景德傳燈錄

THE JINGDE RECORD OF THE TRANSMISSION OF THE LAMP — VOLUME 21

VOLUME 21
The twenty-seventh generation from Chan Master Xingsi—57 persons.

– There were 13 Dharma-successor disciples of Chan Master Shibei of Xuansha, Fuzhou:

– There were 26 Dharma-successor disciples of Chan Master Huileng of Changqing in Fuzhou:

– There were five Dharma-successor disciples of Chan Master Daofu of Longce Monastery in Hangzhou:

– There was one Dharma-successor disciple of Chan Master Zhifu of Ehu in Xinzhou:

1. Dharma Chan Master Jin. (No encounter dialogues or sayings of this person are extant.)

– There was one Dharma-successor disciple of Chan Master Huaiyue of Bao'en in Zhangzhou:

1. Chan Master Shihao of Miaoji in Tanzhou,

– There were 11 Dharma-successor disciples of Chan Master Shenyan of Gushan in Fuzhou:

• The seventh generation from Chan Master Xingsi (Part 1).
• Dharma-successor disciples of Chan Master Shibei of Xuansha in Fuzhou.

1. Chan Master Guishen of the Arhat Cloister in Zhangzhou.
The Master was a native of Changshan and his family name was Li. As a child, he ate only vegetarian food and uttered extraordinary words. At the age of eighteen, he bade farewell to his parents and attended upon Great Master Wuxiang at Wansui Monastery in his native prefecture, where he shaved his head, received the precepts, and studied the Vinaya.

One day, after ascending the platform before the assembly and expounding the Bodhisattva Precepts, the Master said, “Observing and violating the precepts merely discipline the body; they are not true liberation. How could understanding according to the written word ever bring forth sagehood?” Immediately afterward, he set out to inquire into the Southern School. At first, the Master visited Xuefeng at Yunju, but had not yet attained insight.

Later, he went to Great Master Xuansha Zongyi, and at a single guiding word, he became open and clear, free from delusion.

Xuansha once said, “The three realms are mind-only. How do you understand this?”

The Master pointed to a chair and asked, “What does the Venerable call this?”

Xuansha said, “A chair.”

The Master said, “The Venerable does not understand that the three realms are mind-only.”

Xuansha said, “I call that bamboo. What do you call it?”

He replied, “Guishen also calls it bamboo.”

Xuansha said, “Even if one searched throughout the entire great earth, one could not find a single person who understands the Buddha-Dharma.”

From then on, the Master applied himself with even greater diligence. Whenever Xuansha guided and instructed students, bringing forth the various samadhis, he always had the Master assist in eliciting their realization. Although the Master concealed himself among the assembly, his renown spread far and wide. At that time, the prince governing Zhangzhou proposed building a monastery on the rocky mountain west of Min City, naming it Dizang, and invited the Master to serve as abbot. After more than twelve years, the Master moved to the Arhat Cloister in Zhangzhou. He expounded the profound essentials, and students came to him in great numbers.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said, “Is the profound subtlety of the School merely like this, or is there some extraordinary distinction apart from it? If there is an extraordinary distinction, what can you bring forth? If there is none, then go away. You cannot take three words joined together to be the vehicle of the School. What are these three words? The first is ‘the vehicle of the School and the Teaching.’ As soon as you speak of the vehicle of the School, it becomes the vehicle of the School; as soon as you speak of the vehicle of the Teaching, it becomes the vehicle of the Teaching.

“O virtuous Chan practitioners, the Buddha-Dharma and the vehicle of the School are all names established by your own mouths; whatever you say and do, you deem to be right. You then turn toward that and speak of the impartial, the real, the perfect, and the constant. O virtuous Chan practitioners, what do you call ‘impartial and real’?

What do you take to be ‘perfect and constant’? Those traveling on foot from place to place should discern the principle and not bury one another. Having acquired a few sounds, forms, names, and words, you retain them in your minds and declare, ‘I have understood clearly and distinguished them thoroughly.’ What have you understood?

What have you distinguished? What terminology have you memorized? What sounds and forms have you distinguished?

If these are not names, words, sounds, and forms, then what are you memorizing and distinguishing?

“The wind blowing through the pines, the croaking of frogs, and the crowing of chickens are sounds. Why do you not listen and make your distinctions within them? If there is an intention there to seek out some pattern or form through thought, then tell me: within this old monk’s mouth, how much intention is there to seek through thought together with you senior monks?

Do not be mistaken! Right now, are the sounds and forms, one cluster after another, equal or unequal? If they are equal, then your secret vajra must be subject to destruction.

Why is this so? Because sounds pierce through your ears, forms pierce through your eyes, and conditions fill up your deluded thoughts, utterly destroying the substance of your sounds and forms without leaving anything behind. If they are unequal, then from where could sounds and forms arise?

Do you understand? Whether they are opposed or unequal, try to discuss it.”

After a short while, the Master said again, “As for ‘perfect, constant, impartial, and real,’ whoever spoke of these was certainly no village elder from Huangdi who merely knew how to speak that way. These were pivots raised by the ancient sages to assist one another in revealing and bringing forth realization. People today do not know good from bad and immediately claim, ‘I possess the perfect and real,’ saying, ‘I alone possess the profound and subtle style of the School.’ Buddha Shakyamuni had no tongue; it cannot compare with the pivot you have driven into your own breast.

If one speaks of the offenses of killing, stealing, and sexual misconduct, though they may be grave or light, there is still a time when they can be exhausted. But this slander is like gouging out the eyes of sentient beings; one will enter hell and swallow red-hot iron balls. Do not regard it as an ordinary matter.”

Therefore, the ancients said, “The fault lies with the abbot; it has nothing to do with you. Take care!”
A monk asked, “What is the single phrase of an arhat?” The Master said, “If I were to tell you, it would become two phrases.” He asked, “I do not understand. When someone comes, does the Master receive him?” The Master said, “Who is the one who does not understand?” The monk had scarcely finished replying when the Master said, “Do not demean yourself.”
He asked, “When the eight characters do not form, because the character is not appropriate, what then?” The Master said, “You truly do not understand.” The monk said, “This disciple truly does not understand.” The Master said, “Look beneath your heels.”
He asked, “What is the food of the right livelihood of a śramaṇa?” The Master said, “Can you eat it?”
He asked, “If one wishes to eat this rice, what expedient means must one employ?” The Master said, “Fill your mouth with it.”
He asked, “What is the family style of the Arhat?” The Master said, “I will not tell you.” He asked, “Why will you not tell me?” The Master said, “It is my family style.”
He asked, “What is the body of the Dharma King?” The Master said, “What body are you now?” He replied, “Then there is no body.” The Master said, “How painful!”
The Master ascended the Dharma hall and had just taken his seat when two monks simultaneously came forward and bowed. The Master said, “Both are mistaken.”
He asked, “What is the phrase that cannot be shattered by a blow?” The Master said, “Strike!”
He asked, “When a Buddha appears in the world, it is entirely for the sake of sentient beings. What is the Venerable doing now?” The Master said, “Where have you encountered a Buddha?” He said, “Then this is this student’s fault.” The Master replied, “Be careful. Withdraw.”
He asked, “What is the family style of the Arhat?” The Master said, “Look within and without.”
He asked, “What is the profound purport of all the sages?” The Master said, “Four tracts of low-lying ground.”
He asked, “When the great matter has not yet been assented to, what then?” The Master replied, “It is up to you.”
He asked, “What is the eye of the ten directions?” The Master said, “Blink above your eyebrows.”
On the occasion of inviting Master Baofu to a vegetarian offering, someone was sent to convey the invitation and ask the Venerable compassionately to instruct them. Baofu said, “Compassion for whom?” The Master said, “Why does the Venerable mistakenly say that there is no compassion?”
Gazing at the moon, the Master said, “The clouds are shifting; rain is coming.” A monk asked, “It is not movement; it is the wind that shifts them.” The Master said, “I say that the clouds do not shift, nor does the wind shift.” The monk said, “Yet the Venerable just said that the clouds moved.” The Master said, “Whose fault is it?”
When a monk came, the Master immediately raised his whisk and said, “Do you understand?” The monk said, “I thank the Venerable for compassionately instructing this student.” The Master said, “When you see me raise the whisk, you immediately say that I am instructing you. Every day you see mountains and waters; do they not also instruct you?”
Again, when the Master saw a monk coming, he immediately raised his whisk. That monk praised him and bowed. The Master said, “Seeing me raise the whisk, you immediately bow and offer praise. When a broom is raised while the ground is being swept, why do you not bow and offer praise?”
A monk asked, “The teaching says: ‘If one sees that all characteristics are not characteristics, one sees the Tathagata.’ What does ‘not characteristics’ mean?” The Master said, “The lantern.”
He asked, “What is leaving the household?” The Master said, “What do you call leaving the household?”
The Master asked a monk, “Where have you come from?” He replied, “From Qinzhou.” The Master said, “What have you brought?” The monk could not produce anything. The Master said, “Why do you deceive the assembly?” The monk could not answer. The Master further asked, “Does Mount Qin not produce parrots?” The monk said, “Parrots are produced in Longzhou.” The Master said, “There is not much difference.”
The Master asked a monk, “Where have you come from?” He replied, “From Bao’en.” The Master said, “Why did you not remain there?” The monk said, “A member of the Sangha has no fixed abode.” The Master said, “Since you are a member of the Sangha, why do you have no stability?” The monk could not answer.
When the Master was at Dizang Monastery, a monk reported, “Venerable Baofu has passed away.” The Master said, “Baofu has passed away; Dizang enters the stupa.”
Later, when Lord Wang ascended Xuefeng to make offerings to the Sangha, the senior monk Songyan was absent. A junior Dharma brother submitted his name in his stead to receive a robe. When Songyan returned, the junior brother said, “I have already submitted Elder Brother’s name on your behalf.” Yan asked, “What did you say my name was?” The junior brother could not answer. The Master answered for him, “Elder Brother has gained admission there.” He then also said on Yan’s behalf, “Where is the place of admission?” The Master again answered for him, “The name was submitted twice.”
The Master entered the prefectural city together with Changqing and Baofu and saw a peony hedge. Baofu said, “How beautiful—a peony blossom!” Changqing said, “Do not regard it as an image.” The Master said, “What a pity for that single blossom!”
The Master asked a monk, “While you were with Zhaoqing, did you hear anything unusual? Try telling me.” The monk said, “I dare not cite it incorrectly.” The Master said, “Why cite the truth?” The monk asked, “Why is the Venerable like this?” The Master said, “You have already said that you have fallen.”
During the evening consultation, the assembly of monks heard the sound of a horn. The Master said, “The Arhat ascends the Dharma hall once every three days; Grand Preceptor Wang assists at both times.”
A monk asked, “What is this student’s original mind?” The Master said, “Indeed, it is your original mind.”
A monk asked, “The Master sits upon the jeweled seat, expounding the Dharma and liberating people. I do not know who that person is.” The Master said, “You too are upon the jeweled seat—whom do you liberate?”
A monk asked, “It is not difficult to look into a mirror and see one’s form. What is the mirror?” The Master said, “Do you still see the form?”
The monk said, “Merely attain the root and do not worry; what is the branch?” The Master said, “The whole is entirely present.”
The Master fell ill. A monk asked, “Venerable, is your honored condition improving?” The Master planted his staff upon the ground and said, “Would you call this suffering?” The monk said, “Whom is the Venerable asking?” The Master said, “I am asking you.” The monk said, “Does it still hurt?” The Master said, “So you have been reasoning things out with me all along.”
In the third year of the Shancheng era of the Later Tang dynasty, the year Wuzi, in autumn, the Master returned to his former residence in the city of Min. After visiting all the Buddhist monasteries in the region, he suddenly became ill for several days and then passed away while seated. He was sixty-two years old and had completed forty Dharma years. In accordance with his instructions, his body was cremated, the relics were collected, and a memorial stupa was erected in the western corner of the monastery. On a clear day in the twelfth month of the second year of the Qingtai era, the year Yiwei, the relics were ceremonially enshrined in the stupa. He was posthumously titled Chan Master Zhenying.

2. Chan Master Jizhao Huiqiu of Anguo Monastery on Mount Wolong, Fuzhou

The Master was a native of Putian in Quanzhou. He left the household at Mount Guiyang and became the foremost among those who sought instruction in Xuansha’s chamber. Once he asked, “What is the first moon?” Xuansha said, “What use would you make of your moon?” From this, the Master awakened and entered realization.

In the second year of the Kaiping era of the Liang dynasty, when Xuansha was about to pass away, the military governor of Min, Lord Wang, sent his son to inquire after his illness and secretly asked the Master to indicate who would succeed him in expounding the Dharma. Xuansha said, “It is Qiuzi.” Lord Wang silently committed this to memory and then asked the National Preceptor of Gushan, “Who is to assume responsibility for the Dharma seat at Wolong?” Gushan named the venerable adepts within the city, saying that about twelve people possessed the eye of the Way and were all capable of appearing in the world. Lord Wang again silently committed this to memory.

On the day the Dharma hall was opened, officials, monks, and clergy came to the Dharma assembly. Lord Wang suddenly asked the assembly, “Who is Senior Monk Qiu?” Thereupon the monks pointed out the Master. Lord Wang then invited him to ascend the seat. The Master remained silent for a long while and said to the assembly, “Do not resent the stillness, and do not say that it cannot be borne. It is still unclear how its bounds are to be assessed and discussed.”

Thus, in his ordinary teaching, he would employ words to draw forth one or two, helping their capacities unfold toward the Way. Yet throughout all the worlds of the ten directions, not a single person could be found to serve as a companion.

A monk asked, “Through what expedient means does one enter the meaning of the Way and the Buddha-Dharma?” The Master said, “Entering is the expedient means.”

He asked, “From which mountain do the clouds arise, and from which ravine is the wind born?” The Master said, “Exert yourself to the utmost and endeavor to act, never departing from the central Dharma.”

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and addressed the assembly: “Here in this place, because of the conditions of rice and gruel, I expound this for you brothers, yet all of it is impermanent. If you wish to awaken to the essential, you must illuminate it together with the mountains, rivers, and great earth. This Way is ever-abiding and is also capable of being ultimate.

“If a person enters through Manjusri’s gate, then all that is unconditioned—wood, earth, tiles, stones, and precious things—will illuminate and activate your capacity. If a person enters through Avalokitesvara’s gate, then all frogs, toads, earthworms, and crickets will help activate your capacity. If a person enters through Samantabhadra’s gate, then without taking a step, one arrives.”

I have shown you these three skillful means as though using a single gourd to scoop water from the great ocean, so that a dragon who knows water to be its very life may understand. Do you understand? If you lack the eye of wisdom with which to examine the truth, then no matter how skillful you may be in a hundred ways, none of them will be ultimate.

A monk asked, “This student has only recently entered the forest monastery and has not yet clarified his own matter. I beg the Master to instruct me.” The Master pointed with his staff and said, “Do you understand?”

He replied, “I do not understand.”

The Master said, “I freely allow myself, for your sake, to become a wronged man. Do you understand now? If one speaks of the higher matter for people, then from ancient times, from those newly entered into the forest monastery all the way to the Buddhas of the past, not the slightest thing has ever been lacking. It is like the great ocean: all fish and dragons, from their birth until their old age and death, make equal use of its waters.”

A monk asked, “Without mistaking the orthodox lineage, I ask the Master to speak truthfully.”

The Master said, “You speak in my place.”

The monk said, “What if someone cannot discern it?”

The Master said, “Such a person will never discern it in this life.”

He was asked, “Do the Buddhas also have a teacher?”

The Master replied, “They do.”

He was asked, “Who is the teacher of the Buddhas?”

The Master said, “No one can know.”

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and remained silent for a long while. A monk came forward, bowed, and asked, “Do not say the skull has been splashed and damaged.”

He was asked, “What was the matter at the assembly on Vulture Peak?”

The Master said, “Rarely is one so quick-witted.”

The monk asked, “What if one suddenly encounters someone quick-witted?”

The Master replied, “Then one is utterly bewildered and knows nothing.”

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and addressed the assembly: “If all of you wish to deliberate upon it, then go into the skull, bring some news back here, and I shall deliberate upon it with you. That has never obstructed anyone’s light.”

He was asked, “What is the matter of the ancestral vehicle handed down from former times?”

The Master remained silent for a long while. The monk asked again, whereupon the Master shouted and drove him out.

He was asked, “What is the matter of the great storehouse atop Dayu Ridge?”

The Master said, “I reckon you cannot shoulder it.”

The monk asked, “How heavy is it?”

The Master said, “Even if discussed for an entire kalpa, nothing could be done about it.”

The Master asked Superintendent Liao, “It is just as the former master said: ‘All the worlds throughout the ten directions are the true human body.’ Do you see the Sangha hall?”

Liao said, “Venerable, do not let your eyes blur.”

The Master said, “The former master has already passed away, yet his flesh is still warm.”

In the third year of the Qianhua era of the Later Liang dynasty, the year Guiyou, on the seventeenth day of the eighth month, the Master passed away without illness.

3. Great Master Mingzhen Zhongji of Tianlong Monastery in Hangzhou

The Master was a native of Huangyan in Taizhou. After attaining the Dharma from Master Xuansha, he returned to central Zhejiang. King Wusu of Qian invited the Master to expound the Dharma and serve as abbot.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said, “If one truly raises aloft the wind of the lineage and speaks solely of the fundamental matter, one immediately becomes like a barren stone. If one speaks of the message that cuts off both ordinary beings and sages, there are no mountains, rivers, or great earth; all the worlds throughout the ten directions are a single eye. This is something one is compelled to say. Therefore it is often said, ‘The blind, deaf, mute, and speechless are the heavenly camel.’ The wise people of that time did not know what to do. Simply face what is before your eyes and embody its subtlety with lucid understanding: body, mind, and the myriad phenomena all gather together.”

A monk asked, “What is the unmoving armillary sphere?”

The Master said, “Several tiers of lofty mountains.”

The monk asked, “What is serene stillness without roots?”

The Master said, “A strand of white cloud suspended.”

He was asked, “What is the source of the teaching?”

The Master said, “A rabbit sprouts horns.”

The monk asked, “What is the esoteric lineage that accords with illumination?”

The Master said, “A turtle sheds its hair.”

He was asked, “What is it like before the lotus flower emerges from the water?”

The Master said, “Who does not know that it exists?”

The monk asked, “What is it like after it has emerged from the water?”

The Master said, “Its fragrance hangs before the eyes.”

He was asked, “What is it like when the moon shines brilliantly in the sky?”

The Master said, “This is precisely the scene in which the light is apportioned; the evening flute points toward the jade tower.”

4. Great Master Qing Faxifu of Xianzong Cloister in Fuzhou

Long ago, on the day the Dharma hall was opened, a monk asked the Master, “What matter do you speak of when ascending the precious seat?”

The Master said, “Choose what to cast into your ears.”

The monk asked, “Why did the ancients say that eyes and ears cannot reach it?”

The Master said, “A golden-cherry tree does not bear pears.”

The monk asked, “I beg the Master to speak of the place that has never been reached.”

The Master said, “Why ask?”

He was asked, “Among the many hands that refine gold, who attains it?”

The Master said, “Raise your hand and bar a thousand miles; at your leisure, look as you please. Beside the lofty mountain the flowers are exceedingly beautiful. What is the matter of the scene before the terrace?”

The Master said, “Within the priceless jeweled radiance, what can a bewildered guest shrouded in darkness know?”

The monk asked, “When the udumbara flower breaks forth, everyone sees it. What is the meaning of the higher vehicle of the lineage?”

The Master said, “Acarya, if you ask the meaning of the lineage’s vehicle, it is not as good as the pure place—svaha.”

He was asked, “What is the realm of the Buddhas in the land of Great Min?”

The Master said, “The workings of creation are ultimately difficult to fathom; the spring breeze is naturally gentle.”

He was asked, “What is the treasure within the Way?”

The Master said, “Even Venerable Yun’s tears fall.”

He was asked, “What is it like when all the sages gather in their light and return to the source?”

The Master said, “When the ape’s three cries have ceased, the traveler a thousand miles from home hears them with sorrow.”

The monk asked, “I do not yet know how, today, one can penetrate the mechanism of the ancients.”

The Master said, “Out of kindness I tell you: you must avoid the time before birth.”

5. Chan Master Tao of Guotai Cloister on Mount Jinhua in Wuzhou

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said, “Without departing from this present place, all is the Wondrously Luminous True Mind. Therefore Venerable Xuansha said, ‘If you understand my final phrase, few in the world will know it.’ Likewise, Guotai has a final phrase.”

A monk asked, “What is Guotai’s final phrase?”

The Master said, “Acarya, you are far too slow.”

He was asked, “What is the Master of Vairocana?”

The Master said, “What is specially presented to you, elder brother, is the disciple.”

He was asked, “I will not ask about Bodhidharma’s coming to the land of Tang. What is the matter of the future?”

The Master said, “You must meet Emperor Wu of Liang.”

He was asked, “What was the ancient mirror like before it was polished?”

The Master said, “The ancient mirror.”

He was asked, “What is it like after it has been polished?”

The Master said, “The ancient mirror.”

6. Chan Master Cheng of the Southern Terrace on Mount Heng

A monk asked, “I beg the Master to reveal the essential teaching of Xuansha’s lineage.”

The Master said, “Where did you obtain this news?”

The monk said, “Who is the one who receives people?”

The Master replied, “One who has attained it does not bewilder himself.”

He was asked, “In whose realm does the moon appear in the clear pool?”

The Master said, “It has nothing to do with you.”

The monk said, “What harm is there in borrowing it to ask again?”

The Master said, “The moon cannot be found in the pool.”

He was asked, “Why are there fish-clouds four fingers above the ground?”

The Master said, “There is a sage’s measure there.”

The monk said, “For whom is this measure given?”

The Master replied, “Not for a sage.”

7. Chan Master Daoxi of Bailong Cloister on Sheng Mountain in Fuzhou

The Master was a native of Min County in Fuzhou. The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said, “Without needing to take a step, whose majestic radiance is it? Do you understand? If you say that the place of your own activity has fundamentally always been thus, that is most gratifying—but do not become entangled.”

He was asked, “What is the meaning of the coming from the Western Land?”

The Master asked, “Where have you come from?”

He was asked, “What is the great meaning of the Buddha-Dharma?”

The Master said, “You should have made three prostrations earlier.”

He was asked, “Without reproaching what came before, I beg the Master to speak directly.”

The Master said, “Very well.”

He was asked, “What is the true and right Way?”

The Master said, “Riding a donkey in search of the donkey.”

He was asked, “I beg the Master to reply without speaking of host and guest.”

The Master said, “It has been recorded from ancient times to the present.”

The monk asked, “What about right now?”

The Master said, “Not only are your ears deaf, but your eyes are blind as well.”

He was asked, “What is it like when feelings are forgotten and essence is united?”

The Master said, “What else did you see in your dream?”

He was asked, “This student intends to present a single question; I beg the Master to adjudicate it.”

The Master said, “Without examining it?”

The monk asked, “Why do you not adjudicate it?”

The Master said, “You must recognize an adept.”

He was asked, “The great assembly has gathered like clouds. I beg the Master to reveal the teaching of the lineage.”

The Master said, “Few faults lie with the listener.”

He was asked, “Without involving the lips, I beg the Master to instruct me.”

The Master said, “Ask in the future without involving the lips.”

The monk said, “Then all living beings will have something upon which to rely.”

The Master said, “Do not indulge in idle words and empty talk.”

He was asked, “I beg the Venerable to sprout grass and answer.”

The Master said, “Bring paper and brush, copy it down, and take it away.”

Question: What is it when many mouths deliberate? The Master said: When it manifests, I shall immediately tell you. Question: This student now sees that it has already manifested. The Master said: How many people has it deceived thus far? Question: I have heard an ancient say, “The skull constantly intervenes in the world; the nose hairs touch the family style.” What does it mean that the skull constantly intervenes in the world? The Master said: Come forward and I shall tell you. The monk asked: What does it mean that the nose hairs touch the family style? The Master replied: Withdraw for now; come again another time.

8. Great Master Mingfa Chong’ao of Luofeng, Fuzhou

Previously, the Master resided at Bailong. Ascending the Dharma hall, he said: “Everyone possesses it completely; everyone holds fixed views—how could you bewilder this mountain monk? Take care.”

A monk asked: “The characteristics of all dharmas are quiescent and cannot be expressed in words. What is the characteristic of quiescence?” The Master said: “Question and answer are both complete.” The monk said: “Then it is the true suchness of the Dharma realm, without self and without person.” The Master said: “That exceptional place makes people sorrowful.”

Question: “What was it like before Niutou met the Fourth Patriarch?” The Master replied: “His virtue was weighty, and ghosts and spirits revered him.”

Question: “What was it like after he met him?” The Master said: “His whole body was sacred and beyond measure.”

Question: “What is the one phrase of Luofeng?” The Master said: “Suffering.”

Question: “What is the person of old?” The Master replied: “Dismal are the pines and vines; perilous is the realm.”

9. The Venerable of Chuilong Mountain, Quanzhou

A monk asked: “What does it mean that everywhere is bodhi?” The Master drove him away with his staff, and the monk began to run. The Master said: “Stop! When you later meet an adept, tell him about this and see what he says.”

Ascending the Dharma hall, the Master raised his staff and said: “For thirty years in the mountains, I have relied upon the strength of this staff.” At that time a monk asked: “Venerable, what strength does it possess?” The Master said: “Crossing streams and traversing mountains, it supports me eastward and westward.”

10. Great Master Zhide Guangsi of Yunfeng, Tiantai Mountain

Ascending the Dharma hall, the Master said: “It is only because sentient beings use it every day without knowing it. It is like the principle whereby, within the trichiliocosm, the suns and moons, the stars, mountains, and rivers, and all sentient beings enter from one pore into another pore. The pore is not small, nor is the world large; yet the sentient beings within it neither know nor perceive this. If you wish to encounter it easily, you senior monks likewise use it every day without knowing it.”

A monk asked: “By day the monk carries the image; by night the image carries the monk. I do not yet understand the meaning of this.” The Master said: “Ācārya, did you not come from the Tea Hall?”

11. Hermitage Master Xiru of Dazhang Mountain, Fuzhou

The Master was a native of Yongtai, Fuzhou. He received ordination and training at Doushuai Cloister in Baizhang Village, Quanzhou. Resolutely aspiring to investigate the Way of the Patriarchs, he called upon Xuansha and awakened to the essential purport of his teaching. Xuansha acknowledged him, saying: “When a Chan practitioner lives in seclusion, does he still require someone to stand in attendance upon him?”

From then on, the Master neither gathered people to discuss Chan nor kept an attendant. He withdrew into a small mountain, split cedar wood, built a thatched hermitage, and made it his dwelling. Whenever a monk came, he would respond according to the circumstances and offer instruction.

A monk asked: “When birth and death arrive, how can one avoid them?” The Master said: “When the command comes, respectfully carry it out.”

Question: “If so, one will be bound by birth and death and carried away.” The Master said: “Who?”

Question: “How does the intention of the Western Land stand?” The Master planted his ringed staff upon the ground and shook it. The monk asked: “I do not yet understand what this means.” The Master said: “That is the Zhang family’s beating.” As the monk was about to speak, the Master struck him with his staff.

The two elders Qingkuo and Chongxu had heard of the Master but had never met him. One day they went together to visit him and encountered him harvesting rice. Kuo asked: “Practitioner, where is the Hermitage Master?” The Master asked: “Where have you come from?” They replied: “We came from below the mountain.” The Master asked: “How did you manage to get there?” They replied: “What place is this?” The Master bowed and said: “Go down there and have some tea.” Only then did the two elders realize that he was the Master. They went to the hermitage and discussed the supreme meaning. Sitting together, they did not realize that night had fallen. They saw jackals, wolves, tigers, and leopards approach the hermitage and naturally become gentle.

On account of this, Kuo composed a poem:

The two elders sought out a place on Dazhang Mountain, built a hermitage, and invited the Master to reside there. He lived alone in those two places for nearly fifty-two years and then passed away. Although Kuo inherited the essential instruction, he later received authentication from Chuilong and thus continued the lineage of Ruilong. He resided at Baofu in Zhangzhou.

12. Venerable Lu of Yongxing on Lianhua Mountain, Fuzhou

The King of Min invited the Master to open the Dharma hall. Before ascending the seat, the Master stood before it and said: “Great King and great assembly, listen attentively. I have a true matter that I wish to present. Everyone in this assembly can hear it—how could there be anyone who does not hear? If anyone does not hear, then we are merely deceiving one another.” He then ascended the seat.

A monk asked: “The king of the realm has invited the Master to appear in the world. I do not yet understand how today’s assembly resembles the assembly on Vulture Peak.” The Master said: “It has been transmitted throughout antiquity down to the present.”

Question: “Is this the Venerable’s family style?” The Master said: “At the tip of a hair, worlds numerous as the sands are revealed; within it, the sun and moon appear distinctly.”

13. Senior Monk Shijing of Guoqing Monastery, Tiantai

Previously, he encountered Venerable Xuansha instructing the assembly: “If throughout your lives you act as though mourning your parents, I assure you that in the end you will attain complete penetration.”

The Master then took up these words and asked: “The teachings say that one must not use the discriminating mind to fathom the Tathagata’s unsurpassed knowledge and vision. What, then, should one do?” Xuansha said: “I say that in the end you will attain complete and thorough penetration. Can the discriminating mind possibly fathom and reach it?” From then on, the Master gained faith.

Later, the Master remained at Tiantai for more than thirty years without descending the mountain. He comprehensively integrated the three disciplines, while uniquely manifesting the practice of meditative quiescence, and he frequently read the Dragon Canon. People near and far alike revered him. Those of the time called him Senior Monk Great Jing.

Someone once asked: “Whenever this disciple sits quietly in the middle of the night, thoughts arise in confusion. I do not know how to restrain them. I beseech you to instruct me.”

The Master replied: “When you sit quietly in the middle of the night and thoughts become confused, take that confused mind itself and examine the place of confusion. When examination reveals no such place at all, how could those confused thoughts remain? Then examine clearly the mind that investigates.

How could that investigating mind itself remain? Furthermore, the illuminating wisdom is originally empty; since there are no conditions, it too is quiescent—yet not quiescent, because there is no one who presides over quiescence. It illuminates—yet does not illuminate, because there is no object that is illuminated.

When object and wisdom are both stilled, the anxious mind likewise becomes peaceful. Outwardly, seek nothing; inwardly, abide in and cling to nothing. When both paths are quiescent, the one nature is serene and joyful.

This is precisely the essential path of returning to the source.”

Upon seeing the meaning of illusion explained in the scriptures, the Master composed a verse as a question and left it for students:

If the Dharma of the Way is entirely like an illusion,
Then committing every evil transgression entails no fault.
Why, then, is the karma one creates not false,
So that one must rely upon the Buddha’s compassionate power and teachings?

At that time, Senior Monk Little Jing replied:

An illusory person performs illusions, and illusions turn in succession;
Illusory karma can summon illusory remedies.
Not understanding illusion, one produces illusory sufferings;
Clearly knowing all as illusion, one does not fabricate illusions. (unconditioned)

Both Senior Monks named Jing passed away on this mountain. Their remains are still preserved today at Guoqing Monastery.

– Dharma heirs of Chan Master Huileng of Changqing Cloister, Fuzhou, introduced previously

1. The Master was a native of Chaozhou.

When Venerable Leng first came to reside at Zhaoqing, the Master entered his chamber for instruction. Later, when Venerable Leng entered the prefectural capital of Changle and his teaching flourished at the Western Cloister, the Master succeeded him at Zhaoqing, and the community of students remained as before.

Ascending the Dharma hall, the Master said: “To offer a sound before it is spoken is to betray one’s entire life; to raise the pivotal function in the phrase that follows is to depart from and oppose the substance of the Way. Why is this so? Great assembly, say: from now on, what should be done?”

– He further addressed the assembly, saying: “Tonight Zhaoqing has raised and discussed this matter with you all. Do you clearly understand where it comes down?” At that time, a monk stepped forward and said: “If the whole assembly disperses at once, would that accord with the Master’s intent?” The Master said: “You deserve a beating.” The monk bowed. The Master said: “Though you have the intent of the blind turtle, you still do not know the bright moon.” The monk asked: “What is it to know the bright moon?” The Master said: “This is the intent of the blind turtle.” He asked: “What is the conduct of a śramana?” The Master said: “It is neither conduct nor non-action.” He asked: “What is the meaning of the coming from the Western Land?” The Master said: “A fly remains on the iron ox.” He asked: “What is the sword-box?” The Master remained silent for a long while. The monk was bewildered and knew nothing of what to do. The Master said: “Only if you can also shoulder Zhaoqing will it do.” He asked: “What is the single phrase that presents the essential principle?” The Master said: “You must not deludedly cling fast to Zhaoqing.” The monk bowed and rose, whereupon the Master again said: “You must not deludedly cling fast to Zhaoqing. Then what did I instruct you to do with a single phrase presenting the essential principle?” The monk could not answer. - He asked: “When Manjusri beneath the sword does not shoulder it, what then?” The Master replied: “He is still not an able man.” The monk asked: “What is an able man?” The Master replied: “It is you who speak of falling.” He asked: “What is the family style of Zhaoqing?” The Master said: “Better to delight in pure poverty than to become sullied by wealth and have many worries.” He asked: “What is Nanquan’s single path?” The Master said: “It is not that I begrudge telling you; I only fear comparison upon comparison.” - He asked: “What is the great meaning of the Buddha-Dharma?” The Master said: “Seven times toppled and eight times overturned.” He asked: “This student’s faculties are dull. I beg the Master, out of compassion, to point out a path.” The Master said: “That is the mind of an old grandmother.” The monk said: “The Flower of Compassion lays it open so that one may understand the Compassionate Honored One. What is the lineage transmitted from above?” The Master said: “You yourself must personally ask that before it will do.” The Master asked: “From where have you come?” The monk replied: “From Bichai.” The Master asked: “Is there splitting without breaking apart?” The monk said: “There is.” The Master said: “What is splitting without breaking apart?” The monk could not answer. The Master said: “If you cannot say, then ask me, and I shall tell you.” The monk asked: “What is splitting without breaking apart?” The Master said: “A donkey kills a man because the earth moves.” The monk asked: “Is there also that which does not move?” The Master said: “There is.” The monk asked: “What is that which does not move?” The Master said: “Movement comes from the east and yet returns to the west.” He asked: “When the rain of Dharma universally moistens all, is there any place it does not moisten?” The Master said: “There is.” The monk asked: “What is the place it does not moisten?” The Master said: “Water poured upon it does not adhere.” He asked: “What is the profound place of Zhaoqing?” The Master said: “It vanishes together with you.” He asked: “What is the person within the ninefold city walls?” The Master said: “Can I also let you know it by hearing?”

The Master ascended the Dharma hall, and the Sangha gathered around the Dharma seat. The Master said: “There is not a single thing within. Why do you toil so bitterly to seek and grasp it?

No sooner does a thought arise in the mind than you are already a thousand or ten thousand miles beyond the gate. Now I shall gather everything transmitted from above into the vital spirit of Zhaoqing and cast it away at once. May I do so for you?” The Master then asked: “Have you caught it yet?” The assembly gave no answer.

The Master said: “You labor to the utmost without any merit. Are you all so foolish and dull? Observe how the ancients, upon gaining one or two joyful things such as these, shouldered them and carried them away as soon as they saw them, possessing at least a little clarity.

If there is such a person, it is not merely a matter of the four kinds of offerings. Even if one made lapis lazuli the ground and pure silver the walls, these would still not be precious enough. If Sakra walked in front and Brahma followed behind, if one turned the long rivers into ghee and transformed the whole land into pure gold, even this would still not be enough.

Even if one directly attained such a state, it would only be one level. Do you understand? Take good care.”

2. Great Master Yanjiao Shixiang Deyi of Longhua Monastery in Hangzhou.

On the day the Dharma hall was opened, the Master addressed the assembly, saying: “Today I have ascended the Dharma seat, yet I know how to be wary and apprehensive. As for the matter of being neither wary nor apprehensive, is there anyone among this assembly who can bear witness to it together with me? If there is, come forward and together we shall establish a model.” At that time, a monk asked: “The prefect has invited the Master.

How will you present the essential principle?” The Master said: “When the Dharma reaches another place, erroneous transmission is greatly to be feared.” He asked: “Did this seat fall from heaven, or did it rise from the earth?” The Master asked: “What for?” The monk said: “This seat is so lofty and broad; how could it fly upward?” The Master said: “How many times today have I helped settle you into place?” - He asked: “At the assembly on Vulture Peak, Kasyapa personally heard it.

At today’s assembly, who is able to hear it?” The Master said: “One who resembles me is concerned only with being bound to the Great Festival.” The monk said: “What excellent discernment!” The Master said: “Carry water into the tea hall and drink it.”

The Master further said: “From former times, the Buddha-Dharma has been entrusted to kings, great ministers, and powerful faithful donors. Today the prefect and the officials have shown me exceptional reverence by inviting me, and I am overwhelmed with shame. This mountain monk has one final phrase, which I shall sell cheaply to you all.” The Master then stood up and said: “Is there anyone who will buy it?

If there is a buyer, bring him forth. If there is no buyer, I shall gather away my shoddy goods myself. You have been standing for a long time.

Take good care.” - On another occasion, the Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “It is an auspicious day and an auspicious hour. Speak quickly! Speak quickly!” He then told the great assembly: “Come closer and listen to this old man expound the supreme meaning!” The assembly came forward.

The Master immediately struck them and drove them away. He was asked: “What is this student’s own self?” The Master said: “Adding frost upon snow.”

3. Chan Master Lian of Bao’an in Lin’an County, Hangzhou.

A monk asked: “What is the family style of Bao’an?” The Master said: “What difficulty is there in asking?” He asked: “What is the hair-blowing sword?” The Master said: “Yuzhang’s hard iron staff.” The monk said: “This student does not understand.” The Master said: “The Zhang River has personally arrived here.” He asked: “What is the conduct of a śramana?” The Master said: “A monk wears a cap upon his head.” He asked: “What is the meaning of the coming from the Western Land?” The Master said: “When a tiger dies, plenty of people come to look.” He asked: “One question and one answer, each side presenting it in turn—what is Bao’an’s single phrase that fears no one?” The Master said: “When you go elsewhere, how will you present it?”

4. Great Master Huijue Guangyun of Baoci Cloister in Fuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “Medicine that cures illness need not be carried by a donkey. If you can enter directly tonight, let each return to his own home. Take good care.” A monk asked: “I have heard that Huijue possesses a secret formula for sealing the mouth.

How do you reveal it to people?” The Master said: “Fortunately, my staff is not in my hand.” The monk said: “Then this is a profound understanding of the Compassionate Honored One.” The Master said: “Wait until I acknowledge you, and then it will do.” - The Master entered the prefectural residence. The King of Min asked: “How near or far apart are Baoci and Shenquan?” The Master said: “If one speaks of near and far, it would be better to go there personally.” The Master asked: “Your Majesty performs a thousand tasks each day;

which mind is it?” The King said: “Where could a mind be obtained?” The Master said: “How could there be anyone without a mind?” The King said: “What of the matter on the other side?” The Master said: “Please ask on that side.” The King said: “The guiding teacher may deceive others, but not me.”

He was asked: “The great assembly has gathered in large numbers and requests the Master to present the teaching.” The Master said: “How many people are there who have not yet heard it?” He asked: “Then it does not depend upon descending from above.” The Master said: “If it does not descend from above, toward what will you direct yourself to understand?” He replied: “If there were any place, I would fail the Venerable.” The Master said: “I only fear that you cannot distinguish the subtle from the coarse.” He was asked: “It is generally said that when expounding the Dharma, one speaks in accordance with Dharma.

What does this mean?” The Master said: “What doubt or error is there?” He was asked: “What was the intention of the ancient who turned to face the wall?” The Master immediately struck him. He was asked: “Without relying upon speech, I ask the Master to point directly to it by the shortest path.” The Master said: “Why wait for deliberation?”

5. Chan Master Shaozong Yuanzhi of Mount Kaixian, Mount Lu.

The Master was a native of Gusu. His natural disposition was sincere and honest, and he did not delight in conforming to worldly customs. In his youth, he relied upon Liushui Monastery in that prefecture, where he left the household life and received the precepts. Later, he entered the chamber of Changqing and tacitly accorded with the true essential. At first, he built a hermitage on Mount Liu in Qianzhou. For twenty years, the renown of his Way resounded afar. The sovereign of Jiangnan was of the Li clan.

A monastery was established and the Master was invited to turn the Dharma wheel; Chan companions gathered in great numbers. When the Ruler of the State went on an inspection tour of Hong Prefecture, he personally entered the mountain and met the Master. The Master ascended the Dharma hall and had a monk come forward to ask: “What is the realm of Kaixian?” The Master said: “Best of all is the single scene in which the mountain colors burst forth.” The monk asked: “What is the person within that realm?” The Master said: “Gathering dry firewood to boil water for washing cloth.” The Ruler of the State held the Master in even greater reverence. Later, the Master passed away at the monastery on this mountain. His spirit stupa still remains.

6. Great Master Xiaowu Baosi of Bao’en Cloister in Jinlin, Wuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall. The assembly had been standing for a long time. The Master said: “Brothers, you have all come through the mountain gate. The host’s mouth is like the sea and his courage is of the same kind. Do not form appearances and betray one another. Nor should you remain long among the assembly. Brothers, you need not find this strange. If you have the eye of inquiry and study, why trouble yourselves by standing so long? Each of you should return. Take care.”

The Master opened the essential function in the abbot’s quarters. A monk asked: “The foundation of the abbot’s quarters is made of stone; how can a message pass through?” The Master said: “Brother, you should not be deluded by this question.” The monk asked: “What is the matter of not being deluded?” The Master said: “The blue sky and broad daylight.”

A monk asked: “This student is a beginner. I ask the Master to point out the way in.” The Master tilted his hand and pointed, then asked: “Do you understand?” The monk replied: “I do not understand.” The Master said: “With one hand alone, no wave makes a sound.”

A monk asked: “What is the family style of Bao’en?” The Master said: “I know that you, Acarya, have only recently joined the assembly.”

A monk asked: “What was the intention of the ancients in raising a mallet and setting up a whisk?” The Master said: “Bao’en cuts off a portion of the tongue.” The monk asked: “Why is that?” The Master said: “Why submit to injustice and suffer a false accusation beforehand?”

A monk asked: “What is Manjusri’s sword?” The Master said: “I do not know.” The monk said: “If a single stroke of the sword can bring a person back to life, what then?” The Master said: “This mountain monk concerns himself only with the two daily meals of rice and gruel.”

A monk asked: “What does it mean that whatever meets the eye is bodhi?” The Master said: “What is standing behind your back?” The monk said: “This student does not understand. I ask the Master to instruct me again.” The Master raised his staff and said: “Since you do not understand, how many blows of the staff will you take?”

A monk asked: “What is a person who truly knows shame?” The Master said: “Once he opens his mouth, he cannot grasp it.” The monk asked: “What are this person’s provisions for the journey?” The Master said: “When he encounters tea, he drinks; when he encounters rice, he eats.”

A monk asked: “What is the single arrow of vajra?” The Master replied: “What are you saying?” The monk asked again. The Master said: “The plate has crossed over to Silla.”

A monk asked: “When the peak of Bateng seethes, the whole is certainly true. I do not yet know the intention of the ancients.” The Master immediately shouted. The monk said: “That is not of the proper class.” The Master said: “Your words have fallen.” He continued: “If you say that my words have also fallen, what will you do?” The monk could not answer.

A monk asked: “Going forth means reward and punishment. What is the hair-blowing sword?” The Master replied: “Yanping belongs to Jianzhou.” The monk said: “That means the body is shattered and life is lost.” The Master said: “Waves surge in the Qiantang River.”

7. Chan Master Zongyi Fatao of Qingxin Monastery in Hangzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “Great assembly, without waiting for a single phrase, return. Do you still have a share in inheriting the style of the lineage? Is there anyone who can answer this question? If someone can answer, I shall make a strange laughingstock of you within it; if you can answer, I shall laugh strangely together with you within it. Take care.”

A monk asked: “What does it mean to reveal the insubstantial beginning by uncovering the real?” The Master said: “With your question, every one of these people has examined it thoroughly.”

A monk asked: “Then are they all not true men? If it is not so, do they still have a share in continuing the style of the lineage?” The Master said: “You have presented a question with two ends.” The monk asked: “Who can discern it?” The Master said: “Bosi raises a child.”

A monk asked: “I ask the Master to reveal completely the course of the Buddhadharma.” The Master said: “You have only the entirety of a single question.” The monk asked: “Why do you seize upon this question?” The Master said: “What did you just ask?” The monk said: “Had I not met the Master, I would almost have gone astray.” The Master said: “The thief has gone, and only then is the gate shut.”

The monk asked: “How is the single phrase of the separate transmission entrusted?” The Master said: “What a pity about those several questions.” The monk asked: “Then even a separate answer would be unworthy.” The Master replied: “Those too are idle words.”

A monk asked: “What is the person who neither pays court to the Son of Heaven nor praises princes and lords?” The Master said: “Three strands of thread each day; one patched robe throughout the year.” The monk asked: “I do not yet know whether this person continues the style of the lineage.” The Master said: “The ruler comes and speaks above his head; clouds return and drift before his eyes.”

A monk asked: “An ancient said, ‘Do not cut off the afflictions.’ What does this mean?” The Master said: “Again, this is a person who gives rise to karma.” The monk asked: “What is it not to give rise to karma?” The Master said: “Your words have already fallen.”

A monk asked: “I ask about going forth and reward and punishment: what is the hair-blowing sword?” The Master said: “Make three prostrations according to the Dharma.”

Later, the Master went to reside at Longce Monastery, where he passed into quiescence.

8. Chan Master Hongyan of Shuilu Cloister in Fuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall. When the great assembly had gathered, the Master descended from his seat, carried the incense burner, and walked before the assembly, saying: “An offering to all Buddhas of the ten directions.” He then returned to the abbot’s quarters.

A monk asked: “Apart from the hundred negations and encompassing the four propositions, I ask the Master to exert himself fully and present the essential principle.” The Master said: “Where does it fall?” The monk said: “Then devas and humans have something upon which to rely.” The Master said: “Do not splash dirty water on a good person.”

9. Chan Master Hanze of Guangyan Cloister on Lingyin Mountain in Hangzhou.

Previously, the Master trained under Preceptor Zhan at Baofu. Baofu asked: “What is your name?” The Master said: “Hanze.” Baofu said: “What happens if you suddenly encounter complete dryness?” The Master said: “Who is completely dry?” Baofu said: “I am.” The Master said: “Preceptor, do not deceive a good person.”

Later, the Master received certification from Changqing and resided at the Guangyan Dharma center. A monk asked: “What is the matter of meeting face-to-face and presenting it to one another?” The Master stepped down from the Chan platform and said: “Your honored body stands foremost at Wanfu.”

A monk asked: “Who is the person who does not keep company with the myriad dharmas?” The Master said: “Within the city, a tower amid blue mists; beyond the clouds, a stupa on a lofty peak.”

A monk asked: “What is the great meaning of the Buddhadharma?” The Master said: “The secluded stream is placid and clear; the high moon is luminous and bright.”

A monk asked: “What is the Preceptor’s family style?” The Master said: “One mountain of white clouds; three thatched huts.” The monk asked: “What is it ultimately?” The Master said: “There is neither a karmadana nor a cook in charge of the meals.”

A monk asked: “What is the family style of Guangyan?” The Master said: “Before the stone lion, the sound of water roars; on Mount Jilong, a white ape cries.”

10. Chan Master Huilang of Baoci Cloister in Fuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “The sages of old appeared in the world for the sake of one great causal matter. They have already informed you of it. Do you understand? If you do not understand, it is truly not easy.”

A monk asked: “What is the one great matter?” The Master said: “Could they have informed you wrongly?” The monk said: “Then this student has no doubt.” The Master said: “Why then is there still a disease of the eyes?”

A monk asked: “All the Buddhas of the three times are those who transmit the teaching. I do not yet know who speaks it.” The Master said: “Listen.” The monk asked: “I do not yet know what is being said.” The Master replied: “You are not the appointed bell.”

A monk asked: “What is this student’s eye?” The Master said: “Can you not stop scattering sand?”

11. Chan Master Changhui of Yishan at Changqing in Fuzhou.

A monk asked: “Princes and lords obey the command; disciples continue the Dharma. With words that seal Yishan’s mouth, I ask the Master not to err.” The Master said: “You have obtained it.” The monk said: “Then I deeply understand your honored compassion.” The Master said: “Very good; do not become a dull-witted person.”

A monk asked: “Without violating the style of the lineage and without being criticized by others, I ask the Master to speak with a full mouth.” The Master said: “Is today not the day for opening the Dharma hall?”

The Master said: “The bright flame continues Xuefeng; the seal is transmitted from Chaojue. Neither opposing things nor failing people, if it is not right before you, then how can it be spoken of now?” The monk said: “Then, by skillfully assisting the words, the shallow and the profound have already been distinguished.”

The Master said: One must also know good from bad.

12. Chan Master Jing of the Stone Buddha Cloister in Fuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “If one speaks of presenting the moon to one another, one is still adding rouge and powder. Yet if one departs from such embellishment, one also commits the fault of letting others down. How will all of you fully understand?”

A monk asked: “What if this disciple wishes to see the teacher whom the Venerable has always followed?”

The Master said: “Did Dongshan ever speak of taking up the body?”

The monk said: “Then one cannot see him.”

The Master said: “Clearly:

The traveler’s road is as distant as the sky;
The marquis’s gate is as deep as the sea.”

13. Chan Master Songxin of Cuifeng in Chuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “I shall not open the Dharma seat again. Take care.”

He then asked a monk: “Do you understand?”

The monk said: “I do not understand.”

The Master said: “I was about to tell the Acarya to go to Baizhang.”

14. Chan Master Qinghuan of the Guanyin Cloister at Zhenfeng in Fuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “Virtuous practitioners of Chan, if you wish to discuss Chan, speak of the Way, and expound the essential purport of the school, then, according to those of superior capacity, within the tip of a single hair innumerable Buddhas turn the great Dharma wheel, and within a single mote of dust the realm of the Jewel King appears. Buddhas speak; sentient beings speak; mountains, rivers, and the great earth all speak at once, never having ceased. It is like King Vaisravana, who from beginning to end has never sought treasure outside himself. Since you all possess such a family tradition, what could anyone lack that would make him go to another’s place to obtain a share?”

A monk asked: “What is the nature of the Dharma realm?”

The Master said: “Within your body are the myriad phenomena.”

The monk asked: “How can this be understood?”

The Master replied: “You cannot search for an echo inside a cave and then seek its branches and twigs.”

15. Chan Master Xine of East Chan in Fuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “It has never been lost even for an instant; the whole essence is manifest before you. Yet to speak of this Way is already extraneous. Though it has been stated thus, if I cannot address it before you brothers, what would there be for us to discuss together? Do not suppose that I refuse to speak of the place where there is no Way. Do not misunderstand.”

A monk asked: “What is the samadhi manifest before one?”

The Master said: “Why must you wait for it to be spoken?”

The monk asked: “My own affair is not yet clear. Master, please instruct me.”

The Master said: “Why do you not bow in thanks?”

A monk asked: “What is the family tradition of East Chan?”

The Master said: “One person transmits a falsehood; ten thousand transmit it as truth.”

16. Great Master Miaoguo Hongbian of Changqing Cloister in Fuzhou.

One day, the Master ascended the Dharma hall, stood beside the seat, and addressed the assembly: “Can each of you return home? Do you understand? If you still do not understand, then this mountain monk has deceived you.” He then mounted the seat.

A monk asked: “The oceanic assembly has gathered like clouds. We request the Master to open the gate of skillful means and reveal the mark of reality.”

The Master said: “That is the gate of skillful means.”

The monk said: “Then the great assembly is listening attentively.”

The Master said: “What would you do if you did not listen attentively?”

A monk asked: “After Chaojue, the lamp of Miaoguo was lit anew. Through speech and silence, movement and stillness, how is it shown to others?”

The Master said: “Can you also understand what is strange and wondrous?”

17. Great Master Liaokong Kelong of East Chan Cloister in Fuzhou.

When the Dharma hall was opened, a monk asked: “Having left far behind the abbot’s chamber at Jiufeng and come to sit in the place of the Way at East Chan, while humans and devas gaze reverently upon your honored countenance, we pray that you bestow a word of exposition.”

The Master said: “For a thousand years the wind of Yao has blown; Liaokong does not deceive the Acarya.”

The monk said: “Then humans and devas have something upon which to rely.”

The Master said: “Is it fitting or unfitting?”

A monk asked: “What is the Way?”

The Master said: “This itself is the Way.”

The monk asked: “Who is the person within the Way?”

The Master said: “I have told you plainly.”

The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “It is best to awaken to the essential matter for yourself. Unless you are a Sendavaka, one who understands upon hearing the sound, you would do better to return home and face the fire. Take care.”

A monk asked: “What is Samantabhadra’s first phrase?”

The Master said: “You have fallen into the second phrase.”

18. Chan Master Shoupi of Tianzong Cloister in Fuzhou.

One day, the Master ascended the Dharma hall, and the assembly entered the abbot’s quarters for consultation.

The Master said: “Tonight I ask the assembly’s permission to rest. I do not know whether the assembly will grant me leave. If you have not yet granted it, you have failed the one who spoke first. Take care.”

A monk asked: “Can a person who is constantly present throughout all twelve periods of the day digest the offerings of humans and devas?”

The Master said: “He cannot digest them.”

The monk asked: “Why can he not digest them?”

The Master said: “Because you are constantly present.”

The monk asked: “Can one who is not constantly present digest them?”

The Master said: “Last year’s donkey.”

The monk said: “Master, please answer with neither host nor guest.”

The Master said: “Go to the place where there is neither host nor guest and ask about the future.”

19. Chan Master Jingwu Huailie of Yongan Cloister in Wuzhou.

The Master ascended the Dharma hall, and the assembly gathered like clouds. Looking to the left and right, he said: “Why stammer?” Then he returned to the abbot’s quarters.

On another day, the Master ascended the Dharma hall. After remaining silent for a long while, he said: “It truly is pitiable, yet it has again been defiled. This is precisely where the assembly must exert itself; do not take it lightly.”

A monk asked: “I have personally heard a phrase from Yishan. Master, please speak it for this student.”

The Master said: “Henceforth, do not mistakenly raise a question in imitation of others.”

20. Chan Master Linghan of Minshan in Fuzhou.

Previously, the Master resided at Yongfu Cloister. He ascended the Dharma hall and said: “Again, grace fills all to overflowing, and every vow is fulfilled.” Then he returned to the abbot’s quarters.

A monk asked: “Having reached the summit of Miaofeng, who is one’s companion?”

The Master said: “You have arrived.”

The monk asked: “Who is one’s companion?”

The Master said: “Go drink tea.”

A monk asked: “Clearly, I do not understand. Master, please instruct me.”

The Master said: “Set instruction aside for the moment. What is it that is clear to you?”

The monk said: “This student does not understand. Again, I ask the Master to instruct me.”

The Master said: “Seven staves, thirteen.”

21. Venerable Guishan of the kingdom of Silla.

It is recorded that when Prime Minister Pei Xiu convened a Dharma assembly, he asked a monk: “What sutra are you reading?”

The monk replied: “The Sutra of the Wordless Youth.”

He asked: “How many fascicles does it have?”

The monk replied: “Two fascicles.”

He said: “Since it is wordless, how can it have two fascicles?”

The monk could not answer.

The Master answered in his place: “If we are discussing the wordless, it is not limited to two fascicles.”

22. Chan Master Dao’en of Ziguo Cloister on Longxu Mountain in Jizhou.

A monk asked: “What is the meaning of the Patriarch’s coming from the Western Land?”

The Master replied: “In the eighth year of Putong, he encountered the Liang emperor’s reproach, and to this very day it has not been washed clean.”

A monk asked: “Among a thousand mountains and ten thousand mountains, which is Longxu Mountain?”

The Master said: “A thousand mountains and ten thousand mountains.”

The monk asked: “Who is the person within the mountain?”

The Master said: “Face to face, yet a thousand miles apart.”

The monk asked: “Without falling into being or nonbeing, Master, please speak.”

The Master said: “Why do you ask?”

23. Chan Master Chengjing of Xiangguang Cloister in Fuzhou.

A monk asked: “What is the Way?”

The Master said: “Chang’an is bustling.”

The monk asked: “What is the matter beyond?”

The Master said: “Ten thousand sounds arise; an attendant parts the five-colored clouds.”

A monk asked: “What is the Venerable’s family tradition?”

The Master said: “Affairs of deliberation lie beneath the gate; how many layers deep are the palace precincts?”

24. Chan Master Mingyuan of Jiuling in Xiangzhou.

Previously, the Master consulted Changqing. Changqing asked: “What is your name?”

The Master said: “Mingyuan.”

Changqing asked: “What is the matter on that side?”

The Master stepped back two paces.

Changqing said: “Why did you step back two paces for no reason?”

The Master could not answer.

Changqing answered in his place: “If you had not stepped back, how would I know Mingyuan?”

The Master thereupon comprehended the purport.

While the Master was residing there, a monk asked: “Not a single dharma stands before one, yet its functioning is never lacking—what does this mean?”

The Master stirred the fire with his hand. Through this, the monk awakened.

25. Chan Master Songhuai of Baoci Cloister in Hangzhou.

The Master was a native of Fuzhou, and his family name was Chen. In his youth, he entered Shixi and left the household life. He first resided at Chengxin Monastery in Yuezhou and later at Qiu Cloister.

A monk asked: “An ancient said: ‘When people today study the ancient teaching, the restless mind has not yet arisen. If they wish to arouse the restless mind, they must study the ancient teaching.’ What is the ancient teaching?”

The Master replied: “Thus have I heard.”

A monk asked, “What is it like when the mind is
agitated?” The Master said, “On the far bank, the sparrows are chirping.” In the sixth year of Kaibao (Guiyou), on the fourteenth day of the sixth month, at the chen hour, the Master bathed, washed his hair, and changed into fresh robes. After instructing and admonishing his disciples, he lay down on his right side and passed away.

26. Great Master Zhiguang Bian of Longhua Monastery in Qiying,
Hangzhou.

The Master received ordination under Master Huangnie of Fuzhou and awakened to the essential meaning under Changqing. Later, while he was residing there, a monk asked, “What is the realm of Longhua like?” The Master said, “Green bamboo plays with the wind;

cold pines lock in the moon.” The monk asked, “What is the person within that realm like?” The Master said, “Do not be rash.” He asked, “What is the bodhimanda of the Buddhas of the three times?” The Master said, “Do not pay homage apart from it.” The monk said, “Then it has continued unbroken from antiquity to the present.” The Master said, “In what year does it abide?” He asked, “Who is the master within Mount Huangnie?” The Master said, “I am obliged to you for asking.” He asked, “What is the realm of Huangnie like?” The Master said, “A dragon roars amid the mighty cascade; clouds rise over Cuiwei Peak.”

– Dharma heir of Chan Master Daofu of the former Longce Monastery,

Hangzhou.

1. Chan Master Shine of Mount Qinghua, Yuezhou.

A monk asked, “Throughout the twelve hours, how can one be free from doubt and error?” The Master said, “Good.” The monk said, “Then I have met the Master?” The Master said, “Take care.” A monk came and bowed. The Master said, “You are also skilled at asking, and I am also skilled at answering.” The monk said, “Then the assembly has been standing for a long time.” The Master said, “Why put pressure on the assembly?” The monk asked, “Going means rewards and punishments; what is the sword that cuts a hair blown against its edge?” The Master said, “Boats travel well on the Qiantang River.” He asked, “What is the meaning of the coming from the Western Land?” The Master said, “It can kill fresh fish.”

2. Chan Master Wuyuan of Southern Chan Monastery, Quzhou.

There was a layman whom people at the time called Iron Foot. One day, he suddenly mounted a horse. A monk asked, “Master, since you are Iron Foot, why do you ride a horse?” The Master said, “What is carried on the back is not because the belly aches greatly; is wrapping a kerchief around the head merely to ward off the cold?” A lay official asked, “In what former life did the Venerable recognize the younger generation and become an honored elder?” The Master said, “For a thousand years, people speak only of the crane’s red crown; at birth, one is already a young phoenix.” The Master once said, “This matter is difficult to express.” A monk stepped forward and said, “Master, please speak.” The Master said, “The mossy ravine at Muzhou; the stone ear at Jinjun.”

3. Chan Master Zhiyuan of Sifu Cloister, Fuzhou.

The Master was a native of Lianjiang, Fuzhou. In his youth, he shaved his head and received the complete precepts under Chan Master Faxuan at Guanyin Cloister on Mount Jia. He attended and served him, devoting himself to upholding and reciting the scriptures.

One day, Chan Master Xuan told him, “I see that you possess superior faculties and are capable of undertaking the great matter. Why do you not travel widely to visit teachers, instead of remaining attached to this practice?” The Master then bowed in gratitude and departed to journey throughout the various regions. He went to Jingqing in Yuezhou and paid homage to Great Master Shunde.

He asked, “What is the place from which all Buddhas emerge?” Shunde replied, “Everyone needs to know.” The Master said, “Then it is difficult to deceive all these eyes.” Shunde said, “Principle can bind a leopard.” Through this, the Master awakened to the profound purport. In the third year of Xiande of the Later Zhou dynasty (Bingchen), the prefect of Fuzhou dispatched officials and lay supporters to invite the Master to reside at Sifu Cloister and open the Dharma hall to expound the Dharma.

At the time, it was called the Eastern Chan Cloister. A monk asked, “Whose family’s song does the Master sing? Whose lineage does he continue?” The Master said, “The moon before the summit of Snow Ridge; a bright mirror within the lake’s waves.” He asked, “When the Buddhas appeared in the world, four kinds of flowers rained from the heavens and the earth shook in six ways.

What auspicious signs attend the Venerable today?” The Master said, “Not a single thing arises, yet the whole essence is displayed; the bright radiance before your eyes—who recognizes it?” He asked, “What is the one phrase that points directly?” The Master said, “What is it?” The Master further said, “Do you understand? If you understand, it is finished at once, here and now. If you do not understand, it will take as many kalpas as the sands and dust.

Simply enter among the sages and discern what is superior: the mind of the ancient Buddhas is originally luminous and manifests directly before you. Throughout heaven and earth, the myriad phenomena are all your own family custom. Buddhas and sentient beings are originally no different; nirvana and samsara are fashioned by illusion.

The ground of true and constant nature requires no laborious cultivation or realization.”

The Master further said, “If you wish to understand this matter, it should be revealed outwardly like the sun, with not even an inch of grass to conceal it. Then simply undertake it with the utmost power of an awakened mind.” In this way, the Master instructed the assembly for twenty-two years. In the second year of Taiping Xingguo (Dingchou), on the sixteenth day of the ninth month, the Master rang the bell and bade farewell to the assembly. At the chen hour on the twenty-seventh day, he serenely passed away while seated. He was eighty-three years old and had completed sixty-three Dharma summers.

– Dharma heir of Chan Master Huaiyue of the former Bao’en Cloister,

Zhangzhou.

1. Great Master Chuanxin Shihao of Miaoxi Cloister, Tanzhou.

The Master once resided at Xiangshan in Linzhou. A monk asked, “Concentration is the second head; lack of concentration is the third head. What is the first head?” The Master said, “Gather it in.” The monk asked, “Why did the ancient one cut off his arm?” The Master said, “How could I cut off an arm?” He asked, “What is the eye of the student?” The Master said, “You must know my good heart.” He asked, “What is the sword of Xiangshan?” The Master said, “Again.” The monk asked, “Is it displayed again?” The Master said, “I refuse to see it.” He asked, “What is the first phrase of the ancestral gate?” The Master said, “It absolutely must not be raised incorrectly.” He asked, “What is the family custom of Miaoxi?” The Master said, “There are very many people to the left and right.” He asked,

“What is the great meaning of the Buddha-Dharma?” The Master said, “Two mouths, but not one tongue.” He asked, “What is the single road of Xiangshan?” The Master said, “Rolling on and on.” The monk asked, “What of the person who comes?” The Master said, “It is your lifelong affair.” He asked, “What is the secret word of the World-Honored One?” The Master said, “Even Ananda did not know it.” The monk said, “Why did he not know?” The Master said, “Are you not a Sindhava?” He asked, “What is the treasure of Xiangshan?” The Master said, “Even the blue-eyed foreign monk dares not determine it.” The monk asked, “What is the person who reveals it like?” The Master said, “The Dragon King’s staff is not raised.” A monk once related that a sacred monk was bitten by a tiger while molding an image,

and then asked the Master, “Since he was a sacred monk, why was he bitten by a beast?” The Master said, “It would perplex everyone under heaven to death.” He asked, “What is a person who knows no shame?” The Master said, “Acarya, take a blow from the staff.”

– Dharma heir of National Teacher Shenyan of the former Gushan Monastery,

Fuzhou.

1. Great Master Shuiyue Xinyin Ziyi of Mount Tianzhu,
Hangzhou.

The Master, surnamed Chen, was a native of Yueqing County in Wenzhou. Earlier, while traveling in search of instruction, he went to meet Gushan and asked, “Ziyi has come from more than three thousand li away to seek the Dharma. Today, outside the appointed time, I have come before you to request that the Master answer a question outside the appointed time.” Gushan replied, “I cannot be as dull-witted as you, benevolent one.” The Master asked, “What is the place where effort is saved?” Gushan said, “Why do you expend effort?” At these words, the Master grasped the essential meaning and then proceeded to central Zhe.

King Zhongyi of Qian heard of the Master’s greatly acclaimed Way and invited him to open the Dharma at the two bodhimandas of Luohan and Guangfu, where the oceanic assembly gathered in great numbers. The Master ascended the Dharma hall and instructed the assembly, saying, “The assembly has been standing for a long time. What are you waiting for?

Why do you not present something? I fear only that I might mislead you Chan worthies, turning delusion back upon itself; the road at this time is rather cold. Take care.” A monk asked, “What is the matter transmitted from above?” The Master said, “Stop.” The monk said, “How does one advance?” The Master said, “What a pity that the dragon’s head has again become a snake’s tail.” A monk bowed, rose, and was about to ask a question.

The Master said, “Why set it up again?” The monk then asked, “When a son undertakes construction, is there anyone to assist him?” The Master said, “Only at the very end does he realize that the axe handle has rotted away.” He asked, “What is Vimalakirti’s silence?” The Master said, “Slander.” The monk asked, “Why, then, did Manjusri praise it?” The Master said, “They shared the same understanding upon examination.” The monk asked, “What, then, of Vimalakirti?” The Master said, “A three-foot kerchief upon his head, a fly whisk in his hand.” He asked, “What is the place from which the Buddha emerges?” The Master said, “In the great ocean, there is a fiery star.”

The monk said, “This student does not understand.” The Master said:
“Burn up all the fish and dragons.” He asked, “What was the meaning of Master Danxia’s burning the wooden Buddha?” The Master said:
“When it is cold, gather around the furnace and face the blazing fire.” The monk said, “Was there any fault in that?”
The Master said, “When it is hot, sit beside the stream bank in the bamboo grove.” He asked, “What is the Dharma-realm of the Essential Teaching?” The Master said, “On the ninth day of the ninth month, the waves of the Zhejiang River.” He asked, “I do not ask about other matters. What is the one beneath the gate of Guangfu who surpasses Vairocana and excels even Shakyamuni?” The Master said, “The other beasts offer tribute.” The monk said, “Then this is the good fortune and joy of a lifetime.” The Master said, “What would you do with such fortunate joy?” The monk did nothing. The Master shouted.

The Master was about to descend from the Dharma hall. A monk asked, “Before you descend from the Dharma hall, please entrust us with one phrase.” The Master said, “Carry your shoes and go back to the Western Land; on this mountain no old ape cries out.” He asked, “At Gushan there is the teaching of beating the drum and seizing the banner. What about you, Master?” The Master said, “A defeated general is not worth killing.” He asked, “What if you meet a skilled general?” The Master said, “Considering you a solitary wandering spirit, I shall offer you three servings.” He asked, “When the World-Honored One entered extinction, where did he go?” The Master said:
“The Crane Grove did not change its hue;
True return has no place of return.”
The monk asked, “What did the Master ultimately determine?” The Master said, “When Zhu truly dies, the force of the wind makes many flowers fall in autumn.” The monk asked, “Where will my teacher return in the future?” The Master said:
“If you now wish to know where I shall return,
East, west, south, and north—the willows become silk.”
He asked, “How does one practice so as to accord with the Way?” The Master said, “Behind the curtain, chant with the scroll held high; after drinking tea, sleep soundly.”

The Master returned to his native village. In the third year of Yongxi, he passed away. His disciples gathered his relics and built a stupa in which to enshrine them.

2. Chan Master Zhenji Zhizuo of Baiyun, Jianzhou.

The Master was a native of Yongzhen, surnamed Zhou. His appearance was like that of an Indian monk. He bowed to National Teacher Gushan and had his head shaved; at the age of twenty-four, he received the full precepts. One day, Gushan ascended the Dharma hall and called to the assembly. Everyone turned and looked, and Gushan swept out his sleeve as a demonstration. The assembly did not understand; only the Master awakened to its purport. He entered the abbot’s quarters and received confirmation.

On another occasion, while studying with Gushan, he was summoned forward and asked, “What was the meaning of Nanquan’s calling the monastery superintendent?” The Master merely folded his hands, composed his countenance, and stood silently. Gushan regarded this as extraordinary.

Thereafter, the Master traveled through Wu and Chu and then went to Minchuan. He first resided at Nanfeng and afterward at Baiyun Cloister in Jianzhou. Ascending the Dharma hall, he said, “Is there anyone who can pose a question from within the vehicle of the School? Wait for this mountain monk to answer from within the vehicle of the School.” At that moment, a monk bowed and had just risen when the Master immediately returned to the abbot’s quarters.

He was asked, “What is the dragon chanting within the withered tree?” The Master said, “A lotus arising within fire.” He was asked, “What is the pupil within the skull?” The Master said, “A mud ox entering the water.” He was asked, “What is the host within the host?” The Master asked, “Do you possess the eye?” The monk said, “Then this student has returned home.” The Master said, “When you enter the cloth sack.”

He was asked, “What is the ford of Yanping?” The Master said, “For ten thousand ages, the waters stretch boundlessly.” The monk asked, “What is the sword of Yanping?” The Master said, “You must quickly step back.” The monk asked, “I do not yet know whether the ford and the sword are the same or different.” The Master said, “What a pity for that old fellow!”

In the second year of Qianhu, the year Jiyou, the ruler of Jiangnan, of the Li clan, invited the Master to reside at Fengxian, bestowed a purple robe upon him, and conferred on him an honorary title. The Master ascended the Dharma hall and sat down, while the assembly listened in silence. The Master said, “You are about to be deceived; do you recognize it?

Have you not heard that long ago, however many worthies assembled at Vulture Peak, it was said that only Kashyapa personally heard? Today, at dawn, I received the king’s command to expound the teaching of the School. It cannot differ from Vulture Peak.

Since it cannot differ from Vulture Peak, why do you benevolent ones produce so many contrived explanations? Do not be constrained by past and present. Just display a little vitality here and now, and let me examine what it is.”

A monk asked, “The assembly at Vulture Peak differed from the present one. I do not yet know what it means to hear personally.” The Master said, “Present it once more.” He replied, “Then devas and humans have something upon which to rely.” The Master said, “What are you doing, Acharya?”

He was asked, “A worthy king has invited the Master to open wide the seat of Dharma. How will you reveal the succession of the Patriarchs of Western India?” The Master said, “Remember it clearly.” He replied, “I would never dare fail you, Venerable.” The Master said, “It is still not there.”

A monk asked, “What is the realm of Fengxian?” The Master said, “Contemplate it as you please.” The monk asked, “What is the person within the realm?” The Master said, “Do not bow.” He asked, “What is the family style of Fengxian?” The Master said, “Where is it right now?” The monk said, “Then the great assembly has something upon which to rely.” The Master said, “What has that to do with you?” He asked, “What is the single phrase spoken for the sake of others?” The Master said, “It is not that Fengxian cannot speak it.”

3. Great Master Liaojue Zhiyan of Gushan, the second abbot.

Ascending the Dharma hall, the Master said, “Speech only produces more words, and thereby we further mislead one another. Take care.”

A monk asked, “I dare not ask about the phrase of Shimen; I request the Master to speak by skillful means.” The Master said, “Ask the exposed pillar.”

He asked, “When a human king appears in the world, the three realms are at peace. When the Dharma King appears in the world, what grace does he bestow?” The Master said, “Do you understand?” The monk said, “Fortunate to encounter an enlightened dynasty, I hasten to present my offering.” The Master said, “Spit it out.” The monk said, “If I do not bow, when shall I become an iron hammer without a hole?” The Master said, “How is that any different from an iron hammer without a hole?”

4. Great Master Miaokong Zhisong of Longshan, Fuzhou.

Ascending the Dharma hall, the Master said, “Fortunately, your own share is inherently clear. Why make such complications? Once you arrive there, it immediately becomes a complication, becomes additional words, and becomes defiling dust. When there is not much time, why do this?”

A monk asked, “The ancient Buddhas instructed, and the present patriarchs again cause the teaching to flourish. Devas and humans crowd the Chan courtyard. It would accord perfectly with principle if you would open and reveal it for them.” The Master said, “I, too, dare not fail the great assembly.” The monk said, “Then devas and humans will not be misled. I earnestly request the Master swiftly to transform the ordinary mind into the mind of a Buddha.” The Master said, “Benevolent one, what are you doing?” The monk said, “I withdraw, bow, and follow the assembly in ascending and descending.” The Master said, “I recognize you.”

5. Chan Master Gang of Mount Fenghuang, Quanzhou.

A monk asked, “The lamp has been transmitted across the ancient bridge, and the Way spreads throughout Wenling, yet it does not pass beyond Shimen. I request the Master to convey the message.” The Master said, “Were it not today, it would burst straight out through your chest.” The monk said, “Then today I personally hear the lion’s roar, and hereafter I shall forever be a phoenix chick.” The Master said, “Again you go into that place and defile people.”

He asked, “In the realm where white waves surge to the heavens, what person dwells amid the great void?” The Master said:
“In the stillness of night, reflect upon Yao’s drum;
Turn your head and listen intently to Shun’s lute.”

6. Chan Master Wenyi of Longshan, Fuzhou.

Ascending the Dharma hall, the Master said, “If the vehicle of the School is raised, the cloister falls silent and the scriptures grow desolate. If you would leave it to inquiry, what are you waiting for? Is there anyone with a question? Bring it forth so that I may examine it. If no one has a question, do not plunder empty praise.”

A monk asked, “What is the king of men?” The Master said, “His majestic authority is feared by all.” The monk asked, “What is the Dharma King?” The Master said, “One phrase causes all to act.” The monk asked, “Are the two kings separate or not separate?” The Master asked, “What did you just say?”

7. Great Master Liaozong Zhiyue of Gushan, Fuzhou.

The Master was a native of Fuzhou. Earlier, while traveling in search of the Dharma, he went to Master Huanglong in Ezhou and asked, “For a long time I have heard of Huanglong, but upon arriving I see only a red-spotted snake.” Huanglong said, “You see only the red-spotted snake and do not recognize Huanglong.” The Master said, “If so, what is it?” Huanglong said, “Rolling on and on.” The Master said, “What if a golden-winged bird suddenly arrives?” He replied, “Its life would be difficult to preserve.” The Master said, “Then it would be swallowed by the bird.” He replied, “Thank you, Acharya, for your offering.” At that very moment, the Master had not yet awakened.

He then sought out Mount Shouye and bowed to the National Teacher. After being inspired to penetrate the subtle purport, he subsequently succeeded to the mountain gate and became

of the third generation. The Master ascended the Dharma hall and said: “If I were to expound the essential principle of the School in its entirety, toward what could you turn to understand it? Therefore, in speaking to you, from ancient times to the present the Essence and its function have always been revealed; there is no obstruction whatsoever.”

A monk asked: “I shall not ask about other matters. What is it like to be born into the royal lineage?”

The Master said: “Jade leaves and golden branches are not alike—what can be done?”

The monk said: “Then inwardly they are the same and cannot differ.”

The Master said: “What use is there in making them not differ?”

The monk asked: “How can the golden branch be continued?”

The Master said: “Those too are words from outside the gate.”

Someone asked: “Does empty space know how to function or not?”

The Master raised his staff and said: “This is what monks like to be struck with.”

The monk said nothing.

8. Venerable Dinghui of Xiangzhou.

A monk asked: “What is the matter beyond the Buddha?”

The Master said: “There is no one who does not fear it.”

The monk said: “This student still does not understand.”

The Master said: “It is certainly difficult to turn toward.”

Someone asked: “If one does not cherish the opportune moment, how can one employ the words of the patriarchs?”

The Master said: “Acarya, do you still possess a sense of shame?”

The monk immediately shouted. The Master said nothing.

9. Chan Master Zongxiao Qing’e of Gushan in Fuzhou.

The Master attained the Dharma under Venerable Shouye. Someone asked: “After a monk dies, where does he go?”

The Master said: “When it is cold, one does not put out one’s hands.”

10. Chan Master Huiwu Chongzhao of the Jingde Practice Center in Jinling.

The Master was a native of Fuzhou, and his family name was He. From childhood he ate nothing containing flesh or blood and vowed to leave the household life. He had his head shaved at Gushan, where he attained the Dharma and received a prediction. At the age of twenty-four, the Master expounded the teaching to the assembly at Fengcheng in Hongzhou. At that time, he was called the Young Elder. During the Xiande era of the Later Zhou, the ruler of the Jiangnan Kingdom welcomed the Master and installed him at Guanglu.

A monk asked: “What is the Great Way?”

The Master said: “It is where there is no narrow path.”

The monk asked: “What is the narrow path?”

The Master said: “I do not know that there is a Great Way.”

Later, the Master resided at Kaixian on Mount Lu, and afterward at Jingde. At both places, he gathered disciples and taught the Dharma. In the eighth year of Kaibao, the Master passed away.

11. Chan Master Qinghu of Bao’en Monastery in Jinling.

The Master was a native of Changle in Fuzhou, and his family name was Chen. At the age of six, he paid homage to the Master of Gushan and had his head shaved. At the age of fifteen, he received the precepts and, immediately upon hearing the National Preceptor’s words, awakened to the true purport. When the National Preceptor entered nirvana, the Master resided at Baiyun in Jianzhou. The Min military governor, a member of the Wang clan, presented him with a purple robe and bestowed upon him the title Great Master Chongren.

In the eighth year of Tianfu under the Later Jin, Jinling and the Master entered Jiancheng together. The commanding general Cha Wenwei came to the monastery, and the Master went out to welcome him. Cha asked: “What is it like when we meet here?”

The Master replied: “I have troubled the general.”

Cha later invited the Master to Jinling, where the ruler ordered him to reside at Changqing Monastery and lead the assembly. At the beginning of the Jiande era, the Master withdrew to a hermitage in Jianzhou. At that time, the military governor Chen Hui founded the Xianshen Bao’en Chan Monastery and invited the Master to serve as abbot.

On the day the Dharma hall was opened, a monk asked: “When the Buddha appeared in the world, celestial flowers fell everywhere. We do not know what auspicious sign accompanied the Venerable’s appearance in the world.”

The Master said: “Only yesterday the new thunder first sounded; this morning a light rain drifts.”

Someone asked: “What is the profound purport of all the Buddhas?”

The Master said: “Straw sandals and wooden clogs.”

In the third year of Kaibao, the last ruler of Jiangnan invited the Master to reside at both Bao’en and Jingde Practice Centers. The Master went there to teach the Dharma, and his title was changed to Chan Master Miaoxing. In the eleventh month of that year, the Master fell ill and bade farewell to the ruler. On the morning of the twentieth day, he struck the bell, gave his final instructions to the great assembly, and then solemnly passed away while seated. He was fifty-five years old and had completed forty Dharma years.

The ruler accorded him exceedingly generous rites. After the cremation, more than three hundred relics were collected, and his sacred bones were taken back and buried on Mount Jizu in Jianzhou. A stupa was erected at Woyun Monastery.

The Master’s bearing was pure and graceful, and his conduct stood loftily apart. For twenty years he wore no silk garments, dressing only in coarse cloth. In literary composition and discourse, he was foremost among the assembly. The Master composed verses on the Essential Sayings from five places, which circulated throughout the world.