大慧普覺禪師語錄 1.5

1.5

On the twenty-first day of the seventh month in the seventh year of the Shaoxing era, at the opening of the hall at Mingqing Monastery in Lin'an Prefecture, the Master presented the statement, showing it to the assembly, saying: "The Lord Regent has entered the samādhi of skilled knowledge of all arts, radiating vast brilliance from the tip of his brush, and without moving his tongue has finished expounding the forty-two gates of the prajñāpāramitā. Do you still have complete faith in this? If your faith is not complete, let us ask the rector to take it up again and present it anew, so that those who have not heard may hear, and those who do not believe may believe." When the reading of the statement was finished, he pointed to the dharma seat and addressed the great assembly, saying: "Do you see? It cuts off the path of the ancient buddhas, and thousands of demons and hundreds of freaks scurry into hiding. Even the King of Sumeru-Lamp must swiftly make three prostrations." He gave a shout, ascended the high seat, and offered incense, saying: "This stick of incense respectfully honors the Supreme One of the Northern Palace, praying on high for ten thousand years of longevity as enduring as the Southern Mountains." Next he offered incense, saying: "This stick of incense is offered for the Lord Regent Grand Chancellor and the civil and military officials, that they may long abide in their official emoluments." Again he offered incense, saying: "As for this stick of incense, if you look straight at it, your eyes will wither; if you smell it, your skull will split. When it meets nobility, its price outweighs the Sahā world; when it meets the base, it is not worth a single penny. Today, before this assembly of humans and devas, I burn it in the brazier to offer it to the late Grand Venerable Chan Master Yuanwu of Zhaojue Chan Monastery in Chengdu Prefecture, so as to repay the debt of the milk of the Dharma." He then took his seat. The head monk struck the gavel and said: "Assembly of nāga-elephants at the Dharma banquet, you should contemplate the paramārtha." The Master said: "An ancient precedent across all quarters, a constant ritual past and present: even if a thousand Buddha World-Honoured Ones consecutively appeared in the world and ascended this seat, at the very end they could not do without this ladle of foul water. Is there anyone who can evade it? Come forth and bear witness!" At that time a monk came forward and was just bowing when the Master said: "Frost on top of snow." Next a monk stepped forward and immediately asked: "Humans and devas are gathered everywhere, the arena for selecting buddhas is opened; when the ancestral directive meets the opportune moment, how does one present and chant it?" The Master said: "A clumsy bird flies against the wind." The monk proceeded: "Throughout the entire realm there is nowhere to seek it, yet clearly a single speck is rounded upon the seat." The Master said: "In the world of mortals, no water does not flow eastward." The monk proceeded: "It can be called: in the three months of spring, fruits are ripe on the bodhi tree; in a single night, flowers blossom, and the world is fragrant." The Master said: "Bumping into it, colliding with it." The monk proceeded: "Profuse fragrances arise from the brazier; a gust of pure breeze is born above the seat." The Master said: "Idle words." The monk proceeded: "What can be done about the thousand branches of Shaoshi flowers just now flourishing, and the single stream of Caoxi source waters being ever clearer?" The Master held up his fly-whisk and said: "Which branch is this?" The monk proceeded: "A true connoisseur does not need repeated presentations; one who has reached it must secretly be startled." The Master said: "A sharp patch-robed monk." The monk asked: "One question and one answer betrays one's own spirit; citing the ancient and citing the present buries the former patriarchs. Leaving aside these two paths, what is right?" The Master said: "Divide your body into two places and look." The monk proceeded: "In the land of Tang, the two and the three together gather their robes; in the Western Heavens, the four and the seven also open their brows." The Master said: "Heaven has no private covering; Earth has no private bearing." The monk proceeded: "Questions and answers like this already involve merit and effort; please, Master, swiftly speak a phrase祝 to wish longevity upon the Emperor." The Master said: "Ever taking the sun and moon as heaven's eyes, pointing out Sumeru to serve as the mountain of longevity." The monk proceeded: "The altars of state, rivers, and mountains increase in noble spirit; throughout heaven and earth, grasses and trees are completely moistened by grace." The Master said: "A repetition of verse words." The monk proceeded: "Do you still permit the student to reveal another message, or not?" The Master said: "I do not permit it." The monk proceeded: "Then I invite the Venerable to speak." The Master said: "Since I do not permit it, what more is there to speak?" The monk proceeded: "I wish to apply the hand of Zhu Yun that broke the balustrade, to become the person like Fu Yue who brings down timely rain." The Master said: "Only this phrase was missing." Several more monks vied to come forward, but the Master checked them, saying: "Even if the grasses and trees of the great earth were entirely ground to dust, and each speck of dust had a mouth, and each mouth possessed the mark of an unobstructed, broad and long tongue, and each tongue emitted immeasurable distinct sounds, and each sound produced immeasurable distinct words, and each word contained immeasurable distinct wondrous meanings, and patch-robed monks as numerous as the aforesaid dust motes each possessed such mouths, such tongues, such sounds, such words, and such wondrous meanings, simultaneously raising hundreds of thousands of difficult questions, every single question being distinct, it would not require more than a single cough from this elder of Jingshan to answer them all at once. Taking advantage of the occasion, in the midst of it I would perform boundless, vast, and great Buddha-works, each Buddha-work permeating the dharmadhātu, what is called: 'A single hair manifests divine transformations; all buddhas preach the scriptures together; through immeasurable eons its limits cannot be reached.' Proceeding like this might indeed make the gate lively; but if viewed with the true eye, this is precisely the vast, boundless karmic consciousness with no basis to rely upon. In the house of the patriarchs, not a single bit of it can be used. How much more so the hooked phrases and thorny clauses, showing off the sharpness of words! Not only does it bury the ancestral school from antiquity, but it also causes patch-robed monks to burst their nostrils laughing. Therefore it is said: 'A hair's breadth of lingering thought is a karmic cause of the three destinies; a fleeting birth of emotion is a shackle for myriad eons. Sagely names and ordinary titles are entirely empty sounds; extraordinary forms and inferior shapes are all illusory matter. If you wish to seek them, will you not be burdened? And when you detest them, it becomes a great affliction again.' Look at how those ancients gave notice! Like weapons of the state, they are used only when there is no other choice; in the fundamental affair there is not even this message. This mountain monk's presenting and chanting like this today is very much like speaking of a dream when there was no dream, or gouging into healthy flesh to make a wound. Examining it closely, I ought to receive the staff. Right now, is there anyone who can strike with a poisonous hand? If there is, he is worthy of repaying the debt that cannot be repaid, together aiding the transformation of non-action; if there is not, I shall execute this decree in reverse." Suddenly grabbing his staff, he said: "Holding the Moxie crosswise, the true decree is executed completely; across the universe at peace, the foolish and stubborn are slain." He struck once with the staff, gave a shout, and said: (Words of thanks are omitted). He further cited: "One day, Attendant Gentleman Wang visited Linji, and together they went into the monks' hall. The Attendant Gentleman said: 'Does this hall full of monks read the sūtras?' Linji said: 'They do not read sūtras.' The Attendant Gentleman said: 'Do they practice Chan?' Linji said: 'They do not practice Chan.' The Attendant Gentleman said: 'If they do not read sūtras and do not practice Chan, what on earth do they do?' Linji said: 'I have them all become buddhas and patriarchs.' The Attendant Gentleman said: 'Though gold dust is precious, when it falls into the eye it causes a cataract; what about that?' Linji said: 'I thought you were a common fellow.'" The Master said: "Old fellow Linji wielded a vajra-king precious sword, his spirit piercing the universe, walking unchecked across the realm; yet when offhandedly pressed lightly by this official, he melted like ice and shattered like tiles. Tell me: what excellence did this official have? Listen to a verse: 'A rare matter in the world and beyond the world / To manifest it requires a person of extraordinary capacity; / Merely using hands that mend the imperial robes and season the broth, / He turns the Tathāgata's true wheel of Dharma.' For standing long, assembly of compassionate ones, I respectfully bid you take care." The head monk again struck the gavel and said: "Clearly observe the Dharma of the Dharma King; the Dharma of the Dharma King is like this."