The Ultimate Path is Without Difficulty

Blue Cliff Record: Case II

Chao Chou, teaching the assembly, said, "The Ultimate Path is without difficulty; just avoid picking and choosing. As soon as there are words spoken, "this is picking and choosing," "this is clarity." This old monk does not abide within clarity; do you still preserve anything or not?"

At that time a certain monk asked, "Since you do not abide within clarity, what do you preserve?"

Chao Chou replied, "I don't know either."

The monk said, "Since you don't know, Teacher, why do you nevertheless say that you do not abide within clarity?"

Chao Chou said, "It is enough to ask about the matter; bow and withdraw."

From Yuanwu's Pointer:

To say the word "Buddha" is trailing mud and dripping water; to say the word "Ch'an" is a face full of shame.

I really like this quote because it sums up so many cases. Let's talk about Zen attitude.

Chao Chou says "This old monk does not abide within clarity," yet our clever monk attempts to bind him using logic and quotes. Yuanwu says "When you're riveted down or stuck in glue, what can you do?" You can't move from where you are, a strong breeze can knock you off your feet, and you've already stumbled past the point.

Yuanwu says:

People these days who practice meditation and ask about the Path, if they do not remain within picking and choosing, then they settle down within clarity...All of you people tell me, since he is not within clarity, where is Chao Chou?

Where is the Chao Chou to be got? This is why Chao Chou is the king of Dharma combat; non-abiding means win or lose, right or wrong, Chao Chou will not be embarrassed by those who believe they can cause them to fundamentally lose their bearings of who they are. Chao Chou is not confused about who they are.

By comparison, let's look at BCR 98:

When the Master of T'ien P'ing was travelling on foot, he called on Hsi Yuan. He always would say, "Do not say you understand the Buddhist Teaching; I cannot find a single man who can quote a saying."

One day Hsi Yuan saw him from a distance and called him by name: "Ts'ung Yi!"

P'ing raised his head: Hsi Yuan said, "Wrong!" P'ing went two or three steps; Hsi Yuan again said, "Wrong!" P'ing approached; Hsi Huan said, "These two wrongs just now: were they my wrongs or your wrongs?"

P'ing said, "My wrongs."

Hsi Yuan said, "Wrong!" P'ing gave up. Hsi Yuan said, "Stay here for the summer and wait for me to discuss these two wrongs with you.

But P'ing immediately went away. Later, when he was dwelling in a temple, he said to his community, "When I was first travelling on foot, I was blown by the wind of events to Elder Ssu Ming's place: twice in a row he said 'Wrong!' and tried to keep me there over the summer to wait for him to deal with me. I did not say it was wrong then; when I set out for the South, I already knew that it was wrong."

P'ing has picked his "correct" teaching, and it's a cute one we see all too often; nobody understands what the Buddha is teaching. Hsi sees P'ing's statue of Zen and compassionately attempts to knock it over. We can see by the end that doesn't help; P'ing's certainty made it easy to drag them around by the nose (see various admonitions against cults in this subreddit).

By comparison, Chao Chou is doing chill-bro aikido when he says "It is enough to ask about the matter; bow and withdraw," because he knew he had no firm ground when he opened his mouth, so the monk interlocutor might assuredly be clever, he cannot trip Chao Chou because Chao Chou could easily adjust to the shifting ground.

We can look at Yuanwu at length (my emphasis:

This monk coming forth was undeniably extraordinary; he got ahold of Chao Chou's gap and proceeded to press him: "Since you do not abide within clarity, what do you preserve?" Chao Chou never used the staff or the shout; he just said, "I don't know either." When being pressed by that (monk), anyone but this old fellow would time and again be at a loss. Fortunately this old fellow Chao Chou had freedom to turn himself around in, so he answered him like this. Many followers of Ch'an these days will also say when asked, "I don't know either; I don't understand." Nevertheless, though they are on the same road, they are not in the same groove.

The "many followers of Ch'an these days" are in P'ing's groove, not Chao Chou's.

The Third Patriarch's Seal of Faith in the Heart says:

The Ultimate Path is without difficulty;/Just avoid picking and choosing./Just don't love or hate,/And you'll be lucid and clear."

Yuanwu finishes their discussion of the verse with these lines:

Tell me, how did Hsueh Tou help people when he said, "Picking and choosing? Clarity? See for yourself!"? He had already created this complicated verse; why then did he say "See for yourself"? Tell me, what was his true meaning? Don't say you can't understand. At this point, even I simply cannot understand either.

Easy? Hard? Here is something to ponder on while you choose:

Treasury of the Eye of True Teaching #151

Master Zhaozhou said, "This matter is clearly evident - even immeasurably great people can't get out of here."

When I went to Guishan, I saw a monk ask, "What is the meaning of the Chan founder's coming from the West?" Guishan said, "Bring me a chair." If one is a real Chan master one has to deal with people on the basis of one's own state.

At that time a certain monk asked, "What is the meaning of the Chan founder's coming from the West?"

Zhaozhou said, "The cypress tree in the yard."

The monk said, "Don't use objects to teach people."

Zhaozhou said, "I'm not using objects to teach people."

"So what is the meaning of the Chan founder's coming from the West?"

"The cypress tree in the yard."

Later Fayan asked Master Guangxiao Jiao, "Where have you come from most recently?"

Jiao said, "Zhaozhou."

Fayan said, "I hear Zhaozhou has a saying, the cypress tree in the yard. Is this so?"

Jiao said, "No."

Fayan said, "Everyone who passes through here says a monk asked Zhaozhou what the meaning of the Chan founder's coming from the West is, and Zhaozhou said, The cypress tree in the yard. How can you deny this?

Jiao said, "The late teacher really said no such thing. Please don't slander the late teacher."

Submitted August 29, 2020 at 03:49PM by surupamaerl https://ift.tt/2QzS4X1