萬松老人評唱天童覺和尚頌古從容庵錄 1.113

1.113

The Master said: To the hungry, eating comes easily; to the thirsty, drinking comes easily. For this reason, after the three requests and five entreaties, the Bodhisattva took the high seat; for half a verse with his whole body, the yakṣa ascended the seat. How could this be out of longing for the Dharma? Chan Master Huanglong Nan said, "Because among the people of today, many take the Dharma lightly and easily, one should act like a farmer who constantly dries [the field] to make it parched, and only after irrigating it will it produce grain and bear fruit." That Yaoshan did not ascend the seat for a long time was indeed not like that. Juefan said: "A single hermitage deeply conceals the thunderous tongue, / Letting the myriad phenomena explain themselves." Yongjia said: "Speaking when silent, silent when speaking; / The gate of great giving is thrown wide without blockage." The director of the monastery missed it at every turn, saying, "The assembly has long hoped for instruction; please, Venerable, preach the Dharma for the assembly." In terms of benevolence and righteousness, and in the division of host and guest, this was not beyond his bounds. Yaoshan ordered the bell to be struck—only the thunderbolts issuing commands were seen. The assembly just gathered—how could they know the stars and constellations were gleaming with pattern? Yaoshan ascended the seat, sat for a long while, descended the seat, and returned to the abbot's quarters. This single display of spiritual power was no small matter. The director followed behind and asked, "Just now the Venerable consented to preach the Dharma for the assembly; why did you not drop a single word?" Cuiyan Zhi said, "When Yaoshan descended the seat, the director initially blamed him for not preaching the Dharma for the assembly; this can truly be called misleading the three armies." Wansong says: Truly, the general at the head was not fierce. Yaoshan said, "For sūtras there are sūtra masters; for treatises there are treatise masters. How can you blame this old monk?" Langya Jue said, "When Yaoshan descended the seat, it certainly warranted doubt; but when pressed by the director, he lost an eye." Wansong says: How many can regain it completely? Yet he did not know that two eyes were exchanged. Xuedou said, "What a pity that the old fellow Yaoshan stumbled on flat ground; everyone on the whole earth could not help him up!" Wansong says: The Venerable should also have lent a hand. Wuyu's verse says: "Before leaving the abbot's room, he had already stumbled; / Quietly returning, he became even more forlorn. / Still telling of sūtra masters and treatise masters, / With one clear testimony, he confessed on his own." Wansong says: The official easily investigated it, but the case is not yet complete. I remit it to Tiantong; how does he judge it? The verse says: