虛堂和尚語錄 8.108

8.108

Ascending the hall in midsummer, he cited: "Mazu, because Layman Pang asked, 'Not obscuring the original person, please, master, look high,' Mazu looked straight down. The layman said, 'A stringless lute of a single kind—only the master can play it wondrously.' Mazu looked straight up. The layman bowed, and Mazu returned to the abbot's quarters. The layman followed behind him and said, 'Trying to be clever only makes a blunder.'" He brought this up and said, "Who tried to be clever and made a blunder? If Master Ma tried to be clever and made a blunder, the first half of the summer has already passed; if the layman tried to be clever and made a blunder, there are still forty-five days remaining. Settle it decisively, and you will be spared attending instruction."