景德傳燈錄 16.5

16.5

Chan Master Xuefeng Yicun of Fuzhou was a native of Nan'an in Quanzhou. His surname was Zeng. His family had served the Buddha for generations. From birth, the master abhorred pungent roots and meat. While in swaddling clothes, whenever he heard the sounds of bells and Sanskrit chanting, or saw banners, flowers, and images set up, his countenance would unfailingly be moved by them. At the age of twelve, he accompanied his father on a visit to Yujian Monastery in Putian. Seeing Vinaya Master Qingxuan, he quickly bowed and said, "This is my master," and thereupon remained to attend upon him. At seventeen, he shaved his head and went to pay respects to Great Master Changzhao of Mount Furong. Changzhao stroked him and recognized his talent. Later, he went to Baosha Monastery in Youzhou to receive full ordination. Having long frequented Chan assemblies, his karmic conditions harmonized with Deshan. During the Xiantong era of the Tang, he returned to Minzhong, climbed Mount Xianggu (Elephant Bone), and founded a monastery on Xuefeng (Snow Peak). Students and followers flocked to him like birds. Emperor Yizong bestowed upon him the title "Great Master Zhenjue" and also granted him a purple kāṣāya.

A monk asked, "Are the ancestral intention and the doctrinal intention identical or distinct?"
The master said, "The sound of thunder shakes the earth, but inside the chamber it is not heard."
He also said, "For what matter has the ācārya gone on pilgrimage?"

[A monk] asked, "When my eyes are fundamentally correct, yet because of the master they become skewed, what then?"
The master said, "Being confused, you meet Bodhidharma."
[The monk] asked, "Where are my eyes?"
The master said, "How could you not obtain them from a master?"

[A monk] asked, "Having shaved the head, dyed the robes, and received the shelter of the Buddha, why is one not permitted to identify with the Buddha?"
The master said, "A good thing is not as good as nothing."

The master asked a lecture master, "The two characters 'Thus have' (ru shi) belong entirely to the sectional analysis. What is the fundamental text?"
The lecture master had no reply. (Upādhyāya Wuyun said in his place, "Divide it into three more sections.")

[A monk] asked, "Someone asked, 'Among the three bodies, which body does not fall into various reckonings?' The ancient said, 'I am constantly earnest regarding this.' What is the meaning?"
The master said, "The old fellow went up Mount Dong nine times."
The monk intended to ask again. The master said, "Drag this monk out!"

[A monk] asked, "What is the matter right before one's face?"
The master said, "A thousand miles is not yet far."

[A monk] asked, "What is the mark of a great man?"
The master said, "Looking up in reverence, you have a share."

[A monk] asked, "What matter did Mañjuśrī and Vimalakīrti discuss together?"
The master said, "The meaning has fallen away."

A monk asked, "When one is still and without reliance, what then?"
The master said, "It is still a sickness."
[The monk] asked, "What about after turning around?"
The master said, "The boatman goes down to Yangzhou."

[A monk] asked, "I understand that ancients have had the saying..."
The master then assumed a reclining posture for a good while, got up, and said, "What were you asking?"
The monk brought it up again. The master said, "A fellow who lives in vain and dies to no purpose!"

[A monk] asked, "When arrow points meet head-on, what then?"
The master said, "A skilled hand does not hit the mark."
The monk said, "When the whole eye does not aim at a target, what then?"
The master said, "It is no harm to be a skilled hand according to one's lot."

[A monk] asked, "An ancient said, 'Meeting a person who has attained the Way on the road, do not greet them with speech or silence.' I wonder, what should one greet them with?"
The master said, "Go drink some tea."

The master asked a monk, "Where have you come from?"
[The monk] replied, "I come from Shenguang (Divine Light)."
The master said, "By day it is called sunlight, and by night it is called firelight. What is divine light?"
The monk had no reply. The master spoke in his place: "Sunlight, firelight."

Director of Meals Qi asked, "An ancient said, 'Only when one knows there is a matter transcendent to the Buddha does one have a share of speaking.' What is speaking?"
The master grabbed him and said, "Speak! Speak!"
Qi had no reply. The master kicked him over. When Qi got up, sweat was pouring from him.

The master asked a monk, "Where have you come from?"
The monk said, "I recently left Zhezhong."
The master said, "Did you come by boat or by land?"
[The monk] said, "I did not take either route."
The master said, "How could you have arrived here?"
[The monk] said, "What obstruction is there?"
The master then struck him.

[A monk] asked, "An ancient said, 'Presenting it right before one's face.'"
The master said, "Yes."
[The monk] asked, "What is presenting it right before one's face?"
The master said, "Blue sky! Blue sky!"

The master asked a monk, "How old is this water buffalo?"
The monk had no reply. The master spoke in his place: "Seventy-seven."
The monk asked, "Why does the upādhyāya make yourself a water buffalo?"
The master said, "What crime or fault is there?"

A monk was taking leave. The master asked, "Where are you going?"
[The monk] said, "I am going to pay respects to the upādhyāya of Jingshan."
The master said, "If Jingshan asks you, 'What is the Buddhadharma like in this place?', how will you reply?"
[The monk] said, "I will reply when he asks."
The master struck him with his staff. He soon brought this up to Daofu (Daofu was Great Master Shunde of Jingqing), saying, "Where was this monk's fault that he took a beating?"
Fu said, "He thoroughly exhausted Jingshan with his questioning."
The master said, "Jingshan is in Zhezhong; how could he have thoroughly exhausted him with questioning?"
Fu said, "Haven't you heard it said: 'A distant question, a near reply'?"
The master then let it drop. (Qi of Dongchan said, "If that monk understood Xuefeng's meaning, why was he struck? If he did not understand, why strike him either? Tell me, where was his fault? Even though Jingqing analyzed it for him like father and son, it also seems much like crowning his clumsy ugliness. Do you understand? And when Xuefeng simply let it drop, did he approve of him or not approve of him?")

One day, the master said to Huileng (Leng was Changqing), "I saw Guishan ask Yangshan, 'Where have the holy ones gone?' He said, 'Perhaps in the heavens, perhaps in the human realm.' Tell me, what was Yangshan's meaning?"
Leng said, "If one asks about the place where the holy ones appear and disappear, saying it like that will not do."
The master said, "You completely disapprove. If suddenly someone asks you, how will you speak?"
Leng said, "I would only say, 'Wrong.'"
The master said, "Is it that you are not wrong?"
Leng said, "How is it different from wrong?"

The master asked a monk, "Where have you come from?"
[The monk] replied, "I left Jiangxi."
The master said, "How far apart are Jiangxi and this place?"
[The monk] said, "Not far."
The master held up his whisk and said, "Are they separated by this?"
[The monk] said, "If they are separated by this, then they are far away."
The master then struck him.

[A monk] asked, "This student has just entered the monastery and begs the master to point out an entrance path."
The master said, "I would rather crush my own body into fine dust than ever dare to blind the eyes of a single monk."

[A monk] asked, "I do not ask about the matters after the forty-nine years; what about the matters before the forty-nine years?"
The master struck him right across the mouth with his whisk.

A monk took leave to go study with Lingyun. He asked, "What about before the Buddha appeared in the world?"
Lingyun raised his whisk.
He also asked, "What about after he appeared in the world?"
Lingyun also raised his whisk.
The monk then returned. The master asked, "Ācārya, you only recently departed; why have you returned so quickly?"
The monk said, "When I reached that place, my questions on the Buddhadharma did not correspond, so I returned."
The master said, "What matter did you ask?"
The monk recounted the earlier dialogue.
The master said, "You ask, and I will speak for you."
The monk then asked, "What about before the Buddha appeared in the world?"
The master raised his whisk.
He also asked, "What about after he appeared in the world?"
The master lowered his whisk.
The monk bowed.
The master then struck him. (Later, a monk related this to Xuansha. Xuansha said, "Do you wish to understand? I will give you a metaphor. It is like a person selling a plot of garden: north, south, east, and west have all been contracted and completed at once, but there is a small tree in the middle that still belongs to me." Chou of Chongshou said, "Was it that he struck him at the point of his understanding, or was there another principle?")

Once, citing the Sixth Patriarch's words: "It is not the wind moving; it is not the banner moving; it is the minds of you benevolent ones that are moving,"
the master said, "Great or small, the ancestral master had a dragon's head and a snake's tail; he deserves twenty blows with the staff."
At that time, Sthavira Fu of Taiyuan was standing in attendance, and hearing this, he ground his teeth. The master added, "The words I just spoke also deserve twenty blows with the staff." (Xitang of Yunju said, "Where was the ancestral master's dragon's head and snake's tail, that he deserves a beating? And when Xuefeng said of himself, 'I also deserve to take the staff,' tell me, what was the intention of the Buddhadharma? The sthaviras who have long been in the assembly all know; but how should you brothers of initial faculties understand it?" Qi of Dongchan said, "When Xuefeng spoke like this, was he inspecting with another place to land? In the assembly, it is called withdrawing from one's own fault. Setting aside 'withdrawing from fault,' what about the ancestral master saying, 'It is not the wind moving, it is not the banner moving'?")

The master asked Huiquan, "What is your place of entry like?"
Quan said, "I have already deliberated with the upādhyāya."
The master said, "Where did we deliberate?"
[Quan] said, "Where have you been?"
The master said, "What is your place of entry like?"
Quan had no reply. The master struck him.

Quantan asked, "In the open plain of shallow grass, the elks gather in herds. How does one shoot the leader among the elks?"
The master called out, "Quantan!"
Tan answered, "Yes?"
The master said, "Go drink some tea."

The master asked a monk, "Where have you recently left?"
The monk said, "I left Guishan. I once asked, 'What is the meaning of the ancestral master's coming from the West?' Guishan sat firmly in his seat."
The master said, "Did you approve of him?"
The monk said, "I did not approve of him."
The master said, "Guishan is an ancient Buddha; go quickly to bow and repent!"
Xuansha said, "The old fellow on the mountain peak has missed Guishan." (Qi of Dongchan said, "Where is the missed mark? Was it indeed a miss? Do not immediately understand it like that! If you understand it like that, then you haven't yet understood Guishan's meaning. Just as Xuefeng said, 'Guishan is an ancient Buddha; go quickly to repent,' was he verifying Guishan or praising Guishan? This matter is difficult to scrutinize closely. It is also not difficult to see well.")

[A monk] asked, "Where this student cannot speak, I invite the master to speak."
The master said, "For the sake of the Dharma, I spare people."

The master held up his whisk and showed it to a monk. The monk immediately went out. (Changqing Leng related this to Wang Yanbin of Quanzhou and said, "This monk ought to have been called back and given a round of blows with the staff." Bin said, "What mental disposition was that of the upādhyāya?" Leng said, "How nearly he was let off!")

The master asked Huileng, "An ancient said, 'The front three-three and the rear three-three.' What was the meaning?"
Leng immediately went out. (Ehu gave an alternate response: "Yes.")

The master asked a monk, "Where have you come from?"
[The monk] replied, "I come from Lantian."
The master said, "Why didn't you enter the grass?" (Changqing Leng said, "Perilous!")

[A monk] asked, "What is the great matter?"
The master took the monk's hand and said, "To whom is the sthavira putting this question?"

A monk bowed. The master struck him with five blows of his staff.
The monk said, "Where was my fault?"
The master struck him with five more blows and shouted him out.

The master asked a monk, "Where have you come from?"
The monk said, "I come from beyond the Lingnan passes."
The master said, "Did you happen to meet Bodhidharma?"
The monk said, "Blue sky and bright sun."
The master said, "What about yourself?"
The monk said, "What else could there be?"
The master then struck him.

The master was seeing off a monk. Walking three or four paces, he called out, "Sthavira!"
The monk turned his head.
The master said, "Take good care along the road."

A monk asked, "When knocking with the gavel and raising the whisk do not match the fundamental vehicle, what does the upādhyāya do?"
The master held up his whisk.
The monk held his own head and walked out. The master did not look back. (Fayan spoke in his place: "Great assembly, look at this battle commander!")

A monk asked, "Are the three vehicles and twelve divisions of the teachings expounded for the sake of ordinary beings or not expounded for the sake of ordinary beings?"
The master said, "They are not worth a single tune of 'Willow Branches.'"

The master said to Jingqing, "In ancient times, a senior master led an official on an inspection of the hall, saying, 'This whole assembly consists entirely of monks who study the Buddhadharma.' The official said, 'Though gold dust is precious, what about it?' The senior master had no reply." Jingqing spoke in his place: "Hitherto casting a brick to draw jade." (Fayan gave an alternate reply: "Why should an official value his ears and despise his eyes?")

The master took the hall, held up his whisk, and said, "This is for those of medium and low [faculties]."
A monk asked, "What about when a person of the very highest [faculties] comes?"
The master held up his whisk.
The monk said, "This is for those of medium and low [faculties]."
The master struck him.

[A monk] asked, "What was the National Teacher's meaning in calling his attendant three times?"
The master got up and entered the abbot's quarters.

The master asked a monk, "Where were you this summer?"
[The monk] said, "At Yongquan."
The master said, "Does it gush constantly or gush intermittently?"
[The monk] said, "The upādhyāya's question does not hit the mark."
The master said, "My question does not hit the mark?"
[The monk] said, "Yes."
The master then struck him.

During communal labor, on the road to the monastery's estate, they encountered a monkey. The master said, "This animal carries an ancient mirror on its back and plucks the mountain monk's rice stalks!"
A monk said, "Nameless for kalpas without beginning, why designate it as an ancient mirror?"
The master said, "A flaw has appeared."
The monk said, "What is the dying hurry? You don't even recognize the topic of conversation."
The master said, "It is this old monk's fault."

The Military Commissioner of Min presented a silver folding chair. A monk asked, "Having received such an offering from the Great Prince, how will the upādhyāya repay him?"
The master propped his hands against the ground and said, "Beat me lightly!" (A monk asked Shushan, "Xuefeng said, 'Beat me lightly.' What was the meaning?" Shushan said, "Sticking pickled melon on the head; the hanging tail touches the heels.")

[A monk] asked, "What about when one swallows Vairocana whole?"
The master said, "Did you return safely from Futang?"

The master said to the assembly, "If I speak of east and west, you chase after words and pursue phrases. If I act like an antelope hanging by its horns, where will you grope for me?" (A monk asked Baofu, "When Xuefeng had no verbal teaching and just acted like an antelope hanging by its horns, what then?" Baofu said, "Could it be that you cannot become Xuefeng's minor disciple?")

The master dwelt in Minchuan for more than forty years, and the students in winter and summer were never fewer than fifteen hundred. In the second year of Kaiping of the Liang (wuchen, 908 CE), in the spring, the third month, he showed signs of illness. The Military Commissioner of Min ordered a physician to examine him. The master said, "I have no illness," and in the end did not take the medicine. He left a verse transmitting the Dharma. In summer, on the second day of the fifth month, he went for an excursion to Lantian in the morning. In the evening, he returned and bathed. At midnight, he entered extinction. His age was eighty-seven; his monastic age was fifty-nine.