師金陵張興公先生仲子，生崇禎戊寅。年二十三祝髮，閱杖人錄至廣額屠兒話。杖曰：放下便休。何必云我是千佛一數？頓覺身心慶快。度夏萬杉，聞擊香板聲，四體清輕，如新浴出。獨於後園驢喫艸句，胸中如填巨石。歸參棲霞依和尚，侍霞落堂，僧問：父母未生前本來面目，霞便打。師當下胸次冰釋，霞以大法囑累之。初開法閩之夢筆，乙丑夏辭湖心，還建州報恩。是秋坐脫，建塔於寺之西塢，有得法者四人。
註解：
這位禪師也是曹洞宗的七十二世的祖師，他名字叫童求，字傳昱禪師。這位禪師是南京的張興公——張興是他的名字。公就是他或者名字叫興公。
「張興公先生仲子」：仲子就是第二個兒子——次子。所謂孟、仲、叔季：孟是第一個；仲是第二個；叔是第三個；季是第四個。又叫伯、仲、叔、季：伯是第一個，仲是第二個，叔是第三個：那麼季就是第四個。所以那個蘇秦，大約是他父親的第四個兒子，所以叫蘇季子。
「生崇禎戊寅年，二十三祝髮」：等到他年二十三歲的時候，就出家落髮了。「祝髮」，就是把頭髮剃去了。「閱杖人錄」：他出家之後就看佛教的書。「至廣額屠兒」：廣額就是前面腦門子這兒很廣闊的；腦門這地方又寬又廣，表示這個人很聰明的。所以你們看，凡是聰明的人這個地方都很寬很廣的，人很聰明的，不會那麼心狹性窄。趕那個地方很窄的，那個人的心性不太好。「屠兒」：本來做屠兒的不應該這樣的，那麼他現在這樣子。這是有點反常，所以說廣額屠兒。「話」：到這句話上。
「杖曰」：〈杖人錄〉是一部書；這個書上就這麼說了。「放下便休」：說你放下就好了。這說誰呢？說這個廣額屠兒，放下了就很好了。休就是很好，就什麼都沒有了。「何必云我是千佛一數」？何必又說我也是在千佛之中的，我是千佛之一？何必又這麼講呢？
「頓覺身心輕快」：這文不是杖人在那兒說，這是書本上那麼樣說的。那麼他看到這個地方，頓覺，就即刻覺得身心輕快，很舒服的。「度夏萬杉」：在萬杉那地方他結夏安居。「聞擊香板聲」：他聽見打板。晚上，或者一早起，打板——啪、啪、啪，一聽這打板的聲音。「四體清輕」：他覺得身心都輕飄飄的，好像沒有什麼似的。「如新浴出」：就好像剛剛沐浴完了之後出來那種感覺。
「獨於後園驢喫艸句」：但是被在「後園驢喫艸」句；驢就是毛驢子，在那兒喫草這句話。「胸中如填巨石」：他這不明白這句話，所以他就耿耿於心，心裏好像茅草塞著那麼不通。現在不單比那茅草更厲害，就好像填一塊巨石似的在心裏頭。「歸參棲霞依和尚」：於是乎他就到棲霞山大依和尚那去當參學。
他給棲霞大依禪師當侍者，「侍霞落堂」：就是說完了法下堂之後。「僧問」：他（大依禪師）當時講法的時候，一定講的「父母未生以前本來的面目」，這個僧人就問他，大約或者聽著認為他講得不圓滿，或者故意要來問難他，就問這個「父母未生以前的本來面目」。「霞便打」：棲霞和尚就打這個僧人。「師當下胸次冰釋」：這樣子他打旁人，可是他在那兒得到利益了。這心裏頭這塊大石也沒有了，就像那冰化了似的。
待續 |
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The Master was the second son of Mr.Zhang Xing Gong of Jinling. He was born in the year wu yin of the Chongzhen reign period and had his head shaved at the age of twenty-three. In reading the Records of Great Men, he came to the passage about the butcher with the broad forehead. The Records said, "All you have to do is let go, and that's it. What need is there to say that you are one of the thousand Buddhas?" He suddenly felt a lightness of body and mind. He spent the summer at Wanshan, where, upon hearing the striking of the boards, he felt light and refreshed all over, as if he had just taken a bath.
The saying about the donkey grazing in the backyard was like a huge boulder pressing down on his chest. He returned to the Venerable Yi at Qixia. While he was attending to the Venerable Yi, who had just descended from the Dharma platform, a monk inquired about "one's original face before one's parents give birth to one," and the Venerable Yi promptly beat the monk. The Master right then experienced a release of the pressure in his chest.
The Venerable Yi entrusted the Great Dharma to him. He initially propagated the Dharma at Mengbi in Fujian Province. In the summer of the year yi chou, he left Huxin (Heart of the Lake) Monastery and returned to Bao'en (Repaying Kindness) Monastery in Jianzhou. That autumn, he sat down and left the world. A stupa was built on the west side of the monastery. Four people received the Dharma from him.
Commentary:
This Dhyana Master is a Patriarch of the seventy-second generation in the Caodong sect. His name is Tongqiu, and his style name is Dhyana Master Chuanli. The Master was the second son of Mr. Zhang Xing Gong of Jinling. In Chinese, certain characters may be used in a name to designate that the person is the first, second, third, or fourth son in the family, namely, Meng, Zhong, Shu, and Ji. Meng is the first-born, Zhong is the second- born, Shu is the third-born, and Ji is the fourth-born. The man Su Chin was probably the fourth son, because he was also known as Su Ji Zi.
He was born in the year wu yin of the Chongzhen reign period and had his head shaved at the age of twenty-three. That is, he left the home life when he was twenty-three. After leaving home, he read Buddhist books. In reading the Records of Great Men, he came to the passage about the butcher with the broad forehead. A wide brow or forehead is an indication of intelligence. You may have noticed that smart people generally have broad foreheads. Bright individuals are not petty or narrow-minded. A small or narrow forehead area may indicate that a person does not have a very good temperament. Basically, a butcher should not be that way, but he manifested such an appearance. It was unusual for a butcher to have a broad forehead.
Anyway, the Records of Great Men said, "Ail you have to do is let go, and that's it." Just let go, and it'll be fine. Who is this talking about? It's referring to the butcher's son. If he can let go of things, it will be very good. Then there won't be anything at all. "What need is there to say that you are one of the thousand Buddhas? Why must you say that you are included among the thousand Buddhas?"
Upon reading that passage in the book, he suddenly felt a lightness of body and mind. His body and mind suddenly felt very light and comfortable. He spent the summer retreat at Wanshan, where, upon hearing the striking of the boards, "Pa, pa, pa," in the morning or evening, he felt light and refreshed all over, as if he had just taken a bath. He felt as if he were floating, with nothing to weigh him down. It was also as if he had just come out from a bath.
The saying about the donkey grazing in the backyard was like a huge boulder pressing down on his chest. Not understanding that sentence, he felt afflicted. He couldn't figure it out, and it was as if his mind were full of grass. In fact, it was worse than grass; he felt as if his mind was filled with a heavy boulder. Thereupon, he returned to the study with the Venerable Da Yi at Mount Qixia. He served as an attendant for the Venerable Yi. While he was attending to the Venerable Yi, who had just descended from the Dharma platform after speaking Dharma, a monk inquired about "one's original face before one's parents give birth to one." The Venerable Yi must have spoken about that topic in his lecture, and when the monk asked about it, the Venerable Yi promptly beat the monk. The Master right then experienced a release of the pressure in his chest. Although someone else received the beating, he gained benefit from it, and the great rock in his heart melted away like water.
To be continued |
