虛堂和尚語錄 9.68

9.68

He further brought up: "Because Xuefeng came to visit, Yongquan accompanied him to the gate to see him into his sedan chair. Yongquan said, 'This one is carried by four men; how many carry that one?' Xuefeng drew himself up and said, 'What did you say?' Yongquan brought it up again. Xuefeng said, 'Walk on, walk on; he does not understand.'"
The Master commented, "In the dynamic of sparks struck from flint and flashes of lightning, endowed with great eyes, it is difficult indeed to align with it. Yongquan lost his oar in the treacherous current; Xuefeng's fault lay in his subsequent words. If it had been Jingshan at that time, waiting for him to draw himself up and say, 'What did you say?' I would simply have said to him, 'Please, Upādhyāya, ride steadily in your sedan chair.' Not only would this have cut off Xuefeng's tongue, it would also have left no room for anyone in the world to insert a needle."