「龍」究竟是什麼樣子？一般人是不知道的。除非開五眼的聖人才知道龍的真面目。不過，中國人所畫的龍，頭上有角，身上有鱗，眼睛突出，嘴巴很大，有鬍鬚，有四足，身很長，尾很短。畫龍的人，只畫龍頭不畫龍尾，所謂「神龍見首不見尾」，表示有神祕之感。

What do dragons look like? Ordinary people don’t know. Only sages who have opened the five eyes know what dragons really look like. The dragons depicted by Chinese artists have horns, scales, prominent eyes, a large mouth, whiskers, four feet, a long body and a short tail. The artists paint only the dragon’s head and not its tail. The saying, “You can see only a divine dragon’s head, not its tail” refers to the sense of mystery here.

中國人繪龍為什麼是這樣子？因為曾經有位禪師，他在定中所見龍的形相是這樣子。龍有神通，變化莫測，能大能小，能隱能現。六祖大師曾經用缽將巨龍降伏，為南華寺除害。

Why did the Chinese paint dragons that way? Because there was a Dhyana Master who saw a dragon in his samadhi that looked like that. Dragons have spiritual penetrations. Their transformations are inconceivable. They can become big or small; visible or invisible. The Sixth Patriarch used his bowl to subdue a giant dragon that had been a menace to Nanhua Monastery.

龍是一條大蟲，因為往昔修行時，乘急，所以有神通；戒緩，所以墮為畜生。

龍的種類不同，有金龍、白龍、青龍、黑龍，有胎生的龍，有卵生的龍，有濕生的龍，有化生的龍，又有虯龍、鷹龍、蛟龍、驪龍，又有天龍、地龍、王龍、人龍，又有魚化龍、馬化龍、象化龍、蛤蟆化龍。

龍有四種苦：

Dragons are giant worms. In their past cultivation, since they diligently cultivated the Great Vehicle, they are endowed with supernatural powers. However, since they were lax in holding the precepts, they have fallen into the animal realm. There are different varieties of dragons, such as gold, white, blue, and black dragons. Some dragons are born from embryos, some from eggs, some from moisture, and others by transformation. There are also two-horned young dragons, eagle dragons, single-horned dragons, black dragons, celestial dragons, earthly dragons, imperial dragons, human dragons, fish-transformed dragons, horse-transformed dragons, elephant-transformed dragons, and toad-transformed dragons. Dragons undergo four sufferings:

（一）被大鵬金翅鳥所吞苦。

(1) the suffering of being swallowed by golden-winged peng birds,

（二）交尾變蛇形苦。

(2) the suffering of tails intersecting and being changed to snake form,

（三）小蟲咬身苦。

(3) the suffering of being bitten by insects, and

（四）熱沙燙身苦。

(4) the suffering of being scorched by hot sands.

龍的職業是佈雲降雨。可是有五種情形不能降雨：

The dragons’ duty is to spread clouds and make the rain fall. But there are five situations under which they cannot make rain:

（一）火大增盛。

(1) the fire element is in preponderance,

（二）風吹雲散。

(2) the wind blows the clouds asunder,

（三）阿修羅收雲入海。

(3) asuras condense the clouds into the sea,

（四）雨師放逸。

(4) the rainmakers are remiss, or

（五）眾生孽重。

(5) living beings’ offenses are heavy.

各位想知道龍的形狀？那麼，就努力修行用功打坐，開了五眼，便見到真龍的本來面目。我現在講「龍的公案」，這是我親身經驗的故事，千真萬確，絕非杜撰。

Do you want to know the dragons’ real form? Then you must apply effort in cultivation and work hard in meditation, and after you open your five eyes you will be able to see the original face of the dragon. Now let me tell you a story about dragons. This is my personal experience. It is absolutely true and not made up.

我在東北的時候，收了一個徒弟，法名果舜，他很用功修行，不到半年的時間，打坐能入定，在定中能知道因果循環報應的道理，修持功夫頗到家。後來他自己到外邊建一所茅棚，作為修行的道場。落成之日，請我去開光，我領四個徒弟前去，其中有兩個徒弟已開五眼。當時我沒有注意在茅棚的旁邊有龍王廟，當天的境界來了，我們正在打坐的時候，那兩個開五眼的徒弟來到我面前說：「師父！茅棚外邊來了十條龍，要皈依師父。」

When I was in Manchuria, I accepted a disciple named Guo Shun. He worked very hard in cultivation. In less than half a year he could enter samadhi when he sat in meditation. When he was in samadhi, he learned the principle of cause and effect and its resultant retributions. His skill in cultivation was quite good. Later on he went out to build a hut as his Way-place for cultivation. On the day of its inauguration, he invited me over to perform the opening ceremonies. I brought along four disciples, two of whom had opened the five eyes. I did not notice there was a dragon temple next to the hut. The state came that day. While we were sitting in meditation, the two disciples who had opened the five eyes came to me and said, “Master! There are ten dragons outside the hut. They want to take refuge with you.”

我對徒弟說：「你不要胡說，你怎麼知道他們是龍？他們皈依我做什麼？我怎能作他們的師父？我沒有他們那樣大的本領。」

I said, “Don’t talk nonsense! How do you know they are dragons? What do they want to take refuge with me for? How could I be their master? I don’t have any great ability like they do.”

徒弟說：「他們自己說是龍，現在跪在外邊，一定要求皈依。」

The disciples said, “They themselves said they were dragons. They are kneeling outside now, insisting on taking refuge.”

當時正逢初夏，天旱無雨，田地的禾苗，差不多枯死。我對龍（化人身）說：「你們皈依我可以，但是我有一個條件。你們是龍，專管下雨，現在哈爾濱附近很久沒有下雨，非常乾旱，明天如果下雨，那麼，後天就給你們授皈依；要是不下雨，就不收你們作弟子。」

This happened in the early summer. There hadn’t been any rain. The young grain shoots in the fields were almost withered. I told the dragons (who had assumed human form), “You can take refuge with me on one condition. You are dragons and you are in charge of rainfall. Now there hasn’t been any rain in the vicinity of Harbin. It is very dry. If it rains tomorrow, I’ll transmit the Three Refuges to you the day after. However, if there’s no rain, I won’t take you as my disciples.”

眾龍異口同聲地說：「我們的職責就是行雨，可是沒有玉皇大帝的敕令，我們不敢下雨，否則，要受處分。」

The dragons said in unison, “Our duty is to make the rain fall. But we don’t dare make rain without orders from the Jade Emperor; otherwise we’ll be punished.”

我又說：「你們到玉皇大帝座前對他說：『哈爾濱有位出家人，請求在哈爾濱四周四十里之內降雨。』這是我的條件。」

I said, “You go before the Jade Emperor and tell him that there is a monk in Harbin asking for rain within a radius of forty li [13.3 American miles] from Harbin. Those are my terms.”

第二天果然天降大雨，解除旱災，在哈爾濱四十里以內，普降甘霖。第三天，便給這十條龍授皈依，共同法名叫「急修」。他們皈依之後，隱形不見，去度化同類的龍。從此之後，我無論到什麼地方，都有水用。我在香港，香港有水用；我到萬佛聖城，萬佛聖城有水用。這不是奇蹟出現，乃是因為十條龍及其眷屬都來護法的緣故。

On the second day it rained and the drought was over. Sweet dew fell within the area forty li around Harbin. On the third day, I transmitted the Three Refuges to the ten dragons and gave them a collective Dharma name, “Quickly Cultivate.” After the refuge ceremony they disap-peared and went back to teach and transform their own kind. From then on, wherever I went I could get water. When I was in Hong Kong, Hong Kong had water. I came to the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, and the City has water. That is not a miracle. It happens because the ten dragons and their families have all come to protect the Dharma.

有人問：「師父！你看那十條龍是什麼樣子？」皈依我的龍，乃變化人的形相，和普通人一樣，沒有什麼區別。開五眼的人知道是龍。你想知道嗎？趕快用功修道，專心打坐，少打妄想，不要發脾氣，無論是逆境或順境都要忍耐，不可起貪心，到一念不生一塵不染的境界，自然開五眼。那時候，你就能清清楚楚看見龍是什麼樣子！

Someone asked, “Master, what did the ten dragons look like?” The dragons that took refuge with me had changed themselves into human form. They looked no different from ordinary people. People who have opened the five eyes would know they were dragons. Do you want to know? Then hurry up and work hard, concentrate in meditation, cut down your false thoughts, don’t become angry, be patient with both good and bad states, and don’t be greedy. When you reach the state where not one thought arises and the mind is totally pristine, you will naturally open the five eyes. Then you can see clearly what dragons look like!