圓悟佛果禪師語錄 7

English (machine translation) 7

Language: English

7.1

Compiled by his disciple Shaolong and others of Tiger Hill in Pingjiang Prefecture of the Song

Arriving at Nankang Military Prefecture to open the hall, receiving the statement of appointment from the hands of the prefect, he showed it to the assembly and said: "Do you see? Manifesting directly before you, immediately present; in hundreds of coils and thousands of layers, open in all directions and penetrating everywhere. Each and every one is a ancestral master's nostrils, each and every one the transcendent lineage vehicle. To directly undertake it is still somewhat capable; if you have not yet verified it, I ask the monastic rector to expound it again for you."

7.4

Pointing to the Dharma seat, he said, "The lion crouches here in person; adorned with all jewels, it was not borrowed from King Sumeru-Pradīpa, but has originally belonged to the Inner Court of Tuṣita. Since such an opportune occasion is hard to encounter, one must make it surpass all others. Look closely!" He then ascended the seat, took incense, and said, "This stick of incense is respectfully offered to celebrate and extol the holy longevity of our present Emperor for ten thousand years. We reverently wish that his reign be exalted as the kalpa-stone and his life equal the mustard-seed city; that he display the resurgence of Xuandi and Guangwudi, and restore the ancient heritage of the Great Yu. The next stick of incense is respectfully offered for the Prefect, the Vice Prefect, the Transport Commissioner, the Auxiliary Academician, the Vice Magistrate, and all the honorable officials of the commandery attending this feast. May they ever be loyal and filial, acting for the country and the people, serving as the arms and legs of the sage sovereign, and acting as pillar-stones of this enlightened age. This final stick of incense was acquired through painstaking diligence and gathered from kalpas far away; several times brought out before the vast assembly, I dare not conceal it before the mountain peaks. Reverently offered for the twelfth generation of Zhenhui Chan Monastery on Mount Wuzu in Qizhou, Chan Master Yan, I burn it in the brazier to requite the milk of Dharma." He then smoothed his robes and sat down. Master Guizong struck the gavel and said, "Assembly of dragons and elephants at the Dharma feast, you should observe the primary meaning!" The Master said, "Embracing all existence, the sound shakes the trichiliocosm; when the eyes on the crowns of Buddhas and Patriarchs open, the hearts and minds of gods and humans widen. If you understand it in this manner, it is straightforward indeed; but if you hesitate, you fall into the gate of the secondary meaning. Are there any patch-robed monks whose arrow-tips clash head-on? Come forward and let us stir it up together!" A monk asked, "When the lineage vehicle is chanted once, the Three Piṭakas leave no room for exposition; when the ancestral command is enforced, the ten directions are cut off. What is the one phrase that requites benevolence?" The Master said, "Heaven is enduring and earth is long-lasting, with no remaining matters; for ten thousand years we ever bless the sage and enlightened ruler." The monk advanced and said, "Then the civil radiance rivals the two luminaries, and the imperial span equals heaven and earth." The Master said, "The grass bends where the wind blows, attaining freedom." The monk advanced and said, "It may be called: the golden branch flourishes forever, elegant for a thousand years; the jade leaves join their fragrance, enduring spring for ten thousand ages." The Master said, "The people of the whole country bear witness." The monk advanced and said, "An ancient said: 'Carrying the thorny staff across his shoulder, paying no heed to anyone, he goes straight into the thousand peaks and myriad peaks.' I wonder, which one is his dwelling place?" The Master said, "Flying vipers entangle his feet, entangling weeds encircle his body." The monk advanced and said, "In the morning I watch the drifting clouds; in the evening I listen to the murmuring streams." The Master said, "You must cut it off before you can attain it." The monk advanced and said, "This time it is no dream; truly I have reached Mount Lu." The Master said, "Look closely." A monk asked, "Ancient Śākya was not earlier; new Maitreya is not later. Just on this day when the Buddha Dharma is entrusted to Yunju, how do you bring forth the dynamic sharpness that a thousand sages cannot borrow?" The Master said, "Raise your eyebrows and go straight forward." The monk advanced and said, "Regarding what has been brought forth, is there still a place to bestow it?" The Master said, "Bestowed on the ācārya." The monk advanced and said, "What can be done when words do not express the essential doctrine, yet wordlessness cuts off both sacred and profane?" The Master said, "There is still the Vajra King jewel sword." The monk advanced and said, "Directly right here it is; no need to circle around further." The Master gave a shout. The monk advanced and said, "If you suddenly met one who has an eye on the crown of his head coming forward to utter a phrase from across the body, what then?" The Master said, "Drawing the bow after the thief has passed." The monk advanced and said, "The blue mountains do not block the power of long flight; the vast sea must know its source lies high." The Master said, "Severed into two halves." The monk advanced and said, "One stroke reveals forty-nine." The Master said, "Indeed." The Master then said, "Taking the Buddhas and Patriarchs as the standard, raising Buddhas and Patriarchs to be masters; taking gods and humans as ladders and rafts, providing gods and humans with eyes. If suddenly not leaning on a single thing, solitary, steep and towering, beyond the knowledge of a thousand sages, without mirror or reflection from ten thousand spirits, cutting off everything without touching a speck, sealing off the world without leaking a hair's breadth—before the assembly of gods and humans, how can it be disclosed? If here one puts an end above to aspiring upward, and cuts off below one's own self, then casually like the garuḍa parting the ocean to seize and swallow the dragon directly, or like the lion cub leaving the cave so that phantom foxes leave no trace; when slightly revealed at the front edge, one cannot avoid saying that mountains are mountains, waters are waters, monks are monks, and laypeople are laypeople, opening the gate of compassion and skillful means to preserve what can be commonly used. If suddenly transformed so that mountains are not mountains, waters are not waters, monks are not monks, and laypeople are not laypeople—arriving here, is there still an avenue of emergence? If there is an avenue of emergence, then one may salute Śākya from afar and decline to bow to Maitreya; one can cut off the crown of Vairocana and pay no homage to Śākyamuni. Gathering empty space into a staff, one still cannot strike him; combining ten million claps of thunder into a single shout, one still cannot startle him. Now tell me, how ultimately does one approach this person? Just now, each directly present, neither turning away nor facing toward, not establishing the slightest path of intellectual interpretation, not making the tiniest device of dust—just at such a time, how do you utter the one phrase that seals off heaven and earth? The carved bow is hung up, the beacon fires have ceased; all nations sing praises to celebrate peace." He added, "Bestowed in person beside the dragon couch, this ancient bodhimaṇḍa of Yunju up in the heavens; beside the tree of peace and joy I hide my clumsy dullness, and there is no more Buddha Dharma to deliberate. Since there is no Buddha Dharma, I nonetheless bring up an ancient gong'an. I remember that Chan Master Yin of Mount Shending, upon ascending the hall to open his teaching, showed the assembly, saying: 'This mountain monk had no proper cause when wandering on foot; I merely intended to listen to one or two scriptures and treatises in the Eastern Capital, and just pass the time in a quiet room of an ancient temple. Unexpectedly, traveling to Yexian in Ruzhou, I was blown by a gust of karmic wind to Mount Shou, where I saw an old monk on a curved-wood chair. At that time I could not hold back, and made three prostrations to him; even to this day, I cannot undo my regret.'" The Master said, "That old fellow investigated to the point where molten iron is cast, and penetrated to the point where there was not the slightest path of intellectual understanding. Therefore, facing the iron wall and silver mountain, he decisively cut through nails and iron. If he did not know there is the transcendent lineage vehicle, how could he speak like that? Although this is so, if we examine it, the Second Patriarch also made three prostrations at Shaolin. If milk and water are not separated and gold and brass are not distinguished, clutching at rules where there are rules, or clinging to precedents where there are no rules—in the late Yuanfeng era, because I harbored doubts about the ancestral master's purpose in coming from the west, for more than ten years south of the river I met great kalyāṇamitras, devotedly asking about the wondrous principle of the profound essence; with sticks, shouts, and dynamic actions I truly exhausted my efforts, yet in the end there was no place of rest. When I arrived at Haihui and met that old monk, I was struck with a hammer-blow behind the head; from then on, I lost the sharpness before my eyes and cast out the things inside my breast, so that even to this day, I cannot explain it away. Tell me: is this the same as or different from the ancients? Do you fully understand? The antelope hangs by its horns beyond a thousand peaks; yet there is an antelope on the peak above."

7.5

Entering the monastery, arriving at the Abbot's quarters, he said, "This is where the monastic groves of the world forge Buddhas and Patriarchs in the great furnace, and where generations of lineage masters refine patch-robed monks with tongs and hammer. Thus when this mountain monk arrived here, old and decrepit, hobbling and limping, incompetent in everything, how can he set up anything in this place? Although this is so, facing the furnace one does not flee the fire. Do you fully understand? Copper heads and iron foreheads like dragons and tigers; look closely at the diamond cage and the chestnut burr!"

7.6

Ascending the hall, he said, "Hearing with the ears is not like seeing with the eyes; discerning with the eyes is not like engaging directly with the hands. The Yunju in the heavens among the four hundred prefectures—today the bamboo litter has arrived here in person. Crags and peaks encircle, forested ridges loom steep; deep in the white clouds, pavilions and towers appear, as though another world had been created. Arriving here, one need not plumb the profound or speak of the wondrous, establish realms or set up dynamic actions, discuss the nature or discuss the mind, investigate principle or investigate phenomena. Just now, on each person's part, cut off everything! Just at such a time, how do you utter the phrase of having arrived in person? The profound mystery of Buddhas and Patriarchs is plumbed to the bottom; deep in the white clouds is a fine place to dwell in peace." He added, "Granted Yunju to nourish this ailing body, / Five hundred patch-robed monks become doubly close. / Clambering up creepers straight into the blue heavens, / In old age I dwell relying on the spirit of peace and joy."

7.7

On the eighth day of the fourth month, at the ascending of the hall to retain the monastic officers, he said, "A single palm does not clap in vain; a single tree does not make a forest. Let everyone lend a hand, and the broken-legged caldron can well bear its duty." He added, "Formerly in the Lumbinī Grove, / Today before the ancient Buddha's shrine. / Turning around the turning-mechanism of Yunmen, / We bathe the immaculate Golden Immortal. / The moment the ladle is taken in hand, / One misses the Patriarchal Chan."

7.8

Ascending the hall, he said, "This mountain monk has entered the monastery for six days; inside and out it is thus-so, and the ten directions are purely serene. There is only one matter to speak of to all of you. Now tell me, what matter is it? You must not stir it!"

7.9

At the closing of the Qianlong Festival, ascending the hall, he said, "Emperor Yuansheng, ruler of the myriad realms, has not yet returned from the northern expedition. As the Qianlong Festival arrives to bless and extol his sagacious lifespan, this mountain monk has one phrase, completely without concealment. Do you fully understand? Burning incense in the Buddha Hall."

7.10

At the beginning of the summer retreat, ascending the hall, he said, "Eyes hearing sounds, ears seeing forms—inconceivable! / At the tips of the hundred grasses, it is time for practical use. / Inside and out thoroughly clear, without a single thing, / Fully able to protect the people of the Dharma-age. / Auspicious days are largely the same; meeting conditions, it immediately shines. The Dharma proceeds according to the Dharma; the Dharma banner is established everywhere. There are worlds that take radiance as Buddha-work, worlds that take sound as Buddha-work, worlds that take fragrant food as Buddha-work, worlds that take adornments as Buddha-work, and worlds that take silence as Buddha-work. Now tell me, what does Yunju take as Buddha-work? Sparing no eyebrows, I bring it out for you all. Walking, standing, sitting, lying down, moving, shifting, acting, and doing; the myriad phenomena embracing inner and outer; not a single dharma that is not complete, not a single affair that is not fulfilled. Arriving here, every move is entirely Buddha-work, but setting that aside, where is the Buddha? Do you fully understand? On the high peak, no news; / In the ocean's depths, no trace." He added, "Ninety days of time, a single pinch; / Five hundred people within the tip of a hair. / Each embraces the great trichiliocosm, / Wholly relying on his power to dwell at ease. / No bumping or colliding, cutting off tracks and traces; / Although for ten thousand miles there is not an inch of grass, / Cloud of Virtue does not descend the peak of Mount Wonderful High."

7.11

He cited: "When Master Wu appointed a head monk, he ascended the hall and said: 'Saying "just this" is very much like throwing sand into the eyes; saying "just not this" is like pouring water into the ears. Directly without concern, one sinks into level ground; having other dynamic contrivances, one falls into pits and ditches.' But ultimately, what about it? 'In the Jetavana, the meandering spring flows swiftly; / On the Vulture Peak, steep and towering, the clouds come out late.'" He added, "Yunju opens a great furnace, / Not only refining Buddhas and refining Patriarchs; / Whatever there is, bring it all, / And discern it within the blazing flames. / If it is right, there is peace right on the spot; / If not, one should quickly take a step back. / Forging out eyes of vajra, / Truly heaven and earth are uniquely revealed. / Although having reached this state, / One must know the path of transcendence. / Do you fully understand? / Let loose Sansheng's blind ass, / To kick to death the fierce tiger of Daxiong."

7.12

At the opening of the Tianshen Festival, ascending the hall: "In the fifth month, the Tianshen Festival arrives, / The True Person descends from the central heavens. / The myriad realms turn like sunflowers and mallows, / Everywhere opening the Dharma feasts. / In the ancient bodhimaṇḍa of Yunju, / Together we burn a stick of smoke. / May the dragon charts and phoenix calendars equal heaven and earth, / And the sagacious lifespan grow ever more prosperous for hundreds of millions of years." He descended from the seat.

7.13

Ascending the hall, he said: "An ancient said, 'Eleven days into the summer retreat, how is it with Master Hanshan?' He also said, 'Eleven days into the summer retreat, how is it with the water buffalo?' This mountain monk is not like that: eleven days into the summer retreat, how is it with the lantern and the exposed pillar? If you can penetrate through the lantern and the exposed pillar, then you will recognize the water buffalo; if you recognize the water buffalo, then you will see Master Hanshan. If you hesitate in deliberation, this old monk is under your feet."

7.14

Ascending the hall, a monk asked Jingqing, "The various quarters only possess the eye of pecking and tapping at the same time, but do not possess the function of pecking and tapping at the same time. What is the eye of pecking and tapping at the same time?" The Master said, "Smashing open the thousand-year-old wild fox cave." The monk asked further, "What is the function of pecking and tapping at the same time?" The Master said, "Overturning the treasure beneath the black dragon's chin." The monk asked further, "Nanyuan said, 'An adept does not peck and tap; pecking and tapping at the same time is a loss.' How is that?" The Master said, "Running along with his words, rolling around in the grass." The monk asked further, "What if the student suddenly overturns the meditation platform?" The Master said, "Let me ask you: what principle did you see?" The monk bowed and said, "In the way of benevolence and righteousness, letting one move pass." The Master said, "Falling back three thousand [leagues]." The Master then said, "In the early dawn and fresh morning of the first of the fifth month, the holeless flute of Shaolin is blown; the worlds of sand across the ten directions lie flat and tranquil, and the great earth, mountains, and rivers are imprinted out one by one. The Second Patriarch never went to the Western Heavens; Bodhidharma never came to the realm of Liang. Everyone joins in the song of great peace: Mahāprajñāpāramitā." He further said: "Solitary and far apart, steep and towering, the table mountain before me—in the past I heard Master Hongjue's words, and this morning I have personally arrived here. At times layers of clouds arise; at times fine rain pours down. When it comes to great brightness and clarity, as before it stands abrupt and towering. Tell me: is it mind? Is it realm? Is it inside the mind? Is it outside the mind? The mandarin ducks are embroidered for you to see in vain; the golden needle is not handed over to others."

7.15

Ascending the hall, he said: "The fifth day of the fifth month is the Heaven-Centered Festival; myriad evils and thousand goblins are all completely extinguished. From the eyes, Mount Sumeru is plucked away; from the ears, the nailed-in pegs are pulled out. Zhongkui's younger sister dances the Santai; eight-armed Nata chews raw iron. By command, let it be bound and cut off—hastily, hastily, according to the ordinances!"

7.16

Ascending the hall, he cited: "A monk asked Fayan, 'Huichao asks the Venerable: What is the Buddha Dharma?' Fayan said, 'You are Huichao.'" The Master said, "Do you fully understand? An illness meeting a fine physician; hunger encountering a royal feast; obtaining salt in the sauce; sending charcoal in the snow."

7.17

Ascending the hall, he said: "Yesterday's wind and today's wind—gust after gust does not arise from elsewhere. Ten days of rain and five days of rain—drop after drop falls in no other place. The great square has no outside; the great image has no form. Gathering the entire world, it is like a grain of millet; taking all of empty space, it is a leaf in the palm. One can drag Silla and Champā to butt foreheads together, so that an arrow shot from the eastern continent Pūrvavideha strikes the target in the western continent Aparagodānīya. Therefore it is said: 'The skull constantly dries out the worlds; the nostrils rub against the lineage style.' If one has not yet stepped beyond the realm of the skandhas and is still trapped in seeing, knowing, and hearing, such talk is just like a duck listening to thunder, or scratching an itch across a boot. Even if you cast off sense organs and dust, and get rid of dynamic sharpness and objective realm, there still remains a single track of road. And how do you speak a phrase that does not tread either path? Do you fully understand? The stone lion before the steps of the Buddha Hall; the iron Kunlun at the bottom of the great ocean."

7.18

Concluding the Tianshen Festival, he ascended the hall and said: "An ancient Buddha in the heavens, the supreme sovereign among men, descending to Jambudvīpa in the fifth month, presiding as ruler over the myriad states in the fifth month, stirring up the enterprise of restoration, sweeping away the dust of the four seas, eternally solidifying the dragon plan, ever strengthening the phoenix calendar. Looking afar to the northern palace gates, gazing up to pray for [longevity like] the Southern Mountain. A single phrase is fully brought forth, overtly manifest facing the occasion. Do you fully understand? On the Tianshen Festival of the Son of Heaven of the Jianyan reign, may the sacred longevity flourish ever more for hundreds of millions of years!"

7.19

Ascending the hall, a monk asked, "Baizhang asked Guishan: 'Setting aside throat, lips, and mouth, how do you speak?' Guishan said, 'I ask the Venerable instead to speak.' What is this principle?" The Master said, "The bystander snickers." The monk asked further, "Baizhang said, 'I do not refuse to speak to you, but I fear that later on it would ruin my descendants.' Was this answering his question? Or speaking for his sake?" The Master said, "An earnest grandmotherly heart." The monk asked further, "Wufeng said, 'The Venerable must also set them aside.' What was the meaning?" The Master said, "An arrow hitting the bullseye." The monk asked further, "Baizhang said, 'Where there is no one, I shade my brow and look out for you.' Was he approving him, or not approving him?" The Master said, "Snatching the championship banner amidst a crowd of ten thousand." The monk asked further, "Yunyan said, 'Venerable, do you have them or not?' How about this?" The Master said, "Dragging through mud and wading through water two or three times over." The monk asked further, "I wonder, did Yunyan speak this way having understood, or did he speak this way not having understood?" The Master said, "Just the same as you, Ācārya." The monk asked further, "If someone suddenly asked the Venerable, 'Setting aside throat, lips, and mouth, how do you speak?'" The Master said, "Shut them tight." The monk asked further, "In that case, it is just the same as Yunyan." The Master said, "People do not recognize the direct severing of the root source; when will the hustle and bustle of karmic consciousness ever cease?" The Master then said: "Letting go the hands over a cliff of ten thousand fathoms requires the right person; the release of a crossbow of a thousand jun—how could it be for a field mouse? Yunmen and Muzhou missed it face-to-face; Deshan and Linji hoodwinked the common townsfolk. As for the rest who establish realms and dynamic sharpness, making nests and dens, they truly extinguish the lineage of the Barbarian. And how do you speak a phrase of solitary detachment? The shifts and changes of myriad conditions are entirely trivial matters; in the fifth month, the mountain room is as cold as ice."

7.20

Ascending the hall, a monk asked: "Linji's three mysteries test the adepts. What is the mystery within the essence?" The Master said, "Swift thunder and a clap of lightning startle the crowd even more." The monk asked further, "What is the mystery within the phrase?" The Master said, "By all means avoid distinguishing it upon the three inches [of the tongue]." The monk asked further, "What is the mystery within the mystery?" The Master said, "The tip of the staff has an eye as bright as the sun." The monk asked further, "What is the one seal imprinting mud?" The Master said, "A total mess of antiquities under the heels." The monk asked further, "What is the one seal imprinting water?" The Master said, "Submerged without a trace." The monk asked further, "What is the one seal imprinting empty space?" The Master said, "Behind the head, a circular radiance ten thousand fathoms long." The monk asked further, "Is it one principle, or two meanings?" The Master said, "For now, bore the turtle and crack the tile." The Master then said: "Chan is not conceptual thought; if one investigates Chan with conceptual thought, then one turns away from the Way and cuts off meritorious achievements; if one studies the Way with meritorious achievements, then one loses it. One must directly cut off conceptual thought—what do you call Chan? Beneath the heels, wide open: the Chan of no-Chan is called true Chan, like a hare conceiving a fetus. Cut off meritorious achievements—what do you call the Way? Shining atop the crown of the head: the Way of no-Way is called the true Way, like an oyster containing the bright moon. Arriving here, the ground of ultimate reality is already clear, and the adamantine true essence is fully revealed. Thereafter, mountains are mountains, waters are waters, monks are monks, and laypeople are laypeople. The myriad phenomena are bristling, originally without facing or opposing." He then laughed out loud 'Ha, ha!' and said, "This mountain monk speaking like this is much like speaking of a dream without a dream, stirring up trouble where there is none. If a clear-eyed person catches sight of it, it is a total defeat. And how do you speak a phrase that leaves behind conceptual thought and cuts off meritorious achievements? An eight-armed yakṣa holds up an iron pillar; an enraged Nata hurls down Indra's bell."

7.21

Ascending the hall, he said: "If you can penetrate the place where cliffs stand ten thousand fathoms steep, you can cast your body across the noisy market; if you can penetrate the noisy market, you can step backward at the place where cliffs stand ten thousand fathoms steep. Why? If the root is true and the correct eye is penetrated and clear, then one is thoroughly adept in all directions; if the root is not clear and the correct eye is tangled like hemp, then the skin is pierced and the bones are bared. Therefore, when Deshan entered the gate he gave a blow with his staff; when Linji entered the gate he gave a shout; Muzhou, upon seeing a monk, said, 'A ready-made gong'an'; Zifu said, 'Seeing the monastery flagpole across the river, one should just leave; under the heels, one properly deserves thirty blows of the staff.' Are these not great heroes who have penetrated the place where cliffs stand ten thousand fathoms steep? While equally treading through your straw sandals, why not undertake that which the Buddhas and Patriarchs cannot lift, and shoulder that which heavenly beings and humans cannot lay eyes on? Afterwards, mind itself is Buddha, neither form nor mind; removing one layer with another layer, shedding one phrase with another phrase—is this not having penetrated through the noisy market, and arriving right here where the cliff stands ten thousand fathoms steep, like a falcon seizing a dove? Therefore the ancients said: 'Lowering the hands is still the same as the ten-thousand-fathom cliff; why should upright and inclined require arrangement?' Thereafter, 'like this' is acceptable, 'not like this' is acceptable, and both 'like this' and 'not like this' are altogether acceptable, like a tiger leaning against a mountain; but if suddenly 'like this' will not do, 'not like this' will not do, and both 'like this' and 'not like this' altogether will not do, it is like a silver mountain barring the road. I grant that one who possesses the eye, right here, simultaneously illumines and conceals, shares birth and shares death, fully bright and fully dark, completely killing and completely enlivening. Right at such a time, how is it? Pointed out from the staff's tip is the Vajra King; the iron wall and silver mountain shatter into a hundred pieces." He further said: "The sentiments and understandings of sage and commoner originally have no mark; when a single phenomenon is true, every single phenomenon is true. Able to let go one's hands at the head of a ten-thousand-fathom cliff, one reveals the entire body atop a thousand peaks."

7.22

Ascending the hall, he cited: "An ancient said, 'Movement is deception; stillness is slander. Above movement and stillness there is the matter; this old monk's mouth is narrow and cannot speak of it for you.'" The Master said, "It may be so, but he only spoke one half. As for this mountain monk, it is not so: speech is deception; silence is slander. Above speech and silence there is the matter; this old monk's tongue is short and cannot speak of it for you. Do you fully understand? A double-edged diamond jewel sword, a pair of holeless iron hammers."

7.23

Ascending the hall, he said: "Before the fifteenth day, a thousand oxen cannot drag it back; after the fifteenth day, a swift falcon cannot catch up with it; right on the fifteenth day, heaven is level and earth is level, equally bright and equally dark, the great-thousand sand-worlds do not go beyond this very place, able to swallow and spit out the ten directions of empty space. Taking a step forward, one transcends inexpressible and inexpressible seas of fragrant water; taking a step backward, one cuts off white clouds for a thousand leagues and ten thousand leagues. Neither advancing nor retreating—not to mention you, Ācārya—even this old monk has no place to open his mouth." Thereupon he raised his whisk and said: "Right at such a time, how is it? At times held up atop a thousand peaks, cutting through the clouds in the sky, not letting them rise high."

7.24

Ascending the hall to pray for rain, a monk asked, "How is it when not a single fleck of cloud hangs across ten thousand miles?" The Master said, "The old monk also blames it." The monk continued, "Even the blue sky must take a blow—how about that?" The Master said, "The dispatching has long been overdue." The monk continued, "I wonder where the fault lies?" The Master said, "Both of us are mountain-dwellers; let us not annotate and break it down again." The monk continued, "When good rain should fall, it does not; where skies should not clear, it clears up instead." The Master said, "Where have you been just now?" The monk said, "Rolling up and rolling out at once." The Master said, "Beneath your heels, I give another blow, straightaway making the rain pour like buckets emptying." The monk continued, "How is it when it is not like that at all?" The Master said, "Twisting around the nostrils." The monk continued, "What if it suddenly responds to the season and the moment?" The Master said, "Before the mountains the grain and wheat ripen, and together we sing songs of great peace." The Master then said, "On the road of Caoxi, the sky is high and the earth is thick; before the peak of Shaoshi, the ground is vast and people are scarce. Sitting solitary and upright, chilly and desolate; lying sprawled across the great wilderness, the wind soughs and sighs. Seen by the eyes, then blinded; heard by the ears, then deafened; spoken by the mouth, then struck dumb. Though it does not step beyond the tip of a single hair, it contains and spits out the ten directions of space without front or back. Since there are such spiritual powers and such functions, why is it so parched and dry? Strike a blow to the carp of the Eastern Sea, and rushing over the whole earth, torrential rain will fall!"

7.25

Ascending the hall, [the Master] said, "Śākya is stingy, Maitreya covers it up. Opening wide the eight characters of the inexhaustible treasury: the staff transforms into a dragon, spewing clouds and mist in the blazing sunlight, pouring sweet rain torrential across the entire world!" Striking the staff, he descended from the seat.

7.26

Ascending the hall on the first day of the seventh month, [the Master said], "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven—the pupil in the eye plays the reed pipe. Seven, six, five, four, three, two, one—the stone man and wooden man shed tears. Open and clear in every direction, known as soon as brought up; yet still lingering in seeing and hearing, it is scratching an itch through a boot. Setting aside the iron ox of Shaanfu swallowing the great statue of Jiazhou—the dog pisses toward heaven before the steps of the Buddha shrine, and on Mount Wutai clouds steam the rice. How do you say a single phrase? When the wind comes, tree shadows move; when a leaf falls, autumn is known."

7.27

Ascending the hall, [the Master] said, "'Knowing illusions is departing from them, without making up expedients'—take away Mount Sumeru from within the eyes. 'Departing from illusions is awakening, with no gradual stages'—remove the four great oceans from within the ears. Seeing without seeing, the bell rings and the drum sounds, crystal clear; hearing without hearing, the great earth, mountains, and rivers are vivid and distinct. In the field of the unarisen there is sowing and harvesting; the raft of prajñā has ferry and crossing. Leaving all marks aside for the moment, how do you say a phrase prior to King of the Sound of Awe? Stone bamboo-shoots grow in the clouds; blue lotuses emerge from within fire."

7.28

Ascending the hall upon the end of the summer retreat, a monk asked, "'Before chaos was divided, how could the open pillar be pregnant?' What is the meaning of this?" The Master said, "Prominent and hard to discern." The monk continued, "'After the division, how can a fleck of cloud dot the great clarity?' What essential point is this?" The Master said, "Set your eyes high." The monk continued, "I wonder whether the great clarity accepts being dotted or not—why did Lingyun not answer?" The Master said, "One who knows the Dharma is fearful." The monk continued, "If so, sentient beings will not come. And did he not answer because in principle it should be so, or because it is hard to reply?" The Master said, "Cast from pig iron." The monk continued, "When it is completely pure without a spot, how is it that 'it is still the flowing of the truly permanent'? How about that?" The Master said, "If one can turn things, then one is identical to the Tathāgata." The monk continued, "What about 'the flowing of the truly permanent is like a mirror ever bright'—what is its meaning?" The Master said, "That too is an appropriately fitting phrase." The monk continued, "The great earth, mountains, and rivers are oneself; the lanterns and open pillars are not other either." The Master said, "Do not engage in vain delusions." The monk continued, "How is it when it is completely useless?" The Master said, "That is somewhat better." The monk continued, "Is there still anything transcendent? As it is said, 'Break the mirror and come meet with you'—I wonder where the meaning lies?" The Master said, "I consign it to the staff." The monk continued, "In the mean alleys, not riding a golden horse; returning, yet wearing a tattered robe." The Master said, "His house has attained freedom." The Master then said, "The autumn light is clear and shallow, the autumn dew empty and congealed, the autumn wind rustling, the autumn color serene and pure. Thus Śākyamuni's work of protecting life is completed, and truly the patch-robed monks' method of binding the retreat is fully rounded. If one can inwardly forget one's own views and outwardly realize the emptiness of phenomena, inside and outside unified as one, empty, congealed, serene and silent, then the complete mind is the Buddha, and the complete Buddha is the mind. Walking hand in hand with all Buddhas, attaining together and functioning together with the ancestral masters. Arriving here, what more is there to say of binding, what more to say of loosening? Throughout the twelve periods of the day, cleanly stripped and stark naked. Wearing clothes all day long without ever hanging a single thread; eating rice all day long without ever chewing a single grain. As it is said, 'Moving like floating clouds, resting like the valley spirit'—how could there be intention toward this or that? Where could there be images of going or coming? Everywhere encountering him, the entire dynamic stands independently free. Exactly at such a time, how is it? White clouds are originally things without mind; at leisure they appear and disappear in the great emptiness." He also said: "The ninety-day merit is perfected on this day; / No need to test the wax man again. / Although for ten thousand miles there is not an inch of grass, / The mouth of the bag is opened wide today."

7.29

Ascending the hall, a monk asked, "Zhaozhou visited a hermitage master and asked, 'Is there? Is there?' The hermitage master held up a fist. Zhou said, 'The water is shallow; this is not a place to moor a boat.' What is the meaning?" The Master said, "Concluding the case according to the confession." The monk continued, "Then he visited another hermitage master, who also held up a fist, yet Zhou praised him and bowed." The Master said, "A twofold gong'an." The monk continued, "The questions and answers were the same; why did he approve one and not approve the other?" The Master said, "Many are those who arrive here as if striking against an iron wall." The monk continued, "If someone suddenly asks the Venerable, 'Is there? Is there?' how would you answer?" The Master said, "A blow straight across the spine." The monk continued, "Such great kindness is difficult to repay." The Master immediately struck him. He then said, "Directly exposed, the true eye is manifested, encompassing the three thousand great thousands. He has no tongue, yet expounds the dragon palace's ocean treasury. Ready-made for use, everywhere one strikes the source; the lineage style throughout the realm is grasped from right and left. If not a fellow traveller on the Way, how could one lift the guidelines and forge? Since you are such a person, you must be clear about such matters. Do you understand? The great earth gathered up is a grain of millet; the seas of kṣetras in the ten directions are viewed in the palm of the hand."

7.30

Ascending the hall on the first day of the eighth month, a monk asked, "How is it when without passing through the conjured city one directly ascends to the jewel repository?" The Master said, "Filling the eyes, it is originally not form; filling the ears, it is originally not sound." The monk continued, "What about coming in person to the jewel mountain and returning empty-handed?" The Master said, "Entering a wild field without choosing." The Master then said, "What is higher than heaven? That which gives birth to heaven. What is thicker than earth? That which nurtures earth. What is wider than empty space? That which contains empty space. What transcends the Buddhas and patriarchs? That which plants the Buddhas and patriarchs. Outside the six directions, the Way alone exists, not to be debated. Judged according to the fundamental lot, not even half has been spoken. Do you know that gathering up the entire great earth, it is completely upon everyone's eyebrows and eyelashes, transforming into a Great General of Heaven, manifesting boundless spiritual powers? If you see it, you transform ordinary into holy; if you do not see it, by all means avoid hesitating. Turn the mechanism above, and divide into a hundred billion bodies, manifesting transformations without bound."

7.31

Inviting Chan Master Jue of Changlu, [the Master] ascended the hall: "Sharing half the seat before the Many Children Pagoda cuts off the manifold flows; facing the wall in upright veneration at Shaolin for nine years stands like a wall ten thousand cubits high. Exerting the adept's smelting furnace, applying the transcendent hammer and tongs, manifesting great function and great potential, completely giving life and completely killing, drawing out nails and pulling out pegs, loosening stickiness and undoing bonds for all people, causing the people of the great earth each to be like a lion cub rushing forward, bristle-haired, crouching on the ground and leaping back. Therefore it is said: 'The Dharma power of the Dharma King transcends all beings; he constantly bestows the Dharma wealth upon all. Long accumulating pure karma, praised as boundless, he guides the multitude with silence, so we bow.' Being like this, one extends a hand toward the precipice of ten thousand cubits, beating and singing proceeding together; taking a step from the hundred-foot pole, host and guest interchanging. Exactly at such a time, how is it? As the dragon roars, long mists arise; as the tiger growls, wind is born." He also said: "Bumping into a companion of the Way, passing shoulder to shoulder, a lifetime's work of study and practice is finished. Today, fortunately meeting the Great Guide, the jewel-flower royal seat is brought forth for him."

7.32

Ascending the hall, a monk asked, "'Free from the four propositions and cut off from the hundred negations, please, Master, point directly to the meaning of the Western Coming'—why did Great Master Ma not speak it to him?" The Master said, "The ācārya certainly possesses the eye." The monk continued, "Zhizang said, 'Go ask Brother Hai.' How about that?" The Master said, "There are thorns in the soft mud." "Baizhang said, 'I do not understand when it comes to this point.' What is the meaning?" The Master said, "A turtle drills through a wall." The monk continued, "Mazu said, 'Zang's head is white, Hai's head is black.' How about that?" The Master said, "The general's order beyond the frontier." The monk continued, "As for these three venerables, were they answering his talk, or were they speaking for him?" The Master said, "Accepted under one indictment." The monk continued, "'Words carry the mystery without revealing it; the mouth wishes to speak, yet words fail.'" The Master said, "There are still these entanglements." The monk continued, "What if the manifold flows are cut off, not touching verbal explanations?" The Master said, "Wait for me to go up the mountain to gather a staff." The monk said, "One cannot deceive this old venerable even a bit." The Master said, "Letting you pass one move." The Master then said, "A fine day has much in common, several colors in one match. Spreading brocade with flowers, completely penetrating inside and outside—if you are a knower of the tone, there is no further need for explanation. Assembly! The Buddhas of the three periods turn the great dharmacakra within the flames; walls, tiles, and rubble turn the great dharmacakra within everyone's eyes; the staff turns the great dharmacakra on the crowns of the heads of the thousand sages; only the open pillar and the lantern are somewhat better. Why? Going east, one does not see the benefit of going west; when a single leaf falls, autumn throughout all under heaven is known."

7.33

Ascending the hall at Mid-Autumn, a monk asked: "Leaving aside the three barriers of Huanglong, what is Yangqi's chestnut burr?" The Master said: "No one in the world can swallow it." The monk continued: "Can the Venerable Monk swallow it or not?" The Master said: "This old monk is the foremost among those who cannot swallow it." The monk asked: "Since you cannot swallow it, how do you help others?" The Master said: "In the end I would never dare betray Yangqi." The monk asked: "What is the diamond cage?" The Master said: "Though you exhaust your tricks, Ācārya, in a hundred years you will not break through." The monk asked: "If suddenly someone comes forward and says, 'This is all idle talk,' what then?" The Master said: "Let him leap about as he pleases." The monk said: "Today this old Venerable is showing a bit of accommodating goodwill." The Master said: "Don't go stamping winter melons!" The Master then said: "Midway through autumn, the west wind blows sharp; / high in the sky, the moon is round. / Rustling, the leaves fall from the trees; / glistening, drops of dew hang clear. / Resounding shrill, wild geese pierce the clouds; / sorrowful and clear, cicadas cling to the trees. / Every single thing completely leaks it out; / by all means avoid searching for the obscure and mysterious!"

7.34

Having left the city after retiring from the monastery and returned, he ascended the hall: "Great assembly! Originally there was not the slightest incident at all; suddenly on level ground a pile of bones arose. After exhausting every effort, it is just this: stepping along with the flowing water, one nevertheless returns. Like this won't do; not like this won't do; like this and not like this both won't do. Afterwards, without any connection, one stands upright in this very moment. Even though it is like this: his house naturally has a road leading up to the heavens—Mount Song, the Southern Peak, and Tiantai." He added: "Eight-armed Nata lifts an iron pillar; / turning his body, he plunges straight into the vast blue sea. / In a flash of wrath he dashes the emperor's bell to pieces; / a sky-filling offense leaves nowhere to exonerate him. / With nowhere to exonerate him, / he cannot help but return to settle in his former place as before. / And right in such a moment, how is it? One cannot steal a single copper cash; in vain one plays the immeasurable man."

7.35

Ascending the hall to thank the monastery prior, he cited: "One day Yaoshan said to Yunyan: 'Call the novice for me.' Yan said: 'Why is the Venerable Monk calling him?' Shan said: 'I have a broken-legged cooking pot; I want him to lift it up and carry it down.' Yan said: 'If so, then I will lend a hand together with the Venerable Monk.'" The Master said: "Knowing the tail when the head is spoken; understanding three when one is raised. This mountain monk has a little verse: / Step by step wider, / move by move higher. / Lifting the broken-legged pot, / dispensing the agada medicine. / A pinch of Mount Sumeru's earth, / half a ladle of the vast sea's water. / Heartily singing the songs of Ba, / passing the butcher shop with jaws chewing wide."

7.36

Ascending the hall, he said: "Great assembly: In midwinter's bitter cold, across thousands and myriads of mountains, dripping water freezes in drops, forming blocks and masses. It freezes so hard that Bodhidharma's front teeth fall out, freezes so hard that the golden crow's beak turns round. The bright mirror stands before the dais by the side of the secluded cave; look further at the pair of phoenixes dancing with the solitary luan." He added: "A single drop of the golden-maned lion's milk / bursts apart ten bushels of donkey's milk. / Reviving a dead man on level ground, / like the earth supporting mountains, like stone containing jade."

7.37

He cited: "When Head Monk Gao took his place as monk, he ascended the hall and said: 'Before the falcon has left the nest, it already has the ambition to graze the heavens. Before the tiger cub has stopped nursing, it already has the spirit to devour an ox. How much more so when its wings have formed! How much more so when its claws and teeth are fully prepared! Rousing itself, it startles the pack, and fresh breezes arise on all eight sides. A spine as hard as iron, a white staff that overturns heaven and earth—together we establish the Dharma banner and reveal the patch-robed monk's nostrils.'"

7.38

Ascending the hall, he said: "If you do not climb Mount Tai, you will not know the height of the sky; if you do not wade into the vast ocean, you will not know the breadth of the sea. These are discussions from within boundaries. If one is a person of the core, the sky is within a single grain of millet, and the sea is on the tip of a single hair. The Floating Banner King and the Flower Adornment realm are entirely within the eyebrows and eyelashes. And tell me: In what place does such a person establish his body and settle his life? Do you understand? It cannot be contained even by boundless empty space; it penetrates straight through to the other side of King Awesome Sound."

7.39

Ascending the hall, he said: "In the three realms there is no dharma—a bright moon in the frosty sky. Where can the mind be sought?—mountains are high, waters are deep. The four elements are fundamentally empty—not distinguishing east from west. Where does the Buddha abide?—heaven and earth are exposed alone. Breaking through and seeing thoroughly, one hesitates right in midway. Smashing the iron gate barrier and pulling up the rootless tree, one then sees holding the sun and moon in one's palms and carrying Sumeru on one's back, reaching out a hand to cross beyond a hundred and ten cities, turning one's body to stand alone in the ten directions of the Flower Adornment realm. Arriving here, there is no Buddha and no Patriarch; one establishes neither illumination nor function, neither provisional nor real; one employs neither staff nor shout. Right at such a moment, how is it? Relying on the wonderful agada medicine, dab it on to open the diamond true eye."

7.40

Ascending the hall, he said: "'Gathered together from the ten directions'—fundamentally the body is not obscured. 'Each and every one learns non-action'—striking with tongs and hammer upon the crown of the head. 'This is the place of selecting Buddhas'—deep and vast, it cannot be measured. 'The mind empty, one passes the examination and returns'—a sharp sword is not as sharp as an awl. Layman Pang's tongue propped up the Brahma Heaven, and his mouth swallowed the four seas. At times he took a blade of grass to be the sixteen-foot golden body; at times he took the sixteen-foot golden body to be a blade of grass. Extremely extraordinary! Even so, he ultimately never touched the transcendent barrier. What is the transcendent barrier? Cast the seal and build the high altar."

7.41

Invited by Inspector Han to ascend the hall: "Great assembly! The sun sinks down, the wind rustles—all myriad ages are just this present moment. Clouds gather dense, water murmurs—on the spot, the total substance appears. Those clinging to skin and attached to bones cannot avoid discussing the nature and discussing mind; those who go beyond the mold and transcend the lineage immediately say this is dragging through mud and water. Little do they know that everyone has the capacity to cut off the tongues of everyone under heaven, and each person possesses the diamond true eye. If you can know before it is raised and accord before a word is spoken, then when meeting a person of the Way on the road, you will not answer with speech or silence. Arriving here, like gold bartered for gold, like water poured into water, you then fully rely on the power of this grace. And right at such a moment, what is the single phrase that raises the whole? Do you understand? Only when knowing grace does one know how to repay deep grace."

First 41 of 43 passages. Read on

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圓悟佛果禪師語錄 — Classical Chinese