虛堂和尚語錄 1.9

1.9

On the first day of the fifth month in the second year of the Shaoding era [1229 CE], while at Lingyin, the Master accepted the invitation to enter the monastery. Having ascended the hall and concluded the prayer for the Emperor, he took his seat. A monk asked: 'At the mouth of the Calling Ape Cave, one lies back in the moon and sleeps in the clouds without mind; beside the Changshui River, it is just the right time to cast line and throw the hook. Exactly as with the secret entrustment at Gṛdhrakūṭa, do you still permit a student to inquire and consult?' The Master said: 'A Kunlun [slave] chewing raw iron.' The monk said: 'If so, then you have blocked the crucial ford.' The Master said: 'I thought you were a fine steed emerging from the stable.' The monk gave a sigh and then bowed. The Master said: 'Just as expected.' He then said: 'The great function completely responds; the Great Way has no fixed direction. Going and coming are not marked by forms—turn around empty space. Movement and stillness are not governed by the mind—sit majestically facing the veranda. Troops follow the turning of the seal; generals march according to the tally. Meeting things, respond to conditions; everywhere be the master. Thus it brings about the union of auspicious ears of grain and the tributary flow of the Xiu River, the phoenix arriving in majesty and the qilin manifesting auspicious omens, displaying the patriarch's intention coming from the West and establishing the household style of Xingsheng. Although it is like this, in the end what serves as proof?' After a pause: 'The single breath without speaking contains all forms; where can the ten thousand spirits thank its selflessness?'