These are excerpts from Dahui's epic conclusion to the Treasury of the Eye of True Teaching. It's a very long lecture, so I chose a few parts from the first half to discuss.
An ancient said, "Great knowledge has no discrimination, great function has no pattern or preoccupation. It is like the moon reflected in a thousand rivers, like waves going along with a multitude of waters." Now then, which is the great knowledge that has no discrimination? Which is the great function that has no pattern or preoccupation? Is it not that eloquence like a waterfall that gives ten answers to every question is great knowledge? Is it not that things like coarse words and fine saying all referring to ultimate truth, overturning seats, scattering crowds with shouts, giving a slap across the jaw, abruptly leaving, immediately blocking as soon as there is hesitation thinking are great function? If you make this kind of interpretation, don't say you're a patchrobed monk; you can't even be a menial picking up sandals and lugging a sack of antiques in the school of patchrobed monks.
How is great function questioned? How is it discerned? There are no patterns in it, no distinguishing characteristics. Elucidating ultimate truth is only reference and representation. It's never not present. When it's pointed out, that's not it; when it's demonstrated, it's missed.
This matter is very difficult; when immeasurably great people get here, they have no place to plant their feet. You devils with small faculties and no knowledge, how dare you carelessly open your mouth? Try sitting in quietude assessing minutely - in your heart, have you actually arrived at a state where you do not doubt? If you haven't yet really arrived, on the other hand I would commend your letting go and holding still, not letting yourself be diverted by other people. Those who do this sort of thing are called the dregs of hell.
This is something known only to ourselves. Why be diverted by others? Taking up judgement and doubt toward others is manifesting the dregs of hell. Worry about yourself. Sit in quietude and assess minutely until you have no more doubt. Then what use are the opinions and pretenses of others? Just let go and hold still.
If you want such accord right now, it is not difficult; just be equanimous in mind, unaffected by anything. What is affectation? Formulating concepts of sentient beings, concepts of Buddha, concepts of the mundane, concepts of the transcendental, concepts of seeking detachment, concepts of seeking enlightened knowledge. These are all called affectations. Just concentrate intensely on the brink of arousal, and leap out in one jump - this mind will be clear, independently liberated. Then as soon as you sense this, turn upward, and you will spontaneously be lucid everywhere; it will be evident in everything.
This is great function. It's not difficult. It's with us right now. It shines through Dahui's words only as they're interpreted; non-judgemental awareness fully present and unaffected. Concentrate intensely on it, before the conceptual arises, and lucidity is unavoidable. How have you managed to avoid it?
When you manage to reach such a state, don't keep taking note of it. If you keep taking note of it, then you'll have an object of esteem. As soon as you have an object of esteem, this mind leaks. This is just called a leaking mind, not an equanimous mind.
It's unrecognized and unesteemed. As soon as it's identified it's lost.
Equanimity means equanimous toward good and bad, equanimous toward turning away and turning to, equanimous toward principle and phenomena, equanimous toward ordinary and holy, equanimous toward the finite and the infinite, equanimous toward substance and function. This principle is only known to those who realize it experientially. If you haven't realized experientially, you simply must get experiential realization. Only when you're attained experiential realization can you be called real home leavers. If your mind does not experience realization and you grasp realization outside of mind, this is called an outsider who has left home; you are not fit to be a monk.
This is all there is to it, really. Why all the challenges and affectations? Either you're equanimous or you aren't. Experiential realization is required. If it's absent, of what use are so many questions and answers? Of what use are our interpretations of sayings and discussions about koans? Dahui is telling us here explicitly what to do. It's imperative to directly realize total equanimity of non-dual consciousness. Only then is Zen understood.
When you see this said, don't then dismiss cause and effect and do hellish deeds, calling constant unconcern having no view of Buddhism, eating when hungry and sleeping when tired and taking this to be having no practice and realization, considering this to be effortlessness. Don't misunderstand: to bear this thing you have to be totally strong, cast of raw iron - how could it be taken up carelessly by your small faculties and small capacity?
This is hard to bear...don't form concepts of Zen...or dhyana...or the great function...or the Dharmakaya...yet still it must be understood and taken up. Confirming to ourselves that no practice is the way...no realization is the way...is misunderstanding. "Chopping wood and carrying water" has nothing to do with it. These are just guiding phrases. Constant and effortless equanimity is not something to be thought about and applied. It's a practice of immersive direct experience, and the moment it's recognized is the moment it's scattered into a billion pieces and spread throughout the whole universe. You have to be a raw piece of cast iron; our pathetic little faculties cannot even fathom it. What do you have to say about it?
Dahui was outstanding.
Submitted February 23, 2023 at 10:46PM by patchrobe https://ift.tt/ihZHxLE
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