景德傳燈錄 16.4

16.4

Chan Master Quanhuo of Yantou in Ezhou was a native of Quanzhou. His surname was Ke. When young, he went to Venerable Yi of Qingyuan to have his head shaved. He went to Baoshou Monastery in Chang'an to receive the precepts, and studied various sections of the sūtras and vinaya. Roaming through the Chan groves, he became friends with Yicun of Xuefeng and Wensui of Qinshan. Travelling step by step from Daci Mountain in Yuhang, he went to Linji. Since Linji had entered nirvāṇa, he then called on Yangshan. As soon as he entered the gate, he lifted up his sitting mat and said, 'Upādhyāya!' Yangshan took his whisk and was about to raise it. The Master said, 'A fine hand, no doubt.' Later he visited Upādhyāya Deshan. Holding his sitting mat, he went up to the Dharma hall and looked around. Deshan said, 'What are you doing?' The Master shouted at him. Deshan said, 'Where is this old monk's fault?' The Master said, 'A double gong'an.' He then went down to the Sangha hall. Deshan said, 'This monk somewhat resembles an itinerant.' On the next day, [the Master] went up to pay his respects. Deshan said, 'Are you the newcomer who arrived yesterday, ācārya?' He replied, 'Yes.' Deshan said, 'Where did you learn to put on such false airs?' The Master said, 'I, Quanhuo, never deceive myself.' Deshan said, 'Hereafter you must not let down this old monk.' On another day, the Master entered the abbot's quarters, stood sideways at the door, and asked, 'Is it ordinary or is it holy?' Deshan gave a shout. The Master bowed. Someone recounted this to Dongshan. Dongshan said, 'If it were not Sthavira Huo, it would have been very hard to bear.' When the Master heard this, he said, 'Old man Dongshan does not know good from bad and has made a mistaken remark. At that time, with one hand I raised up, and with one hand I pressed down.' When Xuefeng was serving as the head cook at Deshan's monastery, one day the meal was late. Deshan, holding his bowl, went up to the Dharma hall. Xuefeng was drying meal towels and, seeing Deshan, immediately said, 'This old fellow—the bell has not rung and the drum has not sounded, where are you going carrying your bowl?' Deshan then returned to the abbot's quarters. Xuefeng recounted this to the Master. The Master said, 'Great Deshan though he is, he does not understand the final word.' When Deshan heard this, he had an attendant summon the Master to the abbot's quarters and asked, 'Do you not approve of this old monk?' The Master secretly conveyed his meaning. The next day, when Deshan ascended the hall, he was completely different from usual. The Master went to the front of the Sangha hall, clapped his hands, and laughed heartily, saying, 'How delightful that the old fellow understands the final word! Hereafter, no one in the world can do anything to him. Even so, it will only be for three years.' (Deshan indeed passed away three years later.) One day, the Master, Yicun of Xuefeng, and Wensui of Qinshan were gathered talking. Yicun suddenly pointed to a bowl of water. Sui said, 'When the water is clear, the moon appears.' Cun said, 'When the water is clear, the moon does not appear.' The Master kicked over the water bowl and walked away. From this time on, Sui took Dongshan as his master, while the two worthies Cun and Huo together became Dharma heirs of Deshan. The Master and Cun took leave of Deshan together. Deshan asked, 'Where are you going?' The Master said, 'We are temporarily taking leave of the Upādhyāya to go down the mountain.' Deshan said, 'How will you be hereafter?' The Master said, 'We will not forget.' He said, 'On what basis do you say this?' The Master said, 'Have you not heard: "Only when wisdom surpasses the master is one fit to receive the transmission; if wisdom equals the master, it diminishes the master's virtue by half"?' He said, 'So it is, so it is. You should preserve it well.' The two worthies bowed and withdrew. Cun returned to Minchuan and resided at Xuefeng on Elephant Bone Mountain. The Master had a hermitage at Wolong Mountain by Lake Dongting, where disciples gathered like clouds. A monk asked, 'When one has no master, is there still a way out or not?' The Master said, 'Before sound, the ancient felt is rotten.' He asked, 'What happens when one comes grandly and openly?' The Master said, 'It pierces the eyes.' He asked, 'What is the intention of the ancestral master?' The Master said, 'Move Mount Lu here, and I will tell you.' One day, the Master ascended the hall and addressed the assembly, 'I once investigated the Nirvāṇa Sūtra for seven or eight years and came across two or three passages of text that seemed like the talk of patched-robe monks.' He also said, 'Enough, enough!' At that time, a monk came forward, bowed, and requested the Master to cite them. The Master said, 'The meaning of my teaching is like the three dots of the letter *i*. The first dot is placed toward the east, dotting open the eyes of the bodhisattvas. The second dot is placed toward the west, dotting the life-root of the bodhisattvas. The third dot is placed toward the zenith, dotting the crowns of the bodhisattvas. This is the meaning of the first passage.' He also said, 'The meaning of my teaching is like Maheśvara cleaving open his forehead and setting an eye upright therein. This is the meaning of the second passage.' He also said, 'The meaning of my teaching is like a poison-smeared drum: when struck once, all who hear it near and far perish; it is also said that they die together. This is the meaning of the third passage.' At that time, Sthavira Xiaoyan asked, 'What is the poison-smeared drum?' The Master pressed his knees with both hands, bent his body forward, and said, 'When Han Xin attended court.' Yan had nothing to say. A monk from Jiashan's assembly arrived at Shishuang's place. Upon entering the gate, he immediately said, 'Greetings.' Shishuang said, 'No need, ācārya.' The monk said, 'In that case, take care.' He also went to Yantou and, as before, said, 'Greetings.' The Master hissed, 'Hsu!' The monk said, 'In that case, take care,' and was just turning his steps. The Master said, 'Although he is a youngster, he knows how to carry himself.' That monk returned and recounted this to Jiashan. Jiashan said, 'Does the assembly understand?' The assembly made no answer. Jiashan said, 'If no one can speak, this old monk will not spare his two eyebrows to speak.' He then said, 'Although Shishuang has a sword that kills people, he does not yet have a sword that brings people to life.' The Master and Luoshan were selecting a site for a stūpa. On the way, Luoshan suddenly said, 'Upādhyāya!' The Master looked back and said, 'What is it?' Luoshan raised his hand and said, 'Here is a fine plot of land.' The Master scolded him, 'You melon-seller of Guazhou!' Walking a few more li, as they strolled about, Luoshan bowed and asked, 'Upādhyāya, did you not spend thirty years at Dongshan yet not approve of Dongshan?' The Master said, 'Yes.' He asked further, 'Upādhyāya, are you not the Dharma heir of Deshan, yet also do not approve of Deshan?' The Master said, 'Yes.' He said, 'Leaving aside not approving of Deshan, what is it that Dongshan lacked?' The Master remained silent for a long while and said, 'Dongshan is a fine Buddha, but he simply lacks light.' A monk asked, 'When a sharp sword cuts through all under heaven, who bears the brunt?' The Master said, 'Secretly plotting.' The monk asked again. The Master scolded him, 'Get out, you dull fellow!' He asked, 'What is it like when it does not pass through past or present?' The Master said, 'Stretching out aloft.' He asked, 'How about the affairs of past and present?' The Master said, 'Let them rot.' The Master asked a monk, 'Where have you come from?' He replied, 'From the Western Capital.' The Master said, 'Now that Huang Chao has passed, have you recovered your sword?' He replied, 'I have recovered it.' The Master stretched out his neck in a posture to receive the blade. The monk said, 'Master, your head has fallen!' The Master laughed heartily. (That monk later went to Xuefeng and recounted these words, but was driven down the mountain with strikes of the staff.) He asked, 'When two dragons fight over a pearl, who gets it?' The Master said, 'Both are mistaken.' A monk asked Xuefeng, 'When śrāvakas see the nature, it is like seeing the moon at night; when bodhisattvas see the nature, it is like seeing the sun by day. I wonder, what is it like when the Upādhyāya sees the nature?' Xuefeng struck him three times with his staff. That monk later recounted the previous words and asked the Master. The Master gave him three slaps. A monk asked, 'Who is the master of the three realms?' The Master said, 'Do you know how to eat an iron rod?' Ruiyan asked, 'Who is the teacher of Vairocana?' The Master said, 'What did you say?' Ruiyan asked again. The Master said, 'You are not yet seventeen or eighteen.' He asked, 'In the midst of dust, how does one distinguish the master?' The Master said, 'A bronze gong filled to the brim with oil.' He asked, 'What happens when the bow is broken and the arrows are exhausted?' The Master said, 'Go.' He asked, 'What is the precise meaning within the cliff?' The Master said, 'Thank you for your instruction.' The monk said, 'Please, Upādhyāya, answer my question.' The Master said, 'Take care.' He asked, 'What is the Way?' The Master said, 'Take your worn-out straw sandals and throw them into the lake.' He asked, 'In a ten-thousand-fathom well, how can one reach the very bottom?' The Master said, 'Hūṃ!' The monk asked again. The Master said, 'It has passed beneath your feet.' He asked, 'What happens when the ancient sail is not unfurled?' The Master said, 'In the back garden, the donkey grazes on grass.' Thereafter, whenever people asked about Buddha, Dharma, the Way, or Chan, the Master would only make a hissing sound. And he often said to the assembly, 'When this old fellow passes away, he will give one great roar and depart.' After the Guangqi era of the Tang, bandits arose throughout the Central Plains and everyone fled elsewhere, but the Master dwelt upright and at ease. One day, a large band of brigands arrived and, reproaching him for not offering them food and drink, stabbed him with a blade. The Master remained composed in countenance, gave a great shout, and expired. The sound was heard for several tens of li. It was the eighth day of the fourth month in the dingwei year, the third year of the Guangqi era [887 CE]. His disciples later cremated him and obtained forty-nine relics (śarīra). The assembly erected a stūpa for him. His age was sixty. Emperor Xizong bestowed the posthumous title 'Great Master Qingyan', and the stūpa was named Chuchen ('Leaving the Dust').