"Broken Pole to Enlightenment"
Zen Master Tianyi Yihuai (993-1064 AD), a native of Yueqing, Yongjia, Zhejiang, with a common surname Chen. He has been talented since childhood and has good roots. His family made a living by fishing for generations, and he often followed his father to sea at a young age. My father hit the fish and asked him to wear it. He always pretended to miss it and let the fish slide back into the sea. After more times, my father found out that he did it on purpose, so he beat him hard in anger. But he didn't mind at all, and he remained calm. Whenever he saw the caught fish shake his head and wagging his tail and swim away with his help, he was very happy, and his father's fists and feet seemed less fierce.
When he grew up, Yihuai went to Jingde Temple in the capital to do a child's move. During the Tiansheng period, he passed the strict sutra and theories examination and officially became a monk. Yihuai is thin and tall, with a pretty face and elegant temperament. He walks slowly among the crowd, as if standing out in a flock of chickens. At that time, there was a magical monk who practiced the Lotus Sutra in the capital. He met Yihuai in the market and stroked his back and said, "Yunmen, Linji go."
Yihuai did not understand his intention, so he politely asked for advice. The eminent monk said, "Are you supposed to promote Zen? You have done it, don't stay here."
From then on, Yihuai began his career in Yunshui with "a bowl of rice for a thousand families, traveling alone for thousands of miles." He first traveled thousands of miles to Jingzhou and visited Zen Master Jinluanshan, but the fate was not in line with him. I went to see the famous monk Ye County of Linji, who returned to the province, but still could not understand the path to Zen. He went on and on, and came to Gusu to visit Master Xuedou Chongxian, the ancestor of Yunmen Zhongxing, who was the abbot of Cuifeng at the time.
As soon as they met, Master Chongxian asked, "What's your name?"
He replied Yihuai. Chongxian suddenly stirred up huge waves: "Why not Huaiyi?"
Yihuai was confused and said in a daze: "This was taken at that time."
Chongxian continued to use Zen to guide you: "Who made a name for you?"
Yihuai said: "I have been taking
the precepts for ten years." "How much straw sandals have you paid for?"
Yihuai heard Chongxian mocking him for spending money on straw sandals in vain, and said: "Monk, don't hide it from others."
Chongxian smiled and said: "I have committed countless sins, and you have committed countless sins, how do you understand?"
At this point, Yihuai was confused, and he was speechless. Xuedou Chongxian beat the Zen stick in his hand mercilessly and scolded, "You guy who speaks lies out of nothing, go out!"
The next day, Yihuai, who was unwilling to accept it, came to the abbot again. Chongxian asked, "This is not possible, it is not possible if it is not possible, it is not possible if it is not possible."
Yihuai was thinking about how to answer, and the Zen staff of Chongxian had already fallen on his head. He was beaten out again in a daze. In the face of Xuedou Chongxian's clever and sharp blow test, Yi Huai's original sutras and theories was not useful at all. He deeply realized that he did not understand his true nature and did not understand his own mind. Even if there were thousands of words, he could not say a word here. He deeply felt that his blessings and wisdom were insufficient, so he took the initiative to ask to be a water head - a shoulder pole and two buckets, responsible for supplying water for the entire temple.
One day, he drank two large buckets of water, tremblingly carried it on his shoulders, and walked towards the temple along the winding path. The mountain road is bumpy and rugged, so his mind is at his feet. Suddenly, the shoulder pole broke from it, and a "boom" sounded and the bucket fell to the ground, splashing everywhere...
At that moment, Yihuai's unprepared mind was empty and he suddenly realized!
This is really "the bottom of the barrel falls off, and the heavy burden is lifted off." Four lines of poetry gush out from the heart like a fountain:
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven,
Wanren Peak stands alone at the head.
The dragon snatches the pearl under the chin,
Vimalakirti was discovered in one sentence.
After hearing this, Xuedou Chongxian slapped the table and praised him for his goodness, recognized his realm of enlightenment, and listed him as the descendant of Yunmen.
Soon, Yi Huai was like a young eagle, spreading his wings and flying away from his master's warm love nest, and soaring alone in the vast and vast sky. His abbot was at the Tiefo Temple in Wuwei Army (now Wuwei County, Anhui) and promoted Yunmen Zen.
My son is worried about his mother who is traveling thousands of miles away, and his beloved disciple is worried about his hiking master. After Yihuai said goodbye, Xuedou Chongxian never heard of him, and he couldn't help but think about it all the time - not because he was worried about his safety, but because he didn't know how his practice was. One day, a Zen monk came from the Huai River and said that Yihuai had been born in the Iron Buddha Temple. The Zen style was vast and Zen monks from all directions gathered in the world. Xuedou Chongxian asked him to speak Yihuai's words, and the monk's teachings said: "Yihuai went to the hall and said: 'Swear is like a geese passing by the sky, and the shadow sinks into the cold water; the geese have no trace, and the water has no heart to leave shadows.'"
Chongxian couldn't help but applaud, saying this was like he was his own, and he specially sent a waiter to express his condolences to Yihuai.
Later, Yihuai moved from Tiefo Temple to Tianyi Mountain in Yuezhou (now Shaoxing, Zhejiang). In a desolate area, he built a pavilion on the ground, built a Buddhist palace on the wild mountain, sang the Yunmen song, and promoted the Zen of the Sixth Patriarch.
The disciple asked, "What is Buddha?"
Tianyi Yihuai said, "The hair covers the mud, and lie on the ground."
It is said that when Shakyamuni was working as a Bodhisattva, he saw a pool of mud on the road that Lan Deng Buddha was about to pass, so he spread his hair on the mud and let Lan Deng Buddha step by.
Of course, the disciple knew this allusion and asked, "What is the meaning?"
Tianyi Yihuai said, "Ren Shimashima (the biggest devil) also frowned."
The disciple bowed and said, "In this way, thank you for your instructions."
"This land of the West." Yihuai interpreted the Former Method in a very popular way. The disciple had a sudden inspiration and said, "Disciple comes up and asks Master to preach."
"Birds roar in the forest, fish roam under the water."
This is Buddhism! Buddhism is the true meaning of nature and the origin of life. In the forest, birds and fishes, nature is Buddhism; in the forest, birds and fishes, nature is Buddhism.
Tianyi Yihuai went to the hall and said, "The Zen monks talked horizontally, but they didn't know that they had a look on the top of the door."
A Zen monk immediately asked, "What is the upper eye of the top door?"
Yihuai smiled and said humorously: "I wear thin clothes and reveal my bones, and the house is broken and I see the star sleep."
He means to be at ease and follow nature. Seeing that the Zen monk didn't understand, he gave an example: "The banana tree heard thunder blooming, and the sunflowers turned with the sun. Everyone, do you still have ears when the banana tree heard thunder blooming, and do you still have eyes when the sunflowers turned with the sun? If you can understand, the West is this land."
Sunflowers, sunflowers, sunflowers look to the sun. It’s not that sunflower has eyes but does it deliberately, everything is caused by nature. Similarly, when practicing Zen, you must be natural and let it go.
In response to the method of "driven the ox of the farmer and grab the food of the hungry people" used by Zen forest at that time, Zen Master Tianyi Yihuai said: "I neither turn stones into gold nor turn gold into earth. Why? Gold is gold, earth is earth, jade is jade, stone is stone, monks are monks, and secular people are vulgar. In ancient times, today, ancient and modern land, ancient and modern moon, ancient and modern mountains and rivers, ancient and modern human relations have not changed. Even so, how many people can meet Bodhidharma during the lost path after breaking the Great San Pass?"
He also said: "Don't truncate the long legs of the crane, and connect the short legs of the duck; do not scatter the mountains and fill the ravines."
For thousands of years, the country has been filled with long-legged cranes, and the short-legged wild ducks have clear waves; the mountains are tall and straight, and the ravines are deep, which is natural and effortless.
In the Dharma Hall, Tianyi Yihuai talks about Zen with the scenery: "The green radish climbs up to the top of the cold pine; the white clouds are clear and pure, and appear between the Taixu. How is this statement compared to the rain in the south mountain and the north mountain? If you can understand it, the melon will be sweet in the stems; if you don't understand it, the bitter gourd will be bitter in the roots."
Tianyun Yihuai lived in Chiyang Shanshan Caoan in his later years. One day, he urged his disciple Fo Rizhicai to return quickly. Zhicai just entered the door, and Yihuai said, "The time is up, I'm leaving."
Zhicai knew that Master was about to die, so he asked, "Do you have anything to tell me?" Tianyi Yihuai said:
The red sun shines on Fusang, and the cold clouds seal the Huayue.
After the third update, the iron surround was passed and the black dragon horn was broken.
Zhicai asked again: "The egg tower has been completed, what's the matter after all?"
Yi Huai showed it with his fist. Then he lay down on his side and went to bed, pushing the pillow away.
Reader: Shi Zhengdong Wu
Zen Master Tianyi Yihuai broke his shoulder pole and realized the truth, just as he later raised it: Zen is natural and never leaves the world. In the history of starry Zen Buddhism, many Zen masters were enlightened in their ordinary lives.
Since he returned to Zen Master, he traveled thousands of miles to Zen Master Yuanjing’s temple to practice Zen and study Buddhism. Then I knew that Yuan Jing just assigned him to clean the courtyard and do some miscellaneous work. Later, the temple wanted to create Buddha statues. The craftsmanship of self-returning, which was born as a stonemason, came in handy - go to the cliff to make stones!
If I had known whether to become a monk or a stone, would I become a monk if I had returned?
The scorching sun was in the sky, and there was no blockage in the mountains. A fire-like sunlight flowed down and poured on the back of the self-returning spine. The top is roasted, and the stones below are as scalded as hot pans for fried fish, then they will be tortured fish. However, he was a live fish, dancing with his hands and feet - chiseling stones and opening his lips - reciting scriptures.
The sound of chiseling stones echoed in the valley, and the Buddhist scriptures lingered in his heart. Zen Master Yuanjing has been standing behind him for a long time, and he has never noticed it. Yuan Jing picked up a piece of stone slag and said, "I will chisel the stone today, and I will chisel the stone tomorrow. How can I chisel it when life and death come?"
When I heard this, I hurriedly put down my hammer and the turtle, worshiped my master, and asked him to teach the Dharma. Zen Master Yuanjing said, "Come with me to the abbot."
When he returned to the abbot, Zen Master Yuanjing did not say anything about Buddhism, but just replied, "You don't need to recite scriptures for the time being. Reciting ten thousand sutras will leave half of your mind."
I didn't understand why I didn't let the chants, and Yuanjing didn't explain it clearly, so he still chanted the scriptures while chanting. You should know that he could not read and finally memorize a "Lotus Sutra". How could he give up?
One day, he picked a piece of good stone with a texture of jade. If he used it to carve a Buddha statue, it would be beautiful. Good stone must be extremely hard. He was concentrating on himself - of course he forgot to recite scriptures, pulled the rack, raised the hammer high, and smashed it down with all his life -
"Bong!"
Sparks splashed on the stone, stars in his eyes, and the tiger's mouth was numb and swollen, but he didn't care about all this, and ran towards the temple - because in that unintentional moment, he realized it. He broke into the abbot and said to Zen Master Yuanjing, "I tried my best and I had no bare nose. The fire broke out, it was here."
In ancient times, a Zen monk followed his master to learn to sit in meditation. Whenever he entered into meditation, a very huge spider came out to make trouble with him. Again and again, the spider made him unable to practice. The ancestors once said, "The Buddha comes to the Buddha and the demon comes to the demon." So he said to his master, "When the spider comes to the trouble with me again, I will kill it!"
The master asked him where to start? He said he stabbed the spider hard in the center of the big belly. The master said, "At that time, I'm afraid you won't be able to stab it. This way, when you sit in meditation, when the spider comes out, you can mark the belly with a pen and stab it with a knife next time."
The Zen monk was very obedient and nodded seriously. When he was meditating again, he held a pen in his hand. After sitting up, the annoying big spider appeared again. The Zen monk looked at the center of its belly and quickly drew a circle. It's strange that he just drew it and the spider disappeared. The Zen monk sat in a stable and comfortable position, the Zen joy moistened the heart, and the joy of Dharma was filled with joy.
The wooden fish in the open-minded ringed, and he slowly came out of the concentration. The master came over and asked him what he was doing? He said, make a mark and kill the spider when it comes again. Because without it making trouble, you can enter into meditation with peace of mind. The master smiled and said, "I already know where the spider came from." As he said that, he pointed to the Zen monk's belly.
The Zen monk lowered his head, and it turned out that the circle he had drawn on the spider's belly suddenly appeared around his belly button!
The Zen monk suddenly realized that the big spider at the time of meditation did not come from the outside world, but from his heart. When the mind arises, all kinds of dharmas arise. When the mind is destroyed, all kinds of dharmas are destroyed. Everything is created by the mind!
Master Yunfeng Wenyue went to worship the great elder of Linji Sect, Dayu Shouzhi. Dayu Shouzhi asked him, "What are you doing here?"
Wen Yue said that he was the way to seek Zen. Dayu Shouzhi said, "The wheel of Dharma has not turned, the wheel of food has turned first. You are a young and strong person. Why don't you beg for some food for everyone while you are young and strong? I can't bear the hunger, so how can I have time to talk about Zen for you!"
Wen Yue did not dare to go against Master's will, and went down the mountain every day, beg for alms everywhere, and supply the food needed by the temple. Soon, Zen Master Dayu Shouzhi moved to Cuiyan Mountain. After Wen Yue finished his work, he found Cuiyan and asked for advice. Zen Master Shouzhi said: "You don't see the houses where monks live in ventilated everywhere. In this cold and frozen winter, the wind and snow are getting cold and the cold air is so cold that you should go and beg for the public to transform into a fire and spend the winter."
Wen Yue had no choice but to brave the biting cold wind to go down the mountain to beg...
Finally, he raised enough charcoal for wintering. Wen Yue came to Zen Master Shouzhi for the third time to ask about Zen. But Shouzhi said, "Buddhism is not afraid of rotting in my stomach. Now there is no one in charge of the hall, so please help me serve as the incense lantern."
Although Wen Yue agreed, she felt so wronged in her heart. Why does this old monk who teases others always refuse to teach his mind?
Wen Yue felt cold and came to the toilet listlessly to relieve her hands. He sat absent-mindedly on the toilet bucket, and the bucket hoop suddenly loosened. He fell from the wooden frame...
The lightning was shining and fire, and Wen Yue suddenly realized it!
It was not until this time that Wen Yue realized the wonder of Dayu Shouzhi's guide to scholars. He washed away the dirt on his body, put on a big red cassock, and came to the abbot. When Zen Master Shouzhi saw him, he laughed and said, "Vina, congratulations on your big deal!"
Wen Yue kowtowed to Master respectfully.