The Blue Cliff Record: Only adepts can handle devices outside of patterns.

The Blue Cliff Record: Ta Lung's Hard and Fast Body of Reality [82nd Case]

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POINTER

Only those with eyes can know the fishing line. Only adepts can handle devices outside of patterns. But say, what is the fishing line? What are devices beyond patterns? To test I'm citing this old case: look!

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CASE

A monk asked Ta Lung, "The physical body rots away: what is the hard and fast body of reality?"¹

Lung said, "The mountain flowers bloom like brocade, the valley streams are brimming blue as indigo."²

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NOTES

1. His statement makes them into two. Still, it's all right to separate them.

2. A flute with no holes hitting against a felt-pounding board. The whole cannot be broken apart. When someone comes from one end of the province, I go to the other end.

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Wandering Ronin commentary: Here's that old wild fox spirit Wandering Ronin again; I wonder what he's up to this time? What trouble will he cause for the good little patchrobed monks, bound to their reasoning and book-learning? He was a real bastard yesterday, let's hold him accountable for his crimes!

Subhuti, I tell you in all earnestness that concepts are concepts, and form is form... what good are they? What concerns me is not what you think about me or your being bound to the concepts of what I say; I'm interested in the Zen rowdies, the dragons of the depths and the tigers of the mountains, and the roaming wild fox spirits among you. Doesn't anyone here have any spirit or vigor left? Are any of you brave enough to say a few unskillful words to reveal the underlying principle?

Tell me, when Ta Lung said, "The mountain flowers bloom like brocade, the valley streams are brimming blue as indigo," in response to the monk's question, was he simply being flippant or irreverent or was there something else? What did you make of Ta Lung's words? Careful; the Dharma spills form the mouths of thieves and liars just the same as Bodhidharma himself.

Submitted September 02, 2019 at 07:12PM by WanderingRoninXIII https://ift.tt/2HEg4nO