Text:
The Master was born in Jianyang, a son of the Cai family. He had an awakening while reading the Dharma Flower Sutra, and so he went to inquire from Master Shouchang, “What is the pure, bright body like?” Master Shouchang stood up very erect. The Master asked,“Is there anything else besides this?” Master Shouchang walked away. The Master immediately felt a great sense of relief. He went to see the Abbot and reported on what he had learned. Master Shouchang struck him three times with the staff and said,”From now on, don’t be so reckless.” Then he gave him a verse,”Even if you have mounted the golden-furred beast, you still need to be struck before you can turn around.” The Master wondered,“Why do I need to be struck before I can turn around?” Later, when he passed through Jianjin and heard a monk reciting,“A loud sound and a soft sound occur simultaneously,” and so forth, he thoroughly understood Master Shouchang’s painstaking efforts to teach him.
In the year of jiaxu (1634) during the reign of Chongzhen, he served as the abbot of Gushan Monastery. Later he also served as the abbot at Kaiyuan Monastery, Baoshan Monastery, and Zhejiang Province's Zhenji Monastery. In the year of dingxi (1657), he passed into stillness. A pagoda was erected for him at Gushan Monastery. The Master was well-versed in both Buddhist and non-Buddhist texts. Over a hundred volumes of his writings, including The Supplement to the Lamp, The Continuation of the Lamp, and Chan Conversations, remain in the world.

Commentary:
This is Dhyana Master Yongjue Yuanxian of the sixty-ninth generation. The Master was born in Jianyang, Fujian Province, a son of the Cai family. His lay surname was Cai. He had an awakening, a small enlightenment, while reading and reciting the Dharma Flower Sutra, and so he travelled a long distance, not minding the rigors of the journey, in order to visit Dhyana Master Shouchang and request certification from him. Certification means confirming that one’s views are proper. He went to inquire from Master Shouchang, “What is the pure, bright body like? What does the Dharma Flower Sutra mean by the pure and bright body?” Master Shouchang dealt with matters in an unconditioned way and practiced the wordless teaching; he stood up very erect without leaning to the front or back or bending sideways. He stood there with his chest thrust out, not saying anything, but just showing him that posture as a model. It is just like when we wanted to build the temple, and Guo Jing made a model for it. Each one of us has our own model, and we should find it. Hence, he stood upright, and that was a model.

At that point, Dhyana Master Yuanxian was still dissatisfied. He was not satisfied with Master Shouchang’s symbolic gesture. He didn’t understand it. The Master (Dhyana Master Yuanxian) asked, “Is there anything else besides this? Your standing posture represents the pure and bright body, but is there any other meaning?” Master Shouchang walked away without saying a single word. He didn’t just stand around. Doesn’t it seem like he was acting in a movie? Whether he was walking, standing, sitting, or reclining, his every move was symbolic; it was a manifestation of the pure Dharma body. If you can purify the karmas of body, mouth, and mind, that purification of the three karmas is itself the pure Dharma body. You ought to know that when the mouth utters impure speech, the body performs impure conduct, or the mind harbors impure thoughts, these are all defilement. So, you shouldn’t think that it’s as simple as saying “the body, mouth, and mind are pure.” It’s not that simple. Only Buddhas and Bodhisattvas have purified their three karmas. It’s not easy for us. You can’t pretend to be someone who has real accomplishment in cultivation.

When Master Shouchang walked away, the Master immediately felt a great sense of relief. When he saw the manifestation of the pure Dharma body, all his doubts were cleared away. He went to see the Abbot and reported on what he had learned. He went into the Abbot’s room and told Dhyana Master Shouchang all about himself. He felt quite smug and pleased with himself. In his extreme arrogance, he felt he was out of this world. He felt, “You are like this, and I am like this too. What you have expressed is the same as what I have seen.” He was comparing himself to the ancients, just as Zhuge Liang [a famous military strategist during the Three Kingdoms Period] in Nanyang had compared himself to the Guan and Yue [two skilled ministers for the states of Qi and Yan, respectively, in the Warring States Period]. Zhuge Liang had said, “I am equal to Guan Zhong and Yue Yi. They were skilled at deploying troops, and I am good at deploying generals. I have everything that they had.” His tone of voice was complacent. That’s why he was beaten. If he hadn’t had such an arrogant attitude, Master Shouchang wouldn’t have beaten him. He was beating him to get rid of his arrogance and self-complacency. “You say you’re enlightened? Then why are you still so attached to your ego? You keep saying, ‘I’m this and I’m that.’ What’s so great about you? You still need to wear clothes and take meals, so what can you say about yourself?”

You have to realize that when the Master felt that great sense of relief, he thought he was something else. He thought, “Today I’ve become greatly enlightened. For sure I’ve ended my birth and death. Now I’m the Patriarch, and you’re just the Patriarch’s disciple.” That’s how he must have felt, and so he went to tell the Abbot. After feeling that sense of great relief, he was in high spirits. He danced for joy and didn’t know what to do with himself. Like an excited little kid, he followed the Abbot into his room and blurted out, “Abbot, you know what? I’m just like you! I’m capable of being that way, too.” Then, seeing how mischievous and immature he was acting, the Abbot struck him. Master Shouchang struck him three times with the staff, catching him off guard. There was no time for him to think. He didn’t realize what was going on. Master Shouchang was beating him for acting so wildly.

And Master Shouchang said to him, “From now on, don’t be so reckless.” When Master Shouchang said this, what he meant was, “In the future, you should not be so foolhardy and rash. Don’t be so arrogant. You ought to be a vessel that conveys the principles of the Way. The way you behaved just now was truly absurd! You don’t have any self-restraint. You’re carelessly exposing your brilliance. You aren’t able to wait for the right time to use your ability.” All of this was implied in Master Shouchang’s rebuke. He was saying, “Such behavior is impermissible. Since you understand the Dharma, you should not act like that. You’re too reckless and rude. You don’t even understand yourself. You acted rashly, without the least bit of samadhi power. If you think you’ve understood, your understanding is false. You don’t have what it takes to be a vessel of the Way.” Master Shouchang scolded him roundly.

To be continued