緇門警訓 7.4

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: