Linji obligingly went in to see Master Huangbo, and asked him the standard opener: “What is the meaning of Bodhidharma’s coming from the West?”
Huangbo gave Linji a blow with his stick. Linji fled, perplexed, and asked another monk for advice. The monk told Linji to persist. But two more times Linji questioned Huangbo, and two more times he was hit with the stick.
Linji walked to another monastery nearby, and told the master there of his plight. The master said “Huangbo treated you with great compassion. He merely wanted to relieve your distress.”
Linji suddenly understood Huangbo’s transmission, and could not contain his joy. He said, “So there’s nothing to Huangbo’s Buddhism at all!”
The master grabbed him and asked “What now did you just realize? Speak quickly!”
Linji hit the master in the ribs three times with his fist. The master said, “Leave me, for your teacher is Huangbo.”
Linji returned to Master Huangbo, who asked him, “Why have you returned so soon?”
Linji replied, “It is because you’ve been so kind to me that I returned so quickly.” And Linji told Huangbo what the other master had said.
”What a big mouth, that master. I’ll have to hit him with my stick,” said Huangbo.
At which Linji shouted, “I’ll give it to you!” and slapped Huangbo across the face.
Huangbo said, “You dare to pull the tiger’s whiskers?” Linji gave a shout.
Satisfied, Huangbo smiled, called an attendant, and said, “Take this crazy fool back to the assembly hall.”
Submitted March 04, 2018 at 02:44AM by mister_mirror http://ift.tt/2oGlWnb
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