六祖大師法寶壇經 1.88

English (machine translation) 1.88

Language: English

1.88

The monk Fada was a man of Hongzhou. He went forth from household life at the age of seven and constantly recited the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra. When he came to pay homage to the Patriarch, his head did not touch the ground. The Master rebuked him, saying, "If in bowing your head does not touch the ground, how is it better than not bowing at all? There must be something in your mind. What have you been practicing and accumulating?" He replied, "I have recited the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra already up to three thousand times." The Master said, "Even if you recited it up to ten thousand times, if you obtained the meaning of the sūtra and did not take it as an accomplishment, you would walk hand in hand with me. You are now encumbered by this enterprise, completely unaware of your fault. Listen to my gāthā:

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六祖大師法寶壇經 — Classical Chinese