曆代法寶記 1.13.8

1.13.8

覺和上是誰弟子。 是老福和上弟子。 和上云。 說汝自修行地看。 知一師即呈本師教云。 看淨。 和上即為說法。 法無垢淨。 云何看淨。 此間淨由不立因。 何有垢。 看淨即是垢。 看垢即是淨。 妄相是垢。 無妄相是淨。 取我是垢。 不取我是淨。 無念即無垢。 無念即無淨。 無念即無是。 無念即無非。 無念即無自。 無念即無他。 自他俱離。 成佛菩提。 正自之時。 自亦不自。 知一師聞說。 言下悟。 於說法處。 更不再移。 和上見知一師志性淳厚有忠孝心。 便為改號名超然。 不離左右。 樂行作務。 登州忠信師博覽詩書。 釋性儒雅。 捨諸事業。 來投和上。 忠信是海隅邊境。 遠投和上。 語已作禮。 和上。 道無遠近。 云何言遠近。 忠信啟和上。 生死事大。 聞和上又大慈悲。 故投和上。 不緣衣食。 伏願和上照察。 和上問。 學士多足思慮。 若欲捨得任住此間。 忠信答云。 願聞道死可矣。 身命不惜。 何但文字。 和上即為說法。 尊者大覺尊。 說生無念法。 無念無生心。 心常生不滅。 於一切時中自在。 勿逐勿轉。 不浮不沈。 不流不注。 不動不搖。 不來不去。 活鱍鱍行坐。 行坐總是禪。 忠信聞。 儼然不動。 和上見已。 即悟解大乘。 改名號超寂。 山中常祕密夜即坐禪。 不使人知。 明即却來舊處。 有法輪法師。 解涅槃章疏。 博學聰明。 傍顧無人。 自言第一。 故就山門。 共和上問難。 遙見和上神威奇特與諸僧不同。 法輪師向前作禮。 問訊起居。 和上遙見。 知是法師。 即遣坐。 坐已和上問。 法師解何經論。 答。 解涅槃經。 和上問。 云何解涅槃經。 法師即引諸章疏。 和上說云。 非是涅槃經。 此並是言說。 言說三界本。 真實滅苦因。 言說即變異。 真是離文字。 高貴德王菩薩問。 世尊云何名大涅槃。 佛言。 盡諸動念。 思想心息。 如是法相。 名大涅槃。 云何言說妄相已為涅槃。 若如此說即是不解。 云何言解涅槃。 法輪聞說。 無詞敢對。 和上云。 有法是俗諦。 無性第一義。 言解即是繫。 聰明是魔施設。 無念即無繫。 無念即無縛。 無念是涅槃。 有念是生死。 無念即聰明。 有念是暗鈍。 無念即無彼。 無念即無此。 無念即無佛。 無念無眾生。 般若大悲智。 無佛無眾生。 無有涅槃佛。 亦無佛涅槃。 若明此解者。 是真解者。 若不如此解。 是著相凡夫。 法輪師聞說。 啟顙歸依。 小師傳迷日久。 今日得遇和上。 暗眼再明。 伏願和上慈悲攝授。 綏州禪林寺僧兄弟二人。 並是持法華經。 時人號史法華。 兄法名一行師。 弟名惠明師。 來投。 和上問。 從何處來。 先學何教法。 惠明云。 從綏州來。 持法華經。 日誦三遍。 和上問。 安樂行品。 一切諸法。 空無所有。 無有常住。 亦無起滅。 是名智者親近處。 惠明等說已。 小師迷沒。 只解依文誦習。 未識義理。 伏願和上接引盲迷。 和上即為說法。 諸法寂滅相。 不可以言宣。 是法不可示。 言詞相寂滅。 離相滅相。 常寂滅相。 終歸於空。 常善入於空寂行。 恒沙佛藏一念了知。 若欲得坐山中。 更不誦習。 常閑僜僜。 能否。 惠明等兄弟知誦習是不究竟。 故投和上。 和上即為再說。 無念即無生。 無念即無遠。 無念即無近。 無念即是史法華。 又念即是法華史。 無念即是轉法華。 有念即是法華轉。 正無念之時。 無念不自。 惠明等聞已。 心意決然。 便住山中。 常樂作務。 慶州慕容長史夫人并女。 志求大乘。 舉家大小並相隨。 來禮拜和上。 和上問夫人。 從何處來。 答。 弟子遠聞和上有大慈悲。 故來禮拜。 和上即為說種種法要。

"Whose disciple is Reverend Jue?" "He is the disciple of old Reverend Fu." The upādhyāya said, "Explain your own stage of cultivation, let us see." Master Zhiyi then presented his original master's teaching, saying, "Gaze at purity." The upādhyāya then preached the Dharma for him: "The Dharma has neither defilement nor purity; why gaze at purity? Here, purity is not established as a cause—how could there be defilement? Gazing at purity is itself defilement; gazing at defilement is itself purity. False characteristics are defilement; the absence of false characteristics is purity. Grasping the self is defilement; not grasping the self is purity. No-thought is no-defilement; no-thought is no-purity. No-thought is no-right; no-thought is no-wrong. No-thought is no-self; no-thought is no-other. When self and other are both transcended, one accomplishes the bodhi of the Buddhas. At the very moment of selfhood, the self itself does not exist of itself." Hearing this explanation, Master Zhiyi awakened upon these words. At the very place where the Dharma was preached, he did not move again. Seeing that Master Zhiyi was of an honest, generous disposition and had a mind of loyalty and filial piety, the upādhyāya changed his name to Chaoran. He did not leave his side, taking delight in physical labor. Master Zhongxin of Dengzhou was widely read in poetry and history, elegant in his monastic bearing, and having abandoned all worldly undertakings, came to take refuge with the upādhyāya. Zhongxin said, "I come from a border region on the shore of the sea, having traveled far to take refuge with the upādhyāya." Having spoken, he made obeisance. The upādhyāya said, "The Way has neither far nor near; why speak of far and near?" Zhongxin addressed the upādhyāya: "The matter of birth and death is great. Having heard that the upādhyāya also possesses great compassion, I have come to take refuge with the upādhyāya, not for the sake of clothing and food. I humbly pray that the upādhyāya will look upon me with understanding." The upādhyāya asked, "Scholars are full of many thoughts and anxieties; if you can let them go, you may stay here at will." Zhongxin replied, "If I can hear the Way, dying [for it] would be fine. I do not spare body and life, how much less mere words?" The upādhyāya then preached the Dharma for him: "The Honoured One, the Greatly Awakened Honoured One, taught the dharma of generating no-thought. The mind of no-thought and non-arising is an ever-living, unextinguished mind. At all times be completely free: do not pursue, do not turn; do not float, do not sink; do not flow, do not gush; do not move, do not shake; do not come, do not go. Moving and sitting vividly and vigorously—moving and sitting are always Chan." Zhongxin, hearing this, remained still and unmoving. When the upādhyāya saw this, [he knew that Zhongxin] had awakened to and understood the supreme vehicle, and changed his name to Chaoji. In the mountains, he constantly sat in Chan in secret at night without letting others know; when day broke, he would return to his former place. There was Dharma Master Falun, who understood the commentaries and sub-commentaries on the Nirvāṇa [Sūtra], was learned and intelligent, and looked around him as if no one were his equal, considering himself foremost. He therefore went to the mountain gate to debate with the upādhyāya. Catching sight from afar of the upādhyāya's majestic spiritual power, extraordinary and distinct from that of other monks, Master Falun stepped forward, made obeisance, and inquired after his wellbeing. The upādhyāya, seeing him from afar, knew he was a dharma master, and had him sit down. After he was seated, the upādhyāya asked, "Which scriptures and treatises does the Dharma Master understand?" He replied, "I understand the Nirvāṇa Sūtra." The upādhyāya asked, "How do you understand the Nirvāṇa Sūtra?" The Dharma Master then cited various commentaries and sub-commentaries. The upādhyāya spoke, saying, "These are not the Nirvāṇa Sūtra; these are all spoken words. Spoken words are the root of the three realms, whereas the true and real is the cause for extinguishing suffering. Spoken words are mutable, whereas the true and real is free from words. Bodhisattva Noble and Virtuous King asked, 'World-Honoured One, what is meant by Great Nirvāṇa?' The Buddha said, 'The exhaustion of all stirred thoughts and the cessation of the calculating mind—such a characteristic of dharmas is called Great Nirvāṇa.' Why do you take the false characteristics of spoken words to be nirvāṇa? If you explain it like this, you do not understand it. How can you say you understand nirvāṇa?" Falun, hearing this, dared not say a word in response. The upādhyāya said, "Conditioned existence is conventional truth; absence of intrinsic nature is the ultimate truth. To say one 'understands' is itself a fetter; cleverness is the contrivance of Māra. No-thought is no-fetter; no-thought is no-bondage. No-thought is nirvāṇa; having thought is birth and death. No-thought is true intelligence; having thought is darkness and dullness. No-thought has no other; no-thought has no self. In no-thought there is no Buddha; in no-thought there are no sentient beings. In the great compassionate wisdom of prajñā, there is neither Buddha nor sentient beings. There is no Buddha who attains nirvāṇa, nor is there a nirvāṇa of a Buddha. One who understands in this way is one who truly understands; if one does not understand in this way, one is an ordinary person attached to characteristics." Master Falun, hearing this, bowed his head to the ground in refuge, saying, "This petty monk has transmitted delusion for a long time; today, having encountered the upādhyāya, my darkened eyes see clearly once again. I humbly pray that the upādhyāya will compassionately take me under his care." There were two brothers who were monks at Chanlin Temple in Suizhou, both of whom maintained the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra; people of the time called them the 'Dharma Flower Shis.' The elder brother's dharma name was Master Yixing, and the younger brother's name was Master Huiming. They came to take refuge. The upādhyāya asked, "Where have you come from? What teachings have you studied previously?" Huiming said, "We come from Suizhou. We uphold the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra, reciting it three times a day." The upādhyāya asked, "The 'Chapter on Easy Practice' says: 'All dharmas are empty and without existence, having no permanence, neither arising nor perishing: this is called the place frequented by the wise.'" After Huiming and his brother had spoken, [they added,] "We petty monks are mired in delusion, only knowing how to recite according to the letter, not yet understanding the true meaning. We humbly pray that the upādhyāya will guide those who are blind and lost." The upādhyāya then preached the Dharma for them: "The characteristic of the quiescence of all dharmas cannot be declared in words. This dharma cannot be demonstrated; the characteristics of words are quiescent. Transcending characteristics and extinguishing characteristics, it is the ever-quiescent characteristic, ultimately returning to emptiness. Always skillfully entering the practice of emptiness and quiescence, the treasuries of Buddhas as numerous as the sands of the Ganges are known in a single thought. If you wish to sit in the mountains, will you be able to stop reciting and studying, and always remain leisurely and at ease, or not?" Huiming and his brother knew that recitation and study were not ultimate, which was why they had come to take refuge with the upādhyāya. The upādhyāya then spoke to them again: "No-thought is no-birth; no-thought is no-far; no-thought is no-near. No-thought is the 'Dharma Flower Shi'; having thought is the 'Shi of the Dharma Flower.' No-thought is turning the Dharma Flower; having thought is being turned by the Dharma Flower. At the very moment of no-thought, no-thought does not exist of itself." Hearing this, Huiming and his brother made a firm resolution and remained in the mountains, always delighting in physical labor. The wife and daughter of Vice-Prefect Murong of Qingzhou, aspiring to seek the supreme vehicle, came with their whole family, young and old, to pay homage to the upādhyāya. The upādhyāya asked the lady, "Where do you come from?" She replied, "Your disciple has heard from afar that the upādhyāya possesses great compassion, and has therefore come to pay homage." The upādhyāya then preached various essential dharmas for them.