宗鏡錄 26.13

26.13

He replied: 'This citta is the Buddha; this citta is the Dharma. The Dharma and the Buddha are not two. Do you know this?' If there are those who do not believe the true words of the Patriarchs and Buddhas cited above—the purport that the Three Jewels of single substance mean taking refuge in one's own citta—not only will their future retribution be an eternal descent into hell (naraka), but they will also suffer the initial retribution in the human realm in the present. As the Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra states: 'The Buddha told the Bodhisattva Kāśyapa: "Good son, you should not distinguish the Three Jewels as all the śrāvakas and ordinary people do. In this Great Vehicle, there are no distinguished marks of the threefold refuge. Why is this? Within the Buddha-nature, there are precisely the Dharma and the Saṅgha. In order to transform and deliver śrāvakas and ordinary people, different marks of the threefold refuge are expounded with distinction." It also says: 'If there are those who do not recognize that the Three Jewels are eternally enduring, through this condition their lips and mouths will become parched and dry. Just as when a person's palate is impaired, they cannot discern the distinctions among the six tastes—sweet, bitter, pungent, sour, salty, and bland—all sentient beings, foolish and devoid of wisdom, do not recognize that the Three Jewels are the eternally enduring Dharma; for this reason it is called 'lips and mouths parched and dry.' Furthermore, good son, if there are sentient beings who do not know that the Tathāgata is eternally abiding, you should know that such persons are born blind. If there are those who know that the Tathāgata is eternally abiding, although such persons possess fleshly eyes, I say that such are called the divine eye.' Furthermore, if one decisively believes and submits with a straightforward mind, entering into the mirror of the source, then in a single kṣaṇa, from thought-moment to thought-moment, one sees the Three Jewels of the one mind constantly manifest in the world. Or, if one's hindrances are heavy and screens are deep, even if kalpas [as numerous as] dust particles pass, one will never awaken and believe; one will not even hear the name of the Three Jewels, let alone encounter the path of the One Truth. As a verse in the Lotus Sūtra says: / 'When sentient beings have believed and submitted, / Are upright, straightforward, and pliable in mind, / Wholeheartedly desiring to see the Buddha, / Not begrudging their own body or life, / Then I and the assembly of monks / Together appear on Vulture Peak. / I then say to the sentient beings: / "I am always here and do not perish; / By the power of skillful means / I manifest appearing to perish and not perishing." / [...] To the extent that: / 'All these sinful sentient beings, / Due to the causes and conditions of evil karma, / Pass through asaṃkhyeya kalpas / Without hearing the name of the Three Jewels. / Those who cultivate merit / And are gentle, upright, and straightforward / All see my body / Present here expounding the Dharma.' / Therefore, we know that people who personally see the Buddha and personally hear the Dharma are rare. For twenty years Ānanda was the Buddha's attendant, yet he still did not see the Buddha's face; he only observed the Savior of the World transmigrating among the six destinies. Furthermore, if one only listens to the Dharma with a conditioned mind, this Dharma is also conditioned and does not attain the Dharma-nature. As the Mahāratnakūṭasūtra says: 'A śramaṇa of true practice, even through the correct dharmakāya, does not see the Buddha—how much less through forms and colors? Through emptiness and detachment, he does not see the Dharma—how much less by greedily clinging to sounds and words? Through the unconditioned Dharma, he does not see the Saṅgha—how much less should he see a harmonious assembly?' Furthermore, Śāriputra asked the bhikṣus: 'From what do you hear the Dharma?' They answered: 'There are no five aggregates, twelve sense-bases, or eighteen dhātus; from this we hear the Dharma.' He also asked: 'Whose disciples are you?' They answered: 'Those who are without attainment and without knowledge—we are their disciples.' Hence, only those who are awakened can know this; it is not shown by words. Furthermore, the citta is the true limit of suffering—this is called the truth of suffering. The citta-nature is devoid of combination—this is called the truth of origination. The citta is fundamentally quiescent and extinct—this is called the truth of cessation. The citta is fundamentally completely penetrating—this is called the truth of the path. Contemplating the emptiness of citta gives rise to the śrāvakayāna; contemplating the conventionality of citta gives rise to the bodhisattvayāna; contemplating the middle of citta gives rise to the Buddhayāna. Contemplating the citta of true reality: it is neither matter nor mind. It is not identical to inert obstruction, and thus is not matter; it is not identical to the false emotional discriminations of sensation and the rest, and thus is not mind. Neither matter nor mind constitutes the substance of the precepts—this gives rise to the Vinayapiṭaka. The Guangbo yanjing jing states: 'If one can uphold this sūtra, one is fully endowed with all precepts.' The Vajrasamādhisūtra, clarifying those who awaken to original enlightenment, states: 'The Buddha said: "Such a person does not harbor the two marks. Although not leaving the household, they do not abide as a householder; although without the Dharma robes and not endowed with the precepts, through the unconditioned nature of their own citta, they attain the noble fruit according to their own inclination."' The Mahāratnakūṭasūtra states: 'Mañjuśrī said: "All phenomena are ultimately quiescent and extinct; because citta is quiescent and extinct, it is called the ultimate vinaya."' It also says: 'If one does not apprehend citta, then one does not think of the precepts; if one does not think of the precepts, then one does not deliberate on wisdom; if one does not deliberate on wisdom, then all doubts and hesitations will no longer arise. Since there are no doubts or hesitations, then one does not uphold the precepts; if one does not uphold the precepts, this is called truly upholding the precepts.' The Mañjuśrīparipṛcchāsūtra states: 'If with citta one discriminates male, female, neither male nor female, and so on, this bodhisattva commits a pārājika.' The Bodhisattvabhūmimālā karmaviśuddhisūtra states: 'The precepts of all bodhisattvas, ordinary people, and sages take the exhaustion of citta as their substance; therefore, when citta is exhausted, the precepts are also exhausted. Because citta is inexhaustible, the precepts are also inexhaustible.' The Mahāyāna Thousand-Bowl Great Teaching King Sūtra states: 'First, all citta-dharmas of the Tathāgata are adamantine in self-nature, originally pure, and ultimately quiescent and extinct. If in the Mahāyāna nature a bodhisattva can uphold the ten major precepts, they awaken to the true purity of the citta and clearly see that the citta-nature is without defilement and without attachment. Therefore, if a bodhisattva can uphold the ten major precepts, this is called the indestructible vinaya.' Furthermore, all good, evil, and other phenomena being rule-governed and upholdable gives rise to the Sūtrapiṭaka; contemplating citta as being able to investigate subtle meanings gives rise to the Śāstrapiṭaka. Hence, giving is renounced by means of citta, perfecting the pure gate of dāna; precepts are upheld by means of citta, completing the pure discipline of the self-nature; endurance is received by means of citta, fulfilling the great patience of the unborn; vigor is enacted by means of citta, providing the firm gate of exertion. Being able to contemplate the citta-nature is called supreme concentration; thus dhyāna arises from citta. Prajñā's spiritual mirror plumbs the profound and penetrates the subtle; thus wisdom arises from citta. These are the gates of the six pāramitās. Hence a sūtra says: 'An empty citta does not move, fully endowed with the six pāramitās.' Why is this? A sūtra says: 'Having nothing to give is called dāna.' Could there be any phenomenon outside citta that could abide in marks? A verse in a sūtra says: / 'The nature of precepts is like empty space; / Those who uphold them are deluded and inverted.' / How could one grasp at phenomenal dharmas to differentiate upholding and violating? A sūtra says: 'Patience means exhausting all marks and all cognitive objects in a single kṣaṇa.' It also says: 'What is meant by a bodhisattva being able to practice patience?' The Buddha said: 'Seeing the marks of citta perishing from thought-moment to thought-moment.' How could one suppress one's own citta and counteract external objects in order to endure them? A verse in a sūtra says: / 'If one can keep the citta from arising, / Vigor will be boundless.' / It also says: 'What is meant by a bodhisattva being able to practice vigor?' The Buddha said: 'Seeking the citta, it cannot be apprehended.' How could one cling to the conditioned and falsely give rise to toiling thoughts? A sūtra says: 'Not seeing the marks of citta is called right concentration.' How could one avoid clamor and noise to preserve the dust of quietude? A sūtra says: 'Not seeking the nature, marks, causes, or conditions of phenomena—this is called right wisdom.' How could one externally comply with written words and forcibly generate intellectual understanding? From this we know that seeing phenomena outside citta is entirely called externalist. Hence a sūtra says: 'Externalists take pleasure in various views.' If one directly comprehends one's own citta, one will not be moved by various views. As a sūtra says: 'That a bodhisattva has nothing seen is precisely having nothing existing; that there is nothing existing is precisely all phenomena.' Now, to speak of having nothing seen does not mean being separated from all phenomena and saying there is nothing seen; it means that right when seeing all phenomena, there is nothing seen. Because having nothing existing is precisely all phenomena, and all phenomena are precisely having nothing existing. The Śūraṅgamasūtra states: 'What form do phenomena have?' Therefore, a sūtra verse says: / 'If one can remove the cataract from the eye / And abandon thoughts of form, / Not seeing any phenomena, / Then one can see the Tathāgata.' / Dharma Master Dazu, on the verge of death, wrote a verse on a wall saying: / 'The true mark is grasped through speech and thought; / Tathatā transcends seeing and hearing. / This is the place of supreme peace; / Heterodox scholars merely talk on and on.'