A Bird in Flight Leaves No Trace Page 15

  Boundless Body (*Anantakāya 無邊身) Bodhisattva appears in the first chapter of the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra.117 The gist of what Pei Xiu asks here is why Boundless Body Bodhisattva, who has no boundaries, can’t see the top of the Tathāgata’s head even through the power of his awesome virtue?

  Since Boundless Body Bodhisattva is the Tathāgata himself, it is absurd to suggest that the Tathāgata would look at the top of his own head.

  “We only teach you this:

  Don’t create the notion of a buddha so that you don’t succumb to the limits of a buddha;

  don’t create the notion of sentient beings so that you don’t succumb to the limits of sentient beings.

  Don’t create the notion of existence so that you don’t succumb to the limits of existence;

  don’t create the notion of nonexistence so that you don’t succumb to the limits of non-existence.

  Don’t create the notion of ordinariness so that you don’t succumb to the limits of ordinariness;

  don’t create the notion of sanctity so that you don’t succumb to the limits of sanctity.

  秖教爾 不作佛見 不落佛邊 不作眾生見 不落眾生邊 不作有見 不落有邊 不作無見 不落無邊 不作凡見 不落凡邊 不作聖見 不落聖邊.

  The Buddhadharma involves no-thought, signlessness, and nonabiding; but these words are just expedient means to help practitioners not to abide in or cling to anything, anywhere.

  Buddha and sentient beings are two limits, or extreme views. Therefore, if you seek a buddha, you will fall into the extreme view that a buddha exists separately from you.

  Those who are deluded try to gain something good, but good and evil are also two extremes. If you seek either of the two, you succumb to that limit.

  “Only by being free from all views will one have a boundless body. But if one has even the semblance of a view, one will be called a non-Buddhist.

  但無諸見 即是無邊身 若有見處 即名外道.

  Since the Buddhadharma is originally pristine, it is free from all impediments and is luminous and bright. Therefore, if you say that you have seen something or gained something, you are entrapped in extreme views.

  If you meet the buddha, you kill him; if you meet the patriarch, you kill him; only then can you claim that you share something, however tiny, with Boundless Body Bodhisattva.

  “Non-Buddhists delight in all views; bodhisattvas remain unmoved by all views. A ‘thus come one’ (tathāgata) means the quality of being thus with all dharmas.

  外道者樂於諸見 菩薩於諸見而不動 如來者即諸法如義.

  A “non-Buddhist” refers to one who clings to views and moves one’s mind toward the outside. On the contrary, bodhisattvas are originally just calm and unmoving; they stay silently in accord with the original nature. Bodhisattvas move all day long without ever really moving. A “tathāgata” means that whatever he encounters, he remains always thus; whether rainy or windy, he remains originally thus and unmoving.

  “Therefore, it is said, ‘Maitreya is also thus; all the sages and saints are also thus.’118 Thusness is neither produced nor extinguished; thusness neither sees nor hears. The top of the Tathāgata’s head can be seen completely but also not seen completely. Therefore he does not fall into the limit of ‘completeness.’

  所以云 彌勒亦如也 眾聖賢亦如也 如即無生 如即無滅 如即無見 如即無聞 如來頂即是圓見 亦無圓見故不落圓邊.

  “That which is thus and unmoving” is neither created, changed, nor extinguished; so what causality can it involve? It has nothing to do with either causality or dependent origination. Can people believe that it is constantly in motion and yet has never moved? This is why it is said to be inconceivable. Only when you know its final resting place can you understand it without being disturbed by appearances.

  “Therefore, ‘a buddha’s body is unconditioned and does not capitulate to any numerical category.’119

  所以 佛身無為不墮諸數.

  Like Boundless Body Bodhisattva, a buddha’s body is also limitless: where it begins or ends cannot be determined. Because it has no form, it is the biggest of the big and the smallest of the small. It appears big or small in accordance with the process of dependent origination, but its real characteristic is that it is immeasurable. Therefore you should be able to carefully watch this place right now without succumbing to the two extremes of big and small.

  “Provisionally, it [i.e., a buddha’s body] is compared to empty space.

  It is perfect like the great void,

  without deficiency or redundancy.120

  權以虛空為喩 圓同太虛 無欠無餘.

  “Empty space” refers to the original form before all forms were created. Since its limits cannot be determined, it is compared to empty space.

  The above line is an unattributed quotation from the Third Patriarch Sengcan’s Verses on Faith in Mind.

  “Be at leisure and without concerns. Do not try forcibly to contend that it involves some other realm, for attachment to such rhetoric is what leads to discursive thought.

  等閑無事 莫強辯他境 辯著便成識.

  The three vehicles try to explain it, but the one vehicle directly penetrates into it. This is because this principle cannot be gained through the discriminative mind.

  When a bright-eyed master is asked about the Way, he or she directly reveals the true characteristic of reality that is right before your eyes. In that moment, if you are ready, you will understand it; but if not, the doubt that you have had from the beginning will deepen, making matters worse. Seon meditation stays far removed from discursive thought by emphasizing the importance of doubt.

  “Therefore, it is said,

  Perfection is immersion in the sea of consciousness.

  Cycling through rebirths is like a tumbleweed blown by the wind.121

  所以云 圓成沈識海 流轉若飄蓬.

  Perfection (pariniṣpanna) refers to the original place. When a thought arises in accord with causes and conditions, sentient beings immediately follow it. Then they end up being blown around like tumbleweeds, believing that they have lost the original place.

  This is why the three realms of existence are called the “sea of suffering,” while the original place is the “sea of consciousness.”

  When the principle of nonduality is revealed, the original place is seen to be always as it is, whether delusions have arisen or not.

  The quotation above is taken from Fu Dashi’s verse commentary to the Diamond Sūtra. The line that follows it says: “If you wish to comprehend the acquiescence to the nonproduction [of dharmas] (anutpattikadharmakṣānti),/ eradicate all traces of compounded things that are external to the mind.”

  “You just say, ‘This is what I know, this is what I have learned, this is awakening, this is liberation, this is logical.’ Where you are strong, things go as you wish; where you are weak, things do not go as you wish. What is the use of such persumptions? I say to you: be at leisure and without concerns; do not use your mind aimlessly.

  秖道 我知也 學得也 契悟也 解脫也 有道理也 強處即如意 弱處即不如意 似者箇見解 有什麼用處 我向汝道 等閑無事 莫謾用心.

  You may be calm where you are strong, but if you become shaken by an unexpected occurrence, your practice of Buddhism still has a long ways to go.

  Master Huangbo advised Pei Xiu to let go of all conceptual understanding and focus on nonaction, so that he would not disturb his mind to no avail. Since Pei Xiu experienced a kind of breakthrough in his first encounter with Huangbo, the master asked him to abandon all views and intellectual understanding and return to the originally tranquil and pure mind that is unconditioned.

  “You need not seek truth.

  Just bring views to an end.122

  不用求真 唯須息見.

  The above line is a quotation from Master Sengcan’s Verses on Faith in Mind. If you illuminate the mind just once, let go of ever
ything and check your faith. Discriminative thoughts may arise and mental conflict may develop, but you should let go of conceptual understanding and rely on your faith. The biggest obstacle in your practice is conceptual understanding.

  Therefore, when students practice illuminating the mind, a master tells them to let go of what they have learned — “relinquish doctrine and enter Seon” (sagyo ipseon 捨教入禪).

  “Therefore,

  Inside views and outside views are both wrong.

  The Buddha’s Way and Māra’s way are both evil.123

  所以 內見外見俱錯 佛道魔道俱惡.

  This line is a quote from Master Baozhi’s “Verses in Praise of the Mahāyāna.” Since the Buddhadharma involves both the middle way and the nondual dharma, it is neither inside nor outside. Since we are originally endowed with everything and have nothing new we need to gain, we should neither seek the Buddha nor try to eliminate the demon Māra.

  Afflictions are identical to bodhi; buddha and sentient beings cannot be differentiated. The instant you try to eradicate evil in order to accomplish good, you fall into duality. Therefore the authentic good is the middle way, where the distinctions between good and evil or right and wrong are eradicated.

  “Therefore, Mañjuśrī aroused dualistic views for just a moment and was condemned to the concentric Iron-Ring Mountains.

  所以文殊暫起二見 貶向二鐵圍山.

  This story of Mañjuśrī comes from the Recitations of the Buddhas Sūtra.124 The Iron-Ring Mountains (Cakravāḍa) are places like the hells that demarcate the perimeter of a world system. They are concentric ranges that therefore exist at the edges of the world. The moment the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī generated relative views, he became far removed from the scenery of the original place.

  “Mañjuśrī embodies the wisdom of reality, while Samantabhadra embodies the wisdom of expedients. Expedients and reality counteract each other, but ultimately there is neither expedient nor real; there is only the one mind.

  文殊即實智 普賢即權智 權實相對治 究竟亦無權實 唯是一心.

  Since the buddhas’ appearances produce countless Mañjuśrīs and Samantabhadras, it is natural that Mañjuśrī and Samantabhadra would eventually return to the buddhas. In the ultimate realm, real and expedient both vanish; but the tathāgatas require both real and expedient in order to save sentient beings.

  The ultimate realm is the place of the original characteristic of reality. Even though it is said that one should reach the ultimate realm through applying expedients, from the standpoint of what is fundamental, the ultimate realm is nothing special: right where you are standing is the ultimate realm.

  “The mind, moreover, involves neither buddhas nor sentient beings; it is free from discriminative views. The very moment you create the view that there are buddhas, you also create the view that there are sentient beings.

  心且不佛不眾生 無有異見 纔有佛見 便作眾生見.

  The mind is not a buddha and it is not a sentient being. The moment one thought arises, you become a sentient being. Buddhas and sentient beings are both extreme views, which betray the nondual dharma.

  If you let go of both buddhas and sentient beings, the middle way will appear right in front of you.

  “The view of existence and nonexistence, and the view of eternalism and annihilationism, form concentric Iron-Ring Mountains that sequester you within the obstruction of views. The patriarchs point directly to the fact that the essence of the original mind of all sentient beings is originally a buddha, so it cannot be perfected through provisional practices and is not associated with gradual attainment; it involves neither brightness nor darkness.

  有見無見 常見斷見 便成二鐵圍山 被見障故 祖師直指 一切眾生本心本體本來是佛 不假修成 不屬漸次 不是明暗.

  The Flower Garland Sūtra says, “Mind, buddha, and sentient beings:/ there is no distinction among these three.”125 This is why sentient beings are buddhas.

  The patriarchs only point directly to this fact. They do not try to explain it indirectly, because if they did, they would end up implanting intellectual views in their students. When patriarchs point directly, students either experience realization right then and there, or they at least deepen their sense of doubt, which serves as a catalyst for their sudden awakening.

  The mind is not realized through successive practices or a series of stages. If you cannot digest these words, you will be prone to complaint, saying you’re not even sure whether you are supposed to practice. However, the essential point of Seon practice is right there. As soon as true practitioners hear these words, they understand the reality of the mind, and their practice moves in the right direction.

  “Since it is not bright, there is no-brightness [viz., ignorance]; since it is not dark, there is no-darkness. Therefore, ‘there is no ignorance and also no extinction of ignorance.’126 Whoever enters the gate of our school must have this sort of aspiration. The act of seeing is what is called dharma. Seeing the dharma is what is called buddha. Where both buddha and dharma are nonexistent is what is called saṅgha.

  不是明故無明 不是暗故無暗 所以 無無明 亦無無明盡 入我此宗門 切須在意如此 見得名之為法 見法故名之為佛 佛法俱無名之為僧.

  There is neither brightness nor darkness in empty space. If light shines through it, space is bright; if there is no light, it is dark. But whatever light or darkness there might be, empty space is always just empty. Therefore, in the mind there is originally neither the darkness that is ignorance nor the light that is the extinction of ignorance.

  The mind is brightened or darkened in accordance with causes and conditions. Since it cannot be named, it involves neither the buddha nor the dharma. The situation in which both the buddha and the dharma have disappeared is called the saṅgha. To put this bluntly, those who have not realized truth do not really belong to the saṅgha.

  Being a disciple of the Buddha is a huge responsibility. Seon offers straight talk about this, holding nothing back.

  “This is called the unconditioned saṅgha;127 this is also called the three jewels in their single essence.

  喚作無為僧 亦名一體三寶.

  In the experience of awakening, buddha, dharma, and saṅgha become a single essence that is free from all differentiation. In this moment, there is nothing that can be called buddha, dharma, or saṅgha. If you are in conformity with that nondifferentiation, then you have already taken refuge in the three jewels, whether you are an ordained member of the saṅgha or not.

  “Now, those who seek the dharma should seek it without attachment to buddha, dharma, or congregation; there should be nothing that they seek.128

  夫求法者 不著佛求 不著法求 不著眾求 應無所求

  You awaken to the dharma that has already been revealed; you do not awaken to a dharma that you create anew. If you look correctly and realize the dharma that is right before you, you naturally eradicate the intention to seek anything, without being told, “Do not cling to anything!”

  Therefore Master Yongjia sings in his “Song of Realizing the Way”:

  The leisurely person of the Way who has ceased all learning and has nothing more to do,

  neither removes deluded thoughts nor seeks truth.129

  “Since you seek without attachment to the buddha, there is no buddha; since you seek without attachment to the dharma, there is no dharma; since you seek without attachment to the congregation, there is no saṅgha.”

  不著佛求故無佛 不著法求故無法 不著眾求故無僧.

  The twelve categories of three-vehicle teachings say that you should take refuge in buddha, dharma, and saṅgha. The supreme principle of the one Buddha Vehicle foments no disputes even though it abandons all words and letters, because it is free from literary forms. There is no fixed rule in the Buddha Vehicle; therefore it does not posit even buddha, dharma, or saṅgha.

  Once you accord with the Buddha Vehicle, t
here is nothing to take up or abandon because all things are buddha, dharma, and saṅgha. Before awakening, buddha, dharma, and saṅgha are fantasies; but once you have opened your mind, all things are buddha, dharma, and saṅgha.

  8. The Enlightenment Site of Truth

  Pei Xiu asked, “Master, we see you preaching the dharma right now. How can you say that there is no saṅgha and no dharma?”

  問 和尚見今說法 何得言無僧亦無法.

  Here, Pei Xiu is still enmeshed in language and does not understand the import of Master Huangbo’s words. Therefore Pei Xiu does not understand why the master said there is no dharma and no saṅgha, since, in his eyes, the master obviously was a member of the saṅgha and preached the dharma. This is why he asks this question. Although Pei Xiu comes off as hopelessly incorrigible, it is extremely fortunate that people after him can hear the master’s answers to his questions.

  The master replied, “If you presume that there is a dharma that can be preached, you are ‘seeking me through the sound of my voice.’130

  師云 汝若見有法可說 即是以音聲求我.

  If you delude yourself into thinking that there is a dharma that can be preached, this is what the four-line verse of the Diamond Sūtra implies in calling it the “deviant path,” which means seeking the buddha through his voice.

  One who is a Seon master can put buddhas and demons into the same basket and discard it without leaving a trace.

  “If you presume there is an ‘I,’ then that becomes a locus of clinging. The dharma is also not the dharma; the dharma is the mind.

  若見有我 即是處所 法亦無法 法即是心.

  If you posit that there is an “I” or a “dharma,” you will cling to what is called “I” or “dharma” and get stuck there.

  The Buddhadharma does not abide in anything. The Sixth Patriarch also emphasized nonabiding as being his fundamental principle. Since everything is just mind, there cannot be anything else.