萬松老人評唱天童覺和尚頌古從容庵錄 2.21

2.21

師云。爾問我不起一念有過無過。我便掇出一坐須彌山。在爾面前相似。其法施之利。固非慳悋。永嘉道。大施門開無壅塞。非但今日也。梵語須彌。此云妙高。四寶所成曰妙。獨出眾峯曰高。四天下山中。須彌最為第一。爾若自肯。我便兩手分付。古詩道。待伊心肯處。是我命通時。其實此事常顯露。如須彌山㟮屼崢嶸。誰能蓋覆。未分付時。爾豈無分。分付與爾。豈是新得。不見。長慶道。萬象之中獨露身。唯人自肯乃方親。天童頌。到這裏大有含蓄功夫。爾若擬議不來。千里萬里仰望不及。璩源道。此事如崖穨石裂。壁立千仞。不可攀攬。其實爾亦不曾離。我亦不曾奪。此與上句迷悟相反。對偶分明。教中說。須彌山入水八萬瑜繕那。出水八萬瑜繕那。非娑竭海。不能涵容。山既古今不動。雲亦出沒常閑。洞山道。青山白雲父。白雲青山兒。白雲終日倚。青山總不知。天童餘才。頌須彌山如海闊雲閑。曲盡奇妙。這裏容得一念起滅麼。所以道。滄海濶。白雲閑。莫將毫髮著其間。此又與雪竇道眼裡著沙不得。同參。若論韶陽不慳法施。却又眼裏著得須彌山也。此須彌山頌中。築著磕著。血脉貫通。拍拍是令。非妄生穿鑒增長識情也。其實不起一念底人。豈可更問有過無過。直饒常在不起一念處。點檢將來。堪作什麼。所以道。假鷄聲韻難謾我。未肯模胡放過關。孟甞君入秦為相。人或說王。孟甞君賢。又齊族也。今相秦必先齊而後秦。秦其危矣。王囚君欲殺。君因幸姬求解。姬曰。妾願得君狐白裘。此時裘已獻王。下客能為狗盜者。取裘獻姬。君得出。夜半至函谷關。關法鷄鳴而出客。下客憑諼善為鷄鳴。群鷄皆鳴。君脫秦難。師拈拄杖云。萬松今日把關也。有學鷄鳴者。出來。復靠却拄杖云。放過一著。

The Master said: You ask me, 'When not a single thought arises, is there fault or no fault?' and I just carry out a Mount Sumeru and place it in front of you. The benefit of such a gift of Dharma is certainly not stingy. Yongjia said, 'The gate of the great giving is wide open, without obstruction'—not only today. In Sanskrit it is 'Sumeru', which is translated here as 'Wondrously High'. Being formed of the four jewels is called 'wondrous'; towering alone above all peaks is called 'high'. Among the mountains of the four continents, Sumeru is the foremost. If you yourself approve, I entrust it to you with both hands. An ancient poem says, 'When their mind reaches consent, that is when my destiny breaks through.' In truth, this matter is always manifest, towering and majestic like Mount Sumeru; who could cover it over? Before it is entrusted, how could you lack a share? When it is entrusted to you, how could it be newly gained? Have you not heard? Changqing said, 'Alone among the myriad phenomena, the body is revealed; only when one approves it oneself is there intimacy.' In this part of the verse, Tiantong shows great reserved depth. If you hesitate and deliberate, you will gaze up from thousands of miles away and never reach it. Qianyuan said, 'This matter is like a crumbling cliff or split crag, standing sheer for thousands of fathoms, impossible to climb or grasp.' In fact, you have never departed from it, and I have never taken it away. This contrasts directly with the preceding line's delusion and enlightenment, forming a clear pair. The teachings say that Mount Sumeru enters the water eighty thousand yojanas and rises out of the water eighty thousand yojanas; nothing but the Ocean of Sāgara could contain it. Since the mountain has been motionless through past and present, the clouds also drift in and out, constantly at ease. Dongshan said, 'The blue mountain is the white clouds' father; the white cloud is the blue mountain's child. The white cloud leans on it all day long; the blue mountain is completely unaware.' With his surplus talent, Tiantong versified Mount Sumeru as the vast ocean and idle clouds, fully exhausting its wondrous marvel. Does this place admit the arising and ceasing of a single thought? Therefore it is said: 'The vast ocean is wide, the white clouds are at leisure; / Do not place a single hair between them.' This also shares the same study with Xuedou's saying, 'Sand cannot be put into the eye.' If we speak of Shaoyang not being stingy with the gift of Dharma, he nevertheless put Mount Sumeru right into the eye! In this verse on Mount Sumeru, colliding and striking together, the bloodline runs through; every tap is the command, not something fabricated through arbitrary appraisal to nourish intellectual consciousness. In fact, for a person who does not give rise to a single thought, how could one further ask whether there is fault or no fault? Even if one constantly abides in the place where not a single thought arises, when examined closely, what is it good for? Therefore it is said: 'The false crow of a rooster can hardly deceive me; / I refuse to vaguely let them pass through the barrier.' When Lord Mengchang went to Qin to become prime minister, someone persuaded the King: 'Lord Mengchang is worthy, and he belongs to the royal house of Qi. Now serving as Qin's prime minister, he will surely put Qi first and Qin second. Qin will be in danger.' The King imprisoned the Lord and wished to kill him. Through a favored concubine, the Lord sought release. The concubine said, 'I desire to obtain the Lord's white fox-fur robe.' At that time, the robe had already been presented to the King. A retainer of low rank who could sneak like a dog stole the robe and presented it to the concubine. The Lord was able to get out. At midnight he reached Hangu Pass. The law of the pass allowed travellers to exit only when the roosters crowed. A retainer named Feng Xuan was good at imitating rooster crows; he crowed, and all the roosters crowed. The Lord escaped the Qin peril. The Master held up his staff and said: 'Wansong is guarding the pass today. If anyone can crow like a rooster, come forward!' He then leaned his staff aside and said: 'I let you pass this once.'