Buddha crossing a predestined person: Dharma and wisdom in life

Chapter 4 Convenience Method - Directly pointing at people's hearts, enlightenment and Buddhahood (4)
In the Ming Dynasty, the monk Hanshan Deqing went to visit because he admired the Zen master Bianrong of Miaofeng in Beijing.Bian Rong stared directly at Deqing with a pair of eagle-like eyes.Although he didn't say a word, Deqing felt the chilling Zen machine, and couldn't help trembling and sweating profusely!
Deqing couldn't get into the "Silence Zen" of Bianrong, so he came to pay homage to Xiaoyan Debao, the 28th generation patriarch of Linjizong.Xiaoyan asked him where he came from, and he said the south.Xiao Yan suddenly showed his Zen machine: "Do you still remember the way you came here?"

"I forgot about it later." Deqing thought he answered very alertly, but Patriarch Xiaoyan saw at a glance that he was still on the "road"—the rough jade was uncut, and he had no spirit.The old man said with a double entendre: "But you are clear about where and where."

During the exchange of wits with the two elders, Hanshan Deqing deeply felt his superficiality, so he went to Panshan in Jingdong to practice Zen.In the cave at the top of the thousand peaks, he had to meet an old monk who had lived in seclusion for more than 30 years for guidance, and his meditation skills improved by leaps and bounds.In the second year, at the appointment of Zen master Miaofeng, he went to Hedong (now Shanxi) to revise and publish Master Seng Zhao's famous Buddhist work "Zhao Lun".

Originally, he had read through "Zhao Lun" many times, but he could not understand its purpose.This time when he was compiling the book, when he read, "Fanzhi became a monk since he was a child and returned with a white head. The neighbors asked: 'The old man is still there?" Fanzhi replied: "I am like the old man, but I am not the old man!" At that time, his opportunity was triggered, and Deqing suddenly realized: all things in the world are constantly changing, and they have no nature of constant change!He chanted a verse:
Life and death day and night, water flows and flowers fade;
I only know today that the nostrils are down.

In the early morning of the next day, Zen Master Miaofeng congratulated him as soon as they met, and asked him what he had gained. Deqing was shocked: nothing can be hidden from a discerning person.He said: "Last night, I saw two iron oxen fighting by the Yellow River and entering the water together. There is no news so far." Zen Master Miaofeng laughed loudly: "Congratulations, you have the capital to live in the mountains."

There is a saying in Zen Buddhism: "If you don't break through the foundation, you can't climb the mountain, and you can't retreat until you reach the critical pass." Deqing's enlightenment is only to break through the first pass.Therefore, Zen Master Faguang, an eminent monk of the Linji sect who lived with them, pointed out to him unceremoniously: One aperture is not clear.Deqing refused to accept it, and asked, "Monk, do you understand?" Chan Master Faguang said, "I have been catching tigers with dragons for 30 years, but today I was startled by a rabbit in the grass."

Han Shande went up to the Zen opportunity: "Monk, you are not like a man who captures dragons and subdues tigers."

Linji's Zen style is as fierce as thunder and as swift as lightning.Zen Master Faguang didn't wait for his words to hit the ground, and the Zen staff in his hand fell down with a bang!Fortunately, Deqing was young and agile. Holding the Zen stick in one hand, he stroked Zen Master Faguang's beard with the other, and said with a smile, "Although it is a hare, it is also a toad!"

"I hope you will subdue the dragon and subdue the tiger, and don't catch the dead snake." After speaking, Chan Master Faguang laughed and left.

This laughter not only entered Deqing's ears, but also took root in the depths of his heart.Yes, he himself is the clearest: all dharmas are inherently empty, if they cannot produce magical effects, it is like stagnant water that does not hide live dragons.

In the fourth year of Wanli (AD 1576), Deqing and Miaofeng went to Wutai Mountain again, and practiced meditation in the ice and snow of Wanshan Mountain in Longmen, Beitai.At the turn of spring and summer, the ice and snow melt, and the mountain streams are like ten thousand horses galloping.Especially when meditating, the impact of the stream, like the noise of fierce fighting on the battlefield, disturbed Deqing so much that it was difficult to calm down.Zen Master Miaofeng said: "Conditions come from the heart, not from the outside. It is your heart that has not calmed down!"

So, in order to exercise his concentration, Deqing went to the single-plank bridge above the mountain stream to meditate.At the beginning, the stream seemed to flow in and out of the ears; gradually, only when the thoughts were active, the gurgling water could enter the ears, and the thoughts could not be heard without moving the thoughts.One day, he was sitting in meditation on the single-plank bridge again, and suddenly he forgot himself, everything was silent, and all sounds disappeared.

Since then, all sounds can not disturb his body and mind.

After that, Zen master Miaofeng traveled to various places, and Deqing lived alone.One day, after porridge, he went for a walk (walking), and when he suddenly felt the wind blowing, his body seemed to be empty, without any hindrance to the wind.As a result, his thoughts fell off and he fell into a trance.At this time, he only felt a piece of clarity, without seeing the body and mind, but the mountains, rivers and the earth were reflected in it, the external environment was the inner world, and the inner mind was the outer world, man and the universe were integrated into one, unconsciously, a gatha flowed from his heart:

With a glimpse, the madness of the heart rests, and the inner and outer roots are completely penetrated;

Turn over and break through the great void, and all phenomena are born and destroyed.

Han Shan Deqing came back to the meditation room after coming out of samadhi, and was surprised to find that the pots and bowls he had just eaten porridge and hadn't washed were covered with thick dust.It turned out that after entering meditation, although it felt like only a moment, nearly 20 days had actually passed!
■Sentiment——

Han Shan Deqing practiced meditation asceticly and finally became enlightened and entered the realm of meditation!For this miraculous realm, many people find it inconceivable and think it is absolutely impossible.In fact, in daily life, whenever you focus on something, we often forget to eat and sleep, or even forget the time and ourselves, but it is only occasionally.Meditation requires a higher level of meditation. It requires that it should be the same every day and all the time. Over time, you will forget the universe, time and space, and body and mind, and you will truly reach the state of "the universe is my heart, and my heart is the universe".Therefore, at the moment when Deqing was meditating, he forgot everything and never thought about it. It has been nearly 20 days.

Buddhahood

A monk asked Tiantai Yunjuzhi, "What does it mean to see one's nature and become a Buddha?"

Zen Master Zhi replied: "The pure nature is original and unshakable. It does not belong to existence or non-existence, cleanliness, length, choice, and body. Such a clear view is called seeing nature. Nature is Buddha, and Buddha is nature. , so it is called seeing one's nature and becoming a Buddha."

The monk asked: "Since the nature is pure, it does not belong to existence or non-existence. How can there be views?"

Zen Master Zhi replied, "I have seen, but I have not seen."

The monk asked, "How can you see if you don't see?"

Zen Master Zhi replied, "There is nowhere to see."

The monk asked, "When you see it like this, who sees it?"

Zen Master Zhi replied, "There is no one who sees."

■Sentiment——

From the point of view of Zen, nature, Buddha, self-nature, and Buddha-nature all mean the same thing, that is, human nature is Buddha-nature, or Buddha is in our nature.The Buddha is in our nature, but you cannot take it out and see it.So it is "yes" and "nothing".So how can we experience this Buddha nature?

Hui Neng said: "The self-nature is always pure, the sun and the moon are always bright, only covered by clouds, and the upper light is all there. The world's human nature is pure, like the clear sky, its benefits are like the sun, and its wisdom is like the moon, and its wisdom is always bright. Covered, the self-nature cannot be understood.” Hui Neng compared the self-nature (Buddha-nature) to the blue sky, wisdom to the sun and the moon, and delusional thoughts to floating clouds.Get rid of delusions, and the Buddha-nature will manifest itself, and we will experience the Buddha-nature, that is, "seeing the nature and becoming a Buddha".

Old Shakya

One day, Yunmen waved his stick in front of the monks and said, "This stick has turned into a dragon and swallowed the entire universe in one bite. Where did the mountains, rivers and earth come from?"

Another time, he suddenly asked the audience: "Do you want to know the Patriarch?"

He pointed at them with a stick and said, "The Patriarch is jumping on your heads. Do you want to know the eyes of the Patriarch? It is right under your feet."

"What did the ancients mean by raising or lowering the whisk?"

A monk replied: "Before lifting it up, after putting it down, it shows the self."

These words won Yunmen's heartfelt praise.

■Sentiment——

In Yunmen's eyes, enlightenment is just a way to enter the self-nature.This self-nature is beyond time and space, it is not limited to any place, but it is everywhere.

It's a pity I can't send moonlight

Apart from propagating the Dharma, Zen Master Liangkuan usually lived in a simple thatched hut at the foot of the mountain, leading a very simple life.

One night, when he came back from preaching outside, he happened to bump into a thief who was patronizing his thatched hut.When the thief saw the Zen master coming back, he was so flustered that he didn't know what to do.

Liang Kuan said to the empty-handed thief with a pleasant face: "Can't find anything to steal? I think your trip was a waste of time. How about this, you can take the clothes on my body!"

The thief grabbed the clothes and ran away in panic.Looking at the back of the thief under the moonlight, Zen Master Liangkuan said with infinite emotion: "It's a pity that I can't give you this beautiful moonlight!"

■Sentiment——

"Beautiful moonlight" refers to the beautiful self-nature and Buddha-nature that people inherently possess. Although the thief's behavior is despicable, he, like everyone else, also has Buddha-nature, but it is temporarily covered by delusion.Therefore, Zen Master Liangkuan did not condemn him for being a thief. On the contrary, he tried his best to help him, hoping to help him regain his self-nature, which is as beautiful as the moonlight.

Enlightenment and non-enlightenment
Someone asked Chan Master Daoqian of Ruizhou: "Both those who are enlightened and those who are not, everyone comes to ask Zen Master for advice. May I ask how Zen Master can enlighten you?"

The Zen master asked: "Do you think the huge mountain still lacks a little bit of soil? Everyone has great wisdom."

The man asked again: "Since this is the case, why do people go to search for it in three mountains and five seas?"

The Zen master replied: "That's because these people are lost in their nature by worldly thoughts and delusions, and they want the Zen master to guide them."

The man asked again, "Are there any sober people who are not mad?"

The Zen master said with certainty: "Yes!"

"Who wouldn't enter the realm of madness?"

The Zen master replied: "Through wisdom, you can know all kinds of phenomena. People who are always unmoved by appearances will never fall into the state of arrogance!"

■Sentiment——

Everyone has great wisdom (Buddha nature), but it is often covered by desires, just like dark clouds cover the sun.This requires "masters" to push away the dark clouds of desire and reveal the light of Buddha nature.When the dark clouds go away, one is enlightened; if the dark clouds do not go away, one is unenlightened.Enlightenment and non-enlightenment are between this "dial".

Avenue to Jane
Zen master Deshan became a monk at the age of 20 and received full precepts.He has intensively studied the Vinaya, and has studied the sutras of sex and physiognomy. He often preaches the "Diamond Sutra" to monks, so he is called "Zhou King Kong".He advocated gradual progress, emphasizing that only by accumulating knowledge can one be able to master one's skills with ease.Regarding Nanzong's theory of epiphany, Deshan was not convinced, so he took the "Diamond Sutra Qinglong Shuchao" to the south to discuss with people from Nanzong.

When he arrived at Longtan, he walked into Chongxin's dharma hall and shouted loudly: "I have heard about Longtan's name for a long time, but once I come here, the lake will not be seen, and the dragon will not come."

Chongxin, who was sitting on the Zen seat in the Fatang, just bowed his body and said coldly: "But you have arrived in Longtan in person." Deshan was actually frozen there by this simple answer.

Now that he had arrived at Longtan, he was in Longtan and turned a blind eye, so what else could he look for? So, what else could Deshan have to say? So he stayed and began to study.

One night, Deshan asked Chan Master Longtan for advice, and stood in front of Chan Master Longtan, refusing to leave. Chan Master Longtan said, "It's very late at night, why don't you go down?" When I got to the door, I came back and said, "It's too dark outside. The students just arrived, so I don't know where to go."

Chan Master Longtan lit a candle for him, and just as Deshan reached out to take it, Chan Master Longtan blew out the candle, and the external light went out.Deshan suddenly realized, and immediately knelt down and bowed to Zen Master Longtan.

Chan Master Longtan asked, "What did you see?" Chan Master Deshan replied, "From now on, I will never doubt the tongue of any Chan master in the world."

The next day, Zen Master Longtan ascended his seat and said to the monks: "There is a man among you, whose teeth are like sword trees, and whose mouth is like a blood basin. He can't turn back when he hits him with a stick. In the future, he will also go to the top of the isolated peak to set up the way for me and practice the Dharma. go!"

Knowing that he had received the master's heart seal, Deshan turned from jealousy to Nanchan. He piled up the "Diamond Sutra Qinglong Shuchao" he brought in front of the Dharma hall, and burned it with a torch.

■Sentiment——

Zen Buddhism has always opposed literal language and advocated simple epiphany.Just imagine, if Zen Master Longtan tried his best to persuade the knowledgeable Deshan, the result would be difficult to predict.Therefore, Long Tan did not argue with him, but only used a very simple method (alternating between burning and blowing the lamp for a moment) to make Deshan see the self-nature in the change of light and dark.Although the candle was extinguished, the lamp of Tokuyama's heart was shining brightly.

After the epiphany, Deshan said: "If you put a little bit of metaphysics in the Taixuan, it is like throwing a drop in the gully." It means that if you understand all the metaphysics, it is just like A hair is as insignificant as a single hair in the void world; exhausting all the subtleties, it is just as insignificant as a drop of water flowing into a vast river.It is useless to rely on the study of classics without working hard to understand one's mind and see one's nature.

outside things
A middle-aged man felt that his life was very heavy and his life was too stressful. He wanted to find a way to get rid of it, so he went to a Zen master for advice.

The Zen master gave him a basket and asked him to carry it on his back. He pointed to a rough road ahead and said, "Whenever you take a step forward, bend down to pick up a stone and put it in the basket, and then see what happens. feel."

The middle-aged man followed the instructions of the Zen master. After the basket on his back was filled with stones, the Zen master asked him how he felt along the way.He replied, "I feel more and more heavy as we walk." The Zen master then said, "Everyone comes to this world with an empty basket on his back. Every time we take a step forward, we will pick up something from this world and put it into it." , so the more you walk, the more tired you will be."

The middle-aged man asked again: "So is there any way to lighten the burden of life?"

The Zen master asked him back, "Are you willing to give up your fame, wealth, family, and status?" The man couldn't answer.

The Zen master also said: "Everyone's basket contains things that he has sought from this world. If you want to lighten your burden, you must be willing to give up these external things."

■Sentiment——

We often sigh: "Life is so tiring!" Why are you tired?

Looking back, when we first came to this world, we were naked and had nothing to worry about, but as we grow older and experience more, the burden on our backs becomes heavier and heavier.Why?Because we want it all!Fame, wealth, family, status...all of them should be carried in one's own pannier!Can you not be tired?

In fact, when we think about it again, when we want to leave this world of mortals, none of these "things outside the body" can be taken away.Therefore, if you want to live an easy life, the best way is to take out those "external things" in your back basket and throw them away one by one until it is as empty as when we first came to this world.This is what Lao Tzu said, "the daily loss of the Tao" - if you want to achieve the Tao, you must "loss", that is, reduce your desires and reduce the things outside your body.

stealing tricks

Someone asked the Fifth Patriarch Fayan what Zen was, and Fayan told him that Zen was like learning the art of stealing.

A thief's son saw his father grow old and wondered how he would support his family if he hadn't learned a trade.So he thought he must learn the skill of stealing, so he told his father what he meant, and his father agreed.

One night, the father took his son to a rich man's house, entered the room through the wall, opened the cabinet, and told his son to go in to get his clothes.As soon as the son entered the closet, the father locked the closet door and deliberately knocked on the hall to surprise the whole family, and he slipped away from the place he just entered.The family immediately got up, set fire to search, and knew that a thief had come, but had already slipped away.

The thief's son wondered in the closet why his father was doing this.Just as he was wondering, he suddenly had an idea and made the sound of a mouse biting something.The family asked the maid to light the lamp and open the cabinet to have a look.As soon as the cabinet was opened, the thief's son blew out the lamp, pushed the maid down, and walked out of the house.The family chased after him.He found a well on the road, so he picked up a big stone and threw it into the well, so the family searched for the thief in the well.He took the opportunity to return home.

He blamed his father for running away alone.

But the father said: "Son, don't complain, tell me how you got out?" When the son told the father what happened, the father said: "Okay, you can do it."

After finishing his speech, he was silent for a while, and then gave a lecture to the believer: "Like this thief, if you can find a way out of nothing, that's Zen."

■Sentiment——

What is Zen?
Different Zen masters will give you different answers.Is there a standard answer?

No, no matter how you answer, or even not answer, it is correct, or it is not correct.

Because Zen is everything and nothing.And because Zen cannot be said, once it is said, it is not Zen.

But in any case, Zen is a kind of wisdom for life.Therefore, Fa Lecture "If you can find a way out of no way, that's Zen."

Knowing yourself

A new young monk came to the ancient temple. He took the initiative to meet the abbot and said sincerely, "I'm new here. What should I do first? Please help and advise me, senior."

The abbot smiled slightly and said to the young monk, "You should get to know the monks in the monastery first."

The next day, the little monk came to see the abbot again, and said earnestly, "I know all the monks in the monastery, what should I do next?"

The abbot smiled slightly and said, "There must be some omissions, and then go to understand, to get to know."

Three days later, the young monk came to see the old abbot again and said confidently: "I know all the monks in the monastery, and I want to do something."

The abbot smiled slightly, and said wisely, "There is another person you don't know, and this person is very important to you."

The little monk walked out of the abbot's meditation room suspiciously, asking one by one, searching from room to room.In the sun and under the moonlight, he pondered and pondered over and over again.

After an unknown number of days, the bewildered little monk suddenly saw himself in a well. He had an epiphany, and hurried to see the old abbot.

■Sentiment——

Everyone has a pair of eyes.But our eyes always look outward, not inward.Therefore, in our eyes, what we see is always those "things outside the body" such as fame, wealth, money, and beauty.So we go after what these eyes see, regardless of our body.Buddhism tells us that the eyes should learn to look inward: the eyes look at the nose, and the nose looks at the heart. "Contemplating the mind" means contemplating yourself, contemplating your own Buddha nature. If you are contemplating yourself all the time, then your mind will not be tempted by external appearances, because you don't care about these "external things" at all.

Write the word "I"
The young monk wanted to learn calligraphy from the old monk. The old monk said, let's start with the word "I".And provided the young monk with several "I" copybooks of seniors and famous masters.

After the little monk practiced the word "I" all morning, he picked a word "I" that he was more satisfied with, and took it to the master for guidance.The old monk glanced sideways and said: It's too sloppy, let's continue to practice.

The little monk continued to practice for a week, and he couldn't remember how many "I" characters he had practiced.Then I picked a few words that I was satisfied with, and showed them to the master.The old monk flipped through the words casually, turned his back and said softly: It's too floating, keep practicing.

The little monk held his breath and continued to practice for half a year, and he was basically able to copy the words "I" of his predecessors and famous masters vividly.Then I took it again and asked my teacher.The old monk looked at it quietly for a while, then patted the young monk on the shoulder and said: There is progress and promise, but you should continue to practice, because you haven't mastered the essentials of "I".

(End of this chapter)