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湛然圓澄 Zhanran Yuancheng (1561-1626), aka 雲門圓澄 Yunmen Yuancheng
六十九世湛然圓澄禪師
湛然圓澄 Zhanran Yuancheng (1561-1626), Patriarch of the Sixty-ninth Generation
69th Generational Patriarch: Dhyana Master Jan Ran Yuan Cheng
佛祖道影白話解 Lives of the Patriarchs
虛雲老和尚編輯 Composed by the Elder Master Hsu Yun (虚云 Xuyun, 1840-1959)
宣化上人講於一九八五年六月十三日
Commentary by the Venerable Master Hsuan Hua (宣化 Xuanhua, 1918-1995) on June 13, 1985
金剛 菩提海 Vajra Bodhi Sea (VBS): A Monthly Journal of Orthodox Buddhism, Nos. 302-305.
http://www.drbachinese.org/vbs/publish/302/vbs302p012.htm
http://www.drbachinese.org/vbs/publish/303/vbs303p012.htm
http://www.drbachinese.org/vbs/publish/304/vbs304p011.htm
http://www.drbachinese.org/vbs/publish/305/vbs305p012.htm
From last issue: The Master was a son of the Xia family in Gui Ji. He drew near Master Yin Feng, investigated the word “who” for three days and nights, and had an awakening. For three years he did not lie down. Upon investigating Master Qian Feng ' s topic, “I speak of one, not of two”…
He was thoroughly and greatly enlightened. He investigated until he reached the end of the mountains and rivers, until he had climbed to the summit and achieved the utmost, until he had attained mastery...then suddenly, he awakened from the dream and discovered the way it really was. He had broken through all attachments and put an end to all afflictions;
In a finger-snap, eighty thousand doors are fully realized.
In a kshana, three asamkheya kalpas are extinguished.That's how it happened. Eighty thousand great kalpas passed in the space of a finger-snap, and three asamkheya kalpas (infinite eons) were eradicated in a kshana (a brief instant). This is called thorough and great enlightenment. "Thorough" means that there was nothing he did not understand.
Then the qualities of all things, whether external or internal, subtle or coarse, will all be apprehended, and the mind, in its entire substance and its relations to things, will be perfectly understood.
At that time, one will glorify all of ancient and modern times, and be ready to go home. That is why it is called thorough and great enlightenment!
Ah! See how your teacher is both a student and a teacher. While I am lecturing, I don't know whether I should sit or stand. That's why I stand up and lecture for awhile, and then I sit down and talk for awhile. I don't have any fixed method.
In the Xin Mao year of the Wan Li reign period. Wan Li is the name of a reign period in the Ming dynasty. Xin Mao designates the year. Wan Li was the reign period, and the year was Xin Mao in the cycle which begins with the year Jia Zi.
He visited Master Ci Zhou at Zhi Feng Tu. After he became thoroughly enlightened, he probably wanted to do some traveling on his own. He wanted to go out and hone his skill and match his wits with others to see what level his skill had reached. This is similar to the situation at Shaolin Monastery, where students of gungfu have to fight their way out through the wooden stakes. They have to leave the monastery and go out into the world to try out their skill and see how it is. The Master had heard someone say that the skill of Dhyana Master Ci Zhou (Boat of Compassion) was not bad, so he went there. One reason he went there was to seek certification and ask for correction. As it is said, "Go to one who is virtuous to be corrected." You should draw near a person who possesses virtue, learning, and true wisdom in order to listen to his ideas. This is called asking for correction, going to one who is virtuous to be corrected. Another meaning is that "one who is clever and fond of study is not ashamed to inquire from those below him." One should think: "Perhaps I haven't learned enough, so I want to go around to different places to gain more experience and to get exposed to different situations. I want to go around to see if I am on the right track, or if I have actually gone down the wrong road." This is also a way of verifying the level of skill one has reached in cultivation. This is the meaning of "going to one who is virtuous to be corrected" and "one who is clever and fond of study is not ashamed to inquire from those below him." You could say that someone would do this because he is fond of study and is not proud of himself. You could also say that he is proud of himself and wants to match his abilities with others to see whether or not his skill is useful. All of you think about this: Those who are traveling students are bound to have these inclinations.
In the past, I myself was a traveling student, but I was one who didn't have any abilities. Everywhere I went, I would listen to others. I watched and listened to others wherever I went and didn't try to compete with them or match wits against them. That was my attitude when I was a traveling student in the past. However, I am sure that most traveling students are not as stupid as I was. They wouldn't act the way I did, causing people to look down on me and ignore me no matter where I went. Traveling students generally go around matching their skill against others. How do they match their skill? "Do Chan mediators actually take up swords or spears and fight it out with one another?" No, they engage in verbal combat: You say a sentence, and then I say a sentence. How can you tell that this is the way it is? Just read the next passage and you will know.
Zhou asked him. When Master Ci Zhou met him, he didn't say anything else, but just asked him, "When Zhi Feng Tu is close to the green mountains, but the platform of the king of Yue is far from the vast sea, what should be done?" What should one do? This is known as verbal combat. What is verbal combat? Didn't I just tell you? It isn't simply a matter of reciting two lines of verse. It depends on how you answer, on whether your answer makes sense or not, and on how his original meaning correlates with the meaning of your own answer. As it is said, "An expert merely needs to see you stretch out your hand to know whether or not you have it." As soon as you reach out your hand, he will know whether or not you are familiar with the trade. This is similar to the way horse-traders operate. I don't know how to be a horse-trader, but I've been to horse trading fairs before. It's said that the buyers and sellers of horses don't talk about prices outright. What do they do? It's said that they put their hands in their sleeves, and just by extending a few fingers to show each other, they can determine the price of the horse. That's how they do it. It is done covertly, not out in the open. Now, in verbal combat, by means of alternating questions and answers, two people can understand each other without having to speak plainly. That's called verbal combat, or dou ji feng . Ji refers to opportunity, and feng means the tip of a sword. This means to meet at the blade of the sword--to realize the key point. But this is a verbal "tip of the sword," not the tip of an actual sword or gun.
"When Zhi Feng Tu is close to the green mountains, but the platform of the king of Yue is far from the vast sea, what should be done?" There is one way to explain this that sounds like sophistry, but we won't explain it that way. Zhi Feng Tu ("stop the wind and mud") means that if you don't follow the rules, then you will have the wind, which is greed, and it will cover up your wisdom. Yet, within this, the green mountains and spring waters are very pure, very fine, and very beautiful. Zhi Feng Tu is very close both to defiled places and to the place of purity. In other words, with a thought of purity, you have green mountains; with a thought of defilement, there is wind and mud.
"The platform of the king of Yue is far from the vast sea." The platform of the king of Yue refers to the territory of King Gou Jian of the kingdom of Yue. His place was probably a long ways from the sea. For the sake of his kingdom, the king of Yue slept on firewood for a mattress and had a piece of gall hung over his bed, [which he licked to remind him of the bitterness of his defeat]. He was planning something. He had a goal in mind; he had an intention, and he did not spare himself any hardship in his determination to make a successful comeback in the future. The sea was very far away. The vast sea has no intent at all. It doesn't hope to succeed, nor does it hope to take revenge in any way. It isn't like that. Therefore, it's not easy to change the vast sea. The platform of the king of Yue could not endure as long as the sea. One was eternal, and one was temporary. That is, if you have a mind, intent, and consciousness, then your state is impermanent and has an end to it. If you don't have any mind, intent, or consciousness, then even though it's a long distance and cultivation is not easy, it will last for a boundless time. Anything that has form and appearance is subject to destruction. Only that which is formless and without appearance is real. That which has no form or appearance is like the vast sea, while that which has form and appearance is like the platform of the king of Yue. The king's platform is temporary, while the sea lasts forever. However, the eternal and the temporary are not ultimate, either.
After Master Ci Zhou had spoken, the Master replied with a verse. The Master said, "The moon penetrates the water and shatters the bottom of the lake." When the moon shines, it shines right down to the bottom of the lake. "Shatters the bottom of the lake" doesn't mean that the lake bottom really breaks up. It simply means that from above, the moonlight shines all the way down to the lake bottom. Thus, the text says "shatters."
"Yet these waves do not smooth their brows." This line says these waves will not smooth their brows. When the moonlight shines into the water, they don't react. They don't think, "Oh! It's so uncomfortable! The moonlight has pierced me. Oh no!" They won't try to move aside or crease their brows. In these two lines, the moon represents wisdom and the waves afflictions. If you have wisdom, then afflictions will no longer have any effect. Nothing will be able to sway you. You have shined all the way to the bottom, so the lake bottom is shattered. Nevertheless, the waves don't show any expression at all. They remain unmoved. The waves don't rise up anymore.
Zhou repeatedly tested him using the principle of the Dong sect. Hearing him reply in that way, Dhyana Master Ci Zhou thought that he seemed to understand and yet not understand. Since he might not have completely understood, Master Ci Zhou used the principle of the five positions of the Cao Dong sect to test him. He tested him by talking to him this way and that, testing him back and forth several times. As for what questions he used to test him, it doesn't say clearly here. However, since I don't want to take the test, it's better if I don't know the questions, right? I know that none of you want to take the test either, since it's so remote from our time and we have no way to take part in it anyway.
The Master replied with a verse. Dhyana Master Yuan Cheng gave his answer in the form of a verse, and Zhou certified him. Dhyana Master Ci Zhou certified him with a nod of the head and said, “In days to come, you will cut off the tongues of the people in the world wherever you go.” “You” refers to Dhyana Master Yuan Cheng. “In days to come” means in the future. He said, “In the future, you will really be something! You will chop off the tongues of the world's people someday!” Would you say this is reasonable or not? Can he really cut off people's tongues? If he cuts off everyone's tongue, won't he be breaking the law? You shouldn't take the statements made in the Chan school literally and get the meaning wrong. To cut off people's tongues means to leave people speechless. “You will have unobstructed eloquence. Your outstanding eloquence will be such that even if you travelled the length and breadth of the universe and went around the world, no one would be able to defeat you in debate!” By speaking in this way, he was bestowing great praise upon him. He felt that the Master was able to stand firm on his own and had samadhi power. The Master had the power of precepts, the power of samadhi, and the power of wisdom; his precepts, samadhi, and wisdom were all perfected. He told the Master, “Wherever you go, it will be this way.”
The Master served as the abbot for eight great monasteries in all. From the beginning to the end, this Dhyana Master held the abbotship at eight large monasteries. Earlier, someone explained that these were the great monasteries of the time in eight different places. This isn't necessarily the case. In general, he was the abbot at eight large monasteries.
At the two Bodhimandalas, Xian Sheng and Jing Shan Hu, the assembly numbered over eight thousand. Xian Sheng (Manifest Sage) Monastery and Jing Shan Hu (Mountain Lake Path) Monastery, these two Bodhimandalas, were special, for there were over eight thousand left-home people in residence. It wasn't that there were eight thousand people living there every single day. Occasionally there might have been eight thousand people living there. If there were eight thousand residents every day, the emperor would surely have sent troops to suppress them, saying, “This is Shaolin Monastery; I can't allow it to exist!” [Note: Shaolin Monastery was destroyed by an emperor in the Yuan dynasty.] I believe that there was such a high population only once in a while; there was no reason for eight thousand monks to be living there on a daily basis.
He expounded the Dharma for thirty years. There is nothing questionable about the fact that he spoke the Dharma for thirty years. Why not? Because he caused the Dong sect to flourish. He helped the Dong sect to rise and prosper. There was not a day in which the instruments were not played and the whisk was not used. The playing of instruments refers to hitting the bell and drum, striking the wooden fish, and playing the other Dharma instruments. The whisk refers to the dust-whisk held by the abbot. When the abbot ascends the high seat, he will wave the whisk to the left, wave it to the right, sweep it to the east, sweep it to the west, sweep above, and sweep below—recklessly sweeping the air to get rid of some of the dust and make it cleaner. That's all there is to it, nothing more. Not a day went by without the instruments being played. Probably he was someone who didn't like to be idle and was always looking for things to do when there was nothing to be done, and so he arranged it so that every day people were busy, busy, busy, all very busy! That's how it was.
In the Bing Yin year of the Tian Chi reign period, he manifested the stillness. This was in the Bing Yin year of the Tian Chi reign of the Ming dynasty. Tian Chi was the name of the reign period. In the sixty-year cycle that starts with the year Jia Zi, the year of Bing Yin had been reached. It is not known in what month he manifested the stillness. A stupa was built for his whole body at Xian Sheng Nanshan. A pagoda housing his body is located at Nanshan (Southern Mountain) near Xian Sheng Monastery.
A verse in praise says:
He rose to eminence at Great Enlightenment,
Like thunder shaking up Yunmen.
The rain poured down in torrents,
Moistening all the three roots.
A precious mirror was suspended on high,
Frightening the dragons and elephants out of their wits.
His descendants are everywhere;
His crown of virtue caps those of ancient and modern times.He rose to eminence at Great Enlightenment. “Great Enlightenment” refers to Great Enlightenment Monastery in Yunmen. His becoming eminent there probably means he had his beginnings there, or he became enlightened there, or he had some connections with Yunmen at some point. I'm not very clear on this point. Anyway, he became eminent at Great Enlightenment Monastery. Like thunder shaking up Yunmen. When he rose to prominence, he shook up all the people at Yunmen mountain. The rain poured down in torrents. The Works of Mencius says, “When the clouds gather darkly in the sky and the rain falls in torrents, then the sprouts suddenly grow up.” The character pei in the line from Mencius is not the same as the pei in the verse, for it is missing the ‘rain' radical on top, but the meanings are pretty much the same. When the clouds gather darkly, literally “like grease,” the sky has a greasy appearance and doesn't look clean. For example, when glass gets greasy, you have to use some dishwashing detergent to wash it clean. If you don't clean it, it will look dirty. When clouds gather darkly in the sky, it is as if the sky becomes smudged and soiled with patches of clouds forming and gathering together. The sky doesn't look clean anymore. When the rain falls in torrents, that means there is a sudden shower of rain. “Then the sprouts suddenly grow up”: Then the sprouts of grain that have been planted suddenly grow up. This describes how he suddenly became prominent at Great Enlightenment Monastery. He probably had his origins at Great Enlightenment Monastery, so he rose above his peers and stood out from the crowd. Thunder shook up Yunmen: his influence was so powerful that it was like thunder shaking up Yunmen. The rain poured down in torrents: Because the fountainhead of the Dharma was there with him, he was like falling rain—a sudden copious rain that filled the ditches and watercourses. Moistening all the three roots: And so all those of superior, average, and inferior roots, those of dull faculties and sharp faculties, are together nourished and enriched. From the great trees down to the small sprouts, all the myriad things receive nourishment from him. This is speaking of the Dhyana Master's achievement and merit.
A precious mirror was suspended on high. He hung up the most treasured mirror of wisdom. Frightening the dragons and elephants out of their wits. When the men of outstanding talent in Buddhism, the “dragons and elephants in the gate of Dharma,” saw him, they behaved themselves and didn't have anything to say. Their tongues were as if severed, so they had nothing to say. They were all scared, because their tongues had been cut off. He had sliced off their tongues, so they were very obedient. The dragons had to coil up, the tigers had to lie down, and the elephants had to be submissive, too, and do whatever work they were supposed to be doing. His descendants are everywhere. “Descendants” refers to Dharma heirs. His heirs in Dharma pervade the land. His crown of virtue caps those of ancient and modern times. This crown is a hat. This means that his moral virtue is like a hat worn by the eminent, virtuous monks of ancient and modern times. This doesn't mean that he climbed on top of their heads to relieve himself.
Another verse says:
Deep, pure, and placid, the lake water is clear;
Winds calmed and waves stilled, the universe is at peace.
He shook up the Dong tradition and expounded the proper teaching.
Propagating the Way of the patriarchs, he continued the transmission of the lamp.
His bright glory illuminated all under heaven;
Even Korea and Japan received the single transmission of the torch.
His descendants pervaded the land and his source flowed afar,
Frightening the ghosts and spirits of the trichiliocosm.When there was nothing to be done, I deliberately looked for something to do in order to waste everybody's precious time. That's why I uttered these lines of irrelevant talk.
Deep, pure, and placid, the lake water is clear: Didn't he say that the moon penetrated to the lake bottom and shattered it? Didn't he talk about how those waves didn't smile? Therefore, this line says that he was deep, pure, and placid. Since his body, mouth, and mind—the three vehicles of karma—were purified, he was deep and pure. The lake water is clear: It is just like the water in the lake becoming settled and clear. Winds calmed and waves stilled, the universe is at peace. In his lake, the winds were calm and the waves were quiet; there weren't any waves or ripples, and the universe was all peaceful. Therefore, he shook up the Dong tradition and expounded the proper teaching. He was able to stir up the Cao Dong sect in a great way, and he promoted the Treasury of the Proper Dharma Eye. Propagating the Way of the patriarchs, he continued the transmission of the lamp. He taught and spread the Way of the patriarchs and carried on the transmission of the lamp. He was able to continue the transmission of the lamp, in which each lamp seals the next lamp and each patriarch transmits the Dharma to the next patriarch.
His bright glory illuminated all under heaven. Those of ancient times basked in the light of his glory, and those of the present also enjoy the radiance of his glory. Thus he is said to illuminate all under heaven. Even Korea and Japan received the single transmission of the torch. The Cao Dong sect was transmitted as far as Korea and Japan. It was all from the single transmission of the torch in the Cao Dong sect that the teaching was spread abroad. His descendants pervaded the land and his source flowed afar. His source flowed a long ways. Frightening the ghosts and spirits of the trichiliocosm: All the ghosts, goblins, demons, and monsters in the great trichiliocosm were frightened, and all the demon palaces were shaken up. When the proper Dharma dwells in the world, when our Buddhadharma exists in the world, then the demonic dharma is weak. Thus they were all afraid.
