大慧普覺禪師語錄 23.13

23.13

欲超生死越苦海，應當竪起精進幢，直下信得及。只這信得及處，便是超生死越苦海底消息。故釋迦老子曰：「信為道元功德母，長養一切諸善法。」又云：「信能遠離生死苦，信能必到如來地。」要識如來地麼？亦只是這信得及底。既信得及，不須起心動念求出生死，但十二時中念念不離，決定要得入手，方為勇猛之士；若半信半疑，則不相續矣。此事不論男之與女、貴之與賤、大之與小，平等一如。何以故？世尊在法華會上，只度得一箇女子成佛，涅槃會上亦只度得一箇廣額屠兒成佛，當知此二人成佛，亦別無功用，亦只是直下信得及，更無第二念，便坐斷報化佛頭，徑超生死，亦別無道理。妙圓道人雖是女流，立志不在成佛底女子下，又能知有此段奇特因緣，決定要出生死因，以此紙乞指示。掇筆揮汗，書此示之，仍令看箇話頭，僧問馬祖：「如何是佛？」祖云：「即心是佛。」妙圓道人日用只如此看，祝祝。

If you wish to transcend birth and death and cross the ocean of suffering, you should set up the banner of vigor and arrive directly at faith. Just this place where you arrive at faith is itself the news of transcending birth and death and crossing the ocean of suffering. Therefore the old fellow Śākya said: 'Faith is the source of the Way and mother of merits, nurturing all good dharmas.' He also said: 'Faith can distance one from the suffering of birth and death; faith can surely bring one to the Tathāgata-ground.' Do you wish to know the Tathāgata-ground? It is also just this person who has arrived at faith. Having arrived at faith, there is no need to give rise to thoughts and move the mind seeking to escape birth and death; just do not let it go from thought to thought through the twelve periods of the day, determined to get a hold of it—only then will you be a valiant person. If you are half-believing and half-doubting, it will not be continuous. This matter does not depend on male or female, noble or base, great or small; it is equally one and the same. Why is this? In the Lotus Assembly, the World-Honoured One delivered only a single female to attain buddhahood; and in the Nirvāṇa Assembly, he also delivered only a single broad-browed butcher to attain buddhahood. You should know that these two persons attaining buddhahood also had no other special effort; they also only directly reached faith without any second thought, and straightway cut off the heads of the retribution and transformation buddhas, directly transcending birth and death; there was no other principle. Although the Daoist Miaoyuan is of the female gender, her resolve is not below that of the woman who attained buddhahood; she can also know of this extraordinary cause and condition, and is determined to make it the cause for escaping birth and death, which is why she requested instruction with this paper. Picking up the brush and wiping away sweat, I wrote this to instruct her, and furthermore had her examine a huatou: A monk asked Mazu, 'What is the Buddha?' The Patriarch said, 'Mind itself is the Buddha.' Let the Daoist Miaoyuan just observe it like this in her daily life. Best wishes!