緇門警訓 6

English (machine translation) 6

Language: English

6.1

Chan Master Cijue Zongze of Changlu's Inscription on the Turtle Mirror

Now, since the two cassia trees cast their shade and the single flower showed its auspicious sign, monasteries were established, and in essence they were originally founded for the assembly of monks. Therefore, to instruct the assembly of monks there is the sthavira; to serve as an exemplar for the assembly of monks there is the head seat; to shoulder burdens for the assembly of monks there is the prior; to harmonize the assembly of monks there is the karmadāna; to make offerings of food to the assembly of monks there is the chief cook; to manage affairs for the assembly of monks there is the director of affairs; to oversee receipts and disbursements for the assembly of monks there is the storehouse manager; to take charge of correspondence and records for the assembly of monks there is the scribe; to protect the true teachings for the assembly of monks there is the keeper of the canon; to welcome and attend to dānapatis for the assembly of monks there is the guest master; to convey invitations and summons for the assembly of monks there is the attendant; to guard the robes and pāttras for the assembly of monks there is the dormitory master; to provide decoctions and medicines for the assembly of monks there is the hall master; to attend to washing and laundering for the assembly of monks there are the bath master and the water master; to ward off cold for the assembly of monks there are the charcoal master and the stove master; to solicit alms for the assembly of monks there are the neighborhood fund-raisers and alms masters; to perform hard labor for the assembly of monks there are the garden master, the mill master, and the estate director; to clean and sweep for the assembly of monks there is the latrine master; and to wait upon and serve the assembly of monks there are the postulants. Thus the conditions for practicing the Way are completely fulfilled, and the requisites for supporting the body are readily provided in every variety. With nothing to worry about in ten thousand matters, one attends single-mindedly to the Way. Esteemed and honored in the mundane world, leisurely and detached beyond worldly concerns, pure and non-active, the assembly of monks is supreme. When reflecting on the labor of so many people, how could one fail to know their benevolence and repay it? Morning inquiry and evening consultation, not letting an inch of time slip by—this is how one repays the sthavira. Maintaining order between the senior and junior, with composed and dignified deportment—this is how one repays the head seat. Externally complying with rules and orders, internally observing the monastic regulations—this is how one repays the prior. Gathering together in the six harmonies, blending like water and milk—this is how one repays the karmadāna. Receiving this food only for the sake of accomplishing the Way—this is how one repays the chief cook. Resting peacefully in the monastic quarters, cherishing and safeguarding the utensils—this is how one repays the director of affairs. Not violating even a hair of the permanent monastic property—this is how one repays the storehouse manager. Not taking up a brush, acting as if extinguishing a fire on one's head—this is how one repays the scribe. At a bright window with a clean desk, allowing the ancient teachings to illuminate one's mind—this is how one repays the keeper of the canon. Concealing one's brilliance and keeping out of sight, not pursuing socializing—this is how one repays the guest master. Staying in one's place regularly and arriving ahead of time when summoned—this is how one repays the attendant. With only a single water bottle and a single pātra, abiding in the assembly steadfast as a mountain—this is how one repays the dormitory master. Calming the mind amidst illness and pain, partaking of congee and medicines as appropriate—this is how one repays the hall master. Moving gently, slowly, and quietly, mindful of the cause and conditions of water—this is how one repays the bath master and the water master. Holding one's tongue and folding one's hands, stepping back to yield to others—this is how one repays the charcoal master and the stove master. Assessing one's own virtue and conduct as entirely lacking to receive offerings—this is how one repays the neighborhood fund-raisers and alms masters. Estimating the amount of work and measuring where it comes from—this is how one repays the garden master, the mill master, and the estate director. Drawing water and handling the counting slips, knowing shame and feeling remorse—this is how one repays the latrine master. Being accommodating and easy to follow, simple and easy to serve—this is how one repays the postulants. Thus, under the canopy of the monastery, the cultivation of the Way is ever renewed. Those of supreme capacity bring it to completion in a single lifetime; persons of middling caliber nurture the sacred womb; and as for those who have not yet awakened to the mind's source, they also do not waste their time in vain throughout the day. This is the true saṅgharatna, the cause of blessings for the world: in the immediate term a ferry across the latter-day Dharma, and ultimately the supreme fruition of the two adornments. If the monastery is not well governed and the wheel of Dharma does not turn, that is not how a sthavira serves the assembly. If the three karmas are not harmonized and the four postures are not dignified, that is not how a head seat leads the assembly. If one's capacity to tolerate the assembly is not broad and one's heart to cherish the assembly is not deep, that is not how a prior protects the assembly. If practitioners find no peace and those who disrupt the group are not expelled, that is not how a karmadāna brings joy to the assembly. If the six flavors are not refined and the three virtues are not provided, that is not how a chief cook serves the assembly. If dormitories are not repaired and utensils are not furnished, that is not how a director of affairs settles the assembly. If one hoards permanent monastic property and reduces the provisions of the assembly of monks, that is not how a storehouse manager provides for the assembly. If letters and documents are unskillful and writing is sloppy, that is not how a scribe adorns the assembly. If desks and tables are not neat and clamor and disturbance do not cease, that is not how a keeper of the canon treats the assembly. If one despises the poor and flatters the rich, revering the laity and disparaging monks, that is not how a guest master assists the assembly. If manners are disrespectful and order between senior and junior is neglected, that is not how an attendant addresses the assembly. If cleaning is not diligent and protection is not careful, that is not how a dormitory master lodges the assembly. If one is inept in serving and disturbs sick persons, that is not how a hall master shows compassion to the assembly. If hot water is insufficient and proper warmth is not regulated, that is not how a bath master and a water master wash the assembly. If preparations are not made in advance, stirring agitation in everyone's minds, that is not how a stove master and a charcoal master warm the assembly. If one is unfair when handling wealth and does not exhaust one's efforts, that is not how a neighborhood fund-raiser and an alms master make offerings to the assembly. If the land yields less than its potential and laborers do not fulfill their tasks, that is not how a garden master, a mill master, and an estate director work on behalf of the assembly. If one is lazy and neglects cleaning so that conditions are deficient, that is not how a latrine master serves the assembly. If prohibitions cannot stop them and commands cannot move them, that is not how postulants comply with the assembly. If the monks look down on the teachers, disrespect the Dharma, indulge their nature, and follow whims, that is not how to repay the sthavira. If their sitting and lying down are disorderly and their conduct is erratic, that is not how to repay the head seat. If their minds make light of the king's law and disregard the monastery, that is not how to repay the prior. If superiors and inferiors are discordant and dispute obstinately, that is not how to repay the karmadāna. If they crave fine meals and disparage coarse food, that is not how to repay the chief cook. If they enjoy their living quarters without thinking of those who come after, that is not how to repay the director of affairs. If they greedily covet offerings and do not cherish permanent monastic property, that is not how to repay the storehouse manager. If they occupy themselves with brush and inkstone and busy themselves composing literature, that is not how to repay the scribe. If they slight the golden words of scripture and search after non-Buddhist texts, that is not how to repay the keeper of the canon. If they socialize with worldly people and associate with nobles, that is not how to repay the guest master. If they forget invitations and leave the assembly of monks waiting for long, that is not how to repay the attendant. If they inconvenience others for their own sake and invite theft by careless storage, that is not how to repay the dormitory master. If they are quick to anger and rarely joyful, resisting the conditions of illness, that is not how to repay the hall master. If their buckets and ladles make clatter and they use water without restraint, that is not how to repay the bath master and the water master. If they seek personal warmth at the expense of others, that is not how to repay the stove master and the charcoal master. If they do not think of cultivation and complacently accept offerings, that is not how to repay the neighborhood fund-raisers and alms masters. If they eat their fill all day long without applying their minds, that is not how to repay the garden master, the mill master, and the estate director. If they spit on the walls and leave the privy in a mess, that is not how to repay the latrine master. If they insist only on stern authority without habitual kind instruction, that is not how to repay the postulants. Indeed, even a whirlwind circling a thousand times may still leave something untouched. One should simply discard shortcomings, adopt strengths, and together accomplish the affairs of pravrajyā. It is hoped that in the lion's den all will become lions, and in the sandalwood forest all will be pure sandalwood, enabling us, in these latter five hundred years, to behold once more the assembly on Vulture Peak. That being so, the rise and fall of the Dharma-gate depends upon the monastic community. The monks are the field of respect and should be revered and served. When monks are honored, the Dharma is honored; when monks are slighted, the Dharma is slighted. When internal protection is strict, external protection will surely be careful. Even if the host of food and congee temporarily oversees the monastery with kingly governance, and duty-holders occasionally hold authority, they should always be respected and looked up to. Comrades must not arrogantly magnify themselves. If there is arrogance and conceited pride, using public office to settle private scores, ten thousand things are impermanent—how could one preserve this forever? When one day one returns to the ranks of the assembly, with what face will one look upon them? Cause and effect do not err; it will be hard to evade. Monks are the sons of the Buddha, no different from those worthy of offerings, reverenced by gods and humans alike. The meals of congee and rice twice a day should rightly be refined and plentiful; the four requisites of offering must not be allowed to fall short. The two thousand years of shade left behind by the Bhagavat shelters his descendants; a single portion of the merit of the white curl of hair cannot be exhausted by use. One should only know to serve the assembly, and must not worry about poverty. Monks have no distinction of ordinary or sage; they connect and assemble from the ten directions. Since a place is called an open monastery, all have a share in it. How could one give rise to false discrimination and lightly disdain visiting monks? When staying temporarily for three days in the reception hall, serve them with full courtesy. When they temporarily seek food before the monks' hall, offer to them with an impartial mind. When even secular guests are cared for, how could the house of monks bear not to welcome [fellow monks]? If one has no restrictive mind, one will naturally possess boundless blessings. When the monastic order is harmonious and superiors and inferiors are of one mind, mutually covering each other's shortcomings and strengths, never let the household's ugliness be heard outside. Even if it causes no harm to the matter at hand, it will ultimately diminish people's reverence. Like the worms within the lion's body feeding on the lion's own flesh, it cannot be destroyed by non-Buddhists or heavenly māras. If one wishes that the wind of the Way does not collapse and the Buddha's sun shines ever bright, enhancing the glory of the patriarchal realm and assisting the sagely transformation of the imperial court, let this text serve as a guiding mirror.

6.3

Admonitions to the Assembly by Chan Master Cishou (the version by Shou Wuliang is largely identical, with minor differences)

6.4

Ascending the hall, chanting and reciting sūtras, and informal instruction: whenever the assembly gathers, you must proceed promptly. Superior practitioners on itinerant pilgrimage carry the rules with them; how can you be careless and indolent, inviting censure from others? A single offense may be forgiven, but with three violations, where is your shame? Without considering Baizhang’s genuine tradition, you will soon see what Touzi said: as soon as the silence board is hung, each should remain quiet; even when it is not hung, how could you chat and laugh? The ancient Buddhas handed down instructions to guard the mouth like an earthen bottle; throughout the twelve double-hours, one should always maintain silence. If the three modes of action are not restrained, ten thousand calamities will secretly arise. If you well understand the style of Luzu, then hang your mouth upon the wall. Keep the space before your desk always clean and tidy; place only your incense box, Chan admonitions, and scriptural texts, seeking neatness and order. You must not set out secular writings; medicine bundles, incense burners, and other various necessities should be stored under the desk. Chanting aloud and disturbing the crowd, or leaning against the headboard and slighting the great assembly, vainly occupying desk space and hanging belongings in front of clear windows—none of this accords with the Vinaya decorum; how could the monastery permit it? Sit upright with right intention, silently perusing and seeking, thoroughly savoring the holy words to accord with the mind-ground; only when opening the scroll is not done in vain do you truly understand reading scriptures. Ordinary neighbors at desks, practitioners of the Way, must strictly refrain from whispering in each other’s ears. When guests come to visit, propriety cannot be omitted; as soon as tea and decoction are finished and conversation has concluded, lead them out of the dormitory—you must not sit together for long. If they are old companions in the Way or relatives from afar, invite them to the grove or the water's edge, and only then may you pour out your heart in discussion. As for trade, commerce, and drawing in worldly folk, these are not the deeds of a patch-robed monk at all, and should be wiped away entirely with a single stroke of the brush. After morning congee, return to the dormitory and greet one another; respect for the senior, middle, and junior seats is paramount. If it is otherwise, you belittle others and demean yourself. When evening study ends and you open your chest, you must inform the dormitory head. Entering and exiting, when lifting the curtain, let your rear hand drop. Ascending the platform to sit in quietude, do not let your robes hang down. When moving about or walking in meditation, walk even more slowly. Causing others to give rise to thoughts easily produces demonic obstructions; when the voices of the crowd melt metal, what joy is there for oneself? Washing robes and handling needles should be done after the midday meal; undertaking non-urgent tasks leaves the work of the Way neglected. You must not use the hot water bottle to soak clothes or wash your face, cut paper on the table, paste table surfaces, secretly cook refreshments, or conceal evening medicine and bamboo poles. You must distinguish between defiled and pure; when using the pressing iron, consider whether others are at leisure or busy. Keeping it in one corner risks hindering communal use. The ancient sages patched worn clothes merely to stave off cold; once sewn, they left it at that. How could you tend to needle and thread morning and evening? Preparing and serving tea and decoction is a grand ceremony of the monastery; only when the great assembly has gathered like clouds may you sit cross-legged. When the cups and saucers are collected, the whole assembly withdraws together. Secretly stashing tea dust invites mockery from onlookers; bowing with only a single hand—what kind of protocol is that? If you have a reason not to attend, you must inform the dormitory head; for a short tea and decoction sitting, attendance can by no means be skipped. Newly arrived monks entering the dormitory should cherish humility; if not yet versed in the rules, inquire of elders. The Vinaya adapted to circumstances depends on people upholding it; when settling chests and occupying desks, there is no need to rush. With calm care, things will naturally become smooth and easy. Boiling and serving tea upon entering the dormitory is fundamentally for everyone; with sincere intent, the tea must be shared by all. After using utensils, return them to their original places; after pouring from the hot water bottle, refill it immediately. Walking in the mountains or along water, guard against careless speech: opening the mouth like a drawn bow, shooting words like arrows, altering opinions to judge others, talking of food and money, scolding the wind and cursing the rain. Walls have ears, and the monastic rules know no favoritism; only when suddenly hurt in the tiger’s mouth will you realize that your sharp edge was exposed too much. Whenever there is a cremation, attend whether it is overcast or clear, each cherishing sorrow and together giving rise to compassionate minds, fearing that the departed person lived in vain and died to no purpose. Hold sūtras and dhāraṇīs in your mouth, carry firewood on your shoulders; how could you be wild and unrestrained, laughing and chatting at will? The auction of robes and bowls was originally to eliminate stinginess; later generations do not understand this and turn it into greed and clinging, covertly measuring length and secretly inspecting old and new, bidding low and taking expensive shares worse than ordinary peddling; unaware of self-reproach, they even boast of a good bargain. Those who understand look on from the side, sweating with embarrassment. If you are an eminent practitioner from the ocean of monks, a noble guest in the Chan cloister, merely make affinity for the deceased; do not let living people sneer at you. Being gentle, harmonious, and compliant is pleasing to both superiors and inferiors; if you are arrogant and boastful, the holy ones will not protect you. The eighty thousand subtle practices and three thousand dignified deportments—all are visible at every turn throughout the twelve double-hours. Crossing straight through the hall, are you not thick-skinned? Wandering casually through the sacred halls, you may deplete your modest blessings. Entering the hall in informal attire or roaming the hills in straw sandals: do not trample upon the Dharma hall, and show deference to senior elders. Washing the face at the fifth watch is originally for the sake of practice; spitting and dragging washbasins noisily disturbs the great assembly. Secretly stirring thoughts while remaining blind to oneself, as days and months pass, the face grows sallow and the body gaunt. Use bath water sparingly, and do not pick up the cleaning tallies unnecessarily. Doing much meritorious deed is not as good as avoiding sin. Spitting in the corridors and scratching your head over the desk, you contravene the sages and follow your own whim. Inspect yourself at all times and take precautions at every step. You must make your body and mind humble, and then you may enlarge your magnanimity. The ten-day dormitory heads provide for each other in turn; sleeping late and rising early, the aim is wholehearted devotion. Painstakingly laboring your mind, put others first and yourself second. Keep strict guard over the robes and bowls of the great assembly; if one detail is amiss, the crowd’s thoughts are disturbed. Boiling tea, sweeping the floor, changing water, and setting out incense—do not let the hot water bottle grow cold, so that the Chan monks are spared vexation. The head monk in the dormitory must be gentle and harmonious; when regulations are practiced first, standards will naturally be established. Sit at your desk according to the proper time, and speak briefly and directly. If there is any inadequacy, the assembly shall discuss it together. Sightseeing in mountains and waters, exits and entries must be timely. For monks of ill temper, persuade them with kind words; if they do not comply, report secretly to the abbot. Protect good and check evil to earn the trust of the dānapatis. When washing hair or gathering around the stove, decorum demands humility and yielding. The above rules have been explained in detail for your hearing; in daily affairs and throughout the hours, each should take care. To turn at a single prompt—nothing could be better; if called three times without turning back, what benefit is there in living together? Moreover, the dust of the mind is hard to sweep away, and the water of nature easily surges. Those of middling capacity and middling faculties may rise or fall. When Kebin failed in the Dharma battle, he was fined a hall full of seasoned rice; when Wenyuan competed in Chan over victory and defeat, he lost two pastries. These are models of the monasteries for later students to follow. Jiaoshan does not preach two kinds of Chan; he simply demands a fine of sixteen ounces of oil. A verse says:

6.5

Suddenly the tortoise has its head burned with moxa, / Causing endless laughter down through the ages. / I urge the youth to set their sights high: / Do not let yourself be fined a pound of oil.

6.6

Family Admonitions of Upādhyāya Xiaoweng

6.7

It is so by day, and so by night: / When sleeping you should retire later, when rising you should wake first. / Pack your bedding and fold your quilt awaiting the release of silence; / When moving, resting, and turning around, face your left shoulder.

6.8

After morning congee, do not be unruly; / When rinsing the mouth and washing, lower your head and use little water. / If your head itches, wait until bath time; / Keep your hand towel clean so as not to hinder others.

6.9

With quiet body and mind when spreading your pātra, / Bring out chopsticks first, and spoon first when putting them back. / Folding the meal napkin must be done at the very end; / Do not fail in the etiquette of bowing to the left and right.

6.10

Bowing after congee, tea after rice; / At the dismissal of inquiry and evening medicine, do not be clamorous. / Leaving the hall and entering rooms in accord with the pure regulations, / One still sees that the monastery has adepts.

6.11

At the dormitory head's gate, the wooden board clatters; / What kind of Chan monk dares to enter the hall? / A fine of a hundred coins is tolerable enough, / But having a placard hung high is the hardest to bear.

6.12

Entering the room, ascending the hall, or at chanting, / According with the rules, one must naturally be endowed with dignified decorum. / Lately there is a sort of shameless fellow / With small sleeves inside the monastic gown.

6.13

Taking off and putting on robes and shoes must be neat; / Shut doors slowly, and set the tally low. / Silently recite dhāraṇīs and lightly snap the fingers; / Always carry the chamber pot with the right hand.

6.14

Entering the bath and donning the robe, value quiet reverence; / When needing hot water, strike the board with composed composure. / Defiled cloth should not be placed upon the trough; / How could both feet be placed inside the tub?

6.15

Bowing in worship and upholding sūtras dispels the sleep demon; / You need not treat this as cleverness. / Once the eyes born of your mother pop out, / Clinging to medicine, you will only realize the sickness has multiplied.

6.16

Wearing a bamboo hat and pack at the waist, named water and cloud; / In seeking a master, by no means shrink from toil. / When the Dharma gate is desolate, it must be guarded; / Do not emulate ordinary fire-fighting troops.

6.17

Informal Instruction by Chan Master Sixin Xin of Huanglong

6.18

Now, an informal instruction is what is called "household training." What is meant by household training? For example, a family may have three or five sons; what the elder ones did today, what the younger ones did today, whether right or not, when they return in the evening, the parents judge each matter one by one. In the monasteries it is also like this: what was done at the monastery today, whether right or not, the abbot should judge each matter one by one. Looking at the present time, the monasteries are insipid and people's faculties are narrow and inferior, beyond description. There is a sort of bankrupt sthavira who send letters and messages, seeking a monastery to preside over here and seeking a monastery to preside over there. As soon as they obtain a monastery to preside over, they pick an auspicious day to enter the monastery, and furthermore say, 'I am a sthavira,' enjoying pleasures at ease within the abbot's quarters. This sort is called the dregs of hell. Nowadays in the monasteries, when it comes to Chan inquiry, such persons are indeed hard to find. I see this band of fellows here, inwardly indignant and mouths muttering, saying, 'I understand Chan, I understand the Way!' They enter the abbot's quarters, taking advantage of a quick tongue to prop up a couple of turning words, and then walk off. It is not this principle at all! There is another sort of fellow who, through vague impressions, recognizes a stubborn emptiness and immediately says, 'It is just this matter!' There is another sort who say they see light and shadows in empty space. There is another sort who say, 'There is nothing that is not it!' They are mistaken! Beyond salvation! This sort is fit only for the peace and happiness of the physical body. Let them not be struck down at once by illness in the Life-Prolonging Hall, flailing hands and feet like a crab fallen into boiling water, seeing gods and seeing ghosts, seeking a shaman here and a physician there, divining misfortune and divining good fortune, inquiring after good and inquiring after bad! Do you not see? Our Buddha, the Tathāgata, is the King of Physicians for the traidhātuka and the Compassionate Father of the four forms of birth, healing the mental illnesses of all sentient beings. It is only because you do not believe in your own mind and seek externally that demonic spirits and goblins enter your minds, producing so many views. Do you wish to recognize your own mind? It is like the sun at noon: all under heaven is bright; where else could there be darkness? If you reach this ground, there are no hexagram images of good or ill fortune, nor right and wrong, good and bad. Then you can sit atop right and wrong and lie atop right and wrong, and even brothels, taverns, tigers' dens, and demons' palaces are all places where one establishes one's life. It is solely because for measureless kalpas your karmic consciousness has been heavy and thick, with your minds jumping, wavering, agitated, and entangled, and your faith cannot reach it, that you are bound by worldly affections, thrown into utter confusion: people from Jiangnan protect people from Jiangnan; people from Guangnan protect people from Guangnan; people from Huainan protect people from Huainan; people from the north protect people from the north; people from Hunan protect people from Hunan; people from Fujian protect people from Fujian; monks from Sichuan protect monks from Sichuan; monks from Zhejiang protect monks from Zhejiang. Saying, 'A fellow countryman of mine is residing in a monastery, I will go assist him'—one day if something falls short, it is completely overturned into right and wrong spoken everywhere! How bitter, how bitter! Going on itinerant pilgrimage like this is completely disgraceful and humiliating! If one is a real fellow, severing it with a single stroke, how much freedom and ease! But if you cannot sever it, you will be bound by affection everywhere: loving form, you are bound by form; loving monasteries, you are bound by monasteries; loving fame, you are bound by fame; loving profit, you are bound by profit; loving the body, you are bound by the body. Why do you not take a step back and reflect: what good is there in this stinking bag of skin of yours? At that time, simply because you had a single thought of lustful affection, you entered your mother's womb and received your father's semen and mother's blood, intercourse forming a lump of pus. When the mother ate hot food, you endured the hell of boiling cauldrons; when the mother ate cold food, you endured the hell of freezing ice. And when you burst out from your mother's womb, you endured cold and endured heat, endured hunger and endured fullness, endured sickness and endured pain, tormented and oppressed right up to today. Solely because you cannot reflect inwardly, there arise so many rights and wrongs, births and deaths: 'I live, you die; you die, I live'; living, dying, dying, living, receiving retribution according to karma without cessation. Recently, there is another sort of slave-dog: hired for money, they buy an ordination certificate, shave their dog heads, and put on the Buddha's kāṣāya. Not distinguishing master from servant, unable to tell beans from wheat, they enter my Dharma to destroy my Dharma. Consistently decking out their whole bodies, swaying their waists and holding their hips, wildly waving and thrashing about, wanting to act like great men. Great men do not act like that! If you want to be a great man, you must step back and not, before others' faces and behind their backs, with servants' lips and maids' tongues, dislike good and speak evil, saying food and drink are lavish here, or the dormitories are comfortable there—none of this is needed! Eminent monks! A human body is hard to obtain, the Buddha's Dharma is hard to hear. If this body is not delivered in this life, in what life will you deliver this body? Do you all want to engage in Chan inquiry? You must put it down! Put down what? Put down the four great elements and the five aggregates; put down the multitude of karmic consciousnesses accumulated over measureless kalpas; investigate thoroughly right beneath your own feet to see: what principle is this? Pushing back and forth, suddenly the flower of the mind bursts into blossom, illuminating the lands of the ten directions. It can be said that what is grasped in the mind responds to the hand: then you can transform the great earth into yellow gold and churn the long river into sarpirmaṇḍa. Would this not be the great joy of a lifetime? Do not merely recite words from books, seeking Chan and seeking the Way! Chan and the Way are not in books. Even if you could recite the entire canon of teachings and the hundred schools of philosophy, they would still just be idle words; when dying, they are of no use at all. The ancients, having awakened, only then sought an enlightened master to discern and decide, removing the sand and gravel to leave pure authenticity, weighing catty and ounce—just like someone opening a general store with everything in stock: if someone comes to buy licorice, give him licorice; if someone comes to buy coptis, give him coptis—you must not give licorice when someone buys coptis! It is also like having a lump of gold: putting it into a blazing furnace to smelt it, smelting back and forth until it is thoroughly refined; only then do you apply tongs and hammer to beat it into vases, plates, hairpins, and bracelets. How many ounces the vase weighs, how many ounces the plate weighs, each is distinct and clear. Afterward, you melt these vases, plates, hairpins, and bracelets back into a single piece of gold—this is called the one-flavor equal Dharma-door. If it is not like this, it is entirely blurry Suchness and muddled Buddha-nature! Do you still understand? Do you still believe? Just now this mountain monk answered this monk with four turning words, saying: 'Within death there is life; within life there is death. Within death fear death; within life fear life.' Testing all the patch-robed monks under heaven with these four turning words—tell me: with what will the patch-robed monks under heaven test them?" After a long pause, he said, "Basically, one must grant that their bone and flesh are good; even without rouge, she is naturally charming." (Recorded Sayings)

6.19

Record of the Revolving Canon Repository of Huikong Chan Cloister on Mount Baochan

6.20

Composed by Upāsaka Wuwei, Yang Jie

6.21

The dharmadhātu originally has no sentient beings; sentient beings are conditioned by delusional views. The Tathāgata originally had no verbal teachings; verbal teachings are for the sake of sentient beings. Delusional views are the disease of sentient beings; verbal teachings are the Tathāgata's medicine. Curing the disease with medicine, no disease goes uncured; awakening from delusion with words, no delusion goes unawakened. This is why the Tathāgata spoke only when he could not do otherwise, and the worthy and wise recorded them only when they could not do otherwise. Therefore Ānanda compiled the sūtras, Upāli recited the vinaya, and the bodhisattvas elaborated the treatises. Although sūtras, vinaya, and treatises are divided into the Tripiṭaka, śīla, samādhi, and prajñā are rooted in the one mind. A repository is used to display its containment, yet the mind cannot be arrested. For this reason, the Great Being of Shuanglin responded to beings according to their capacities, manifesting the real through the provisional, gathering verbal teachings into a repository and carrying the precious repository upon a wheel. Basing the teachings on the wheel, the teachings circulate unobstructed; using the wheel to manifest the teachings, the wheel turns without end. Causing those who open the teachings to awaken to the principle and become versatile, and those who see the wheel to attain minds that do not backslide; thereafter, wandering leisurely in the ocean of nature, liberated from the fish-trap of conceptual thought, there is not a single thing that does not turn the wheel of the Dharma, and not a single dust mote that does not return to the Lotus Treasury. Without deep wisdom, who could participate in this?

6.22

Chan Master Cizhao Cong, Residing at Shimen in Xiangzhou, Requests Auxiliary Academician Zha to Compose a Record for the Saṅgha Hall

6.23

Qianming Monastery is located one hundred li from the commandery; in ancient times it was called Shimen, but it was changed by imperial decree. With high mountains and deep valleys where tigers and leopards lurk, rugged paths and distant isolation from human habitation, unless one is resolved upon the Way, none can settle their mind there. Men wandering in officialdom are bound by profit and fame; though viewing its supreme beauty, they rarely ascend to its realm. While governing the commandery, Dao knew there was a scholar of the Dharma named Shourong, who had traveled and sought [the Dharma] here since the fifth year of the Yongxi era. Later, the hall for peaceful meditation became cramped, dilapidated, and ruined, whereupon he resolved to rebuild it. Firmly maintaining his aspiration, he sought alms in the settlements over many years. He summoned skilled artisans, purchased fine timber, and at last brought it to completion in the third year of the Jingde era, measuring five bays and eleven rafters. In spring, his disciple Huiguo came carrying his staff to the capital to ask me to write a record of it, to be carved on stone. Thereupon I wrote: Since the Buddha's Dharma spread widely and Bodhidharma came from the west, those possessing roots of faith sought to realize the original source, living like stars in the wilderness, sheltering their bodies among grasses and trees, their clothing not warding off the cold and their food not filling their bellies. As the true Dharma gradually waned and humans and teachings declined into laxity, Chan Master Baizhang constructed buildings to provide peace for the aged and sick. Recently, Chan monasteries have competed to construct grand and magnificent buildings, where young beginners lie at ease, wholly unaware that the fundraisers labor their bodies and weary their bones, and the donors seek blessings and repent sins. Those who understand cause and effect feel as if lying on an iron bed or facing mortal enemies; unless morning and night they intimately nurture the sage embryo, then at least, by drawing close to good spiritual friends and aspiring for liberation, they may temporarily accommodate their physical forms and be protected by dragons and spirits. But if their minds are submerged by coverings and fetters, and their bodies take pleasure in warmth, failing to examine their ignorance and not knowing their lives are shrinking, merely memorizing words and considering themselves ultimate, then when their youth is exhausted and they pass away, they will fall into evil destinies. Can an energetic, courageous man remain unmoved in heart? Master Rong was born in Guo town of Fengxiang, and left household life at the Jingju Chan Cloister on Mount Baiyun in Hu County of Yongzhou. Recorded on the eighth day of the fourth month of the second year of the Dazhong Xiangfu era.

6.24

Chan Master Ying'an Hua's Letter in Reply to Dharma Heir Sthavira Quan

6.25

For this old monk, undergoing pravrajyā from youth was the correct cause. Square robes and a round shaved head were the correct cause. Mindful that birth and death were not yet clarified, parting the grasses to gaze at the wind and drawing close to true kalyāṇamitras was the correct cause. As for appearing in the world to lead the assembly, now over thirty years, never in the slightest hair have I enriched myself. In the duties of the abbot's quarters, never have I been slightly remiss. Day and night diligent and earnest, never have I dared to be lax. The thought of being mindful of the assembly has never been forgotten for an instant. The intention to protect and cherish the permanent property [of the monastery] has never dared to be selfish. Although my practice and understanding have not equalled the ancients, putting it into practice in accordance with my own strength, I also bear no shame. Grieving in heart that the wisdom-life of the Buddhas and patriarchs hangs in danger is more painful than cutting the flesh of my own body. Mindful to repay the deep kindness of the Buddhas and patriarchs, I have had no leisure to rest peacefully in sleeping or eating. Mindful of the patch-robed monks coming from all quarters whose mind-ground is not yet clear, it is no different from being suspended upside down. Although unable to match one ten-thousandth of the ancients, yet this mind does not deceive. You, sthavira, have attended me for three or four years, dignified and outstanding, bringing joy. At the end of last summer I appointed you as yuezhong; this was my understanding of you, sthavira. When I took leave of Zhongshan to stay at Zhaoting in Xuancheng, before long I went to Guangxiao in Gusu, only two months ago. You, sthavira, received the invitation from Fengshan, and your path led first through Gusu to come meet me; such was your not forgetting the righteousness of the Way. After parting, there was no news for a long time. Just as I was thinking of you, the superior Huaijing arrived, bearing your letter and tokens of trust. Only then did I learn that upon first entering the monastery and ascending the hall, you burned incense on my behalf; thus I know the brightness and vastness of your mind that does not turn its back. Now that you serve as eyes for humans and devas, it is different from earlier matters. If you can truly act as I have—undergoing pravrajyā as a monk from youth, undertaking itinerant pilgrimage to draw close to true kalyāṇamitras, up to appearing in the world as an abbot, conducting your practice and retirement with such correct causes—then I have not conferred this upon you in vain. Why then worry that the ancestral school will be desolate? With deepest wishes. Having nothing to express my trust, [I send] one fly-whisk and one dharma robe; please accept them. Shaoxing renwu [year], seventh month, seventh day. Written in reply by the old monk Tanhua of Ying'an, dwelling at Guangxiao in Pingjiang Prefecture. (Recorded Sayings).

6.26

Vow Text of Chan Master Ran of Yishan

6.27

I take refuge in the Tamer-Teachers of the ten directions, who expound the pure and wondrous Dharma, and the saṅgha of liberation of the three vehicles and four fruits; may you bestow compassion and mournfully receive me. Yet I, so-and-so, having myself gone against the true nature, vainly entered the stream of delusion, drifting and sinking in accord with birth and death, covetous and defiled as I pursued form and sound. The ten fetters and ten entanglements have accumulated to form the causes of outflows; the six senses and six dusts have falsely created boundless transgressions. Wandering and sinking in the ocean of suffering, deeply drowning along perverse paths, clinging to the self and indulging in others, promoting the crooked and putting aside the upright. For the karmic hindrances and all faults and errors of repeated lifetimes, I look up to the Triratna with compassion, pouring out my whole heart in kṣamā. My wish is that the Benevolent One will rescue and raise me, and good friends will lead me by the hand, to depart from the deep source of affliction and arrive at the other shore of bodhi. In this life, may the foundations of fortune and stations of life each flourish; in future lives, may the seeds of wisdom and spiritual sprouts together hope to increase in excellence. May I be born meeting with the central lands, and grow up encountering clear teachers; with correct faith undergo pravrajyā, entering the Way in youthful innocence. May my six senses be sharp and unobstructed, and my three karmas pure and harmonious; undefiled by worldly conditions, may I constantly cultivate pure conduct (brahmacarya). Upholding the prohibitive precepts, may worldly karma not encroach; strictly guarding dignified deportment, may fluttering and crawling insects suffer no harm. Encountering neither the eight difficulties nor lacking the four conditions, may prajñā wisdom appear before me and the bodhicitta never retrogress. Cultivating the saddharma, may I understand the Mahāyāna, open the practice-gate of the six pāramitās, and cross the ocean of kalpas of three asaṃkhyeyas. Raising the Dharma banner everywhere, breaking through the dense nets of doubt, subduing the hosts of Māras, and glorifying the Triratna. May I serve the Buddhas of the ten directions without fatigue, study and train in all dharma gates so that all are fully penetrated, broadly create merit and wisdom to universally benefit beings numerous as dust and sand, attain the six kinds of abhijñā, and complete the Buddha fruit in a single lifetime. Thereafter, without abandoning the dharmadhātu, may I enter pervasive defilement everywhere, equalling the compassionate mind of Avalokiteśvara and carrying out the ocean of vows of Samantabhadra. In other regions and this world, following their species and according with their shapes, may I manifest physical bodies and expound the wondrous Dharma. In the bitter destinies of Niraya and among the pretas, may I emit great radiance or display various spiritual transformations. May those who see my form or even hear my name all generate the bodhicitta and forever leave the suffering of saṃsāra. May places of boiling cauldrons and frozen rivers turn into fragrant forests; may those who drink molten copper and eat iron balls be transformed and born in pure lands. May those wearing fur and bearing horns, repaying debts and expiating animosities, cease all bitterness and all partake in benefit and joy. In times of pestilence, may I manifest as medicinal herbs to heal chronic illness; in times of famine, may I transform into grain to relieve all who are poor and starving. Wherever there is benefit, there is none I would not promote. Next, I look forward to the foes and kin of successive lifetimes and my living relatives emerging from the engulfment of the four forms of birth, abandoning the love-entanglements of ten thousand kalpas, and together with all sentient beings equally achieving the Buddha Way. Though empty space has an end, my vows are inexhaustible; may sentient and insentient beings together complete the all-inclusive wisdom.

6.28

Letter of Chan Master Mi'an Qian of Kaishan in Reply to Vice Prefect Chen

6.29

So-and-so respectfully states: I am pleased to learn that your official residence has much leisure, and that you burn incense in quiet silence, sitting and advancing in this Way; what joy could compare to this? Chan inquiry is like sitting for the imperial examinations: the aspiration in sitting for the examinations lies in passing. If one does not pass, yet wishes for fame, wealth, and honor to glorify a lifetime, it cannot be attained. The aspiration in Chan inquiry lies in awakening to the Way: if one does not awaken to the Way, yet wishes for blessings, virtue, and prajñā to transcend the traidhātuka, it cannot be attained. I have ventured to reflect that awakening to the Way is easy, while passing the examinations is difficult. Why so? Scholarship lies with oneself, but granting or withholding lies with the other: to harmonize what I see with what the other sees, is that not difficult? Thus passing the examinations is difficult. Investigation lies with oneself, and realization lies with oneself: to harmonize my lack of views with the other's lack of views, is that not easy? Thus awakening to the Way is easy. Yet those who engage in Chan inquiry are many, while those who awaken to the Way are few; why is this? It is because there is a self. When there is a self, one cannot realize entry; this is also difficulty within ease. Those who read books are many, and those who pass the examinations are also many; why is this? It is because views harmonize. When views harmonize, one is recommended and passes selection; this is ease within difficulty. Therefore, harmonization of views is easy, while selflessness is difficult. Selflessness is easy, but the absence of nonexistence is difficult. The absence of nonexistence is easy, but also having no absence of nonexistence is difficult. Also having no absence of nonexistence is easy, but having neither the absence of nonexistence nor its absence is difficult. Having neither the absence of nonexistence nor its absence is easy, but knocking over the seat along with it is difficult. Therefore Layman Pang said: 'Smelting completely the iron of the three mountains, melting away the copper of the five peaks.' How could he be deceiving anyone? Writing has brought me to this, hoping that as you sit rounded together by the hearth talking of the unproduced, it may bring a brief smile.

6.30

Gāthās on Explaining Chan by Duke Sima Wen

6.31

Wenzhongzi regarded the Buddha as the sage of the West. If it is truly as Wenzhongzi said, then the mind of the Buddha can indeed be known. Those who speak of Chan today are fond of making riddles to confuse one another, and big talk to surpass one another, causing students to wander aimlessly and enter further into delusion. Therefore, I broaden Wenzhongzi's words and explain them, composing six gāthās on explaining Chan. If it is truly so, then it may be practiced even in the central lands; why must it be in the West? If it is not so, then it is not something I know.

6.32

Anger and wrath are like raging fire; / Gain and desire are like sharp blades. / All day long constantly sorrowful— / This is called the Avīci Hell.

6.33

Yan Hui was at peace in a humble lane; / Mencius nourished the vast flowing qi. / Wealth and honor are like floating clouds— / This is called the Land of Ultimate Bliss.

6.34

Filial piety and fraternal duty reach the spiritual and bright; / Loyalty and trustworthiness are practiced even among southern and northern barbarians. / Accumulating goodness brings a hundred auspicious signs— / This is called producing cause and effect.

6.35

Words serve as a teacher for a hundred generations; / Actions serve as a model for the world. / For long and long they cannot be obscured— / This is called the imperishable body.

6.36

Benevolence is the peaceful dwelling of humanity; / Righteousness is the upright path of humanity. / Practicing them sincerely and for long— / This is called the treasury of radiant light.

6.37

Morality and virtue cultivate one's single person; / Meritorious virtues cover the ten thousand things. / Acting as worthy and great sage— / This is called Buddha and bodhisattva.

6.38

Rice of Yangshan

6.39

Composed by Ruan Zhongda, Minister of Revenue (from Outer Collection of Minister Ruan of the Ministry of Revenue)

6.40

Yangshan rice, Yangshan rice! / Grain after grain like pearls, shining like silver. / Those who eat must know the difficulty of its source; / Let me briefly hold it up for you all to see: / Early spring on eastern mounds and western fields, / Plowing men and provision-bearing women are cold and hungry. / As the earth's rich humors stir and farming begins, / The ox's neck develops sores yet still drags the plow. / In summer the sprouts would tassel but have not yet formed grain; / In the rainless sky on four sides there is only a scorching sun. / Backs withered, faces cracked, sweat pouring over chests, / Weeding and hoeing, they only fear that weeds will sprout. / In late autumn, ripe rice resembles yellow clouds; / Reaping by day and pestling by night, sweet, bitter, and toil. / The village beadles urge and press urgently for the royal tax; / Official debts and private loans all fall upon their bodies. / Official debts unpaid, they are whipped and beaten; / Private debts unpaid, they sell their fields and homes. / How often have parents, wives, and children eaten their fill? / Yet every household sets aside rice to offer for fasting gruel. / The abbot, an old monk, begs from door to door; / The mendicant converts and collects by grains and pinches. / Hands calloused, feet bruised, they dare not shrink from toil; / Combed by the wind and bathed by the rain, when did they ever rest? / At the fifth watch, the doors of the cloud hall are still shut; / In the common-offering kitchen, workers rise early, / Only anxious lest the porridge and rice for the pure assembly be late. / Day after day, morning after morning, it is entirely like this. / Rice-water across the floor congeals like fat; / Removing the coarse and keeping the fine, they carry firewood to boil. / Boiling soup, smoky flames, cauldrons and pots searing hot; / Performing duties and exhausting strength, truly weary and spent. / The long wooden board's sound ends, the wooden fish roars; / Sitting upright on the Chan seat, holding the bowl to receive it. / Inquiring closely into the effort of transforming raw into cooked, / I fear it may be hard for you, ācāryas, to swallow. / It did not come from the Fragrance-Accumulated World (Gandharadhika), / Nor did ghosts and spirits offer your meal. / From one spoonful, one ladle, up to one pātra, / All is the wealth of donors seeking fortune. / The karmadāna strikes the mallet, sounding like a bell; / In reciting the ten Buddha-names, some are sluggish to join. / If serving is slightly late, anger immediately arises; / Within the second precept, mindfulness is utterly forgotten. / The ancients were all busy with studying the Way, / Everywhere consulting kalyāṇamitras, roaming all quarters. / Tree bark and grass leaves served to boil in their cauldrons; / Did they ever have such rice to fill their hungry bellies? / A hundred years of time is like a dream or phantom; / The effort of inquiring and asking should be prepared early. / If the mind-ground is not yet clear and distinct, / Even a Buddha would find it hard to digest the rice of Yangshan.

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緇門警訓 — Classical Chinese