景德傳燈錄 22.42

22.42

Chan Master Cheng of Jianshan in Gao'an County, Hongzhou. On the day of opening the hall, a monk asked, "The regional governor invites your instruction; how does the upādhyāya hold forth on the school's teaching?" The Master said, "Do you still hear it?" The monk said, "If that is so, then the great assembly has something to rely on." The Master said, "Still you do not hear." [The monk] asked, "What is the sword of the Dharma King?" The Master said, "What a pity!" [The monk] said, "What is the sword of the human king?" The Master said, "Dust buries the shoes beneath the bed; wind stirs the kerchief on the rack." [The monk] asked, "The teachings of the Buddha's lifetime guide the present day; I do not know how the ancestors and patriarchs instruct people." The Master said, "Someone has already asked about the teachings of the Buddha's lifetime." [The monk] said, "How does the upādhyāya instruct people?" The Master said, "Sorrowful is the red amaranth before the courtyard: year after year producing leaves, never bearing flowers." [The monk] asked, "The old year has departed, and the new year has arrived. Is there anyone who does not receive the year?" The Master said, "How?" The monk said, "If that is so, then they do not receive the year." The Master said, "Above the city walls the new year's horn has sounded; before the window the old year's lamp still burns." The monk said, "What is the old year's lamp?" The Master said, "The thirtieth day of the twelfth month."