萬松老人評唱天童覺和尚頌古從容庵錄 4.25

4.25

Venerable Xinxing Yanyang of Wuning County in Hongzhou first visited Zhaozhou and asked, 'What when not bringing along a single thing?' This is like the monk who asked Baoci: 'When sentiment arises, wisdom is obstructed; when characteristics change, the substance differs. What when sentiment has not yet arisen?' Baoci said, 'Obstructed.' The monk held fast and said, 'Sentiment has not even arisen—what is there to obstruct?' This is largely the same as, 'When not bringing along a single thing, what is there to lay down?'—like a rough-and-ready fellow. When Zhaozhou said, 'If you cannot lay it down, carry it away,' Yanyang had great awakening at his words. Foguo's Dharma Words cited Huanglong's verse: 'Not bringing along a single thing, / Yet both shoulders cannot bear the load (Guo said: A clear-eyed person is hard to deceive). / At his words he suddenly knew his error (stepping back, he fell into a deep pit); / In his heart was boundless joy (like a poor man obtaining a jewel). / Venom and malice once forgotten (purified when beginningless past karma is exhausted), / Snakes and tigers become close friends (equal understanding across different species). / Desolate through a thousand years, / The pure breeze has not yet ceased (who would not look up in reverence?).' At the place where the Master lived, a snake and a tiger would regularly take food from his hands, so people referred to him as a Venerable who had attained the fruit. Old Buddha Zhaozhou and the Venerable were both people unfathomable by sages or mortals. Uttering a single word or posing a single question, through a thousand ages they serve as a tortoise and mirror for people. Tiantong saw that the coarse minds of contemporary monks were growing more prevalent, so he beat the grass to startle the snake. The verse says: