大慧普覺禪師語錄 8.14

8.14

He instructed the assembly: "Yesterday while taking a daytime nap, Yunmen dreamed of riding a single-leaf light boat, floating on the great eastern ocean, riding a newly repaired Buddha hall into an anthill, and proceeding along to the crowded crossroads among ten thousand people, where I saw a group of stiff-necked patch-robed monks, their mouths discussing the arcane and expounding the wondrous, citing antiquity to clarify the present, speaking of Lingyun attaining the Way upon seeing peach blossoms, Xiangyan illuminating his mind upon hearing the bamboo struck, Xuefeng rolling balls year after year, Heshan beating the drum all the time: 'phenomena harmonize like box and lid, principle responds like arrow points meeting.' Just as I was having this dream, I was suddenly startled awake by someone—and it turned out to be the sound of the shoes of the three senior monks Xi, Tong, and Ju. Although Yunmen had his eyes open, he was still in the dream and not yet sober. The three senior monks approached, made obeisance, and said: 'We request the Venerable to speak Chan for the assembly tomorrow.' In my dream, Yunmen answered them, saying: 'Granted.'

Today the dharma drum has been struck and the great assembly has come up. Tell me: what can be said that will do? Yesterday I dreamed of speaking Chan; now Chan speaks of a dream. While dreaming, I dreamed of what is spoken now; while speaking, I speak of what was dreamed yesterday. Yesterday was a dream with closed eyes; now is a dream with open eyes. All of you are listening within a dream, and Yunmen again speaks a dream within a dream."

After a long pause, he said: "Master Donkey Lips opens his mouth and laughs; / The Asura King leaps and bounds. / The sea god has lost the luminous night jewel; / Tearing open Mount Sumeru, he pierces seven apertures. / The three senior monks request a talk on Chan: / On flat ground where there is no wind, waves strike the sky! / Chan, Chan—no need for thinking and calculating; / It has nothing to do with writing and words. / 'Looking up to it, it is ever higher; boring into it, it is ever harder.' / When Yantou slashed it away, he said: / 'It is a phrase, it is not a phrase.' / When Linji applied it, he said: / 'The Three Essentials and Three Mysteries.' / Chan, Chan! Swallow the spiky chestnut burr, leap out of the vajra hoop! / Stop discussing the old fellow Zhaozhou's cypress tree in the courtyard; / Do not ask about Shoushan's new bride riding the donkey while the mother-in-law leads it. / Just please let go of everything all at once, / And each person's fundamental substance is naturally round and complete."

He called to the great assembly and said: "And how do you speak of this round and complete principle? In a dream, clearly there are six realms; after awakening, completely empty, there is no great chiliocosm." He gave a shout.