Zen's Chinese Heritage: The Masters and Their Teachings (59 page)

At the age of twenty-one, Dongshan took the monk’s vows on famous Mt. Song. In the tradition of the Zen school he then went traveling to visit the great adepts of his time.

Dongshan first went to see Zen master Nanquan Puyuan. At that time the congregation was working to prepare a feast for the following day in honor of Nanquan’s late master, Mazu.

Nanquan asked the congregation, “Tomorrow we will have Mazu’s feast, but will Mazu come or not?”

The monks were unable to answer. Dongshan then stepped forward and said, “If he has a companion, he’ll come.”

When Nanquan heard this, he approved and said, “Though this child is young, he’s a gem worthy of polishing.”

Dongshan said, “Master, don’t crush something good into something bad.”

Next, Dongshan studied with Guishan. One day he said, “I’ve heard that National Teacher Huizhong taught that inanimate beings expound Dharma. I don’t understand this clearly.”

Guishan said, “Do you remember what he said or not?”

Dongshan said, “I remember.”

Guishan said, “Please repeat it.”

Dongshan said, “A monk asked the National Teacher, ‘What is the mind of the ancient buddhas?’

“The National Teacher said, ‘A wall tile.’

“The monk said, ‘A wall tile? Isn’t a wall tile inanimate?’

“The National Teacher said, ‘Yes.’

“The monk asked, ‘And it can expound the Dharma?’

“The National Teacher said, ‘It expounds it brilliantly, without letup.’

“The monk said, ‘Why can’t I hear it?’

“The National Teacher said, ‘You yourself may not hear it. But that doesn’t mean others can’t hear it.’

“The monk said, ‘Who are the people who can hear it?’

“The National Teacher said, ‘All the holy ones can hear it.’

“The monk said, ‘Can the master hear it or not?’

“The National Teacher said, ‘I cannot hear it. If I could hear it I would be the equal of the saints. Then you could not hear me expound the Dharma.’

“The monk said, ‘All beings can’t understand that sort of speech.’

“The National Teacher said, ‘I expound Dharma for the sake of beings, not for the sake of the saints.’

“The monk said, ‘After beings hear it, then what?’

“The National Teacher said, ‘Then they’re not sentient beings.’

“The monk asked, ‘What scripture teaches about inanimate [things] expounding Dharma?’

“The National Teacher said, ‘Obviously, this is not found in the scriptures, nor is it something that some noble one has said. But haven’t you heard the words of the Flower Garland Sutra that say, “The chiliocosm, sentient beings, and the three realms all proclaim it”?’” When Dongshan finished speaking, Guishan said, “I have this teaching. But one seldom encounters a person who understands it.”

Dongshan said, “I’m not clear about it. I ask you for instruction about this.”

Guishan lifted his whisk upright into the air and said, “Do you understand?”

Dongshan said, “I don’t understand. Please explain it to me, Master.”

Guishan said, “The mouth that my parents gave to the world is utterly unable to explain this to you.”

Dongshan said, “Is there anyone else of your generation whom you respect and who can explain it?”

Guishan said, “Go to Liling in You County, where there are stone houses strung together.
¹¹⁵
There, find a man of the Way named Yunyan. If you can search the grass and face the wind [bear his teaching methods], then you’ll certainly hold him in esteem.”

Dongshan said, “Who is this person?”

Guishan said, “He once asked me, ‘When a student greatly admires and respects a teacher, what should he do?’

“I said, ‘He must stop all the leaks.’

“He said, ‘And he should also not go against his teacher’s teaching, right?’

“I said, ‘First of all you can’t say that I’m at this spot!’”

So Dongshan said goodbye to Guishan and proceeded on to Yunyan. He related to Yunyan the story about the National Teacher and asked, “Who can hear inanimate things expound Dharma?”

Yunyan said, “What is inanimate can hear it.”

Dongshan said, “Can the master hear it or not?”

Yunyan said, “If I could hear it, then you could not hear me expound Dharma.”

Dongshan said, “Why couldn’t I hear you?”

Yunyan held up his whisk and said, “Can you still hear me or not?”

Dongshan said, “I can’t hear you.”

Yunyan said, “When I expound Dharma you can’t hear me. So how could you hear it when inanimate things proclaim it?”

Dongshan said, “What scripture teaches about inanimate things expounding Dharma?”

Yunyan said, “Haven’t you seen that in the Amitabha Sutra it says, ‘The lakes and rivers, the birds, the forests; they all chant Buddha; they all chant Dharma’?”

Upon hearing this Dongshan experienced a great insight. He then wrote a verse:

How incredible!
How incredible!
Inanimate things proclaiming Dharma is inconceivable.
It can’t be known if the ears try to hear it,
But when the eyes hear it, then it may be known.

Dongshan asked Yunyan, “Are there other practices I haven’t completed?”

Yunyan said, “What were you doing before you came here?”

Dongshan said, “I wasn’t practicing the noble truths.”

Yunyan said, “Were you joyous in this nonpractice?”

Dongshan said, “It was not without joy. It’s like sweeping excrement into a pile and then picking up a precious jewel from within it.”

Dongshan asked Yunyan, “When I want to see
it
face to face, what should I do?”

Yunyan said, “Ask someone who’s done it.”

Dongshan said, “That’s what I’m doing.”

Yunyan said, “What can I say to you?”

As Dongshan prepared to leave Yunyan, Yunyan said, “Where are you going?”

Dongshan said, “Although I’m leaving the master, I don’t know where I’ll end up.”

Yunyan said, “You’re not going to Hunan?”

Dongshan said, “No, I’m not.”

Yunyan said, “Are you returning home?”

Dongshan said, “No.”

Yunyan said, “Sooner or later you’ll return.”

Dongshan said, “When the master has an abode, then I’ll return.”

Yunyan said, “If you leave, it will be difficult to see one another again.”

Dongshan said, “It will be difficult to not see one another.”

Just when Dongshan was about to depart, he said, “If in the future someone happens to ask whether I can describe the master’s truth or not, how should I answer them?”

After a long pause, Yunyan said, “Just this is it.”

Dongshan sighed.

Then Yunyan said, “Worthy Liang, now that you have taken on this great affair, you must consider it carefully.”

Dongshan continued to experience doubt. Later as he crossed a stream he saw his reflection in the water and was awakened to Yunyan’s meaning. He then composed this verse:

Avoid seeking elsewhere, for that’s far from the self.
Now I travel alone, everywhere I meet it.
Now it’s exactly me, now I’m not it.
It must thus be understood to merge with thusness.

Years later, Dongshan was making offerings to Yunyan’s image when a monk asked, “Yunyan said, ‘Just this is it,’ did he not?”

Dongshan said, “Yes.”

The monk asked, “What was his meaning?”

Dongshan said, “Back then I almost misunderstood my teacher’s meaning.”

The monk asked, “I’d like to know if Yunyan really knew this or not.”

Dongshan said, “If he didn’t know, how could he speak in this manner? And if he did know, why was he willing to speak this way?” (Later Changqing said, “If he knew, why did he speak this way?” Changqing also said, “A child then knew a father’s compassion.”)

Dongshan hosted a feast of commemoration on the anniversary of Yunyan’s death.

A monk asked, “When you were at Yunyan’s place, what teaching did he give you?”

Dongshan said, “Although I was there, I didn’t receive any teaching.”

The monk asked, “But you are holding a commemorative feast for the late teacher. Doesn’t that show you approve his teaching?”

Dongshan said, “Half approve. Half not approve.”

The monk said, “Why don’t you completely approve of it?”

Dongshan said, “If I completely approved, then I would be disloyal to my late teacher.”