Buddha crossing a predestined person: Dharma and wisdom in life

Chapter 22 Breaking the Precepts—In the Great Thousand World, a Free Body (4)
The old woman burned the fire very happily, and burned away all the hypocrisy in the hermitage. The old woman is really a good-natured person. The monk is just a fake monk. If he practices for another 20 years, I am afraid that there will be no results.

Master Changming of Guiyuan Temple's favorite banner is "Everyone is happy", and his realm is incomparable to that of the fake monk.

"As You Like It" makes us feel kind and natural.

■Sentiment——

Real people are easygoing, living under a mask can be exhausting.Every pore of a real person is open, and every cell is breathing freely.Theories are gray, the tree of life is evergreen, and real people are full of endless life vitality.A real person is also a lovely person.

student hit teacher
One year, Zen Master Linji broke the ban and went to Mount Huangbo in the middle of Xia Anju (the three months from April [-]th to July [-]th in summer when he was not allowed to go out casually and his feet were forbidden to practice). Zen master Huangbo Xiyun.

When he got to the mountain, he saw Chan Master Huangbo chanting sutras in front of the Buddha. He felt very strange, so he said: "I used to think that Master is a great person, but today I see that Master is just a monk who recites sutras. "

Zen Master Huangbo didn't make any excuses, and only stayed with Zen Master Linji. However, Linji felt that the teacher was like ordinary people who prayed to the Buddha with his voice and body, and was very dissatisfied.

Zen Master Huangbo said: "You came here in the middle of the retreat, which is already a violation of the prohibition. Now that the Xia's retreat is not over, you want to leave again?"

Zen Master Linji said: "The original intention of my coming here is to pay my respects to the teacher and make a short-term visit. I have already done it. What if I don't ask for it?"

After Chan Master Huangbo heard this, he raised his hand and beat him. After the beating was over, he drove Chan Master Linji out.

Zen Master Linji walked for several miles, feeling in his heart that it was really not good to leave in such a hurry.So he went back to Mount Huangbo and asked his teacher to continue beating him, but Chan Master Huangbo immediately put his hands into his sleeves and refused to strike.

One day, at the end of the retreat, when Chan Master Linji was about to say goodbye, Chan Master Huangbo asked, "Where are you going?"

Zen Master Linji replied, "It's either Henan or Hebei."

After hearing this, Chan Master Huangbo raised his hand to hit Linji, but Linji immediately followed with his left hand, and slapped Master Huangbo back with his right hand.Zen Master Huangbo laughed loudly after being beaten, and then said to Linji: "Very good! Very good! You have where you came from and where you are going. Now, you can go to Henan, and you can also go to Hebei."

■Sentiment——

The student Linji beat Huangbo back, but Huangbo laughed, which meant that Linji had understood his intentions.

do not despise young people

A believer went to the living room to rest after paying homage to the Buddha in the temple. Before he sat down, he heard a young Zhike teacher say to the old Zen master Wude next to him: "Teacher! A believer is here, please serve tea. !"

In less than 2 minutes, the young Zhike teacher shouted again: "Teacher! There are too many incense ash on the Buddha table, please wipe it clean!" "Don't forget to water the potted flowers on the table!" "Don't forget to keep the believers for lunch at noon."

The believer saw Zen Master Wude running east and west under the command of Master Zhike. He couldn't see it, so he asked Chan Master Wude, "Zen Master! What is the relationship between Master Zhike and you?"

The Zen master replied very proudly: "He is my apprentice!"

The believer was puzzled and asked: "This young Zhike teacher, since he is your apprentice, why is he so rude to you? He asks you to do this and then asks you to do that?"

The Zen master said gratifiedly: "It is my blessing to have such a capable disciple. When believers come, they only need me to pour tea and don't ask me to talk; usually he does incense and water before the Buddha, and I just need to wipe off the dust. ;He only asked me to keep the believers for dinner, and did not ask me to cook and make tea. Everything in the temple was planned and arranged by him. This gave me a lot of comfort, otherwise, I would have worked very hard!"

After hearing this, the believers still didn't understand very well, and asked with doubts on their faces: "I don't know if you are the older one or the younger one?"

Zen Master Wude said: "Of course the old ones are big, but the small ones are useful!"

■Sentiment——

If a monk wants to be able to grow old, old age is a treasure.Believers support the monks, most of them are for the old and not the young, and the support of the monks is also for the old and not the young, because believers always think that the old is big and the young is small. It is not easy to understand that although the prince is young, he can rule the country in the future; Although they are small, the future promotion of Dharma depends entirely on them.The practice of Chan Master Wude is probably beyond the reach of ordinary Zen masters.

Old home style
Zen Master Fayan Wenyi came to the lecture hall and told everyone a story:
Once upon a time there was an old man who lived with a child, but as the guardian of the child, the old man never taught the child etiquette and principles of life, but just let him grow up naturally.

One day, a wandering monk stayed at the old man's house and saw that the child didn't understand anything, so he taught him a lot of etiquette.

The kid is smart and learns quickly.At night, the child saw the old man coming back from outside.So he went up to greet him respectfully.The old man was very surprised, and questioned the child, "Who taught you this?"

The child replied truthfully: "The monk who came today taught me that."

The old man immediately found the monk and reprimanded him: "Monk, you are wandering around, what kind of character did you cultivate? This child was picked up by me and raised for two or three years. Fortunately, he has maintained his natural and lovely heart. Who knows that at this moment You ruined it immediately. Pick up your luggage and go out, you are not welcome in my house!"

It was already evening, and it was raining lightly again, but the angry old man insisted on driving the monk away.

■Sentiment——

Zen Buddhism opposes the restraint of human nature.The reason why the traveling monk was dismissed by the old man was because he destroyed the authenticity of the boy's life with his acquired habits and violated the original ready-made principles.In the view of this old Zen master, secular etiquette and rules can deceive children's innocence and will only make children learn hypocrisy from elementary school.

Hospitality
Zen master Congren is a famous Zen master in Zhaozhou.One day, King Zhao made a special trip to visit him. At this time, he was resting on the Zen bed, and when he heard the report of a visitor from the attendant, instead of getting up, he lay down and said to King Zhao who had already entered the Zen room: I'm so old now that I can't afford to get out of bed to receive you, please don't blame me, my lord."

After Zhao Wang heard this, he didn't blame him at all, but instead increased his respect for Zen Master Congchen.

A few days after this visit, King Zhao sent a general to bring gifts to Zen Master.Surprisingly, this time, as soon as Chan Master Congjue heard the report, he immediately got out of bed and greeted him outside the door.

After this incident happened, some of his apprentice monks were quite puzzled. Zhao Wang's subordinates could get out of bed and greet them outside the door, but Zhao Wang was bedridden when he came in person.With this doubt, they went to ask the Zen master for instructions.

After listening to the questions from these student monks, Chan Master Zeng laughed, and then said seriously: "You don't know, the old monk's way of hospitality is divided into three classes: upper, middle and lower. On the bed, he treats the first class with his true face. people; get out of bed and go to the living room to greet the middle-class people with courtesy; use worldly entertainment to meet the low-class people at the door."

■Sentiment——

Zhaozhou's "way of hospitality" is completely opposite to ordinary people: for distinguished guests, ordinary people will greet them at the door, but he greets them on the bed; To run to the door to meet.

Why did Zhaozhou do this?

Just like the above story of "Old Home Tradition", Zen Buddhism opposes the restraint of human nature.In Zhaozhou's view, secular etiquette violates human nature.Zhaozhou did this out of nature.

never sick person
When Tokuyama was dying of illness, someone asked him, "Is there anyone who will never get sick?"

He replied, "Yes."

The other party asked again: "What is a person who will never get sick?"

He cried, "Ah! Aw!"

■Sentiment——

Probably no one can understand that a sick person is a person who will never be sick.Tokuyama refers to the inner spirit of a person who is not affected by illness.

Shake the tree
One day, when Yangshan was picking tea, Weishan said to him, "We have been picking tea all day, but I only heard your voice, but I didn't see your body!" Yangshan shook the tree.

So Wei Shan said again: "You only know its function, but you don't know its essence."

Yang Shan said unconvinced: "Then what do you want, teacher?"

Wei Shan didn't answer, and was silent for a long time.

Yang Shan said again: "Teacher, you only get its body, but don't know its use."

Wei Shan said, "I'll give you thirty sticks."

Yang Shan retorted, "Give me your stick; who will eat mine?"

Wei Shan said again, "I'll give you another thirty sticks."

■Sentiment——

Yangshan's tree shaking is obviously used to express the inner true self.The inner Self, invisible and inexpressible, is not terribly wrong.But when he said that Weishan only knew the body but not the use, he made a fundamental mistake, because the use is contained in the body, and there is no useless body.So Wei Shan wants to give Yang Shan [-] sticks.

a field
One day, Wei Shan and Yang Shan went to the field. Wei Shan said to Yang Shan, "Look, this field is high on one side and low on the other."

Yang Shan said: "It's wrong, it's low on this side and high on that side."

Wei Shan said again: "If you don't believe me, let's stand in the middle and look to both sides to see which side is higher."

Yang Shan said, "Don't stand in the middle, and don't just look at the two sides."

Wei Shan said again, "Let's measure it by the level, because there is nothing flatter than water."

Yang Shan said, "Water also has no definite nature. It is flat at high places, and it is also flat at low places."

Wei Shan was left speechless by Yang Shan's answer.

■Sentiment——

Zen Buddhism opposes the mind of discrimination. Perhaps in the eyes of ordinary people, Wei Shan is right. Whether it is "standing in the middle and looking to both sides" or "using the level to measure", it is "high on this side and low on that side".But why does Yangshan insist on saying "this side is low, and that side is high"?In fact, the meaning of his division is not to distinguish between high and low, but to explain that everything is empty. Since it is empty, how can there be high and low?
why look so serious

Once, Yang Shan came back from his summer vacation to visit Wei Shan, and Wei Shan asked him:
"Son, I haven't seen you for a summer vacation, what on earth have you been doing over there?"

Yang Shan replied, "Ah! I plowed a field and sowed a basket of seeds."

Wei Shan added: "It seems that you haven't been idle this summer vacation."

Yang Shan also asked Wei Shan: "What did you do this summer vacation?"

Wei Shan replied, "Eat during the day and sleep at night."

Yang Shan said, "Then, teacher, you haven't spent your summer vacation in vain!"

After saying this, Yang Shan felt that his words were a little sarcastic, so he stuck out his tongue unconsciously.Seeing Yang Shan's embarrassment, Wei Shan scolded him, "Son, why do you take it so seriously!"

■Sentiment——

In the lives of Zen masters, they cultivate their minds all the time.It doesn’t matter whether we are hoeing down the mountain, it is better to say that we are clearing the weeds of the mind and planting the seeds of wisdom; or “eating during the day and sleeping at night”, it is better to say that we are savoring the taste of life itself in the simplest life.If a person feels at a loss when he says something that is in line with Zen principles, it just shows that he is still vulgar.

not worthy to be your teacher
Dongshan was born in Kuaiji, Zhejiang Province, and his common surname was Yu.He became a monk when he was young, and his teacher taught him to recite the "Prajna Heart Sutra".

When he read "No Eyes, Ears, Nose, Tongue, Body and Mind", he suddenly put his hands on his face and asked, "I have eyes, ears, nose, tongue, etc., why the scriptures say there are no such things!"

The teacher was shocked by his question and said, "I am not worthy to be your teacher."

■Sentiment——

"Eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind" are the "six senses" of Buddhism. If a person "six senses are pure", he will cut off all extravagant desires and desires, and he can be said to be "no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind".Dongshan was still a child, so it was naturally difficult to reach this level, so he started from the perspective of ordinary people and suspected that the scriptures were wrong.Although there are no mistakes in the scriptures, his independent spirit of not wanting to be fooled by anyone or any book is commendable, which naturally horrified his teacher.

playing clown
Zen master Baiyun Shouduan was a student of Yang Qi.

Once, Yang Qi asked Baiyun Shouduan who he used to be his teacher.

Shouduan said, "Monk Chaling Yu."

Yang Qi went on to say: "I heard that Monk Yu accidentally slipped and fell while crossing a bridge, so he became enlightened and wrote a poem. Do you remember this poem?"

Shouduan replied: "This gatha is 'I have a bright pearl, which has been locked away by the dust for a long time; now the dust is exhausted, and the light is born, shining through thousands of flowers in the mountains and rivers'."

After hearing this, Yang Qi smiled and left.

Shouduan suffered from insomnia all night because of the teacher's action.

Early the next morning, Shouduan went to ask Yang Qi why he laughed when he heard Monk Yu's gatha.Yang Qi replied, "Did you see that clown playing tricks yesterday?"

Shou Duan said, "I see."

Yang Qi added: "Are you inferior to that clown in a certain way?"

Shou Duan asked, "What is the teacher referring to?"

Yang Qi replied: "The clown likes others to laugh, but you are afraid of others laughing."

So Shouduan was enlightened.

■Sentiment——

Yang Qi's smile is because of the ridiculousness of the matter, and his laughter itself is meaningless.But Shouduan is too serious, desperately researching why Yang Qi laughs, too persistent, and troubles in vain.Therefore, Yang Qi wants him to let go of his attachments, and he will be freed immediately.

Osmanthus

Zen Master Huang Long Zuxin and the poet Huang Shanshan had a close relationship.

One day, Gu Gu asked Huanglong the secret way to enter Taoism.

Huang Long replied: "Didn't Confucius once say, 'The second and third sons regard me as a secret? I have no secrets'? What do you think about these words?"

Dale was about to answer.Huang Long interjected, "No, no."

The valley is inexplicable.

Another day, Gu Gu accompanied Huang Long on a mountain tour and saw osmanthus flowers blooming all over the place. Huang Long asked, "Do you smell the fragrance of osmanthus?"

Dale replied: "Yes."

Huang Long said: "Look, I didn't hide anything from you!"

Dawu Dawu made a deep bow and said, "You are really a wife."

Huang Long smiled and said, "I just want you to go home."

■Sentiment——

Shan Shan wanted to enter the secret method, but Huang Long brought up Confucius with him, and Shan Gu admitted the truth, of course Huang Long said "no, no".In fact, there is no "dharma door" at all, and the way to enter the Tao depends on one's own understanding!In the following story, Huanglong hopes that the "home" that the valley will return to is the most intimate nature.The door of nature is wide open, everything is ready-made in front of your eyes, and the Tao is in it.Therefore, Huang Long hinted that the valley would give up the depth and return to the plain, and return to the "home" he had lost.

where is the heart
Zen Master Daguan said to Li Duanyuan: "The Buddhas spoke of existence from nothing, and found the meaning of life in the meaningless and empty life. Therefore, everything in the world is bound by afflictions, and what you see is empty flowers. Seeking the future immortal soul in the meaning of life in this world is like fishing for the moon with your hands. Only when you truly understand your own mind can you be free from confusion."

"How can the mind know?"

"No matter good or evil, right or wrong, success or failure, don't think about it, don't care about it."

"If you don't want to, where is your heart?"

"Everything should be merciful, joyful, and compassionate, everyone should be sympathetic and compassionate, and everything should only go to the forgiving, upward, bright, and exploratory place, not to the careless, downward, and dark place. , Obsessed place, your heart will merge with life.”

"So, where is the heart after death?"

"If you don't know life, how can you know death?"

"I've found my life."

"Where did your life come from?"

"This..." Li Duanyuan scratched his head, looking confused.

Zen Master Daguan suddenly stretched out his hand to grab Li Duanyuan's chest, and shouted, "It's right here! Where else do you want to go?"

Li Duanyuan was startled, and immediately realized: "Understood! I understand!"

■Sentiment——

From the perspective of Buddhism, human life is nothingness and emptiness, and life and death are completely out of human grasp.What people have to do is to live with their heart, let their heart live free and easy, and then they will have the true meaning of life.

Master Fu Lectures

During the Southern Dynasties, Master Fu became famous for a while, and finally alarmed Emperor Wu of Liang.Emperor Wu of Liang wanted to summon Mr. Fu.Out of curiosity and wanting to try his skills, Emperor Wu of Liang sent an order to lock all the palace gates.Master Fu seemed to have expected it a long time ago. He took out the gavel he had prepared in advance, and he knocked open the solid palace doors one after another, and walked to the Hall of Good Words unimpeded.He did not kowtow to Emperor Wu of Liang, and sat directly on the precious couch where the Western Regions paid tribute.

Emperor Wu of Liang asked him who he studied under?He said: "There is nothing to learn from, nothing to teach, nothing to do."

Both of them have profound attainments in Buddhism, and they talk about Buddhism with witty remarks;In the end, they laughed at each other's arms, annihilating all the boundaries between monarch and minister.Since then, Master Fu has often entered and exited the palace.

Once, Emperor Wu of Liang personally lectured on the "Prajna Sutra" in the palace.When Emperor Wu arrived at the ceremony, all the people stood up to greet him, except Master Fu who sat still.The minister was very dissatisfied and said, "Why don't you stand up when the holy car comes?" He said, "If the earth moves, everything will be restless."

After Emperor Wu of Liang finished his lecture, many princes and ministers chanted in unison, but Master Fu remained silent.Asked why, he said: "Speaking and moving are all Buddhist things."

Next time, it's Master Fu's turn to speak the scriptures.He said, "Diamond Sutra" is wonderful, let's talk about "Diamond Sutra".He ascended to the Dharma seat, slapped the table with a ruler, and then stepped down.Emperor Liang Wu was at a loss, his face was full of astonishment, and both eyes were stared straight.The monk Zhigong at the side said, "Does Your Majesty understand?"

He didn't say a word, let people understand what?Emperor Wu of Liang shook his head.Zhigong said: "The great master has finished his speech."

The "Diamond Sutra" is wonderful, and Fu Dashi's lecture on the "Diamond Sutra" is even more wonderful!

What's even better is that one day, when Master Fu met Emperor Wu of Liang, he was wearing a monk's robe (monk outfit), a top hat (a Taoist crown), and shoes (Confucian shoes).Emperor Wu of Liang knew that he was telling the truth again, and asked, "Are you a monk?"

Master Fu pointed at the crown on his finger.Emperor Wu of Liang asked again: "Then you are a Taoist priest?"

He pointed to his feet again.Emperor Wu of Liang asked three times: "Could it be that you are a layman?"

Master Fu tugged at the monk monk on his body.

That's it, it's all Zen machines at your fingertips.

■Sentiment——

Master Fu's monk clothes, Taoist crown, and Confucian shoes are definitely not shocking the world with exotic clothes. Centered on Buddhism, based on Confucianism, it was produced by absorbing the essence of metaphysics from Lao and Zhuang Taoism.

Hanshan
Tiantai Mountain in Zhejiang Province is the ancestral mountain of Tiantai Sect of Buddhism.That year, a Zen master who called himself "Fenggan" came to Guoqing Temple, the holy place of Tiantai Sect, and lived in the small courtyard behind the Tibetan (sound: zang) scripture building.When he went in and out of the monastery, he always rode a big tiger that roared like thunder and was as fast as the wind.Therefore, the monks of Guoqing Temple keep a respectful distance.However, Zen Master Fengqian's fierce tiger mount is more obedient than a kitten when it sees Han Shan and Shi De.

Picked up is an abandoned baby picked up by Zen master Fengqian from the side of the road.As for Han Shan, no one knows where he came from, and no one even knows his name. Just because he lives on the cold rock of the highest peak of Tiantai Mountain, people call him "Han Shan".There is a saying:

Climbing Zhihan Mountain Road, there are endless cold mountain roads.

(End of this chapter)