景德傳燈錄 9.45.1

9.45.1

All Buddhas and all sentient beings are only the One Mind; there is no other dharma besides. From the beginningless past, this mind has never been born and has never perished. It is neither blue nor yellow, without form and without characteristic. It does not belong to being or non-being; it cannot be reckoned as new or old; it is neither long nor short, neither large nor small. It transcends all limitations, designations, traces, and dualities. Its very essence is just it; to stir a thought is immediately to err. It is like empty space, having no boundaries and being immeasurable. Only this One Mind is itself the Buddha; between Buddha and sentient beings there is no difference whatsoever. Yet sentient beings cling to characteristics and seek externally, drifting ever further away, causing a Buddha to search for a Buddha, using the mind to grasp the mind; even exhausting kalpas and their lives to the end, they can never attain it. They do not know that if they cease thought and forget deliberation, the Buddha will spontaneously appear before them. 〇 This mind is itself the Buddha; the Buddha is itself sentient beings. Sentient beings are themselves the Buddha; the Buddha is itself the mind. When functioning as sentient beings, this mind does not diminish; when functioning as the Buddhas, this mind does not increase. Even as for the six perfections, myriad practices, and merits as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, they are originally complete within oneself, needing no cultivation or addition. Meeting conditions, it manifests; when conditions cease, it is quiescent. If one does not resolve to have faith in this, but wishes to cultivate by clinging to characteristics in order to seek efficacy, these are all delusions, contrary to the Way. This mind is itself the Buddha; there is no other Buddha, nor is there any other mind. This mind is pure and bright, like empty space, without the slightest appearance. To raise the mind and stir a thought immediately deviates from the essence of Dharma; that is clinging to characteristics. From beginningless time, there has never been a Buddha who clings to characteristics. Cultivating the six perfections and myriad practices wishing to attain Buddhahood is just gradual stages; from beginningless time, there has never been a Buddha of gradual stages. Only awakening to the One Mind, with not the least dharma to be attained, this is the true Buddha. The Buddha and sentient beings are identical in the One Mind, like empty space, unmixed and indestructible. It is like the great sun shining upon the four continents: when the sun shines, brightness pervades the world, yet empty space has never become bright; when the sun sets, darkness pervades the world, yet empty space has never become dark. The phenomena of light and dark alternately displace one another, but the nature of empty space remains vast and unchanging. The mind of Buddhas and sentient beings is also like this. If one views the Buddha as having the characteristics of purity, radiance, and liberation, and views sentient beings as having the characteristics of defilement, darkness, birth, and death, one who forms such an understanding will, even through kalpas numerous as the sands of the Ganges, never attain bodhi; this is because of clinging to characteristics. Only this One Mind, with not the slightest dharma as tiny as a mote of dust to be attained, is itself the Buddha. Nowadays, students of the Way do not awaken to this mind essence; instead, they generate mind upon mind, seeking the Buddha externally and cultivating while clinging to characteristics—all of these are bad dharmas, not the path to bodhi. 〇 Making offerings to all Buddhas of the ten directions is not as good as making offerings to one person without mind; yet such a one cannot be found. One without mind is one without any mind at all. The essence of suchness is internally and externally like wood and stone, unmoving and unturning; internally and externally like empty space, unobjectionable and unhindered. It is without subject and object, without location, without characteristics, and without gain or loss. Those who approach do not dare enter this Dharma, fearing to fall into emptiness with nowhere to alight; hence they gaze at the precipice and retreat. Mañjuśrī represents principle; Samantabhadra represents practice. Principle is the principle of true emptiness without hindrance; practice is the endless practice free from characteristics. Avalokiteśvara represents great compassion; Mahāsthāmaprāpta represents great wisdom. Vimalakīrti means 'pure name': purity is the nature, name is the characteristic; the nature and characteristics not being different is called 'pure name'. What all the great bodhisattvas represent is possessed by everyone, not departing from the One Mind. To awaken to it is just it. Nowadays, students of the Way do not awaken within their own minds, but seek outside the mind, clinging to characteristics and grasping at objects; all of this runs counter to the Way. As for the sands of the Ganges River, the Buddha spoke of this sand: over this sand, Buddhas, bodhisattvas, Indra, Brahmā, and all devas walk and pass, yet the sand does not rejoice; cattle, sheep, worms, and ants tread upon it, yet the sand does not get angry; precious jewels and fragrant scents do not make the sand greedy; feces, urine, and foul filth do not make the sand disgusted. 〇 This mind is the mind of no-mind, free from all characteristics; sentient beings and Buddhas have no distinction. If one can simply be without mind, that is the ultimate. If a student of the Way does not directly become without mind, then even cultivating for countless kalpas, they will never accomplish the Way, being bound by the meritorious practices of the three vehicles and unable to attain liberation. However, realization of this mind may be slow or swift: there are those who, hearing the Dharma, attain no-mind in a single thought; there are those who attain no-mind only upon reaching the ten faiths, the ten abodes, the ten practices, and the ten dedications; there are those who attain no-mind only upon reaching the ten stages. Whether long or short, once no-mind is attained, one abides; there is nothing more to cultivate and nothing more to realize. In reality, there is nothing attained, truly and genuinely so. Attaining it in a single thought and attaining it at the ten stages are exactly equal in efficacy, with no shallow or deep; it is merely that through kalpas one vainly endured hardship. Creating evil and creating good are both clinging to characteristics. Clinging to characteristics and creating evil, one vainly suffers transmigration; clinging to characteristics and creating good, one vainly suffers toil. None of this is as good as directly recognizing the original Dharma upon hearing these words. This Dharma is the mind; outside the mind there is no dharma. This mind is the Dharma; within the Dharma there is no mind. The mind is naturally without mind, and there is also no one who is without mind. If one uses the mind to be without mind, the mind immediately becomes existent. Just silently accord with it, cutting off all deliberation. Therefore it is said: 'The path of words is cut off, the place of mind's activity is extinguished.' This mind is the originally pure Buddha, possessed by everyone. Wriggling insects and animals are of one essence and no different from the Buddhas and bodhisattvas; it is only because of delusional thinking and discrimination that they create various karmas. As a result, upon the original Buddha there is truly not a single thing: only void and unobstructed, quiescent and peaceful, luminous, marvelous, tranquil, and blissful. Awaken and recognize it deeply yourself: directly here and now it is completely round and full, lacking nothing. Even if through three asaṃkhyeya kalpas of energetic cultivation one passes through all the stages, when realized in a single thought, one realizes only the Buddha originally within oneself; above this, not a single thing is added. Looking back upon the efficacy of countless kalpas, it was all delusional action in a dream. Therefore the Tathāgata said, 'In anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi, I truly had nothing attained.' If he had delusionally had anything attained, Dīpaṃkara would not have bestowed the prediction upon him. He also said, 'This Dharma is equal, without high or low; this is called bodhi.' This originally pure mind is equal with sentient beings, Buddhas, worlds, mountains and rivers, with form and without form, throughout the ten directions of space; all is equal without characteristics of self and other. This originally pure mind is constantly round, luminous, and shining everywhere. Worldly people do not awaken; they only recognize seeing, hearing, perceiving, and knowing as the mind, and being covered by seeing, hearing, perceiving, and knowing, they do not behold the pure, luminous original essence. But if directly here and now one is without mind, the original essence manifests of itself, like the great orb of the sun rising into empty space, illuminating the ten directions without any obstruction.