禪林寶訓 2.67

2.67

高菴勸安老病僧文曰。貧道嘗閱藏教諦審佛意。不許比丘坐受無功之食。生懶墮心起吾我見。每至晨朝佛及弟子持鉢乞食不擇貴賤心無高下。俾得福者一切均溥。後所稱常住者。本為老病比丘不能行乞者設。非少壯之徒可得而食。逮佛滅後正法世中亦復如是。像季以來中國禪林不廢乞食。但推能者為之。所得利養聚為招提以安廣眾。遂輟逐日行乞之規也。今聞數剎住持不識因果不安老僧。背戾佛旨削弱法門。苟不住院老將安歸。更不返思常住財物本為誰置。當推何心以合佛心。當推何行以合佛行。昔佛在日或不赴請留身精舍。遍巡僧房看視老病。一一致問一一辦置。仍勸請諸比丘遞相恭敬。隨順方便去其嗔嫌。此調御師統理大眾之楷模也。今之當代恣用常住。資給口體結托權貴。仍隔絕老者病者。眾僧之物掩為己有。佛心佛行渾無一也。悲夫。悲夫。古德云。老僧乃山門之標榜也。今之禪林百僧之中無一老者。老而不納益之。壽考之無補。反不如夭死。願今當代各遵佛語。紹隆祖位安撫老病。常住有無隨宜供給。無使愚昧專權滅裂致招來世短促之報。切宜加察。

Gao'an's 'Text Exhorting the Care of Aged and Sick Monks' states: 'I have examined the canonical teachings and carefully investigated the Buddha's intention: he did not permit bhikṣus to sit and receive food without merit, generating lazy minds and giving rise to views of self and others. Every morning, the Buddha and his disciples held their bowls to beg for food without choosing between noble and base, their minds without high or low, so that those who gained merit were all blessed equally and extensively. What was later called "the permanent property of the saṃgha" was originally established for old and sick bhikṣus who could not walk to beg; it was not for the young and strong to consume. Up to the time after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, in the age of the True Dharma, it was also like this. Since the semblance age, the Chan monastic groves of China did not abandon begging for food, but merely appointed capable individuals to do it, gathering the offerings obtained into cāturdiśa to settle the great assembly, thereby discontinuing the regulation of daily begging. Now I hear that abbots of several monasteries do not understand cause and effect and do not care for aged monks, running counter to the Buddha's decree and weakening the Dharma gate. If they do not reside in the monasteries, where will the aged go? Moreover, they do not reflect upon for whose sake the wealth and goods of the permanent property of the saṃgha were originally established. What mind should be cultivated to accord with the Buddha's mind? What conduct should be cultivated to accord with the Buddha's conduct? In the past, when the Buddha was in the world, he would sometimes decline invitations and stay behind in the monastery, making the rounds of the monks' rooms to look after the old and sick, inquiring of each one and arranging everything for them. Furthermore, he exhorted all the bhikṣus to show mutual respect, adapt to expedient means, and eliminate anger and resentment. This is the model of the Tamer who governs the great assembly. Today's current abbots recklessly consume the permanent property of the saṃgha, providing for their own mouths and bodies and attaching themselves to the powerful and noble, while shutting out the old and sick, taking the property of the saṃgha as their own. Of the Buddha's mind and the Buddha's conduct, they have none whatsoever. How lamentable! How lamentable! An ancient virtuous master said, "An aged monk is the banner of the monastery gate." Among the hundreds of monks in today's Chan monastic groves, there is not a single old one. If the aged are not admitted, long life brings no benefit; instead, it is worse than dying young. May the current abbots each obey the Buddha's words, continue and elevate the patriarchal seat, and comfort the old and sick, providing for them as appropriate according to the presence or absence in the permanent property of the saṃgha. Do not allow the foolish and ignorant to monopolize power and act destructively, incurring the retribution of a short lifespan in future lives. Please pay earnest attention to this.'