大慧普覺禪師語錄 29.29

29.29

不識別後日用應緣處，不被外境所奪否？視堆案之文，能撥置否？與物相遇時，能動轉否？住寂靜處，不妄想否？體究箇事，無雜念否？故黃面老子有言：「心不妄取過去法，亦不貪著未來事，不於現在有所住，了達三世悉空寂。」過去事或善或惡，不須思量，思量則障道矣。未來事不須計較，計較則狂亂矣。現在事到面前，或逆或順，亦不須著意，著意則擾方寸矣。但一切臨時隨緣酬酢，自然合著這箇道理。逆境界易打，順境界難打，逆我意者，只消一箇忍字，定省少時便過了。順境界直是無儞回避處，如磁石與鐵相偶，彼此不覺合作一處。無情之物尚爾，況現行無明全身在裏許作活計者，當此境界，若無智慧不覺不知，被他引入羅網，却向裏許要求出路，不亦難乎？所以先聖云：「入得世間，出世無餘。」便是這箇道理也。近世有一種修行失方便者，往往認現行無明，為入世間，便將出世間法，彊差排作出世無餘之事，可不悲乎？除夙有誓願，即時識得破作得主，不被他牽引，故《淨名》有言：「佛為增上慢人，說離婬怒癡為解脫耳。若無增上慢者，佛說婬怒癡性即是解脫。」若免得此過，於逆順境界中無起滅相，始離得增上慢名字。恁麼方可作入得世間，謂之有力量漢。已上所說，都是妙喜平昔經歷過底，即今日用亦只如此修行，願公趁色力彊健，亦入是三昧。此外時時以趙州無字提撕，久久純熟，驀然無心撞破漆桶，便是徹頭處也。

I do not know whether, after parting, in your daily responses to conditions, you are carried away by external objects or not? When viewing documents piled on the desk, are you able to brush them aside or not? When encountering things, can you remain unmoved or not? When staying in a quiet place, are you free from delusive thoughts or not? When investigating this matter, are you without mixed thoughts or not? Thus the yellow-faced old fellow said: 'The mind does not falsely grasp past phenomena, nor is it greedily attached to future matters; it does not abide anywhere in the present, fully comprehending that the three periods of time are entirely empty and serene.' For past matters, whether good or evil, there is no need to deliberate: deliberating obstructs the Way. For future matters, there is no need to calculate: calculating leads to frenzy and confusion. When present matters arrive before you, whether adverse or favorable, there is also no need to apply your mind: applying your mind agitates the square inch [of your breast]. Just attend to everything when the time comes, responding according to conditions, and you will naturally accord with this principle. Adverse circumstances are easy to strike down; favorable circumstances are difficult to strike down. For what goes against one's intent, it requires only the single character 'patience'; compose yourself for a short while and it passes. But in favorable circumstances there is truly nowhere for you to avoid: like a lodestone and iron meeting, neither realizes they have joined into one place. Even insentient things are like this; how much more so for one whose whole body makes a living within active ignorance! Facing such circumstances, if without wisdom one is unaware and unknowing, drawn into their net, and then tries to seek a way out from within—is that not difficult? Therefore the ancient sages said: 'Being able to enter the world, one transcends the world without remainder.' It is precisely this principle. In recent times there is a kind of practitioner who lacks skillful means: they often mistake active ignorance for 'entering the world', and then forcibly arrange supramundane dharmas to make the matter of 'transcending the world without remainder'. Is this not lamentable? Unless one has long had past vows, immediately breaks through it and acts as master, not being led along by it... Thus the *Vimalakīrti* states: 'For people of overweening pride, the Buddha spoke of leaving lust, anger, and delusion as liberation; for those without overweening pride, the Buddha spoke of the nature of lust, anger, and delusion as being itself liberation.' If you can avoid this fault and, within adverse and favorable circumstances, have no marks of arising and ceasing, only then can you be free of the label 'overweening pride'. Thus you may then enter the world, and be called a person of strength. What has been said above is all what Miaoxi has personally experienced in the past; even today in my daily activities, I only practice like this. I hope that while your physical strength is robust, you will also enter this samādhi. Beyond this, constantly use Zhaozhou's character *wu* to alert and stimulate yourself; after a long time it will become thoroughly ripe, and suddenly, without mind, you will smash the lacquer bucket: that is the place of thorough breakthrough.