人天眼目 5.18

5.18

Examining the various expositions of the three bodies and four wisdoms, the citations drawn from sūtras and treatises provide clear and detailed evidence. They bear a profound relationship to the points where Guiyang distinguishes consciousnesses, and can aid deep Chan practitioners of genuine cultivation to tread the right path rather than straying onto side tracks. For this reason, I have selected them. Often men of our own circle inevitably say: 'In our tradition of solitary transmission directly pointing [to the mind], why rely on this?' Little do they realize that for students of the Way, the torment caused by mind, mentation, and consciousness is severe indeed! Empty illumination shines of itself, originally without anything else; yet when the winds of sensory objects blow, it abruptly strays into error. Even men of thorough penetration and reached masters still do not escape it, let alone those beneath them! How could one lack the power of expedient contemplation? If, relying on these peeling and revealing explanations, one breaks through their falsehoods and demolishes their nests, then where one has function will all be the Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom. Once refined gold has undergone ten thousand smeltings, it never returns to ore.