佛祖歷代通載 12.81

12.81

（三十六）　是月中宗降御札。召曹溪六祖惠能入京。其辭曰。朕請安秀二師宮中供養。萬機之暇每究一乘。二師並推讓云。南方有能禪師。密授忍大師衣法。可就彼問。今遣內侍薛簡馳詔迎請。願師慈念速赴上京。師以表辭疾願終林麓。薛簡曰。京城禪德皆云。欲得會道當須坐禪集定。若不因禪定而得解脫者。未之有也。未審師所說法如何。師曰。道由心悟。豈在坐耶。經云。若見如來若坐若臥。是行邪道。何則無所從來亦無所去若無生滅。是如來清淨禪。諸法空寂。是如來清淨坐。究竟無證。豈況坐耶。簡曰。弟子回朝主上必問。願師慈悲指示心要令得見性明道。祖曰。道無明暗。明暗是代謝之義。明明無盡亦是有盡。簡曰。明喻智慧。暗況煩惱。學道人儻不以智慧照破煩惱。生死憑何出離。師曰。若以智慧照煩惱者。此是二乘小兒羊車等機。上智大根悉不如是。簡曰。何謂大乘見解。師曰。明與無明其性無二。無二之性即是實性。實性者處凡愚而不減。在聖賢而不增。住煩惱而不亂。居禪定而不寂。不斷不常不來不去。不在中間及其內外。不生不滅。性相如如常住不遷。名之曰道。簡曰。師說不生不滅。何異外道。師曰。外道將滅止生以生顯滅。滅猶不滅。生說無生。我說本自不生今亦無滅。所以不同外道。汝欲知心要但一切善惡都莫思量。自然得入清淨心體。湛然常住妙用恒沙。簡禮辭歸闕。表上師語。帝咨美久之。尋遣使賜袈裟瓶鉢等。諭天子嚮慕之意。

(Thirty-six) In this month, Zhongzong issued an imperial decree summoning the Sixth Patriarch of Caoxi, Huineng, to the capital. The text read: 'We have invited Masters An and Xiu to be provided for in the palace, and in the leisure between myriad affairs of state, We continually investigate the One Vehicle. Both masters deferred, saying: "In the south there is Chan Master Neng, who was secretly transmitted the robe and Dharma of Great Master Ren; you may inquire with him." Now We dispatch Palace Attendant Xue Jian to rush with the edict to welcome and invite you. We pray the Master will take compassionate thought and swiftly proceed to the imperial capital.' The Master submitted a memorial declining on grounds of illness, wishing to end his days among the forests and foothills. Xue Jian asked, 'The Chan worthies in the capital all say that if one wishes to understand the Way, one must sit in meditation and collect oneself in samādhi. There has never been anyone who attained liberation without relying on dhyāna-samādhi. I wonder what kind of Dharma the Master expounds?' The Master said, 'The Way is awakened to through the mind; how could it depend on sitting? The sūtra says: "If one sees the Tathāgata as sitting or lying down, this is walking a deviant path." Why? Because he comes from nowhere and goes nowhere. To be free from arising and ceasing is the Tathāgata's pure dhyāna; for all dharmas to be empty and tranquil is the Tathāgata's pure sitting. In the ultimate there is nothing to realize, so how much less sitting!' Jian said, 'When your disciple returns to court, the Sovereign will surely inquire. May the Master compassionately point out the essentials of mind, enabling him to see his nature and understand the Way.' The Patriarch said, 'The Way has neither light nor darkness. Light and darkness have the meaning of alternation. While boundless light has no end, it also has an end.' Jian said, 'Light is an analogy for wisdom, and darkness signifies afflictions. If a practitioner of the Way does not use wisdom to illuminate and break through afflictions, on what basis can he escape birth and death?' The Master said, 'If one uses wisdom to illuminate afflictions, this is the capacity of the small children of the two vehicles with their goat carts. Those of superior wisdom and great faculties are not like this at all.' Jian asked, 'What is the Mahāyāna view?' The Master said, 'Light and darkness: their nature is non-dual. This non-dual nature is the true nature. The true nature does not decrease among ordinary fools, nor does it increase among sages and worthies. Abiding in afflictions, it is not disturbed; dwelling in dhyāna-samādhi, it is not tranquil. It is neither severed nor permanent, neither coming nor going, neither in the middle nor inside and outside. Unarisen and unceasing, its nature and marks are as such, eternally abiding and unchanging—this is called the Way.' Jian said, 'The Master speaks of unarisen and unceasing; how does this differ from the non-Buddhists?' The Master said, 'Non-Buddhists take ceasing to stop arising, and use arising to manifest ceasing. Their ceasing is still not non-ceasing, and their arising is described as non-arising. I say that it is originally unarisen, and now also unceasing; therefore, it is not like the non-Buddhists. If you wish to know the essentials of mind, simply do not deliberate on any good or evil at all. You will naturally gain entry to the pure essence of mind, completely clear and eternally abiding, with wondrous functions as numerous as the sands of the Ganges.' Jian bowed, took his leave, and returned to the imperial palace, where he submitted the Master's words in a memorial. The Emperor praised it for a long time, and soon sent an envoy to bestow a kāṣāya, an alms bowl, and water jar, expressing the Son of Heaven's longing and admiration.