This statement seems to make sense, because looking through various lantern records, it is true that each of the great masters has their own different opinions on a public case. However, if you are a scholar who really participates in koans, you will definitely find that although the opinions of the great masters on a previous koan are different, they remain the same. They must all directly express their own xinxing. Contemplation and enlightenment, that is to say, participation in public cases must be directed at one's own mind. Therefore, here it is not that the public says that the public is right, and the mother-in-law says that the mother-in-law is right, but that no matter how much you say horizontally or vertically, you never leave "this". Therefore, in this sense, participation in public cases is not without a basic standard. Speaking of this, I remembered that when I read "Mazu's Quotations" some time ago and read the koan "Sun-Faced Buddha, Moon-Faced Buddha", I felt a little confused at that time. In the words of the ancestors, they were like mosquitoes. When you bite the iron ox, there is no lower part of the mouth. This koan goes like this: The master moved in the morning, and today in the evening the master of the temple asked: "The monk's four bodies are in harmony, how are you doing these days?" The master said: "The sun-faced Buddha, the moon-faced Buddha." "Mazu's Quotations" Of course there is an explanation for this public case in the book, but as I often said before, the explanation in the book is a riddle-like answer. He said: Mazu was on his deathbed at the time, and when faced with the inquiry from the hospital master, he might have said There is no difference between long and short lifespan. It may also mean that you see all the Buddhas coming to guide you. This is the attitude of some scholars towards public cases. They are analyzing and speculating rather than participating. I feel that this scholar lacks even some basic common sense about Buddhism. For example, in another place in the book, when explaining the sentence "There are three covenants in the neck," he simply quoted a Japanese writer: "There are three depressions in the neck." What kind of depression? Are there three pits? If there were only three dents on Mazu's neck, would it be necessary to include them in the lantern records that have been passed down through the ages? You know, the ancients cherished words as much as gold in their koans. In fact, the reason why the ancients had the record of "three covenants around Mazu's neck" is that they admired Mazu for his practical kung fu. "Covenant" restraint refers to the collar around the neck. This is a metaphor. It means that there are three collar-like marks on Mazu's neck. Because people who truly practice Kung Fu, after opening up all the eight meridians and twelve levels of the Qi Meridian, will have external characteristics, that is, a "promise" like a collar will appear on their necks. Not only did Mazu have a "promise", but he also had three paths. His disciples respected his cultivation very much and specially recorded this in the lantern record. The scholar who compiled "Mazu's Quotations" not only did not understand what happened to Mazu's "three covenants around his neck", but also described Mazu's state before his death as "dying". We know that dying refers specifically to the coma state of us mortals before death. In Buddhism, it belongs to the "drowsy state" and also to the great coma. To say that Mazu said "Sun-faced Buddha, moon-faced Buddha" when he was "dying" is tantamount to saying that Mazu may have said such a confused sentence while in a coma, or may have appeared such a thing while in a coma. hallucination. If this were the case, Mazu would not have been a person with superb practical skills, nor would he have had "three covenants around his neck" during his lifetime. In fact, it is very clear in the public case that Mazu was going to be moved the next morning, but before that, he only showed "four body disobedience", was not feeling well, and was sick, so the hospital owner came to say hello. If he is "dying" and in a coma, why would the director of the hospital give him any greetings? At this time, Mazu's answer was clear: "Sun-faced Buddha, moon-faced Buddha." This sentence was not only a reply to the monk's greetings "Monk's four limbs are not in harmony, how are you recently?", but also a final message to the world. teachings. When I first read this koan, I really couldn't find its place. But one day, I also fell ill and was in a state of "four body disharmony". Due to the lack of medical treatment and medicine in the mountains, as long as it was not a serious illness that I could not resist, I usually relied on meditation to repair myself. When I sat in a state of total selflessness, I had no physical sensation for a while, and the parts that used to be painful seemed to have disappeared. I just sat like that, sitting, empty and clear, and suddenly, I understood "Sun-Faced Buddha, Moon-Faced Buddha". What did I realize at that time? I realized that the mind has its surroundings, but the mind is empty and the Dharma is empty. My physical appearance is just a state in my heart. If my heart is empty and my body cannot bear it, if my physical body does not exist, how can I get sick? Birth and death, life and death, increase and decrease, length and shortness, are nothing but creations of the mind. The Sun-faced Buddha has a lifespan of more than 1,800 years, and the Moon-faced Buddha has a lifespan of only one day and one night, but "after the birth of the Supreme Voice, the Buddha will be named Moon-faced again, and the Moon-faced Buddha will live for one day and one night. After passing the Moon-faced Buddha, , there is a sun-faced Buddha again, and the lifespan of the sun-faced Buddha is one thousand and eight hundred years." (from "Buddha Speaks of the Name of the Buddha") We find an incredible problem in the Buddhist scriptures, that is, since the moon-faced Buddha has a lifespan of only one year. Day and night, then when we pass by today, we may see both the Moon-Faced Buddha and the Sun-Faced Buddha. When we pass by again tomorrow, we will only see the Sun-Faced Buddha. But no, we will always see it. Moon-faced Buddha, otherwise this Buddhist sutra would not be valid. why is that? If there is no birth in one's mind, there will be no fault in everything. In the Buddha's one-nature Dharma Realm, there is no difference. Let alone one day and one night versus eighteen hundred years, even one thought versus ten thousand years are all equal. When Mazu was greeted by the master of the temple before his death, he replied, "Sun-faced Buddha, Moon-faced Buddha." He was demonstrating his understanding of the nature of mind: life and death are the same, there is no difference, and the minds of all living beings are peaceful and bright. Neither birth nor death. This is the koan about Mazu's "Sun-Faced Buddha, Moon-Faced Buddha" that I myself got involved in through my illness.
So, is this the only answer to this public case? Of course not, everyone can give different answers to this koan based on their own perception of their own mind. The premise is that it must be directed at one's own heart, rather than surrounding language and words. However, since everyone has different levels of understanding of their own mind, and different levels of practice, so even though they are all manifestations of the nature of their own mind, there are still different levels of realm. This is a difference in the level of cultivation, not a difference in the minds and bodies of sentient beings. There is no difference in the minds of all living beings. Speaking of the question of whether there is only one answer to the public case or there are many answers, it reminded me of another public case written by Mazu: One night, three scholars accompanied Mazu to play Yueci. Zu said: "How about when you are in trouble?" "Xitang said: "It's just a good time to make offerings." Master (Baizhang) said: "It's just a good time to practice." Nanquan waved his sleeves and left. Zu Yun said: "Sutras go to Tibet, Zen returns to the sea, only universal wishes are superior to anything else." Xitang Zhizang, Baizhang Huaihai and Nanquan Puyuan are the three descendants of Mazu, and they are honored as the three great scholars of Hongzhou. The four masters and disciples went to the wild to admire the moon. Mazu lost no time in showing off a clever tip: What should we do at this time (when the moon is shining)? If you think that Mazu is really asking about the bright moon above his head, that's it. You will definitely follow the language of the question and answer something like "I miss my loved ones more during the festive season", "Thousands of miles away, I love Chan Juan" "Yeah or something, this is called Han Xuan chasing pieces, being led away by language and words. Zen masters in ancient times would often suddenly come up with a topic in a certain external situation. In this way, they would test whether the student's views were correct and whether his practice was proficient. At this time, he seems to be asking about the outside world. For example, Zhaozhou asked: "Have you ever been here?" If you think of "here" as "this mountain" or "this temple," he will ask you "Go have tea". At this time, skilled scholars need to immediately change the sentence. How to change it? Turn the external realm of this question into your own character to answer. In Zen Buddhism, the bright moon is often used as a metaphor for the bright and peaceful mind. For example, "My heart is like the autumn moon. The light of the green pool is so vast that nothing can compare with it. What can I say?" Another example is: "Thousands of feet of silk droop straight down. Waves only move and thousands of waves follow. The fish will not eat in the cold water at night, and the boat will return empty-handed." There are too many to mention, all of which are based on the nature of the mind. Therefore, the three great scholars who understood Mazu's profound decrees all understood that although the master raised this question while admiring the moon, he was definitely not asking about this month but that month. His actual question was: "While you are practicing What should we do when we have reached the point where our heart is like the bright moon and the emptiness shines upon us?” In this koan, we have seen that when faced with the Master’s question, the three great masters had different answers, but despite their differences, they still had different answers. Everyone's answer does not depart from their own realization of the nature of mind. Xitang replied, "It's just the right time to make an offering." Xitang Zhizang is a kind-hearted person, usually taciturn, and has always been a model of honest cultivation. He pays special attention to cultivating his own merits, so it's not surprising that he answered "It's just the right time to make an offer." Many of us don’t pay much attention to merit, thinking that as long as we read scriptures and meditate, we can practice and become a Buddha. Who knows, if the merit is not enough, the heart will not be able to correspond to the Buddha. Even if you meditate, you will not think about it. Once the place is settled, it has nothing to do with Buddhism. Besides, making offerings means practicing, and practicing means making offerings. Among all offerings, Dharma offerings are the best, and practicing diligently according to the Buddha’s teachings is the best Dharma offering to the Buddha. Monk Xitang was very familiar with the Buddhist scriptures, so Mazu praised him for "the scriptures entered Tibet" and said that the principles in the Buddhist scriptures had penetrated deeply into Zhizang's heart. Huaihai replied: "It's just right to practice." Zen Master Baizhang Huaihai did not think that he was a sharp-edged instrument. His practice before enlightenment was actually very difficult. Enlightenment." Some lantern records say that this story is Baizhangzheng's, but this is not important. In short, in Zen Buddhism, it is believed that real practice actually begins after enlightenment. The Sixth Patriarch said: "If you don't know your original mind, your practice will be useless." Therefore, the practice before this is just laying the foundation at best. After "the light of the heart shines alone" and "it is difficult to turn around under the bright moon curtain", this is the most critical period of spiritual practice. Baizhang Huaihai deeply understands that after practicing cultivation and entering a state where the heart is as bright as the bright moon, it is the critical moment when it is necessary to "turn over and make a leap". Becoming a Buddha or becoming a demon. In this one move, you must not relax at this time. What follows next The road is still quite long, so he said, “It’s just the right time to practice.” And Mazu was very sure of his answer, saying, "Zen returns to the sea." Mazu praised these two disciples, thinking that one of them would definitely achieve success under his teachings in the future, and the other would become unique in his sect. It all came true later. Nanquan Puyuan fluttered his sleeves and left without saying anything. Mazu praised him: "Only Universal Yuan transcends all things." This reminds us of the pure name of Viyali City, Dukou. After all the great Bodhisattvas answered Vimalakirti's question: What is the non-dual method, Manjushri Bodhisattva asked: So what do you think? Vimalakirti remained silent, and Manjushri praised: This is the true and non-dual method! His pure name is Vimalakirti. From this public case, we can see that the netizen was right, that is to say, there is more than one answer. Everyone's level of practice is different, they talk about problems from different angles, and they see different realms, but as long as they are based on their own realization of their own minds during practice, they are all correct. If you look at Mazu, he all responded in the affirmative to the different answers given by the three disciples. However, both are right. There are different levels of kung fu, different levels of realm, and different levels of enlightenment. Mazu still praised Pu Yuan more kindly.
It can be said that from the answers of Zhizang and Huaihai, Mazu saw that they had reached the state of "people are empty and dharma exists" at that time. They still had the attachment to dharma, they still needed to practice and realize, and they also needed to grasp a Buddhist dharma. However, Nanquan Puyuan has reached the state of "emptiness of people and emptiness of Dharma", where things and self are forgotten, and there is no cultivation or realization. When Mazu used the word "only" when praising Pu Yuan, he made it clear that Pu Yuan's level of practice was higher than that of the previous two.