A Bird in Flight Leaves No Trace

by Seon Master Subul

  “Therefore a patriarch said:

  When this mind-dharma has been entrusted,

  how there can be this or that dharma that is called the dharma?

  When there is neither dharma nor original mind,

  only then will you understand the dharma [transmitted from] mind to mind.131

  所以祖師云 付此心法時 法法何曾法 無法無本心 始解心心法.

  When Seon patriarchs transmitted from mind to mind the sublime mind of nirvāṇa, they did not in fact transmit even a single dharma. The patriarchs simply guided their disciples to realize what all sentient beings originally possess; these patriarchs added or subtracted nothing.

  All sentient beings possess and use that mind perfectly. It is not that the buddhas have more of this mind or that sentient beings have less.

  Even though you perceive there really does seem to be a transmission between master and disciple, realize that there is in fact no dharma or original mind that is transmitted. Only then will you understand the principle that the dharma or the mind is transmitted without anything actually being transmitted.

  However, ordinary beings should not simply parrot these words. They should practice strenuously in order to silently accord with them and be joyful.

  The first two lines in the above verse are part of Śākyamuni Buddha’s dharma-transmission verse to the second Indian patriarch, Mahākāśyapa. The latter two lines are taken from the verses of the fourth and sixth patriarchs of India.

  “The realization that there is not a single dharma to be attained is called ‘sitting at the enlightenment site.’ An enlightenment site (bodhimaṇḍa) just means not giving rise to any views.

  實無一法可得名坐道場 道場者秖是不起諸見.

  The site where buddhas are selected (xuanfochang/seonbuljang 選佛場) is a place where not a single dharma is attained. This is an enlightenment site, where all right and wrong views, speculations, and discriminations are eradicated. The buddhas always sit at this site. Even were delusions to appear at this site, they would be purified by the buddhas’ majestic power. It is like empty space, where not a single thing can be established.

  A true practitioner should sit at this site and see the buddha directly, use the dharma carefully, respect the entire saṅgha, and live comfortably, in perfect harmony.

  If you realize that a true enlightenment site is that place where not a single dharma is attained, wherever you are will be a pure land, where lotus flowers blossom.

  “Awakening to the fact that dharmas are originally empty is called the empty tathāgatagarbha.

  Originally there is not a single thing,

  so where can dust alight?132

  If you understand the meaning here, what need is there to speak of wandering leisurely?”

  悟法本空 喚作空如來藏 本來無一物 何處有塵埃 若得此中意 逍遙何所論.

  If a pristine enlightenment site is created, there will be no sentient beings who need to be saved. Since the dharma is originally empty, it is not something that is either good or bad. Be grateful to the Buddhadharma for helping you to understanding this meaning as you course with the flow of causes and conditions with a simple and clear spirit. In this way, your practice will deepen and widen.

  After studying under Master Huangbo, the lay practitioner Pei Xiu probably lived a leisurely life without worldly cares. Pei Xiu’s tomb is located in Weishan. After Huangbo passed away, Pei Xiu spent the rest of his life relying on the guidance of Weishan/Guishan Lingyou 潙山靈祐 (771–853), a renowned Seon master of his time and cofounder of the Weiyang/Guiyang school of Chan.

  9. Originally There Is Not a Single Thing

  Pei Xiu asked, “ ‘Originally there is not a single thing.’ But is it then correct or not to say there is ‘no-thing’?”

  問 本來無一物 無物便是否

  The Sixth Patriarch’s famous verse, “Originally there is not a single thing,/ so where can dust alight?,” was delivered in response to his rival Shenxiu’s verse, “At all times, strive to polish it./ Do not let dust collect.” Shenxiu had not yet seen the mind but tried to express enlightenment from the standpoint of the conditioned (saṃskṛta, youwei/yuwi 有爲) realm, while the patriarch revealed the unconditioned (asaṃskṛta, wuwei/muwi 無爲) enlightenment site, where not a single dharma can be ascertained. Huineng was simply responding to Master Shenxiu’s view. His use of the phrase “not a single thing” revealed he still had a trace of attachment to the notion of “nonexistence.” After his exchange of verses, Huineng attained sudden awakening thanks to the intercession of the Fifth Patriarch Hongren 弘忍 (601–74), who privately instructed him on the Diamond Sūtra. Huineng overcame his attachment to the dichotomy between “existence” and “nonexistence” and declared this lion’s roar: “Who would have thought that the self-nature is itself originally pristine!”133

  The master answered, “ ‘Nonexistence’ is also not correct. Bodhi has no fixed locus, but it is also not free from knowledge and understanding.”

  師云 無亦不是 菩提無是處 亦無無知解.

  Master Nanyue Huairang received the Sixth Patriarch’s dharma. When he visited the Sixth Patriarch, Huineng asked him, “What thing has come in this manner?” After eight years of study, Huairang answered this question by saying, “It is not right even to call it a thing,” and received certification of his enlightenment.134

  The Buddhadharma is not a relative concept that can be described in terms of existence or nonexistence. It involves neither delusion nor bodhi, neither ignorance nor the extinction of ignorance.

  10. Why Did Bodhidharma Come from the West?

  Pei Xiu asked, “What is buddha?”

  問 何者是佛.

  Depending on who asks “What is buddha?” the result can vary. If the questioner painstakingly grapples with this question day and night, he or she can attain awakening just by a Seon master’s striking and shouting. Seon masters who have an eye for the truth have answered the question in different ways. Some for example, say one word directly, others sit with their backs to the questioner, or give a thumb’s up, or strike the questioner. These acts served as a trigger prompting their disciples to awakening.

  It is just like a chick pecking at its shell from the inside while the mother hen pecks from the outside: the chick hatches from its shell more quickly.

  The master replied, “Your mind is buddha. Buddha is the mind. The mind and the buddha are not different. Therefore, it is said, ‘The mind is buddha.’ Apart from the mind, there is no other buddha.’ ”

  師云 汝心是佛 佛即是心 心佛不異 故云 即心是佛 若離於心別更無佛.

  Since even a person like Pei Xiu, who had already awakened to his mind, wanted his understanding to be checked by the master. Huangbo answered him directly, by saying, “Your mind is buddha.”

  Mazu Daoyi often asked his students, “It is not mind, it is not buddha, it is not a thing. So what is it?”135

  Pei Xiu asked, “If our own minds are buddha, why did the Patriarch [Bodhidharma] come from the West to transmit it?”

  云若自心是佛 祖師西來如何傳授.

  Unless you firmly believe that your mind is buddha, it is easy for you to misunderstand that there is something that is transmitted.

  “The Patriarch’s intention in coming from the West” (zushi xilai yi / chosa seorae ui 祖師西來意) is just the one mind. There is no separate dharma.

  The master replied, “The Patriarch came from the West only to transmit the mind that is buddha. He directly pointed to the fact that your minds are originally buddhas. Each and every mind is no different. This is why he is called a patriarch.”

  師云 祖師西來 唯傳心佛 直指汝等心本來是佛 心心不異 故名為祖.

  The Seon school refers to the “mind-to-mind transmission,” but there is actually no one who transmits or receives anything; this expression simply means that the mind is connected to the mind. Do not be content with
just understanding this expression intellectually. Check it for yourself. Pei Xiu knew what this meant, but he had not fully digested it, so he felt anxious. That is why he keeps asking the same question. In truth, if you attain thorough penetration, you must see a Seon master. You cannot check yourself with a mind that understands intellectually. Only if you awaken to your mind will you be able to find ‘peace of mind and the correct course in life’ (anxin liming / ansim immyeong 安心立命).

  “If right here and now you perceive this intention, you will suddenly transcend all the ranks in the three vehicles. This is the original buddha. It is not something achieved by provisional practices.”

  若直下見此意 即頓超三乘一切諸位 本來是佛 不假修成.

  Whether mind or buddha, they are just revealed, like stamping a seal in the air. If you understand this, you will not commit a foolish act like mastering a series of stages in practice because you know that there is nothing to rely on.

  When people realize what it is that they are inherently endowed with, they do not rely on practice.

  Pei Xiu asked, “If this is the case, when all the buddhas in the ten directions appeared in the world, what dharma did they teach?”

  云 若如此 十方諸佛出世說於何法.

  We say that the buddhas “appeared,” but they never truly appeared even once. In terms of conditioned dharmas, Śākyamuni Buddha may have appeared in the world 2,500 years ago, but in terms of the unconditioned dharma, all the buddhas in ten directions have never come or gone.

  After Śākyamuni Buddha was born under the Sorrowless (Aśoka) Tree (Wuyou shu / Muu su 無憂樹), he took seven steps, pointed up to the sky with one hand and down to the ground with the other, and declared, “In the heavens above and the earth below, I alone am honored.” The master Yunmen Wenyan 雲門文偃 (864–949) commented boldly on this event: “If I had seen him do this, I would have struck him dead with a single blow and fed him to the dogs.”136

  You need to be able to intuit the point of these words.

  The master said, “All the buddhas in the ten directions appeared in the world only to preach the dharma of the one mind.

  師云 十方諸佛出世 秖共說一心法.

  The Buddhadharma only reveals the dharma of the one mind. You have to penetrate it. If you think one thought in order to understand it, you will be far off the mark!

  If you do not penetrate, then raise a doubt at that spot where you cannot penetrate. But if you deploy your intellect, you will be far removed from the Buddhadharma.

  “Therefore the Buddha secretly entrusted it to Mahākāśyapa. The essence of this one-mind dharma extends throughout empty space and pervades the dharma realm; we call this ‘all the buddhas.’

  Although we may discuss this dharma, how can you understand what it is through words? You cannot perceive what it is through the sense faculties or sense objects; you can only silently accord with it.

  所以佛密付與摩訶大迦葉 此一心法體 盡虛空遍法界 名為諸佛 理論這個法 豈是汝於言句上 解得他 亦不是於一機一境上見得他 此意 唯是默契得.

  Although the mind is always with you — past, present, and future — if you do not accord with the Buddhadharma and attain it for yourself, you will cling to things, and life will exhaust you.

  Fortunately, Śākyamuni Buddha attained great awakening and revealed the way for sentient beings to live a new life with wisdom: by liberating themselves from ignorance. His teachings have been passed down through successive generations of masters to the present.

  However, even if this were not so, the mind would still flow along in accordance with causes and conditions. It is not a function of whether Buddhism exists. This was so before the realms of the cosmos were created, and it has been so ever since they were created. It will be so wherever, whenever, or even whether heaven and earth are created or destroyed.

  You must awaken to this fact!

  “This one gate is called the ‘unconditioned dharma gate.’

  這一門 名為無為法門.

  All the buddhas transmitted only the dharma of the one mind. Since it cannot be revealed through either form or color, it was transmitted silently from mind to mind. The dharma gate that is conveyed through this mind-to-mind transmission is called the “unconditioned dharma gate.”

  In the realm of conditioned dharmas, a subject carries out intentional actions in order to control and manipulate objects. However, the Buddhadharma is the unconditioned dharma. This means it is possible to let go of all intentional actions and naturally accord with the mind that is originally the buddha.

  “If you wish to comprehend it, you need only know it is no-mind. Then, unexpectedly, you will have an awakening. If you use your mind to try and learn something about it, you will end up further from it.

  若欲會得 但知無心 忽悟即得 若用心擬學取 即轉遠去.

  If you wish to enter the realm of the unconditioned dharma, which is nonaction, you need only realize that your mind is originally no-mind and let go of all intentionality. In the realm of the unconditioned dharma, you do nothing, but there is nothing that is not done. The more you try to understand it intellectually, the further you will be from that original state of no-mind.

  Master Huangbo here advises you to suddenly realize no-mind. If you try to understand it by studying, you will end up going astray.

  “If the mind is free from forks in the road (qilu/kiro 岐路) and from both clinging and rejection, then the mind will be like stone or wood. Only then will you have a share in the path of training.”

  若無岐路心一切取捨心 心如木石 始有學道分.

  If you cling to or reject things with a mind that discriminates among things, you will end up falling into extreme views and lose the middle way. Only when your mind becomes no-mind do you begin to partake of the path of training (sikṣāmārga).

  [Pei Xiu] asked, “Various deluded thoughts are appearing this very moment. How can you say these don’t exist?”

  云 如今現有種種妄念 何以言無.

  Since Pei Xiu here is entrapped in the mirages created by causes and conditions, he falls into the bifurcation of existence and nonexistence. Deluded thoughts that appear in accordance with causes and conditions are false. You should know that they are not real.

  If you do not know the true source, you will fall into the realm of characteristics and be entrapped by illusory mirages. Your mind will be also disturbed by those characteristics and mirages. Whether a cloud floats by or the wind blows, empty space is void, as it has always been.

  If you do not know how to see the nature that has no foundation, you will cling to characteristics and will never be able to stop disputing over right and wrong.

  The master replied, “Delusions originally have no essence; they are what arise from your mind. If you recognize that the mind is buddha and that the mind is originally free from delusions, then how would you give rise to thoughts that could be acknowledged as deluded?”

  師云 妄本無體 即是汝心所起 汝若識心是佛 心本無妄 那得起心更認於妄.

  The instant you awaken to the fact that your mind is originally buddha, you recognize that there are originally no false forms. You will then be able personally to confirm that there are no other forms distinct from this truth.

  When you do not understand something during your encounter with a Seon master, raise a doubt and investigate it. As your study matures over a long period, the master’s intention is eventually revealed. This training technique has been standardized by later generations of teachers as ganhwa Seon — questioning meditation on topics of contemplation.

  You must understand that the mind of doubt (yixin/uisim 疑心) is the lifeblood of ganhwa Seon. As the mind of doubt deepens into the sensation of doubt (yiqing/uijeong 疑情) and eventually the mass of doubt (yituan/uidan 疑團), the true import of the hwadu, or meditative topic, will be fully illuminated when the moment is right.

  “If
you neither produce mental states nor think thoughts, then naturally you will be free from delusion. Therefore, it is said, ‘If the mind arises, various dharmas arise; if the mind ceases, various dharmas cease.’ ”137

  汝若不生心動念 自然無妄 所以云 心生則種種法生 心滅則種種法滅.

  You may give rise to thoughts while encountering objects all day long, but if you know that your mind is always such and just as it is, it does not matter that thoughts arise and disappear. You are no longer inveigled by mirages. If you give rise to thoughts while being moved by objects and do not know this fact, you will engage in ceaseless discriminating actions. If you are awakened, even delusions will be sublime, but if you are not awakened, even the sublime will become a delusion.

  Therefore the Awakening of Faith says, “If thoughts arise, various dharmas arise; if thoughts cease, various dharmas cease.”

  Pei Xiu asked, “Now, at the very moment deluded thoughts arise, where is the buddha?”

  云 今正妄念起時 佛在何處.

  Pei Xiu asks this question, one that is difficult to broach with a Seon master, on behalf of all of us. Every Seon practitioner has probably asked the following questions at least once during training: We’re told we’re originally buddhas, so why do deluded thoughts keep arising in our minds? Where is the buddha when these deluded thoughts arise?

  The master replied, “Now, the moment you are aware that delusions are arising — that awareness is precisely buddha. Were there no deluded thoughts, there would be no buddhas.

  師云 汝今覺妄起時 覺正是佛 可中若無妄念 佛亦無.

  The Buddhist doctrinal teachings contrast sentient beings with buddhas and defilements with wisdom. Seon does not give such explanations. Rather, it directly points to the fact that defilements are nothing other than wisdom and sentient beings are nothing other than buddhas.

  Where there are deluded thoughts, there is buddha. Were there no deluded thoughts, there would be no buddha. In the original mind, “there is no ignorance but also no extinction of ignorance.”138 Reject both extreme views and reveal nonduality.