禪林寶訓 1.25

1.25

遠公曰。住持有三要。曰仁。曰明。曰勇。仁者行道德。興教化。安上下悅往來。明者遵禮義。識安危。察賢愚。辨是非。勇者事果決。斷不疑。姦必除。佞必去。仁而不明。如有田不耕。明而不勇。如有苗不耘。勇而不仁。猶如刈而不知種。三者備則叢林興。缺一則衰。缺二則危。三者無一。則住持之道廢矣（二事與淨因臻和尚書）。

Master Yuan said: "There are three essentials for an abbot: humaneness, discernment, and courage. One who is humane practices the Way and virtue, promotes teaching and transformation, pacifies superiors and subordinates, and pleases travelers coming and going. One who has discernment abides by propriety and righteousness, recognizes safety and peril, scrutinizes the worthy and the foolish, and distinguishes right from wrong. One who has courage is resolute in handling affairs, decisive without doubt, sure to purge villainy, and sure to expel sycophancy. To be humane without discernment is like having fields and not plowing them. To have discernment without courage is like having sprouts and not weeding them. To have courage without humaneness is like reaping without knowing how to sow. When all three are complete, the monastic grove flourishes; when one is lacking, it declines; when two are lacking, it is endangered; and when none of the three is present, the way of the abbot is abandoned." (Two entries; from A Letter to Venerable Zhen of Jingyin).