續傳燈錄 29.8

29.8

潭州龍牙智才禪師。舒州施氏子。早服勤於佛鑑法席。而局務不辭難。名已𥹢於叢林。及遊方迫暮至黃龍。適死心在三門問其所從來。既稱名則知為舒州太平。才莊主矣。翌日入室。死心問曰。會得最初句。便會末後句。會得末後句。便會最初句。最初末後拈放一邊。百丈野狐話作麼生會。師曰。入戶已知來見解。何須更舉轢中泥。心曰。新長老死在上座手裏也。師曰。語言雖有異至理且無差。心曰。如何是無差底事。師曰。不扣黃龍角焉知頷下珠。心便打。初住嶽麓。開堂日僧問。德山棒臨濟喝今日請師為拈掇。師曰。蘇嚕蘇嚕。曰蘇嚕蘇嚕還有西來意也無。師曰。蘇嚕蘇嚕。由是叢林呼為才蘇嚕。後遷龍牙。因欽宗皇帝登位。眾官請上堂。祝聖已就座。拈拄杖卓一下曰。朝奏疎中道本來奧境諸佛妙場。適來拄杖子已為諸人說了也。於斯悟去。理無不顯事無不周。如或未然不免別通箇消息。舜日重明四海清。滿天和氣樂昇平。延祥拄杖生歡喜。擲地山呼萬歲聲。擲拄杖下座。上堂彈指一下曰。彈指圓成八萬門。剎那滅却三祇劫。若也見得行得。健即經行困即歇。若也不會。再箇鸕鶿扛箇鼈。上堂舉。死心和尚小參曰。若論此事如人家有三子。第一子聰明智慧孝養父母。接待往來主掌家業。第二子兇頑狡猾貪婬嗜酒。倒街臥巷破壞家業。第三子盲聾瘖瘂菽麥不分。是事不能秖會喫飯。三人中黃龍要選一人用。更有四句。死中有活活中有死。死中常死活中常活。將此四句驗天下衲僧。師曰。喚甚麼作四句。三人姓甚名誰。若也識得與黃龍把手並行。更無纖毫間隔。如或未然不免借水獻華去也。三人共體用非用。四句同音空不空。欲識三人并四句。金烏初出一團紅。師居龍牙十三載。以清苦蒞眾。衲子敬畏。大師席公震遷住雲溪經四稔。紹興戊午八月望俄集眾付寺事。仍書偈曰。戊午中秋之日。出家住持事畢。臨行自己尚無。有甚虛空可覓。其垂訓如常。一十三日再集眾示問曰。涅槃生死盡是空華。佛及眾生並為增語。汝等諸人合作麼生。眾皆下語不契。師喝曰。苦苦。復曰。白雲涌地明月當天。言訖囅然而逝。火浴獲設利五色。併靈骨塔於寺之西北隅。

Chan Master Zhicai of Longya in Tanzhou was a native of the Shi clan of Shuzhou. In his early years, he served diligently in the Dharma assembly of Fojian, never shrinking from difficult monastery duties, and his name was already renowned throughout the monasteries. When he went on itinerant pilgrimage, he arrived at Huanglong towards evening. Sixin happened to be at the triple gate and asked where he had come from. Once he gave his name, [Sixin] knew that he was Cai the estate steward from Taiping in Shuzhou. The next day, he entered the abbot's room. Sixin asked, "If you understand the foremost phrase, then you understand the final phrase; if you understand the final phrase, then you understand the foremost phrase. Setting aside both the foremost and the final, how do you understand Baizhang's wild fox gong'an?" The Master said, "Having stepped into the doorway, I already knew your understanding; what need is there to bring up mud from the ruts?" Sixin said, "The new elder has died at the hands of this senior monk!" The Master said, "Though the words differ, the ultimate principle is not divergent." Sixin said, "What is this non-divergent thing?" The Master said, "Unless one touches the horns of the yellow dragon, how could one know the pearl beneath its chin?" Sixin then struck him. When he first took up residence at Yuelu, on the day of opening the hall, a monk asked, "Deshan's blow of the stick and Linji's shout—today we ask the Master to take them up." The Master said, "Sulu, sulu." [The monk] said, "Does 'sulu, sulu' still have the meaning of the Patriarch's coming from the West or not?" The Master said, "Sulu, sulu." Because of this, the monasteries called him 'Cai Sulu.' Later he moved to Longya. On the occasion of Emperor Qinzong ascending the throne, all the officials requested him to ascend the hall. Having offered prayers for the emperor, he took his seat, picked up his staff, struck it once, and said, "The memorial presented to the court states that this has originally been a profound realm and a wondrous site of all Buddhas. Just now, this staff has already explained it all for you. If you awaken right here, principle will be fully manifested and phenomena will be completely fulfilled. If this is not yet so, inevitably I must provide another piece of news: 'The Sun of Shun shines again, the four seas are pure; / Auspicious harmony fills the sky, rejoicing in peace and ascension. / This auspicious staff produces great joy; / Thrown to the ground, the mountains cry out, Long live the Emperor!'" He threw down his staff and stepped down from the seat. Ascending the hall, he snapped his fingers once and said, "With a snap of the fingers, the eighty thousand gates are perfectly realized; / In an instant, the three asaṃkhyeya kalpas are extinguished. / If you can see it and practice it: / When vigorous, do walking meditation; when tired, rest. / If you do not understand: / Again a cormorant carries a turtle." Ascending the hall, he cited Upādhyāya Sixin's informal gathering, which said, "If we speak of this matter, it is like a household having three sons: the first son is clever, wise, and filial to his parents, receiving guests and managing the family estate; the second son is fierce, stubborn, deceitful, lustful, and addicted to wine, collapsing in streets and sleeping in alleys, ruining the family estate; the third son is blind, deaf, mute, unable to distinguish beans from wheat, incapable of doing anything, only knowing how to eat. Among these three persons, Huanglong wants to select one for use. Furthermore, there are four phrases: 'in death there is life,' 'in life there is death,' 'in death there is always death,' and 'in life there is always life.' Using these four phrases, I examine the patch-robed monks of the world." The Master said, "What do you call the four phrases? What are the surnames and names of the three sons? If you recognize them, you will walk hand in hand alongside Huanglong, without the slightest separation. If this is not yet so, inevitably I must borrow water to offer flowers: 'The three persons share one substance, function yet non-function; / The four phrases share one tone, empty yet not empty. / If you wish to know the three persons and the four phrases: / When the golden crow first emerges, it is a single ball of red.'" The Master resided at Longya for thirteen years, overseeing the community with austerity and frugality, so that the patch-robed monks revered him. Great Master Xi Zhen moved him to Yunxi, where he spent four years. In the eighth month of the wuwu year of the Shaoxing era, at the full moon, he suddenly gathered the assembly to entrust the monastery's affairs, and wrote a verse: "On the day of Mid-Autumn in the wuwu year, / The affairs of leaving home and serving as abbot are done. / At the point of departure, even myself does not exist; / What empty space is there left to seek?" His instructions were as usual. On the thirteenth day, he gathered the assembly again, presented a question, and said, "Nirvāṇa, birth, and death are all sky-flowers; / 'Buddha' and 'sentient beings' are both redundant words. / What must all of you do?" None of the assembly's answers matched. The Master shouted and said, "Bitter, bitter!" He further said, "White clouds surge from the earth; the bright moon shines in the sky." Having spoken, he smiled and passed away. After cremation, five-colored relics were obtained, and together with his sacred bones, they were enshrined in a stupa at the northwest corner of the monastery.