Cultivation and Zen Practice for Attaining Enlightenment (Part Two)
Chapter 8: Chan Gong'an and Huatou
1. Investigating the Huatou: How Exactly Did the Pig Die?
Since all the dharmas cognized by the six consciousnesses are illusory realms of inner object-aspects, when someone slaughters a pig, perhaps he never actually contacted the pig in the external realm at all — so how did the pig in the external realm die? This is a secret, and a great secret at that; it must be investigated out by yourself. Once you investigate it out, your wisdom will be extraordinary. What the six consciousnesses contact is the inner object-aspect of the pig, yet the pig of the external object-aspect died — how did it die? If you investigate it out, you will attain enlightenment, and a very deep and thorough enlightenment at that. Without meditative concentration (samādhi), such investigation is impossible; and if it is not genuine realization-enlightenment, this question cannot be answered either. To judge true enlightenment from false enlightenment, there are many gong'an and huatou that can be used to test; if you cannot answer, you should weigh your own enlightenment — how exactly did you awaken, and what did you awaken to?
When the eyes see one's own hand, they do not contact the real hand. When the hand touches one's own head, it does not contact one's real head; when one hears oneself speak, one does not contact one's real voice; when one smells one's own body odor, one does not contact one's real body odor — let alone contacting those of other sentient beings, let alone contacting other forms, sounds, smells, tastes, and touches; none of these can be genuinely contacted. When eating an apple, what one eats is originally one's own inner object-aspect, yet the apple of the external object-aspect is gone; if others did not get to eat it, they become unhappy. The subjectively imagined realm brought forth in the mind is entirely the inner object-aspect manifested by one's own tathāgatagarbha, having nothing to do with others. For example, if one mentally wishes someone good health, and as a result that person's external body really does become healthy — what is going on here? If one mentally intends to kill a pig, and one with good meditative concentration can actually kill the pig by that intention — what is going on here?
Some people say that as long as you give a kick, a person whose conditions have matured can awaken on the spot. But in that one kick, at least four consciousnesses operate together in conjunction — how do you clearly distinguish the respective functions of the four consciousnesses? Awakening like this is no different from a parrot mimicking speech; even one who has merely awakened to the mind consciousness can also "get" such a gong'an — what is remarkable about that?
Back then, Chan master Xuefeng visited many enlightened good teachers and investigated under Chan master Deshan for decades before finally attaining enlightenment. Chan master Xiangyan served under his master for eighteen years without awakening; in the end, living in seclusion practicing Chan alone in a dilapidated temple, he threw a pebble that struck a bamboo, and only then did he finally awaken. The monk Heze Shenhui, throughout his entire life, only reached intellectual understanding. People of ancient times had deep roots of goodness and excellent meditative skill, yet investigating Chan was still so arduous for them — their belts loosened and they grew haggard, sitting through dozens of meditation cushions. People today have roots of goodness far inferior to the ancients, their meditative concentration is even worse, to say nothing of their moral conduct — so why still hope to attain enlightenment easily and effortlessly? If it is so easy to awaken, what could you possibly awaken to? If one speculates about the Buddha-dharma — if speculation were allowed, one could indeed speculate out an answer — but the result is, after all, speculated, not realized through enlightenment.
2. Chan Wit Amid the Epidemic
Right now, with the epidemic upon us, the questions the security guards ask at the entrances of residential compounds are all great questions of life and death that strike straight into the depths of the soul: 1. Who are you? 2. Where do you come from? 3. Where are you going? Then they fire a shot at your forehead. That shot is Chan zen repartee; if you awaken, you awaken on the spot; if you do not awaken, then go investigate the three questions above.
Every person has lived for immeasurable kalpas without knowing who they themselves are, nor where they come from or where they are going, living like walking corpses, not much different from the animals — merely alive. Is it not time to wake up? Facing the great matter of birth and death, the security guards stand in for the Chan patriarchs; that shot is like the patriarchs' blows and shouts, and those three questions are Chan huatou, like crowbars for the brain — whoever's mind is quick will be the first to have their brain opened up.
3. What Is the Buddha?
The lush yellow flowers are nothing but prajñā; the verdant green bamboo is all Dharmakāya. Every day, when you look out and see the lush yellow flowers, the wondrous principle of prajñā appears in your mind; when you see the verdant green bamboo, the Dharmakāya leaps vividly into view. It is all the wondrous functioning of prajñā, the Dharmakāya pervading everywhere. Sentient beings have never, for even a moment, been apart from the Dharmakāya; in every instant prajñā is fully displayed. Only, ignorance obscures the mind's eye, so prajñā is not seen and the Dharmakāya is not known. Apart from the Dharmakāya, there is no body of karmic obstructions; apart from prajñā, the yellow flowers and green bamboo are not seen.
A student asked Chan master Yunmen: What is the Buddha? Yunmen pointed directly: 干屎撅.
Listen apart from sounds; look apart from words. Dry—shit—stick — the Dharmakāya mingles amid the onrolling flux. The Dharmakāya is not the dry shit-stick; the dry shit-stick is not prajñā; the dry shit-stick is not the dry shit-stick. The sage king mingles in the mundane dust; one must push aside the dark clouds to see the sun of wisdom. If you see the dry shit, you do not see the Dharmakāya; if you cling to the dry shit, you do not understand prajñā.
4. Does the Buddha-Dharma Destroy Worldly Dharmas or Not?
The Buddha-dharma and worldly dharmas have an aspect of opposition and also an aspect of unity. The aspect of opposition is because the Buddha-dharma reveals and throws into relief the suffering, emptiness, impermanence, and non-self of worldly dharmas; the aspect of unity is because the Buddha-dharma creates worldly dharmas, merging together with them and proceeding in parallel without conflict. The Buddha-dharma both destroys worldly dharmas and does not destroy them. If worldly dharmas were not destroyed, sentient beings would greedily cling to them and could not be liberated from the suffering of birth and death; on the other hand, if the Buddha-dharma destroyed worldly dharmas, worldly dharmas would have no ground on which to be established, leaving only the Buddha-dharma of the tathāgatagarbha — then all sentient beings would abide in nirvāṇa without remainder, with no world and no sentient beings.
So how does the Buddha-dharma destroy worldly dharmas? The Four Noble Truths and the dharma of the twelve links of dependent origination are precisely for destroying worldly dharmas. The Four Noble Truths reveal that the world is suffering, empty, impermanent, and non-self; when sentient beings recognize and realize this principle, they sever all afflictions and attain liberation. The dharma of the twelve links reveals that all worldly dharmas arise from causes and conditions and are all empty; realizing this principle, extinguishing ignorance, and no longer greedily craving and grasping (upādāna) at worldly dharmas, one can be liberated from worldly suffering. From the perspective of the Mahāyāna dharma, all worldly dharmas are conjured forth by the tathāgatagarbha; therefore worldly dharmas are all empty, illusory, and unreal — this too destroys worldly dharmas. Both the Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna dharmas lead sentient beings to recognize and realize that the five aggregates (pañca-skandha) are empty and non-self, that the six faculties, six sense objects, and six consciousnesses are all empty, illusory, and non-self — this destroys the worldly dharma of the five aggregates.
How does the Buddha-dharma not destroy worldly dharmas? From the perspective of prajñā and Yogācāra, all dharmas are suchness; suchness establishes all worldly dharmas — this is not destroying worldly dharmas. "Dharmas abide in their dharma-positions; the marks of the world are ever-abiding" — this is not destroying worldly dharmas. The tathāgatagarbha possesses the perfected nature (pariniṣpanna-svabhāva), able to perfectly accomplish all worldly dharmas; all dharmas constitute one true dharma-realm, called the one true dharma-realm.
The five aggregates are like golden vessels, entirely gold. One must first destroy the appearance of the five aggregates before one can recognize the appearance of gold. Having recognized the appearance of gold, the golden vessels of the five aggregates are also gold, and so the appearance of the golden vessels of the five aggregates is no longer destroyed. First destroy, then establish; without destroying there is no establishing. While staring at the vessel-appearance of the five aggregates, one overlooks the gold; having recognized the gold, the appearance of the five aggregates may still remain. When one takes the five aggregates as self and as real, one cannot recognize the real; only by destroying the self-appearance and real-appearance of the five aggregates can one recognize the real. Only by destroying and ruining worldly dharmas can the real be revealed and realized — hence first destroy, then establish. But in the final analysis, when one cultivates to the most ultimate Buddha-dharma, all worldly dharmas are the real; the Buddha-dharma does not destroy worldly dharmas — on the contrary, it perfects them.
Then what exactly is the Buddha-dharma? This question requires proving by negation what is not the Buddha-dharma, and then you will know what the Buddha-dharma is. What is not the Buddha-dharma? There is not a single dharma that is not the Buddha-dharma. Whatever you see, hear, perceive, and know, whatever you can imagine — all of it is the Buddha-dharma. What is the Buddha? For this question, as long as you point out what is not the Buddha, you will know what the Buddha is. Among worldly dharmas there is nothing that is not the Buddha. Sentient beings rely on the Buddha every moment, using the Buddha's dharma, yet never recognize the Buddha, never know the dharma, and never know to repay the Buddha's kindness and the dharma's kindness. How to repay the Buddha's kindness? Only by recognizing the Buddha, knowing the dharma, and enabling sentient beings also to recognize the Buddha and know the dharma — that is repaying the Buddha's kindness.
5. A Chan Gong'an — Does the Buddha-Dharma Destroy Worldly Dharmas or Not?
The master walked up to the disciple, patted the disciple on the shoulder, and asked: Does the Buddha-dharma destroy worldly dharmas or not? The disciple blew a puff of immortal breath into the air.
The master asked: Could it be that the Buddha-dharma destroys worldly dharmas? The disciple said: It does not destroy.
The master asked again: Does not destroy? The disciple said: It destroys.
The master withdrew his hand, gave two slaps, uttered a "hehe," turned around, and walked away.
Question: Did the disciple mean that the Buddha-dharma destroys worldly dharmas, or that it does not? Did the master approve of the disciple's answer?
6. A Gong'an of Meditative Concentration
The master grabbed the front lapel of the disciple's robe and asked: Does the Buddha-dharma destroy worldly dharmas or not?
The disciple slammed a fist on the table and pushed the master away.
The master glared at the disciple, clasped his hands behind his back, turned, and walked away.
Question: Did the disciple answer the master's question or not? If he answered, how was it answered? The master turned and walked away — was he satisfied or dissatisfied?
Regarding this gong'an, A, B, C, and D debated in all manner of ways. The master said: 穷诸玄辩，若一豪置于太空，讲一藏经，不如一巴掌拍去。
7. The Function of Chan Gong'an
That the matter of whether the Buddha-dharma destroys worldly dharmas became a gong'an means it makes you investigate from the standpoint of events — it is for investigating the mind. Once you have seen the mind and understood the mind, you will know the relationship between the Buddha-dharma and worldly dharmas, and all that profusion of theory and doctrinal views becomes useless — nothing but tangled vines. Since it is called a Chan gong'an, it must have to do with Chan, and Chan is the mind. The mind requires you to realize it, see it, and manifest it; it does not require a heap of theory and doctrinal views from you. All views are useless; expounding an entire treasury of teachings is also idle talk.
The disciple saying the one word "destroys" is the Buddha-dharma; the disciple saying the two words "does not destroy" is also the Buddha-dharma. Destroying or not destroying, saying it or not saying it — all is the Buddha-dharma. Master and disciple understood each other perfectly and clearly, knowing each other without needing to speak — it was merely an act. Bodhisattvas perform the play; ordinary beings watch the show. The expert sees the craft, the layman sees the spectacle — if one cannot even make out the spectacle, what more is there to say? Still making all kinds of arguments about destroying or not destroying — to whom would one explain the principle?
Sūtras and treatises are for expounding and explaining principles; at such times, if you have a principle, by all means speak it, speak at length. But gong'an use events to reveal principles; on the surface they speak only of events, and within the events the true principle is revealed — the true mind, self-nature, the tathāgatagarbha. Sometimes without even opening one's mouth to speak, the principle manifests — concise, clear, direct, and ready-made. The discerning understand at a glance; mind seals upon mind.
In fact, expounding the Dharma does not necessarily mean discussing the mysterious and wondrous and lecturing a heap of theory; without saying a single word, one can still expound the Dharma truthfully and deliver people. In the land of the Buddha Fragrant Accumulation, the Buddha and bodhisattvas need only smell incense for the bodhisattvas to awaken to the Way; in other Buddha-lands, the Buddha merely shares a single meal with the bodhisattvas and the bodhisattvas awaken to the Way. There are no lengthy theories to expound; language is not necessary, nor are words — the Way has nothing to do with language or words. Only the sentient beings of the Sahā world have the habit of language and words, liking to use them to express their thoughts and feelings and to show off their rich theoretical knowledge, thinking the longer the articles they write the better and the more books they publish the better — when in fact it is mostly verbiage. Long-winded treatises are utterly unnecessary; a few strokes that dot the dragon's eyes are enough. The Way is something very simple; without the Way, writing hundreds of millions of words merely wastes one's own and others' mental energy and effort. Those with the Way love silence; those without the Way love to talk on and on, spouting grandiloquence and long-winded treatises to highlight themselves.
8. Valuing Only the Uprightness of Your Eye, Not Speaking of Your Conduct
Weishan asked Yangshan: “涅槃经四十卷，多少是佛说，多少是魔说？” Yangshan said: “总是魔说。” Weishan said: “以后无人奈子何。” Yangshan said: “慧寂即一期之事，行履在什么处？” Weishan said: “只贵子眼正，不说子行履。”
Chan master Yangshan's reply to his master's question is very strange. Yangshan said that the forty fascicles of the Nirvāṇa Sūtra were all spoken by Māra, not spoken by the Buddha. Why not spoken by the Buddha? Because the true Buddha has no mouth and does not preach the Dharma; one who preaches the Dharma with the mouth is not the true Buddha — a conjured thing is not the true Buddha, only a false Buddha. Hearing this, his master Chan master Weishan praised him greatly, saying: "From now on truly no one will be able to do anything to you — your wisdom is outstanding." Yangshan said: "My views are now complete, but where should my true conduct as a bodhisattva be manifested?" Weishan said: "As long as your view is pure and correct, there is no worry that the conduct a bodhisattva should have cannot be established."
Yangshan had already seen the mind and seen its nature; his prajñā wisdom was complete, yet he wished to quickly fulfill all the practices of a bodhisattva, broadly practice the bodhisattva path, and be complete in all the pure practices and supernatural powers of a bodhisattva. Weishan, however, held that once one has truly seen the mind and seen its nature, one's practices and pure conduct will gradually become complete and full, and the supernatural powers go without saying. Weishan's view is entirely correct. But as for the eye being correct, one must still look at which eye is correct. If only the mind consciousness's eye is correct while the manas's eye is still deviant, the bodhisattva's conduct cannot be set right. Only when the manas's eye is correct will body, speech, and mind naturally walk the right path — no worry about being unable to sever ignorance and afflictions, no worry about lacking the bodhisattva's mental conduct of loving-kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity. And later, Chan master Yangshan in a dream went to the inner court of Maitreya and delivered the third seat's teaching before Bodhisattva Maitreya — facts proved that his eye became ever more correct, his bodhisattva conduct was also tempered into being, he passed the three gates of Chan, and entered the first bhūmi.
People of the past cultivated with genuine practice and genuine realization; their seeing the mind and seeing its nature was truly seeing the mind, without the slightest ambiguity, without any adulteration. After seeing the mind, not only did their wisdom gush forth, their conduct grew ever purer, conforming to the standards of a bodhisattva, becoming a refuge for sentient beings. Now it is different: fake bodhisattvas fly everywhere, more ordinary than ordinary worldly people, utterly incomparable to true bodhisattvas, as different as heaven and earth — so with these fake bodhisattvas of fake mind-seeing, there is no question of discussing any conduct.
9. Polishing a Brick Cannot Make a Mirror; Sitting in Meditation Cannot Make a Buddha
In the old days, when Patriarch Mazu Daoyi did not yet understand the Buddha-dharma's cultivation and realization, he believed that becoming a Buddha could only be accomplished by sitting in meditation, not knowing that becoming a Buddha is the result of combining meditative concentration and wisdom — only with concentration and wisdom perfectly fused can one forge and transform the body-mind and the world. When Chan master Huairang, searching for outstanding talent for Buddhism, encountered Mazu Daoyi, he saw Mazu sitting in meditative absorption all day long; observing his extraordinary countenance and imposing bearing, endowed with the heroic spirit of a patriarch, he wished to deliver him to become a dragon and elephant of the Buddha's gate. Chan master Huairang sat opposite Mazu Daoyi, took a brick, and ground it with force, thus drawing Mazu's attention. Chan master Huairang explained that he was grinding the brick into a mirror. Mazu shook his head, saying that grinding a brick cannot make a mirror; Chan master Huairang said that sitting in meditation cannot make a Buddha either.
Thereupon Mazu Daoyi humbly asked how one could become a Buddha, and Chan master Huairang then explained to Mazu Daoyi the theory and the path to Buddhahood. To become a Buddha, one must first understand the fundamental Buddha-nature; only after seeing the mind and seeing its nature can one become a Buddha. How to see the mind and see its nature? One must investigate Chan; and in investigating Chan there must be not only concentration but also wisdom — with the equal cultivation of samādhi and prajñā, neither biased nor leaning, can one open great wisdom, see the mind and see its nature, and thereupon become a Buddha. On the path of cultivation, one must be complete and full in all dharmas without deviation to become a Buddha. Lacking wisdom and only cultivating concentration, wisdom cannot open. But without meditative concentration, merely reasoning with sentiment and intellectual understanding, great wisdom likewise cannot open. Only with the two combined can all wisdom be complete and Buddhahood perfectly accomplished. After Mazu Daoyi understood the principle of becoming a Buddha, he labored day and night, finally saw the mind and saw its nature, and became a patriarch of his generation.
10. The Spring of Awakening Life
Question: How should one practice so as to see the light? Answer: Directly use the manas to observe and illuminate. But the step of the manas is too high; one needs the mind consciousness as a stepping board to pave the way, using the mind consciousness step by step to guide the manas in observation.
Question: Seeing without discriminating, hearing without discriminating, doing without discriminating, neither welcoming nor dismissing, neither inside nor outside — can one thus see the light? Answer: If so, wooden blocks and stones also do not discriminate — could they see the light? Question: Discriminating but not abiding in the mind, using it yet leaving it — can one see the light? Answer: Using in ignorance, leaving in ignorance — what benefit is there? This is a dharma gate of cultivating concentration. Question: I remember the master once said: "The moment the manas directs attention, it ceases; upon contact it ceases, does not receive, and there is no further perception and deliberation." Can one see the light this way? Answer: This is pure concentration cultivation, not investigating Chan; it cannot open wisdom or see the light.
Question: Knowing that all dharmas are illusory and false — does one then see the ultimate reality that is without marks? Answer: Arhats also see that all dharmas are illusory, yet they do not see ultimate reality. Many people have realized that all dharmas are illusory, yet hardly any have seen ultimate reality. What use is knowing that all dharmas are illusory? Between knowing and realizing there is still a distance of a hundred and eight thousand li.
Question: I see the myriad dharmas as shadows and illusions — can I then see the projector? Answer: Do you first see the projector, or first see the shadows? Seeing in an inverted way, one cannot see ultimate reality. Question: First see the shadows as illusory, and simultaneously know it is the projector's function. Answer: That is like seeing the shadow and thereby knowing the moon.
Question: The myriad dharmas are like bubbles — seeing the bubbles, can one then see the great ocean? Answer: For immeasurable kalpas, what day have sentient beings not seen bubbles? Who has seen the ocean? Question: Sentient beings' mind-eye is not open, they do not know to investigate, they invert root and branch, and so they only see the shadow, not knowing the shadow is the effect of light. To take it up in this very moment — all are tathāgatas; the entire wave is just water. Answer: This is truly not easy; it is the realm of the wisdom of the varieties of paths. The road before this is still long — may you press forward bravely!
Question: If I do not look from outside the waves, I can see the water, right? Answer: Waves arise and cease; waves are illusory transformations; waves are generated by water — the waves are just water. Who then still sees waves? Question: Outside the waves there are no dharmas; sentient beings only see waves, not knowing it is water. Buddhists see the waves and also do not know it is water, yet instead go imagining a separate water. Answer: Birth and death have always been in the water, yet it is not known — only because it is too familiar, too close.
Question: Zhuangzi said: "Fish forget one another in the water; people forget one another in the Way." Is it so? Answer: So it is, yet birth and death are not resolved. Question: If the mad mind does not rest — if it rests, is that enough? Answer: Turn your head and illuminate yourself; if you do not see your original head, how can you rest the madness? Question: Through births and deaths, I have never come; tides rise and fall, yet the ocean water neither arises nor ceases. Answer: The entire wave is just water; the ocean water neither comes nor goes, neither rises nor falls.
Question: Birth and death is an illusory dharma; sentient beings constantly abide in nirvāṇa yet do not know it? Answer: Indeed. Question: I, within nirvāṇa, watch my own birth and death, watching the changes of sentient beings' birth and death. Answer: Within nirvāṇa, everything should be nirvāṇa; if within nirvāṇa there is no one, why would there be seeing and birth-and-death? Question: Could it all be illusory seeing? Answer: Originally there is no seeing; illusorily arises illusory seeing.
