THE 40TH
INDIAN PATRIARCH
THE 13th IN CHINA DHYANA MASTER JU PAO
Vajra Bodhi Sea
has now reached the number most people do not like. Although many people
are too superstitious to even speak this number, we will go ahead and
say it. What number is it? Thirteen. This issue is number thirteen. And so
we will talk about the thirteenth patriarch, who received the wonderful
mind seal Dharma from the twelfth patriarch Dhyana Master Kuang Mu of West
Pagoda.
What is meant by “mind seal”? It means: "to seal the mind”; “using the mind to seal the mind;” and “mind to mind mutually sealed.” It is also called “transmitting the mind by means of the mind”. This dharma can only be received after one opens enlightenment; only then can the mind be sealed by means of the mind. Those who have not opened enlightenment have no way to understand this dharma. Even if I explained it to you, you would not be able to understudied. If you were to understand it you would have already opened enlightenment.
Now someone here wishes to feign enlightenment, to pretend to enlightenment. When I speak he says, “Oh! That is how it is! I understand.” What, in fact, is this? A dream. He is in a dream, and, dreaming, speaks dreams.
The Thirteenth Patriarch Ju Pao lived at Chih Fu Temple. Dhyana Master Ju Pao seldom spoke and when asked about Buddhadharma, answered with a single word. If he said more, he spoke simply. When he was born, his mother dreamt that Patriarch Bodhidharma came to her house from India. Why did he come? He came to give her a child, a little child who would not speak. That did the child do in the dream? Although it would not even speak, the child bowed to the Buddha. After this dream, the child was born. His parents knew that he would certainly be a monk; and so, when he was quite young they sent him to Chih Fu Temple to leave home. After leaving home he received the dharma of the Wonderful Mind Seal from Dhyana Master Kuang Mu. Because Master Kuang Mu recognized him very clearly, he transmitted this dharma to him. After receiving Dharma he became the Abbot of Chih Fu Temple.
One day a monk asked the Master Ju Pao, “Please Master, what is the essential point of the tattered monk?” Tattered monk means one who has left home, since those who have left home wear tattered clothes. What do you think this Dharma Master replied? You are wise, answer for him! Ah——he said, “Your very question, just that is the essential point of the tattered monk.” It is because you asked it!
The person who was requesting Dharma, Before I asked, Master, what would you say?” “YI” was the one word answer of Master Ju Pao. “Yi” is an exclamatory word, like OH!
Another time someone asked, “All great monasteries have their points of wonderful function. I do not know, Master, what is the custom in your house.”
“After eating, three cups of tea,” he replied, “In my house there is no other custom than to drink three cups of tea after eating. This is the custom of my house.”
Another day there came a learned person who said, “In all great monasteries,some holdup a drumstick and some a wisk brush. They hold it up and flick it; what is the principle of this?” The wisk brush is the same as the White Wisk Brush Hand (see cover). That do you think he replied? Again, he said a single word, “Mute!”
Ultimately, what is all this? Each of you should investiqate for yourselves.
Another time he picked up his sitting cushion and said to everyone, “All the Buddhas of the ten directions, all the Bodhisattvas, and all the sages who have entered into the principle, Arhats and the rest, all come out of this. Take a look. That do you say.” No one knew what he was doing and they were speechless. They all became mutes. Since no one spoke, he set his cushion down and sat on it. Again, no one knew what to make of that.
Another day he held his sitting cushion over his head and asked, “What about this?” Nobody could say anything, and so he put it down and sat on it.
I will recite a verse in praise of Master Ju Pao. I have studied it for 80,000 great kalpas in order to remember it.
It says:
The strong tea of Chih Fu
three bowls after meals,
The custom- in the master’s house,
“yi” and “mute”—— sprinkling.
Buddhas, Sages, and Bodhisattvas
all stuffed in the cushion,
All alike, sitting,
not paying attention to “is”
and to “is not”.
The
strong tea of Chih Fu
three bowls after meals. If
you are able to drink the three bowls you may live here, if not you'll have
to leave.
The custom in the Master’s house. “Yi and mute” —— sprinkling:
Like water sprinkled over the heads of all the people
Buddhas. Sages, and Bodhisattvas. all stuffed inside the cushion,
All alike, sitting, not paying attention to “is” or to “is not”. Because there is no “is” and no “is not”, he pays no attention. Of course, for ordinary people to do this is not appropriate, but he can do it since he is the same as the Buddhas, Sages, and Bodhisattvas.
I
have used 80,000 great kalpas to learn this gatha and now have recited it
for you. Probably you will not even need eight secones to learn it; you
can merely hear it and know it.
Everyone should particularly pay attention to this point. Why could Dhy~na Master Ju Pao sit on the Buddhas Bodhisattvas and sages on his seat? The Master .could do so because he had already attained the level of “no self or others.” If you or I were to do the same we would certainly tall into the hells. Why? Because, not having reached the level of not-self, no others, we should show disrespect to the Triple Jewel.
Do you remember the story I once told about the time the Fourth Patriarch went to see Ox Head Patriarch? Ox Head Patriarch was sitting with a tiger who guarded his door like a watchdog. When the Fourth Patriarch arrived and saw the tiger, he had a little fear in his heart—— his 3aia~dhi power was a bit off. Ox Head Patriarch said to him, “AhI You still have THIS.”
The Fourth Patriarch then wrote the word”Buddha” on Patriarch Ox Head’s sitting cushion and the Ox Head Patriarch did not dare sit on it. The Fourth Patriarch said,
You see, being off by just a little is still being off by too much. Although Ox Head Patriarch had a tiger for a companion, a tiger to protect him, he had still not attained the level of Dhyina Master Ju Pao of Chih Fu. The distinctions are very, very fine. When this story was translated once before, someone said, “We all sit on the cushion.”
No! Not us! Master Ju Pao can
do so, but we can’t. We still must cultivate for 80,000 great kalpas;
then, perhaps, we can. “Oh,” you think, “that’s too long.” If
you merely think it is short, in one single thought you can leap over
80,00 great kalpas. 80,000 great kalpas are not as long as a thought.
Don’t think that 80,000 great kalpas is such a long time. Why, it might
pass before tomorrow——the only requirement is that you have this kind
of sain~dhi power, that’s all.
Spoken by the Venerable Master
Hsiian Hua
Translated by Discijzls Zkik~
Heng
Ching
Work
Partitions
built! Heng Ch’ien, Bill Baur,
Kuo Su, Kuo YtI
Third Floor Linoleum Laid! Kuo
Su, Kuo Tao
Wiring Completed! Kuo Pa
Bowing Stools, Benches, Dining Tables! Kuo Meng
Front Door! Heng Ch’ien, Kuo Meng
Plumbing Completed, Showers and Sinks Finished!
Heng Shou, Kuo , Kuo
Su, Kuo K’uei
Bookshelves! Kuo Ti
Taping, Plastering, Painting! Heng Yin, Heng Ch’ih, Kuo Hsin, Kuo Chin,
Kuo T’ang, Kuo Chao
CHANTING AND LECTURES EVERY NIGHT AT 7:00, ALL ARE WELCOME.