萬松老人評唱天童覺和尚頌古從容庵錄 3.100

3.100

The Master said: Wenshushili and Manshushili are the Chu and Xia forms of the Sanskrit sound; here this means Wondrous Auspiciousness (Mañjuśrī). Vaiśālī is the name of the City of Vast Adornment. Master Zhao's Treatise on the Namelessness of Nirvāṇa says: 'Śākyamuni shut his room in Magadha; Pure Name closed his mouth in Vaiśālī. Subhūti proclaimed no-exposition to reveal the Way; Śakra and Brahmā ceased listening and rained down flowers. All these were because the principle served as the spiritual guide, hence their mouths remained silent. How could it be said there was no eloquence? It was eloquence that could not be spoken.' The stone of Yan, inferior to jade, is today's water-side stone of Zhuo County; it is also called jade-displacing stone. Although Vimalakīrti externally seemed slow of speech, his unspoken eloquence was purely refined within; this means the stone concealed jade. As for 'forgetting the past and losing the future': Yongjia's Collection, Śamatha Verse, the fourth, says: 'What is now called knowing does not need knowing knowing; it is just knowing, that is all. Thus the preceding does not connect to extinction, and the succeeding is not drawn up; the preceding and succeeding are severed, and the middle is naturally solitary.' At the end of the Inexhaustible Lamp, among the lineage successors whose details are unclear, there is Chan Master Guangzhi of Mount Yimen in Kaifeng prefecture, named Bensong; having no other circumstances of speech, he cited this entire passage. Duke Wen did not know it came from the Yongjia Collection and said Song created it; therefore I distinguish it here so that students may know it. This 'forgetting the past and losing the future' is precisely the Third Patriarch's Inscription on Faith in Mind: 'The path of words and speech is cut off; it is not past, future, or present.' Han Feizi says: Bian He found an uncut gem in the Kun'gang valley of Mount Jing, and presented it to King Li of Chu. The king said, 'It is a stone,' and had one foot amputated. When King Wu ascended the throne, he presented it again, and had his other foot amputated. When King Wen took the throne, He held the uncut gem and wept below Mount Jing. The king summoned and questioned him. He said, 'I do not grieve over the amputation of my feet; I grieve that true jade is taken for ordinary stone, and a loyal act is taken for deceit.' The king had the stone cut open, and it was indeed true jade. King Wen sighed: 'Alas! The two former lords found it easy to amputate a man's feet, but difficult to cut open a stone. Now it is truly a jade disc, a treasure of the state.' The Records of the Grand Historian say: The Marquis of Sui, Zhu Yuanchang, went to Qi and saw a severed snake about to die; he washed and stroked it with water, applied divine medicine, and left. Suddenly, one night a light appeared in the courtyard; thinking there were thieves, he clasped his sword and looked, only to see a snake holding a pearl in its mouth, placing it on the ground and leaving, knowing the snake was repaying his kindness. Vimalakīrti offered himself for the multitude, and inevitably disaster arose from his own door. How could he endure Mañjuśrī picking out flaws in what was already marvelous? Even if Tiantong says that living in worldly dust he was without worldly air, that too is covering one's nose to steal incense.