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大珠慧海 Dazhu Huihai (fl. 788; 713?-812?)
頓悟入道要門論 Dunwu rudao yaomen lun
(Rōmaji:) Daiju Ekai: Tongo nyūdō yōmon ron
(English:) The Path to Sudden Attainment;
Gateway to the Sudden Enlightenment to Truth
(Magyar átírás:) Ta-csu Huj-haj: Tun-vu zsu-tao jao-men lun
# 卍 Xuzangjing Vol. 63, No. 1223 頓悟入道要門論
# CBETA Chinese Electronic Tripitaka V1.7 (Big5)
http://www.cbeta.org/result/normal/X63/1223_001.htm
Dunwu rudao yaomen lun (J. Tongo nyūdō yōmonron; K. Tono ipto yomun non 頓悟入道要門論 ). In Chinese, “Treatise on the Essential Gate of Entering the Way through Sudden Awakening,” composed by the Tang dynasty CHAN master DAZHU HUIHAI (d.u.); also known as the Dunwu yaomen. The monk Miaoxie (d.u.) discovered this text in a box and published it in 1369 together with Dazhu's recorded sayings that he selectively culled from the JINGDE CHUANDENG LU. 妙叶 Miaoxie's edition is comprised of two rolls. The first roll contains Dazhu's text the Dunwu rudao yaomen lun, and the second contains his sayings, which Miaoxie entitled the Zhufang menren canwen yulu. A preface to this edition was prepared by the monk Chongyu (1304–1378). The Dunwu rudao yaomen lun focuses on the notion of “sudden awakening” (DUNWU) and attempts to explicate various doctrinal concepts, such as ŚĪLA, DHYĀNA, PRAJÑĀ, TATHATĀ, BUDDHA-NATURE (FOXING), and “no-thought” (WUNIAN), from the perspective of sudden awakening. The text explains sudden awakening as the “sudden” (dun) eradication of deluded thoughts and “awakening” (WU) to nonattainment or the fundamental absence of anything that needs to be achieved. Citing such scriptures as the LAṄKĀVATĀRASŪTRA and VIMALAKĪRTINIRDEŚA, the text also contends that the mind itself is the foundation of cultivation and practice. The primary method of cultivation discussed in the text is seated meditation (ZUOCHAN), which it describes as the nonarising of deluded thoughts and seeing one's own nature (JIANXING). The Dunwu rudao yaomen lun also contends that sudden awakening begins with the perfection of giving (DĀNAPĀRAMITĀ)
(The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, 2014)
Tun Wu Ju Tao Yao Mên Lun
In: Zen Dust. The History of the Kōan and Kōan Study in Rinzai (Lin-Chi) Zen. By Isshū Miura and Ruth Fuller Sasaki. New York: Harcourt, Brace and World Inc., 1967. pp. 413-415.
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Huj-haj történeteiből PDF: Huj-haj a Hirtelen Megvilágosodásról |
The Zen Teaching of Instantaneous Awakening Entering the Tao of Sudden Enlightenment PDF: Shastra on the Importance of Entering the Path of Sudden Enlightenment PDF: Jinhua Jia on Huihai, p. 61. Chan Master Yuezhou Dazhu Huihai DAJU HUIHAI
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6.92 Chan Master Yuezhou Dazhu Huihai (Daishu Ekai)
Records of the Transmission of the Lamp : Volume 2 (Books 4-9), The Early Masters.
Translated by Randolph S. Whitfield, 2015
Chan master Dazhu Huihai of Yuezhou (Zhejiang) was a native of Jianzhou (Fujian) whose family name was Zhu. He received the precepts from the Venerable Daozhi of the Dayun Temple in Yuezhou. At first he went to Jiangxi to have an interview with Patriarch Ma (Mazu Daoyi). The Patriarch asked him, ‘Where have you come from?'
‘From the Dayun Temple in Yuezhou,' replied Dazhu.
‘What is the idea in coming here?' asked the Patriarch.
‘To seek the Buddha-dharma,' said Dazhu.
‘Not concerned about the treasure trove in your own house, you squander your precious estate – for what? I have not a single thing here. Seeking what Buddha-dharma?' said the Patriarch.
The master (Dazhu) then bowed and asked, ‘What is that, the treasure trove in Huihai's own house?'
‘Just the one who is asking me at this moment, this is your treasure. Everything is in there, to use freely, without a single thing lacking. Why bother with seeking outside?' answered the Patriarch.
Under the impact of these words the master awakened to knowledge of his original heart, without recourse to intellection. Dancing with joy, he gave reverent thanks. After attending on the Patriarch for six years the master had to return to his temple to look after his temple father, advancing in years. He hid the tracks of his activities and affected a simpleton's demeanour and stammer.
He composed a work of one scroll entitled The Tractate of Entering the Gate of the Essential Dao of Sudden Awakening. A Dharma-master by the name of Zhi Xuanan surreptitiously took it across to Jiangxi and had the Patriarch read it. After reading it he told the congregation, ‘In Yuezhou there is a great pearl, perfectly round and shining, whose light penetrates freely without any obstructions.'
There were some in the assembly who knew that the master's family name was Zhu (pearl). They supported each other by agreeing to go to Yue together and remain there for instruction.
[On arrival] the master addressed them, saying, ‘Dear Chan Guests! I do not understand Chan and because there is absolutely no Dharma to show anyone, do not go to the trouble of standing here too long. You may stay or leave as you wish.' At this time the number of students was steadily increasing, questions were asked from morning until night, answer following question without end. The master's responses knew no obstructions.
There was an occasion when a number of Dharma-masters came to pay a formal visit. They asked, ‘Would the master answer the questions we intend to put?'
‘You are free to fathom the reflection of the moon in the deep lake,' replied Master Dazhu.
‘What is Buddha?' they asked.
‘The face that is reflected in the clear depths – if it isn't Buddha then whose is it?' answered the master. The whole assembly was puzzled.
(Textual comment: Fayan said,‘They are sunk, wading about.')
After a time, one of the monks asked, ‘What Dharma does the master propagate in order to ferry people across to the other shore?'
‘This simple wayfarer has never known a Dharma with which to ferry people across,' answered the master.
‘All the Chan family are like this,' he responded.
‘What Dharma does the worthy one propagate to ferry people across?' asked the master.
‘Lecturing on the Diamond Sūtra ,' replied the monk.
‘How many times?' asked the master.
‘More than twenty,' replied the monk.
‘Who delivered this sutra ?' asked the master.
‘The master jests,' said the monk in a contentious voice, ‘does he not know that it was the Buddha?'
‘If it were said that is was the Tathāgata who propagated the Dharma then that would be slandering the Buddha. Such a man does not understand the meaning of what I said. If it is said that the Buddha did not deliver this sutra, then that is slandering the sutra . Please give your view then, Worthy One.'
There was no reply.
The master continued, ‘A sutra says, “Seeing me through form, seeking me through hearing, such a one goes contrary to the Way and cannot see the Tathāgata.” So tell me, Worthy One, what is the Tathāgata?'
‘I am still in the dark regarding this,' answered the monk.
‘Having never once been awakened, what is it that is said to be still in the dark?' asked the master.
‘May the master please explain,' the monk replied.
‘The venerable monk has lectured more than twenty times and still does not know the meaning of Tathāgata!'
The monk bowed again and said, ‘Would that the master deign explain it.'
The master said, ‘The Tathāgata is the ultimate reality of all dharmas. How could this be forgotten?'
‘It is the ultimate reality of all dharmas', repeated the monk.
‘Oh, Venerable Monk!' said the master, ‘is this so or is it not so?'
‘The sutra clearly affirms it, so how could it not be so?' countered the monk. ‘Is the venerable monk not also thus?' asked the master.
‘Yes,' said the monk.
‘And trees and stones, are they not thus?' asked the master.
‘Yes,' came the reply.
‘And is not the thusness of the venerable monk and the thusness of trees and stones the same?' asked the master.
‘They are not two,' replied the monk.
‘Then what is the difference between the venerable monk and trees and stones?' asked the master.
The monk had no reply. After a pause he then asked, ‘How is the Great Nirvā
a obtained?'
‘Do not make karma leading to birth and death,' replied the master.
‘What is the karma of birth and death?' asked the monk.
‘Seeking for Great Nirvā a is the karma of birth and death. Rejecting defilements and grasping purity is the karma of birth and death. To have obtained, to have experienced, is the karma of birth and death. Not to have renounced the way of restraint is the karma of birth and death,' said the master.
‘How does one obtain liberation?' asked the monk.
‘From the beginning there is no bondage, so there is no use in searching for liberation. Direct functioning is the peerless,' said the master.
‘A Chan master such as this is truly said to be rare!' The monk bowed and departed.
A layman asked, ‘If the heart is Buddha then what is Buddha?'
‘If you doubt that there is anything that is not Buddha, point it out!' answered the master.
There was no reply.
‘Penetrated, it is everywhere. Not awakened, forever at odds with it,' said the master.
There was a Vinaya teacher by the name of Faming who asked the master, ‘All Chan masters stress emptiness.'
‘Actually, it is all Vinaya teachers who stress emptiness,' replied the master. Faming, greatly surprised, said, ‘How do we stress emptiness?'
Said the master, ‘The sutras and sastras are paper, ink and letters. Now paper ink and letters are all vainly built on sound, based on nouns and phrases and such things. They could not but be empty, for how could grasping hold of the teachings and getting stuck in them not be stressing emptiness?'
‘Does the master stress emptiness then?' asked Faming.
‘No stress on emptiness,' replied the Master Dazhu.
‘Why then is there no stress on emptiness?' said Faming.
‘Letters and the rest are all engendered by wisdom and the presence of the great function,' answered the master, ‘so what is this stressing emptiness?'
‘So, unless it were known that all dharmas would be penetrated, [Buddha] would not have been named All Penetrated,' 175 said Faming.
‘The venerable teacher not only stresses emptiness', replied the master, ‘but also misuses names and phrases.'
Blushing, Faming asked, ‘What is the mistake?'
‘The Vinaya teacher cannot yet tell the difference between the sounds of Chinese and Sanskrit,' said the master, ‘so how is it possible to give lectures?'
‘May the master be kind enough to point out Faming's error,' was the reply ‘Is it not known that xi da is a Sanskrit word?' asked the master.
The Vinaya teacher, although understanding the error, harboured anger in his heart.
Again Faming asked, ‘Well, the Sūtras , Vinaya and Śāstras contain the Buddha's words, so why is it that by studying and reciting the teachings and following their instructions one cannot see the [Buddha] Nature?'
‘It is like a mad dog chasing imaginary meat or a lion biting a man,' said the master, ‘ Sūtra , Vinaya and Śāstra are the functioning of the self-nature ( svabhavā ), those who study and recite them are the instruments of the self-nature.'
‘Has Amitābha Buddha a father, mother and family name?' asked Faming.
The master replied, ‘Amitābha's family name is Jiao Shijia, his father's name is Yueshang, mother's name Shusheng Miaoyan.'
‘Which scripture is this taken from?' asked Faming.
‘From the collection of Dharanis ,' replied the master.
Faming bowed in gratitude and, with deep respect, took his leave.
There was a Tripiţaka Master who asked, ‘Does Bhūtatathatā change or not?'
‘It changes,' replied the master.
‘The Chan master is mistaken,' said the Tripiţaka Master.
‘Is there Bhūtatathatā then?' asked the master.
‘There is,' replied the Tripiţaka Master.
‘If there is no change, then it is most assuredly with the average monk,' said the master. ‘Has it not been heard that the three poisons 176 can be changed into the three pure precepts by a good teacher, that the six sense fields become the six supernormal powers, turning anger into bodhi , turning ignorance into Great Wisdom? If there is no change in Bhūtatathatā then the Tripiţaka Master is a Nature Heretic.' 177
‘If this is so,' replied the Tripiţaka Master, ‘then Bhūtatathatā does change.'
‘If there is clinging to the Bhūtatathatā as possessing change, this is a heresy,' said the master.
‘The Chan master has just said that the Bhūtatathatā changes yet now he also says that it does not change. Which is correct?' replied the Tripiţaka Master.
Master Dazhu replied, ‘To those who have really seen into the nature of reality, it is like a precious pearl manifesting all the colours. Say that it changes, and then it changes; say that it does not change, and then it does not change. To those who have not seen into the nature of reality, when they hear that Bhūtatathatā changes, they believe that it changes; when they hear that it is not subject to change, then they believe that it does not change.'
The Tripiţaka master said, ‘Now I know that the Southern School is truly unfathomable.'
There was a Daoist priest who asked, ‘Are there dharmas in the world transcending the natural?'
‘There are,' replied Master Dazhu.
‘Which dharmas are transcendent?' asked the priest.
‘That which is able to know the transcendent,' replied the master.
‘Is not the original qi the Dao?' asked the priest.
‘Original qi is of original qi . Dao is of Dao,' said the master.
‘If that is so then there must be two,' replied the priest.
‘That which knows is not two people,' said the master.
Again the priest asked, ‘What is wrong, what is right?'
‘The heart chasing after things is wrong; things yielding to the heart, is right.' said the master.
There was a Vinaya teacher by the name of Yuan who came and asked, ‘When the venerable monk practises the Dao, is it still productive of merit?'
‘It produces merit,' answered Master Dazhu.
‘What is producing merit?' asked the teacher.
‘To eat when hungry, to sleep when tired,' replied the master.
‘Everybody does that, so is the merit the same as the master's?' asked the priest.
‘Not the same,' answered the master.
‘Why not the same then?' asked the teacher.
‘When others eat it is not wholly eating but pondering over a hundred kinds of other things too, when they sleep it is not wholly sleeping but plotting and planning a thousand affairs. So it is not the same,' said the master.
The Vinaya master was silenced.
There was a venerable monk by the name of Yun Guang who asked, ‘Does the Chan master know the place of his next birth?'
The master replied, ‘Not having died yet, of what use would be the round of births? Know that birth is really no-birth and that Dharma is not separate from birth, for Dharma too is without birth. The [Sixth] Patriarch said that this birth is unborn.'
Yun said, ‘Can people who have not seen into the [Original] Nature also obtain this understanding?'
‘Not having seen into that Nature for oneself does not mean that it does not exist. Why? Seeing into it is the Original Nature. If there were no Original Nature then it couldn't be seen. Awareness of it is the Original Nature, which is why it is called aware of the Original Nature. Realisation is the Original Nature so it is called the realised Original Nature. Capable of giving birth to the ten thousand dharmas it is called Dharma-nature, also called Dharma-body. Aśvagosha said, “That which is spoken of as Dharma, is called the heart of all sentient beings and because the heart is born all dharmas are born. Were the heart not born, dharmas too would have no birth and no name.” The deluded do not know that the Dharma-body has no form, that it creates forms in accordance with things. That is why it is said, “The pure green luxuriant bamboos are all the body of the Dharma and the chrysanthemums are not without Prajñā .” Now if chrysanthemums were Prajñā , Prajñā would be the same as insentience. If the flourishing bamboos were the body of the Dharma then the Dharma-body would be the same as grass and trees. People eating bamboo sprouts would then be eating the Dharma-body. Is talk such as this falling out of the mouth worth recording? Deludedly facing Buddha for long kalpas , hoping and searching, totally immersed in the Dharma, still they look mistakenly to the outside. Therefore, to those who are enlightened to the Dao, there is nothing that is not Dao, whether walking, standing, sitting or lying. To those enlightened in the Dharma freedom is everywhere, for there is nothing that is not Dharma.'
The venerable monk also asked, ‘Is the Great Void capable of generating wisdom? Is the True Heart determined by good and bad? Is there an avaricious man of the Dao? Will clinging to right and wrong lead a man to the penetration of the heart? Can a man whose heart is stirred by contact with the sense fields experience samādhi? Does a man dwelling in quietude possess wisdom? Is a man who harbours haughtiness possessed of egoity? Is a man who hangs on to emptiness or hangs on to existence possessed of wisdom? Is a man who searches the texts for proof, or who engages in austerities, or who sees Buddha outside the heart, or who clings to the heart as being Buddha wise in the Dao? May the master please elucidate these points one by one.'
Master Dazhu replied, ‘The Great Void does not give birth to spiritual wisdom; the True Heart is not determined by good or bad and a greedy man has few opportunities. One who contends over good and bad has not yet penetrated through; the one whose heart is stirred by contact with the sense fields has little samādhi. The wisdom of a man of quietude, who forgets his root capacities, sinks. The egoity of one with a haughty heart is strong; the one who clings to either emptiness or existence is foolish, whilst the one who looks in the texts for confirmation becomes increasingly blocked. One searching Buddha through austerities is completely deluded, the one searching for Buddha outside the heart a heretic. One clinging to the heart as being Buddha is a devil.'
‘If this is the conclusion,' said the monk, ‘then ultimately there is no ground for anyone to stand on.'
‘In the end it lies with the venerable monk. It is not about an ultimate place to stand on,' answered the master.
The venerable monk was happy, made his prostrations and took his leave.
DAJU HUIHAI
by Andy Ferguson
In: Zen's Chinese Heritage: The Masters and Their Teachings, Wisdom Publications, pp. 94-97.
ZEN MASTER DAJU HUIHAI, whose name means “Great Pearl Wisdom Sea,” lived and taught in the late eighth and early ninth century. Daju was a senior and foremost disciple of Mazu Daoyi. He came from Yue Province, a place in Southeast China, and became a monk with a preceptor named Zhi at Great Cloud Temple, also in Yue Province. Daju Huihai is said to have had a bulbous forehead, which led to his Dharma name “Great Pearl.”
His biography relates that upon first meeting Mazu, the following exchange took place:
Mazu asked, “From where have you come?”
Great Pearl said, “From Yue Province.”
Mazu then asked, “What were you planning to do by coming here?”
Great Pearl said, “I've come to seek the Buddhadharma.”
Mazu then replied, “I don't have anything here, so what ‘Buddhadharma' do you think you're going to find here? You haven't seen the treasure in your own house, so why have you run off to some other place?”
Great Pearl then said, “What is the treasury of the wisdom sea?”
Mazu then said, “It is just who is asking me this question, that is your treasury. It is replete, not lacking in the slightest, and if you realize its embodiment then why would you go seeking it elsewhere?”
Upon hearing these words, Daju perceived his fundamental mind unobstructed by thinking. He ardently thanked and honored Mazu [for this instruction].
The paradox at the heart of Zen, and the antimetaphysical way that Zen approached this paradox, are at the center of the following exchange between a Tripitaka master—a teacher of the Buddhist Vinaya (Precepts) school—and Zen master Great Pearl:
A Buddhist Tripitaka master asked Great Pearl, “Is the Tathagata [‘True Thusness'] subject to transformation or not?”
Great Pearl answered, “It transforms.”
The Tripitaka master said, “The Zen master is mistaken.”
Great Pearl then asked the Tripitaka master, “Is there such a thing as the Tathagata?”
The man replied, “Yes, there is.”
Great Pearl then said, “Then if [you think] it doesn't change, then you're just an ordinary [unenlightened] monk. Haven't you heard that worthies who perceive [the truth] can transform the three poisons into the pure precepts; that they can transform the six senses into the six miraculous powers; that they turn defilements into wisdom, and that they turn what is doubtful into great wisdom? If [you think] the Tathagata does not transform, then you are truly a ‘naturalism' heretic.”
The Tripitaka master then said, “If that's so, then the Tathagata does undergo transformation.”
Great Pearl then said, “If you cling to the idea that the Tathagata undergoes transformation, then that is also an incorrect view.”
The Tripitaka master then said, “You just said that the Tathagata undergoes transformation, but now you say it doesn't change. How can you properly speak in this manner?”
Great Pearl said, “If you completely understand the nature [of mind], it's like the appearance of the mani jewel [that fulfills wishes]. You can say it changes, and you can say it doesn't change. Among those who have not observed the nature [of mind], when they hear that the Tathagata undergoes change, they have some [false] understanding that it undergoes transformation, and if someone says to them that the Tathagata is not subject to change, then they have some [false] understanding about it not undergoing transformation.”
The Tripitaka master then said, “This is why the Southern school [of Zen] is considered to be unfathomable.”
Zen master Great Pearl authored a text entitled Doctrine of the Vital Gate of Sudden Entry into the Way that lays out an unusually detailed and concise explanation of how the “Southern” Zen school viewed itself and its practice of “sudden” enlightenment. Written in the form of questions and answers between a student and an unidentified Zen master, the text establishes meditation as the basic method for understanding the nature of the mind, and uses this context to clarify points of doctrinal confusion.
Here follows some short excerpts from the text:
Student: What is the method through which one may gain liberation?
Teacher: There is only the “sudden” method by which one may gain liberation.
Student: What is the “sudden” method?
Teacher: “Sudden” is to suddenly forgo all delusive thoughts. “Enlightenment” is [to know that] no enlightenment can be attained.
Student: How does one practice this?
Teacher: It is practiced from what is fundamental [literally, from the “root”].
Student: How does one practice from the fundamental?
Teacher: Mind is fundamental. Student: How does one know that mind is fundamental? Teacher: The Lankavatara Sutra says, “When mind manifests, all the myriad dharmas are manifested. When mind is extinguished the myriad dharmas are extinguished…”
Student: When a person practices the fundamental, what method do they use?
Teacher: Only Zen meditation [is this practice]. It is achieved through Zen samadhi.
Student: “Form is emptiness” and “the mundane is sacred”. Are these things [realized through] sudden enlightenment?
Teacher: Yes.
Student: What is [the meaning of] “form is emptiness.” What is [the meaning of] “the mundane is sacred”?
Teacher: When the mind contains defilements, that is “form.” When the mind is undefiled that is “emptiness.” When the mind is polluted it is ordinary mind. When the mind is unpolluted then it is “sacred.” It is also said that because there is true emptiness therefore there is form. But because there is form, it does not follow that there is emptiness. What is now called emptiness, [means] the self-nature of form is empty. If there is no form, then emptiness [is also] extinguished. What we now call “form” is empty of self-nature. Form does not come from [the same] form [i.e. is not eternal].
The “paradox” in Zen is enhanced by a linguistic problem in passages such as the above. Part of the ambiguity and confusion surrounding ideas of “emptiness” arise from the fact that there is no clear distinction in Chinese between the adjective empty and the noun emptiness . The word kong has both or either implication. When the word is interpreted as “empty,” then the teaching on the emptiness of things may be interpreted to mean “things are empty of self nature.” This view conforms with the classical Zen Buddhist perspective that there is no underlying metaphysic in the nature of things. However, when the same word is interpreted as “emptiness,” a noun, then the interpretation “form is emptiness” leads those who hear or read the phrase to believe a metaphysical emptiness underlies form, and form itself is erroneously thought to have an idealist underpinning. Great Pearl avoids this pitfall by describing form and emptiness simply as qualities of thought. In this way, he avoids the pitfall of metaphysical interpretation and remains true to basic Zen teachings of the Bodhidharma line.
Zen master Great Pearl speaks to the signless practice, the practice of the “third hall,” in the following exchange from the Compendium of Five Lamps.
Vinaya master Yuan asked Great Pearl, “When you practice the Way, do you use a special skill?”
Great Pearl said, “I do.”
Yuan asked, “What is it?”
Great Pearl said, “ When I'm hungry I eat. When I get sleepy I sleep.”
Yuan said, “Everyone does these things. Do they not have the same skill as you?”
Great Pearl said, “They do not have the same skill.”
Yuan said, “Why is it not the same?”
Great Pearl then said, “When
hey eat it can't be called eating, since they do so [while involved] with a hundred entanglements. When they sleep it can't be called sleeping, since their mind is beset with worries. Thus they are not the same.” The Vinaya master was silent.
The place of Zen master Great Pearl's death is unknown.
Zen Teaching of Instantaneous Awakening: being the teaching of the Zen Master Hui Hai, known as the Great Pearl
Translated by John Blofeld (1913-1987)
Buddhist Publishing Group, PO Box 173, Totnes TQ9 9AE, UK,
ISBN 0-946672-03-2 year 1987
has been removed at the request of copyright owner
Cf.
The Path to Sudden Attainment, a treatise of the Ch'an (Zen) school of Chinese Buddhism by Hui Hai of the T'ang Dynasty,
translated by John Blofeld (London: Sidgwick & Jackson, Ltd., for the Buddhist Society, London, 1948), 51 pages.
"A literal and concise translation that follows the text closely."The Zen teaching of Hui Hai on sudden illumination; being the teaching of the Zen Master Hui Hai, known as the Great Pearl;
rendered into English [from the Chinese] by John Blofeld (Chu Ch'an);
foreword by Charles Luk.
London, Rider & Co., 1962, 160 p.
New York, Weiser, 1962, 1972, 160 p.
"A complete translation of the Tun Wu Ju Tao Yao Mên Lun and the Tsung Ching Record."
The birth of this translation
Thereupon, my thoughts flew back to a temple secluded in a long, low valley in West China where, during the Second World War, I had gone from my post at our embassy in Chungking to recuperate from illness. Today I do not even remember the temple's name, but I shall not easily forget what befell me there. It is strange (and no doubt a symptom of our need for books such as the Great Pearl's) how quickly the most delicious pleasures pall. Living in that peaceful temple, with nothing to do all day long beyond reading, sipping tea with friendly monks and gazing out at the beautiful pine-crowned ridges to either side of the fertile valley, I presently found myself bored! Beauty and idleness, to which years of hard work and a month of illness had made me look forward with all my heart, had all too quickly lost their charm. The aged monk-librarian, noticing with his shrewd old eyes my need for distraction, took me to spend a morning with him in the library-- a large pavilion almost as big as the main shrine hall of the temple. Inside, I found most of it occupied not by books, but by thousands of delicately incised boards of the kind formerly used for printing Chinese texts. Many of them were centuries old and bore vertical rows of characters so exquisitely formed that I was able to pass several happy hours handling and admiring them; but my state of health had left me weak and presently I felt the need to seek my bedroom, which opened off the shrine hall on the other side of the courtyard. Just as I turned to go, the old monk smilingly placed in my hands a copy of one of the ancient texts block-printed from the boards I had been examining.
Back in my room, which even at midday was rather dark, I lighted a red votive candle and began idly glancing through the pages of the old gentleman's gift. It proved to be a reprint of an eighth-century (T'ang dynasty) text composed by the Ch'an Master Hui Hai, together with a selection of his dialogues with his disciples. Almost at once I came upon an arresting quotation to the effect that sages seek from mind and not from the Buddha, whereas those who seek from the Buddha and not from mind are fools! This sharply awakened my curiosity, for it seemed extraordinary that a pious Buddhist writer should thus castigate those who seek something from the `teacher of gods and men'. Anyone might be forgiven for finding such words blasphemous -- as I did until I had read the whole book and begun to experience the first glimmer of understanding. There and then, I decided to try my hand at translating this intriguing work.
John Blofeld
大珠慧海 Dazhu Huihai
頓悟入道要門論 Dunwu rudao yaomen lun
A Treatise on the Essential Gateway to Truth by Means of Instantaneous Awakening
(Rōmaji:) Tongo nyūdō yōmon ron
Dunwu rudao yaomen lun 頓悟入道要門論 (Essentials for Entering the Way Through Sudden Awakening), a composite work consisting of a treatise attributed to Dazhu Huihai plus a biography and a record of Huihai's sayings (lifted from the Jingde chuandenglu) known as Zhufang menren canwen yulu 諸方門人參問語錄 (Record of Questions Asked by Students Visiting from All Quarters) (X. 1224, 27c23-28a02).
First published by 妙叶 Miaoxie in 1374.
Being a translation of Ch'an Master Hui Hai's own
Śāstra, the Tun Wu Ju Tao Yao Mên Lun or A Treatise on the Essential Gateway to Truth by Means of Instantaneous Awakening.
1
Humbly I prostrate myself before the Buddhas of the ten quarters' and the excellent company of Bodhisattvas. In setting forth this treatise, I am apprehensive that I may fail correctly to interpret the sacred mind. If so, may I be given a chance for repentance and reform. However, if I do succeed in imparting the sacred truth, I dedicate the resultant merit to all living beings in the hope that each of them will attain Buddhahood in their next life.
2
Q: What method must we practice in order to attain deliverance?
A: It can be attained only through a sudden illumination.
Q: What is a sudden illumination?
A: 'Sudden' means ridding yourselves of deluded thoughts' instantaneously. 'Illumination' means the realization that illumination is not something to be attained.
Q: From where do we start this practice?
A: You must start from the very root.
Q: And what is that?
A: Mind is the root.
Q: How can this be known?
A: The Lankavatara Sutra says: 'When mental processes (hsin) arise, then do all dharmas (phenomena) spring forth; and when mental processes cease, then do all dharmas cease likewise.' The Vimalakirti Sutra says:
'Those desiring to attain the Pure Land' must first purify their own minds, for the purification of mind is the purity of the Buddha Land. The Sutra (of the Doctrine Bequeathed by the Buddha) says: just by mind control, all things become possible to us.' In another sutra it says:
'Sages seek from mind, not from the Buddha; fools seek from the Buddha instead of seeking from mind. Wise men regulate their minds rather than their persons; fools regulate their persons rather than their minds.' The Sutra of the Names of the Buddha states: 'Evil springs forth from the mind, and by the mind is evil overcome.' Thus, we may know that all good and evil proceed from our minds and that mind is therefore the root. If you desire deliverance, you must first know all about the root. Unless you can penetrate to this truth, all your efforts will be vain; for, while you are still seeking something from forms external to yourselves, you will never attain. The Dhyana paramita Sutra says:
'For as long as you direct your search to the forms around you, you will not attain your goal even after aeon upon aeon; whereas, by contemplating your inner awareness, you can achieve Buddhahood in a single flash of thought.'
Q: By what means is the root-practice to be performed?
A: Only by sitting in meditation, for it is accomplished by Dhyana (Ch'an) and samádhi (ting). The Dhyana-paramita Sutra says: 'Dhyana and samádhi are essential to the search for the sacred knowledge of the Buddhas; for, without these, the thoughts remain in tumult and the roots of goodness suffer damage.'
Q: Please describe Dhyana and samádhi.
A: When wrong thinking ceases, that is Dhyana; when you sit contemplating your original nature, that is samádhi, for indeed that original nature is your eternal mind. By samádhi, you withdraw your minds from their surroundings, thereby making them impervious to the eight winds, that is to say, impervious to gain and loss, calumny and eulogy, praise and blame, sorrow and joy. By concentrating in this way, even ordinary people may enter the state of Buddhahood. How can that be so? The Sutra of the bodhisattva-Precepts says: 'All beings who observe the Buddha-precept thereby enter Buddhahood.' Other names for this are 'deliverance', 'gaining the further shore', 'transcending the six states of mortal being 'overleaping the three worlds',' or becoming a mighty Bodhisattva, an omnipotent sage, a conqueror'!
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Q: Whereon should the mind settle and dwell?
A: It should settle upon non-dwelling and there dwell.
Q: What is this non-dwelling?
A: It means not allowing the mind to dwell upon anything whatsoever.
Q: And what is the meaning of that?
A: Dwelling upon nothing means that the mind is not fixed upon good or evil, being or nonbeing, inside or outside, or somewhere between the two, void or non-void, concentration or distraction. This dwelling upon nothing is the state in which it should dwell; those who attain to it are said to have non-dwelling minds—in other words, they have Buddha-minds!
Q: What does mind resemble?
A: Mind has no color, such as green or yellow, red or white; it is not long or short; it does not vanish or appear; it is free from purity and impurity alike; and its duration is eternal. It is utter stillness. Such, then, is the form and shape of our original mind, which is also our original body—the Buddhakaya!
Q: By what means do this body or mind perceive? Can they perceive with the eyes, ears, nose, sense of touch and consciousness?
A: No, there are not several means of perception like that.
Q: Then, what sort of perception is involved, since it is unlike any of those already mentioned?
A: It is perception by means of your own nature (svabhava). How so? Because your own nature being essentially pure and utterly still, its immaterial and motionless 'sub-stance' is capable of this perception."'
Q: Yet, since that pure 'substance' cannot be found, where does such perception come from?
A: We may liken it to a bright mirror, which, though it contains no forms, can nevertheless 'perceive' all forms. Why? Just because it is free from mental activity. if you students of the Way had minds unstained, they would not give rise to falsehood and their attachment to the subjective ego and to objective externals would vanish; then purity would arise of itself and you would thereby be capable of such perception. The Dharmapada Sutra says: 'To establish ourselves amid perfect void-ness in a single flash is excellent wisdom indeed!'
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Q: According to the Vajra-body chapter of the Maha-parinirvana Sutra: 'The (indestructible) diamond-body is imperceptible, yet it clearly perceives; it is free from discerning and yet there is nothing which it does not comprehend.' What does this mean?
A: It is imperceptible because its own nature is a formless 'substance' which is intangible; hence it is called 'imperceptible'; and, since it is intangible, this 'substance' is observed to be profoundly still and neither vanishing nor appearing. Though not apart from our world, it cannot be influenced by the worldly stream; it is self-possessed and sovereign, which is the reason why it clearly perceives. It is free from discerning in that its own nature is formless and basically undifferentiated. Its comprehending everything means that the undifferentiated 'substance' is endowed with functions as countless as the sands of the Ganges; and, if all phenomena were to be discerned simultaneously, it would comprehend all of them without exception. In the Prajñā Gatha it is written:
Prajñā, unknowing, knows all,
Prajñā, unseeing, sees all.5
Q: There is a sutra, which says that not to perceive anything in terms of being, or nonbeing is true deliverance. What does it mean?
A: When we attain to purity of mind, that is something which can be said to exist. When this happens, our remaining free from any thought of achievement is called 'not perceiving anything as existent'; while reaching the state in which no thoughts arise or persist, yet without being conscious of their absence, is called 'not perceiving anything as non-existent'. So it is written: 'Not to perceive anything in terms of being and nonbeing,' etc. The Shurangama Sutra says: 'Perceptions employed as a base for building up positive concepts are the origin of all ignorance (avidya); perception that there is nothing to perceive—that is nirvana, also known as deliverance.'
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Q: What is the meaning of 'nothing to perceive'?
A: Being able to behold men, women and all the various sorts of appearances while remaining as free from love or aversion as if they were actually not seen at all—that is what is meant by 'nothing to perceive'.
Q: That which occurs when we are confronted by all sorts of shapes and forms is called 'perception'. Can we speak of perception taking place when nothing confronts us?
A: Yes.
Q: When something confronts us, it follows that we perceive it, but how can there be perception when we are confronted by nothing at all?
A: We are now talking of that perception which is independent of there being an object or not. How can that be? The nature of perception being eternal, we go on perceiving whether objects are present or not. Thereby we come to understand that, whereas objects naturally appear and disappear, the nature of perception does neither of those things; and it is the same with all your other senses.
Q: When we are looking at something, does the thing looked at exist objectively within the sphere of perception or not?
A: No, it does not.
Q: When we (look around and) do not see anything, is there an absence of something objective within the sphere of perception?
A: No, there is not.
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Q: When there are sounds, hearing occurs. When there are no sounds, does hearing persist or not?
A: It does.
Q: When there are sounds it follows that we hear them, but how can hearing take place during the absence of sound?
A: We are now talking of that hearing which is independent of there being any sound or not. How can that be? The nature of hearing being eternal, we continue to hear whether sounds are present or not.
Q: If that is so, who or what is the hearer?
A: It is your own nature, which hears, and it is the inner cognizer who knows.Q: As to the gateway of sudden illumination, what are its doctrine, its aim, its substance and its function?"
A: To refrain from thinking (nien) is its doctrine; not to allow wrong thoughts to arise is its aim; purity is its substance, and wisdom is its function.
Q: We have said that its doctrine is to refrain from thinking, but we have not yet examined the meaning of this term. What is it that we must refrain from thinking about?
A: It means that we must refrain from wrong thinking, but not from right thinking.
Q: What are wrong thinking and right thinking?
A: Thinking in terms of being and nonbeing is called 'wrong thinking', while not thinking in those terms is called, 'right thinking'. Similarly, thinking in terms of good and evil is wrong; not to think so is right thinking. The same applies to all the other categories of opposites—sorrow and joy, beginning and end, acceptance and rejection, dislikes and likes, aversion and love, all of which are called 'wrong thinking', while to abstain from thinking in those categories is called 'right thinking'.
Q: Please define 'right thinking' (more positively).
A: It means thinking solely of bodhi (enlightenment).
Q: Is bodhi something tangible?
A: It is not.
Q: But how can we think solely of bodhi if it is intangible?
A: It is as though bodhi were a mere name applied to something, which, in fact, is intangible, something that never has been nor ever will be attained. Being intangible, it cannot be thought about, and it is just this not thinking about it, which is called 'rightly thinking of bodhi as something not to be thought about'—for this implies that your mind dwells upon nothing whatsoever. The term 'not to be thought about' is like the various kinds of not-thinking mentioned earlier, all of which are but names convenient for use in certain circumstances—all are of the one substance in which no differences or diversities exist. Simply to be conscious of mind as resting upon nothing whatsoever is to be without thought; and whoever reaches this state is naturally delivered.
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Q: What is the meaning of 'to act as the Buddhas do'?
A: It means total abstention from action, which is also termed 'right' or 'holy' action. It is very similar to what we were talking about before, for it means not acting as if things really are or are not, and not acting from motives of aversion, love and all the rest. The Great Canon (Monastic Rules says: 'The sages do not act like other beings; nor do other beings act like the sages.'
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Q: What does right perception mean?
A: It means perceiving that there is nothing to perceive.
Q: And what does that mean?
A: It means beholding all sorts of forms, but without being stained by them, as no thoughts of love or aversion arise in the mind. Reaching this state is called 'obtaining the Buddha-eye', which really means just that and nothing else. Whereas, if the spectacle of various forms produces love or aversion in you, that is called 'perceiving them as though they had objective existence', which implies having the eye of an ordinary person, for indeed ordinary people have no other sort of eye. It is the same with all the other organs of perception.
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Q: When you said that wisdom is the function, what did you mean by wisdom?
A: The knowledge that by realizing the void-ness of all opposites, deliverance is assured and that, without this realization, you will never gain deliverance. This is what we call 'wisdom' or 'knowing wrong from right'. Another name for it is 'knowing the function of the substance' Concerning the unreality of opposites, it is the wisdom inherent in the 'substance' which makes it known that to realize their void-ness means liberation and that there can be no more doubt about it. This is what we mean by 'function'. In speaking thus of the unreality of opposites, we refer to the non-existence of relativities such as 'is' and 'is not', 'good' and 'evil', 'love' and 'aversion', and so on.
Q: By what means can the gateway of our school be entered?
A: By means of the Dana paramita.
Q: According to the Buddha, the Bodhisattva path comprises six paramitas. Why, then, have you mentioned only the one? Please explain why this one alone provides a sufficient means for us to enter.
A: Deluded people fail to understand that the other five all proceed from the Dana paramita and that by its practice all the others are fulfilled.
Q: Why is it called the Dana paramita?
A: 'Dana' means 'relinquishment'.
Q: Relinquishment of what?
A: Relinquishment of the dualism of opposites.
Q: Which means?
A: It means total relinquishment of ideas as to the dual nature of good and bad, being and nonbeing, love and aversion, void and non-void, concentration and distraction, pure and impure. By giving all of them up, we attain to a state in which all opposites are seen as void. The real practice of the Dana paramita entails achieving this state without any thought of 'now I see that opposites are void', or 'now I have relinquished all of them'. We may also call it 'the simultaneous cutting off of the myriad types of concurrent causes'; for it is when these are cut off that the whole Dharma-nature becomes void; and this void-ness of the Dharma-nature means the non-dwelling of the mind upon anything whatsoever. Once that state is achieved, not a single form can be discerned. Why? Because our self-nature is immaterial and does not contain a single thing (foreign to itself). That which contains no single thing is true reality, the marvelous form of the Tathágata—it is said in the Diamond Sutra: 'Those who relinquish all forms are called "Buddhas" (enlightened ones).'
Q: However, the Buddha did speak of six paramitas, so why do you now say they can all be fulfilled in that one? Please give your reason for this.
A: The Sutra of the Questions of Brahma says: 'Jala-vidya, the elder, spoke unto Brahma and said, Bodhisattvas by relinquishing all defilement's (klesha) may be said to have fulfilled the Dana paramita, also known as 'total relinquishment'; being beguiled by nothing, they may be said to have fulfilled the síla paramita, also known as 'observing the precepts'; being hurt by nothing, they may be said to have fulfilled the kshanti paramita, also known as 'exercising forbearance'; clinging to nothing, they may be said to have fulfilled the virya paramita, also known as 'exercising zeal'; dwelling on nothing, they may be said to have fulfilled the Dhyana paramita, also known as 'practicing Dhyana and samádhi'; speaking lightly of nothing, they may be said to have fulfilled the prajña paramita, also known as 'exercising wisdom'. Together, they are named 'the six methods'. Now I am going to speak about those six methods in a way which means precisely the same—the first entails relinquishment; the second, no arising (of perception, sensation, etc); the third, no thinking; the fourth, remaining apart from forms; the fifth, non-abiding (of the mind); and the sixth, no indulgence in light speech. We give different names to these six methods only for convenience in dealing with passing needs; for, when we come to the marvelous principle involved in them all, we find no differences at all. So you have only to understand that, by a single act of relinquishment, everything is relinquished; and that no arising means no arising of anything whatsoever. Those who have lost their way have no intuitive understanding of this; that is why they speak of the methods as though they differed from one another. Fools bogged down in a multiplicity of methods revolve endlessly from life span to life span. I exhort you students to practice the way of relinquishment and nothing else, for it brings to perfection not only the other five paramitas, but also myriads of dharmas (methods).
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Q: What are the 'three methods of training (to be performed) at the same level' and what is meant by performing them on the same level?
A: They are discipline (vinaya), concentration (Dhyana) and wisdom (prajña).
Q: Please explain them one by one.
A: Discipline involves stainless purity. Concentration involves the stilling of your minds so that you remain wholly unmoved by surrounding phenomena. Wisdom means that your stillness of mind is not disturbed by your giving any thought to that stillness, that your purity is unmarred by your entertaining any thought of purity and that, in the midst of all such pairs of opposites as good and evil, you are able to distinguish between them without being stained by them and, in this way, to reach the state of being perfectly at ease and free of all dependence. Furthermore, if you realize that discipline, concentration and wisdom are all alike in that their substance is intangible and that, hence, they are undivided and therefore one—that is what is meant by three methods of training performed at the same level.
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Q: When the mind rests in a state of purity, will that not give rise to some attachment to purity?
A: If, on reaching the state of purity, you refrain from thinking 'now my mind is resting in purity', there will be no such attachment.
Q: When the mind rests in a state of void, will that not entail some attachment to void?
A: If you think of your mind as resting in a state of void, then there will be such an attachment.
Q: When the mind reaches this state of not dwelling upon anything, and continues in that state, will there not be some attachment to its not dwelling upon anything?
A: So long as your mind is fixed solely on void, there is nothing to which you can attach yourself. If you want to understand the non-dwelling mind very clearly, while you are actually sitting in meditation, you must be cognizant only of the mind and not permit yourself to make judgments—that is, you must avoid evaluations in terms of good, evil, or anything else. Whatever is past is past, so do not sit in judgment upon it; for, when minding about the past ceases of itself, it can be said that there is no longer any past. Whatever is in the future is not here yet, so do not direct your hopes and longings towards it; for, when minding about the future ceases of itself, it can be said that there is no future. Whatever is present is now at hand; just be conscious of your nonattachment to everything—nonattachment in the sense of not allowing any love or aversion for anything to enter your mind; for, when minding the present ceases of itself, we may say that there is no present. When there is no clinging to any of those three periods, they may be said not to exist. Should your mind wander away, do not follow it, whereupon your wandering mind will stop wandering of its own accord. Should your mind desire to linger somewhere, do not follow it and do not dwell there, whereupon your mind's questing for a dwelling place will cease of its own accord. Thereby, you will come to possess a non-dwelling mind—a mind that remains in the state of non-dwelling. If you are fully aware in yourself of a non-dwelling mind, you will discover that there is just the fact of dwelling, with nothing to dwell upon or not to dwell upon. This full awareness in yourself of a mind dwelling upon nothing is known as having a clear perception of your own mind, or, in other words, as having a clear perception of your own nature. A mind, which dwells upon nothing, is the Buddha-mind, the mind of one already delivered, bodhi-mind, un-create mind; it is also called 'realization that the nature of all appearances is unreal'. It is this, which the sutras call 'patient realization of the un-create'. If you have not realized it yet, you must strive and strive, you must increase your exertions. Then, when your efforts are crowned with success, you will have attained to understanding from within yourself—an understanding stemming from a mind that abides nowhere, by which we mean a mind free from delusion and reality alike. A mind disturbed by love and aversion is deluded; a mind free from both of them is real; and a mind thus freed reaches the state in which opposites are seen as void, whereby freedom and deliverance are obtained.
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Q: Are we to make this effort only when we are sitting in meditation, or also when we are walking about?
A: When I spoke just now of making an effort, I did not mean only when you are sitting in meditation; for, whether you are walking, standing, sitting, lying, or whatever you are doing, you must uninterruptedly exert yourselves all the time. This is what we call 'constantly abiding' (in that state).
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Q: The Vaipula Sutra says: 'Of the five kinds of Dharmakaya, the first is the Dharmakaya of the Absolute; the second is the Dharmakaya of merit; the third is the Dharmakaya of the Dharma-nature; the Dharmakaya of infinite manifestations is the fourth; and the Dharmakaya of the void is the fifth.' Which one is our own body?
A: To comprehend that mind is imperishable is to possess the Dharmakaya of the Dharma-nature. To comprehend that all the myriad forms are contained in mind is to possess the Dharmakaya of merit. To comprehend that mind is not mind is to possess the Dharmakaya of the true nature of all. To teach living beings according to their individual capacities for conversion is to possess the Dharmakaya of infinite manifestation. To comprehend that mind is formless and intangible is to possess the Dharmakaya of the void. If you understand the meaning of all this, it implies that you know there is nothing to be achieved. Realizing that there is nothing tangible, nothing achievable—this is achieving the Dharmakaya of the Buddha-dharma. Anyone who supposes they can achieve it by getting hold of, or grasping at, something is full of self-conceit—an arrogant person with perverted views, a person of heterodox beliefs. The Vimalakirti Nirdesha Sutra says: 'Shariputra enquired of a devakanya, "What is it you have won? What achievement has given you such powers of speech?" To which the devakanya replied, "It was my winning and achieving nothing which enabled me to reach this state. According to the Buddha-dharma, someone who wins and achieves things is a person full of self-conceit."'
15
Q: The sutras speak not only of Samyak Sambodhi (full enlightenment), but also of a marvelous enlightenment lying even beyond that. Please explain these terms.
A: Samyak-Sambodhi is the realization of the identity of form and void-ness. Marvelous enlightenment is the realization of the absence of opposites, or we can say that it means the state of neither enlightenment nor non-enlightenment.
Q: Do these two sorts of enlightenment really differ or not?
A: Their names are expediently used for the sake of temporary convenience, but in substance they are one, being neither dual nor different. This oneness and sameness characterize all phenomena of whatever kind.
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Q: What is the meaning of a passage in the Diamond Sutra which states that 'having absolutely nothing describable in words is called "preaching the Dharma"?'
A: Prajñā (wisdom) is a substance of absolute purity, which contains no single thing on which to lay hold. This is the meaning of 'nothing describable in words'. Yet that immaterial and motionless Prajñā is capable of whatever functions are befitting—functions as numerous as the sands of the Ganges; so there is nothing at all which it does not comprehend; and this is what is implied by the words 'preaching the Dharma'. Therefore is it written:
'Having absolutely nothing describable in words is called "preaching the Dharma".'
Q: (The Diamond Sutra also says:) 'If a virtuous man or woman holds to, studies and recites this sutra, and is despised by others, this person, who was bound to suffer an evil destiny in retribution for his or her past sins and whose karmic sins are now eradicated by the others' contempt, will attain anuttarasamyaksambodhi.' Please explain this.
A: Their case resembles that of those who, not having met an enlightened teacher, continue building up nothing but evil karma for themselves, so that their pure original mind obscured by the three poisons stemming from primordial ignorance, cannot show forth, which is the reason for our calling them despicable. Then, just because they are despised in this life, they grow determined to seek out the Way of the Buddhas without delay; and, thereby, their ignorance is conquered so that the three poisons cease to be generated, whereat their original mind shines forth brilliantly. The tumult of their thoughts is thenceforth stilled, for all the evil in them has been destroyed. It is their having been despicable which has led to the conquest of ignorance, the cessation of their mental tumult and—as a natural consequence of that—to their deliverance. Therefore is it written that bodhi is attainable at the very moment we make up our minds to achieve it—that is to say in this life and not in some other lives to come.
Q: It is also written that the Tathágata has five kinds of vision. What are they?
A: The perception that all appearances are pure (i.e. real) is called 'earthly vision'. The perception that their substance is pure (real) is called 'heavenly vision'. Ability to distinguish the minutest differences among the appearances constituting our environment, as well as the smallest gradations of good and evil, and yet to be so entirely unaffected by them that we remain perfectly at ease amidst all of them—that is called 'the wisdom vision'. The perception that there is nothing to perceive is called 'the dharma vision'. No perception, yet nothing unperceived, is called 'the Buddha vision'.
Q: It is also written that there is a Great Vehicle (Mahayana) and a Supreme Vehicle. What are they?
A: The former is that of the Bodhisattvas; the latter is that of the Buddhas.
Q: By what means can they be attained?
A: The means for gaining the Bodhisattvas' vehicle are those of the Mahayana. Attaining to it and thenceforth remaining so free from discursive thought that even the concept of 'a means' no longer exists for you—such utter tranquility with nothing to be added to it, nothing to be taken away, is called 'attainment of the Supreme Vehicle', which is that of the Buddhas!
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Q: The Maha parinirvana Sutra says: 'Excess of Dhyana (ting) over wisdom (hui) provides no way out from primordial ignorance (avidya), while excess of wisdom over Dhyana leads to piling up false views; but, when Dhyana and wisdom function on the same level, that is what we call "deliverance". What does it all mean?
A: 'Wisdom' means the ability to distinguish every sort of good and evil; 'Dhyana' means that, though making these distinctions, you remain wholly unaffected by love or aversion for them—such is the explanation of Dhyana and wisdom functioning on the same level.
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Q: That sutra also says: 'No words, nothing to say—this is called "Dhyana".' But can we also speak of being in Dhyana while we are engaged in talking?
A: My definition of Dhyana just now referred to that perpetual Dhyana which is unaffected by speech or silence. Why? Since the nature of Dhyana functions even while we are engaged in speaking, or in making distinctions, our speech and those distinctions also pertain to Dhyana. Similarly, when we contemplate forms with our minds in a state of void-ness, the void-ness persists as much during the act of regarding those forms as when we are neither speaking nor engaged in any other kind of discursive activity. The same applies to our seeing, hearing, feeling and consciousness. How so? Because, as our own nature is void, it remains so in all situations; being void, it is free from attachment, and it is this detachment which makes possible the simultaneous functioning of Dhyana and wisdom on the same level. All Bodhisattvas employ this method of universalizing void-ness, which enables them to attain the final goal. Therefore is it written: When Dhyana and wisdom function on the same level, that is what we call "deliverance". Now I shall give you a further example in order to clarify this, so as to awaken your understanding and set your doubts at rest. Take the case of a bright mirror. When it is reflecting something, does its brightness waver? No, it does not. And when it is not reflecting some-thing, does its brightness waver, then? No. But why is this so? It is unwavering whether an object is present or not because it has the property of reflecting without any sensation being experienced. And so? Where no sensation is present there can be neither movement nor absence of movement. Or take the case of the sunlight. Do the sunbeams waver when they shine upon the earth? No. Or do they waver when they do not encounter the earth? No, they do not. Why? Because they are devoid of sensation. That they do not waver whether they encounter something or not is due to their property of shining without experiencing sensation. The quality of being able to reflect (or shine) pertains to wisdom, while that of perfect steadiness pertains to Dhyana. It is the Bodhisattvas' employment of this method of equalizing Dhyana and wisdom, which enables them to attain Sambodhi (supreme enlightenment). Therefore is it written: 'When Dhyana and wisdom are on the same level, that is what we call "deliverance".' However, when I spoke just now of absence of sensation, I meant freedom from ordinary sensations, not from holy sensation.
Q: How do they differ?
A: Ordinary sensations are those involving duality of feeling; holy sensation pertains to realization of the void-ness of opposites.
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Q: The sutra says: 'The path of words and speech is cut off; the mind's activities cease.' What does this mean?
A: Words and speech are to reveal the Dharma's meaning; but, once that meaning is understood, speech is discarded. Meaning is immaterial; that which is immaterial is Tao (truth), and Tao is inexpressible. Hence 'the path of words and speech is cut off.' By 'the mind's activities cease' is meant that, upon actual realization of the Dharma's significance, no further contemplation is required. That which lies beyond our contemplation is the un-create. Being uncreated, the nature of all appearances is void. Because their nature is (seen to be) void, all their concurrent causes are eradicated, and that eradication involves the cessation of the mind's activities.
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Q: What is Suchness (Ju-ju, Bhutatathata)?
A: Suchness signifies immutability. Since mind is immutable, we term it Suchness. Hence it can be known that all the Buddhas of the past attained enlightenment by conducting themselves in accord with this immutability. With the Buddhas of the present it is likewise and so will it be with the Buddhas of the future. Since all practice, whether past, present, or future, culminates in the same attainment of enlightenment, it is called 'the attainment of Suchness'. The Vimalakirti Nirdesha Sutra says:
'Thus has it ever been with all the Buddhas; thus will it be with Maitreya and with every other sentient being as well. Why so? Because the Buddha-nature is eternally and uninterruptedly self-existent.
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Q: Does the (teaching concerning the) identity of matter and the immaterial (void), and that of ordinary and holy, pertain to the doctrine of sudden illumination?
A: Yes.
Q: What do you mean by the identity of matter and void and of ordinary and holy?
A: When mind is stained by attachment, materiality is there; when it is free from stain, immateriality is there. Stained mind is ordinary and unstained mind is holy. The Absolute is self-existent, which implies the identity of the immaterial and matter; but, since the latter is not discoverable it is in fact immaterial. Here, we are using 'immaterial' with reference to the void nature of form, not to mean (the kind of) void-ness which would result from form's annihilation. Similarly, we are using 'material' with reference to the nature of the immaterial, which exists of itself, not in the sense that the material can be matter (as ordinarily understood).
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Q: What are the exhaustibles and the inexhaustibles mentioned in the sutra?
A: On account of the void nature of all dualities, when seeing and hearing no longer take place, that is exhaustion meaning the end of passions (asravaksaya). 'Inexhaustible' connotes the uncreated substance complete with marvelous functions as numerous as the sands of the Ganges. These functions respond to all the needs (of sentient beings) without occasioning the smallest diminution of substance. Such, then, are the exhaustibles and inexhaustibles mentioned in the sutras .
Q: Are the exhaustibles and inexhaustibles really identical, or are they different things?
A: In substance they are one, but they are spoken of separately.
Q: Yet, if they are one in substance, why should they be spoken of separately?
A: 'One' denotes the substance of speech, and speech is a function of that substance; it is employed as circumstances require. That is why they are said to be of the same substance but spoken of separately. We may liken this to the fact that, although only the one sun appears in the sky above, its reflections are caught by water held by many different receptacles, so that each of those receptacles 'contains a sun' and every 'sun' is both complete in itself and yet identical with the sun in the sky. Therefore, although the suns are of the same substance, they are spoken of separately with reference to the various receptacles. Hence (things of) the same substance are spoken of differently. Moreover, although every one of the suns manifested below is perfect and entire, the sun in the sky is not in the least diminished by them—hence the term 'inexhaustible'.
Q: A sutra speaks of 'no coming into existence and no ceasing to exist'. To what sort of dharmas (phenomena) do these words apply?
A: They mean the not coming into existence of unwholesome phenomena and the never ceasing to exist of wholesome phenomena.
Q: What are wholesome and unwholesome phenomena?
A: A mind stained by attachments and leaking is unwholesome; a mind freed from these characteristics is wholesome. It is only when no stains or leaking occur that unwholesomeness does not arise; and, when freedom from stains and leaking is attained; there is purity, perfection and brilliance—a deep, everlasting and unwavering stillness. This is what is meant by 'wholesome phenomena not ceasing to be'; it explains the term 'no coming into existence, or ceasing to exist'.
23
Q: The Precepts of the Bodhisattvas says: 'When sentient beings observe the Buddha-precept, they enter upon the status of Buddhahood—a status identical with full enlightenment—and thereby they become true sons of the Buddhas.' What does this mean?
A: The Buddha-precept denotes perfect purity of mind. If someone undertakes the practice of purity, and thereby attains a mind unmoved by sensory perceptions, we speak of that person as one who observes the Buddha-precept. All the Buddhas up to this day have practiced purity unmoved by sensory perceptions and it was by means of this that they attained Buddhahood. In these days, if people undertake its practice, their merit is equal to and does not differ from that of the Buddhas; hence they are said to have entered upon the status of Buddha-hood. Illumination thus obtained is precisely the illumination of a Buddha, so such a person's status is said to be identical with full enlightenment. Those people really are sons of the Buddhas and their pure mind begets wisdom. One whose wisdom is pure is called 'a son of the Buddhas', or 'this Buddha son'.
24
Q: As to the Buddha and the Dharma, which of them anteceded the other? if the Dharma came first, how can there have been a Buddha to preach it; but, if a Buddha came first, then what doctrine led to his attainment?
A: The Buddhas anteceded the Dharma in one sense, but came after it in another.
Q: How is that possible?
A: If you mean the quiescent Dharma, then the Dharma anteceded the Buddhas; but, if you mean the written or spoken Dharma, then it was the Buddhas who came first and the Dharma, which followed them. How so? Because every one of the Buddhas attained Buddhahood by means of the quiescent Dharma—in that sense, the Dharma anteceded them. The 'teacher of all the Buddhas' mentioned in the sutra is the Dharma; it was not until they had attained Buddhahood that they first embarked upon their detailed exposition of the Twelve Divisions of the sutras for the purpose of converting sentient beings. When these sentient beings follow and practice the Dharma preached by previous Buddhas, thereby attaining Buddhahood that is also a case of the Dharma anteceding the Buddha.
25
Q: What is meant by 'proficiency in teaching, but not in transmission'?
A: It refers to those whose words are at variance with their deeds.
Q: And what is meant by 'proficiency in transmission and also in teaching'?
A: It refers to people whose words are confirmed by their deeds.
26
Q: What is meant by 'the reachable not reached' and by 'the unreachable reached'?
A: By 'the reachable not reached' is meant speech not supported by deeds; by 'the unreachable reached' is meant deeds performing what speech fails to reach; and, when both speech and deeds attain the goal, this is 'complete reaching', or 'double reaching'.
27
Q: Please explain the two statements: 'The Buddha-dharma neither annihilates the worldly (yu wei) nor gets bogged down in the transcendental (wu wei).'
A: The first means that the Buddha never rejected any thing phenomenal from the moment when he first determined upon his quest up to the time when he achieved enlightenment beneath the bodhi tree, and from then up to his entrance into parinirvana beneath the twin sala trees. This is 'non-annihilation of the worldly'. The other statement means that, although he achieved absence of thought, he never looked upon this as an attainment; that, although he reached immaterial and non-active bodhi and nirvana, he never held that these states marked an attainment. This is what is meant by 'not getting bogged down in the transcendental'.
28
Q: Is there really a hell?
A: There is and there is not.
Q: How so?
A: In that our minds have constructed many sorts of evil karma, there is hell; but, since everyone's self-nature is void, for those whose minds have been freed of attachment's stains there can be no hell.
Q: Do evildoers possess the Buddha-nature?
A: Yes, they have it too.
Q: Then, if they too have this nature, does it enter hell with them or not?
A: It does not enter with them.
Q: But, when they enter hell, where is their Buddha-nature?
A: It also enters hell.
Q: That being so, while they are undergoing punishment there, does their Buddha-nature share the punishment?
A: No. Although the Buddha-nature remains with these people while they are in hell, it is the individuals themselves who suffer; the Buddha-nature is fundamentally beyond punishment.
Q: Yet, if they enter together, how can the Buddha-nature not suffer?
A: Sentient beings possess forms and whatsoever has form is subject to formation and destruction; whereas the Buddha-nature is form-less and, being form-less, is immaterial, for which reason it is the very nature of the void itself and cannot be destroyed. Were someone to make a pile of faggots in a vacuum, the faggots could come to harm but not the vacuum. In this analogy, the vacuum symbolizes the Buddha-nature and the faggots represent sentient beings. Therefore it is written: 'They enter together but do not suffer together.'
29
Q: Regarding the quotation 'Transform the eight states of consciousness (parijnana) into the four Buddha-Wisdoms and bind the four Buddha-Wisdoms to form the Trikaya', which of the eight states of consciousness must be combined to form one Buddha-Wisdom and which of them will each become a Buddha-Wisdom in itself?
A: Sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch are the five states of consciousness, which together form the perfecting wisdom. The intellect, or sixth state of consciousness, alone becomes the profound observing wisdom. Discriminative awareness, or the seventh state of consciousness, alone becomes the universal wisdom. The storehouse of consciousness, or eighth state, alone becomes the great mirror wisdom.
Q: Do these four wisdoms really differ?
A: In substance they are the same, but they are differently named.
Q: Yet, if they are one in substance, why do their names differ? Or, allowing that their names are given according to circumstances, what is it that, being of one substance (with the rest), is (nevertheless called) 'the great mirror wisdom'?
A: That which is clearly void and still, bright and imperturbable, is the great mirror wisdom. That which can face defilements without love or aversion arising and which thereby exhibits the non-existent nature of all such dualities is the universal wisdom. That, which can range the fields of the senses with unexcelled ability to discern things, yet without giving rise to tumultuous thoughts, so that it is fully independent and at ease, is the profound observing wisdom. That which can convert all the senses with their functions of responding to circumstances into correct sensation free from duality is the perfecting wisdom.
Q: As to 'binding the four Buddha-Wisdoms to form the trikaya', which of them combine to form one body and which of them each becomes a body in itself?
A: The great mirror wisdom singly forms the Dharmakaya. The universal wisdom singly forms the Sambhogakaya. The profound observing wisdom and the perfecting wisdom jointly form the Nirmanakaya. These three bodies are only named differently to enable unenlightened people to see more clearly. Once the principle is understood, there will be no more three bodies with functions responding to various needs. Why? Formless in substance and by nature, they are established in the basically impermanent, which is not their own (true basis) at all.
30
Q: What is meant by perceiving the real Buddhakaya?
A: It means no longer perceiving anything as existing or not existing.
Q: But what is the actual meaning of that definition?
A: Existence is a term used in contradistinction to, non-existence, while the latter is used in opposition to the former. Unless you begin by accepting the first concept as valid, the other cannot stand. Similarly, without the concept of non-existence, how can that of existence have meaning? These two owe their being to mutual dependence and pertain to the realm of birth and death. It is just by avoiding such dual perception that we may come to behold the real Buddhakaya.
Q: If even the concepts of existence and non-existence are invalid how can that of a real Buddhakaya have validity?
A: Only because you are asking about it! When such questions are not asked, the concept of a Buddhakaya is not valid. Why? Take the case of a mirror; confronted by objects, it reflects them; un-confronted, it reflects nothing.
31
Q: What is meant by 'being never apart from the Buddha?'
A: Having a mind freed from the going and coming of concepts, its stillness unaffected by environmental forms so that it remains eternally void and motionless—this is being never apart from the Buddha.
32
Q: What is the meaning of the transcendental (wu wei, unconditioned, asamskrta)?
A: It is worldly (yu wei, conditioned, samskrta).
Q: I enquired about the transcendental. Why do you say it is worldly?
A: 'Worldly' is a term valid only in contradistinction to 'transcendental'. The latter derives its meaning from the former. If you do not accept the one as a valid concept, the other cannot be retained. But if you are speaking of the real transcendental, that pertains neither to the worldly nor to the transcendental. Yes, the real transcendental is like that! Why? The Diamond Sutra says: 'If their minds grasp the Dharma, they will still cling to the notion of an ego (a being and a life); if their minds grasp the non-Dharma, they will still cling to the notion of an ego (a being and a life). Therefore, we should not grasp at and hold onto the notions either of Dharma or of not-Dharma.' This is holding to the true Dharma. If you understand this doctrine, that is true deliverance—that, indeed, is reaching the gate of non-duality.
33
Q: What is the significance of the term 'middle way'?
A: It signifies the extremes.
Q: I enquired about the middle way; why do you say it signifies the extremes?
A: Extremes are only valid in contradistinction to the middle way. If at first you do not postulate extremes, from what can you derive the concept of a middle way? This middle you are talking about was first used in relation to extremes. Hence, we should realize that middle and extremes owe their existence to their mutual dependence and that all of them are transient. The same rule applies equally to the skandhas—form, sensation, perceptions, impulses (or volitions) and consciousness.
34
Q: What are these things, which we call the five skandhas?
A: The propensity to allow the forms we encounter to set their stain upon us, thereby arousing forms in our minds, is called the skandha of form. As this leads to the reception of the eight winds which encourage the piling up of wrong notions, sensations are aroused, and this is called the skandha of sensation. Thereupon, the deluded mind takes to perceiving (individual sensations) and perception is aroused, and this is called the skandha of perception. This leads to the piling up of impulses (based on likes and dislikes) and this is called the skandha of impulse (or volition). Accordingly, within the undifferentiated substance, error gives rise to the notion of plurality and countless attachments are formed, whereat false consciousness (or wrong understanding) arises, and this is called the skandha of consciousness. It is thus that we define the five skandhas.
35
Q: A sutra says that there are twenty-five factors of existence. What are they?
A: This term refers to our having to undergo future incarnations or rebirths taking place within the six realms. Owing to the delusions filling our minds during the present life, we sentient beings have become closely bound by all sorts of karma and will receive rebirth in exact accordance with our karmic state. Hence the term 'reincarnation.' However, if during a given existence there are people determined upon doing their utmost to gain deliverance and who thereby attain to the state of no rebirth, they will leave the three worlds for ever and never more have to be reborn. This implies attainment of the Dharmakaya in the absolute sense of Buddhakaya.
Q: How do these twenty-five factors of existence differ from one another?
A: Their basic substance is one. However, when we name them in accordance with their various functions, there appear to be twenty-five of them. This figure really connotes the ten evils, the ten virtues, and the five skandhas.
Q: What are the ten evils and the ten virtues?
A: The ten evils are: killing, stealing, licentiousness, lying, voluptuous speech, slander, coarse language, covetousness, anger, and false views. The ten virtues may be simply defined as absence of the ten evils.
36
Q: A little while ago you spoke of refraining from thinking (nien), but you did not finish your explanation.
A: It means not fixing your mind upon anything anywhere, but totally withdrawing it from the phenomena surrounding you, so that even the thought (szu) of seeking for something does not remain; it means that your mind, confronted by all the forms composing your environment, remains placid and motionless. This abstaining from all thought whatever is called real thought; but to keep on thinking is deluded thinking and certainly not the right way to think. Why is that? A sutra says: 'If you teach people to entertain the six meritorious thoughts, that is called "teaching them to think in the wrong way".' So, even entertaining those six thoughts is termed 'deluded thinking', while abstaining from them is known as 'real thought'. A sutra says: 'O virtuous one, it is through abiding in the Dharma of no thought that we obtain this golden color and these thirty-two bodily marks of Buddhahood which emit an effulgent radiance that penetrates the entire universe.' Such inconceivable merits even the Buddhas cannot describe in full; how much the less can the devotees of other vehicles know about them! Those who achieve abstention from thought are naturally able to enter upon the Buddha-perception, for their six senses can no longer stain their minds. Such an attainment is called 'entering the treasury of the Buddhas', also known as 'the treasury of the Dharma', which enables you to perform the Dharmas of all Buddhas. How can that be so? Because of abstention from thought. The same sutra says: 'All Buddhas are produced by this sutra.'
Q: If we esteem absence of thought, how can the notion of 'entering upon Buddha-perception' have any validity?
A: Its validity stems from absence of thought. How so? A sutra says: 'All things take their stand upon the basis of non-abiding.' It also says: 'Take the case of a bright mirror; though it contains no forms, it can manifest a myriad forms.' Why is this? It is because of its brightness (stainless clarity) that it is able to reflect them. You disciples, if your minds are stainless, will thereby be freed from entertaining erroneous thoughts; the stirring of your minds by the notion of 'self' and 'others' will vanish; there will be nothing but purity (stainlessness) on account of which you will become capable of unlimited perception. Sudden illumination means deliverance while still in this life. How shall I make you understand that? You may be compared to lion cubs, which are genuine lions from the time of their birth; for, with those who undertake to become suddenly illumined, it is just like that. The moment they practice it, they enter the Buddha-stage, just as the shoots put forth by bamboos in spring will have grown to resemble the parent plants without the least difference remaining even before spring has departed. Why so? Because the minds of these people are void. Likewise, they who undertake sudden illumination cut off erroneous thoughts at a stroke, thereby eliminating the duality of selfness and otherness, so that perfect void-ness and stillness supervene—thereby parity with the Buddhas is achieved without one jot of difference remaining. Therefore it is written that the most ordinary beings are profoundly holy. Those who undertake sudden illumination transcend the three realms of existence within this very life! As a sutra says: 'Transcend the world from its very midst; enter nirvana ere ridding yourselves of Saṃsāra's moil.' If you do not employ this method of sudden illumination, you will be like a jackal following and imitating a lion but unable to become a lion even after hundreds and thousands of aeons.
Q: Is the nature of the Absolute (Chan-ju) a true void, or not really void? To describe it as not void is to imply that it has form; yet to speak of it as void implies extinction (mere nothingness) and what would then be left for sentient beings to rely on in their practice for attaining deliverance?
A: The nature of the Absolute is void and yet not void. How so? The marvelous 'substance' of the Absolute, having neither form nor shape, is therefore undiscoverable; hence it is void. Nevertheless, that immaterial, formless 'substance' contains functions as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, functions, which respond unfailingly to circumstances, so it is also described, as not void. A sutra says: 'Understand the one point and a thousand others will accordingly grow clear; misunderstand that one and ten thousand delusions will encompass you. He who holds to that one has no more problems to solve.' This is the great marvelous awakening to the Way (truth). As one of the sutras says:
'The myriad forms dense and close bear the imprint of a single Dharma.' How then can so many sorts of views arise from the one Dharma? All these karmic forces are rooted in activity. If, instead of pacifying our minds, we rely on scriptures to achieve enlightenment, we are undertaking the impossible. Ourselves deceived, deceiving others our mutual downfall is assured. Strive on! Strive on! Explore this teaching most thoroughly! Just let things happen without making any response and keep your minds from dwelling on anything whatsoever; for they who can do this thereby enter nirvana. Attained, then, is the condition of no rebirth, otherwise called 'the gate of non-duality, the end of strife, the samádhi of universality'. Why so? Because it is ultimate purity. As it is free from the duality of selfless and otherness, it no longer gives rise to love and hatred. When all relativities are seen as non-existent, naught remains to be perceived. Thus is the undiscoverable Bhutatathata revealed. This treatise of mine is not for the skeptic, but for those sharing the same view and following the same line of conduct. You ought first to discover whether people are sincere in their faith and qualified to practice it without backsliding before you expound it to them so that they can be awakened to its meaning. I have written this treatise for the sake of those having a karmic affinity with it. I seek neither fame nor wealth. I desire only to emulate the Buddhas who preached their thousands of sutras and countless shastras just for the sake of sentient beings lost in delusion. Since their mental activities vary, appropriate teachings are given to suit individual cases of perverse views; hence the great variety of doctrines. You should know that setting forth the principle of deliverance in its entirety amounts only to this—when things happen, make no response: keep your minds from dwelling on anything whatsoever: keep them forever still as the void and utterly pure (without stain): and thereby spontaneously attain deliverance. Oh do not seek for empty fame, mouthing forth talk of the Absolute with minds like those of apes! When talk contradicts action that is known as self-deception; it will lead to your falling headlong into evil states of rebirth. Seek not fame and happiness in this lifetime at the cost of un-enlightenment and suffering for long aeons to come. Strive on! Strive on! Sentient beings must save themselves; the Buddhas cannot do it for them. If they could, since there have already been Buddhas as numerous as grains of dust, every single being must by now have been saved; then how is it that you and I are still being tossed upon the waves of life and death instead of having become Buddhas? Do please realize that sentient beings have to save themselves and that the Buddhas cannot do it for them. Strive on! Strive on! Do it for yourselves. Place no reliance upon the powers of other Buddhas. As the sutra says: 'Those who seek the Dharma do not find it merely by clinging to the Buddhas.'
37
Q: In the coming generation, there will be many followers of mixed beliefs; how are we to live side by side with them?
A: Share the light with them, but do not share their karmas. Although you may be staying with them, your minds will not dwell in the same place as theirs. There is a sutra, which says: 'Though it follows the current of circumstances, its nature is unchanging.' As to those other students of the Way, you are all studying the Way for the sake of that great cause—liberation; so, while never despising those who have not studied the Dharma, you should respect those who are studying it as you would respect the Buddha. Do not vaunt your own virtues nor envy the ability of others. Examine your own actions; do not hold up the faults of others. Thus, nowhere will you encounter obstruction and you will naturally enjoy happiness. I will summarize all this in the form of a gatha:
Forbearance is the best of ways;
But first dismiss both self and other.
When things occur, make no response
And thus achieve true Bodhikaya.The Diamond Sutra says: 'If a Bodhisattva is thoroughly versed in the doctrine of the unreality of the ego and of all dharmas (things), the Tathágata will call him a true Bodhisattva.' It is also said that 'he who does not accept anything, has nothing to reject; he is free of samsára forever. He whose mind dwells on nothing whatsoever is called a son of the Buddha.' The Maha parinirvana Sutra says: 'When the Tathágata attained nirvana, he freed himself from samsára for ever.' Here are some more gathas:
So wholly good my present state of mind
That men's revilement cannot stir my ire.
No word shall pass my lips of 'right' and 'wrong'—
Nirvana and samsára form one Way—
For I have learnt to reach that mind of mine
Which basically transcends both right and wrong.
Erroneous, discriminating thoughts
Reveal the worldling who has still to learn.
I urge the errant folk of Kaliyug
To rid their minds of every useless straw.How vast indeed my present state of mind—
My wordless unconcern ensures its calm.
At ease and free, my liberation won,
I roam at will without impediment.
In wordless silence all my days are passed,
My every thought fixed on the Noumenal.
In gazing on the Way, I am at ease
And unaffected by Saṃsāra's round.So marvelous my present state of mind,
I need intrude no longer on the world,
Where splendor is illusion and a cheat;
The simplest clothes and coarsest food suffice.
On meeting worldly men, I scarcely speak,
And so they say that I am dull of wit.
Without, I have what seems a dullard's stare;
Within, my crystal clarity of mind
Soundlessly tallies with Rahul's hidden way
Which worldly folk like you have yet to learn.For fear that you may still be unable to understand the real principle of deliverance, I shall demonstrate it to you once more.
38
Q: The Vimalakirti Nirdesha Sutra says: 'Whosoever desires to reach the Pure Land must first purify his mind.' What is the meaning of this purifying of the mind?
A: It means purifying it to the point of ultimate purity.
Q: But what does that mean?
A: It is a state of beyond purity and impurity.
Q: Please explain it further.
A: Purity pertains to a mind, which dwells upon nothing whatsoever. To attain to this without so much as a thought of purity arising is called 'absence of purity'; and to achieve that without giving it a thought is to be free from absence of purity also.
39
Q: For followers of the Way, what constitutes realization of the goal?
A: Realization must be ultimate realization.
Q: And what is that?
A: Ultimate realization means being free from both realization and absence of realization.Q: What does that mean?
A: Realization means remaining unstained by sights, sounds and other sense perceptions from without, and inwardly possessing minds in which no erroneous thinking takes place. To achieve this without giving it a thought is called 'absence of realization'; and to achieve the latter without giving that a thought either is called 'freedom from absence of realization'.
40
Q: What is meant by 'a mind delivered'?
A: Having a mind free from the concepts of delivered and undelivered is called 'real deliverance'. This is what the Diamond Sutra means by the words: 'Even the Dharma must be cast aside, how much more so the not-Dharma!' Here, Dharma implies existence and not-Dharma implies non-existence—disengagement from both of which results in true deliverance.
41
Q: What is realization of truth (Tao)?
A: It means ultimate realization.
Q: What is that?
A: Ultimate realization is beyond realization and non-realization.
Q: And what is ultimate void-ness?
A: Ultimate void-ness is beyond void-ness and non-voidness.
Q: And what is the fixed Bhutatathata (Absolute)?
A: The Bhutatathata's fixity is neither fixed nor unfixed. The Diamond Sutra says: 'There is no fixed Dharma called anuttara-samyak-sambodhi (supreme enlightenment) and there is no fixed Dharma which the Tathágata can expound.' This is what another sutra means by: 'When meditating on the void, perception of the void should not be taken as realization.' This means abstention from the thought of void-ness. Similarly, although we practice fixing the mind, we do not regard (success in this practice) as realization, because we entertain no thought of fixity. Likewise, although we attain purity, we do not regard it as realization, because we entertain no thought of purity. Even when we attain to fixed concentration, to purity and to the state of letting the mind dwell upon nothing whatsoever, if we permit any thought of our having made progress to enter our minds, that thought will be an erroneous thought and we shall be caught in a net—that cannot be called deliverance! Moreover, if after attaining to all this we experience a lively awareness of being at ease and independent (of all conditioning factors and so on), we must not take this for realization, or suppose that deliverance can be won by thinking in this way. As the sutra says: 'Allowing the concept of progress to enter our minds is not progress but error; whereas, if we keep our minds free from error, progress is unlimited.'
42
Q: What is the middle way?
A: It is without middle or extremes.
Q: What are the two extremes?
A: They are that-mindedness (pi hsin) and this-mindedness (tzu hsin).
Q: What do those terms mean?
A: Being ensnared from without by forms and sounds is that-mindedness; allowing erroneous thoughts to arise within is this-mindedness. Being unstained from without by forms is called 'freedom from that-mindedness'; permitting no erroneous thoughts to arise within is called 'freedom from this-mindedness'. Such is the meaning of 'no extremes'. And, if your minds are without extremes, how can there be a middle? Reaching this state is called the 'middle way' or the 'true Way of the Tathágata's' by which completely awakened people reach deliverance. A sutra says: 'The void is without middle or extremes; with the Buddhakaya it is also thus.' The void-ness of all forms implies mind dwelling upon nothing whatsoever; and the latter implies the void nature of all forms—these are two ways of saying the same thing. This is the doctrine of the unreality of form, also called 'the doctrine of the non-existence of form'. If you people reject 'mind dwelling upon nothing whatsoever', then bodhi (enlightenment), still and passionless nirvana, and perception of your real nature through Dhyana samádhi, will all be closed to you. It is just by not allowing your minds to dwell upon anything whatsoever that you will perceive your own nature whenever you practice attainment of bodhi, deliverance, nirvana, Dhyana samádhi, or the six paramitas. Why so? The Diamond Sutra says: 'Realizing that there is not the smallest thing to be attained is called "anuttara-samyak-sambodhi" (supreme enlightenment).'
43
Q: If we have performed all (good) deeds successfully, shall we receive a prediction of our future Buddha-hood?
A: No.
Q: If we have gained ultimate achievement by refraining from the practice of any dharma (method) whatsoever, shall we receive that prediction?
A: No.
Q: In that case, by what dharma is that prediction to be obtained?
A: It is obtainable when you cease (clinging to) deeds and to no deeds. Why so? The Vimalakirti Nirdesha Sutra says: 'The nature and the phenomenal expression of all deeds are both impermanent.' According to the Mahapati-nirvana Sutra: 'The Buddha said to Kashyapa, "There is no such thing as permanence of the totality of phenomenal activity."' You must just avoid letting your minds dwell upon anything whatsoever, which implies (being unconcerned about) either deeds or no deeds—that is what we call 'receiving a prediction of Buddhahood'. What I mean by not letting the mind dwell upon anything what-so-ever is keeping your minds free from hatred and love. This means that you must be able to see attractive things without love for them arising in your minds, which is termed 'having minds free from love'; and also that you must be able to see repulsive things without hatred for them arising in your minds, which is termed 'having minds free from hatred'. When these two are absent, the mind is unstained and the nature of forms is seen as void. Perception of the void-ness of their nature leads to the cutting off of concurrent causes and thus to spontaneous deliverance. You must examine this thoroughly. If the meaning is not brilliantly clear to you, hasten to ask your questions. Do not allow the hours to pass in vain. If you people put your trust in this teaching and act accordingly, without being delivered, I shall gladly take your places in hell for the whole of my existence. If I have deceived you, may I be reborn in a place where lions, tigers and wolves will devour my flesh! But, if you do not put your faith in this teaching, and do not practice it diligently, that will be because you do not understand it. Once you have lost a human body, you will not obtain another for millions of aeons. Strive on! Strive on! It is absolutely vital that you come to understand.
大珠慧海 Dazhu Huihai
諸方門人參問語錄 Zhufang menren canwen yulu
The Record of Questions Asked by Disciples from Everywhere
(Discourse Records of Dazhu and Visiting Students from All Quarters)
(Rōmaji:) Shohō monjin sammon gorokuThe Tsung Ching Record
[宗鏡錄 Zongjing lu; Jpn.: Sūgyō-roku]
A collection of dialogues recoreded by the Monk Tsung Ching of Hua Yen Monastery in the city of Yü(Throughout Part Two ‘M’ stands for Master Hui Hai while ‘Q’ and ‘A’ stand for
the questions and answers to others.)1
When the Master first arrived in Kiangsi to pay his respects to Ma Tsu, the latter enquired, 'From where have you come?'
'From the Great Cloud Monastery at Yueh Chou,' answered Hui Hai.
Q: 'What do you hope to gain by coming here?'
Hui Hai: 'I have come seeking the Buddha-dharma.'
To this Ma Tsu replied, 'Instead of looking to the treasure house which is your very own, you have left home and gone wandering far away. What for? I have absolutely nothing here at all. What is this Buddha-dharma you seek?'
Hui Hai prostrated himself and enquired, 'Please tell me to what you alluded when you spoke of a treasure house of my very own.'
A: 'That which asked the question is your treasure house. It contains absolutely everything you need and lacks nothing at all. It is there for you to use freely, so why this vain search for something outside yourself?'
No sooner were these words spoken than the Master received a great illumination and recognized his own mind! Beside himself with joy, he hastened to show his gratitude by prostrating himself again.
The Master spent the next six years in attendance upon Ma Tsu; but, as his first teacher—the one responsible for his admission to the monastic order—was growing old, he had to return to Yueh Chou to look after him. There he lived a retired life, concealing his abilities and outwardly appearing somewhat mad. It was at this time that he composed his shastra—A Treatise for Setting Forth the Essential Gateway to Truth by Means of Instantaneous Awakening. Later this book was taken by Hsuan Yen, a disciple of his brother in the dharma, who brought it from the Yangtse region and showed it to Ma Tsu. Ma Tsu, after reading it carefully, declared to his disciples:
'In Yueh Chou there is now a great pearl; its luster penetrates everywhere freely and without obstruction.'
Now it happened that the assembly included a monk who knew that the Master had, in lay life been surnamed Chu (a word identical in sound with the word for pearl). In great excitement he hastened to communicate this information to some other monks, who went in a group to Yueh Chou to call on the Master and follow him. Thenceforth, the Master was called 'the Great Pearl.'
2
Once the Master began his daily address to his disciples by saying, 'I am no Ch'an adept; indeed, I have not a single thing to offer anyone, so I must not keep you standing here longer. Go and take a rest.'In those days the number of people who came to study with him was gradually increasing. As day follows night, they came and pressed him for instruction; he was compelled to answer their questions as soon as asked, thus revealing his unimpeded powers of dialectic. Endless discussions took place with questions and answers following one another.
Once a group of Dharma masters sought an interview and said, 'We have some questions to ask. Are you prepared to answer them?'
Hui Hai: 'Yes. The moon is reflected in that deep pond; catch it if you like.'
Q: 'What is the Buddha really like?'
Hui Hai: 'If that which is facing the limpid pond is not the Buddha, what is it?'
The monks were puzzled by his reply; after a long pause, they enquired again, 'Master, what dharma do you expound in order to liberate others?'
Hui Hai: 'This poor monk has no dharma by which to liberate others.'
'All Ch'an masters are of the same stuff!' they exclaimed, whereat the Master asked them, 'What dharmas do you Virtuous Ones expound for liberating others?'
A: 'Oh, we expound the Diamond Sutra.'
Hui Hai: 'How many times have you expounded it?'
A: 'More than twenty times.'
Hui Hai: 'By whom was it spoken?'
To this the monks answered indignantly, 'Master, you must be joking! Of course you know that it was spoken by the Buddha.'
Hui Hai: 'Well, that sutra states, "If someone says the Tathagata expounds the Dharma, he thereby slanders the Buddha! Such a man will never understand what I mean." Now, if you say that it was not expounded by the Buddha, you will thereby belittle that sutra. Will you Virtuous Ones please let me see what you have to say to that?'
As they made no reply, the Master paused awhile before asking his next question, which was, 'The Diamond Sutra says: "He who seeks me through outward appearance, or seeks me in sound, treads the heterodox path and cannot perceive the Tathagata." Tell me, Virtuous Ones, who or what is the Tathagata?'
A: 'Sir, at this point I find myself utterly deluded.'
Hui Hai: 'Having never been illumined, how can you say that you are now deluded?'
So then the monk asked: 'Will the Venerable Ch'an Master expound the Dharma to us?'
Hui Hai: 'Though you have expounded the Diamond Sutra over twenty times, you still do not know the Tathagata!'
These words caused the monks to prostrate themselves again and to beg the Master to explain further, so he said, 'The Diamond Sutra states: "The Tathagata is the Suchness of all dharmas." How can you have forgotten that?'
A: 'Yes, yes—the Suchness of all dharmas.'
Hui Hai: 'Virtuous Ones, "yes" is also incorrect.'
A: 'On that point the scripture is very clear. How can we be wrong?'
Hui Hai: 'Then, Virtuous Ones, are you that Suchness too?'
A: 'Yes, we are.'
Hui Hai: 'And are plants and rocks the Suchness?'
A: 'They are.'
Hui Hai: 'Then is the Suchness of you the same as the Suchness of plants and rocks?'
A: 'There is no difference.'
Hui Hai: 'Then how do you differ form plants and rocks?'
This silenced the monks for some time, until at last one of them exclaimed with a sigh, 'It is hard to keep our end in discussions with a man so very much our superior.'
After a considerable pause, they enquired, 'How can mahaparinirvana be attained?'
Hui Hai: 'By avoiding all samsaric deeds—those which keep you in the round of birth and death.'
Q: 'What deeds are they?'
A: 'Well, seeking nirvana is a samsaric deed. Casting off impurity and clinging to purity is another. Harboring attainments and proofs of attainment is another, and so is failure to discard rules and precepts.'
Q: 'Please tell us how to achieve deliverance.'
A: 'Never having been bound, you have no need to seek deliverance. Straightforward functioning and straightforward conduct cannot be surpassed.'
'Ah, exclaimed the monks, 'People like this Ch'an Master are indeed rare!' then they bowed their thanks and left.
3.
Once a man who practiced Ch'an asked the Master, "It is said that mind is identical with the Buddha, but which of these is really the Buddha?"
A: "What do you suppose is not the Buddha? Point it out to me."
As there was no answer, the Master added, "If you comprehend the mind, the Buddha is omnipresent to you; but, if you do not awaken to it, you will remain astray and distant from him forever."
4.
A Master of the Vinaya sect named Fa Ming once remarked, "You Ch'an masters do a lot of tumbling about in the emptiness of the void."
Hui Hai: "On the contrary, Venerable Sir, it is you who tumble a lot in the emptiness of the void."
"How can that be?" exclaimed Fa Ming in astonishment.
Hui Hai: "The scriptures are just words—mere ink and paper—and everything of that sort is just an empty device. All those words and phrases are based on something people once heard—they are naught but emptiness. You, Venerable Sir, cling to the mere letter of the doctrine, so of course you tumble about in the void."
Q: "And do you Ch'an masters not tumble in the void?"
Hui Hai: "We do not."
5.
A certain Tripitaka Master once enquired, ‘Do changes occur
within the Absolute (Bhutatathata)?’
M: ‘Yes, they do.’
‘Venerable Master,’ he replied, ‘you are wrong.’
Whereat the Master asked him a question as follows: ‘Does the
Tripitaka Master possess the Bhutatathata?’
A: ‘Yes.’
M: ‘Well, if you hold that it undergoes no changes, you must be a
very ignorant sort of monk. Surely you must have heard that a
learned man can transform the three poisons into the three
cumulative precepts;[1] he can transmute the six sense-perceptions
into the six divine perceptions; he can transform defilements (klesha)
into bodhi, and primordial ignorance into highest wisdom
(mahaprajna). So, if you suppose the Absolute incapable of change,
then you — a Master of the Tripitaka — are really a follower of the
heterodox sect which holds that things happen spontaneously (i.e.
not as a result of the law of causality).’
[1] The three poisons are: desire, anger, and ignorance. The three cumulative precepts are:
(i) the formal sets of five, eight and ten precepts common to all Buddhist schools; (ii)
whatever works for compassion; (iii) whatever works for the liberation of sentient beings. (ii)
and (iii) may also be regarded as extensions of each of the ten precepts in (i). For example,
by not killing we show compassion and we do not interfere with a life span tending towards
deliverance.
A: ‘If you put it that way, then the Absolute does undergo changes.’
M: ‘Yet your holding that the Absolute does undergo changes is
equally heretical.’
A: ‘Venerable Master, first you said that the Absolute does undergo
changes and now you say that it does not. What, then, is exactly the
right answer?’
M: ‘Those who have clearly perceived their own nature, which may
be likened to a mani-pearl reflecting all appearances, will be right if
they say that the Absolute does undergo changes and equally right
in saying that it does not. On the other hand, those who have not
seen their own nature will, upon hearing of the changing Absolute,
cling to the concept of mutability; or, upon hearing that the Absolute
is unchanging, they will grasp at the concept of immutability.’
‘Ah, so it is true,’ exclaimed the Tripitaka Master, ‘that the Southern
Ch’an sect really is too deep to fathom!’ [1]
[1] The Northern Ch’an school, which died out in China a few centuries after the
establishment of the Ch’an school, believed in gradual enlightenment. The Southern Ch’an
school, also known as the Hui Nêng school, or Southern school, emphasizes the sudden
nature of enlightenment, and it is this which forms the central thesis of the Great Pearl’s
teaching.6.
Once a Taoist, happening to pass by, asked, ‘Is there anything in
the world more marvellous than the forces of nature?’
M: ‘There is.’
Q: ‘And what is that?’
M: ‘The power of comprehending those natural forces.’
Q: ‘Is cosmic vitality the Way (Tao)?’
M: ‘Cosmic vitality is cosmic vitality. The Tao is the Tao.’
Q: ‘If so, they must be two different things?’
M: ‘That which knows does not proceed from two different persons.’
Q: ‘What is wrong and what is right?’
M: ‘Wrong is the mind that attends to externals; right is the mind
that brings externals under control.’7.
A Vinaya Master named Yuan once came and asked, "Do you make efforts in your practice of the Way, Master?"
Hui Hai: "Yes I do."
Q: "How?"
Hui Hai: "When hungry, I eat; when tired, I sleep."
Q: "And does everybody make the same efforts as you do, Master?"
Hui Hai: "Not in the same way."
Q: "Why not?"
Hui Hai: "When they are eating, they think of a hundred kinds of necessities and when they are going to sleep they ponder over affairs of a thousand different kind. That is how they differ from me."
At this the Vinaya Master was silenced.
8.
The Venerable Yun Kuang once asked, "Master, do you know where you will be reborn?"
Hui Hai: "We have not died yet; so what is the use of discussing our rebirths? That which knows birth is the unborn. We cannot stray from birth to speak of the unborn. The Patriarch once said, 'That which undergoes birth is really unborn.'"
Q: "Does this apply even to those who have yet to perceive their own nature?"
Hui Hai: "Your not having perceived your own nature does not imply that you lack that nature. Why so? Because perception itself is that nature; without it, we should never be able to perceive anything. Consciousness is also that nature, whence it is called 'the nature of consciousness.' Understanding is also that nature, whence it is called, 'the nature of understanding.' That which can produce the myriad phenomena of the universe is called 'the Dharma-nature,' otherwise known as the Dharmakaya.
"The Patriarch Ashvaghosa declared, 'In speaking of phenomena (dharmas), we really refer to the minds of sentient beings; for, when mental processes (literally 'mindings') occur, all sorts of phenomena take birth in accordance with them; and, when mental processes do not occur, phenomena have nothing in which to arise—there are not even names for them.' Deluded people who do not know that the Dharmakaya is immaterial but becomes manifest in response to the needs of people, may say the 'fresh bamboos are the Dharmakaya' and that 'luxuriant clusters of yellow flowers are nothing but prajna!'
"Yet, if flowers are prajna, then prajna must be identical with nonsentient matter; and, if green bamboos are the Dharmakaya, then the Dharmakaya is a vegetable, so that people in dining off bamboo shoots are actually eating the Dharmakaya! Is this sort of talk worth recording? Instead of recognizing the Buddha right in front of you, you spend eon after eon searching for him.
"His whole substance pervades all of phenomena, but you are deluded and look for him elsewhere. Consequently, anyone who understands the Way is never off it, whether walking, standing, sitting or lying. Anyone who awakens to the Dharma is sovereign and at ease in all situations, since none of them are outside Dharma."
9.
Presently, the Venerable Yun Kuang asked some further questions.
Q: "Can spiritual wisdom spring from the great emptiness?
Is real mind the causal product of good and evil?
Can those indulging their desires be on the Way?
Can those clinging to right and wrong develop unimpeded use of mind?
Can those in whom sense-impressions stir up mental processes achieve one-pointed concentration? Do people who remain constantly in motionless abstraction really possess wisdom?
Do those who treat others with contempt really possess egos?
Are those grasping at 'is' and 'is not' really wise?
Those who seek realization through book knowledge, those who seek the Buddha by means of austerities, those who stray from their minds in quest of Buddahood and those who cling to mind's being Buddha—are all these various people acting in accord with the Way?
I beg you, Master, to reply to these points one by one.
Hui Hai: "The great emptiness does not give birth to spiritual wisdom.
Real mind is not the causal product of good and evil.
Those whose evil desires lie deep have exceedingly shallow potentials.
The minds of those clinging to right and wrong are obstructed.
Those in whom sense-impressions stir up mental processes seldom achieve one-pointed concentration.
In those who remain constantly in a state of motionless abstraction, forgetful of the mysterious source of that stillness, wisdom is at a low ebb.
Self-importance and contempt for others intensify the illusion of an ego.
Those grasping at "is" and "is not" are stupid.
Those who seek realization in book-knowledge pile up more obstrutions for themselves.
Those who seek Buddha by means of austerities are all deluded.
Those who stray from their minds of Buddhahood are heretics.
Those who cling to mind as being the Buddha are devils!"
Q: "If all that is so, ultimately we find there is just nothing at all"
Hui Hai: "We have come to the ultimate extent of yourself, Venerable Sir, but not to the ultimate."
At this, the venerable monk, who was filled with joy, hastened to prostrate himself in gratitude and departed.
10. Once our Master took his place in the assembly hall and said, ‘It
is far better for all of you to be unconcerned people.[1] Why all this
craze for karmic activities that will put felons’ cangues about your
necks and send you down to hell? Toiling and moiling the whole day
through, telling people you are practising Ch’an and studying the
Way, holding forth about your understanding of the Buddha-dharma
— this sort of thing is no use at all. It simply amounts to rushing
about in pursuit of sounds and forms. Ah, when will you desist from it
all? Once this poor monk heard the great Ma Tsu of Kiangsi say,
“Your own treasure house contains absolutely everything you need.
Use it freely instead of searching vainly for something outside
yourself.” From that day forward, I desisted. Making use of your own
treasure house according to your needs — that can be called
happiness! There is no single thing (dharma) which can be grasped
or rejected. When you cease looking on things in their temporal
aspect, and as having come or gone, then in the whole universe —
above, below and round about — there will be no grain of anything
which is not your own treasure. All you have to do is carefully
contemplate your own minds; then the marvellous trinity of Three
Jewels in One Substance[2] will constantly manifest itself; of this
there is no shadow of doubt. Do not search for the truth with your
intellects. Do not search at all. The nature of the mind is intrinsically
pure. Therefore it is written in the Avatamsaka Sutra:[3] “All things
have no beginning; and all things have no end.” Before those who
are able to interpret these words correctly the Buddhas are ever
present. Moreover, in the Vimalakirti Sutra it is written: “It is through
your own bodies that reality is perceived; the Buddha is perceived in
the same manner.” If you do not follow sounds and sights so that
they stir your minds, and if you do not pursue appearances so that
they give rise to discriminations, you will then be unconcerned
people. Don’t stand there for so long. Take good care of yourselves!’
[4]
[1] A Ch’an idiom meaning those who are indifferent to externals and do not seek them.
[2] Buddha, Dharma and Sangha are commonly taken to mean the Buddha, the Doctrine
and the Order of Monks; to some they mean the Absolute, Universal Law, and the order of
Bodhisattvas and Arahants; but to adepts like the Great Pearl they mean three aspects of
one truth.
[3] This is the principal sutra of the Hua Yen (Kegon) school.
[4] A Ch’an idiom meaning: ‘Look into that which makes you stand here for so long; go
away and take good care of your minds.’11. Upon the same day, as the assembly of monks did not break up
at the usual time, the Master said, ‘Why do you not disperse? This
poor monk has already sat face to face with you. Just go and rest.[1]
What doubts do you still entertain? Do not misuse your minds and
waste your energy. If something is still bothering you, hurry up and
ask whatever you wish.’
[1] i.e., just go and set your minds at rest.
Then Fa Yüan, one of the monks present, asked, ‘What are
Buddha, Dharma and Sangha; what are the Three Jewels in One
Substance? We beg you, Master, to explain.’
M: ‘Mind is the Buddha and it is needless to use this Buddha to
seek the Buddha. Mind is the Dharma and it is needless to use this
Dharma to seek the Dharma. Buddha and Dharma are not separate
entities and their togetherness forms the Sangha. Such is the
meaning of Three Jewels in One Substance. A sutra says: “Mind,
Buddha and sentient beings — there is no difference between any of
them. When your body, speech and mind are purified, we say a
Buddha has appeared in the world. When these three become
impure, we say a Buddha has been extinguished.” For example,
when you are angry you are not joyous, and when you are joyous
you are not angry; yet, in both cases, there is only the one mind
which is not of two substances. Fundamental wisdom is self-existent;
when the passionless (anasraya — that which is outside the stream
of transmigration) appears, it is like a snake becoming a dragon
without changing its scaly skin. Likewise, when sentient beings turn
their minds towards Buddhahood, they do not change their
physiognomies. Our nature, which is intrinsically pure does not rely
on any practice in order to achieve its own state. Only the arrogant
claim that there are practice and realization. The real void is without
obstruction and its function is, under all circumstances,
inexhaustible. It is without beginning or end. Those of high spirituality
are capable of sudden illumination, whereon its function will be (seen
to be) unsurpassable — this is anuttara-samyaksambodhi
(unexcelled enlightenment). Mind has neither form nor shape; it is
the subtle Sambhogakaya. That which is formless is the
Dharmakaya of Reality. That of which the nature and phenomenal
expression are void is the Boundless Immaterial Body. That which is
adorned with a myriad modes of salvation is the Dharmakaya of
Merit, which is the fundamental power responsible for the conversion
of sentient beings; it (mind) is named according to how it appears
and its wisdom is inexhaustible — hence it is called ‘the
Inexhaustible Treasury’. As the progenitor of all phenomena
(dharmas), it is called ‘the Primal Dharma Treasury’. As the container
of all knowledge, it is called ‘the Wisdom Treasury’. As the Suchness
to which all phenomena ultimately return, it is called ‘the Tathagata
Treasury’. The Diamond Sutra says: “Tathagata means the
Suchness of all dharmas.” Another sutra says: “Of all the dharmas in
the universe coming into existence and fading out of existence, there
is not one which does not return to the Suchness.”’12. A guest staying at the monastery said, ‘I do not know which of
these three — a Vinaya master (upholder of monastic discipline), a
Dharma master (skilled preacher), or a Ch’an master — is the
greatest. I beg you, Master, out of compassion for my ignorance, to
make the matter clear to me.’
M: ‘The Vinaya masters expound the discipline section of the
scriptures and transmit the ancient tradition for preserving the infinite
life of the Dharma (doctrine). Seeing clearly who are the upholders
and who are the transgressors of the disciplinary rules, they know
how to encourage the former and to restrain the latter. They know
how to comport themselves in accordance with the rules and
regulations in a manner which inspires respect. They officiate at the
three kinds of confession which precede transmission of the Vinaya,
and they teach the initial steps leading to the four grades of
sainthood. Unless they have spent their lives virtuously up to the
onset of old age, how will they dare take charge of those duties? The
Dharma masters sit crosslegged upon their lion-thrones pouring forth
rivers of eloquence to huge crowds, expounding means of chiselling
a way through the Mysterious Pass, or of opening the marvellous
Gates of Prajna by which the voidness of giver, receiver and alms is
revealed.[1] Who, unless they can trample all before them like a lion
or an elephant, would dare undertake to be a match for all this? The
Ch’an masters grasp at essentials and gain a direct understanding of
the Mind Source. Their methods consist of revealing and hiding, of
exposing and covering reality in a crisscross manner, which
responds adequately to all the different grades of potentiality (for
enlightenment). They excel in harmonizing facts with the underlying
principle, so that people may suddenly perceive the Tathagata; and,
by pulling up their deep samsaric roots, they cause their pupils to
experience samadhi on the spot. Thus, unless they are capable of
achieving tranquillizing dhyana and imperturbable abstraction, they
are certainly bound to be flustered under such circumstances.
Although the three methods of training — discipline, dhyana and
wisdom — differ in that they present the Dharma in a manner suited
to the capability of each individual, once a disciple has awakened to
their profound meaning by forgetting all about the wording, how do
they differ from the One Vehicle? [2] Wherefore it is written in a sutra:
“In all the Buddha-realms of the ten quarters, there is only the
Dharma of the One Vehicle” — there is neither a second nor a third,
except in so far as the Buddha employed relative terms in his
expedient teaching for the guidance of sentient beings.’
[1] Literally: ‘ . . Gates of prajna which reveal the voidness of the three-wheel condition of all
almsgiving (dana).’
[2] The One Vehicle is the Buddha Vehicle as contrasted with the three vehicles of the
Shravakas, Pratyekabuddhas and Bodhisattvas.
‘Master,’ exclaimed the guest, ‘you have penetrated the Buddhadharma’s
profundity and your dialectic powers are unimpeded.’
Then he asked a further question, ‘Do Confucianism, Taoism and
Buddhism really amount to one doctrine, or to three?’
M: ‘Employed by those of great capacity, they are the same. As
understood by those of limited intellect, they differ. All of them spring
forth from the functioning of the one self-nature. It is views involving
differentiation which make them three. Whether a person remains
deluded or gains illumination depends upon that person, not upon
differences or similarity of doctrine.’13. The Venerable Tao Kuang, who was an adherent of the
Dharmalaksana school (which holds that consciousness is real) and
also a commentator upon the scriptures, enquired, ‘Master, what
mental processes (hsin) do you employ in pursuing the Way?’
M: ‘I have no mental processes that would be of use and no Way to
follow.’
Q: ‘If both those statements are true, why is it that every day you
convene gatherings during which you urge others to learn how to
follow the Way by means of Ch’an?’
M: ‘This old monk does not possess even a dot of ground in which
to stick an awl,[1] so how can he gather people? He does not have so
much as a tongue, then how can he urge people to do anything?’
[1] i.e., I have relinquished all attachments to location (or) my mind does not abide
anywhere — so where can I gather people?
A: ‘Why, Master, you are lying to my face.’
M: ‘How can this old monk, being without a tongue to urge people,
tell a lie?’
A: ‘Really I do not understand the way the Venerable Ch’an Master
talks.’
M: ‘Nor does this old monk understand himself.’ [1]
[1] If he understood himself, he would thereby divide his undivided whole into subject and
object. The Master tried his best to teach his visitor, but the latter seemed unable to extract
the profound meaning from his words.14. The Venerable Chih, who used to expound the Avatamsaka
Sutra, asked, ‘Why will you not allow that fresh green bamboos are
the Dharmakaya and that luxuriant clusters of yellow flowers are
nothing but prajna?’
M: ‘The Dharmakaya is immaterial, but avails itself of the prevailing
green bamboos to reveal itself. Prajna does not differentiate, but
avails itself of the prevailing yellow flowers to manifest itself. These
yellow flowers and bamboos do not themselves possess prajna or
the Dharmakaya. Therefore it is written in a sutra: “The real
Dharmakaya of the Buddhas is likened to a void; it reveals itself in
response to the needs of living beings like the moon being reflected
in the water.” If yellow flowers are prajna, then prajna would be
identical with inanimate objects; if green bamboos were the
Dharmakaya, then they would be capable of the Dharmakaya’s
responsive functioning. Do you understand, Venerable Sir?’
A: ‘No, I do not.’
M: ‘Those who have perceived their own nature will be right
whether they say that those things are prajna and the Dharmakaya
or that they are not; for they will carry out its function according to
prevailing circumstances without being hindered by the dual
conception of right and wrong. As for the people who have not yet
perceived their own nature, when they speak of green bamboos they
form a rigid concept of green bamboos as such; and, when they
speak of yellow flowers, they form the same sort of rigid concept.
Moreover, when they speak of the Dharmakaya it becomes an
obstruction to them, and they talk of prajna without knowing what it
is. Thus, everything they say remains at the level of theoretical
debate.’
Chih bowed his thanks and withdrew.15. Somebody once asked, ‘How much time do we need to attain
deliverance by setting our minds on practising the Dharma?’
M: ‘Using the mind for practices is like washing dirty things in sticky
mud. Prajna is mysterious and wonderful. Itself unbegotten, its
mighty functioning is at our service regardless of times and seasons.’
Q: ‘Can ordinary people succeed in mastering those functions?’
M: ‘Those who have perceived their own nature are no longer
ordinary people. The Supreme Vehicle of sudden illumination
transcends ordinary and holy alike. While deluded people are talking
of ordinary and holy, illumined people leap over samsara and nirvana
— both! While deluded people are speaking of facts and of the
underlying principle, illumined people exercise their function without
restriction. While deluded people seek achievement and realization,
illumined people remain free from both. While deluded people set
their hopes upon some far-distant aeon, illumined people instantly
perceive all.’16. Once a commentator on the Vimalakirti Sutra said, ‘It is written in
our sutra: “You should regard the six heretics as your teachers. After
you have joined the Order, you should be misled by them and take
part in their fall. Those giving you alms should not be called
‘cultivators of the field of blessedness’. Those making you offerings
should fall into the three evil states of existence. You should vilify the
Buddha and destroy the Dharma. You should not belong to the
sangha and you should not attain deliverance.[1] If you can behave
like this, you may take my food.” I ask you, Master, to give me a
clear explanation of this passage.’
[1] In the Vimalakirtinirdesha Sutra it is related that when Subhuti, one of the Buddha’s
disciples, knocked at Vimalakirti’s door and asked for food, the Upasaka spoke those words
to instruct his visitor. Usually, Buddhist monks avoid heretics to keep themselves from being
drawn into heresies; they praise those giving alms and regard them as owners of ‘fields of
blessedness’; they cling to the idea that those making offerings to monks will never fall into
the three evil states of existence; they revere the Buddha and protect the Dharma; and they
join the Order in the hope of attaining liberation. At the ordinary level of relativities, all these
ideas and deeds are admirable, but they are relativities. The development of a universal
mind, which alone can enable them to reach their goal, is above such dualities. Vimalakirti’s
words implied that he thought Subhuti sufficiently advanced to begin to rise above all
concepts involving duality; for, otherwise, he would not succeed in his quest for bodhi. The
six heretics are the six senses; though they constantly mislead us, we cannot get away from
them to find the Absolute elsewhere. In other words, we should realize the Absolute from
the very midst of relativities and contraries.
M: ‘“The six teachers” is a term for “the six senses” from which your
delusions arise. The term “heretic” refers to seeking the Buddha
apart from mind. Whatever can be given away cannot be called “a
field of blessedness”. Your being stirred by the thought of receiving
offerings will land you amidst the three evil states.[1] If you dare to
vilify the Buddha, you are not attached to Buddha-seeking; if you
dare to slander the Dharma you are not attached to Dharmaseeking;
and your not joining the sangha implies that you are not
attached to sangha-seeking. Your “not attaining deliverance” means
that your inherent wisdom, now freed from this last obstruction, can
manifest itself instantaneously. If you can interpret the passage in
this way, you will receive as food joy in the Dharma and the
happiness of meditation (ch’an).’
[1] i.e., because of attachment to the reality of an ego and its objects.17. A man who practised meditation once asked, ‘There are some
who, when questioned about the Buddha, just answer, “Buddha!”
Questioned about the Dharma, they simply answer, “Dharma!” This
is called “the one-word method”. I do not know if it is right or not.’
M: ‘Like parrots mimicking human speech, those people have
nothing to say for themselves because they lack wisdom. Their
method is similar to that of using water to cleanse water, or fire to
burn fire — all are absolutely valueless!’18. Someone asked if words and speech are the same.[1]
[1] The question was asked with reference to what was said in passage 19 of Essential
Gateway to Truth.
M: ‘The same. Speech means words arranged in sentences. Fluent
dialectic resembling an ever-flowing stream, so manifold and sublime
as to suggest a vessel pouring forth pearls; such is speech — it
clears away the myriad phenomenal appearances, gushes forth in
unending torrents of eloquence and skilfully interprets an ocean of
meanings. As for words, a single syllable reveals the mind, which is
inwardly mysterious and profound, while outwardly it exhibits
marvellous aspects; amidst a myriad disturbing forces, it remains
imperturbable; and it remains for ever distinct amidst a medley of
pure and impure. All this may be likened to the minister’s words
which made the Prince of Chi blush,[1] or to Vimalakirti’s silent
preaching which Manjushri praised [2] — how can ordinary people of
today hope to understand such things?’
[1] After the ascension of the Prince of Chi State to the throne, the minister appointed by
him ruled the people so badly that the situation rapidly deteriorated. A new minister
appointed to take his place, after upbraiding the prince with the words referred to here,
served him loyally and restored the country’s prosperity.
[2] A reference to a passage in the Vimalakirtinirdesha Sutra — ‘Manjushri said to
Vimalakirti: “We have all spoken about entry into the nondual Dharma-gate to
enlightenment. Virtuous One, it is now your turn to enlighten us on a Bodhisattva’s entry into
the nondual Dharma-gate.” Vimalakirti remained silent. Thereupon, Manjushri praised him,
saying, “Excellent, excellent! That which is beyond expression in verbal and written words is
the real entry into the nondual Dharma-gate.”’19. The Vinaya Master Yüan once said, ‘You Ch’an masters always
claim extravagantly that Mind is the Buddha. You are wrong, for even
Bodhisattvas at the first stage[1] (of development into Buddhas) can
appear in bodily forms in a hundred different Buddha-realms, and
those at the second stage can multiply themselves ten times more
than that. (Since Mind is the Buddha), will the Ch’an Master try out
his miraculous powers and do the same for me to see?’
[1] There are ten stages of a Bodhisattva’s development into Buddhahood.
M: ‘Venerable Acharya, are you yourself an ordinary, or a saintly
monk?’
A: ‘Ordinary.’
M: ‘Since you are but an ordinary monk, how can you ask questions
about matters like that? This is what a sutra means by saying: “The
Virtuous One’s mind is turned upside down and does not accord with
the Buddha-wisdom.”’ [1]
[1] The Vinaya Master was discriminating and could not be awakened to that Absolute state
which is perceptible only to those who have realized the Buddha-wisdom.
A: ‘You Ch’an masters always say that if we awaken to the Way
right in front of us, we shall attain deliverance in our present bodily
form. You are wrong.’
M: ‘Suppose someone, after a lifetime of virtuous conduct,
suddenly puts forth a hand and steals something. Is that person a
thief in his or her present bodily form?’
A: ‘Obviously, yes.’
M: ‘Then, if at this moment someone suddenly perceives his or her
own nature, tell me why that person cannot be delivered?’
A: ‘At this moment? Impossible! According to the sutras, three
aeons-of-uncountable-extent (asamkhyeya-kalpas) must pass before
we attain to it.’ [1]
[1] An asamkhyeya-kalpa denotes an uncountable number of aeons. Three of them are
sometimes said to be required for a Bodhisattva’s development into a Buddha.
M: ‘Can aeons-of-uncountable-extent be counted?’
At this Yüan shouted indignantly, ‘Can someone who draws an
analogy between thievery and liberation claim that he reasons
correctly?’
M: ‘Acharya, you do not understand the Way, but you should not
prevent others from understanding it. Your own eyes are shut, so
you get angry when others see.’
Red in the face, Yüan began striding away, but called over his
shoulder, ‘Who’s an old muddlehead right off the Way?’
M: ‘That which is striding away is just your Way.’20. A venerable monk called Hui, who preached the Chih-Kuan
doctrine (of the T’ien T’ai school), asked, ‘Master, are you able to
discern demons?’
M: ‘Yes. A stirred mind is the heavenly demon; a stirless mind is the
demon of the five aggregates; a mind that is sometimes stirred and
sometimes stirless is the passion (klesha) demon. According to this
“right” dharma of mine, there should be none of these.’
Q: ‘What is the meaning of (the T’ien T’ai practice of) simultaneous
meditation upon the One Mind’s three aspects?’ [1]
[1] This is the meditation according to the ‘Perfect Teaching’ of the T’ien T’ai school and
derives from Nagarjuna’s shastra on the Prajnaparamita Sutra: it explains the doctrine set
forth by that shastra of ‘One mind and its three aspects of wisdom’. The practice is intended
for those with sharp roots (a high degree of spirituality). It is taught that contemplation of
one aspect of wisdom involves simultaneous contemplation of all three of its aspects. The
three characteristics of illusory existence — creation, abiding, and destruction — are
thereby simultaneously transmuted into the three aspects of wisdom. The same result is
achieved through the T’ien T’ai threefold meditative study of the void, the unreal and the
mean. This ‘Perfect Teaching’ of the T’ien T’ai school contrasts with the gradual methods of
those schools which differentiate between various aspects and stages of truth.
M: ‘Besides the past mind which is already gone, the future mind
which has yet to come, and the present mind which does not stay,
which mind will you use for your meditation?’
A: ‘So the Venerable Ch’an Master does not understand the Chih-
Kuan teaching (to which I alluded).’
M: ‘Do you understand it, Venerable Commentator?’
A: ‘I do.’
M: ‘As the great Master Chih Chê [1] said, “Chih (silencing the mind
to obtain samadhi) is preached to wipe out (the illusion of) Chih; and
Kuan (looking into the mind to cause prajna to appear and function
normally) is preached to eradicate the illusion of Kuan. To dwell on
Chih is to drown oneself in the ocean of birth and death; to abide in
Kuan is to upset the mind.” Will you use the mind to put a stop to
mind and stir the mind to meditate on it? Setting the mind on
meditation involves attachment to permanence; setting no mind on
meditation involves annihilation. Clinging to the concept of “either
existence or nonexistence” implies (attachment to) a dualism. Then
how will the Venerable Commentator expound (the Chih-Kuan
practice) correctly for me to see?’
[1] Chih Chê is the Fourth Patriarch of the T’ien T’ai school.
A: ‘Since you put it like that, there is really nothing I can say.’
M: ‘If so, have you ever really understood the Chih-Kuan practice?’21. Someone asked, ‘Is prajna very large?’
M: ‘It is.’
Q: ‘How large?’
M: ‘Unlimited.’
Q: ‘Is prajna small?’
M: ‘It is.’
Q: ‘How small?’
M: ‘So small as to be invisible.’
Q: ‘Where is it?’
M: ‘Where is it not?’ [1]
[1] The questions show that the questioner had got as far as understanding that immaterial
things may be big and small at the same time; otherwise the second question would
scarcely have followed the answer to the first; but the Great Pearl wished to wipe out
altogether the duality inherent in such thinking. Prajna is omnipresent, but not to be thought
of in terms of space.22. A monk commentator of the Vimalakirtinirdesha Sutra enquired,
‘According to our sutra: “After all the Bodhisattvas who were present
had spoken of their interpretation of the nondual Dharma-gate (to
enlightenment), Vimalakirti remained silent.” Is that the ultimate?’ [1]
[1] In that sutra it is related that the Upasaka Vimalakirti asked some visiting Bodhisattvas to
relate the means by which they had entered the nondual Dharma-gate. When they had
explained how they had done this by wiping out all dual concepts, such as those relating to
‘I’ and ‘other than I’, Manjushri expressed the opinion that entrance through that door
consisted in ‘neither words nor speech, in neither indicating nor knowing, and in neither
questioning nor answering with regard to all dharmas (phenomena, doctrines, etc)
whatsoever’. When Vimalakirti was asked in his turn, he remained silent, saying nothing.
Thus, the Bodhisattvas used words and speech to reveal nondual or Absolute reality;
Manjushri revealed it through absence of words and speech; while Vimalakirti revealed it by
maintaining a perfect silence, thus wiping out the duality of words and speech on the one
hand and the concept of their absence on the other.
M: ‘It is not. If the sacred meaning had been wholly revealed (by
that), there would have been nothing more for the third section of the
sutra to say.’
After a long pause, the Commentator enquired, ‘Will the Venerable
Ch’an Master explain to me the ultimate meaning that was not wholly
revealed?’
M: ‘The first section of that sutra taught the Buddha’s ten chief
disciples how their minds should abide. The second section
described how each of the Bodhisattvas present spoke of their entry
into the nondual Dharma-gate; they used words to reveal that which
is wordless. Manjushri, however, revealed the wordless through
absence of words and speech; whereas Vimalakirti employed neither
words nor absence of words to wind up their statements. The third
section began after Vimalakirti’s silence and went on to reveal the
transcendental function. Does the Venerable Commentator
understand?’
A: ‘Well, what a strange way of putting it!’
M: ‘It is not so strange.’
Q: ‘Why not?’
M: ‘I explain it like that to wipe out passionate clinging to the reality
of an ego. If you take the sutra’s real meaning, it tells you only that
the material and immaterial are void and still (i.e. in the nirvanic
condition), so as to enable you to perceive your own nature. It
teaches you how to give up wrong practices in favour of right
practice. So you must not allow your mind to give rise to
discriminative thoughts about words, speech, and printed texts. It
would be quite enough if you could fully understand just the two
words composing Vimalakirti’s name — “Vimala” (spotless) refers to
the fundamental “substance” and “kirti” (reputation) is its functional
manifestation.[1] This functional manifestation proceeds from the
fundamental “substance” and it is by means of it that we return to
that “substance”. Since “substance” and manifestation are one in
reality, the fundamental and its manifestation do not differ from each
other. For this reason the ancients said, “Though the fundamental
and its manifestations are different denominations, the inconceivable
(of which they are aspects) is but one; and yet, even that one is not
one.” [2] Had you understood the real meaning of the two
denominations expediently termed “Vimala” (spotless) and “kirti”
(reputation), it would be superfluous to speak of the ultimate and the
not-ultimate. (There is only that which is) neither preliminary nor
final, neither root nor twig and neither vimala nor kirti. The instruction
consists in revealing to sentient beings their fundamental nature
which cognizes its own indescribable state of deliverance. Those
who have not perceived their own nature will never in all their lives
understand this doctrine.’
[1] Pên t’i (fundamental substance) and chi yung (manifesting function) are terms meaning
approximately the same as t’i (substance) and yung (function).
[2] This presents the Ch’an teaching which consists of first integrating the two
denominations into one undivided whole, and then wiping out the conception of one,
thereby overcoming the last subtle attachment in order to realize the Absolute, which is
neither a unity nor a plurality.23. A monk asked, ‘Since all the myriad phenomena (dharmas) are
nonexistent, the nature of mind should also be nonexistent. Just as a
bubble having burst can never re-form, so can a person once dead
never be reborn, for nothing remains of that person. Where will the
nature of that person’s mind be then?’
M: ‘Bubbles are composed of water. When a bubble bursts, does
the water composing it cease to be? Our bodies proceed from our
real nature. When we die, why should you say that our nature is no
more?’
A: ‘If you maintain there is such a nature, bring it forth and show it
to me!’
M: ‘Do you believe there will be a morrow?’
A: ‘Yes, certainly.’
M: ‘Bring it forth and show it to me!’
A: ‘There will surely be a morrow, but not just now.’
M: ‘Yes, but its not being just now does not mean that there will be
no morrow. You personally do not perceive your own nature, but this
does not mean that your nature does not exist. Just now, there is
before you that which wears a robe, takes food and walks, stands,
sits, or reclines, but you do not recognize it (for what it is). You may
well be called a stupid and deluded person. If you discriminate
between today and tomorrow, that is like using your own nature to
search for your own nature; you will not perceive it even after
myriads of aeons. Yours is a case of not seeing the sun, not of there
being no sun.’24. A monk who used to give lectures on the Ch’ing Lung (Green
Dragon) Commentary [1] (on the Diamond Sutra) enquired, ‘Our sutra
says: “(When the Tathagata expounds the Dharma) there is really no
Dharma to teach; but this is (expediently) called ‘teaching the
Dharma’.” How does the Venerable Ch’an Master interpret this
passage?’
[1] This commentary derives its name from that of the monastery where Tao Yin, the
commentator, lived.
M: ‘The substance of prajna is utterly pure and does not contain a
single thing on which to lay hold — this is the meaning of “there is no
Dharma to teach”. As this nirvanic substance, prajna, is endowed
with functions countless as the sands of the Ganges, there is not a
thing which can escape its knowledge — this is the meaning of “this
is (expediently) called preaching the Dharma”.’25. A commentator of the Avatamsaka Sutra asked, ‘Do you believe
that inanimate objects are Buddhas?’
M: ‘I do not. If inanimate objects were Buddhas, then a living man
would be inferior to a dead man; why, even dead donkeys and dead
dogs ought to be superior to him! A sutra says: “The Buddha-body is
the Dharmakaya; it is begotten of discipline, dhyana and wisdom, by
the three insights, the six transcendental powers[1] and by the
performance of all excellent modes of salvation.” If an inanimate
object were the Buddha, then, were Your Reverence to die now, you
would automatically become a Buddha!’
[1] The three insights are the powers arising from the universal insight of the Buddha into all
that has happened in past lives, is happening now, and will happen in the future. There are
various lists of the six transcendental powers — they are those siddhis which arise as a byproduct
of sustained right meditation, but which some people mistakenly (and dangerously)
choose for their main goal.26. A Dharma Master enquired, ‘Do you believe that the greatest
merit derives from the recitation of the Prajna Sutra?’
M: ‘I do not.’
Q: ‘So all ten volumes of the Stories of Divine Responses[1] are
unworthy of belief?’
[1] There are many stories of divine responses; their purpose is to exhort people to recite
the sutras regularly and to practise good works.
M: ‘Filial piety practised while parents are still alive ensures divine
responses (and rewards); this does not mean you have to wait until
after their death so that their bleached skeletons may bless you.[1]
Sutras are made of paper covered with words printed in ink, but
printed words, paper and ink are without self-nature; so from whence
will those divine responses capable of fulfilling your wishes come?
Effectual answers come from proper use of the mind by the person
who reads the sutras; and this explains how the divine power works
in response to appeal from a living being. You may test this for
yourself by taking a volume of the sutras and leaving it quietly on a
table. If nobody picks it up and recites it and practises it, do you
suppose it can possibly have any marvellous efficacy in itself?’
[1] In China, according to the lore of Fêng Shui, or geomancy, the position of ancestral
tombs greatly influences the fortunes of the descendants.27. A monk enquired, ‘How are we to interpret correctly all names,
forms, speech and silence in order to integrate them and realize a
state that is neither anterior nor posterior?’
M: ‘When a thought arises, fundamentally there is neither form nor
name; how can you speak in terms of before and after? Failure to
understand the essential purity of all that has name and form is the
cause of your mistakenly reckoning everything in those terms.
People are locked in by these names and forms, and, lacking the key
of wisdom, they are unable to unlock themselves. Those clinging to
the Middle Way suffer from Middle Way psychosis; those grasping at
extremes suffer from a dualist psychosis. You do not comprehend
that that which manifests itself right now is the unequalled
Dharmakaya. Delusion and awakening, as well as gain and loss,
pertain to the worldly way. The rising (of the thought) of creation and
destruction leads to the burial of true wisdom; both the cutting off of
defilements (klesha) and the search for bodhi are in direct opposition
to wisdom.’28. Once somebody asked, ‘Why do the Vinaya masters not believe
in Ch’an?’
M: ‘The noumenon is profoundly mysterious and not easily
revealed, whereas names and forms are easy to grasp. Those who
do not perceive their self-nature refuse to believe in it; those who do
perceive their self-nature are called Buddhas. Only those who
recognize the Buddha can believe in and enter the noumenon. The
Buddha does not flee from people; it is people who flee the Buddha.
Buddhahood can be realized only by the mind. While deluded people
seek it through printed words, illumined people look into their minds
and realize bodhi. Deluded people sow causal deeds and await their
fruition, whereas illumined people understand the immateriality of
mind. Deluded people cling to the (illusory) ego and hold it to be their
very own, but illumined people employ their prajna which, when
called upon to do so, manifests itself instantaneously. Deluded
people are hindered by their clinging to “is” and “is not”, while people
of wisdom perceive their own nature and understand the marvellous
interpenetration of all forms. Those who have reached only the “dry
wisdom” [1] stage grow weary of their dialectics, whereas people of
(real) wisdom and clear understanding set their minds at rest. When
Bodhisattvas touch anything (those people’s wisdom) shines upon it
(enabling them to perceive it as it really is), while Shravakas darken
their minds with fear of their surroundings.[2] Illumined people, in their
daily activities, do not stray from the uncreate, but deluded people
screen themselves from the Buddha who is right in front of them.’
[1] The dry, unfertilized stage of wisdom (i.e. unfertilized by the Buddha-truth), otherwise
called ‘worldly wisdom’, is the first of the ten stages common to the three vehicles.
[2] There are some Hinayanists who shun the world as being evil and who cultivate forms of
meditation leading to something very much like blankness of mind.29. Once somebody asked, ‘How can we obtain the power of bodily
freedom from natural law?’
M: ‘Spiritual self-nature pervades all worlds which are countless as
the sands of the Ganges; it penetrates mountains, rivers, rocks and
cliffs without hindrance, leaping an infinite distance in a single
moment, going and coming without trace. Fire cannot burn it, nor
water drown it. Fools, having no mind-wisdom, want their (bodies
which are composed of the) four elements to fly! It is written in a
sutra that ordinary people who cling to forms must be taught in
accordance with their capacities. So mind’s formlessness is
described as the subtle Sambhogakaya. That which is immaterial is
reality, the “substance” of which is void; hence it is called “the
Boundless Space-like Body”. As it is adorned with merits deriving
from a myriad modes of salvation, it is called “the Dharmakaya of
Merit, the source of all befitting activities”. Despite all these names
derived from its varied functions, in reality there is but the pure
Dharmakaya.’30. Somebody once asked, ‘If we follow the Way with undivided
mind, will the load of karmic obstructions resulting from our past
deeds be dissipated?’
M: ‘For those who have not yet perceived their own nature, it will
not be dissipated; whereas those who perceive it thereby wipe out all
karmic obstruction just as the hot sun melts the frost and snow. They
may be likened to people able to burn up all the grass covering the
mighty slopes of Mount Sumeru in a single flash, for their karmic
obstruction is like that grass and their wisdom is like that fire!’
Q: ‘How can we know when all karmic obstructions have been
dissipated?’
M: ‘When you see through to the mind now manifesting itself in
front of you, all arising concepts of past and present will be viewed in
the light of that perception. All past and future Buddhas, together
with the myriad phenomena, will be seen as appearing
simultaneously. The sutra says: “Knowledge of all phenomena
contained in a single thought-moment is a bodhimandala, for it
ensures achievement of (the Buddha’s) universal knowledge
(sarvajna).”’31. A man who practised meditation once asked, ‘How can I abide in
the right dharma?’
M: ‘To seek abode in the right dharma is wrong. Why so? Because
the right dharma is neither wrong nor right.’
Q: ‘Then how am I to become a Buddha?’
M: ‘You need not cast aside the worldly mind; just refrain from
soiling your self-nature. The sutra says: “Mind, Buddha and living
beings do not differ from one another.”’
Q: ‘Can we gain deliverance just by interpreting in this way?’
M: ‘Since fundamentally you are not bound, why seek deliverance?
The Dharma is beyond mere words, speech and writings. Do not
seek it amidst a plethora of sentences. The Dharma does not pertain
to past, present and future; you cannot unite with it at the level of
causal law. The Dharma transcends everything and is incomparable.
The Dharmakaya, though immaterial, manifests itself in response to
the needs of living beings; so you cannot turn away from the worldly
to seek deliverance.’32. A monk enquired the meaning of prajna.
M: ‘If you suppose that anything is not prajna, let me hear what it
is?’
Q: ‘How may we perceive our own nature?’
M: ‘That which perceives is your own nature; without it there could
be no perception.’
Q: ‘Then what is self-cultivation?’
M: ‘Refraining from befouling your own nature and from deceiving
yourself is (the practice of) self-cultivation. When your own nature’s
mighty function manifests itself, this is the unequalled Dharmakaya.’
Q: ‘Does our own nature include evil?’
M: ‘It does not even include good!’
Q: ‘If it contains neither good nor evil, where should we direct it
when using it?’
M: ‘To set your mind on using it is a great error.’
Q: ‘Then what should we do to be right?’
M: ‘There is nothing to do and nothing which can be called right.’ [1]
[1] The Master wiped out the dualisms involved in ‘to do’ and ‘not to do’, ‘right’ and ‘wrong’,
in order to reveal the Absolute Dharmakaya which is incomparable, inconceivable and
indivisible.33. Once somebody enquired, ‘Suppose a man is sitting in a boat
and the boat keel cuts to death a shellfish. Is the man guilty, or
should the boat be blamed?’
M: ‘Man and boat had no mind to kill the shellfish, and the only
person to be blamed is you. When a tearing wind snaps off a branch
which falls and kills somebody, there is no murderer and no
murdered. In all the world, there is no place where living beings do
not have to suffer.’34. A monk asked, ‘I still do not understand how realization can be
achieved in a single thought-moment (ksana) by relying on (people)
displaying certain feelings or passions, or on their pointing at the
surrounding objects, their speech or silence, their raising their
eyebrows or moving their eyes.’ [1]
[1] When teaching their disciples, Ch’an masters used to point directly to mind which is
stirred by worldly feelings and passions and by its surroundings. This was done according
to circumstances by speech, silence, gestures, expressions and so forth.
M: ‘There is nothing which is outside self-nature. Its function is
marvellous — marvellous in its motion and in its stillness. Those who
have (attained to) real mind express that reality whether they speak,
or keep silent. For one who understands the Way, walking, standing,
sitting, or lying — all are the Way. When the self-nature is obscured
by delusion, a myriad illusions arise.’
Q: ‘What is the meaning of “a dharma (doctrine) has its aims”?’
M: ‘From the moment of its establishment, a dharma (doctrine) is
complete in all its meanings. (As the sutra says:) “Manjushri, all
dharmas (doctrines) are established upon basic impermanence.”’ [1]
[1] A quotation from the Vimalakirtinirdesha Sutra. Vimalakirti addressed these words to
Manjushri. ‘Impermanence’ here translates ‘wu chu’ (nonabiding).
Q: ‘Do you mean that there is just a great emptiness?’
M: ‘Are you scared by emptiness?’
A: ‘Yes, I am scared.’
M: ‘That which is scared is not the same as a great emptiness.’
Q: ‘How shall we understand that which is beyond the reach of
words?’
M: ‘Now, while you are speaking, what is there which cannot be
reached by your words?’35. There were over ten older monks who came and asked the
Master, ‘There is a sutra which speaks of the destruction of the
Buddha-dharma, but we do not know if the Buddha-dharma is
destructible.’
M: ‘Worldlings and heretics claim that it can be destroyed, whereas
Shravakas and Pratyekabuddhas hold it to be indestructible. The
“right” dharma of mine has no room for these two opinions. As to that
“right” dharma, it is not only worldlings and heretics who have not yet
reached the Buddha-stage, for the followers of the two smaller
vehicles (Shravakas and Pratyekabuddhas) are just as bad.’
Q: ‘Do the dharmas (doctrines) that treat of reality, illusion,
immateriality and materiality each have a seed-nature? [1]
[1] A ‘seed-nature’ or ‘germ-nature’ means a nature which can sprout and develop from the
essential nature.
M: ‘Although a dharma itself has no seed-nature, it manifests itself
in response to the needs of living beings. When the mind abides in
illusion, everything becomes illusory; if there were a single dharma
(phenomenon) not illusory, illusion would be stable! If the mind is
immaterial, everything is immaterial; if there were a single dharma
not immaterial, the concept of immateriality would not be valid. When
you are deluded, you run after a dharma; when you are enlightened,
you can manipulate it! The utmost limit of the universe with all its
immense variety is space; and all earth’s many rivers merge with
their final destination, the sea; all saints and sages can reach their
apotheosis in Buddhahood; and the twelve divisions of the canon,
the five groupings of Vinaya and the five groupings of shastras have
for their highest aim realization of own-mind. Mind is the marvellous
basis of Dharani[1] and the great source of all phenomena; it is called
“the Storehouse of Great Wisdom”, or “the Nonabiding Nirvana”.
Although there are innumerable names for it, all serve to designate
Mind.
[1] ‘Dharani’ means absolute control over good and evil passions and influences.
Q: ‘What is illusion?’
M: ‘Illusion has no stable appearance; it is like a whirling fire,[1] like
a mirage city, like puppets on strings, like (the mirage oases caused
by) sunbeams, like flowers in the sky — none are real.’
[1] i.e., a ring of fire drawn by a circling torch.
Q: ‘Who is the great illusionist?’
M: ‘Mind is the great illusionist; the body is the City of Great Illusion,
and names are its garments and sustenance. In all the worlds,
countless as Ganges’ sands, there is not anything which is outside
illusion. Worldlings, unable to understand illusion, are deluded by
illusory karma wherever they happen to be. Shravakas, being afraid
of illusory phenomena, darken their minds and enter a state of
stillness (i.e. relative nirvana). Bodhisattvas, knowing all illusions and
understanding that their substance is illusory, are indifferent to all
names and forms. The Buddha is the great illusionist who turned the
great illusory Dharma-wheel, attained illusory nirvana, transmuted
illusory samsara into that which is beyond birth and death, and
transformed lands of filth, innumerable as the sands of the Ganges,
into the pure Dharmadhatu.’36. A monk once enquired, ‘Why do you forbid people to intone the
sutras and liken intoning them to speaking in a foreign language?’
M: ‘Because such people are like parrots mimicking human speech
without understanding its meaning. The sutras transmit the Buddha’s
meaning, and those who intone them without understanding that
meaning are merely imitating someone else’s words. That is why I
do not allow it.’
Q: ‘Can there be any meaning apart from writings, words and
speech?’
M: ‘Your talking like that reveals that you are just an imitator of
other people’s words.’
Q: ‘We, too, are now using words. Why are you so dead set against
their use?’ [1]
[1] i.e., for ritual purposes.
M: ‘Now, listen attentively. Sutras are writings set forth in specific
order. When I speak, I use meaningful words which are not writings.
When (most) living beings speak, they employ words from writings,
but they are not meaningful. To comprehend (real) meanings, we
should go beyond unsteady words; to awaken to the fundamental
law, we should leap beyond writings. The Dharma is beyond words,
speech and writings; how can it be sought amid a plethora of
sentences? That is why those seeking enlightenment forget all about
wording after having arrived at the (real) meaning. Awakened to
reality, they throw away the doctrine just as a fisherman, having
caught his fish, pays no more attention to his nets; or as a hunter,
after catching his rabbit, forgets about his snare.’37. A Dharma Master asked, ‘Master, what do you think about the
statement that constant repetition of the Buddha’s name is a form of
Mahayana involving realism?’
M: ‘Even idealism is not Mahayanist, how much less so realism! A
sutra says: “Ordinary people who cleave to forms must be taught
according to their capacities.”’
Q: ‘As to the vow to be born in the Pure Land, is there really a Pure
Land?’
M: ‘A sutra says: “Those who wish to attain the Pure Land should
purify their minds and then their pure minds are the Pure Land of the
Buddha.” If your mind is pure and clean, you will find the Pure Land
wherever you happen to be. By way of illustration — an heir born to
a prince is destined to succeed to the throne; likewise, those who set
their minds on the quest for Buddhahood will be born into the
Buddha’s Pure Land. Those whose minds are corrupt will be born in
a land of filth. Purity and corruption depend solely on the mind, not
on the land.’
Q: ‘I am always hearing talk of the Way (Tao, here meaning selfnature),
but I do not know who can perceive it.’
M: ‘Those possessing the Wisdom Eye can perceive it.’
Q: ‘I am very fond of the Mahayana, but how shall I study it with
success?’
M: ‘Those who awaken (to mind) can achieve success; those who
are not awakened to it cannot.’
Q: ‘What shall I do to be awakened to it?’
M: ‘It comes only by true intuition.’
Q: ‘What is it like?’
M: ‘It resembles nothing.’
Q: ‘If so, it should be ultimately nonexistent.’
M: ‘That which is nonexistent is not ultimate.’
Q: ‘Then it must exist.’
M: ‘It does exist, but it is formless.’
Q: ‘If I do not awaken to it, what shall I do?’
M: ‘It is of your own accord that Your Reverence fails to awaken to
it; nobody is preventing you.’
Q: ‘Does the Buddha-dharma appertain to time?’
M: ‘It is to be perceived in the formless, so it is not external; but nor,
with its infinite powers of responding to circumstances, is it internal;
and, as there is nowhere between them where it abides, it cannot be
grasped on the time level.’
A: ‘This way of talking is much too confusing.’
M: ‘Just now, when you used the word “confusing”, was there
anything internal or external about it?’
A: ‘I cannot search, then, for any trace of it within or without.’
M: ‘If (you understand) there is no trace, it is clear that what I said
just now was not confusing.’ [1]
[1] i.e., what the Master had just said, referring to mind which is neither within nor without
nor yet between the two, was very clear indeed.
Q: ‘What shall we do to attain Buddhahood?’
M: ‘This mind is (fundamentally) the Buddha and can become a
Buddha (in actuality).’ [1]
[1] Everyone’s mind is fundamentally that of a Buddha and can actually reach Buddhahood
by purification from all stirrings and attachments.
Q: ‘When beings enter hell, does their Buddha-nature accompany
them?’
M: ‘When you are actually engaged in doing evil, is there any good
in that action?’
A: ‘No, there is not.’
M: ‘When beings enter hell, the Buddha-nature is similarly (not
present).’
Q: ‘But how is it then with the Buddha-nature which every being
possesses?’
M: ‘If you perform the Buddha’s function, that is employing the
Buddha-nature. If you steal, that is employing the nature of a thief. If
you behave in the worldly way, that is employing the nature of
(ordinary) living beings. This nature, being formless and without
characteristics, is variously named in accordance with the ways in
which it functions. The Diamond Sutra says: “All the virtuous ones
(bhadra) and enlightened saints (arya) are distinguished by (their
conformity with) the nonactive dharma (anasrava, wu wei).”’38. A monk once asked, ‘What is the Buddha?’
M: ‘There is no Buddha apart from mind.’
Q: ‘What is the Dharmakaya?’
M: ‘Mind is the Dharmakaya. As it is the source of all the myriad
phenomena, we refer to it as “the Body of the Dharma Realm”. The
Shastra of the Awakening of Faith says: “In speaking of the Dharma,
we refer to the mind of sentient beings, for our revelations of the
Mahayana truths all depend on Mind.”’
Q: ‘What is meant by saying that the Great Sutra[1] resides in a
small particle of dust?’
[1] The Great Sutra, or Great Book, is another term for Mind or wisdom.
M: ‘Wisdom is that sutra. A sutra says: “There is a great sutra
(book) with a capacity equal to that of a major-chiliocosm (trisahasra-
maha-sahasra-loka-dhatu) which yet resides in a small
particle of dust.” By “a particle of dust” is meant the mind-dust giving
rise to a single thought. Therefore it is said: “In a thought stirred by
mind-dust, there are elaborated as many gathas as there are sands
in the Ganges.” Today people no longer understand this.’
Q: ‘What is the City of Great Meaning and who is the King of Great
Meaning?’
M: ‘The body is that city and mind is that king. A sutra says: “Those
who listen much are skilled in truth, but not in putting it into words.”
Words are transient, but meaning is eternal, for it is without form and
characteristics. Apart from words and speech, there is Mind which is
the Great Sutra (book). Mind is the King of Great Meaning; those
who do not clearly know their minds are not skilful (interpreters) of
the meaning; they are just imitators of words spoken by others.’
Q: ‘The Diamond Sutra speaks of leading all the nine classes of
sentient beings into the state of final nirvana. It also says: “There are
really no sentient beings to be led across.” How can these two
passages of scripture be reconciled? It first says and then repeats
that sentient beings really are led across, but without being attached
to their forms. I have often doubted this and am still not convinced,
so I beg you, Master, to explain it to me.’
M: ‘These nine classes of beings are all (latent) in our physical
body; they are created according to our karmic deeds. Thus,
ignorance creates a being born from an egg; defilement (klesha)
creates a being born from the womb; immersion in the love-fluid
creates a being born from humidity; and the sudden arising of
passion creates a being born of transformation. When awakened, we
are Buddhas; when deluded, we are (ordinary) sentient beings. To a
Bodhisattva, every thought arising in the mind is a living being. If
every thought is looked into clearly, the substance of the mind is
found to be void, and this is called “the deliverance of living beings”.
Illumined people liberate their inner living beings even before they
take shape in their own selves and, since their shapes therefore do
not exist, it is clear that there are in reality no living beings to be
liberated.’39. A monk asked, ‘Are words and speech also mind?’
M: ‘Words and speech are concurrent causes; they are not mind.’
Q: ‘What is this mind which lies beyond all concurrent causes?’
M: ‘There is no mind beyond words and speech.’
Q: ‘If there is no mind beyond words and speech, what is that mind
in reality?’
M: ‘Mind is without form and characteristics; it is neither beyond nor
not beyond words and speech; it is for ever clear and still and can
perform its function freely and without hindrance. The Patriarch[1]
said:
[1] The Sixth Indian Patriarch, Miccaka, chanted the following gatha when he transmitted
the Dharma of Mind to the Seventh Patriarch, Vasumitra:
There is neither mind nor realization,
While that which can be realized is not the Dharma.
It is only when the mind is seen to be unreal
That the Dharma of all minds can be truly understood.
It is only when the mind is seen to be unreal
That the Dharma of all minds can be truly understood.40. A monk asked, ‘What is meant by “the study of dhyana
(meditation) and wisdom (prajna) in equal proportions”?’
M: ‘Dhyana pertains to substance, and wisdom is its function.
Dhyana begets wisdom and wisdom leads to dhyana. They may be
likened to the water and its waves, both of which are of one
substance with neither taking precedence over the other. Such is the
study of dhyana and wisdom in equal proportions. Homeless ones
(monks) should not look to words and speech. Walking, standing,
sitting and lying — all are the functioning of your nature. In what are
you out of accord with it? Just go now and take a rest (i.e. set your
minds at rest) for a while. As long as you are not carried away by
external winds, your nature will remain like water for ever still and
clear. Let nothing matter. Take good care of yourselves!’
