景德傳燈錄 28.4

28.4

Chan Master Daji Daoyi of Jiangxi addressed the assembly, saying: "The Way does not require cultivation; just do not defile it. What is defilement? As long as there is a mind of birth and death, contriving and pursuing—all of this is defilement. If you wish to understand the Way directly, ordinary mind is the Way. What is meant by 'ordinary mind' is: without contrivance, without right and wrong, without taking and rejecting, without annihilation and permanence, without ordinary beings and sages. A sūtra says: 'It is neither the practice of ordinary people nor the practice of worthies and sages; this is the practice of bodhisattvas.' Just now, walking, standing, sitting, and lying down, responding to situations and engaging with things—all of this is the Way. The Way is precisely the Dharma realm, and even wonderful functions as numerous as the sands of the Ganges do not go outside the Dharma realm. If it were not so, how could one speak of the 'mind-ground dharma-gate'? How could one speak of the 'inexhaustible lamp'? All dharmas are mind-dharmas; all names are mind-names. The myriad dharmas are all born from the mind; the mind is the root of the myriad dharmas. A sūtra says: 'Because one recognizes the mind and penetrates the root, one is called a śramaṇa.' Names are equal, meanings are equal, all dharmas are equal—purely one without mixture. If within the teachings one attains freedom according to the time: if one establishes the Dharma realm, everything is the Dharma realm; if one establishes suchness, everything is suchness; if one establishes principle, all dharmas are entirely principle; if one establishes phenomena, all dharmas are entirely phenomena. Raise one and a thousand follow; principle and phenomena are not different. All are wonderful functions; there is no other principle besides. All come from the revolution of the mind. For example, the reflections of the moon are many, but the real moon is not many; the sources of water are many, but the nature of water is not many; the myriad phenomena are many, but space is not many; the doctrines spoken are many, but unhindered wisdom is not many. The various establishments all stem from the one mind. To establish is permissible; to sweep away is also permissible. All are wonderful functions. The wonderful functions are entirely oneself. It is not that apart from the real there is a place of establishment; the place of establishment is precisely the real, and all is one's own substance. If it were not so, who else could it be? All dharmas are Buddha-dharmas. All dharmas are liberation; liberation is suchness. All dharmas do not go outside of suchness. Walking, standing, sitting, and lying down are all inconceivable functions that do not depend on time and season. A sūtra says: 'Everywhere, in all places, there is a Buddha.' A Buddha is one of capable benevolence, possessing wisdom and skill in matching faculties and dispositions; he can shatter all sentient beings' nets of doubt and bring them to escape bonds such as existence and non-existence. Sentiments of ordinary and holy are exhausted; person and dharmas are both empty. Turning the incomparable wheel, he transcends numbers and quantities. What he does is without hindrance, penetrating both phenomena and principle. Like clouds rising in the sky, suddenly present and then non-existent, leaving no obstructive trace; like drawing figures on water, neither arising nor ceasing. This is great tranquil extinction. When bound, it is called the tathāgatagarbha; when freed from bondage, it is called the great Dharma body. The Dharma body is infinite, its substance neither increases nor decreases; it can be large, can be small, can be square, can be round. Responding to things it manifests forms, like the moon in the water. Surging with functioning, it establishes no roots. It does not exhaust the conditioned, nor does it abide in the unconditioned. The conditioned is the unconditioned's functioning; the unconditioned is the conditioned's support. Because it does not abide in support, it is said to have no support, like space. The meaning of the mind's arising and ceasing, and the meaning of the mind's suchness: as for the mind's suchness, it is like a bright mirror reflecting images. The mirror is a metaphor for the mind; the images are a metaphor for the dharmas. If the mind grasps at dharmas, it engages external causes and conditions—this is the meaning of arising and ceasing. Not grasping at dharmas is the meaning of suchness. Śrāvakas see the Buddha-nature through hearing; bodhisattvas see the Buddha-nature with their eyes. Penetrating that there is no duality is called the nature of equality. The nature has no difference, but its functioning is not the same. In delusion, it is consciousness; in awakening, it is wisdom. Conforming to principle is awakening; conforming to phenomena is delusion. Being deluded is being deluded about one's own original mind; being awakened is being awakened to one's own original nature. Once awakened, eternally awakened, never again deluded. Just as when the sun comes out, it does not join with darkness, so when the sun of wisdom comes out, it does not coexist with the darkness of afflictions. When you realize the mind and sensory conditions, vain thoughts do not arise. Once vain thoughts do not arise, that is the patient acceptance of the non-arising of dharmas. Originally existing and now existing, it does not depend on cultivating the Way or sitting in meditation. Not cultivating and not sitting—this is the pure Chan of the Tathāgata. Nowadays, if you see this principle truly and correctly, not creating karma, passing your life according to your lot, with one robe and one bowl accompanying your sitting and rising, your precepts and conduct further perfumed, accumulating pure karma—if you can only be like this, what worry is there that you will not penetrate? You have been standing long, everyone; take care."