虛堂和尚語錄 2.165

2.165

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."