大慧普覺禪師語錄 25.4

25.4

承敘及自幼年至仕宦，參禮諸大宗匠，中間為科舉婚宦所役，又為惡覺惡習所勝，未能純一做工夫，以此為大罪。又能痛念無常世間種種虛幻無一可樂，專心欲究此一段大事因緣，甚愜病僧意。然既為士人，仰祿為生，科舉婚宦，世間所不能免者，亦非公之罪也。以小罪而生大怖懼，非無始曠大劫來，承事真善知識，熏習般若種智之深，焉能如此。而公所謂大罪者，聖賢亦不能免，但知虛幻非究竟法，能回心此箇門中，以般若智水，滌除垢染之穢，清淨自居，從脚下去一刀兩段，更不起相續心足矣，不必思前念後也。既曰虛幻，則作時亦幻，受時亦幻，知覺時亦幻，迷倒時亦幻，過去現在未來皆悉是幻。今日知非，則以幻藥復治幻病，病瘥藥除，依前只是舊時人，若別有人有法，則是邪魔外道見解也。公深思之。但如此崖將去，時時於靜勝中，切不得忘了須彌山、放下著兩則語，但從脚下著實做將去，己過者不須怖畏，亦不必思量，思量怖畏即障道矣。但於諸佛前，發大誓願，願此心堅固，永不退失，仗諸佛加被，遇善知識，一言之下頓亡生死，悟證無上正等菩提，續佛慧命，以報諸佛莫大之恩。若如此則久久無有不悟之理。不見善財童子從文殊發心，漸次南行過一百一十城，參五十三善知識，末後於彌勒一彈指頃，頓亡前來諸善知識所得法門，復依彌勒教，思欲奉覲文殊，於是文殊遙伸右手，過一百一十由旬，按善財頂曰：「善哉善哉！善男子！若離信根，心劣憂悔，功行不具，退失精勤，於一善根心生住著，於少功德便以為足，不能善巧發起行願，不為善知識之所攝護，乃至不能了知如是法性，如是理趣，如是法門，如是所行，如是境界，若周遍知，若種種知，若盡源底，若解了，若趣入，若解說，若分別，若證知，若獲得，皆悉不能。」文殊如是宣示善財，善財於言下成就阿僧祇法門，具足無量大智光明，入普賢門，於一念中，悉見三千大千世界微塵數諸善知識，悉皆親近，恭敬承事，受行其教，得不忘念智，莊嚴藏解脫，以至入普賢毛孔剎，於一毛孔行一步，過不可說不可說佛剎微塵數世界，與普賢等、諸佛等，剎等行等，及解脫自在悉皆同等，無二無別。當恁麼時，始能回三毒為三聚淨戒，回六識為六神通，回煩惱為菩提，回無明為大智。如上這一絡索，只在當人末後一念真實而已。善財於彌勒彈指之間，尚能頓亡諸善知識所證三昧，況無始虛偽惡業習氣耶？若以前所作底罪為實，則現今目前境界皆為實有，乃至官職富貴恩愛悉皆是實。既是實，則地獄天堂亦實，煩惱無明亦實，作業者亦實，受報者亦實，所證底法門亦實。若作這般見解，則盡未來際，更無有人趣佛乘矣。三世諸佛諸代祖師，種種方便，翻為妄語矣。承公發書時，焚香對諸聖，及遙禮菴中而後遣，公誠心至切如此，相去雖不甚遠，未得面言，信意信手，不覺忉怛如許，雖若繁絮，亦出誠至之心，不敢以一言一字相欺，苟欺公則是自欺耳。又記得，善財見最寂靜婆羅門，得誠語解脫，過去現在未來諸佛菩薩，於阿耨菩提，無已退，無現退，無當退，凡有所求莫不成滿，皆由誠至所及也。公既與竹椅蒲團為侶，不異善財見最寂靜婆羅門。又發雲門書，對諸聖遙禮而後遣，只要雲門信許，此誠至之劇也。但相聽，只如此做工夫，將來於阿耨菩提成滿無疑矣。

I received your narrative tracing from your youth up to your official career, how you visited great masters, and in between were burdened by the civil examinations, marriage, and office, and overcome by bad perceptions and bad habits, unable to apply effort purely and single-mindedly, regarding this as a great transgression. You are also able to grieve over impermanence and the worldly realm's manifold illusions without a single joy, single-mindedly desiring to investigate this one great matter of cause and condition, which is very gratifying to this ailing monk. Yet, having become a literatus who relied on a stipend to make a living, the examinations, marriage, and official career were things unavoidable in the world, and they were not your fault. To give rise to great fear over small transgressions—unless from beginningless vast eons you had served true spiritual friends and deeply cultivated the seeds of prajñā and omniscient wisdom, how could you be like this? What you call a great transgression is something even sages and worthies cannot avoid; as long as you know that illusions are not the ultimate dharma, are able to turn your mind to this gate, cleanse the filth of defilement with the water of prajñā wisdom, abide in purity, and cut it in two with a single blade from beneath your feet, no longer giving rise to thoughts of continuation, that is enough; you do not need to ponder the past or worry about the future. Since it is called illusion, then the time of committing it is also an illusion, the time of experiencing the retribution is also an illusion, the time of conscious awareness is also an illusion, the time of delusion is also an illusion, and past, present, and future are all illusions. Today, knowing your fault, use the medicine of illusion to cure the illness of illusion; when the illness is cured and the medicine removed, you will still be the original person as before. If there were another person or another dharma, that would be the view of māras and non-Buddhists. Consider this deeply. Just press on like this, and constantly in quietude, you must never forget the two sayings of 'Mount Sumeru' and 'put it down'; just apply effort solidly from beneath your feet. For past faults there is no need to fear, nor is there any need to deliberate; deliberating and fearing are obstacles to the Way. Just make a great vow before the Buddhas: vow that this mind be steadfast, never regressing; relying on the empowerment of the Buddhas, meet a spiritual friend, and under a single word instantly forget birth and death, awaken to and realize unsurpassed, complete, and perfect enlightenment, continue the Buddha's life of wisdom, and repay the boundless grace of the Buddhas. If you do so, in the long run there is no reason not to awaken. Do you not see that the youth Sudhana, having resolved his mind under Mañjuśrī, gradually traveled south past one hundred and ten cities, visiting fifty-three spiritual friends, and at the end, in a snap of Maitreya's fingers, instantly forgot the dharma gates he had attained from all the previous spiritual friends? Relying again on Maitreya's instruction, he wished to see Mañjuśrī, whereupon Mañjuśrī reached out his right hand across one hundred and ten yojanas, patted Sudhana on the crown of his head, and said: 'Excellent, excellent! Good son, if one is separated from the faculty of faith, has a low mind, worries and regrets, has incomplete cultivation and practices, regresses in vigor, attaches to a single root of goodness, is satisfied with meager merit, is unable to skillfully give rise to practices and vows, and is not embraced and protected by spiritual friends, then one cannot fully understand such dharma-nature, such purport, such dharma gates, such practices, and such realms—whether knowing them comprehensively, knowing them in various ways, exhausting their source and depth, comprehending them, entering them, explaining them, distinguishing them, realizing them, or attaining them—none of these can one do.' Mañjuśrī proclaimed this to Sudhana, and under these words Sudhana accomplished asaṃkhyeya dharma gates, became fully endowed with immeasurable light of great wisdom, entered the gate of Samantabhadra, and in a single thought-moment saw spiritual friends as numerous as dust motes in the trichiliocosm, drew close to all of them, served them respectfully, practiced their teachings, attained the wisdom of non-forgetfulness and the liberation of the adornment treasury, and even entered the pores and lands of Samantabhadra, taking a single step in a single pore, passing across worlds as numerous as the dust motes of ineffable, ineffable Buddha lands, becoming equal to Samantabhadra, equal to all Buddhas, with lands equal, practices equal, and liberation and sovereignty all equal, without duality or distinction. At that very time, one is first able to turn the three poisons into the three groups of pure precepts, turn the six consciousnesses into the six supernatural powers, turn defilements into bodhi, and turn ignorance into great wisdom. The whole entanglement above rests solely on the final, genuine thought of the person right now. If Sudhana, in the snap of Maitreya's fingers, could instantly forget the samādhis realized from all those spiritual friends, how much more so with beginningless false and evil karmic habits? If past transgressions were taken as real, then the current present realms would all be real, and even official rank, wealth, and affection would all be real. If they were real, then hell and heaven would also be real, defilement and ignorance would also be real, the creator of karma would also be real, the receiver of retribution would also be real, and the realized dharma gates would also be real. If one held such views, then to the end of the future, no one would ever aspire to the Buddha Vehicle. The various skillful means of the Buddhas of the three times and the ancestral teachers of successive generations would turn out to be false speech. You noted that when sending the letter, you burned incense facing the sages and bowed from afar toward my hermitage before dispatching it; your sincere mind was so earnest like this. Although we are not far apart, we have not been able to speak face-to-face; letting my thoughts and hand flow, without realizing it I have been as garrulous as this. Although it seems verbose, it also springs from a sincere heart; I dare not deceive you with a single word or character. If I were to deceive you, I would be deceiving myself. Furthermore, I remember that when Sudhana met the Brahmin Jāyōṣmīya, he attained the liberation of truthful speech; for the Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the past, present, and future, regarding anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi, none have regressed, none are regressing, and none will regress; whatever they seek is without exception fulfilled, all attained through utmost sincerity. Since you keep company with the bamboo chair and the rush mat, you are no different from Sudhana meeting the Brahmin Jāyōṣmīya. Furthermore, in sending this letter to Yunmen, bowing from afar facing the sages before dispatching it, simply wishing for Yunmen's trust and affirmation, this is the height of sincerity. Just listen: simply apply effort like this, and in the future your fulfillment of anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi will be beyond doubt.