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1 ZEN TEXTS dbet Beta PDF Version 2017 All Rights Reserved

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3 BDK English Tripi aka 73-III, 98-VIII, 98-IX, 104-I ZEN TEXTS Essentials of the Transmission of Mind (Taishø Volume 48, Number 2012-A) Translated from the Chinese by John R. McRae A Treatise on Letting Zen Flourish to Protect the State (Taishø Volume 80, Number 2543) Translated from the Japanese by Gishin Tokiwa A Universal Recommendation for True Zazen (Taishø Volume 82, Number 2580) Translated from the Japanese by Osamu Yoshida Advice on the Practice of Zazen (Taishø Volume 82, Number 2586) Translated from the Japanese by Steven Heine Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research 2005

4 ± 2005 by Bukkyø Dendø Kyøkai and Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transcribed in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher. First Printing, 2005 ISBN: Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: Published by Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research 2620 Warring Street Berkeley, California Printed in the United States of America

5 A Message on the Publication of the English Tripi aka The Buddhist canon is said to contain eighty-four thousand di erent teachings. I believe that this is because the Buddha s basic approach was to prescribe a di erent treatment for every spiritual ailment, much as a doctor prescribes a di erent medicine for every medical ailment. Thus his teachings were always appropriate for the particular su ering individual and for the time at which the teaching was given, and over the ages not one of his prescriptions has failed to relieve the su ering to which it was addressed. Ever since the Buddha s Great Demise over twenty-five hundred years ago, his message of wisdom and compassion has spread throughout the world. Yet no one has ever attempted to translate the entire Buddhist canon into English throughout the history of Japan. It is my greatest wish to see this done and to make the translations available to the many English-speaking people who have never had the opportunity to learn about the Buddha s teachings. Of course, it would be impossible to translate all of the Buddha s eighty-four thousand teachings in a few years. I have, therefore, had one hundred thirty-nine of the scriptural texts in the prodigious Taishø edition of the Chinese Buddhist canon selected for inclusion in the First Series of this translation project. It is in the nature of this undertaking that the results are bound to be criticized. Nonetheless, I am convinced that unless someone takes it upon himself or herself to initiate this project, it will never be done. At the same time, I hope that an improved, revised edition will appear in the future. It is most gratifying that, thanks to the e orts of more than a hundred Buddhist scholars from the East and the West, this monumental project has finally gotten o the ground. May the rays of the Wisdom of the Compassionate One reach each and every person in the world. NUMATA Yehan Founder of the English August 7, 1991 Tripi aka Project v

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7 Editorial Foreword In January 1982, Dr. NUMATA Yehan, the founder of the Bukkyø Dendø Kyøkai (Society for the Promotion of Buddhism), decided to begin the monumental task of translating the complete Taishø edition of the Chinese Tripi aka (Buddhist canon) into the English language. Under his leadership, a special preparatory committee was organized in April By July of the same year, the Translation Committee of the English Tripi aka was o cially convened. The initial Committee consisted of the following members: (late) HANAYAMA Shøy (Chairperson), (late) BANDØ Shøjun, ISHIGAMI Zennø, (late) KAMATA Shigeo, KANAOKA Sh y, MAYEDA Sengaku, NARA Yasuaki, (late) SAYEKI Shinkø, (late) SHIOIRI Ryøtatsu, TAMARU Noriyoshi, (late) TAMURA Kwansei, URYÁZU Ry shin, and YUYAMA Akira. Assistant members of the Committee were as follows: KANAZAWA Atsushi, WATANABE Shøgo, Rolf Giebel of New Zealand, and Rudy Smet of Belgium. After holding planning meetings on a monthly basis, the Committee selected one hundred thirty-nine texts for the First Series of translations, an estimated one hundred printed volumes in all. The texts selected are not necessarily limited to those originally written in India but also include works written or composed in China and Japan. While the publication of the First Series proceeds, the texts for the Second Series will be selected from among the remaining works; this process will continue until all the texts, in Japanese as well as in Chinese, have been published. Frankly speaking, it will take perhaps one hundred years or more to accomplish the English translation of the complete Chinese and Japanese texts, for they consist of thousands of works. Nevertheless, as Dr. NUMATA wished, it is the sincere hope of the Committee that this project will continue unto completion, even after all its present members have passed away. vii

8 Editorial Foreword It must be mentioned here that the final object of this project is not academic fulfillment but the transmission of the teaching of the Buddha to the whole world in order to create harmony and peace among humankind. To that end, the translators have been asked to minimize the use of explanatory notes of the kind that are indispensable in academic texts, so that the attention of general readers will not be unduly distracted from the primary text. Also, a glossary of selected terms is appended to aid in understanding the text. To my great regret, however, Dr. NUMATA passed away on May 5, 1994, at the age of ninety-seven, entrusting his son, Mr. NUMATA Toshihide, with the continuation and completion of the Translation Project. The Committee also lost its able and devoted Chairperson, Professor HANAYAMA Shøy, on June 16, 1995, at the age of sixty-three. After these severe blows, the Committee elected me, then Vice President of Musashino Women s College, to be the Chair in October The Committee has renewed its determination to carry out the noble intention of Dr. NUMATA, under the leadership of Mr. NUMATA Toshihide. The present members of the Committee are MAYEDA Sengaku (Chairperson), ISHIGAMI Zennø, ICHISHIMA Shøshin, KANAOKA Sh y, NARA Yasuaki, TAMARU Noriyoshi, URYÁZU Ry shin, YUYAMA Akira, Kenneth K. Tanaka, WATANABE Shøgo, and assistant member YONEZAWA Yoshiyasu. The Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research was established in November 1984, in Berkeley, California, U.S.A., to assist in the publication of the BDK English Tripi aka First Series. In December 1991, the Publication Committee was organized at the Numata Center, with Professor Philip Yampolsky as the Chairperson. To our sorrow, Professor Yampolsky passed away in July In February 1997, Dr. Kenneth K. Inada became Chair and served in that capacity until August The current Chair, Dr. Francis H. Cook, has been continuing the work since October All of the remaining texts will be published under the supervision of this Committee, in close cooperation with the Editorial Committee in Tokyo. viii MAYEDA Sengaku Chairperson Editorial Committee of the BDK English Tripi aka

9 Publisher s Foreword The Publication Committee shares with the Editorial Committee the responsibility of realizing the vision of Dr. Yehan Numata, founder of Bukkyø Dendø Kyøkai, the Society for the Promotion of Buddhism. This vision is no less than to make the Buddha s teaching better known throughout the world, through the translation and publication in English of the entire collection of Buddhist texts compiled in the Taishø Shinsh Daizøkyø, published in Tokyo in the early part of the twentieth century. This huge task is expected to be carried out by several generations of translators and may take as long as a hundred years to complete. Ultimately, the entire canon will be available to anyone who can read English and who wishes to learn more about the teaching of the Buddha. The present generation of sta members of the Publication Committee includes Marianne Dresser; Reverend Brian Nagata, president of the Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Berkeley, California; Eisho Nasu; and Reverend Kiyoshi Yamashita. The Publication Committee is headquartered at the Numata Center and, working in close cooperation with the Editorial Committee, is responsible for the usual tasks associated with preparing translations for publication. In October 1999, I became the third chairperson of the Publication Committee, on the retirement of its very capable former chair, Dr. Kenneth K. Inada. The Committee is devoted to the advancement of the Buddha s teaching through the publication of excellent translations of the thousands of texts that make up the Buddhist canon. Francis H. Cook Chairperson Publication Committee ix

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11 Contents A Message on the Publication of the English Tripi aka NUMATA Yehan v Editorial Foreword MAYEDA Sengaku vii Publisher s Foreword Francis H. Cook ix Zen Texts Essentials of the Transmission of Mind Contents 3 Translator s Introduction John R. McRae 5 Text of Essentials of the Transmision of Mind 9 A Treatise on Letting Zen Flourish to Protect the State Contents 45 Translator s Introduction Gishin Tokiwa 47 Text of A Treatise on Letting Zen Flourish to Protect the State 59 Appendix: List of Works Cited 193 Notes 211 A Universal Recommendation for True Zazen Translator s Introduction Osamu Yoshida 241 Text of A Universal Recommendation for True Zazen 251 Advice on the Practice of Zazen Translator s Introduction Steven Heine 259 Text of Advice on the Practice of Zazen 263 Glossary 277 Bibliography 287 xi

12 Contents Index 291 A List of the Volumes of the BDK English Tripi aka (First Series) xii

13 ESSENTIALS OF THE TRANSMISSION OF MIND

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15 Contents Translator s Introduction 5 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind Preface Mind Is Buddha No-mind The Fundamentally Pure Mind This Mind Is Buddha The Teaching of the Mind-ground Forget the Mind Be Enlightened to the Mind, not to the Dharma(s) On Cultivating Enlightenment Misspoken A Monk Is Someone Who has Ceased Thinking The Meaning of This Mind Is the Buddha Transmission of the Mind with the Mind Mind and Realms, Face and Mirror Not Seeking Anything Worthy of Respect Is the Truth of the Mind Why Huineng Was Able to Become the Sixth Patriarch Autonomy 42 3

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17 Translator s Introduction The Essentials of the Transmission of Mind (Chuanxinfayao) is a brilliantly insistent work. From beginning to end it repeatedly espouses a single vision of religious training: one s own mind, just as it is and without any qualification whatsoever, is the Buddha. And to be a Buddha is to act in constant recognition of that fact, without ever generating any thoughts, intentions, or inclinations based on selfish dualistic conceptualization. The text explains this simple doctrine in various di erent ways, concatenating iteration upon iteration in relentless exhortation: the one and only task of true religious practice is to simply cease discriminating between ordinary person and sage, between sentient being and Buddha. The preface to the text describes the mind by means of the following image: The essence of the mind is empty, and the myriad conditions are all serene. It is like the great orb of the sun climbing into space the refulgent brilliance gleams in illumination, purity without a single speck of dust.... Right now, and that s it! To activate thoughts is to go against it! The use of the sun as a metaphor for the enlightened mind is known from the formative early stage of Chan or Zen Buddhism, the East Mountain teaching and Northern school phases of the late seventh and early eighth centuries. A text attributed retrospectively to Hongren (600 74), the Fifth Patriarch of the traditional lineage and the teacher of the legendary Sixth Patriarch, Huineng, contains the image of an eternally radiant sun whose illumination is not destroyed but only adventitiously intercepted by the clouds and mists of this world. Just as the sun is always in the sky, even on cloudy and stormy days, so is Buddha-nature always immanent within us. 5

18 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind The admonition to avoid activating thoughts is also a hallmark of the early Chan tradition. The ideal was to avoid even the slightest trace of mental activity predicated on the ignorant conception of the self, the notion that I and mine somehow represent a domain cut o from the rest of the universe, a domain isolated and protected by the self-defense mechanisms of the ignorant ego. As the Essentials of the Transmission of Mind says, Just do not generate conceptual interpretations on the basis of those perceptive faculties, do not activate thoughts on the basis of those perceptive faculties, do not look for the mind apart from the perceptive faculties, and do not reject the perceptive faculties in order to grasp the dharmas. Yet this is not an early Chan text. On the contrary, it is perhaps the earliest reliable doctrinal treatise of the classical phase of Chan that began with Mazu Daoyi (709 88). The central element of classical Chan was the use of oral dialogue between teacher and students as the primary mode of spiritual cultivation. We may be sure that trainees in Mazu s school still engaged in seated meditation (dhyåna), but there was a palpable taboo against even referring to this subject, let alone considering it the quintessential feature of Buddhist spiritual discipline. Instead, the real locus of self-cultivation was to be found in the intimate interaction between teacher and student known as encounter dialogue. Some excellent examples of encounter dialogue occur in the Essentials of the Transmission of Mind, but there are also admonitions against being overly attached to the words and sounds of the teachings of the Buddhas and patriarchs. Presumably, by the time this text was compiled there was already a need to warn against excessive dependence on the oral medium. The Essentials of the Transmission of Mind is based on the teachings of Huangbo Xiyun, who is identified in the title of the Taishø shinsh daizøkyø text as Chan Master Duanji. Huangbo s dates are unknown (he probably died in the mid-850s), but he was a disciple of Baizhang Huaihai ( ), who was in turn a student of Mazu. Although not necessarily Mazu s most important disciple, Baizhang 6

19 Translator s Introduction Huaihai s retrospective status became higher after his death. Huangbo spent part of his career teaching in Hongzhou, and Zongmi s use of the term Hongzhou school with regard to the teachings of Mazu seems to refer to Huangbo. Hence during his own lifetime Huangbo may well have represented the dominant Mazu lineage. In later years Huangbo is remembered chiefly through his connection with the great Linji Yixuan (d. 867), who is regarded as the founder of the Linji (Rinzai) school. Although there is no substantial di erence between the teachings attributed to Huangbo in the Essentials of the Transmission of Mind and the Recorded Sayings of Linji (Linji lu; translated by J. C. Cleary and published in Three Chan Classics, Numata Center, 1999), in the latter work he appears solely in his status as Linji s teacher. The nucleus of the Essentials of the Transmission of Mind was recorded by the literati Pei Xiu ( ). Pei Xiu came from a family of devout Buddhists with long connections to the Chan tradition, and he was closely associated with the great Huayan and Chan scholarmonk Zongmi ( ). It is interesting to note that Pei Xiu s evaluation of Huangbo would have been quite unacceptable to Zongmi, who posited sharp distinctions between mainstream and splinter interpretations of the Chan religious message. Zongmi was unready or unable to accept the novel spirit of Mazu s Hongzhou school, and it is intriguing to wonder whether Huangbo was responding to Pei Xiu s previous spiritual compatriot in some of the dialogues found in the Essentials of the Transmission of Mind. Pei Xiu records in his preface that the teachings contained in the Essentials of the Transmission of Mind derive from discussions between him and Huangbo in 842 and 848, and that he sent the transcript of those discussions as he had done his best to transcribe them back to Huangbo s religious community in 857. It is unknown precisely what editorial forces may have been at work after this, but it is certain that material has been added to Pei Xiu s initial recension. The air of dogged insistence that pervades the text may be due in part to the inclusion of variant renditions of the original (or extremely similar) dialogues. 7

20 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind This translation was originally prepared on the basis of the critical edition and modern Japanese translation in Yoshitaka Iriya s Denshin høyø Enryøroku, Zen no goroku, no. 8 (Tokyo: Chikuma shobø, 1969). This was actually a group project headed by Professor Iriya, under whom I worked briefly in the past and who I know to have been a consummate authority on Chinese literature. I have rendered Iriya s headings into English and have included them in the text for the convenience of the reader; these divisions di er from those of the traditional text only in that the first three sections here represent one overly long section in the traditional version. For the purposes of this translation I have generally followed the text found in the Taishø shinsh daizøkyø where this di ers from Iriya s edition. However, the punctuation of the Taishø edition is frequently in error, and I have almost always followed Iriya s lead in the grammatical interpretation of the text. Except at the very early stages of this project, I have not consulted the only extant English translation, John Blofeld s The Zen Teaching of Huang Po on the Transmission of Mind (New York: Grove Press, 1958). This is not to imply any undue criticism: Blofeld s sensitive renditions of the classics of Chinese religious literature have proved to be extremely valuable over the years, but the intervening decades of development in Chan and Zen studies mandate the appearance of new translations. Given the widespread e orts toward the international dissemination of Buddhism as a modern message of peace and spiritual wellbeing, I am honored to be able to o er this contribution to the Bukkyø Dendø Kyøkai for inclusion in its English Tripi aka series. May it serve as a catalyst for the enlightenment of all sentient beings! 8

21 ESSENTIALS OF THE TRANSMISSION OF MIND by Duanji Compiled with a Preface by Pei Xiu of Hedong

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23 [Preface] There was a great Chan master of the religious name Xiyun, who lived beneath the Eagle Promontory of Mount Huangbo in Gao an County in Hongzhou. He was a direct successor to the Sixth Patriarch of Caoqi and the religious nephew of Baizhang [Huaihai] and Xitang [Zhizang]. Alone did he gird himself with the ine able seal of the supreme vehicle. He transmitted only the One Mind, other than which there are no other dharmas. The essence of the mind is empty, and the myriad conditions are all serene. It is like the great orb of the sun climbing into space the refulgent brilliance gleams in illumination, purity without a single speck of dust. The realization [of this mind] is without new or old, without shallow or deep. Its explanation depends neither on doctrinal understanding, on teachers, nor on opening up the doors and windows [of one s house to let in students]. Right now, and that s it! To activate thoughts is to go against it! Afterward, [you ll realize] this is the fundamental Buddha. Therefore, his words were simple, his principles direct, his path steep, and his practice unique. Students from the four directions raced to his mountain, where they looked on his countenance and became enlightened. The sea of followers who came and went always numbered more than a thousand. In the second year of the Huichang [period] (842), when I (Pei Xiu) was stationed in Zhongling (Hongzhou), I invited [Chan Master Huangbo] down from his mountain to the prefectural city. He reposed at Longxingsi, where I inquired of him regarding the path morning and night. In the second year of the Dazhong [period] (848), when I was stationed in Yuanling, I again respectfully welcomed him to my o ces. He resided at Kaiyuansi, and I received the teachings morning and night. After leaving his company I noted down [his teachings], although I managed to get [down in writing] only one or two of every ten things he said. I have girded 379b26 379c 11

24 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind myself [with these teachings] as my mind-seal, but I have not dared circulate them. Now, fearing that these inspired ideas might not be known in the future, I have finally copied them out and am giving them to [Huangbo s] disciples Taizhou and Fajian. They will return to Guangtangsi on Mount Huangbo, where they will inquire of the congregation of elders as to whether [what I have written] is in accord with what they formerly heard themselves. Preface done this eighth day of the tenth month of the eleventh year of the Dazhong [period] (857) of the Great Tang 12

25 1. Mind Is Buddha The master said to [Pei] Xiu: The Buddhas and all the sentient beings are only the One Mind there are no other dharmas. Since beginningless time, this mind has never been generated and has never been extinguished, is neither blue nor yellow, is without shape and without characteristic, does not belong to being and nonbeing, does not consider new or old, is neither long nor short, and is neither large nor small. It transcends all limitations, names, traces, and correlations. It in itself that s it! To activate thoughts is to go against it! It is like space, which is boundless and immeasurable. It is only this One Mind that is Buddha; there is no distinction between Buddhas and sentient beings. However, sentient beings are attached to characteristics and seek outside themselves. Seeking it, they lose it even more. Sending the Buddha in search of the Buddha, grasping the mind with the mind, they may exhaust themselves in striving for an entire eon but will never get it. They do not understand that if they cease their thoughts and end their thinking, the Buddha will automatically be present. This mind is the Buddha; the Buddha is the sentient being. When it is sentient being, the mind is not lessened; and when it is [one of ] the Buddhas, the mind is not increased. And as for the six perfections ( påramitås) and the myriad practices, and the types of merit as numerous as the [sands of the] Ganges River [every sentient being is] fundamentally su cient in these and requires no further cultivation. If the conditions occur then give forth [one s spiritual charity]; when the conditions cease then be silent. If you are not able to believe resolutely that this [mind] is the Buddha but attempt spiritual training while attached to characteristics, your quest for spiritual e cacy will be entirely based on false thoughts and contrary to the enlightenment [of Buddhahood]. This mind is the Buddha; there is neither any separate Buddha nor any separate mind. 380a 13

26 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind This mind is bright and pure and like unto space, without a single bit of characteristic. To rouse the mind and activate thoughts is to go against the essence of the Dharma and to be attached to characteristics. Since beginningless time, there has never been any Buddha attached to characteristics (i.e., any Buddha associated with or defined by phenomenal characteristics). [The teaching that one can] cultivate the six perfections and the myriad practices in order to achieve Buddhahood this is the progressive [approach to Buddhahood]. Since beginningless time, there has never been a Buddha [who achieved that state] progressively. Just be enlightened to the One Mind and there will not be the slightest dharma that can be attained this is the true Buddha. The One Mind is undi erentiated in Buddhas and sentient beings. It is like space, with no heterogeneity and no deterioration. It is like the great orb of the sun that illuminates all beneath the four heavens: when the sun rises its brightness extends throughout all the heavens, but space itself does not become bright; when the sun sets darkness extends throughout all the heavens, but space itself does not become dark. The realms of bright and dark besiege each other but the nature of space is expansive and unchanging. The mind of Buddhas and sentient beings is also like this. If you conceive of the Buddha in terms of the characteristics of purity, brilliance, and liberation, and if you conceive of sentient beings in terms of the characteristics of impurity, darkness, and samsara if your understanding is such as this, then you will never attain bodhi even after passing through eons [of religious practice] as numerous as the sands of the Ganges River. This is because you are attached to characteristics. There is only this One Mind and not the least bit of dharma that can be attained. This mind is Buddha. Trainees these days are unenlightened to this essence of the mind, and they generate mind on top of mind, looking outward in search of the Buddha, and undertaking spiritual cultivation in attachment to characteristics. These are all bad methods (dharmas) and not the path to bodhi. 14

27 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind 2. No-mind To make o erings to all the Buddhas of the ten directions is inferior to making o erings to a single religious person with no-mind. Why? No-mind refers to the absence of all [states of ] mind. The essence of suchness is unmoving like wood or stone within and unhindered like space without. It is without subject and object, without location, without characteristic, and without gain or loss. Those who would proceed [to enlightenment] are unwilling to enter this Dharma, fearing that they will fall into the void with nowhere to alight. Therefore they gaze upon the precipice and retreat, then they all seek widely after conceptual knowledge. Therefore those who seek after conceptual knowledge are as [numerous as strands of ] hair while those who are enlightened are as [uncommon as] horns. MañjuΩr stands for principle and Samantabhadra stands for practice. Principle refers to the principle of unhindered true emptiness, while practice refers to the practice of the inexhaustible transcendence of characteristics. AvalokiteΩvara stands for great compassion, and Mahåsthåmapråpta stands for great wisdom. Vimalak rti means pure name. Pure is [essential] nature, and name is characteristic; he is called Pure Name because of the nondi erentiation of nature and characteristic. [The virtues] typified by the various great bodhisattvas are possessed by all people; they do not transcend the One Mind, so if you are enlightened to that then you ve got it. Trainees nowadays do not look within their own minds for enlightenment but become attached to characteristics and grasp realms outside the mind. This is totally contrary to the enlightenment [of Buddhahood]. [Take the] sands of the Ganges River: the Buddha has preached that when the Buddhas and bodhisattvas, Indras, Brahmås, and the various gods walk on them, the sands are not happy. And when cattle, sheep, worms, and ants step on them, the sands are not angry. When there is the fragrance of precious treasures, the sands do not lust after them. And when there is the stench of excrement and urine, the sands are not displeased. 380b 15

28 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind This mind is the mind of no-mind. Transcending all characteristics, there is yet no di erence between sentient beings and Buddhas. If you can just [attain] no-mind, then that is the ultimate [state of enlightenment]. If a trainee does not instantly [attain] no-mind but spends successive eons in cultivation, he will never achieve enlightenment. He will be fettered by the meritorious practices of the three vehicles and will not attain liberation. However, there is fast and slow in realizing this mind: there are those who attain no-mind in a single moment of thought after hearing the Dharma; those who attain no-mind after [passing through] the ten faiths, the ten abodes, the ten practices, and the ten conversions; and those who attain no-mind after [passing through] the ten stages [of the bodhisattva]. In spite of the length of time it takes them to [attain it, once they] reside in no-mind there is nothing else to be cultivated or realized. Truly without anything to be attained, true and not false [is no-mind]. Whether it is attained in a single moment of thought or at the tenth stage [of the bodhisattva], its e cacy is identical. There are no further gradations of profundity, only the useless striving of successive eons. The performance of good and evil is entirely [within the domain of ] characteristics. Being attached to characteristics and doing evil, one uselessly experiences samsara. Being attached to characteristics and doing good, one uselessly experiences laborious su ering. Neither alternative is equal to recognizing the fundamental Dharma at a word [from a true teacher]. These dharmas are the mind; there are no dharmas outside of the mind. This mind is the dharmas; outside of the dharmas there is no mind. The mind is of itself no-mind, yet it is without no-mind. If you take the mind as no-mind, you make the mind into something that exists. Just conform with it in silence, ceasing the various [types of ] conceptualization. Therefore it is said, the way of words is cut o, and the activities of the mind cease. This mind is the fundamentally pure Buddha, which is possessed by both the Buddhas and [ordinary] people. The wriggling 16

29 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind insects and all that has life, the Buddhas and bodhisattvas these are identical and not di erent. It is only through false thoughts and discrimination that [sentient beings] create various types of karmic fruits. 3. The Fundamentally Pure Mind There is truly not a single thing in this fundamental Buddha. It is transparent and serene, brilliantly wondrous, at ease, and nothing more. To become profoundly enlightened into [this truth] right now, and that s it! Perfect and su cient, nothing is lacking. One may cultivate energetically for three eons, passing through the various stages. Then in a single moment of realization one realizes only that originally one was oneself a Buddha, with not a single thing that could possibly be added. Looking back on the e orts of those successive eons, [one realizes] they are all false activities of the dream [of delusion]. Therefore, the Tathågata has said, I am really without anything that is attained in the ultimate bodhi. If there were something that was attained, then D paµkara Buddha would not have conferred the prediction [of future Buddhahood] on me. He has also said, These dharmas are universally same, with neither high nor low; this is called bodhi. This fundamentally pure mind whether in sentient beings or Buddha, in world-systems or the mountains and rivers, in that with characteristics and that without characteristics throughout all the realms of the ten directions, it is always universally same, without the characteristics of self and other. This fundamentally pure mind is always perfectly bright and uniformly radiant. People of the world are not enlightened and only recognize their perceptive faculties as mind. Since their [understanding] is obscured by their perceptive faculties, they therefore do not witness the pure and bright fundamental essence. If one can only right now achieve no-mind, the fundamental essence will appear of itelf. It is like the great orb of the sun risen in the 17

30 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind 380c sky, which illuminates uniformly throughout the ten directions without being hindered at all. Therefore, trainees only recognize their perceptive faculties and act [accordingly]. But if they render those perceptive faculties void, so that the pathways of the mind are eliminated, they will be without any way to enter [into enlightenment]. They should simply recognize the fundamental mind within their perceptive faculties. Although the fundamental mind does not belong to those perceptive faculties, neither is it separate from the perceptive faculties. Just do not generate conceptual interpretations on the basis of those perceptive faculties, do not activate thoughts on the basis of those perceptive faculties, do not look for the mind apart from the perceptive faculties, and do not reject the perceptive faculties in order to grasp the dharmas. Neither identical nor separate, neither abiding nor attached, it is universally autonomous, and there is nowhere that is not the place of enlightenment (bodhima a). People of the world hear it said that the Buddhas all transmit the Dharma of mind, and they take it that there is a Dharma apart from the mind that can be realized and grasped. They search for the Dharma with the mind, not understanding that the mind is the Dharma and the Dharma is the mind. You cannot search for the mind with the mind you will pass through a thousand and ten thousand eons [trying] and never get it. [Such useless e orts] are not equal to right now achieving no-mind this is the fundamental Dharma. It is like the warrior who was deluded regarding the pearl within his forehead and who searched for it elsewhere. He traveled about all the ten directions but was ultimately unable to recover it, whereupon a wise person pointed it out and he [then] saw for himself that the pearl [was on his forehead] as it had always been. Thus it is that students of the Way are deluded as to their own fundamental mind, not recognizing it as Buddha. They search for it outside [of their own minds], generating e ortful practices and depending on graduated increases in realization. They pass through 18

31 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind eons of diligent seeking but never achieve enlightenment. This is not equal to right now achieving no-mind. If one definitively understands that all dharmas are fundamentally nonexistent and that there is nothing that can be attained, with no reliance and no abiding, no subject and no object, without activating false thoughts this is to realize bodhi. And when one realizes enlightenment, this is only to realize the fundamental Buddha of the mind. To pass through eons of e ort is nothing but useless cultivation. Just as when the warrior attained his pearl he merely attained the pearl that was originally on his forehead, and this had nothing to do with his ability to seek elsewhere. Therefore the Buddha has said, I have truly not attained anything in the ultimate bodhi. Out of the fear that people will not believe does he (i.e., the Buddha) invoke that which is seen with the five eyes and that which is said in the five [types of ] speech. This is true and not false; this is the cardinal meaning. 4. This Mind Is Buddha You trainees should have no doubts. It is the four elements that make up your bodies, but the four elements are without a self and the self is without a master. Therefore you should understand that this [human] body is without self and without master. It is the five skandhas that make up the mind, but the five skandhas are without a self and without a master. Therefore you should understand that the mind is without self and without master. The six senses, six types of sense objects, and the six consciousnesses, which combine together in generation and extinction, are also like this. These eighteen realms are empty, they are all empty. There is only the fundamental mind, which is expansive and pure. [Gloss:] There is consciousness eating and wisdom eating. To consider the hunger and decay (lit., boils ) of the body of the four elements as [personal] disasters and to nourish it as appropriate, without generating greed or attachment this is called wisdom 19

32 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind 381a eating. To willfully grasp at flavors and falsely generate discrimination, only seeking to please the palate and never generating [feelings of] revulsion and detachment this is called consciousness eating. råvakas attain enlightenment on the basis of [the Buddha s] voice, and so they are called auditors. They simply fail to comprehend that their own minds generate [conceptual] interpretations on the basis of the oral teaching. Whether through [the Buddha s demonstration of ] supramundane powers or through his supernatural characteristics, words, or actions, they hear about bodhi and nirvana, cultivate over three immeasurable eons, and achieve the enlightenment of Buddhahood. All such people belong to the path of Ωråvakas, and so they are called Ωråvaka-Buddhas. To simply right now suddenly comprehend that one s own mind is fundamentally Buddha, without there being a single dharma one can attain and without there being a single practice one can cultivate this is the insurpassable enlightenment, this is the Buddha of suchness. The only thing trainees should fear is having a single thought that [such things] exist, which is to be alienated from enlightenment (the Way). For each successive moment of thought to be without characteristics, for each successive moment of thought to be unconditioned this is Buddha. Trainees who wish to achieve Buddhahood [should understand that] it is completely useless to study any of the Buddhist teachings just study nonseeking and nonattachment. Nonseeking is for the mind (i.e., moments of thought) not to be generated, and nonattachment is for the mind not to be extinguished. Neither generating nor extinguishing this is Buddhahood. The eightyfour thousand teachings are directed at the eighty-four thousand afflictions and are only ways to convert and entice [sentient beings into true religious practice]. Fundamentally all the teachings are nonexistent; transcendence is the Dharma, and those who understand transcendence are Buddhas. By simply transcending all the afflictions, there is no dharma that can be attained. 20

33 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind 5. The Teaching of the Mind-ground Trainees who want to understand the essential determination [of the teaching] should simply not be attached to a single thing in the mind. To say that the true Dharma body (dharmakåya) of the Buddha is like space is to say metaphorically that the Dharma body is space and space the Dharma body. Ordinary people say that the Dharma body pervades space and that space contains the Dharma body, not understanding that space is the Dharma body and the Dharma body is space. If you say definitively that space exists, then space is not the Dharma body. If you say definitively that the Dharma body exists, then the Dharma body is not space. Simply refrain from creating an interpretation [of the existence] of space, and space will be the Dharma body. Refrain from creating an interpretation [of the existence] of the Dharma body, and the Dharma body will be space. Space and the Dharma body are without any dissimilar characteristics (lit., characteristics of di erentiation ). The Buddhas and sentient beings are without any dissimilar characteristics, samsara and nirvana are without any dissimilar characteristics, and the afflictions and bodhi are without any dissimilar characteristics. To transcend all characteristics is to be a Buddha. Ordinary people grasp at [their sensory] realms, while religious persons grasp at the mind. For the mind and the realms to both be forgotten is the True Dharma. To forget the realms is relatively easy, but to forget the mind is extremely di cult. People do not dare to forget the mind, fearing that they will fall into the void (i.e., the emptiness of space) with nowhere to grab hold. They do not understand that the void is without void, that there is only one true Dharma body. This numinous awareness nature has since beginningless time been of the same lifespan as space. It has never been generated and never extinguished, never existent and never nonexistent, never defiled and never pure, never disquieted and never serene, and never young and never old. It is without location, without 21

34 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind 381b interior and exterior, without enumeration, without shape, without form, and without sound. It cannot be seen and cannot be sought after. It cannot be recognized with wisdom, cannot be grasped with words, cannot be conformed to realms or things, and cannot be arrived at with [religious] e ort. The Buddhas and bodhisattvas and all beings that harbor life, [even down to] the wriggling insects, all share this same great nirvana nature. This nature is the mind, mind is the Buddha, and the Buddha is the Dharma. If you depart from the true for a single moment, all is false thoughts. You cannot seek the mind with the mind, you cannot seek the Buddha with the Buddha, and you cannot seek the Dharma with the Dharma. Therefore, trainees should achieve no-mind right now. Simply conform with [the mind] in silence if you try to use the mind you will miss it. To transmit the mind with the mind this is the correct view. I warn you, do not look outward and chase after realms but recognize that the realms are the mind. [To commit this error would be] to accept the thief as one s own child. Due to the existence of greed, anger, and delusion there are established morality (Ω la), meditation (samådhi), and wisdom (prajñå). Fundamentally there are no afflictions, so how can there be bodhi? Therefore the patriarch has said, The Buddha has preached all the dharmas in order to eliminate all [states of] mind. If I am without all [the states of ] mind, what use is there for all the dharmas? The fundamentally pure Buddha has not a single thing attached to it. It is likened to space, and even if one [attempted to] adorn it with immeasurable precious treasures, there would never be any place to make them stay. Buddha-nature is identical to space, and even if one [attempted to] adorn it with limitless [feats of ] merit and wisdom, there would never be any place to make them stay. 22

35 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind It is only that if one is deluded as to the fundamental nature one will become increasingly unable to see. The so-called teaching of the mind-ground is that the myriad dharmas are all established in dependence on the mind. If a [sensory] realm is encountered they exist, and if there is no realm then they do not exist. You must not jump to the conclusion that the pure nature is a [type of] realm. Sayings such as, the functions of meditation and wisdom are mirrored in explicit clarity and the perceptive functions are serene and resplendent are all interpretations of realms and may only be used as provisional teachings for those of mediocre and lesser abilities. If you wish to experience realization yourself, you must not create any of these interpretations. If all the realms and dharmas are to be buried somewhere, bury them in the earth of being. To simply not create views of being and nonbeing with regard to all dharmas is to see the [true nature of all] dharmas. 6. Forget the Mind On the first day of the ninth month, the master addressed [Pei] Xiu: Ever since Great Master [Bodhi]dharma came to China, [his followers in the Chan school] have preached only the One Mind and have transmitted only the One Dharma. Transmitting the Buddha with the Buddha, [we] have not preached about any other Buddha. Transmitting the Dharma with the Dharma, [we] have not preached about any other Dharma. This Dharma is the Dharma that cannot be preached about, and this Buddha is the Buddha that cannot be grasped. They are the fundamentally pure mind. There is only this one reality, and any others are not true. Prajñå is wisdom, and this wisdom is the fundamental mind that is without characteristics. Ordinary people do not move toward enlightenment solely because they willfully [exercise] the six sensory capabilities and thus pass through the six modes of existence. 23

36 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind 381c If a trainee considers birth and death for but a single moment he will fall into the way of Måra. If he activates the various ascriptive views for a single moment, he will fall into the way of heresy. If he perceives there to be generation [of the elements of reality] and moves toward [a state of ] extinction, he will fall into the way of the Ωråvakas. If he does not perceive there to be generation but only perceives extinction, he will fall into the way of the solitary enlightened ones (pratyekabuddhas). The dharmas were originally not generated, and neither are they now extinguished. Do not activate the two views, and neither detest nor enjoy [things]. All the myriad dharmas are only the One Mind, and after [one realizes this] they become the vehicle of the Buddhas. Ordinary people all chase after the [sensory] realms and generate the mind, so that the mind [has feelings of] enjoyment and detestation. If you would have there be no realms, then you should forget the mind. When the mind is forgotten, then the realms are empty, and when the realms are empty the mind is extinguished. If you do not forget the mind but only eliminate the realms, because the realms cannot be eliminated you will only increase your [inner] agitation. Therefore, [you should understand that] the myriad dharmas are only the mind. The mind is also imperceptible (lit., unattainable ), so how can it possibly be sought? Those who study prajñå do not perceive there to be a single dharma that can be attained. They eradicate all consideration of the three vehicles there being only a single truth, which cannot be realized. Those who say they can realize and can attain [enlightenment] are all people of great conceitfulness. All the [five thousand Hinayanists] who brushed o their robes and left the Lotus assembly were devotees such as this. Therefore, the Buddha has said, I have truly not attained anything in bodhi. There is only silent conforming [with the mind]. When an ordinary person is about to die, he should merely contemplate the five skandhas to be all empty and the four elements to be without self. The true mind is without characteristics and neither goes nor comes: when one is born the [mind]-nature 24

37 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind does not come [into one], and when one dies neither does the nature go [anywhere]. Peaceful, perfect, and serene, the mind and its realms are identical. If one can only right now suddenly achieve comprehension in this fashion, you will not be fettered by the three periods of time (i.e., past, present, and future) and will be a person who has transcended the world. You must definitely avoid having even the slightest bit of intentionality. If you see Buddhas of excellent characteristics (i.e., in their resplendent superhuman forms) coming to greet [and escort you to the Pure Land], with all the various phenomena [involved in such visions], then have no thought of following them. If you see various phenomena with evil characteristics, neither should you have any thoughts of fear. Simply forget your mind and identify yourself with the dharma dhåtu, and you will attain autonomy. This is the essential gist [of my teaching]. 7. Be Enlightened to the Mind, Not to the Dharma(s) On the eighth day of the tenth month, the master addressed [Pei] Xiu: The transformation city refers to the two vehicles, the ten stages, and the [attainments of ] equivalent enlightenment and wondrous enlightenment, all of which are teachings established provisionally in order to entice [sentient beings into undertaking spiritual training]. All of these are the transformation city. The location of the treasure is the treasure of the true mind, the fundamental Buddha, the self-nature. This treasure does not pertain to mental calculation and it cannot be established [anywhere as a discrete entity]. It is without Buddha and without sentient beings, without subject and without object, so where could there be any [transformation] city? If you ask whether this is not already the transformation city, then where is the location of the treasure? It is impossible to point out the location of the treasure. If it could be pointed out, then it would have a location and would not be the 25

38 Essentials of the Transmission of Mind 382a true location of the treasure. Therefore, it is said only that it is close. It cannot definitively be spoken of, but if you just conform with it in your entire being then that is it. They who are called icchantikas are those without faith. All the sentient beings of the six modes of existence, even including those of the two [Hinayana] vehicles (i.e., the paths of the Ωråvakas and the pratyekabuddhas), have no faith in the existence of the fruit of Buddhahood. They all may be called icchantikas who have cut o their good roots. Bodhisattvas are those who have profound faith in the existence of Buddhism and do not perceive the existence of Mahayana and Hinayana, Buddhas and sentient beings, all of whom are of the same identical Dharma-nature. These may be called icchantikas of good roots. In general, those who are enlightened on the basis of the oral teaching are called Ωråvakas. Those who are enlightened through their contemplation of causality are called solitary enlightened ones. If one is not enlightened with respect to one s own mind, even if one attains Buddhahood one may be called a Ωråvaka-Buddha. Trainees frequently become enlightened to the teachings and are not enlightened to the mind. Although they pass through eons of cultivation, this is never the fundamental Buddha. If one is not enlightened to the mind but is enlightened to the teachings, this is to belittle the mind and emphasize the teachings. Ultimately, this is to chase after a dirt clod [like a dog] because one has forgotten the fundamental mind. Just conform yourself with the fundamental mind and seek not for the dharmas, for the mind is the dharmas. Ordinary people frequently consider that the [sensory] realms hinder the mind, or [consider] that phenomena hinder the absolute. They always want to escape from the realms in order to pacify the mind, to eliminate phenomena to reify the absolute. They do not understand that it is the mind that hinders the realms and the absolute that hinders phenomena. Simply make the mind empty, and the realms will be empty of themselves. Simply make the absolute serene, and phenomena will be serene of themselves. Do not mistakenly [attempt to] manipulate the mind. 26