萬松老人評唱天童覺和尚頌古從容庵錄 3.7

3.7

近代長蘆了和尚。天童同參。住一千七百眾。與竹庵珪。開粥過夏。分寮入室。雪峯三聖。異世同風。大溈哲云。三聖可謂龍門萬仞慣曾作客。雪峯大似孟甞門啟豈懼高賓。三聖置箇問頭。不妨向荊棘林中。掇出箇膠盆子。雪峯先在三十步外。看爾自沾自惹道。待汝出網來即向汝道。奇怪。正如國手下棊先見數著之前。三聖見這一段不分勝敗。別行一路云。一千五百人善知識。話頭也不識。用法窟爪牙。生擒活捉。雪峯款款。只道箇老僧住持事繁。保福云。爭不足。讓有餘。雪竇云。可惜放過。好與三十棒。這棒一棒也較不得。直是罕遇作家。此二老一縱一奪。各有出身之路。高郵定和尚。有問。透網金鱗以何為食。郵云。乾屎橛。雪巖先師聞云。謝供養。此法喜禪悅不減古人。天童分上。又作麼生。頌云。

In recent times, Venerable Changlu Liao was Tiantong's fellow student; he presided over a community of seventeen hundred, and together with Zhu'an Gui he served gruel, passed the summer retreat, and assigned rooms for entering the chamber. Xuefeng and Sansheng, across different generations, shared the same wind. Daguan Zhe said: 'Sansheng may be called someone who, at the myriad-fathom Dragon Gate, was long accustomed to being a guest; Xuefeng was very much like Mengchang with his gates open—how could he fear eminent guests?' When Sansheng posed this question, it was nothing less than bringing out a glue-pot into the thorn thicket. Xuefeng, already thirty paces away, saw him sticking and entangling himself, and said: 'Wait until you come out of the net, then I will tell you.' Extraordinary! It is just like a national master playing chess, seeing several moves ahead. Seeing that this exchange did not settle victory or defeat, Sansheng took another road and said: 'The good friend of fifteen hundred people, yet you do not even recognize the turning word!' Using the claws and fangs of the Dharma cave, he captured him alive. Xuefeng, unhurried, merely said: 'This old monk's administrative duties as abbot are manifold.' Baofu said, 'Striving is not enough; yielding has plenty to spare.' Xuedou said, 'What a pity he let him off; he deserved thirty blows.' Of these blows, not even a single blow could be bargained away. Truly it is rare to encounter masters of the craft. These two old men—one releasing, one snatching—each had a way to extricate themselves. Someone asked Venerable Ding of Gaoyou, 'What does the golden fish that has passed through the net take for food?' Ding said, 'A dried shit-stick.' My late teacher Xueyan heard this and said, 'Thank you for the offering.' This joy in Dharma and delight in Chan was not inferior to the ancients. On Tiantong's part, how was it? The verse says: