緇門警訓 7
English (machine translation) 7
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- English
7.1
Informal instruction by Chan Master Furong Kai
7.2
Now, those who leave home do so out of weariness with worldly toil and to seek liberation from birth and death. Putting the mind to rest, stilling thoughts, and severing clinging conditions—hence it is called leaving home. How can one casually allow gain and provision to bury one's entire life? You must cast aside both extremes and put down the middle. Encountering sound and form should be like planting flowers upon rock; seeing gain and fame should be like specks of dust in the eye. Moreover, it is not as though you have never experienced them since beginningless time, nor that you do not know their order. It is merely turning head to tail—it stops only at this. Why must you bitterly crave and cling? If you do not rest now, what further time do you await? Therefore, when former sages taught people, they only wanted them to exhaust the present moment. If one can exhaust the present moment, what other business could there be? If one attains a mind devoid of business, even the buddhas and patriarchs are enemies. All worldly affairs will naturally grow cold and bland, and only then will there be accord with that other side. Have you not seen? Yinshan, to his death, refused to see people; Zhaozhou, to his death, refused to make appeals to people; Bianyan gathered acorns and chestnuts for food; Damei took lotus leaves for clothing; the Daoist of Paper Clothing wore only paper; Sthavira Xuantai wore only coarse cloth; Shishuang established the Hall of Withered Wood for people to sit and recline, merely wishing to put an end to your mind; Touzi had people prepare rice to boil and eat together, merely wishing that you comprehend your matter. Furthermore, the sages of old served as such examples; if they had no superior quality, how could they have willingly endured it? Worthy friends! If you investigate and penetrate this, you will truly not disappoint anyone. If you refuse to take responsibility, I fear you will waste effort in future lives. This mountain monk's practice is devoid of merit, and I am ashamed to head this monastery; how could I sit idly and consume the common property, suddenly forgetting the bequest of former sages? Now I venture to follow the ancients as abbot: the rules have been deliberated and settled with all of you. I shall no longer descend the mountain, nor attend feasts, nor send out alms-collecting masters. We will only take the annual revenue from this monastery's estate, divide it evenly into three hundred and sixty portions, and use one portion per day, without adding or subtracting according to the number of people. If it is sufficient to prepare rice, we shall make rice; if rice is insufficient, we shall make congee; if congee is insufficient, we shall make rice water. When newcomers meet with us, there will be only tea and soup; there will be no decoctions and confections prepared. We will merely set up a tea hall where each may fetch and use it, striving to reduce entanglements and singularly cultivate the Way. What is more, our livelihood is fully sufficient and the scenery is not sparse: flowers understand how to smile, birds can cry; the wooden horse neighs long, the stone ox runs well. Beyond the sky, green mountains have little color; beside the ears, flowing water is soundless. Apes howling on the ridge reveals the midnight moon amidst dew; cranes calling in the forest brings back the pines of a crisp dawn in the wind. The spring breeze rises, and the withered tree roars like a dragon; autumn leaves wither, and the cold grove bursts into blossom. The jade steps are paved with mossy patterns; human faces bear the hue of mist and cloud. Sound and dust are quiet; news is submerged. It is entirely desolate, with nothing to pursue. For this mountain monk to speak today of our family tradition before all of you is already out of place. How could I further ascend the hall, enter the room, hold up the mallet, raise the whisk, shout at the east and strike at the west, widen the eyes and glare, as if having a seizure of epilepsy? Not only would that wrong you venerable ones on the cushions, but it would also betray the former sages. Have you not seen? When Bodhidharma came from the West, he faced the wall for nine years beneath Mount Shaoshi; the Second Patriarch went so far as to stand in snow and cut off his arm—it can be said they endured every hardship. Yet Bodhidharma never uttered a single word, and the Second Patriarch never asked a single question. Can you still say that Bodhidharma did not act on others' behalf? Can you say that the Second Patriarch did not seek a master? Whenever this mountain monk speaks of the conduct of the ancient sages, I feel there is nowhere to hide myself, ashamed that later generations are so weak and frail. Furthermore, with hundreds of flavors of fine delicacies mutually offered, saying, 'Only when my four requisites are complete can I generate the resolve,' I only fear that your hands and feet will not be swift enough, and you will already have passed into another life and another world. Time is like an arrow; it is deeply to be regretted. Even so, it still depends on you all considering it thoroughly; this mountain monk cannot force you. Worthy friends, have you seen the verse of the ancients? / 'Unhulled rice from mountain fields, / wild greens and pale yellow pickles: / if you eat, it is up to you to eat; / if not, you are free to go east or west.' / I humbly pray that fellows on the Path will each exert their efforts. Take care!
7.3
Instruction to the assembly by Chan Master Huangbo
7.4
If you do not break through beforehand, when the night of the thirtieth day of the twelfth month arrives, you will surely be thrown into hot confusion. There are heretics who, the moment they see someone doing the work, sneer: 'There is still this thing!' Let me ask you: when death suddenly approaches, with what will you fend off birth and death? Just think about it! There must be a principle to it. How could there be an innate Maitreya or a naturally occurring Śākyamuni? There are stray spirits and wild ghosts who, the moment they see someone with a minor illness, say to them: 'Just let it go.' But when illness comes upon them, they themselves cannot handle it and are flustered hand and foot. When your flesh is being sliced like by sharp knives, and you cannot be your own master, what can you do? All matters must be settled in leisure, so that they may be of use in times of haste; how much effort that saves! Do not wait until you are thirsty to dig a well, unable to get your hands and feet ready; how will you evade such a wretched mess? The road ahead is dark, and blindly following your impulses you will burrow and crash wildly about—how bitter! How bitter! Ordinarily you only learned lip-service samādhi, speaking of Chan and discussing the Way, scolding buddhas and reviling patriarchs; when you arrive here, none of it is of any use. Ordinarily you only deceived others; who would have known that today you have deceived yourself? Avīci Hell will definitely not let you go. Now that the latter-day Dharma is about to sink, we rely entirely on brothers with strength to shoulder and continue the Buddha's wisdom-life, not letting it be cut off. Nowadays, when there is barely one or a half embarking on itinerant pilgrimage, they only go to look at mountains and scenery, unaware of how much time they have left. Once a breath does not return, that is the next life; who knows what kind of face you will have! Alas! I urge you brothers, while your bodily strength is healthy, to seek out a clear and certain place, a great matter where you will not be deceived by others. These key mechanisms are very easy; it is only that you are unwilling to apply a death-defying will to do the work, constantly saying it is difficult and difficult again. Let me tell you clearly: how could wooden ladles grow by themselves upon trees? You must also bring about a transformation on your own before you attain it. If you are a real man, look at a gongan: A monk asked Zhaozhou, 'Does a dog have buddha-nature or not?' Zhou said, 'No.' Just go and look at this word 'No' through all the twenty-four hours of the day: investigate it by day, investigate it by night, walking, standing, sitting, and reclining, in places where you wear clothes and eat food, where you defecate and urinate. Mind attending to mind, muster fierce vitality and hold fast to this word 'No.' When days grow long and months deepen, it will be beaten into one piece. Suddenly the flower of the mind will burst open, and you will awaken to the dynamic working of buddhas and patriarchs. Then you will not be deceived by the tongues of old masters throughout the world; you will be able to open your big mouth: Bodhidharma's coming from the West was raising waves when there was no wind; the Bhagavat's holding up the flower was a complete fiasco! When you reach here, what old King Yama can be spoken of? Even the thousand sages cannot do anything to you! If you do not believe this, can there really be such an extraordinary matter? Why is it so? 'Things only fear a person with resolve.' A verse says:
7.5
Transcending worldly toil by far is no ordinary matter; / tightly take hold of the rope-end and make a thorough effort. / If one has not passed through cold that pierces to the bone, / how could the plum blossoms send forth a nose-striking fragrance?
7.6
Elder Xu Xue's Exhortation to Postulants to Study Diligently
7.7
If jade is not carved, it does not become a vessel; if a person does not study, they do not know the Way. For a child who leaves home, having fortunately separated themselves from the net of dust to reside in spacious halls and grand mansions, they must never let food and warmth satisfy their ambition. If in their youth they do not study diligently, do not investigate the principles of meaning, and do not correct their respiration, how can they make declarations before the holy ones, or converse before literati? If they do not learn to write a single word of ceremonial essays, how can they compose letters in correspondence with literati? How can they answer as people who have left home? Only when the ancient and modern run through their breast and clouds and mist arise beneath their brush can they resolve the body, resolve nature, and ultimately resolve life. If they are lazy and excuse themselves by saying that by endowment they lack the capacity to receive the Way, they ruin their entire life. Moreover, take monkeys: they are beasts, yet they can still be taught artistic skills; mynas are birds, yet they can still be taught to sing. Humans are the spiritual crown of the myriad creatures; if they do not study, they are inferior to birds and beasts. One who acts as a master should naturally value strictness; when the master is strict, only then is the Way respected. Rather than being overly lenient in early years and inviting resentment in later times, it is better to be excessively strict and invite gratitude in later times. The sons and younger brothers of common families leave their fathers to serve a master; if the master is not strict and indulges their laziness, then when their time passes and they miss out on learning, their speech will be clumsy, their chanting sluggish, their administrative tasks sloppy, and their writing unpolished. When they realize that they are incapable in all matters, only then do they regret it and lay the blame upon their master. What is meant by utmost gratitude? In early years, when one shaves the head and follows a master, the master guides with extreme strictness. Only after public tasks are finished does one dare attend to private affairs. Wandering out without cause is forbidden; reading must be memorized; writing must be standard; principles must be thoroughly understood; thoughts on the Way must be upright. Day by day and month by month of polishing, one returns to the innate heaven and enters the penetrating wonder. Thereupon the ocean of nature becomes clear and pure, and the wish-fulfilling jewel of the mind shines bright and penetrating. Those who study transcendence set foot on Penglai; those who study buddhahood rest their bodies in the Land of Bliss. When one arrives at such a time, one feels grateful indeed for the efficacy of the master's strict instruction.
7.8
Chan Master Yueku Qing's Instruction to Postulants
7.9
Ah, you postulants, listen to my admonitions! The high takes the low as its foundation; the vast arises from the subtle. From antiquity to the present, none among the sages and worthies have not proceeded from this. This is abundantly so in the Confucian tradition, and all the more so among the followers of Śākya. Without citing copiously here, let me briefly raise two or three examples: the supreme sovereigns of Yu and Xia still once underwent trials; and the Second Patriarch, who was fully capable, still performed strenuous labor. When a single thought's cause is true, the fruit of a thousand lives is real. If you don the robes without warrant, you will ultimately accomplish nothing; and even if you shave your head and change your form, you will only vainly increase your black karma. You young and old now must each be devoted and sincere, walk firmly upon the real and practice the true, and not drift with the common vulgarity. Residing in a pure place, give rise to the thought that it is difficult to encounter. When seeing the Buddha or meeting a monk, be thoroughly diligent in reverence and admiration. If you can reflect upon and reproach yourself, you may be called a true person. When passing shoulder to shoulder with a donor, you should be the first to bow and salute. When meeting fellow wearers of the robes, do not be the second to make a respectful prostration. In evening fire and morning incense, always be without slackness; at the midday meal and early congee, in every thought arouse shame. When on duty in the hall or serving in the dormitories, you should diligently wipe and sweep, without negligence in attending to your duties. In advancing and halting with dignified comportment, let the superior ones be your model; regarding the essential path of speech and silence, do not consult inferiors. While you must surely master the palm-leaf scriptures, you should especially study the ancient classics widely. Only when you somewhat know past and present can you understand how to conduct yourself. If you are like a mute sheep, what benefit is there in leaving home? Before the Tathāgata achieved the fruit of buddhahood, he was capable in both cultural and martial arts; no sooner had Yongjia become a teacher of people than he was fully versed in both the lineage tenets and doctrinal teachings. As Ziyun said of aspiring to Yan Hui and aspiring to swift steeds: when chanting 'broom' and chanting 'sweep', the Bhagavat made no mistake. You must each exert effort and not deceitfully follow bad routines. Set your aspiration firmly and high, not falling to the mundane level. Thus the sūtra says: 'Set your aspiration like a high mountain; plant virtue like a deep sea.' With such earnest and bitter words, I expect you to become true men to repay the supreme great kindness of the Buddhas and patriarchs, and rescue sentient beings from immeasurable suffering. To be like this day after day is to have no shame in your own mind. The eulogy says:
7.10
Bearing the pestle and cutting weeds showed an excellent model; / To inherit and continue the lineage demands vigorous fellows. / When in a single thought there is sudden awakening and the three divisions of time are severed, / It is directly transmitted downstream from the old, rank-smelling barbarian.
7.11
Text of the Aspiration of the Layman of Shan-gu, Grand Scribe Huang
7.12
Formerly, the Lion King / Took the pure white Dharma as his body. / In the empty valley of the ultimate truth, / He exerted his vigor and roared. / With mindfulness as the bow and luminous wisdom as the sharp arrows, / Clothed in the armor of compassion, / His power of patience unshakable, / He directly crushed the army of the demon king. / Constantly delighting in samādhi, / Taking ambrosia as delicious food / And the flavor of liberation as broth, / He disported in the three vehicles, / Abode securely in omniscient wisdom, / And turned the unsurpassed wheel of the Dharma. / Now, I voice true words conforming to the real nature, / Appraising and examining with body, speech, and mind, / Truly repenting: / From the past onward, due to delusion, I had desire; / Drinking alcohol and eating meat, I increased craving and thirst, / Entering the thicket of false views and failing to attain liberation. / Now before the Buddha, I make a great vow: / I vow that from this day forth, to the end of all future cosmic periods, / I will never engage in sexual misconduct again. / I vow that from this day forth, to the end of all future cosmic periods, / I will never drink alcohol again. / I vow that from this day forth, to the end of all future cosmic periods, / I will never eat meat again. / If I should again engage in sexual misconduct, may I fall into hell, / Abiding in the pit of fire for immeasurable kalpas; / For all the suffering retribution that sentient beings ought to receive due to lustful confusion, / May I suffer it in their stead. / If I should again drink alcohol, may I fall into hell, / Drinking molten copper juice for immeasurable kalpas; / For all the suffering retribution that sentient beings ought to receive due to being deranged by alcohol, / May I suffer it in their stead. / If I should again eat meat, may I fall into hell, / Swallowing hot iron pellets for immeasurable kalpas. / I vow that by this, to the utmost bounds of the future, / Enduring circumstances through my vows, my sense organs and sense fields will be purified; / Endowed with the ten patiences without relying on another's instruction, / Entering omniscient wisdom and according with the Tathāgata, / I will manifest and perform Buddha-work within the realm of inexhaustible sentient beings. / Respectfully I reflect: penetrating throughout the ten directions, / Adorned with myriad virtues, / May you bear witness for me in every land and in every dust particle. / Even if passing through the kalala stage in the womb I should forget my original vow, / I only pray that you confer your blessing and clear my clouds of delusion. / I bow my head, vast as space, with the utmost agony.
7.13
Words of Informal Instruction by Upādhyāya Yue of Yunfeng (Stone Inscription of Hu-yin)
7.14
The master cited Upādhyāya Baizhang instructing the assembly: 'You troop of youngsters have never known how to study the sūtras, vinaya, and śāstras. You also entered the assembly to practice Chan inquiry, yet you do not understand Chan either. On the thirtieth day of the twelfth month, how will you settle your accounts?' The master said: 'Clearly so! Venerable elders, the time of the sages is distant, and people's minds are flimsy. Looking at today's monasteries, it is even more unbearable. Wherever you go, followers gather by the three hundreds and five hundreds, clamorous and bustling. Merely by having lavish food and drink and warm dormitories, they consider it flourishing teaching. Among them, how many people can there be who are diligently devoted to the Way? Even if there are five or ten, running up and down, half-ripe and half-raw, all saying, "I have understood!" Each and every one claims to hold the jewel of the luminous serpent; who is willing to acknowledge their error? But when it comes to being pressed and tested, truly there is not one in ten thousand. How bitter! How bitter! This is what is called: "The prajñā groves wither year by year; the weeds of ignorance grow year by year." Above all, youngsters of the present day, as soon as they enter the assembly, sit upright with folded hands and receive the offerings of others. Everywhere they go, they do not sort a single stalk of greens; they do not carry a single bundle of firewood. Their ten fingers do not touch water; a hundred affairs never concern their minds. Although they enjoy a period of pleasure, how can they avoid burdening their bodies in the three miserable destinies? Do you not see it said in the teaching: "Better to wrap hot iron around the body than to receive the clothing of a person of faithful mind; better to pour molten copper into the mouth than to receive the food of a person of faithful mind"? If you elders are truly accomplished, even if the great earth were turned into yellow gold and the long rivers churned into butter-curd to make offerings to you, it would not be beyond your share. But if you are not yet so, even down to a drop of water or an inch of thread, you will have to wear fur and horns, pull the plow and drag the harrow to repay them before you are done! Again, do you not see that the Patriarch said: "If you enter the Way without comprehending the principle, you will return in body to repay the offerings of faith. The elder lived to eighty-one, and the tree bore no fungus"? It is never in vain! Venerable elders, time is to be treasured; time waits for no one. Do not wait until one day the light of your eyes falls to the ground, with not a single basketful of effort in the field of the black-robed order, to sink into the pain of a hundred punishments within the Iron Enclosure! Do not say I did not warn you. Take care!'
7.15
Inscription on Embodying the Way by Upādhyāya Guan of Yuelin
7.16
Those of superior capacity who inquire into the mystery: / Do not vainly squander time! / To cross a river, one must use a boat; / To be a human being, one must have aspiration. / Names and characteristics differ individually, / Yet they are neither one nor two. / The Buddha Dharma is miserably not much; / Within it, there is no special trick. / Once the trigger mechanism is activated, / It is uninstructed natural wisdom. / Thoroughly maternal in heartfelt care, / Touching upon people without inhibition. / A kṣetra realm on the tip of a single hair: / Arriving here, there is no evading it. / Singing the song of Deshan, / Those of the Way ought to be like this. / Even if Buddhas and patriarchs show their heads, / They must choke back their voices and swallow their breath. / With this bit of operational style, / There has been no alteration from antiquity to the present. / When the primordial chaos had not yet divided, / There was already this land deed. / Everyone is inherently endowed with it, / Yet they are unwilling to turn their heads and look. / Every single one reaches the native village, / But strictly avoid clinging to names and positions! / The past Tathāgatas / Are not separate from this very 'Ah!' / The present bodhisattvas / Receive prophecies in succession. / The wise nod in secret agreement: / With mind empty, they personally pass the examination. / Foolish people do not believe and accept it; / Abandoning their homes, they flee on their own. / Alas! Wake up vigorously! / It is a ready-made, genuine livelihood. / Within this, the functioning is inexhaustible; / The primary meaning of the ancestral gate. / Meeting its source on the left and right, / It is also not separate from the marketplace. / Fellows with copper heads and iron foreheads: / Your brow must touch the ground! / I vow that with this merit, / It may extend universally to all.
7.17
Informal Instruction by Chan Master Shen of Cishou
7.18
This mind is pure just like empty space, without the slightest mark. Arousing the mind and stirring thoughts completely deviates from the Dharma-body. As soon as you take a step back, you immediately accord with it; it is just that you are unwilling to take a step back. As soon as you lay it down, you immediately find peace and joy; it is just that you are unwilling to lay it down. For the most part, it has simply become a habit developed across beginningless kalpas. When the ancients studied the Way, they first cleared away greed, anger, and delusion, and then let all places become stone cold, just like a fan in the twelfth month, so that truly no one looked upon them. Able to forget fame and profit, and willing to accept plainness and simplicity, worldly thoughts became slight and delicate, and thoughts of the Way naturally grew deep and substantial. Upādhyāya of Mount Bianyan gathered acorns to boil and eat all his life; Great Master Yongjia did not eat vegetables cut down under a hoe; the eminent monk Huixiu wore one pair of shoes for thirty years, mended a hundred times and stitched a thousand times, and when he encountered soft ground on which to walk, he went barefoot, fearing he might damage the offerings of the faithful. Offerings of faith are hard to digest: they are always deducted from what wives and children put in their mouths to bring for offerings, so that they may seek blessings and repent sins for you. Throughout the twelve periods of the day, your various enjoyments all come from the labor of others: eating before you are hungry, dressing before you are cold, bathing before you are soiled, and sleeping before you are weary. With the eye of the Way not yet clear and mental outflows not yet exhausted, how can you digest them? Therefore an ancient virtuous one said: 'Offerings are brought so that one may accomplish the karmic work of the Way; if the karmic work of the Way is not accomplished, how can one digest them?' Here, this mountain monk cannot just pass the days with you people eating congee and rice! If you idly digest offerings of faith, the devas will not be pleased, and even coarse tea and plain rice will be hard for you to digest. Nowadays, newly studying bhikṣus eat their fill and sleep soundly, indulging their desires to pass the days, yet they still complain that things do not suit their wishes. A person who has left home is like a whetstone: whenever anyone wants their knife sharp, they come to sharpen it on your stone. Zhang the Third comes to sharpen, and Li the Fourth comes to sharpen; as they sharpen and sharpen, others' knives become sharp, while one's own stone gradually wears thin! Some even complain that others do not come to sharpen on their stone—what benefit is there in that? Receiving food is like taking poison; receiving an offering is like taking an arrow. Generous gifts and sweet words are what a person of the Way dreads. If you truly accord with the Way, even ten thousand ounces of gold can be digested. This matter is not finished just by talking about it; you must truly reach this ground before you are done. Grand talk and broad discourses deceive others and deceive oneself; they are of no help at all. Nowadays, within the monasteries, no one speaks such words. Do not say that the sthavira of Jiaoshan speaks of Chan without any aperture at all. Remember this! Remember this! Respectfully, take care!
7.19
Ascending the Hall by State Preceptor Dada Wuye of Fenzhou
7.20
A monk asked: "The twelve divisions of the teachings flowed into this land, and those who attained the fruit of the Way were more than just one or two. Why did the Patriarch come east to teach and separately proclaim the profound school, directly pointing to the human mind, seeing one's nature and becoming a buddha? Could it be that the Bhagavat's exposition of the Dharma had something left unsaid? Consider only the virtuous high monks of past generations: all of them mastered the nine schools of thought and thoroughly illuminated the Tripiṭaka. Men such as Daosheng, Sengzhao, Sengrong, and Daorui were all rare prodigies born at special intervals. How could they fail to know the depth or shallowness of the Buddha's Dharma? I am dull and ignorant, and I pray the Master will instruct me."
The Master said: "The Buddhas never appeared in the world, nor is there a single dharma to give to people. They merely prescribed remedies according to the illness, so that the twelve divisions of the teachings came to be. It is like exchanging a sweet melon for a bitter gourd to cleanse the karmic roots of all of you; there is no actual substance to it at all. The supernormal transformations and the hundreds of thousands of samādhi doors were used to convert and break down heavenly demons and non-Buddhists. The two adornments of merit and wisdom were meant to shatter the views of clinging to existence or stagnating in emptiness. If one does not understand the Way or the Patriarch's intention in coming, what is the use of discussing Daosheng, Sengzhao, Sengrong, or Daorui?
"Nowadays throughout the realm, those who claim to understand Chan and understand the Way are like the sands of the Ganges; those who speak of the Buddha and speak of the mind number hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis. Yet if the finest dust of delusion is not cast off, saṃsāra cannot be avoided; if thoughts are not extinguished, one will entirely sink and fall. People of this sort cannot even recognize their own karmic fruits, yet they falsely claim to benefit themselves and others, boasting that they are of the highest class, on par with the virtuous ancients. They merely claim, 'Whatever meets the eye is nothing but the Buddha's work; wherever I set foot is a place of the Way.' In reality, their conduct does not even match that of an ordinary person keeping the five precepts and ten virtuous deeds; yet judging by their speech, they look down upon the two vehicles and the bodhisattvas of the ten grounds. Now, sarpirmaṇḍa is the supreme flavor, treasured as rare by the world; but when it meets such people, it turns into poison. Master Nanshan would not even allow them to be called followers of the Mahāyāna! This crowd of word-parrots strives for supremacy with lips and tongues, stirring up arguments about formless matters and comparing themselves to the sincerity of the ancients—how lamentable!
"Consider even the lofty hermits of the wilds: they still knew how to pillow their heads on stone and rinse their mouths with the stream, casting aside profit and emoluments; yet they possessed stratagems to pacify the state and govern the people, declining when summoned to court. How much more so should our Chan school take a different path! Look at the men of the Way among the virtuous ancients: after attaining the realization, they lived in thatched huts and stone caves, cooking rice in broken-legged pots. Twenty or thirty years would pass, with fame and profit never touching their minds, and wealth never a consideration. Completely oblivious to the human world, they concealed their traces among crags and thickets; kings summoned them and they did not come, feudal lords invited them and they did not go. How could they be like us, who covet fame and love profit, sinking in worldly paths like petty merchants, seeking small gains while forgetting the great fruit?
"Did the worthy ones of the ten grounds not comprehend the Buddha's principles? Could they be inferior to an ordinary person bound to the earth? There is truly no such principle! Even when their preaching of the Dharma was like clouds and rain, they were still rebuked by the Buddha, who said that seeing their nature was like peering through fine gauze—simply because their feelings harbored attachment to the measure of holiness, and their vision remained tied to causes and effects, unable to transcend the sentiment of holiness and surpass all traces and shadows.
"The former sages and virtuous ancients were learned scholars and lofty masters, broadly versed in past and present and thoroughly clear about the net of the teachings. Yet because they were trapped in textual learning and interpretive writing, unable to distinguish milk from water, failing to clarify their own nature's principle, and pursuing stillness to seek reality—alas! Those who obtain a human body are like the dirt on a fingernail; those who lose a human body are like the dirt of the great earth. How truly sorrowful!
"Even if there are those who awaken to the principle, having a single piece of knowledge or a single understanding, they do not realize that this is merely a rule within awakening, a gate for entering the principle. Thereupon they claim to have eternally transcended worldly profit; they roam the mountains and skirt the streams, slighting their superiors. Consequently, the leakages of their mind are never exhausted, the ground of principle remains unclarified, and in vain they reach old age and death without accomplishment, uselessly prolonging the months and years. Furthermore, cleverness cannot counter karma, and dry wisdom cannot escape the wheel of suffering. Even if your talent equaled Aśvaghoṣa and your understanding matched Nāgārjuna, it would only ensure that you do not lose a human body for one or two lifetimes; having purified your faculties and thinking in past lives, you understand upon hearing. Even someone like Master Daosheng is hardly worthy of envy—he was completely far from the Way.
"Brothers, let us discuss the real, not the vain! Merely this food for the mouth and clothing for the body are entirely acquired by deceiving the worthy and defrauding the holy. When seen with the eye of wisdom that knows others' minds, it is just like eating pus and blood; every bit of it must be repaid! Who among you possesses the fruit of the Way such that you naturally attract the offerings of faithful donors without accepting them? Bodhisattvas studying prajñā must not deceive themselves! It is like walking on thin ice, like treading on a sword's edge. At the time of approaching death, if the slightest trace of ordinary or holy sentiment is not exhausted, if the finest speck of conceptual thought is not forgotten, you will take birth in accordance with your thoughts into the lighter or heavier five skandhas, entrusting your form to a donkey's womb or a horse's belly. After being boiled and scalded once in the cauldrons of Niraya, all the retention, recollection, views, understanding, and wisdom you previously held will be completely lost in an instant. As before, you will again become an ant, and start over once more as a mosquito or gnat. Although you had good causes, you suffer evil fruits—what were you striving for?
"Brothers, simply because craving and desire have become second nature, the twenty-five states of existence remain bound beneath your heels, with no time of completion in sight. The Patriarch observed that sentient beings in this land possessed the capacity for the Mahāyāna; he transmitted solely the mind-seal to instruct deluded sentiments. For those who attain it, no distinction is made between ordinary or holy, foolish or wise. Moreover, much that is empty is not as good as a little that is real. If you are great men, rest right this moment! Instantly bring an end to all conditions, cross over the flow of birth and death, transcend ordinary conventions, and let the spiritual light shine alone, unencumbered by things! Lofty and magnificent, walk alone through the three realms! What need is there for a sixteen-foot body glowing with purple-golden radiance, a halo around the neck, or the mark of a broad and long tongue? 'If one sees me by form, one is practicing a deviant path.' If one is adorned with retinue and virtues, they will be attained naturally without seeking. The mountains, rivers, and the great earth will not obstruct the vision of the eye; one attains the great dhāraṇī, awakening to a thousand things upon hearing one, without coveting the value of a single meal.
"If all of you are not like this, the Patriarch's coming to this land has both immense harm and immense benefit. As for the benefit: out of hundreds of thousands of people, one or half a person is scooped out who is fit to become a vessel of the Dharma. As for the harm: it is just as explained before. If people had instead followed the teachings of the three vehicles in their cultivation, they might well have attained the four fruits and the three stages of worthiness, possessing a share of progressive practice. Therefore an ancient worthy said: 'When awakened, karmic obstacles are fundamentally empty; / when unawakened, one must still repay past debts.'" (Record of the Transmission of the Lamp)
7.21
Informal instruction by Chan Master Fachang Yun
7.22
"Generally speaking, for brothers who study and inquire: your eye of the Way is not yet bright, and your mind-ground is not yet at peace. Entering one monastery and leaving another, you must draw close to excellent companions and good friends, making the Buddha's Dharma your sole concern throughout the twelve periods of the day. You must examine and choose decisively to make your mind's eye clear and sharp. This is no small matter. Time is easily lost, and time waits for no man; once you lose the human body, you will not easily find a way out.
"Do not fool around and waste your time like this, 'three today and four tomorrow,' spending the winter here and the summer over there, memorizing a belly full of verbal tangles and spreading creeping vines, picking up intellectual understanding everywhere to deceive people with emptiness, rubbing your lips and stroking your mouth, babbling wild words and nonsensical talk, saying, 'I understand Chan, I understand the Way!' Slighting good people, you create karma for the Avīci hell. You should know that this matter is not easy at all; even immeasurable great men, coming here, can find no head or nose to grasp! Do not casually open your big mouths!
"Old man Fachang has no human sentiments. Do not crave others rubbing you, patting you, and praising you—none of that comes from good intentions. One day when the elements of wind and fire disintegrate and the light of your eyes falls to the ground, your good and bad karmic conditions, receiving good or ugly retribution, and the realms of birth and death will all appear before you at once. At that time you will be like a crab dropped into boiling water, flailing about in panic. The livelihood, supernormal powers, and Buddha-Dharma you learned before will be of no use at all. With your karmic consciousness boundless and without any basis to rely on, regret will be too late; you will receive retribution according to conditions, and what form you will change into cannot be determined.
"Have you not seen? The ancients said: 'Bodhisattvas studying prajñā must not deceive themselves; they must be extremely meticulous! If the finest speck is not exhausted, saṃsāra cannot be avoided; if a single thread of thought is not forgotten, one will entirely sink and fall.' Do you want to recognize those who wear fur and horns? They are precisely those who ordinarily act as masters in confusion! Do you want to recognize the tongue-pulling hell? It is precisely for those who deceive and confuse people on the wrong paths! Do you want to recognize the cold ice and boiling cauldrons? They are precisely for those of you who recklessly accept the offerings of the faithful! The three miserable destinies and the eight difficulties are all created by your own mind; it is only because the eye of the Way is not bright that things come to this. If one were a truly grounded person, how could there be such news?
"When Fachang speaks such words, they are entirely in accord with all the sages, not just for the sake of you three brothers or four comrades. Any bodhisattva who has not yet attained tolerance possesses these faults; how much more so the eight classes of devas and nāgas! Since you have come here to spend the winter and pass the summer, do not take it lightly. This old monk gathers food at the edge of the hoe to provide for you and speak a few words of one who has left home; do not let the notions of self and other ruin your whole life in vain. Once the four elements break apart, it will be too late to practice tricks!
"There is a kind of fellow who, hearing others bring up what is in his belly, flies into a rage of anger, saying, 'How could the Buddha's Dharma have such matters? Great awakening is not bound by petty rules—whom else should I ask?' I ask you: what have you awakened to and seen? Have you escaped the consciousness and thoughts of the skull yet? During the twelve periods of the day, do your actions correspond to the five precepts and ten virtuous deeds? In the assembly on Vulture Peak, did you ever see a Buddha who had no practice and action? Has there ever been an ancestral master who told lies? This is very much like comparing cow dung to sandalwood—what connection is there? It can truly be said: 'Sarpirmaṇḍa is the supreme flavor, treasured by the world; but when it meets such people, it turns into poison.'
"If you wish to attain accord in the future, from this day forth, let everything be dry and bland in all places. Throughout the twelve periods of the day, face the five desires and the eight winds like a blind man looking at things, neither clinging to phenomena nor letting phenomena cling to you. Examine yourself at the gates of the six sense faculties so that there is not the slightest trace of fault; only then will you have a slight share of progress.
"When Fachang speaks this way, it is like taking medicine that induces dizziness: it is bitter in the mouth for a time, but in the future you will gain great strength from it. Therefore it is said: 'Even after hundreds of thousands of kalpas, / the deeds one has performed are not forgotten; / when causes and conditions meet, / one still receives the retribution oneself.' No one can take your place. Each of you must strive diligently. Take care!" (Recorded Sayings)
7.23
Upādhyāya Gujing's Reply to the Prefect of Fenyang
7.24
National Preceptor Zhong of Nanyang / Did not heed three imperial summons, / Causing Emperor Suzong of the Tang / To revere the Buddhas and Patriarchs even more. / Yet as I look up toward Nanyang, / Though clouds and mud follow different paths, / When I turn my head and think of the ancients, / Sweat of shame pours down like rain. / Why does the Lord of Fenyang / Look upon me as dirt, / Playfully issuing an official notice / Asking me to take provisional charge of Yufeng Temple? / How could I, for the sake of one body, / Allow the Dharma-gate to suffer defilement? / Through ten thousand ages the water of the Long River / Cannot wash away an evil name. / Respectfully I return the official notice, / Let the Commissioner take it back himself. / Release me like an ape or a bird / To enjoy the quiet charm of the cloudy mountains; / In future years I will have nothing with which to repay you, / But a single stick of incense morning and evening.
7.25
Stone Inscription of the Posthumous Text on the Wall by Chan Master Xuedou Mingjue
7.26
Now, to transmit and uphold the lamp of the patriarchs and to continue the lifespan of the Buddha is no small responsibility. You should take the former worthies as your model, make solemn your comportment, and maintain an inspiring presence. Restrain your anger and curb desires; regulate your vital energy and nourish your mind. Do not let gain and fame move your feelings, nor allow gain and loss to trouble your mind. Do not drift up and down with the ways of the world, nor pursue the rights and wrongs of others. Keep black and white within your breast; let neither joy nor anger show upon your face. Rejoice in the joy of others as your own joy; grieve at the sorrows of others as your own sorrow. Accommodate the multitude and honour the virtuous; overcome the self and return to propriety. Do not, over a small rift, abandon those you have long held dear; do not, going against public justice, cast aside those from whom you have long been estranged. Do not boast of your abilities, nor rely on your influence. Do not protect your own shortcomings, nor conceal the merits of others. Seeing virtue, do not forget your personal conduct; when situated in honour, do not forget the humble. Furthermore, learning fundamentally cultivates one's nature—how could one feel resentful that others do not know him? The Way values preserving one's life intact; do not seek to be employed by the worldly. If others admire righteousness, in principle one should extend what is left over to them. You must certainly make your mind sincere, truly instruct them by rules and guidelines, draw widely upon the various scriptures, and profoundly point out the wondrous school. The chamber of compassion and the robe of forbearance must not be parted with even for an instant; when desiring to enter the great square and the jewel place, in hasty moments you must always be thus. Be regular in activity and rest; be scrupulous regarding suspicion. Men are not to be despised; Heaven is not to be deceived. When the multitude comes and goes, neither pursue nor turn them away; toward people's slander and praise, harbour neither hatred nor greed. Within, have nothing to be ashamed of; without, have nothing to be anxious over. Or if your renown and praise overflow, and offerings and sustenance are bountiful and abundant, fear the causes and effects of the four destinies and be cautious with the intersecting property of the Triratna. Birth and death are not yet escaped, and the suffering of karma is hard to flee. Just when you attain your ambition, urgently contemplate benefiting the upright. The body is like a walking latrine; gain is called a soft thief. A hundred years is not long; within the three realms there is no peace. It is a pity to waste an inch of time—one ought to seek liberation. The ancient patriarchs of the past all set forth excellent models: leaning on his staff, one single-mindedly ate dirt; Danxia had only a coarse cloth gown; Zhaozhou's head was covered in blue ash; Master Lang wove grass to make a mat. Some sat in deep Chan and long practice; others declined imperial edicts of favour. In general, moderation incurs few losses, whereas extravagance invites ridicule; humility brings glory, and stepping back avoids resentment. As we drift further from the Buddha, practising the Way becomes difficult. Observe the times when advancing and halting, so as not to bring disgrace upon yourself.
7.27
Duke Fan of Shu Seeing off Chan Master Yuanwu on Itinerant Pilgrimage
7.28
In observing water, do not observe the water of a foul pool: / In the water of a foul pool, fish and turtles are small and mean. / In climbing mountains, do not climb rolling foothills: / On rolling foothills, grass and trees are sparse. / In observing water, one must observe the vastness of the azure ocean; / In climbing mountains, one must climb the heights of Mount Tai. / What one gains will not be shallow, what one sees will be lofty; / When effort is exhausted, it is not in vain. / In the South, fortunately, there is a ground for electing buddhas; / Go there and thoroughly explore the wondrous purport! / In future years, when your vessel is formed and you restore the declining order, / You will not fail the resolve of a man who left home. / Great hero, cease your wavering! / How could you ruin your life's plan for empty fame? / In a hundred years, when taking one's measure, one feels there is not much time; / Do not let time covertly add to your years. / Chengdu is moreover a city of splendour and bustle, / Where people linger only through being beguiled by flowers and wine. / Fortunately, my master is one who has left home; / Would you willingly follow petty men and be buried together with them? / Fortunately, my master possesses an ambition like the rainbow; / Why hesitate and wallow in the mud and water? / Have you not seen that a boat-swallowing fish does not hide in shallow streams, / And a tree of many arm-spans does not grow on barren hills? / When the great roc spreads its wings ninety thousand leagues, / How can it be likened to the gulls flying along the spring shore? / How much better to swiftly ride a thousand-league steed / And not learn from the wren clinging to a single branch! / Even if you could expound a thousand sutras and treatises, / You would still fall into the secondary mechanism of the Chan house. / The white clouds are ever in love with the high terrace; / Let them not cover the morning cage without opening for a moment! / To soothe the common people's hope for copious rain, / Casually step forth from the mountains as before. / And have you not seen: / In Mount Jing there is a jade named Qiongyao; / Before meeting a skilled artisan, it lay among weeds and briars. / Had it not left Jing and Chu at that time, / How could its value have doubled to rival a city's worth?
7.29
Chan Master Baoning Yong's Instruction on Reading the Sutras
7.30
The method of reading the sutras is something junior students must know. One should purify the three karmas. If the three karmas are without defect, all hundreds of blessings will gather together. As for the three karmas, they are body, speech, and mind. First, sitting upright and straight as if facing the Venerable Face—then the body karma is purified. Second, having no extraneous words from the mouth and cutting off all playful laughing—then the speech karma is purified. Third, having the mind undistracted and putting an end to all conditions—then the mind karma is purified. When the inner mind is tranquil and outer objects are all abandoned, only then does one tally and awaken to the true source, and perhaps delve deeply into the principle of the Dharma. This can be called water clarifying and the pearl shining, clouds dispersing and the moon brightening. An ocean of meaning wells up within the breast; a peak of wisdom congeals before the ears and eyes. Never treat it lightly; it is truly no small matter. When both mind and Dharma are forgotten, self and other are both benefited. If one can be like this, one truly repays the Buddha's kindness.
7.31
Letter of Vinaya Master Dazhi Yuanzhao Presenting the Robe and Bowl to Chan Master Yuanzhao Ben
7.32
On a certain day of a certain month and year, Bhikṣu Yuanzhao respectfully writes this letter to present to Chan Master Yuanzhao of Jingci. Formerly, Yuanzhao studied the Vinaya and learned the Buddha's regulations: a bhikṣu must be equipped with the three robes and one bowl, the niṣīdana, and the water strainer; these constitute the six items. The regulations command superior, middling, and inferior capacities to respect and uphold them; therefore, those who follow this gate must not casually transgress them. Transgressing them defies and opposes the high instructions, which is not what is meant by the way of master and disciple. What are the three robes? The first is called the saṅghāṭī, which is called the great robe; one wears it when entering a settlement to receive offerings, ascending the seat, and expounding the Dharma. The second is called the uttarāsaṅga, which is called the middle robe; one wears it when following the assembly in prostrations and chanting, and when entering the hall to receive food. The third is called the antarvāsa, which is called the lower robe; one wears it when travelling on the road and performing chores in the monastery. These three kinds of robes must take coarse, rough hemp or ramie as their fabric; blue-black or mulvāna (wood-orchid) to dye their colour; and three cubits by five cubits as their measure. They are cut to pieces and sewn back together to quell greedy desires; their strips and leaves are clearly divided to display the field of merit. Speaking of their form, the sages and worthies of the three vehicles share the same pattern; discussing their name, the ninety-six heterodox paths have never heard of it; recounting their virtue, humans are enabled to escape the sorrow of danger and calamity, and dragons who wear them flee the peril of the golden-winged birds. They are fully recorded in the great canon and cannot be cited in haste. The one bowl is called in full pātra, which here is translated as 'responsive vessel'. The two materials of iron and earthenware accord with the Dharma; the colour, smoked to a glossy dark green, accords with the Dharma; the capacity of three dou or one and a half dou accords with the Dharma. It is truly the emblem of all buddhas and not a utensil for palaces and courts. Formerly, Kāśyapa Tathāgata transmitted it to our fundamental master Śākyamuni; what the Treatise on Wisdom calls the thirteen-strip coarse cloth saṅghāṭī is this. When he approached parinirvāṇa, he dispatched the Venerable Drinker of Light (Mahākāśyapa) to carry it to Mount Kukkuṭapāda to await Maitreya. By this we see what all buddhas honour. When the Patriarch Master came to the West, it was transmitted across six generations to show that the succession to the Dharma had an origin; this is also what all patriarchs esteemed. Now, there was a monk under my lectures named Zaiyuan, who had upheld these regulated items for a number of years. Recently, he died of illness. As he was about to depart this life, he entrusted me to present his robe, bowl, and niṣīdana to you, Chan Master, truly relying on your compassionate shade to support his journey in the dark paths. Respectfully I consider that the Chan Master's way surpasses former worthies, and your virtue gathers all beings. Monks and laypeople flock like ants in admiration, and those near and far rush like clouds. No monastery in the world is as prosperous as this. I venture to say that affairs are promoted according to the time, and the Way relies on men for its propagation. If I may truly receive your high eminence briefly condescending to comply with my humble wish and consenting to accept them to specially uphold them, then the strict regulations of the Great Sage can be practised, and the remaining style of all the patriarchs will not fall away. I respectfully send a monk carrying the robe, bowl, and other items, five things in all, and write this letter to convey my meaning. Whether permissible or not, I leave it entirely to the Chan Master's discretion. Respectfully unstated. (According to the Sarvāstivāda, the three robes are five cubits long and three cubits wide; each cubit is one chi eight cun. According to the Ji Zhou measure, the length is nine chi and the width is five chi four cun.)
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- 緇門警訓 — Classical Chinese