景德傳燈錄 23.48

23.48

Chan Master Deqian of Mingzhao in Wuzhou received the seal of transmission from Luoshan and did not stagnate in one corner. Setting forth the abstruse tenets, all the senior venerable monks feared his quick wit; among junior students, few dared to face his edge. While the Master was in the main hall of Zhaoqing in Quanzhou, pointing his finger at a wall painting, he asked a monk, "What spirit is that?" The monk said, "A good spirit who protects the Dharma." The Master said, "Where did it go at the time of the [Huichang] purge?" The monk had no reply. The Master then sent the monk to ask Attendant Yan. Yan said, "In which kalpa did you encounter this disaster?" The monk returned and related this to the Master. The Master said, "Even if Sthavira Yan were later to gather a community of a thousand, of what use would he be?" The monk then bowed and requested an alternative phrase. The Master said, "Where did it go?" Qing of Balu cited the story of Yangshan sticking the hoe [into the ground] and asked the Master, "Was the ancient's intention in folding his hands, or was his intention in sticking the hoe [into the ground]?" The Master said, "Sthavira Qing!" Qing answered, "Yes?" The Master said, "Have you ever dreamed of Yangshan?" Qing said, "I do not want a phrase tossed back; I only want to discuss it with the sthavira." The Master said, "If you want to discuss it, the abbot himself is an old master of fifteen hundred people." The Master arrived at Shuangyan. The Elder of Shuangyan, observing the Master's demeanor, said, "I have a question to put to the ācārya. If you can speak [a word], I will relinquish the monastery; if you cannot speak, I will not relinquish it. The Diamond Sūtra says: 'All Buddhas and all dharmas of the Buddhas emerge from this sūtra.' Now tell me, who spoke this sūtra?" The Master said, "Whether spoken or unspoken, set it all aside for the moment. Just what, Upādhyāya, do you definitely call 'this sūtra'?" Shuangyan had no reply. The Master cited the sūtra: "'All the worthy and noble ones are differentiated on the basis of unconditioned dharmas.' Thus taking unconditioned dharmas as the ultimate principle, relying on what are they differentiated? Furthermore, is differentiation a fault or not a fault? If it is a fault, all the worthy and noble ones entirely have faults; if it is not a fault, what definitely do you call 'differentiation'?" Shuangyan again was speechless. The Master said, "That is what Xuefeng said." While the Master occupied the first seat at Zhizhe Temple in Wuzhou, he usually did not accept clean water. The monk in charge of affairs asked, "Why do you not know what is soiled and clean, and refuse to accept the clean water?" The Master stepped down from his seat, picked up the clean pitcher, and said, "Is this clean?" The monk in charge of affairs had no words. The Master then dashed the clean pitcher to pieces. From then on, the Master's reputation in the Way spread far and wide. The assembly requested him to dwell at Mount Mingzhao to open the Dharma, and Chan practitioners arriving from the four quarters filled the hall and rooms. The Master addressed the assembly, saying, "It is rare to meet one who does not run when going downhill; agility is hard to find. If there is one who lives and dies together [with me], what harm is there in displaying it once?" A monk asked, "What is it like when the lion initially leaves its cave?" The Master said, "The swift hawk cannot catch up." The monk said, "What about after it has left the cave?" The Master said, "Ten thousand miles of swirling confusion." The monk said, "What about when it wants to leave but has not yet left?" The Master said, "Precipitous!" The monk said, "What about the transcendental matter?" The Master said, "A blink of an eye." [A monk] asked, "What is the single phrase that penetrates beyond the Dharma-body?" The Master said, "Turning a somersault behind the Big Dipper." [A monk] asked, "How should one direct oneself throughout the twelve periods of the day?" The Master said, "Cast it down upon the diamond ground!" [A monk] asked, "What matter did Mañjuśrī and Vimalakīrti discuss with each other?" The Master said, "The kudzu headcloth and gauze cap have already been set aside over there." [A monk] asked, "What is the Upādhyāya's house style?" The Master said, "One who can bite through it is an expert." [A monk] asked, "What kind of person can face a fire without smoke?" The Master said, "One who does not spare his eyebrows." The monk said, "Can the Upādhyāya also face it?" The Master said, "How many eyebrows do you say I have left?" The Master saw a newly arrived monk who had just entered the Dharma hall; he held up his whisk and then threw it down. The monk said, "Take care!" and went down immediately. The Master said, "An expert, an expert!" [A monk] asked, "What is it like when fully girded with a sword?" The Master said, "If suddenly encountering just such a moment, what then?" The monk had no reply. The Master asked Upādhyāya Guotai Dao, "An ancient said, 'Juzhi recited only a three-line dhāraṇī and immediately achieved a name surpassing all people.' How can one discard the three-line dhāraṇī for him and still immediately achieve a name surpassing all people?" Guotai raised one finger. The Master said, "Were it not for today, how could I have recognized the traveler from Guazhou?" The Master had an uncle in the Dharma who was severely ill at an administrative monastery. He sent a letter asking, "I have this serious illness and am currently suffering intense pain; I cannot find peace anywhere. Is there still someone who can save me?" The Master sent a reply saying, "Right upon your crown, hit by this diamond arrow, it penetrates straight through to the other side." There was a monk who had once been in the Master's Dharma assembly and took his leave to dwell in a hermitage for a year. Later he came to pay homage and said, "An ancient said, 'If you have not seen someone for three days, do not look upon him as before.'" The Master bared his chest and asked, "Tell me, how many hairs do I have covering my gall?" The monk had no reply. The Master then asked, "When did you leave the hermitage?" The monk said, "This morning." The Master said, "When you came, to whom did you entrust the broken-legged caldron?" The monk was again speechless. The Master then shouted him out. [A monk] asked, "I have heard that the Master has a saying: 'I dwell atop Mingzhao, reviving and transmitting the ancient Buddhas' mind.' What is the top of Mingzhao?" The Master said, "Change your eyes." The monk said, "What is the ancient Buddhas' mind?" The Master said, "Are you still short of breath?" [A monk] asked, "This student has grabbed the clouds and seized the waves to come up here; I request the Master to open his bowl." The Master said, "I'll crush your skull!" The monk said, "You must also fetch the saindhava." The Master then drove him out with his staff. The Master had another verse instructing the assembly, saying: