times to the present, it is solidified in serene illumination. If you tread upon it, what trifling matter is penetrating through birth and death? One can, with undefiled faculties and powers, erect the Dharma banner and establish the ancestral lineage, clothing and covering all living beings without exhaustion to the end of future kalpas. Just at such a moment, tell me: whose gracious power is received? Do you understand? The formless Buddha atop the mountain of the five aggregates / Emits light, shakes the earth, and covers the sands of worlds. The verse says: The single mind has no clinging; / The entire realm is the Dharma King's house. / Bringing to perfection undefiled blessings, / Sitting upright on the jewel lotus flower."

6.7

When Layman Tanran sponsored a vegetarian feast for the novice Gong, ascending the hall, a monk asked: "When Bodhidharma had not yet transmitted the mind-ground seal, and Śākyamuni had not yet untied the jewel in the topknot, if someone asked about the meaning of the coming from the west, was there still a meaning of the coming from the west or not?" The Master said: "The stone lion in front of the courtyard." The monk advanced and said: "If so, through kalpas calm and unperturbed without different forms, calling it the mind seal is already empty talk." The Master said: "Not even a single speck can enter." The monk advanced and said: "How can one face that from past to present it should suffer no fall, distinctly right before our eyes?" The Master said: "Try bringing up what is before your eyes and see." The monk advanced and said: "Not even a single speck can deceive the Venerable." The Master said: "What can you do about the great assembly?" The Master said: "Lifting your foot, you step past Pūrvavideha; taking a step back, you enter Aparagodānīya; turning your head, you look toward Uttarakuru; clenching your fist, you strike Jambudvīpa. Viewed in clean ground, this is a great person of boundless measure; observed with the true eye, it is still hemp dregs and yeast leavings. You should know that the boundless fragrant water seas above and below in the four directions, the ineffable floating banner world systems, pinched into fine dust, with each dust particle manifesting boundless bodies and expounding immeasurable teachings—this is still merely according with capacities and responding with teachings, seeing the hole and loosely inserting the wedge. How much more so when one wields the transcendent tongs and hammer and uses the forge of an adept: even if the entire realm were Deshan, with a stick he would find no place to strike; even if the entire realm were Linji, with a shout he would find no place to open his mouth; even if the entire realm were the Golden Ascetic, with meditative power he would find no place to lodge his body. Just at such a moment, if suddenly someone should take it up, shoulder it, orient toward it, and walk it, tell me: where would you place him? This mountain monk has a place to put him. If I intend to speak of it, I fear it will become a public entanglement; if I intend not to speak of it, I would disappoint the one who meets the occasion. Speaking or not speaking, setting both aside at once, the final phrase is released to open the discussion: Beneath the tall pines, inside the bright window, / Jade halls and pearl towers are no match for this. / With a patched quilt covering my head, myriad affairs cease; / At this moment, this mountain monk understands nothing at all. Do you understand? Tiantai's Huading is exquisite; Nanyue's stone bridge is high. / Last night the millstone grew eight corners, / Startling the outdoor pillar into hearty laughter, / Leading the stone lion before the gate / To climb backward up the wisteria cliff to Tiantai."

6.8

Retiring from the monastery, ascending the hall, [the Master said]: "Erecting a great mansion is not the capability of a single tree; ferrying across a great river is not the strength of a single person. How much more so when the boundless sky leaves no trace, and the Great Dao's substance is vast: understanding it depends on the person, deciding it rests with oneself. Whether emerging or dwelling, speaking or silent, in the tiger's den or the demon's palace, in defiled lands or pure lands, in forests, mountains, cities, or briar patches—if in every move one possesses the dynamic to step forward, and in every place one has the view that transcends ordinary sentiments, then nothing is inadmissible. Held fast, even patriarchs and buddhas cannot peer in; let go, one is born together and dies together. And tell me: is letting go better for people, or is holding fast better for people? Do you understand? Wearing a coir raincoat, standing sideways beyond a thousand peaks, / Channeling water to irrigate vegetables before the Five Old Men. / The illusory body approaches the age of following one's heart's desires; / Lazily entangled in worldly dust for a long time, / Relying on this protective talisman, / Forcing myself to support my declining illness, I return for now to the mountains."

6.9

Recorded Sayings on Residing at Longyou [Monastery] on Mount Jin. When the Master received the imperial decree at Qianming in Gaoyou, he picked it up, showed it to the assembly, and said: "Do you see? When picked up, ten suns shine together; where raised, a thousand realms are radiant. Sent down from the ninefold heavens, personally handed over from the hands of the chief ministers—I dare not conceal it in bags or quilts; I invite the Controller of Monks to proclaim it once." Next, picking up the declaration, he said: "Precious lands on the tip of a hair, authoritative power beyond the threshold: it has rolling up and unfolding, illumination and function. Every word rolls like pearls and turns like jade; each one bends like grass before the wind. Although the pattern and colors have already been displayed, I invite you to pick it up once anew."

6.10

Pointing to the Dharma seat, [the Master] said: "Carrying a pole about oneself, putting on a play whenever the occasion arises. The Lamp King of Mount Sumeru is present right now before your eyes; there is no need to make further prostrations. Can you believe it thoroughly? The subtle secret not transmitted by a thousand sages: someone walks on the solitary peak of the Wonderful Summit."

6.11

He ascended the seat and said: "The correct decree having been executed, the ten directions simultaneously respond; presenting flowers and borrowing water rely entirely upon bystanders. Is there anyone who will bear witness together?" A monk asked: "Having sung through the tune atop the imperial tower, you now ascend high upon the solitary peak of Fuyu. Before crossing the Yangzi River, how could you utter the phrase of taking hand?" The Master said: "If the wind does not come, the tree does not move." The monk continued: "How does right here differ from the Wonderful Peak?" The Master said: "The blow-hair treasured sword severs at the crown of the head." The monk continued: "If suddenly the bhikṣu Deyun were to come forth and say there is a separation, how would the Venerable Monk turn around?" The Master said: "Then he too cannot feel [me] out." The monk continued: "What can be done about how in every place there is no mutual exchange, and in every matter the dynamic sharpness is unyielding?" The Master said: "For seven days, how could one ever have managed to see him?" The monk continued: "Even if one saw him in person, he would merely be someone on the mountain." The Master said: "Words of bitter grievance are the hardest to spit out." The monk continued: "A student in distress also communicates the message; I only fear the waters of the Yangzi River will flow backward." The Master said: "Thirty blows of the staff will have to wait for another time." The Master said: "The Great Way has neither front nor back; the true dynamic has both rolling up and unrolling. Grasping the great earth like a potter's wheel, turning the chiliocosm upon the point of a needle—this is still not yet the correct decree within the realm or the complete authority outside the border gates. Therefore, the myriad states look up with reverence and together return to the sun of Emperor Shun; a single ray of numinous light shines jointly upon the imperial house, re-establishing the bodhimaṇḍas of the Buddhas and Patriarchs, and restoring the jewel abode throughout all heaven. The correct decree is fully presented, and host and guest function together. Today, this mountain monk has been honoured with the sacred edict of the One Man, and, aided on the side by the authority of the chief ministers, we jointly erect the Dharma banner and establish the lineage's essential principle. In the middle of the Yangzi River, rolling waves billow to the heavens; upon the solitary peak of the Wonderful Peak, leisurely clouds unroll and roll up. Everywhere one casts one's gaze is unprecedented, and the correct decree upon the crown of the head fully appears. If one is someone who attains together, functions together, kills together, and enlivens together—seeing with the same eye, hearing with the same ear, proclaiming with the same mouth, expounding with the single voice, having no different conditions and no different views—what need is there to speak of the ninety-six heterodox paths or the twenty-five states of existence? Right here one must directly discern them, instantly ranking them far below. And tell me, as for today's affair suited to the season and the occasion, how do you speak of it? A single phrase far surpasses the standards of past and present; for myriad years we look up and offer wishes to the sagely, enlightened Heaven."

6.12

He ascended the seat. A monk asked: "Having parted far from the imperial palace, you have now reached Nanxu. Without stepping onto the journey's path, please, Master, provide guidance." The Master said: "It has already been six days since arriving here." The monk continued: "The density of the bamboo does not obstruct the flowing water; how could the height of the mountain hinder the flying white clouds?" The Master said: "It still involves the lips and tongue." The monk continued: "Not involving the lips and tongue, please, Master, speak." The Master said: "In the highest place, there is a surplus." The monk continued: "A patch-robed monk enters the forest without moving the grass, and enters the water without stirring the waves. What then serves as verification?" The Master said: "It is still off by a little bit." The monk continued: "Only the Old Barbarian is permitted to know; the Old Barbarian is not permitted to understand." The Master said: "For now, do not pretend to be astute." The Master then said: "Thirty years ago I once came here; now the towers and pavilions stand in emerald-green irregularity. The true message of the place where Sudhana visited—who recognises the idle old awl Deyun? Is there anyone who recognises him? Before crossing Guazhou, there was a single phrase that was already spoken to all of you. If you rely on thought, if you rely on mental consciousness, if you rely on the eyes seeing, if you rely on the ears hearing, then there is no relation at all. Even if you recognise it before the Seven Buddhas and on that side of King of Awesome Sound, it is still just intellectual conversation. If you understand it thoroughly, there is no need for 'what' or 'how'—just step forth alone into the crimson clouds. If you have not yet done so, you inevitably fall into the gate of the secondary meaning. The solitary peak in the middle of the river is reflected against pavilions and towers; the twin pagodas upon the water's surface gleam with mingling gold and azure. It is truly a field of merit for the Sagely Emperor, a premier monastery of the Chan groves. Whether a jade palace or a Buddhist temple, whether a pure land or a defiled land, we erect the Dharma banner and carry forward the Patriarchal Way. Were it not for the sagely wisdom and brilliant virtue of our present Emperor, deeply believing in this Way, how could an imperial edict have been handed down first to restore this precious monastery as a land of blessings? This is why today I can meet with each of you within this ancient bodhimaṇḍa. Having arrived here, you must simply contemplate virtue, cultivate virtue, recognise grace, and repay grace. If you do so, then the entrustment of the Buddha-Dharma will find its proper place. Just at such a moment, how do you speak a phrase? The silver mountain and iron wall permit no mutual evasion; where the wind blows the grass bends, and one attains free movement."

6.13

Opening the hall, the Prefectural Magistrate and Yan Kang [scholar] handed the document to the Master. The Master received it and said: "It thoroughly settles the ready-made gong'an, with the sound of gold striking the earth; it illuminates the ancestral style of the ancient monastery, shining bright against the sky. Emerging from the hand of a great master, revealing the supreme vehicle, we now wish the four seas to hear it universally; let the Rectifier of Monks read it aloud."

6.14

Pointing to the Dharma seat, he said: "Sumeru Lamp King Tathāgata currently abides upon this seat, radiating great light and having already preached the Dharma. Do you still hear it? If you have not yet heard it, since you face the furnace without shrinking from the fire, you must also turn around the barrier on the crown." He then ascended the seat, brought forward incense, and said: "This stick of incense is reverently offered on behalf of our current Emperor to solemnise the sagely longevity. Respectfully I pray that his brilliant culture equals the two luminaries, his sagely calculations match heaven and earth, eclipsing the merit of Shaokang in restoring the footsteps of Yu, and accomplishing the enterprise of Xuan and Guang in reviving the House of Han. May the myriad states submit to his sagely transformation, and all directions lay down their weapons of war. This stick of incense is reverently offered on behalf of the Prefectural Magistrate, Pacification Commissioner, Yan Kang [scholar], Vice Magistrate, Academicians, and all civil and military officials of the entire prefecture. I humbly pray that your ranks be as firm as great boulders and your merits aid the guardian city; holding provincial posts, may you rival Lu, Wei, Jin, and Qi; ascending to the imperial halls, may you match Gao, Kui, Ji, and Xie. This stick of incense—even the Buddha's Eye cannot peer at it. For ten years in Jiang and Huai I endured every hardship; one day at Baiyun, the lacquer bucket was smashed open. Having unworthily presided over six great monasteries, this is the seventh time I offer this stick of incense, reverently dedicated to Chan Master Yan, the twelfth generation of the Zhenhui Chan Monastery on Mount Wuzu in Qizhou, in order to repay the milk of the Dharma." He then gathered his robes and ascended the seat. The Venerable of Jiaoshan struck the gavel and said: "The assembly of dragons and elephants at the Dharma feast should observe the primary meaning." The Master then said: "Just before ascending this seat, the primary meaning was already established of itself. Now, distinguishing and explaining beneath the gavel, who knows what order of meaning this is? Is there anyone who has forged into a single piece and understands how to observe it? Try coming forth before the assembly to cite it and see." A monk asked: "Gazing toward the clouds, Deyun does not descend the Wonderful High Peak; the supreme transformation is inescapable, and Mount Jin extends a single line of path. Please, Venerable Monk, speak a phrase of repaying grace." The Master said: "May we eternally wish for myriad years of life for the sagely and enlightened sovereign." The monk continued: "It can be called: the imperial power is as heavy as hills and mountains, the sovereign's grace as vast as the cosmos." The Master said: "It causes the mind to become even more like iron." The monk continued: "The golden branches ever flourish in thousand-year splendour; the jade leaves ever remain fragrant through ten thousand ages of spring." The Master said: "Once again an ācārya joins in bearing witness." The monk continued: "Formerly when Minister Pei entered the temple, Shishuang borrowed his tablet to bestow compassion; today when your excellency's carriage personally arrives, I wonder how they will meet?" The Master said: "Just completing a ready-made gong'an." The monk continued: "Auspicious vapours descend straight from heaven; fortunate clouds originally arrive from beside the sun." The Master said: "Cast your eye high." The monk continued: "Just as the Venerable Monk opens the hall in six places to preach the Dharma for others, is there still anyone who approves?" The Master said: "All at once, they do not approve." The monk continued: "Why do they not approve?" The Master said: "Solitary permission." The Master then said: "The Great Way has neither center nor edge; the supreme reality transcends spoken words. The Buddhas cannot present it; the Patriarchs cannot transmit it. Penetrating sound and penetrating form, it cuts off all obstruction; covering earth and covering heaven, it has no front or back. How could it merely be attaining verification at the blow of a staff or accepting responsibility beneath a shout? Even if a thousand eyes were suddenly to open, one would still inevitably cling to grasses and attach to trees. Arriving here, one must be someone whom a needle cannot pierce, whom the wind cannot blow over, who cuts off the essential crossing and allows neither ordinary nor sagely to pass through, before one can attain it. Therefore, at the assembly on Vulture Peak, the butcher Guang'e put down his cleaver and said: 'I am one among the thousand Buddhas.' In the Great Assembly, the mighty demon king said: 'I will wait until all sentient beings have completely attained Buddhahood, and only then will I generate the bodhicitta.' Is this not the trampling of dragons and elephants, the roaring stretch of the lion, defeating the foe and startling the flock, harboring the spirit of a great hero—only then can one accept and bear it! Therefore it is said: 'One who kills without blinking becomes a Buddha on the spot; one who becomes a Buddha on the spot kills without blinking.' This must be left to extraordinary persons, who wield extraordinary wisdom, reveal extraordinary dynamic sharpness, and display extraordinary functioning. Just at such a moment, how do you speak within the extraordinary realm? Do you know? Reverently we wish the sagely sovereign limitless life; may the rivers be clear and the seas calm, rejoicing in peace and prosperity."

6.15

He ascended the hall and said: "Great assembly! Upon the mass of red flesh, each person has the ancient Buddha's ancestral style; on the crown of Vairocana's head, everywhere is the Patriarchs' handle. Bring forward one dynamic, and thousands and tens of thousands of dynamics are fully penetrated; use one phrase, and thousands and tens of thousands of phrases circulate unimpeded. Not relying on others, one's own functioning is fully revealed. If everyone reflects inward in this way, then from antiquity through the present, solidly tranquil and illumining, this single segment of radiance is neither internal nor external, neither matter nor mind. Striking with a staff cannot hit it; giving a shout cannot frighten it away. Reaching the point of being utterly bare and naked, it is the forbearance of non-arising of dharmas and the non-retrogressing wheel, cutting off both ends to return home and sit securely. Just at such a moment, there is no need to seek elsewhere; this right here is the Western Direction."

6.16

The Grand Princess of Qin and Lu presented incense and requested him to ascend the seat. Bringing forward incense, he said: "This stick of incense is reverently offered on behalf of the Grand Princess of Qin and Lu, prepared on this auspicious occasion, to solemnise the limitless sagely lifespan of our current Emperor." The Master then said: "Heaven is high and limitless, and the limitless has its venerated one; earth is thick and boundless, and the boundless has its master. Mirroring the myriad phenomena in a square inch [of mind], embracing the six directions within the chest, one activates the great potential and manifests the great function. For this reason, the patriarchs and Buddhas either held up a flower or faced a wall, either wielded the staff or gave a shout, were either overflowing with eloquence or utterly silent without speech. Turning and returning, they merely clarified this non-doing lineage principle. Therefore, on each person's part, each stands steep like a wall of ten thousand cubits, without the slightest change or deficiency. Have you not heard it said: like the imperial power not abandoning a single subject, it is not said that because they are ignorant they are not harboured, nor is it said that because they are wise they are nurtured. Arriving here, one initiates the transformation of non-doing and practices the wordless teaching; each stands supporting heaven and treading the earth, drinking from the spring and prizing the earth's veins. Just at such a moment, do you understand thoroughly? A plume of precious incense descends from heaven; may the Golden Wheel Emperor live for a hundred million myriad years!"

6.17

At the invitation of Academician Qian the Second, he ascended the seat and said: "To penetrate the barrier of birth and death, emerge from views of existence and non-existence, break free of the dynamic of the Buddhas and Patriarchs, and surpass the measure of ordinary standards, one must possess sharp faculties and superior wisdom, hearing once and awakening to a thousand things, directly accepting responsibility beneath it—only then can it be attained; letting go on that side, there is nothing further. Therefore it is said: 'How many times born, how many times dead? The realized one wanders leisurely without a fixed stopping place. Ever since sudden awakening to the complete absence of arising, what sorrow or joy is there in any honour or disgrace?' Do all of you recognise non-arising? The kalpa fire burns completely, consuming every fine hair; the green mountain remains as ever amid the white clouds."

6.18

Ascending the seat, [the Master] said: "Covering heaven and covering earth, wherever you touch, you meet Him; spanning antiquity and spanning the present, the authentic substance is fully manifest. Dharmas have no distinct characteristics and do not fall into birth and death; time has no distinct conditions and is uninvolved in autumns and springs. Therefore it is said: 'Dwelling in the flow of birth and death, the black dragon's pearl shines alone in the vast ocean; seated upon the shore of nirvāṇa, the cassia-moon radiates solitary and bright in the azure sky.' Just so, beneath everyone's feet, radiance surges through past and present, far surpassing views and knowledge; the six sense spheres cannot snare or hold it, and the triple world cannot gather or contain it. Only directly taking charge of it right before you, you instantly see liberation clearly. Right at just such a time, how is it? In heaven, all stars revere the North Star; among humans, no water fails to flow toward the east."

6.19

Ascending the hall, [the Master] said: "The dharmakāya is formless, manifesting shapes in response to dynamic potential; the Dharma eye is flawless, reflecting and examining things wherever it illumines. The place where arrangements cannot reach is the naturally authentic Buddha; the place where everyday use cannot reach is the transcendent dynamic. If you can cut off looking up in admiration above and cut off your own body below, so that your nostrils rub against the household tradition and your skull is always a thousand worlds, then the one is the immeasurable and the immeasurable is the one; within the small the great is manifested, and within the great the small is manifested. What further birth and death, going and coming would you seek? Earth, water, fire, wind, sound, fragrance, taste, and tangibles—all entirely constitute the substance of the true person. Is there anyone here who can take charge of this? Recognize the priceless maṇi jewel; future enjoyment will have no end."

6.20

At the invitation of Transport Commissioner Huang, [the Master] ascended the hall and said: "Great assembly! A single phrase cuts off the flow, an iron wall and silver mountain that cannot be approached; the ten thousand conditions are all penetrated, illuminating earth and illuminating heaven beyond any cage. Luminous and unhidden, distinct and beyond illumination and function: the appearance in the world of the Buddhas of the three times was solely for this one matter; the transmission and maintenance of the ancestral masters of successive generations was also just this one mind. Therefore, prajñā is like a great mass of fire; prajñā is like an inexhaustible storehouse; prajñā is like a boat and oars crossing the sea; prajñā is like a bright lamp illuminating the night. If brought forth in winding accommodation downward, then there is striking the couch and raising the whisk, winking eyes and raising eyebrows, speaking or remaining silent, discussing being or discussing non-being; if raised up transcendentally, it is like sparks from struck flint, like a flash of lightning: at times applying the staff, at times delivering a shout, at times arrow points meeting each other, at times unseen even by the Buddha eye. Even though it is like this, there are still transcendent and descending [aspects]. If one suddenly meets a person of this caliber, there are actually no such diverse matters—it is simply readily made. Therefore it is said: 'Mountains are mountains, waters are waters, heaven is heaven, earth is earth—not shifting or changing a single hair.' Right at just such a time, do you clearly understand? When the myriad states possess the Way, they submit to the imperial transformation; laying down shields and spears, they delight in universal peace."

6.21

At the invitation of Academician Zheng of the Longtu Hall, [the Master] ascended the hall and said: "Meeting each other without bringing it forth, as soon as an intention arises, you know it is there. Tell me: how is this intention raised? What is it that you know is there? If one discusses Buddhas, discusses ancestors, discusses the mysterious, discusses the wondrous, discusses the dynamic, discusses states, discusses the staff, or discusses the shout, these are all peripheral matters; can it be placed on top of them? If you can place it there, the fragrant water oceans of the worlds of the ten directions are seen on the tip of a single hair, with each and every thing originally free from alteration. If you miss it at the tip of a single hair, even if you employ seven perforations and eight apertures, it will still have no connection. As for the single phrase that has a connection, how do you express it? Having bitten off the tongue three thousand miles away, the sun and moon within the flask are naturally distinct and clear."

6.22

At the invitation of Left Vice Grand Councilor Lü, [the Master] ascended the hall and said: "A single phrase, complete in standard, ought to produce the seal of Vairocana; a single dynamic potential, cutting off all flows, penetrates the ancestral barrier. If one is a person with clear eyes, they have already passed three thousand miles beyond; but if you still linger in seeing and hearing, still stalled in the skin, you cannot avoid going to the gate of the secondary meaning to talk it over again. Therefore it is said: 'Knowing illusion, one immediately leaves it, without employing expedients; leaving illusion is immediately awakening, also without gradations.' The marrow of Old Śākya and the Buddhas of the three times appears all at once; if you just take charge of it like this, the whole mind is Buddha, and the whole Buddha is mind, mind and Buddha without duality—what further do you doubt? Right at just such a time, how do you speak? For a thousand ages, for ten thousand ages, pitch black and murky; filling trenches and stuffing ravines, no one understands."

6.23

Ascending the hall, [the Master] said: "At Gṛdhrakūṭa speaking of the moon, the words were esoteric and hard to conceal; at Caoxi pointing to the moon, the mind was authentic and unfathomable. Knocking down the flagpole in front of the gate has already fallen into the second head; crouching beneath the diamond steps, the sacred tortoise walking within fire, still falls into the third category. What about before there were Buddhas and ancestral masters—was there still such a season? Arriving here, ignorant folks are not discussed; it is solely for the sharp and talented. Do you clearly understand? Giant waves surge a thousand fathoms, yet the clear ripples do not leave the water."

6.24

At the invitation of Left Vice Grand Councilor Geng, [the Master] ascended the hall and said: "The world without Buddhas is the light of prajñā; the hundreds of thousands of sages are the function of prajñā; the authentic adamantine substance is the root of prajñā; destroying the ramparts of Māra is the power of prajñā. Possessing such unimpeded majestic spiritual authority, attaining such knowledge and vision of liberation, if you use a single hair, thousands and ten thousands of miles are completely radiant; if you pick up a single hair, boundless worlds undergo no change. Taking charge of it in its entirety, it is such-like and immovable. Therefore, Buddhas and ancestral masters uphold this matter to enable all people, each under their own heels, to clearly understand right view, attain its light and reveal its function, realize its root and obtain its power. Right at just such a time, how is it? In heaven, all stars revere the North Star; among humans, no water fails to flow toward the east."

6.25

At the invitation of Grand Master Chen, [the Master] ascended the hall and said: "Having phrases and having no phrases originally have no two extremes, like wisteria clinging to a tree, merged into a single piece. The tree falls and the wisteria withers; the hound of Han cannot help but burst into hearty laughter. If the golden-haired lion has iron eyes and bronze pupils, piercing through directly right before itself, it can then bar the vital ford against both ordinary and holy, never making a nest in others' words or being caught in the cage of dynamic states. Therefore it is said: 'Words do not unfold the matter; speech does not tally with the dynamic. Those who adhere to words are lost; those who stagnate in phrases are deluded.' Not falling into words, not setting up contrivances, spreading a heaven-covering net to catch the wave-surging fish, letting down a ten-thousand-mile hook to halt the thousand-mile black steed—this too must be left to a person of great realization. Thus Zhaozhou's seeing through was an expedient; Xuansha's missing it tested the adept; Xuefeng rolling balls, Yunmen turning to look, Muzhou's ready-made, and Juzhi's one finger—like being cast in raw iron, penetrating above and thorough below, this requires only a person of their fundamental lot. If all were suddenly not like this, what then? Do you clearly understand? Fully realize that the ordinary mind is the Way; when hungry, eat rice; when weary, sleep." He then spoke a verse: / "Mind is immediately Buddha unfolds the heart-seal; / Not Buddha, not mind treads the great breadth. / Right where you are, divide the body hundreds of thousands of millions of times, / Radiating rays of light from the Hall of Universal Light."

6.26

At the invitation of Surveillance Commissioner Zhao, [the Master] ascended the hall. A monk asked, "There is a single phrase that the thousand sages from antiquity have never spoken; may I ask what kind of phrase it is called?" The Master said, "Where did you get this news?" The monk said, "Those thousand sages also never spoke like this." The Master said, "Better not slander those thousand sages." The monk said, "I would rather have my tongue cut out than violate the state taboo." The Master said, "Your face has been smashed, yet you still do not know it yourself." The monk said, "May I ask which phrase the thousand sages used in their secret bequest?" The Master said, "They used the phrase on the nostrils." The monk said, "Does this phrase also encompass everything?" The Master said, "Ācārya, it is not deficient." The Master then said: "Facing directly forward without obscuring the timely dynamic, responding to questions and answers fully reveals the profound purport, directly making a thousand ages and ten thousand ages just like the present, with no different Way for past Buddhas and future Buddhas. Broad and vast without exterior, the worlds of the great trichiliocosm are contained within it; quiet and solitary, not interior, floating banner kṣetras in the ocean of fragrant water. If you can be free of 'that' and 'this', neither form nor mind, and directly cut off the vital ford against both ordinary and holy, then ancient Śākya is not prior and new Maitreya is not subsequent. Right now, on the crown of everyone's head, great jewel light is radiated, towering like a thousand-fathom cliff, displaying all wondrous functions and spiritual powers, holding up the single, inconceivable power. Right at just such a time, how do you express a phrase? Each and every mountain and river is unobstructed; layer upon layer of pavilions open in response to the moment."

6.27

Residing at Zhenru Chan Monastery on Mount Yunju in Nankang Commandery. On the sixth day of the eleventh month in the dingwei year of Jianyan [1127 CE], while at Mount Fuyu in Zhenjiang, the Master received an imperial dispatch summoning him to the temporary imperial court. On the seventeenth day, he had an audience with the Emperor, and after an extended discussion, received an imperial decree to reside at Yunju. The next day the imperial decree was issued; at that time, officials of both bureaus and court attendants gathered at Yongxi Monastery to invite the Master to ascend the seat and reverently receive the imperial decree. The Master picked up the imperial decree, showed it to the assembly, and said: "Personally proclaimed and bestowed from within the ninefold walls of the imperial palace, / A single beam of spiritual light flashes through the great void. / The true ultimate truth within the ultimate truth, / A lotus blooming within the cluster of a thousand flowers. / Knowing it at a single mention saves so much effort; but if that is not yet so, I ask that it be read aloud once more."

6.28

Pointing to the Dharma seat, he said, "Borrowing Yongxi's precious seat, bringing forth Yangqi's diamond cage, it is directly manifest before you; recognize it clearly! Do you understand? The upright body of the vajra is fully exposed; everywhere one lifts one's feet is the great bodhimaṇḍa. Standing towering atop Vairocana's crown, where else would one pay homage to the King of Lamps? Look, look!" He then ascended the seat, took incense, and said: "Before the space of the worlds had differentiated, it was transcendently fragrant; now that the interpenetration of the Flower Adornment realm has appeared, it is exceptionally pervasive. Perfumed by the knowledge and vision of liberation of morality, concentration, and wisdom, gathered from hundreds of thousands of koṭis of measureless excellences, I burn it in this censer to respectfully wish long life to the present emperor—may his sage years reach ten thousand! I humbly pray that his virtue and Dao surpass the Five Emperors of old, his awe-inspiring spirit exceed the hundred kings of the past, his sage longevity equal the Southern Mountain, and his imperial charts rival the Northern Culmen. May the two sage emperors soon return in their jade carriages, may all ten thousand lands join in celebrating peace, may warfare cease forever, and may the four classes of people delight in their livelihoods!" Next, taking up incense, he said: "To the Grand Councilor of the Left, the ministerial aides of the two administrations, and all the hundred officials of the entire court who grace this gathering today, along with great scholars, erudite savants, and numerous nobles of merit: I humbly pray that you act as timely rain, as oars and boats; may Zhongshan uphold what is declining, and may Fu Yue season the imperial stew." A monk asked, "Halting the oars in the midst of the Yangzi River when summoned by the Son of Heaven; holding the pass on the summit of Yunju Peak without deferring to the Buddhas and Patriarchs: how was it before you departed from Rājagṛha?" The Master said, "Cutting off the tongues of everyone under heaven." The monk continued, "There is no need for the five assemblies to arrive east of the City of Awakening; how do Mañjuśrī and Sudhana distinguish it?" The Master said, "A single charge acknowledges it." The monk continued, "If so, then 'August Heaven has no favorites; it aids only virtue.'" The Master said, "No need for further deliberation." The monk continued, "Just as the Sun of Shun shines brightly anew and the Patriarchs' lamp increases its illumination, what is it like to know grace and repay grace?" The Master said, "A single phrase, clear and distinct, surpasses hundred koṭis; forever wishing ten thousand years of life to the sage and enlightened ruler." The monk continued, "With deepest reverence I pray for your life to rival the Southern Mountain; a single stick of pure incense fills the stone chamber." The Master said, "It is already before words." The monk continued, "I do not know: when the patriarchal decree is in effect, how is it propagated?" The Master said, "Marked." The monk continued, "Desiring to transmit Lu Kai's message from south of the river, I have plucked the very first branch of the spring breeze." The Master said, "Throughout the whole realm it has never been hidden." A monk asked, "What is it like when a bright mirror stands on its pedestal?" The Master said, "Who does not reflect in it?" The monk continued, "The myriad forms are distinctly clear, with no mutual obstruction whatsoever." The Master said, "Exhausting all your supernormal powers, where will you go?" The monk continued, "I also know the Venerable is within it." The Master said, "From beginning to end, gathered all at once." The monk continued, "Just as the teaching says: 'Thoroughly awaken to the Tathāgata's unexcelled knowledge and vision'—how far apart are the Chan master and the Buddha?" The Master said, "Not separated by the breadth of a single hair." The monk continued, "Standing atop the highest peak, walking along the deepest seabed." The Master said, "A staff strikes the stone man's head; clattering, it discusses real matters." The monk bowed, and the Master then said, "Bringing forth the upright vajra eye, expounding the transcendent lineage vehicle, repaying repayable grace, performing what is difficult to perform, brandishing Linji's Vajra King jewel sword, it is fully manifest at the shout; wielding Deshan's mountain-shaped staff, it is entrusted face to face. Right is wholly right; seeing is wholly seeing. Without falling into the gradations of commoner and sage, directly and suddenly manifest, having seen and met with it, clear-eyed ones bear witness. Moreover, encountering a flourishing era under a sage dynasty, I dare not veil or conceal it in a bag, but directly and clearly bring it forth to you." Then, taking up his staff, he showed it to the assembly and said, "Have you not seen: A monk took leave of Guizong, and Guizong asked, 'Where are you going?' The monk said, 'I am going to various quarters to practice five-flavor Chan.' Guizong said, 'Here I have only one-flavor Chan.' The monk said, 'What is the Venerable's one-flavor Chan?' Guizong immediately struck him. When Huangbo heard of this, he said, 'Out of the eighty-four masters of great kalyāṇamitras produced by Master Ma, when questioned, each of them makes a mess; only Guizong is still somewhat capable.'" The Master said, "Venerable Guizong bundled empty space into a staff and brought it entirely atop the crowns of the thousand sages; he melted vases, trays, hairpins, and bracelets into a single gold, and churned curd, butter, and ghee into a single flavor. If Huangbo had not clearly discerned its beginnings, it would have been near to laboring in vain without achievement. Even though it is like this, 'where there is a branch, take hold of the branch; where there is no branch, take hold of a precedent.' Today, clearly brought forth before all of you, do you understand? Striking three thousand times in the morning and eight hundred at night; forging Buddhas and Patriarchs relies solely on this." He cited further: "Venerable Huangbo addressed the assembly, saying: 'All of you people are not up to the task. Acting like this, how could there be today? Do you know that in the Great Tang Empire there are no Chan masters?' A monk said, 'What about those in various quarters who gather disciples and lead assemblies?' Huangbo said, 'I do not say there is no Chan, only that there are no masters.'" The Master said, "Old man Huangbo could distinguish and differentiate, could select and choose; capturing tigers and rhinoceroses, settling dragons and snakes—this he certainly had, but after all he only understood the matters of that time. He did not realize that that time was one time, and this time is another time! As for this mountain monk, it is not so: all of you are heroic and remarkable figures; with such bearing, you must believe there is an extraordinary affair. Do you know that in the Great Song Empire there are Chan masters? And tell me: right now, where is the Chan master? Knowing that today there is no time to avoid it, I cannot help but show my face." Then he said: "Having personally received the master's name bestowed by the golden mouth, / An utpala flower blooms in the midst of fire. / Thoroughly awakening to the Tathāgata's unexcelled vision, / Singing and drumming the belly, delighting in universal peace."

6.29

Recorded Sayings of Chan Master Yuanwu Foguo, Fascicle Six

Linked texts (1)

圓悟佛果禪師語錄 — Classical Chinese