Yueh-shan missed the mark

[ Pulled from website https://terebess.hu/zen/LaymanPang.pdf Title page for pdf is missing ]

DIALOGUES WITH YUEH-SHAN

THE LAYMAN WENT to see Ch'an Master Yueh-shan. Yueh-shan asked him: "Can you put this matter in the One Vehicle?"

"I do nothing each day but seek my fare," said the Layman. "How should I know if it can be put in the One Vehicle?"

"Am I right in saying you didn't see Shih-t'ou?" asked Yueh-shan. "Picking one up and letting one go is not the mark of a skillful-fellow," returned the Layman. "As head of the temple," said Yueh-shan, "I have many matters to attend to." "Take care of yourself," said the Layman and started out. "Picking one up and letting one go is the very mark of a skillful fellow," said Yueh-shan. "That great question on the One Vehicle has gotten lost," said the Layman. "Yes, yes," agreed Yueh-shan.

Yueh-shan Wei-yen (745-828) studied under Shih-t'ou, whose Dharma heir he became, and probably also under Ma-tsu. See p. 96, n. 6, for further biographical details. 11. Skt. Ekayana: the single vehicle or final teaching, embracing both the Mahayana and Theravada, which leads all beings to Buddha-hood, as emphasized in the Lotus Sutra. Cf. Miura and Sasaki, p. S89.

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Windrake eat popcorn and enjoys the show commentary:

"can you put the matter into one vehicle" Looks like Yueh-shan is setting a trap for the layman, cause like like who the hell in their right mind thinks they can? The layman responds honestly by saying basically I am but a man how should I know? Or maybe 'seek my fare' is metaphor for not ignoring causation in any case I get the sense layman saw it as a silly question.

" Picking one up and letting one go" could be thought of as a 'what is priori' type trope, the doer or the done. Yueh-shan believes it is skill based on cultivation, namley his skill as an abbot ie the doer, laymen thinks he missed the mark which then points us right back to the original question " can you put the matter in one vehicle" If it is no doer or done what the hell is it- More Mu stuff it seems.

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I also like how Layman assess the great vehicle question has been lost, as if to say it is the working with the question that matters more then the answer. We DO zen as in zen is alive. If you believe this to be acceptable how did Yueh-shan's comments die?

Submitted November 21, 2018 at 09:53AM by windDrakeHex https://ift.tt/2zjj98C