虛堂和尚語錄 2.165

2.165

冬至小參：「陰魔沮伏，暖氣未昇，好箇衲僧消息，若能直下承當，不逐四時消長，便見深山巖崖，人跡不到處，爛葛藤抽枝引蔓；其如未然，且向舊曆日上，點指頭子數過。只如陰魔沮伏，暖氣未昇，是衲僧甚麼消息？」卓主丈：「魚行水濁，鳥飛毛落。」

At the informal gathering on the winter solstice: "The demons of yin are subdued and crouched; the warm vapor has not yet risen. A fine message of a patch-robed monk! If you can directly take responsibility without following the waxing and waning of the four seasons, you will see that in deep mountains and cliff precipices, where human footprints do not reach, rotten vines sprout branches and stretch out tendrils. If you have not yet done so, then count them off with your fingers on the old calendar. But tell me, when the demons of yin are subdued and crouched, and the warm vapor has not yet risen, what message of a patch-robed monk is this?" Striking his staff: "Fish move and the water is turbid; birds fly and feathers fall."