Chán Zhōng Shuō Chán: Entanglement Is Not Entanglement, Zen Is Not Zen — A Dead Tree's Dragon Song Illuminates the Great Thousand Worlds (XX)

2006/2/21 17:18:49

(XX)

There is a type of fellow who, taking the six consciousnesses as entanglement, gives rise to the mind of renunciation, delusionally seeking a place of liberation outside the six consciousnesses. This is merely the speculation of the mental consciousness and does not leave the six consciousnesses — such people are truly fools. To seek escape from the six consciousnesses by means of the six consciousnesses is like seeking one's head by using one's head. They do not know that the six consciousnesses are originally empty — there is nothing to escape from, nothing to enter. The desire to escape the six consciousnesses is merely a delusory thought of the six consciousnesses. What the six consciousnesses perceive and what perceives the six consciousnesses are only the six consciousnesses. Those who wish to give birth to the six consciousnesses outside the six consciousnesses — such people are truly fools.

The six consciousnesses are like shadows: without a body there is no shadow of the body; without light there is no appearance of the shadow. Yet the shadow is truly not born of light, nor born of the body — it is the conjunction of causes and conditions! To seek escape from the six consciousnesses by means of the six consciousnesses is like using a shadow to escape the shadow — is this possible? To seek the birth of the six consciousnesses outside the six consciousnesses is like seeking the birth of a shadow from the body or from the light — is this possible? The physical relationships of the worldly realm are also what karma manifests. The so-called first mover or sovereign is merely the speculation of the mental consciousness. The six consciousnesses are likewise — there is no first mover or sovereign.

The fools of this world take the six consciousnesses as self. The so-called no-self still does not transcend the six consciousnesses — it is the speculation of the mental consciousness, and they truly do not know what no-self means. The so-called spirit of no-self is still the self. No-self means: eye, ear, tongue, nose, body, mental consciousness, manas, and alaya are without self. Originally there is no self; no so-called education or cultivation is needed to achieve no-self. This is not the no-self of worldly people, which remains a delusory thought of the mental consciousness. Original no-self has nothing to do with so-called spiritual attainment — the sage is without self, the fool is equally without self; the one who clings to life in fear of death and the one who faces death without flinching are both without self. The worldly sermonizing about no-self is entirely the karma of greed, anger, ignorance, doubt, and pride — hanging out a sheep's head while selling dog meat, carrying out sordid affairs.

A verse:

In the yi-night, lamp flowers bloom in the jia-house,
In the graveyard bing-dwelling, grief and hardship reign.
In ding-years one covets only gold's weight,
In twilight years one finally knows the wu-earth is dear.
Desire originally stirs with heavenly gui water,
The ji-self is but a guest, an empty dust illusion.
Ren-Confucians and mo-scholars often revile each other,
Yet geng-ward on the path to the springs, all become neighbors.