廣弘明集 18.17

18.17

Recently I saw your "Treatise Resolving Doubts." It is indeed a work drawn from personal sentiment; its examination of the essential principles is very nearly on mark, yet in discerning the adherence to one's allotted destiny, it seems not yet to have illuminated its root. That blessing does not verify goodness has also been my longstanding perplexity: though I surveyed the Six Classics widely, my obstruction only deepened; it was only upon beholding the scriptural teachings that I first clearly found a refuge. Therefore, let me use the words of those of prior awakening to speak to the scholars of today. You take it that if one discerns what is allotted by destiny, one need not pray for verification in the unseen realm, and that the words about "lingering celebration" are meant for exhortation and instruction. Allow me to inquire into the purport of discerning allotted destiny: should one lodge the sentiments in principle and yield to it without contrivance, or should one forget concerns in oblivious obscurity and merely leave things as they are? If one lodges the sentiments in principle, then principle cannot yet be comprehended: good and evil are intermingled and disordered, and contrary and concordant states cannot be examined; if not through an unseen nullification, how could one avoid contrivance? If one merely leaves things as they are, then unless one "sits in forgetfulness," whenever affairs arrive one will surely be moved; when being moved is caused by affairs, sentiment will also rise and fall: walking in faithfulness and obtaining protection, how could one fail to celebrate? Committing evil without being punished, how could there be no resentment? Though one wishes to forget concerns, how could that be possible? If one quietly seeks it in oneself, the effect is obvious! Furthermore, the establishment of exhortation and instruction must proceed by drawing upon reality; it is merely that the methods of admonition cannot be exhausted by a single path. Thus, some seem contrary at first and only later harmonize; some are obscure regarding their spoken words. For this reason, clay carriages and straw effigies differ in ordinance between the hall and the chamber; some manifest what is distant, while others summon what is near—so that those who follow the teaching do not improperly seek beyond their allotment, and scholars who drink of harmony are inherently content with benevolence and righteousness. Therefore, the deep and the shallow are taught side by side, and the people's hearing is not misled. Yet the mystery of spiritual illumination is harboured within subtle things: how could it openly proclaim the accumulation of good, establish the hexagram lines upon "treading on frost," and yet have affairs run counter to instruction and principle conflict with words? Bo Yi and Shu Qi found self-attainment in tranquil endurance; Yan Yuan and Ran Geng grieved continually though treading in harmony. I fear that intentional words might differ from this. If it is said that figures like Shangchen were beyond the reach of the teaching, and the means of guidance were only for those of middling intelligence and below, yet when Dong Anyu harboured benevolence his person was not spared, while Zang Hui, through usurpation, had descendants in the state of Lu—then in what can the allotment of destiny be discerned? The proclamation of "mystic clarity" would then turn out to be a repository of doubts! Therefore, when the gentlemen of old understood that the coming of success and decline stems from faults that are not recent, and that the signs of wisdom, folly, longevity, and premature death have been clear since the past: King Mu of Chu died a natural death because of dense blessings; Duke Ling of Cai suffered calamity because his goodness was slight; Xi Wan could not be saved because his fault was profound; Duke Huan of Song had his prayers answered easily because his transgression was minute. Therefore, they cleansed their minds to cherish the ancestral principle, refined their forms to hear the Way, pulled out the deep roots of ignorance, and blocked the tangled net of craving and clinging. They did not pray for verification in the unseen realm, yet shadows and echoes manifested of themselves; they did not expect retribution, yet celebration and punishment were clearly displayed. Thus they were able to retrace their steps through the eight extremes and mirror the myriad existences as clear water. Yet the principle of subtle illumination transcends ordinary domains: Yao and Confucius rescued the coarse aspects, so it is appropriate that their teachings were not exhaustive; Sima Qian reached the threshold but did not enter the inner chamber. It is lamentable that they lived in an age without hearing [the Dharma], and thus grieved perpetually to the end of their years. Since you have already crossed into its ford, you should also attain it before long. This is that in which the unseen and manifest are lodged; how could it be a matter of mere discourse? We have been parted for many years; I send this for now in place of diligent inquiries.