續傳燈錄 22

English (machine translation) 22

Language: English

22.1

Table of Contents for Continued Record of the Transmission of the Lamp, Fascicle Twenty-Two

Fourteenth Generation under Dajian:
Forty-seven Dharma heirs of Chan Master Huanglong Huitang Xin:
Chan Master Huanglong Wuxin
Chan Master Huanglong Weiqing
Chan Master Letan Shanqing
Chan Master Qingyuan Weixin
Chan Master Jiashan Xiaochun
Chan Master Sansheng Jichang
Chan Master Shuangling Hua
Chan Master Guishan Xiaojin
Chan Master Baofu Benquan
Chan Master Shuangfeng Jingqi
Chan Master Huguo Jingxin
Chan Master Huanglong Zhiming
Chan Master Daowu Zhongyuan
Chan Master Ciyun Daoqing
Chan Master Huanglong Ruxiao
Upāsaka Grand Historian Huang Tingjian
Upāsaka Wang Shao of the Hanlin Academician
Upāsaka Wu Xun, Palace Library Secretary (the above eighteen have records)
Chan Master Xinghua Yan
Chan Master Xianming Daochang
Chan Master Jingde Huiying
Chan Master Jifu Baoyan
Chan Master Yunmen Baoxuan
Chan Master Tingxi Zhirong
Chan Master Tianzhu Xiujing
Chan Master Shengyuan Juzhi
Chan Master Y蓋 Shizhao
Chan Master Xinghua Fahai
Chan Master Lu'yuan Siqi
Chan Master Dagui Weiyi
Chan Master Dalong Shihe
Chan Master Shuangfeng Ruying
Chan Master Guanyin Jueqin
Chan Master Xianqin Rujian
Chan Master Nandeng Fa'an
Chan Master Jianlong Weiqing
Chan Master Wuwei Weicong
Chan Master Xifeng Su
Chan Master Shanlin Xiguang
Chan Master Fahai Facong
Academician of the Longtu Xu Xi (Dezhan)
Upāsaka Xia Yi (Gongli)
Senior Monk Yichan
Upāsaka Peng Ruli
Upāsaka Wang Zhengyan
Grand Master Wu Zhongli
Vice Minister Han Zonggu (the above twenty-nine have no records)
Thirty-eight Dharma heirs of Chan Master Baofeng Wen:
Chan Master Doushuai Congyue
Chan Master Fayun Gao
Chan Master Letan Wenzhun
Chan Master Huiri Wenya
Chan Master Dongshan Fanyan
Chan Master Wenshu Xuanneng
Chan Master Shouning Shanzi
Chan Master Shangfeng Huihe
Chan Master Wufeng Ben
Chan Master Taiping An
Chan Master Baoci Jinying
Chan Master Dongshan Zhigan
Chan Master Baohua Pujian
Chan Master Jiufeng Xiguang
Chan Master Huangbo Daoquan
Chan Master Qingliang Dehong
Chan Master Chaohua Jing
Hermitage Master Shitou Huaizhi
Head Monk Shuangxi Yin
Chan Master Hui'an Huiyuan (the above twenty have records)
Chan Master Letan Fushen
Chan Master Huayao Ying
Chan Master Guishan Yunping
Chan Master Jiayou Daoyong
Chan Master Xiang'er Weigu
Chan Master Beishan Weixiao
Chan Master Jiayou Yun
Chan Master Caoshan Huiyan
Chan Master Yongxi Daoguang
Chan Master Nantai Hong
Chan Master Gushan Xizu
Chan Master Guangxiao Huiman
Chan Master Beishan Huizhao
Chan Master Shishuang Shaoke
Chan Master Ciyun Dunya
Chan Master Tangquan Chan
Head Monk Baofeng Chuyuan
Lord Wang of Jing (Anshi) (the above eighteen have no records)

22.3

Table of Contents for Continued Record of the Transmission of the Lamp, Fascicle Twenty-Two (End)

22.4

Fourteenth Generation under Dajian

22.5

Dharma Heirs of Chan Master Huanglong Xin

22.6

Chan Master Wuxin of Huanglong was of the Wang clan and a native of Qujiang in Shaozhou. Tall and imposing, with a dark complexion, he looked like an Indian monk. He had his hair shaved at the Fotuo Monastery. Towering over the assembly with his unyielding integrity, he was fond of rebuking people to their faces. At first he went to call on Xiuxian Xiu 'Iron Face.' Xiu asked, 'Where is the senior monk from?' He answered, 'Guangnan, Shaozhou.' Xiu asked again, 'Have you ever been to Yunmen?' He answered, 'I have.' Xiu asked again, 'Have you ever been to Lingshu?' He answered, 'I have.' Xiu said, 'What are the branches of Lingshu like?' He replied, 'The long ones are naturally long; the short ones are naturally short.' Xiu said, 'Guangnan barbarian, do not speak wildly.' Xin said, 'Northern donkeys are just like this!' and shook his sleeves and walked out. Xiu recognized his ability, but Xin had no intention of staying. He then went to Huanglong to call on Chan Master Baojue. His eloquence met with no impediment. Baojue said, 'Is your ability limited to this? This is merely talking of food; can it fill a person?' Xin was at a loss and had no way forward. Calmly he said, 'Wuxin has reached the point where the bow is broken and the arrows are exhausted. I pray that the upādhyāya, out of compassion, will point out a place of peace and joy.' Baojue said, 'When a single speck of dust flies up, it eclipses the heavens; when a single mustard seed falls, it covers the earth. The place of peace and joy particularly shuns the senior monk's heap of knick-knacks. You must thoroughly put to death the entire mind held over incalculable kalpas; only then will it do.' Xin scurried out. One day while sitting quietly on the lower bench, it happened that the prior was beating an attendant. Hearing the sound of the staff, Xin suddenly attained great awakening. He sprang up vigorously, forgetting to put on his shoes, and rushed to the abbot's quarters to see Baojue. He boasted of himself, saying, 'People throughout the world are merely those who have learned it; I am one who has awakened to it!' Baojue laughed and said, 'Passing at the head of the list in the selection of Buddhas—how could anyone be equal to that?' From then on Xin called himself the Old Man with a Dead Mind (Sixin Sou) and inscribed his dwelling 'Dead Mind Room,' marking his awakening. After some time, he traveled west of the Xiang River. At that time, Chan Master Zhe was in charge of Yuelu. Xin went to call on him. Zhe asked, 'Is it ordinary or is it sage?' He replied, 'Neither ordinary nor sage.' Zhe said, 'What is it?' He replied, 'Look higher.' Zhe said, 'If so, then clouds rise over the Southern Mountain, and rain falls on the Northern Mountain.' He replied, 'Tell me for now, is it ordinary or sage?' Zhe said, 'What can be done about the vast boundless above the head and the vast boundless beneath the feet?' Xin looked up at the roof and sighed. Zhe said, 'Short of breath enough to kill someone!' He replied, 'Just so!' shook his sleeves, and walked right out. He called on Chan Master Fachang Yu. Yu asked, 'Where have you recently come from?' He replied, 'I have come from Huanglong.' Yu said, 'Did you also see Chan Master Xin?' He replied, 'I saw him.' Yu said, 'Where did you see him?' He replied, 'I saw him where congee is eaten and rice is eaten.' Yu thrust the fire tongs into the brazier and said, 'What about this one?' Xin pulled out the fire tongs and walked away. Xin first resided at Yunyan, and soon moved to Cuiyan. At Cuiyan there had previously been an illicit shrine. For the local people's sacrifices with wine and sacrificial meats, not a day passed without foul defilement. Xin admonished the prior to tear it down. The prior declined, not daring to invite disaster. Xin angrily said, 'Even if it can bring disaster, I will bear it myself.' He then personally tore it down. Soon a giant python coiled and lay inside, raising its head as if to swallow him. Xin shouted at it, and it fled. Xin slept peacefully without incident. Not long after, he took charge of Yunyan once again. A scriptural repository was constructed, and the Grand Historian Huang Tingjian composed an inscription for it. Someone had their parent's epitaph engraved on the reverse of the stele. Xin cursed furiously, saying, 'To insult and outrage like this without fearing disaster!' Before his words were finished, flashes of lightning rolled across the roof, and a thunderbolt struck entering through the doorway, splitting the reverse of the stele down the middle. Looking at it, it was already turned to ashes, while the repository's inscription remained safe and undamaged. In his later years he moved to reside at Huanglong, where students gathered like clouds. Afflicted by illness, he retired from office. Huitang made an evening visit, raised his whisk, and said, 'Look, look! When the whisk is sick, Sixin is sick; when the whisk is well, Sixin is well. The whisk pierces through Sixin, and Sixin pierces through the whisk. Right at such a time, if you call it a whisk, it is Sixin again; if you call it Sixin, it is a whisk again. In the end, what do you call it?' After a long pause, he said, 'Do not bring right and wrong to discriminate me; this floating life's forced interpretations have nothing to do with it.' Someone begged for a final phrase. Xin gave him a verse, saying: 'For the very last phrase, / The mind-path must be cut off completely. / Once the six sense gates are empty, / The myriad dharmas have no arising or ceasing. / When you penetrate to its source here, / There is no need to seek liberation. / All my life I loved rebuking people, / Only for lasting joy.' On the evening of the thirteenth day of the twelfth month in the fifth year of the Zhenghe era, he gave an informal discourse and spoke the verse. On the fifteenth day, he passed away peacefully while seated. When the news of his death was heard, patch-robed monks from all directions wept and shed tears for him. After cremation, five-colored relics were obtained. He lived seventy-two years and had passed forty-five summer retreats. A stūpa was built behind Huitang's.

22.7

Chan Master Lingyuan Weiqing of Huanglong in Longxing Prefecture was a son of the Chen clan of this prefecture. He received the mind seal from Huitang. He would often say to people: 'Students nowadays have not escaped birth and death; where does the sickness lie? The sickness lies only in the scheming mind not having died. Yet this is not their fault; it is the fault of those who are teachers. It is like Emperor Gao of Han tricking Han Xin and killing him—even though Xin died, did his mind truly die? Students of antiquity escaped birth and death upon the word; where did the efficacy lie? It lay in the scheming mind having already died. Yet it was not that the students themselves could do so; it was truly the subtle and thorough tongs and hammer of those who were teachers. It is like Emperor Wu of Liang presiding in the great hall: seeing Hou Jing, he did not stir his voice or expression, and Jing's mind was already withered and exhausted without remainder. What is said in various quarters is not lacking in beauty; in the end, however, it is like Zhao Chang painting flowers: though the flowers are true to life, they are not real flowers.' He ascended the hall: 'No sooner has the drum sounded than the great assembly gathers like clouds. Boundless celestial mechanism is leaked all at once. Not missing the correct eye, you ought to return to the hall at once; why wait for verbose words to bury the lineage tenets? Even if you say Śākya did not appear in the world, yet forty-nine years were spoken; Bodhidharma did not come from the West, yet Shaolin has wondrous directives. Master of the Mountain Xiu was also like looking toward his home village from Gaoli; again it is said that if someone recognizes the patriarchs and Buddhas, right on the spot they transcend. Even if you attain such awakening intimately, there is still the single path of turning the body: after passing examination, take a beating!' Striking the meditation platform with his whisk, he stepped down. He ascended the hall: 'River moon shines, pine wind blows; / Throughout the long, clear night, who else is there? / Mist, dew, clouds, and rosy glow cannot obstruct it; / Within this, it is still said, "Nothing like going home." / Going home to what? / Lotus leaves are round, round as a mirror; / Water chestnuts are sharp, sharp as an awl.' He ascended the hall: 'The Buddhas of the three times do not know it exists; grace receives no return. / Wild cats and white cattle do know it exists; merit is not wasted. / Brightening the great function, understanding the complete mechanism; / Traces cut off, inconceivable. / It is fine to go back where no one knows: / Piercing open the blue sky, a thousand-foot pine; / Cutting off the red dust, a mountain stream of water.' He ascended the hall: '"The Great Way is not difficult; it only shuns picking and choosing. Simply do not hate or love, and it is thoroughly clear and evident." The Patriarch speaking like this blinded the eyes of everyone in the world. Patch-robed monks who discern right and wrong and distinguish black from white: when reaching this point, how will you clarify it? Unable to walk to where the waters end, it is hard to bid you sit and watch when the clouds arise.'

22.8

Chan Master Caotang Shanqing of Letan in Longqing Prefecture was a son of the He clan of Nanxiong Prefecture. At first he called on Chan Master Zhe of Dahui with no attainment. Later he called on Huanglong, who instructed him with the wind and banner phrase. For a long time he did not tally with it. One day Huanglong asked, 'How do you understand the phrase about the wind and banner?' The master said, 'There is nowhere at all to enter; I beg the master for an expedient.' Huanglong said, 'Have you seen a cat catching a mouse? Its eyes do not blink, its four paws crouch on the ground, all its faculties are directed forward, head and tail form a straight line, and every pounce hits the mark. If you can truly be like this, with the mind free of extraneous conditions, the six sense faculties will naturally be quiet; investigate in silence, and out of ten thousand times, not once will you miss.' From this, the master cast aside idle conditions for over a year and suddenly tallied in awakening. He presented Huanglong with a verse, saying: 'Follow, follow, follow! Past, past, past! / After following, following, following, no one recognizes it. / Last night the bright moon rose over the high peak; / Originally it was just this thief!' Huanglong nodded at it and told him again: 'To attain the Way is not difficult; to propagate the Way is difficult. Propagating the Way still rests with oneself; to speak the Dharma for others is difficult. After you have become clear, it lies in vigorous practice. Generally speaking, when an ancestral master expounds the Dharma, within one phrase are contained the three mysteries, and within one mystery are contained the three essentials. Your place of entry is genuine; once you take the seat and put on the robe, examine yourself from now on, and you will naturally be unhindered in all directions.' The master relied on him for another seven years, then took his leave and visited the monasteries far and wide. Later he appeared in the world at Huanglong and ended his days at Letan. A monk asked, 'What was it like before Niutou saw the Fourth Patriarch?' The master said, 'Three in the capital and four in Bian.' The monk said, 'What about after seeing him?' The master said, 'Ash on the head and dirt on the face.' The monk said, 'In the end, what about it?' The master said, 'A scene of embarrassment.' Opening the hall, he ascended the hall and cited Master Yuan of Fushan: '"Do you want to be outstanding? You must still have all four matters complete before you can display the path of an ancestral master. What are they? First, the ancestral masters' nose; second, having diamond eyes; third, possessing the lion's claws and teeth; fourth, obtaining the patch-robed monk's staff that kills and brings to life. With these four matters, one can then transform freely in all directions, rolling out and rolling up at will, towering high over humans and devas, standing like a wall a thousand fathoms tall. If not like this, one who clings to death in good ways is in the place of a defeated army. Why? Hitting a stone man with a staff values discussing the actual matter. Therefore, can one arrive here or not? The Xiu River glistens; over the great wilderness, clouds congeal. Green bamboos hold mist; green mountains lock in verdure. Wind and clouds are of one accord; water and moon are viewed together. A single phrase encompassing all has already manifested the remnants and decay."' The master said, 'Huanglong comes into the world today at a time when the degenerate age has arrived and the Buddha Dharma is diluted and weak. I do not use the ancestral masters' nose; I do not use diamond eyes; I do not use the lion's claws and teeth; I do not use the staff that kills and brings to life. There is only a single whisk taken as the path: it too can transform freely in all directions, rolling out and rolling up at will; it too can tower high over humans and devas, standing like a wall a thousand fathoms tall. At times, meeting the strong, it becomes weak; at times, meeting the noble, it becomes base. When raised, the hordes of māras vanish without a trace, and Buddhas and patriarchs conceal their tracks; when lowered, it mixes with water and blends with mud, sages and ordinary people sharing the same ruts. Tell me: is it better to raise it, or better to lower it? The silk line at the tip of the rod is for you to play with; without disturbing the clear waves, the meaning is naturally distinct.' He ascended the hall: 'Form and mind are not different; other and self have no distinction.' Raising his whisk, he said, 'If you call it a whisk, you enter hell like an arrow; if you do not call it a whisk, you have eyes as if blind. Even if you break through both ends, it is still a black ox lying in stagnant water.'

22.9

Chan Master Weixin of Qingyuan in Jizhou ascended the hall: 'Thirty years ago, before this old monk practiced Chan, I saw mountains as mountains and saw waters as waters. Later, when I personally saw a kalyāṇamitra and had an entry, I saw mountains were not mountains, and saw waters were not waters. Now that I have attained a resting place, as before I see mountains are just mountains, and see waters are just waters. Assembly, are these three views the same or different? If anyone can distinguish black from white, I grant that you have personally seen this old monk.'

22.10

Chan Master Xiaochun of Lingquan Cloister on Jiashan in Lizhou once carved a beast out of wood with a lion's head, ox's hooves, and a horse's body. Whenever he ascended the hall, he would bring it out, show it to the assembly, and say, 'If you call it a lion, it has a horse's body; if you call it a horse's body, it has ox's hooves. Tell me, in the end what do you call it?' He had the monks provide a turning phrase, but none tallied. The master presented a verse, saying: 'A grand and lofty lion's head, / Ox's hooves, and a horse's frame. / If one can enter through the three paths, / The mystery gates open layer upon layer.' He ascended the hall: 'There is a fellow who, from incalculable kalpas, has had no dwelling and no reliance: above, not a single tile covers his head; below, not an inch of earth supports his feet. Tell me, where does he establish body and life throughout the twelve hours? If you understand, in the morning you arrive in the Western Heaven, and in the evening you return to the Eastern Land.'

22.11

Chan Master Jichang of Sansheng in Hanzhou was a son of the Li family of Pengzhou. He ascended the hall [and said]: 'A wooden Buddha does not endure fire; before the Sweet Dew Platform one meets Bodhidharma. Sorrowful that the man of Luoyang has not yet come, he sat in vain in the cold, wall-gazing for nine years. A golden Buddha does not endure the furnace; sitting and sighing over this toilsome life running upon the road. If one does not look upon the painting of Mount Hua, how could one know Pan Lang rides the donkey backwards? A clay Buddha does not endure water; a single ray of spiritual light illuminates heaven and earth. How admirable is old Xuansha, that sharp awl! He did not want the South Mountain, he wanted the turtle-nosed viper.' Ascending the hall, he cited Zhaozhou visiting the two hermitage masters. The Master said: 'The scions of the Five Tombs vie in boasting of their wealth; the venerable monk in hundred-patch robes does not detest his poverty. In recent times worldly conventions are mostly upside down: they only esteem the clothing, not the person.'

22.12

Chan Master Hua of Shuangling in Longqing Prefecture ascended the hall: 'Emerald bamboo and yellow blossoms are not external realms; white clouds and the bright moon expose the complete reality. Everything, one and all, is our household goods; picking them up at will, nothing is dust.' He then held up his whisk and said: 'Do you understand? If you recognize it, just as before it is not it.' He struck the meditation seat and stepped down.

22.13

Chan Master Xiaojin of the Shuilu Cloister on Guishan in Sizhou was a native of Fuzhou. A monk asked: 'What is the guest within the guest?' The Master said: 'Chaofu lets his oxen drink.' [The monk] asked: 'What is the host within the guest?' The Master said: 'Xuyou washes his ears.' [The monk] asked: 'What is the guest within the host?' The Master gave a shout. [The monk] asked: 'What is the host within the host?' The Master said: 'Having bowed, step back.' Ascending the hall: 'When the ground is secure and close, offenses fill the sky: truly one cannot lift a foot. When supernatural playfulness occurs, one hurts oneself without a wound: exceptionally, one cannot set down a foot. Now tell me, where does the fault lie? Let those with eyes for investigation come forth to discuss it together. If you wish to see your original homeland, do not branch off into divergent roads. Do not merely nod to yourself and let the seasons slip by. On another day a hammer blow will strike your crown—do not say you were not told.'

22.14

Chan Master Benquan of Baofu in Zhangzhou was a native of Linzhang. By nature he was straightforward and zealous for the Way. Where Huitang raised his fist, he thoroughly verified the source of roots; his dynamic wit issued swiftly. When Huang Shangu first had an entry, he asked Huitang: 'Who here can be spoken with?' Huitang said: 'Master Quan of Zhangzhou is just now supervising the laborers clearing fields.' Shangu went with Huitang and posed a question: 'Does the estate steward know that the exposed pillar has given birth to a child?' The Master said: 'Is it male or female?' Huang hesitated; the Master brushed him off. Huitang said to [the Master]: 'Do not be rude.' The Master said: 'If I don't beat this piece of wood, what time should I wait for?' Huang laughed loudly. Ascending the hall, he cited Hanshan's verse: 'My mind is like the autumn moon, / purely white and bright in the emerald pool. / Nothing can compare with it; / tell me, how can I describe it?' [The Master said:] 'This old monk is not so: / My mind is like a lantern: / lit with fire, inside and outside are red. / There is something that can compare with it: / tomorrow morning the sun rises in the east.' Those who transmitted this took it as a joke. When Upādhyāya Sixin saw it, he sighed and said: 'Brother Quan's instructional discourse is like this—truly he has not betrayed what our late master entrusted to him!'

22.15

Chan Master Jingqi of Shuangfeng on Nanyue in Tanzhou ascended the hall, picked up his staff, and said: 'Holding it horizontally and using it upside down—everywhere there are tiger steps and dragon strides. Straining forward to prop up the gate—Shuangfeng has dropped into the armor of no-affairs. Letting the wind blow the fire is a different family.' Leaning his staff against his shoulder, he looked around at the assembly and said: 'Can you call it no-affairs?' After a good while he said: 'The knife and ruler are hung high; look closely! Master Zhi was no idle upādhyāya.' He struck the staff once.

22.16

Chan Master Jingxin of Jidang at Huguo in Wenzhou was a son of the Chen family of that commandery. Ascending the hall: 'In the three realms there are no phenomena; where can one seek the mind? If you wish to know Huguo's directly manifesting phrase, look at the grove of bamboo before the gate.'

22.17

Chan Master Zhiming of Huanglong in Ezhou was a native of Raozhou. One day, he ascended the hall and the assembly had just gathered. The Master then said: 'One must not open one's eyes any further to talk in one's sleep!' and stepped down from the seat. Ascending the hall: 'A single directive from north to south, cutting through nails and severing iron. Take care not to engage in reflection, turning it into rutted tracks.' The Master went with Inspector Hu to the Two Sages of Gong'an. Hu asked: 'Bodhidharma told Emperor Wu of Liang, "Vast and empty, nothing holy." Why then does Gong'an have two sages?' The Master said: 'A single drop of ink forms dragons in two places.'

22.18

Chan Master Zhongyuan of Daowu in Tanzhou ascended the hall: '"It is not mind, it is not Buddha, it is not things." The ancients spoke thus; it is like peeping at a leopard through a tube, seeing only a single spot. Even if one enters the forest without stirring the grass, or enters the water without stirring the waves, it is still like riding a horse across the icy ridges. If you are an eagle-shooting archer, why not scrape the itch on the snake's head? Let those with true eyes test their discernment and see!' After a good while he said: 'The mandarin ducks are embroidered, born of the golden needle.'

22.19

Chan Master Daoqing of Ciyun in Hangzhou once set forth these phrases: 'When arrow tips hit each other, in accordance with the trigger there is not a hairsbreadth of error. The languages of the frontier people are not understood by one another; how can you discern them in detail?' He also said: 'For one who illuminates the function beyond the patterns, when asked about the south he responds with the north. When starving people come running in dire distress, I wonder what you will provide to relieve them?' He also said: 'For one whose wondrous function ranges freely, facing the trigger his eloquence is like a cascading river. When that superior person from the city of Vaiśālī comes, I wonder how you will respond?' He also said: 'For one of cold ashes and withered wood, having reached this place there are no words. How do you direct and instruct the servants in your household in their daily activities?' When practitioners came to consult him, he set forth these several questions; when asked, most did not accord.

22.20

The Grand Historian, Upāsaka Shangu, Huang Tingjian, styled Luzhi, due to past habituation to prajñā, was unconcerned despite his high official rank. Going in and out of the Chan lineage, he had not yet found a direction; he was fond of writing romantic poetry. He once visited Chan Master Xiu of Yuantong. Xiu scolded him, saying: 'Would a great man gladly apply the wonder of his brush and ink to this?' Just then Xiu was admonishing Li Boshi regarding his painting of horses. The gentleman bantered: 'Might this again put me into a horse's belly?' Xiu said: 'You stir the lustful minds of all under heaven with romantic words; it will not stop at a horse's belly—I fear it will truly be born in the Naraka hell!' The gentleman was terrified, repented, and apologized. From then on he ceased writing [such verse] and zealously devoted himself solely to the Way. He composed an aspiration text, strictly abstaining from alcohol and sensual desire, eating only morning porridge and midday rice. He went to rely on Huitang, begging for an indication of the direct shortcut. Huitang said: 'Just as Confucius said, "My disciples, do you think I have hidden anything from you? I have hidden nothing from you." How do you, Grand Historian, normally understand this?' The gentleman prepared to reply; Huitang said: 'Wrong, wrong!' The gentleman was ceaselessly perplexed and troubled. One day, while attending Huitang walking in the mountains, the rock-osmanthus was in full bloom. Huitang said: 'Do you smell the fragrance of the sweet osmanthus flowers?' The gentleman said: 'I smell it.' Huitang said: '"I have hidden nothing from you."' The gentleman was relieved and at once bowed, saying: 'Upādhyāya, how is your grandmotherly heart so earnest?' Huitang laughed and said: 'I only want you to arrive home.' Later he visited Chan Master Xin of Yunyan Sixin. Following the assembly into the abbot's room, Sixin saw him, stared, and asked: 'Elder Xin is dead, Scholar Huang is dead; burned into two heaps of ashes, in what place will you see each other?' The gentleman had no words. Sixin motioned him out, saying: 'What you investigated at Huitang's place cannot yet be put to use!' Later demoted to Qiannan, his power of the Way became ever stronger. In the midst of non-thinking, he was suddenly enlightened to what Sixin had asked. He reported back by letter: 'In former years I was burdened with your painstaking admonitions; it was always like a drunken dream, vaguely in shadows of light. Because the feeling of doubt was not exhausted and the root of life was not severed, I looked up at the cliff and withdrew. While in exile on the road in Qiannan, waking from a daytime nap, I suddenly pondered: how many times had I been deceived by the old upādhyāyas under heaven? Only Sixin, the man of the Way, did not approve of me; that was truly the foremost act of goodwill. My fortune is beyond measure!' Later he composed Huitang's stupa inscription, which read: 'I formerly received prediction of future realization as capable of undertaking the great Dharma; before my eye of the Way was round and complete, I came to gaze upon this stūpa, truly moved to deep sighs of ancestral veneration. Thus I carve the hard stone, reverently praising his lingering beauty.' The gentleman further set out offerings of aquatic herbs and sacrificed to him with a text, mourning him with a verse: 'The sea wind blows down upon Mount Laṅkā; / Chan practitioners of the four seas, look closely! / A handful of willow silk cannot be gathered up; / along with the mist, it rests upon the jade balustrade.'

22.21

Chan Master Ruxiao of Huanglong in Hongzhou: A monk asked: 'A guest came from afar and showed me a jade disk one inch in diameter. What is the jade disk one inch in diameter?' The Master said: 'A thousand peaks arrayed in emerald green.' The monk said: 'What about right at such a time?' The Master said: 'Ten thousand plants grow in awe-inspiring majesty.' He further asked: 'What is the realm of Huanglong?' The Master said: 'The mountains join Mufu; the waters pour into Dongting.' The monk said: 'What is the person within the realm?' The Master said: 'Although his features are ugly, whenever he speaks words, they become fine literature.' He further asked: 'Speech and silence involve transcendence and subtlety; how can one penetrate without transgressing?' The Master said: 'The mountain flowers bloom like brocade; the ravine water is pure as indigo.' The monk said: 'Thank you, Master, for answering my question.' The Master said: 'I tell you not to walk the road below the mountain; clearly it is born right beside the road.' He then said: 'Where the mist and clouds break open, pavilions and palaces support the sky; the water's moon and the pine vines reflect each other's radiance. Human harmony and the realm shine; the willow buds just turn green. The Buddhadharma and human affairs are without lack or deficiency. Even though it is like this, how do you say a single phrase that does not fall into seasonal opportunity?' After a good while he said: 'Although Shaolin gazed at the wall, in old age his mind was also lonely.' He also said: 'White clouds are rolled up by the wind, the universe is vast and clear; the moon is imprinted upon the vast sky, its form dividing among the myriad waters. If you disperse like this, you will immediately say this mountain monk lacks a balanced reckoning. If one goes further to sing of the wind and chant of the moon, that again becomes stirring up waves and generating wind. Right at such a time, what is right?' After a good while he said: 'Secluded birds do not dislike the broad expanse of the mountain; / fish and dragons, how could they tire of the deep emerald pool?'

22.22

Upāsaka Wang Shao, Hall of Scholarly Worthies Academician, styled Zichun, went out to govern Hongzhou. He invited Huitang to inquire about the Way, and had a silent accord. He then composed a verse on matching triggers: 'By day I forgot to eat, by night forgot to sleep; / holding up the black dragon's pearl, I wanted to ascend to heaven. / Turning back to my own body, I put it all down; / the four corners collapsed to the ground, perfectly round and complete.' He presented it to Huitang, who deeply approved it.

22.23

Upāsaka Wu Xun, Palace Library Assistant, styled Defu, was in Huitang's room. Huitang said to him: 'I do not ask about your lifelong learned understanding, memory, and erudition. Speak a phrase from before your parents were born!' The gentleman hesitated; Huitang struck him with his whisk. He immediately grasped the profound purport, and presented three verses in succession. The last of them said: 'Bah, this layman of much knowledge! / Having chewed through ancient and modern gong'ans, / suddenly in a heap of clutter / he picks up a dung beetle's dung ball. / Clearly it is not worth a single cent, / yet ten thousand ounces of gold cannot buy it. / Casually bringing it out to show people, / only because it rolls about the tray, it is difficult to look upon! / Bah!' Huitang replied: 'Finding fire in water is rare in the world; / looking upon it makes one especially doubtful. / Since ancient times teacher and disciple were not preserved; / now we permit the old barbarian to know.'

22.24

Dharma Heirs of Chan Master Wen of Baofeng

22.25

Chan Master Congyue of Doushuai in Longxing Prefecture was a son of the Xiong clan of Ganzhou. At first he was the head monk at Daowu. Leading several patch-robed monks, he visited Upādhyāya Zhi of Yungai. Zhi spoke with him, and before several sentences had passed, he fully knew what [Congyue] harboured. He then laughed and said, 'Observing the head monk's bearing, it is extraordinary. How is it that the words and breath coming from your mouth are like those of a drunken man?' The Master's face grew hot and sweat poured down. He said, 'I pray the Upādhyāya will not begrudge compassion.' Zhi spoke further and pierced him like an awl. The Master was at a loss and thereupon requested entry into the abbot's room. Zhi said, 'Have you ever seen Upādhyāya Yu of Fachang?' The Master said, 'I have read his recorded sayings and understood them on my own; I do not wish to see him.' Zhi said, 'Have you ever seen Upādhyāya Wen of Dongshan?' The Master said, 'That fellow from Guanxi has neither head nor brain; he drags along a strip of cotton skirt smelling of urine. What excellence could he have?' Zhi said, 'You just go investigate at that urine-smelling place.' The Master complied with the instruction, immediately visited Dongshan, and deeply comprehended the profound purport. He returned to visit Zhi. Zhi said, 'After seeing that fellow from Guanxi, how is the Great Matter?' The Master said, 'Had I not received the Upādhyāya's direction, I would have nearly blundered through an entire lifetime.' He then bowed in thanks. The Master again visited Zhenjing, and later appeared in the world at Lu'yuan. There was a certain Qingsu who had long studied under Ciming; he resided in a solitary room and never associated with anyone. Because the Master was eating honey-preserved lychees, Su happened to pass by his door. The Master called out, saying, 'This is a fruit from the old man's native place; we can eat it together.' Su said, 'Ever since the late master passed away, I have not had this food for a long time.' The Master said, 'Who was the late master?' Su said, 'Ciming. I unworthily served as his attendant for thirteen years, that is all.' The Master was astonished and doubtful, saying, 'To endure the service of an attendant for thirteen years—if you had not attained his Way, how could that be?' He then gave him the remaining fruit and gradually drew close to him. Su asked, 'Whom did the Master see?' [The Master] said, 'Wen of Dongshan.' Su said, 'Whom did Wen see?' The Master said, 'Huanglong Nan.' Su said, 'Nan of the flat head saw the late master for only a short time, yet the Dharma Way flourished greatly like this.' The Master grew even more astonished and doubtful. Thereupon he carried incense in his sleeve, went to Su, and bowed. Su got up to avoid him, saying, 'Because my merit is meager, the late master's prophecy did not allow me to teach people.' The Master became increasingly respectful. Su then said, 'Pitying your sincerity, I will go against the late master's prophecy. Try telling me what you have attained in your life.' The Master related all that he had seen. Su said, 'You can enter the Buddha, but you cannot enter the demon.' The Master said, 'What does this mean?' Su said, 'Have you not seen the ancients say: "Only at the final phrase does one reach the impenetrable barrier"?' Like this, after several months, Su then gave him the seal of approval, and further cautioned him, saying, 'What Wen showed you was all right view and right understanding. However, you left Wen too early and could not exhaust its wondrousness. Now I have pointed it out and broken it open for you, enabling you to attain great mastery in your functioning. In future days, on no account claim to be my Dharma heir.' The Master later became the Dharma heir of Zhenjing. A monk asked, 'To marshal troops and command generals, one must rely on the emperor's tiger tally; to guide the assembly and discipline disciples, one secretly wears the ancestral master's mind seal. What is the ancestral master's mind seal?' The Master said, 'A mouthful cannot utter it.' [The monk] asked, 'Is it just this, or is there something else?' The Master said, 'Do not take Zhi Dun's crane and call it General of the Right Army's goose.' [A monk] asked, 'What is the realm of Doushuai?' The Master said, 'A single stream of rubbed indigo blue; a thousand peaks of carved jade green.' [The monk] asked, 'What is the person in the realm?' The Master said, 'Seven pits and eight bumps, seen by no one; a hundred hands and a thousand heads, known only to oneself.' Ascending the hall: 'How clear are ears and eyes, dwelling upright in a secluded valley! The autumn wind enters the ancient pines; the autumn moon rises from the cold water. If patch-robed monks seek the real further in this, two monkeys will hang four tails.' He gave a shout. Ascending the hall: 'Doushuai has no discrimination at all; instead, he calls a tortoise a turtle. Unable to speak of the wondrous or discuss the real, he only knows how to wag his lips and drum his tongue, thereby causing patch-robed monks throughout the world to look and bleed from their eyes. Is there anyone who turns anger into joy and laughs proudly among the mist and clouds?' After a good while, he said, 'A tune of "Ascending to Peace and Joy" played on the flute—it turns out that throughout life, sorrow has never been understood.' Ascending the hall: 'Just seeing the new spring, we meet early summer again. The four seasons are like arrows; the two luminaries are like shuttles. Unawares, rosy cheeks turn into a white head. You must exert effort and apply another spirit: plow your own field, and do not infringe upon others' sprouts. Since it is so, to drag the plow and haul the harrow, it must be the white ox of the Snow Mountains before it works. And tell me, where are its nostrils?' After a good while, he said, 'Chi, chi!' Ascending the hall: 'Constantly dwelling beyond things to pass the clear times, sitting crosswise on an ox and playing a bamboo flute. One tune is secluded of itself, the mountain green of itself; this sentiment is not shared with the white clouds. Rejoicing in happiness, all you Chan worthies! Reflecting instead on Fan Li idly drifting on the blue waves, and recalling Chen Tuan uselessly sleeping on Mount Taihua—how could they have ever dreamed of it, gaining high renown in vain? In truth they did not make a spiritual journey, wandering with wild traces in vain. Since it is so, let not patch-robed monks with eyes say that Long'an is not their very own self. Good!' Ascending the hall: 'No phenomena and no mind—with no mind, what is there to abandon? If you want the real, it all belongs to the real; if you want the false, it entirely returns to the false. Sailing a boat on level ground; galloping a horse in empty space. The man who gazed at the wall for nine years: though having a mouth, he was still like a mute. Examine!' Ascending the hall: 'Night after night, embracing the Buddha to sleep; morning after morning, rising together again. Rising and sitting, constantly accompanying each other; speaking or silent, dwelling together. If you wish to know where the Buddha goes, it is just this sound of speaking. All Chan worthies! Great and small Great Being Fus only know how to hug the bridge pillar, wash and bathe, hold the hawser, and launch the boat, struck out from a printing block, cast out from a mold! How could they know that the patch-robed monk of authentic color plugs up the cave of buddhas and patriarchs, smashes the mysterious and wondrous gate, leaps out of the pit of annihilation and permanence, and does not rely on the realm of purity? Devoid of a single thing, he brandishes both fists alone, striding horizontally across the sea to establish a home and found a state. There is a sort of fellow who also wants to sit motionless and upright atop a hundred-foot pole, yet when it comes to turning the body, he cannot give up his life. Have you not seen Great Master Yunmen say: "Knowing such things, set them aside. You must stir up your spirit, put on some sinew and bone, and recognize it before primal chaos was divided"? Even that is still a dull fellow; how much less can one endure smacking one's lips on the flavours of other people's tongues, with never an end in sight! All Chan guests, do you wish to understand? Raising the eyebrows, what difficulty is there? Clearly not a tip of a hair is seen. The wind blows through the azure sky, the floating clouds are gone; the moon rises over the green mountain, a single ball of jade.' He gave a shout and stepped down from the seat. One day, the Transport Commissioner, Layman Wujin Zhang Shangying, was inspecting his district and passed through Fenning. He invited the elders of the five monasteries to expound the Dharma at Yunyan. The Master ascended the seat last. Holding his staff horizontally, he said, 'Just now, the various kalyāṇamitras took up horizontally and set down vertically, threw straight down and cast obliquely, changing steps and shifting bodies, hiding the head and exposing the horns. Having each confessed defeat in front of the Scholar, they cannot avoid taking the painful stick in Doushuai's hand. Arriving here, it is not up to whether you are willing or unwilling. Why? Seeing injustice, how can one endure it? The patch-robed monk's correct order should naturally be carried out.' He struck the staff and stepped down from the seat. In his room he established three phrases to test students: The first says, 'Parting the grass and peering into the wind is only to see one's nature. Right now, where is the elder's nature?' The second says, 'Only when one recognizes one's self-nature does one escape birth and death. When the light of the eyes falls to the ground, how do you escape?' The third says, 'Having escaped birth and death, one immediately knows where one goes. When the four great elements separate, where do you go?' In the winter of the sixth year of the Yuanyou era, having bathed, he gathered the assembly and spoke a verse, saying: 'Forty and eight, / Slaying both the noble and the profane completely. / If one is not a hero, / The path of Long'an is slippery.' He passed away suddenly. His disciples followed the Master's bequeathed admonition, intending to cremate him and discard the bones into the river. His Dharma-attaining disciple, Layman Wujin Lord Zhang, sent an envoy bearing offerings, and said, 'The late teacher possessed great power of the Way within the gate of the ancestors; we must not let future generations have nothing toward which to raise their reverence.' He had a stupa built at Ru Peak of Long'an, and he was posthumously titled Chan Master Zhenji.

22.26

Chan Master Fogzhao Gao of Fayun in the Eastern Capital went on itinerant pilgrimage from his youth and visited Chan Master Tongji of Yuantong. During his entry into the abbot's room, Ji brought up: 'A monk asked Touzi, "When a person of the Great Death comes back to life, how is it?" Touzi said, "Not permitted to travel by night; he must arrive by daybreak." What does this mean?' The Master said, 'Great kindness is hard to repay.' Ji was delighted and appointed him head monk. In the evening, he took up the whisk for the assembly; Ji was slow and stammering, and the assembly laughed at him. The Master had a look of shame. The next day, he was serving tea in the Saṅgha hall; when he knocked the tea ladle to the ground and saw it bounce, he attained the samādhi of responding to capacity. Later he relied on Zhenjing. Because of reading an ancestral verse that said: 'The mind is the same as the realm of empty space, / Showing the Dharma equal to empty space. / When one realizes empty space, / There is neither right nor wrong,' he was suddenly awakened with great awakening. He often said to people, 'On the twenty-first day of the eleventh month in the third year of the Shaosheng era, I awakened to the Chan of the square inch.' He came forth to dwell at Guizong, and by imperial decree resided at Jing'yin. Because a monk asked, 'What did Bodhidharma transmit when coming from the West?' the Master said, 'Zhou, Qin, Han, and Wei.' [A monk] asked, 'In the past, a monk asked Yunmen, "What is the phrase that penetrates the Dharmakāya?" Yunmen said, "Hide the body inside the Northern Dipper." What was his meaning?' The Master said, 'Pieces of a sincere heart.' [The monk] said, 'If it were this student, it would not be so.' The Master said, 'What would you do?' [The monk] said, 'Last night I lifted my head to look at the Northern Dipper; faintly, it resembled a spotted sugar cake.' The Master said, 'You only think of water and grass; you know nothing else.' Ascending the hall: 'The ancestral intention from the West is a special transmission outside the teachings; unless one is of great capacity, one cannot verify and enter it. Those who verify and enter it are not turned by words and letters, nor deluded by sounds, forms, right, or wrong; neither is there the distinction between Yunmen and Linji, nor the difference between Zhaozhou and Deshan. Therefore, in chanting the Way, one must clarify that within speech there is no speech, and within no speech there is speech. If you comprehend here, you can be said to wear clothes all day without ever hanging a single thread, and eat food all day without ever biting a single grain of rice. Even scolding buddhas and cursing patriarchs—what fault is there? Even though it is so, if you wish not to incur the karma of the Avīci hell, do not slander the Tathāgata's wheel of the true Dharma.' He gave a shout and stepped down from the seat. Ascending the hall, he took up his staff and said, 'Guizong was able to slash the snake; Heshan understood beating the drum. The myriad phenomena and dense forms all depart from here.' He threw down the staff and said, 'Return to the hall and drink tea.' Because the Master's forceful investigation reached great depth, his words did not conform to the times. Whenever instructing the assembly, he often cited: 'This old monk's official record of the eighth year of the Xining era was submitted to Fengxiang Prefecture: in that year, forty li of Mount Hua collapsed, crushing eighty villages of households. When will you youngsters, like eggplants and gourds, understand?' Someone asked, 'Upon the precious flower-throne of the king, why do you solely speak of worldly truth?' The Master said, 'Foolish man! How could the buddha-nature be of two kinds?'

22.27

Chan Master Wenzhun of Letan was a native of Tanggu in Xingyuan Prefecture, born to the Liang family. When he was just an infant, whenever he saw a Buddha statue he would smile. As a child, he took no pleasure in smelling wine or meat. When the śramaṇa Xupu of Jinxian Temple came to his house begging for food, the master received him at the door and conversed with him like a seasoned elder. At the time, he was eight years of age, and at once bade farewell to his parents, wishing to follow Pu back. Pu gave him the Lotus Sūtra, and he recited it fluently upon opening his mouth. During the Yuanfeng era, an examination was held for monastic youths to evaluate their studies, and ordinations were granted according to the order of the registry. Though the master was exceptionally proficient in his art, because of his youth his name could not be memorialised to the throne. When Lord Fan, pacification commissioner of Shaanxi, passed by Pu's hermitage, Pu, advanced in monastic years, received him and grasped his words, while the master stood in attendance at his side, setting forth explanations clearly and moving about with admirable deportment. Lord Fan wished to take him along to the west. The master declined, saying: "Climbing a mountain to seek jade, entering the sea to seek pearls—each person has their own aspiration. My fundamental journey is to study the Way; worldly pursuits are not my original mind." Lord Fan inwardly marvelled at his words, gave him ordination, and tonsured him. He then went to rely on Chan Master Cheng of Liangshan, who reproved him, saying: "A crow-scarer who has not yet taken the precepts dares to study the Buddha vehicle?" The master clasped his hands and said: "Is the ordination platform the precepts? Are the three karmans and the celibate ācāryas the precepts?" Cheng was greatly astonished. The master smiled and said: "Nevertheless, how would I dare not accept your teaching?" He then received the full ordination under Vinaya Master Tangan. Traveling throughout the lecture halls of Chengdu, he chanted the outlines of the various collections, and then abandoned them, saying: "I do not seek superficial understanding." Dharma Master Tanyan admired his outstanding brilliance, patted him, and said: "You are a Dharma vessel. In the south there are great bodhisattvas such as Zhenru of Guishan and Zhenjing of Jiufeng; you may go seek them out." The master bowed and received this admonition. Together with his fellow student Zhigong, he went to Da'gui, but for a long time found no accord. He then went to Jiufeng to see Zhenjing, who asked: "Where do you come from?" He said: "Xingyuan Prefecture." He asked: "Where did you recently leave?" He said: "Dayang." He asked: "Where did you spend the summer?" He said: "Guishan." Zhenjing extended his hand and said: "How does my hand resemble a Buddha's hand?" The master was bewildered. Zhenjing rebuked him, saying: "Just now, every sentence was without the slightest error, luminescent and natural. As soon as a 'Buddha's hand' was mentioned, an obstruction arose. Where is the sickness?" The master said: "I do not understand." Jing said: "Everything is fully manifest; who else is there to understand?" The master took this to heart and joined the ranks of disciples. For more than ten years, wherever [Zhenjing] went, he invariably followed. In the third year of Shaosheng, Zhenjing moved to Shimen, and the patch-robed monks flourished even more. Whenever someone entered the room to question him, Zhenjing would invariably close his eyes and sit erect without showing anything. When he saw visitors coming, he would invariably rise and follow the gardeners mounding soil for vegetables, making this his regular practice. The master often said to Gong: "Has the old fellow no mind for the Dharma Way? It cannot be fathomed." One day, Zhenjing raised his staff to clear a ditch; the water splashed upon [the master's] robe, whereupon he had a great awakening. He ran to recount the matter. Zhenjing scolded him, saying: "How dare you make use of such slovenliness here?" From then on, his traces became ever more hidden and his fame ever more renowned. When Daizhi Li Jingzhen governed Yuzhang, he admired his style and invited him to open the Dharma hall at Yunyan. Before long, when Lord Mang, director of the Palace Buildings, supervised Nanchang, the master moved his residence to Letan. The master's eloquence was like a torrential stream, his swift mechanisms sweeping like lightning. Patch-robed monks both feared and admired him. Beneath his mallet and whisk, there were often several thousand hands. He gave himself the sobriquet Zantang. He often said: "I only keep one staff; if a Buddha comes I strike, and if a patriarch comes I strike. I will not take a stray character's foot to soil your withered guts. In this way, the Linji lineage will not fall into desolation." One day, a newly arrived monk came for an audience and spread his sitting mat. The master said: "Before the customary courtesies, where did the elder recently leave?" He said: "Guizong on Mount Lu." The master said: "Where does the lineage (zong) return?" The monk said: "Eh?" The master said: "Making a living inside a frog's cave." The monk said: "Why does the upādhyāya not accept my words?" The master said: "Is it that you came from Guizong, or not?" The monk said: "I did." The master said: "A fellow trotting in front of donkeys and behind horses." He asked a second elder: "Where did you recently leave?" The monk said: "Yuanzhou." The master said: "Where did you spend the summer?" He said: "Yangshan." The master said: "Did you see the Little Śākya?" The monk said: "I did." The master said: "How long are his nostrils?" The monk hesitated. The master said: "You have fallen into words, teacher." He asked a monk: "Why have you come?" He said: "I have come specially to inquire after the upādhyāya." The master said: "Clouds on the ridge cannot be idle; water flowing beneath the ravine is far too rushed." The monk said: "It would be best if the upādhyāya did not deceive people." The master said: "Why did Master Ma run past beneath the ācārya's heels?" The monk was speechless. The master said: "It is rather the ācārya who is deceiving this old monk." A monk asked: "When one has a mouth but cannot speak, how is that?" The master said: "Rowing a boat backwards in Lake Dongting." Xianchi of Xueju arrived. The master asked: "Before you left Mount Oufu, your literary brilliance was already apparent. Now that you have reached Baofeng, what will you express?" Chi said: "Before my eyes there is a path." The master held up a letter and said: "Since this belongs to Yunju, why is it in Baofeng's hands?" Chi said: "Soldiers follow the seal's movement; generals march as the tally dictates." The master said: "Going down a slope without running, give a clap." Chi hesitated. The master said: "Thinking of Xianchi: he has only an advance guard and no rearguard." One day, meeting the head monk in the Dharma hall, he asked: "Where are you going?" The head monk said: "I intend to deliberate a matter with the upādhyāya." The master said: "Please proceed." The head monk said: "The ladle handle of the eastern house is long; the ladle handle of the western house is short." The master said: "Why is it that when you pick up a Gongxian tea kettle, it turns out to be a porcelain bowl from Raozhou?" The head monk said: "Looking at the riverbank on the edge of a cliff, one's eyes are filled with an extraordinary sorrow." The master cried out: "Injustice!" The head monk stuck out his tongue and retreated. While at Fenning, the master met Upādhyāya Sixin, who asked: "Will you be returning to the mountains this time?" The master said: "I must go pay homage to my elder Dharma brother." Sixin said: "When you come, you must take good care of the expedient means." The master said: "Why?" Sixin said: "The roads of my Huanglong are slippery." The master said: "How many people have slipped and fallen?" Sixin said: "Before you even arrive at Huanglong, your feet will already be stuck." The master said: "Why must the upādhyāya close the gate to wait for me?" Sixin asked again: "Old Zhun, you shelter so many monks, yet they just gather their heads together, clamour, and wolf down food. In the end, how do you help people?" The master said: "Kindling a fire with the aid of the wind." Sixin said: "Why talk such nonsense?" The master said: "There has always been a little something." The master then asked: "How many monks are lodged in the upādhyāya's mountain?" Sixin said: "Four hundred men, all of them sharp and resolute patch-robed monks." The master said: "In a lion's den there are no other beasts." Sixin said: "When you come, you must also watch out." The master said: "I shall wait for the moment." Sixin said: "When the moment comes, how will it be?" The master said: "Call them over to wash my feet." Sixin said: "You Sichuan monk open such a big mouth!" The master said: "Elder Zhun has always been like this." Sixin said: "Thirty years playing with horses to ride." He asked a monk: "Where is your homeland?" He said: "Qingzhou." The master said: "Where did you recently leave?" He said: "Yunju." The master said: "Say a word from beneath the tree of peace and happiness." The monk was speechless. The master then asked a monk standing nearby: "Can you say it?" The monk said: "I cannot say it; I ask the upādhyāya to say it." The master said: "To the north, donkeys are as big as horses." The monk said: "Is it so?" The master said: "Why are your nostrils in Baofeng's hands?" The monk then shouted. The master said: "Fire erupts in the water." Seeing a monk reading a sūtra, he asked: "What sūtra are you reading?" He said: "The Diamond Sūtra." The master said: "The sūtra says: 'This Dharma is equal, without high or low.' Is that so?" The monk said: "It is." The master said: "Why is Mount Yunju high and Mount Baofeng low?" The monk said: "This Dharma is equal, without high or low." The master said: "You can only act as a lecturer's servant." The monk said: "How does the upādhyāya take it?" The master said: "For now, I let your nostrils breathe out air." One day, seeing a monk under the corridor, he asked: "Do you understand yet?" The monk said: "I do not understand." The master said: "Azure Dragon on the left, White Tiger on the right." The monk said: "I have long heard of Baofeng, but it turns out you are merely a divining fortune-teller." The master pointed his finger and said: "The elder is unlucky today." The monk said: "The old fellow is defeated!" The master said: "When meeting a swordsman on the road, one must present a sword." The master asked a monk: "Are you peaceful and happy?" The monk said: "Nothing is the matter." The master said: "You have a great deal of business!" He said: "I do not know what business I have." The master said: "Recently the Vajrapāṇi of Shanglan and the Earth God of Tianning fought with each other." The monk was speechless. The master said: "Indeed, nothing is the matter." He asked a monk: "What is the elder's point of strength?" The monk shouted. The master said: "I questioned you civilly; why flare up in anger?" The monk shouted again. The master said: "Turns out you are an expert." The monk struck him with his sitting mat. The master bowed his head and let out a sigh. The monk said: "I let you off this move." The master said: "Here, one must not let it off!" and immediately struck him. Once, during a general discourse, when the assembly was about to disperse, the master suddenly asked a monk: "When light comes, strike in light; when darkness comes, strike in darkness. How do you understand this?" The monk shouted. The master said: "If pointed out, it is not attained." The monk shouted again. The master said: "If attained, it is not pointed out." The monk said: "If suddenly you encounter one who comes neither in light nor in darkness, what then?" The master said: "Today it is cold; return to the hall for now and face the fire." Then he gave a shout and rose. One day he ascended the hall and said: "All night at Baofeng I could not sleep, calculating. Today as I ascended the hall, I searched my belly and ransacked my breast, but could not think of anything. Now that the moment presses close, business arises from an urgent household." He then held up the whisk and said: "Elder Zhun recently made a whisk; for the time being, I offer it to the great assembly." Then throwing it down, he said: / "Bamboo roots and palm leaves tied with hemp rope, / Its style is naturally of a separate house." / In the summer, the sixth month of the fifth year of Zhenghe, he fell ill. The head monk asked: "How is the upādhyāya's health recently?" The master said: "A lame donkey climbs a wall." The head monk said: "The upādhyāya would do well to take a dose of medicine." The master said: "Rotten wood builds a bridge." The head monk said: "I also know the upādhyāya does not know how to abstain from harmful foods." The master said: "How about you?" The head monk was about to say something. The master said: "You too would do well to take a dose of medicine." On the twenty-second day of the seventh month, he changed his robes, recited a gāthā, and transformed. He lived fifty-five years and sat for thirty-five summers. His numinous bones and śarīra were stupaed at Nanyuan in Shimen. Grand Councillor Zhang Wujin composed his stele inscription, Policy Reviewer Hong Jufu prefaced his recorded sayings, the celebrated scholar Li Shanglao compiled anecdotes about him, and his fellow disciple Dehong Juefan recorded the master's conduct and deeds. His lofty Way and great virtue can well be imagined. Master Xiu praised him: "Upādhyāya Zhenmu of Yunju said to people: 'Leaving the passes and roaming the Jiang and Huai regions for thirty years, I visited eighteen kalyāṇamitras. Among them, none surpassed the five great beings: Foguo, Foyan, Sixin, Lingyuan, and Zantang.' Truly are these words! For examining the complete talent of a true ancestral master is this difficult. While the heirs of Foguo, Foyan, Sixin, and Lingyuan have already shone brightly in the world, Zantang alone opened the Dharma hall for only a short time, and no one has continued his lofty footsteps. Yet when looking at his remaining writings and reflecting on his mindset, one truly believes that other men cannot easily attain to him." Juefan praised him: "Zhun, within the gate of Zhenjing, was one who possessed the reputation of the lineage, whose eloquence and bearing stood out above the crowd. How could this be anything but knowledgeable words!"

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續傳燈錄 — Classical Chinese