禪林寶訓 2.7

2.7

湛堂曰。惟人履行。不可以一詶一詰固能盡知。蓋口舌辯利者。事或未可信。辭語拙訥者。理或不可窮。雖窮其辭恐未窮其理。能服其口恐未服其心。惟人難知。聖人所病。況近世衲子。聰明不務通物情。視聽多只伺過隙。與眾違欲與道乖方。相尚以欺相[曰/月]以詐。使佛祖之道靡靡而愈薄。殆不可救矣（答魯直書）。

Zhantang said: 'A person's conduct cannot be fully known by a single question and answer. For one whose tongue is glib and sharp may not be trustworthy in deeds, while one whose speech is clumsy and hesitant may not be deficient in principle. Even if one refutes their words, one may not have exhausted their principle; being able to subdue their mouth does not mean subduing their heart. Knowing people is difficult—this was a distress even to the sages. How much more so for the monks of recent times! Their cleverness is not applied to understanding the sentiments of things; seeing and hearing are mostly used only to watch for faults and gaps. They run counter to the wishes of the community and diverge from the direction of the Way. They value each other for deceit and conceal things from one another through fraud, causing the Way of the buddhas and patriarchs to decline and become ever more superficial, to the point of being nearly irremediable.' (Letter in reply to Luzhi).