萬松老人評唱天童覺和尚頌古從容庵錄 2.21

2.21

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.'