T2003 Zen Texts – BDK America

Fascicle Three

Gate VII (continued)

Now I would like to exhort youth of the latter-day world to make this Zen the right occasion for immediately attaining awakening. No matter whether you might think you have heard little and have slight understanding, or whether you consider yourself too dull to gain wisdom, if you wholeheartedly practice sitting dhyåna,you will inevitably attain awakening. The Sutra of the Bodhisattva Precepts for Practicing Good(T. 30: 973b; quoted above, p. 142) says: Bodhisattvas, for the sake of awakening, practice dhyåna, enjoy delight in this life, and keep body and mind calm and composed—this is called benefiting oneself. Because of the tranquility of body and mind, they do not worry living beings. This is called benefiting others.

The Essentials for Chan Practice(Zokuzøkyø2-15, 419a) says: According to my ordination teachers both of Ω∆la(upådhyåya) and of mantra (åcårya), what counts is to learn to practice dhyånaintently. It does not matter whether we have heard much or little.

For this reason a person of the latter-day world, no matter how dull-witted he may be, if he fastens his mind to the Buddha's Ω∆la, tries making activity and rest no di›erent from one another, remains concerned for all living beings, stops evil views, believes and accepts the Buddha's words, concentrates his mind on one object, and stops various associations and related obligations, then he is really a person of dhyånacultivation. The Bequeathed Teaching Sutra(T. 12: 1111a; quoted above, pp. 110, 124) says: Dependence on this morality will give rise to various sorts of concentration and the wisdom that extinguishes su›ering. 153

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Generally speaking, attaining confidence in just one phrase of the Buddha is the immediate way among a myriad virtues for attaining awakening. We have examples of this: [According to the Mahåprajñåpåramitå Treatise] (T. 25, XIV, 164c), when Ånanda taught the essentials of the five supernatural powers, Devadatta acquired them through cultivation in just one summer retreat. [According to the Sutra of Words of Truth on Great Acts] (T. 4: 588c-589ab, story no. 16), C¥∂apanthaka, to whom the Buddha taught only one verse, attained the fruit of arhatship. A verse [in the Song Dynasty Biographies of Eminent Monks] (T. 50, XX, 837a) says:151

If one quietly sits in dhyånafor but a brief moment, this will exceed the merit of building seven-jeweled stupas as numerous as the grains of sand in the Ganges River. Even a stupa of gems will ultimately turn into dust but a single moment of the composed mind will attain authentic awakening. The Sutra Treasury of Miscellaneous Jewels(T. 4, 494ab, story no. 114) says:

In olden days there was a monk who was aged and whose intellect was dark and hardened. When he saw young monks expound the truth of the four fruits of practice, he wished he could attain them. He told the young monks, "I pray that you

will give me the four fruits of practice.

" The young monks

laughed in derision and told him,

"We have the four fruits of

practice. You should prepare a good meal for us before we give them to you.

" Then the old monk rejoiced and managed

to prepare a meal of rich food, and entertained them. The young monks, making a fool of the old monk, told him, "Sit

in one corner of this shed. We are going to give you a fruit of practice.

" When the old monk heard this, he was glad and sat. The young monks then struck the old monk on the head with a leather ball, saying,

"This is the fruit of the srotaåpanna ("entering the stream toward nirvana"). The old monk 154

heard this, fastened his thoughts to it, not scattering them, and immediately acquired the first fruit.

The young monks again made a fool of him, saying, "Although you have acquired the first fruit, still you cannot be free from seven births and deaths.

" Then they made him

move to another corner and, as before, struck him with the ball. The old monk strengthened his concentration and immediately attained the second fruit. In like manner, the old monk, shifting to each corner [of the room], attained all four fruits of practice and greatly rejoiced. He provided them with various meals, incense, and flowers, and asked them to allow him to return their favors.

He discussed with them the [thirty-seven] constituent factors of the Way to awakening. The young monks' lofty utterances soon stagnated and finally stopped. The old monk at that very moment told them,

"I have already attained the

fruit of arhatship.

" At this, all the young monks repented of belittling him.

Another story [from the Sutra Treasury of Miscellaneous Jewels] (T. 4: 494c, story no. 115) goes as follows: In the past there was a woman who had deep confidence152 in the Three Treasures of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. She invited a monk to her house and made some o›erings to him. After that the woman, with a sincere heart, closed her eyes, sat calmly, and entreated him to expound a teaching. The monk failed to answer her request and stole away to his temple. However, she [continued to sit and] contemplate the reality of this conditioned life—impermanence, su›ering, and emptiness—which keep living beings from gaining self-abiding in anything. She deepened her thought in that contemplation and acquired the fruit of the srota-åpanna.As she had been able to attain this fruit, she went to the temple to find the monk in order to express her gratitude to him. The monk, ashamed, hid himself to avoid meeting her. Hearing her 155

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entreaties, however, he came out, and she then thanked him for providing her with the occasion to attain the fruit of the Way. The monk was bitterly ashamed.

These two cases reveal the virtue of confidence in the Dharma. The Mahåprajñåpåramitå Treatise(T. 25: I, 63a) says: What leads people to the great sea of the teachings of the Buddha-Dharma is confidence in the truth.

The Mantra school quotes the above passage and comments on it [in the Commentary on the Mahåvairocana Sutra] (Zokuzøkyø 1-36, 264b):

When the god Brahmå implored him to turn the wheel of the Dharma, the Buddha said in verse:

I now open the gate of the immortal dew.

Any people confident in it will have joy.

This verse does not say that people who practice charity (dåna), morality (Ω∆la), listening to many discourses, perseverance (k≈ånti), great e›ort (v∆rya), dhyåna,or the knowledge of emptiness (prajñå) will have joy. It refers only to those who have confidence. This is the Buddha's own suggestion. . . . For this reason, the power of confidence ranks first. It is not the knowledge of emptiness and virtues other than confidence that first lead one to the teachings of the Buddha-Dharma. The Diamond Sutra (T. 8: 750b) says:

Those in whom clear confidence arises that this is really true come to know the true characteristic of reality. Ci'en's (Jion) Commentary on the Diamond Sutra by the Dhar ma lak≈a√aSchoolsays:153 I declare that a moment of confidence perfuming and staying with the mind can break the unbounded extensive cycle of birth and death.

156

Huizhao (Eshø) of Zizhou (Shish¥) says in his Commentary[on the Diamond Sutra]:154

Even if one cannot attain the formless tathatå(ultimate reality), the power of confidence also can remove evils. Therefore, through first gaining confidence in a few words of one's master, one enters the dhyånasea of the Buddha-Dharma. One can enter all the Buddha's teachings only through one's confidence in them. The Treatise on Awakening Confidence(T. 32: 590a, Tang version) says:

Question:All the Buddhas, with boundless skillful means, can benefit living beings in the ten directions. Why do living beings not always see Buddhas, observe supernatural transformations, or hear them expound the Dharma? Answer: The Tathågatas really have such skillful means. What is required is only that living beings be free from discrimination. Then the Tathågatas will manifest themselves. In a mirror that has dirt on it no figures will appear. When the dirt is removed, [images then] appear there. It is the same with living beings. Insofar as they are not freed from dirt, their Dharma body never appears. When the dirt is gone, it appears. The Sutra on Attaining the Mudrå that Effects the Strength of Confidence(T. 10, IV, 952b) says:

The Buddha said to MañjuΩr∆,

"In this Jambu[dv∆pa] world

the sun and moon manifest their circles in the water of all vessels when the water is clean and not muddy, unless hindered. Meanwhile, the sun and moon have never moved from their original places. The Tathågata is like this. Living beings who are to be transformed into their original way of being, can, with their own minds free from discrimination, all see the Tathågata. Meanwhile, the Tathågatas, as they originally are, do not move. In this way, the Tathågata will be present in the living beings in the ten directions of the world in whom confidence arises.

"

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Now, the monks of the Zen school who have chosen the way of being of body and mind that preserves both individual and sangha precepts (i.e., Ω∆laand vinaya), with the water of their mind clean and clear will immediately see their own mind, and moment after moment they will accord with every perfection (påramitå). However dull-witted and poor in wisdom they may be, because they keep morality pure and clean, the clouds of karma will vanish and the moon of the Mind will manifest itself brightly. The reason why the Mahåparinirvå√a Sutraadvocates the eternity of nirvana as the true support for morality155 is seen here.

Question:If that is the case, when we practice dhyåna,what precepts should we take?

Answer:The precepts given in the Vinaya in Four Divisions and the Brahmå Net Sutra [on the Bodhisattva ¸∆la] are considered to be appropriate. I say this because in practicing them externally we learn the basic postures of Ωråvakas and internally embrace the friendly social concern of bodhisattvas.

Question:The Vinaya regulations against the five definitive distinctions of o›enses and the seven groups of transgressions156 are Small [Vehicle] practices. Where is the need for our being equipped with the two vehicles? It is said that keeping the precepts for Ωråvakas is breaking the precepts for bodhisattvas. The Bodhisattva Stages (T. 30: 523a) extensively clarifies di›erences between the Great Vehicle and the Small Vehicle on keeping and breaking precepts, doesn't it?

Answer:The original intent of the Buddha's teachings lies only in avoiding evils and preventing wrongs. Concerning keeping or breaking precepts and permitting or restraining certain acts, if you grasp their purport and cultivate them, then it does not matter what vehicle you may choose. Vinaya Master Daoxuan says (in the preface to his Instructions and Admonitions on Observing Restraints,T. 45: 869b):

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There are some who insist: "I am a person of the Great Vehicle. I don't need the teachings of the Small Vehicle. " Such

people internally betray the bodhisattvas' heart and externally lack the Ωråvakas' practice. Except for veterans in the Dharma, who could scrutinize it well?

How profound is this remark! It constitutes the central point of the Zen school. The Tiantai school's Solutions for Propagation (T. 46, IV-1, 254a) says:

Question:"Why do we in the Great Vehicle apply precepts of the Small Vehicle and explain about the ten kinds of precept gainers?"

Answer:The Mahåparinirvå√a Sutrafrequently expounds that the eternity of nirvana supports morality as its ultimate basis. We are thinking of the same principle here. The Small Vehicle works as skillful means. Then we know the mendicant bodhisattvas see no di›erence between themselves and Ωråvakas in regard to the six kinds of friendly mutual respect and the ten benefits for regulating morality, but that they di›er with respect to the six perfections and the four extensive vows, which are lacking in the practice of the Small Vehicle. For lay bodhisattvas the three refuges (Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha) and the five precepts will all lead them to the attainment of awakening. Still more so with the Brahmå Net [Sutra on the Bodhisattva ¸∆la]'s so-called eight myriad kinds of excellence appearing in one's every posture of those who have been ordained in the Great Vehicle. All seven groups of the Buddha's disciples actualize them. Beings of the five paths that su›er from their respective modes of existence will also commonly be equipped with such excellence. How could one tolerate the breaking of precepts and call it the "Buddha vehicle"? That is why a parallel elucidation is made with the use of four phrases concerning yåna(vehicle) and Ω∆la(precepts) [with which one is either "relaxed" or "firm"]. 157

159

The same text says (T. 46: 255a):

Both the Mahå[parinirvå√a] Sutra(T. 12: 432bc) and the Exposition of the Ten Stages,referring to the [five] definitive distinctions of o›enses and the [seven] groups of transgressions, say: "Bodhisattvas, great beings, hold those precepts of restraint.

" You should158 know that precepts have no distinction of great or small. It depends on what the ordained expect of them. In other words, the Middle Way is not only a matter of emptiness and provisional forms; it also universally concerns respective precepts. Only then are we fully equipped with precepts.

The same text, in a preceding passage, says (T. 46: 254c): The five definitive distinctions of o›enses and the seven groups of transgressions given in the Mahåparinirvå√a Sutra(T. 12: 432bc) are the mendicant bodhisattvas' precepts of restraint. These passages mean that precepts, both great and small, are skillful means, through the cultivation of which one enters the Tathågatas' dhyåna.

Someone insists,

"One who is relaxed with Ω∆la(morality) while firm with yåna(vehicle or its principle) will encounter a Buddha's lifetime. Why then should it be indispensable to practice Ω∆la?" But this kind of remark lacks reason. Who would wish to have Ω∆la relaxed? By those who encounter a Buddha's lifetime while being relaxed with Ω∆laare meant those in evil [modes of existence] like någas and other beasts. When they feel grateful for longevity, they come to live in a Buddha's lifetime due to the Buddha's vow-power. However, it is far better to meet a Buddha in a human life or above in heaven. Concerning this, the Tiantai school's Great Calming and Contemplation(T. 46: 39c) says:

In this way between cause and e›ect there are di›erences with reduction in the degree of transgression and thus varieties of rise and fall as its rewards. How could one say, "Keeping Ω∆la

160

in reason leads to awakening; what is the use for keeping Ω∆la in phenomena?" It is fortunate to attain awakening as a human or heavenly being. What meaning could there be in doing one's utmost to enter any of the three evil modes of existence (i.e., the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, and animals)? In the present context, this passage sounds wonderful. We must, however, note the statement of the Mahåparinirvå√a Sutra (T. 12: 400c):

Being relaxed with Ω∆lais not considered to be relaxed. It is with yåna(vehicle and its principle) that one is considered to be relaxed.

This statement refers to those who are relaxed both with yåna and Ω∆la[and emphasizes the importance of yåna]. It does not mean that one can favor being relaxed with Ω∆la.

The Great Calming and Contemplation(T. 46: 20a) further says: A sutra mentions:159

One may rather be a Devadatta160 than an Udraka Råmaputra. 161

This has the same meaning as the above statement [of the Mahåparinirvå√a Sutra].

The Solutions for Propagation(T. 46: 254a, quoted above, p. 159) says: "How could one tolerate the breaking of precepts and call it the 'Buddha vehicle'?" This passage means that, however firm one may be with yåna,breaking Ω∆lacannot be called the Buddha vehicle. How much less so with this Zen school? It does not seek for fulfillment in the distant future; it dares not expect some future benefit. It uses purifying precepts as skillful means. By drawing a poisoned arrow right before one's eyes, it expects the wonderful attainment of awakening immediately in this life. The Sutra of the Bodhisattva Precepts for Practicing Good(T. 30: 973b, quoted above, pp. 142, 153) says:

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Bodhisattvas, for the sake of awakening, practice dhyåna, enjoy delight in this life, and keep body and mind calm and composed—this is called benefiting oneself. Because of the tranquility of body and mind, they do not worry living beings. This is called benefiting others.

All that this passage means is a reward in a future life, which is the case with most of the schools of the Great Vehicle. In this respect, theirs is di›erent from this school's intent. Their attainment cannot be considered very di‡cult. This Zen school, on the other hand, cuts through the devil's trap-net right before one's eyes. It seeks to be equal with the Tathågata's practice. The Sutra of the Bodhisattva Precepts for Practicing Good(T. 30: 1005c) says: When the Buddha abides in dhyåna, no devils can find an opportune moment.

If someone has recourse to the remark,

"One who is relaxed

with Ω∆la while firm with yånawill encounter a Buddha's lifetime, "

and favors breaking precepts, how is he any di›erent from the one who carries a nugget of gold with him yet dies of hunger? Besides, the passage from the Great Calming and Contemplation, "One who is relaxed with Ω∆lawill encounter a Buddha's lifetime, " and the passage in the Mahåparinirvå√a Sutra, "Being

relaxed with Ω∆lais not considered to be relaxed, " are far from

referring to those who break precepts and annul restraints. Those who commit grave sins are not said to be relaxed with Ω∆la; they should be called breakers of Ω∆la.So-called relaxation with Ω∆la refers to the person who stops short of committing a minor o›ense. I say this because if one commits any of the four [grave o›enses] or the five grave [transgressions], he will without fail fall into the hell of unremitting torture (Av∆ci). For him it will be impossible in any way to encounter a Buddha's lifetime. He who commits some minor sins will fall into the existence of a någaor other beasts but in that existence he may feel so grateful for longevity that he will be able to encounter a Buddha's lifetime. 162

I sincerely hope you will abstain from using evil words, keep your body and mouth clean to follow the sincere truth of the noble teachings, keep your mind pure and clean to enter the wonderful gate of great compassion, and expect to attain Zen in this life. Does not the Sutra of¸¥raµgama Practices (T. 19: 131c; quoted above, p. 125 ) say:

Practitioners of dhyåna,if they don't break o› lust, will continue to transmigrate through the three evil modes of existence, unable to escape. It is like steaming grains of sand and gravel in the hope of cooking them into boiled rice; cooked for one hundred thousand kalpas, they will still be [only] heated sand.

Someone says in rebuke: "The Lotus Sutra(T. 9, XI, 34b) says, 'If anyone holds this scriptural teaching, he will be called a precept holder. He will soon attain the Buddha's Way. ' This passage means

that he who is firm with yånawill attain awakening. [What is the use for further Ω∆la?]"

This rebuke is wrong. We hear about being firm with yåna, whereas we have never heard of relaxation with Ω∆la.What we understand by the above passage is only this: In the manner of perfect permeation, which leaves no room for artificiality, every being is originally endowed with Ω∆la.It is on this basis that the holding of this scriptural teaching is mentioned. There cannot be any reason for acquiring the merit of Ω∆lain reason while breaking Ω∆la in phenomena. The Tiantai school's Solutions for Propagation(T. 46, IV-1, 254a, quoted above, pp. 159, 161) says, "How could one tolerate

the breaking of precepts and call it the 'Buddha vehicle'?" If anyone relies on the passage from the Lotus Sutra, "he is

called a precept holder,

" and continues to violate Ω∆lain phenomena,

there cannot be any reason that reading the Lotus Sutraalone will yield any expected result; it will be e‡cacious only for a distant future. It is only through the practice of the contemplative gate of both phenomena and reason or, in other words, only with the application of both acupuncture and moxibustion, that the sick are 163

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healed. The Profound Meaning [of the Lotus Sutra] (T. 33: II-1, 698b) says,

"The eyes of wisdom and the legs of practice in unity will reach the pond clean and good.

"

The Tripi†aka Dharma Master Yijing of Tang says [in his Buddhist Monastic Traditions of Southern Asia] (T. 54: 211c): People directly point to the gate of emptiness and regard it as the Buddha's real intent. However, they would rather know precepts also162 to be the Buddha's intent. Their high valuation of one and low estimation of the other derive from mere assumption. While they never look into any text of Ω∆laor related scriptures, they copy a couple of volumes of the gate of emptiness and insist that the reason [of emptiness] contains all three collections (Tripi†aka) of Buddhist scriptures. They never think of the pain of thick, molten metal being poured down their throats. But that is the disaster they are inviting in this life at every step due to pretending to be monks, living clandestinely with other ordained monks.

It is a bodhisattva's real determination not to let the floating bag of Ω∆la,which helps one to cross the sea of birth and death, become deflated. One should not make little of a small transgression. Instead, one should join the Buddha's call made for our sake on his last day.

163 The truth of his call is that one

should practice both the Great and Small [Vehicles], for this alone accords with the admonition of the Benevolent Honored One.

Refraining from small transgressions while contemplating vast emptiness, accepting living beings while keeping oneself pure and clean—what fault could there be in doing this? All the eight myriad teachings of the [Great] Sage (i.e., the Buddha) will be summarized into one phrase or two: "Externally following secular ways while internally concentrating on true wisdom.

"

The orthodox principle of Buddhism in the west regards keeping Ω∆laas its basis. One should protect the floating bag 164

from being punctured by even a small pinprick. One should be careful not to allow the great wrong of a needle hole. The very beginning of great wrong is blamable on improper ways of clothing and eating.

To those who devote themselves to the Buddha's teachings, liberation is not a distant goal, whereas neglecting the Honored One's words will leave one long immersed in deep depravity.

It accords with the Buddha's immortal teachings on his deathbed for latter-day practitioners to trust in this practice. Those who follow it are really the Buddha's children. The Tiantai school's Solutions for Propagation(T. 46, IV, 259a) says:

In the world there are foolish people who insist that since the mind is free from birth everything that has its own characteristics is also free from generation, and who on that ground commit new sins. Committing crimes occurs necessarily through the three poisons [of greed, anger, and delusion]. A person who is really of no-birth will not make even a blessing, much less commit an o›ense. The reason is that both o›enses and blessings follow the stream of birth and death. Besides, the Great Calming and Contemplation(T. 46, IV-1, 41b) says:

This is called penitence both in phenomena and reason. With the extinction of the o›ense that hinders awakening and with Ω∆lakept clean and pure, self-concentration (samådhi) presents itself, opening up cessation and contemplation. Because the Ω∆lain phenomena is kept clean, the root samådhipresents itself. Because the Ω∆lathat is none other than the Middle Way is kept clean, the king samådhipresents itself. Commenting on this, the Solutions for Propagation(T. 46, IV-2, 262a) says: 165

When "this is called" is mentioned, the author means this: If there were no Ω∆lain phenomena, there cannot even be worldly dhyåna.How could there be the threefold truth [of emptiness, provisionality, and the Middle Way]? Wrong is the one who might insist,

"In the Great Vehicle, why should one cling to Ω∆la?"

Further, the same commentary says (T. 46, IV-1, 255b): You should know that no one can go without the Vinaya regulations against any of the [five] divisions of o›enses or the [seven] groups of transgressions. As for those people of the world who despise phenomena and want only to value profound reason, they are certainly aloof, empty, and baseless in their practice of contemplation. Since they lack the objects of contemplation, contemplation will not follow. The Mahåparinirvå√a Sutra(T. 12, XVII, 467b) says: If anyone holds this scriptural teaching while violating precepts, he is kin to devils, far from being a disciple of mine. I won't allow him to hold and recite this scripture. The Lotus Sutra(T. 9, II, 7c) says:

Those whose practice of precepts has gaps and omissions cannot a›ord to hold this truth. It also says in e›ect (T. 9, XIV, 37b):

[Bodhisattvas] will not associate themselves with any of those who break precepts.

There should be no association with those who break precepts. How could any association be permissible with those who, while having recourse to the scriptural passage [in the Lotus Sutra] (T. 9, XI, 34b, quoted above, p. 163),

"he will be called a precept holder,

" will

violate precepts themselves? If anyone has recourse to the passage, "he is considered to be applying164 himself toward the attainment 166

of awakening,

" while wasting the four periods [of the day] or six periods [of the day and night] without practicing dhyåna,and if anyone has recourse to the passage,

"he is called a precept holder,

"

while recklessly transgressing the fourfold or tenfold restraints, then such people will be transgressing the Great Vehicle, not to speak of going against the Small Vehicle, won't they? The Sutra of the Bodhisattva Precepts for Practicing Good(T. 30, I, 962a) says:

Then MañjuΩr∆ asked the Buddha,

"The word vinayameans

controlling and taming. Everything that has its own characteristics is ultimately under control in its self-nature. Why does the Buddha advocate vinaya?" The Buddha said, "If ordinary beings could realize that everything that has its own characteristics is ultimately under control, no Buddha would advocate vinaya at all. Because they don't realize that, Buddhas advocate vinaya.

"

The same scripture (T. 30, II, 969c) says: When igonorant people advocate the emptiness of all forms that have their own characteristics, they are committing grave transgressions. Even advocating something through explication for others' benefit through delusive165 thoughts will also be a grave o›ense. Such will truly be disciples of a non-Buddhist path, such as Purå√a [KåΩyapa]. Purå√a insists that everything that has its own characteristics is nonexistent in its self-nature. But in the Buddha's teachings it is existent as well as nonexistent. If anyone advocates the emptiness of everything, you should know that he misses the mark. Abiding with such a person in the biweekly recitation of the Vinaya rules (upo≈adha) will cause grave sins. The reason is that he does not realize the meaning of emptiness. He is unable to benefit others, not to speak of benefiting himself. When ordinary ignorant people like those described above delusively expound the meaning of emptiness while unable to hold 14b

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precepts, they are non-Buddhists; they are people of the devil. The Mahåparinirvå√a Sutra(T. 12: 467b, quoted above, p. 166) says: "He is kin to devils, far from being a disciple of mine. "

That is why the Zen school strongly admonishes people to hold precepts; it expects them to attain the present-life benefit through a lifetime of e›ort. You should not, with shallow knowledge, speak of one as surpassing others and of another as falling short. Supposing that worldly talks and discussions lack real benefit, doctrinal arguments for or against either the Great or Small [Vehicle] will all be without benefit. Likewise, the perfect permeation free from artificiality, being orally expounded by one who does not realize it, is like a good taste and cool water that hungry and thirsty people talk about but which never enters their mouths and throats. It is also like the case of a rich man, who can recite a text on operating a boat but who cannot actually operate a boat, and who is drowned. Herewith I have established the [seventh] gate,

"Citing a General Principle and Exhorting People to Practice in the Zen School. "

Gate VIII

By the eighth gate,

"A List of the Essential Patterns of Activity

in the Zen School,

" I mean the following ten, according to the Chan School Monastic Rules(Zokuzøkyø2-16), as well as the prevalent "pattern of monastic activities" (shi; shiki) in the large countries. 1. Temples: Although they di›er in size, all temples are modeled after the drawings of the Jetavana residence [of ¸åkyamuni and his disciples]; there are drawings of this residence separately. 166 A

temple has corridors on four sides without any side gates. It has one gate alone. The single gate has door guardians, who close it at evening twilight and open it at daybreak. The door guardians check specifically nuns, laywomen, the destitute, and violent people and keep them from staying overnight in the temple. Destruction of the Buddha's teachings occurs solely through a›airs with women and the like.

2. Ordination: Precepts, no matter whether of the Great or 168

Gate VIII

Small Vehicle, concern human passions. What matters here is only great compassion to benefit living beings. This Zen school has no preference in precepts as to whether of the Great or of the Small Vehicle. What it exclusively values is keeping morality with selfrestraint (brahmacaryå). 3. Protecting morality: After ordination, if one does not protect morality but breaks it, then how could it be di›erent from acquiring a gem but crushing it later? The Chan School Monastic Rules (Zokuzøkyø2-16, I, 439a) says:

After ordination one should constantly protect morality. You should prefer a moral death to an immoral life. Therefore, mendicants should firmly hold their two hundred and fifty precepts, and lay way-seekers their threefold collection of purifying precepts, especially the ten weighty and the fortyeight less weighty precepts that constitute the first of the threefold collection (Tripi†aka).

This being the case, [after ordination] one should follow the scriptural teaching on Ω∆laand, on the occasion of upo≈adhaassembly for recitation of the Vinaya rules every half-month, one should open oneself to the other practitioners. Violators of morality should be dismissed, like corpses in the great ocean, which does not allow them to remain on the bottom.

4. Scholarship: One whose learning covers all the eight treasuries and whose practice covers precepts of both vehicles; one who externally is possessed of the dignified demeanor of a sangha member (bhik≈u), which make him a field of merit (pu√yak≈etra) for humans and gods; one who internally keeps the bodhisattva's great compassion, which makes him a benevolent father for living beings—in such a person the emperor finds an important treasure and the country sees an excellent physician. Hence my wish for the flourishing [of the Zen school which produces such a person]. 5. Regulations for conduct: In every kind of conduct, such as the longtime observance of one meal a day before noon, being moderate in one's consumption of food, keeping temperance, and 169

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holding precepts with self-restraint, monks should obey the Buddha's words. What follows is the daily pattern of monastic activities:

The Time of Lighting at twilight, when monks gather at the Buddha hall to o›er incense and worship;

The Time of Being in Calmness [9:00-11:00 P.M.], for dhyåna practice;

The Third Watch [11:00 P.M.

-1:00 A.M.], for sleep;

The Fourth Watch [1:00-3:00 A.M.], for sleep; The Fifth Watch [3:00-5:00 A.M.], for dhyånapractice; The Time of the Hare [5:00-7:00 A.M.], same as twilight; Daybreak, for taking gruel;

The Time of the Dragon [7:00-9:00 A.M.], for reading scriptures, studying, and listening to lectures by elder monks; The Time of Yu (Gu) [9:00-11:00 A.M.], for dhyånapractice; The Time of the Horse [12:00 P.M.], for taking a meal; The Time of the Sheep [1:00-3:00 P.M.], for bathing and [attending to other personal matters];

The Time of the Monkey [3:00-5:00 P.M.], for dhyånapractice; The Time of the Rooster [5:00-7:00 P.M.], for relaxation, released from work.

As you see, monks never slacken in their dhyånapractice, and moment after moment they repay their obligation to the state; in one period of practice after another they pray for the emperor's longevity. Indeed, they pray that the emperor's work for the people may long prosper and that the lamp of the Dharma may illuminate far and wide.

6. Impressive and dignified manner: Monks, both young and old, always wear the outer robe (saµghå†∆) of either seven or nine strips of joined cloth. When they see one another, they first join their palms [in gasshø], lower their heads, and express their deep mutual amity and respect. While taking meals, walking in dhyåna,practicing [seated] dhyåna,studying, reading scriptures, and sleeping, they never leave the community [of their fellow monks]. When a hundred 170

or a thousand monks gather in a hall, all are careful of their deportment and their conduct toward others. If anyone's seat is empty, the steward monk will check [on the missing practitioner]. In this way, not even a minor transgression is allowed. 7. Clothing: For the upper and lower garments and the outer and inner ones, all monks should wear the Dharma robes used in the large countries. This is the bearing that best accords with "least desire and least material.

" Everything should be simplified.

8. The assembly of disciples: Those who are endowed with both morality and wisdom, and who possess the nonregressive mind at the beginning, should join the community. By all means they must be roundly endowed with the eyes [of wisdom] and the legs [of practice].

9. Benefiting and nourishing oneself: Monks don't engage in cultivating the land; dhyånacultivation occupies them. They don't hoard property or treasures, for the Buddha's words are to be trusted. Except for a hot meal once a day, they cut o› any other desire forever. The Dharma for mendicants is to have little desire and be content with one's lot.

10. The summer and winter retreats: On April 15 a summer retreat is formed, and it concludes on July 15. On October 15 a yearly [winter] retreat is undertaken, and it concludes on January 15. These two special retreats derive from the Buddha's original practice. They should be practiced with confidence. In our country this function has long been abolished, while in the Great Song monks have never dispensed with the two annual retreats. For one who has not come through special retreats, to count such a person's priestly age by the number of either of the two names, the "summer [retreat]" (xia; ge) or the "yearly [winter retreat]" (la; rø), is, in the Buddha's teaching, a laughable matter. The above descriptions of these ten items are [given in] outline only; details are given in "The Pattern of Monastic Activities" [current in the great state of Song]. Further, Zen temples have the following sixteen activities 171

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throughout the year:

1. The rite for the Emperor's Day: In the thirty days that precede the present emperor's birthday, sutras such as the Mahå prajñå påramitå Sutra,Benevolent King Sutra,Lotus Sutra,and Sutra of Golden Lightare recited every day, and prayers for the emperor's longevity are made.

2. Recitations: On the six days—the third, thirteenth, twentythird, eighth, eighteenth, and twenty-eighth—of every month, there are rites for reciting the names of the ten Buddhas. This is to pray for the wind of the emperor's virtue to reach far, for the paths under the imperial reign to benefit long, for the Buddha-Dharma to unfold itself forever, and for living beings to have benefit far and wide. It is also to express gratitude to people for a donation even of a single piece of grass or leaf.

3. Rites for local gods: On the second and the sixteenth day of every month, the Dharma donation for local gods is conducted according to the places where the temples are located. 4. Requital for obligations: On the first day of every month, in respect for the present emperor, a lecture on the Prajñåpåramitå Sutrais given; and on the fifteenth, in respect for the previous emperor, a lecture on the Mahåparinirvå√a Sutrais given. On both occasions prayers for protection of the gods are cited. 5. Monthly activities through the year: In January, an assembly for praising the arhats; in February, an assembly for making o›erings to the Buddha's relics; in March, an assembly; in April, a celebration of the Buddha's birthday and of the beginning of the summer retreat; in May and June, lectures on the Sutra of Golden Light;in July, August, and September, lectures on the Prajñåpåra mitå Sutra;in October, ordination; in November, the winter night activity; and in December, a great assembly for reciting the Sutra of the Buddhas' Names.Each activity has its [associated] rites. 6. Activities during retreat: Every day during the [summer and winter] retreats, along with other meetings, an assembly is held for reciting the Sutra of¸¥raçgama Practices. 7. Reciting Buddhist scriptures: Reciting one fascicle every day 172

from the entire collection of the Buddhist scriptures, [which in the Song edition number as many as five thousand and forty-eight fascicles]. In a temple that has a hundred priests, the [entire collection of] Buddhist scriptures can be recited six times a year. Scriptures are recited when donors visit temples, for the donors' future merit, or for their prayers to be realized.

8. Activities in a mantra temple (i.e., a Shingon temple) [that is attached to a Zen temple]: Constant o›erings are made to [the living beings of the] water and land—o›erings for those in the unseen modes of existence. This is practiced so that donors may pray for bliss, for future merit, and for the deceased. 9. Activities in a calming and contemplation temple (i.e., a Tendai temple) [that is attached to a Zen temple]: Practices of selfconcentration (samådhi) are performed, based on such sutras as the Lotus Sutra,the Contemplation Sutra,and the Invitation of Bodhisattva Avalo kiteΩvara.

10. Visiting the master's room: On the day when the master has leisure time, disciples visit him in succession in his room. For the Zen school this is a most important matter. The manner for doing this should be examined [in the Chan School Monastic Rules]. 11. Upo≈adha:The biweekly recitation of the Vinaya rules continues as usual. 12. Inspection of the monks' o‡cial quarters: Once every five days each month, an elder monk gives admonition from the platform and then inspects the monks' o‡cial quarters. In the past the Tathågata, for the sake of five matters, made an inspection of the monks' cells every five days. For "five matters, " refer to the

[relevant] Vinaya passages.

167

13. Bathing: As an o‡cial duty or at a donor's expense, monks bathe every five days; in hot months, they bathe every day. 14. Meals served in memory of the deceased: For the sake of the previous emperor, the previous master, or deceased parents, [special] meals are served. There are rules for this. 15. Government-sponsored memorials: Ministers and nobilities 173

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serve meals to monks. When government o‡cals visit a temple, there are specific rites to follow.

16. Turning [the wheel of] the scriptural collection: An assembly of monks play festival music and turn a wheel with eight spokes, which holds the entire collection of Buddhist scriptures. Question:Such regulations for conduct seem beyond the capacity of people of the latter-day world. They may instead cause practitioners to worry and regress. What do you think about this? Answer:The teachings of the Buddha-Dharma are extremely easy to practice, easy to realize. The Buddha said, "This is the truth

of bliss and stability.

"168 The Treatise on the Treasury of Analyzed Concepts of Buddhism(T. 29, I, 2c) says in verse: Sangha members in harmony feel joy;

All sharing austerities, they rejoice.

When men and women of the world see their parents' abilities, they think only of acquiring them. Sparing no e›ort, they succeed in inheriting their familial skills. Because of this, blacksmiths, tilers, weavers, magicians, farmers, and the like see their successors continue. Theirs, however, is painful and assiduous labor. Meanwhile, the skills inherited by the Buddha's heirs is "the truth of bliss and stability.

" It is unlike those worldly trades in which people [exert much e›ort], smashing their bones. Having a special liking for something, however, will in turn yield attachment to that particular matter. One who inhabits a big river and exercises vigorously there will, upon climbing up onto land, feel ill at ease. One that abides in the air and freely flies will be helpless on the ground. Likewise, one who has had comfort dwelling in the house of Buddhism will, on entering lay life, become troubled. Those who have been stained by and attached to evil acts will consider the teachings of the Buddha-Dharma to be extremely hard to practice.

The Great Master of Mount Køya (K¥kai, Købø Daishi) says 174

in his Three Teachings Pointing to Where to Return(Købø-daishi Zensh¥, fasc. 9, 327):

Going to where one likes is like a stone thrown into water. Going to where one dislikes is like oil poured on water. Those living beings who are lost in ignorance regard su›ering as something delightful. The Buddha said [in the Lotus Sutra] (T. 9, II, 9b):

Deeply attached to the five desires,

They behave like a yak that loves its tail.

Deeply infatuated by evil views,

They take su›ering to discard su›ering.

For the sake of these living beings

I give rise to great compassion.

This is not the case with the Buddha-Dharma. When one holds169 precepts in clean practice, in body and mind one abides in bliss and stability. The Bequeathed Teaching Sutrasays:170 When your body is in comfort, the Way flourishes. For drinking and eating you should know the moderate measure. One should deliberate on what this means. The Buddha's disciples, no longer inheriting the teachings of the Buddha-Dharma, can be likened to lion cubs that have grown into sheep or cats, can't they? They would also be like farmer's children who have gone mad, or weaver's children who have become prostitutes, wouldn't they? Worldly occupations with good successors will have richness and beauty that exceed the previous ones. The Buddha's teachings, having been exterminated, would leave idleness and indolence beyond sick children's endurance. The present-day o›spring of the Buddha are compared to those farmers and the like who have failed to take up their family trade. When such people want to eat rice, they must instead eat sandy mud. When they want to put on a robe, they have to don a piece of bark.

[Herewith I have established the [eighth] gate, "A List of the

175

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Essential Patterns of Activity in the Zen School. "]

Gate IX

By the ninth gate,

"Information from the Large Countries, " I

mean that by mentioning the manner of practice now prevailing in India and China, I wish to have people of faith and practice enter the great sea of the Buddha's teachings. Concerning the Buddhist situation in India, I have heard the following four points: 1. At the harbor of Hakata,

171 Chikuzen Province, Chinzei (i.e., Kyushu), an interpreter for the two royal courts, Li Dezhao (Ri Tokushø), then eighty years old, told me, "When I was over twenty

years old, I saw a monk from India in Dongjing. 172 He wore a single

undergarment and an upper kaŌyarobe. Even in the painful cold of winter he didn't wear any other clothes. The next spring before he returned to India he said to me, 'If I were to stay here, I would

violate the Buddha's rules.

'"

This was in Qiandao (Kendø) the fourth year of Song, the third year of Nin'an in Japan, wuzi, tsuchinoe-ne(1168). 173

2. A monk from Chengdufu (Seitofu) told me, "In the first year

of Chunxi (Junki), jiawu, kinoe-uma(1174) a monk from India, who was high-spirited and resourceful, came to Lizhou. 174 When

he recited mysterious magical words his mouth emitted light, and those who heard [his words] were cured of disease. He wore a single undergarment and an unlined robe. In the winter months of extreme cold, he refused a cotton robe o›ered by the other monks, insisting that it was not permitted by the Buddha. Afraid of violating the monastic rules, he returned to India the following spring. "

I heard this in Shaoxi (Shøki) the first year of Song; the first year of Kenky¥ in Japan, gengchu, kanoe-inu(1190). 175

3. A monk from Guangfu told me,

"Between China and more

than fifty provinces of Kunlun (Konron) [on the South Asian Sea], there has been more and more oceangoing tra‡c year after year. At times Buddhist monks come from those places. They wear rings pierced through the ears. They wear a single undergarment and 176

Gate IX

an unlined robe, roughly the same as the monks from India. In the winter months they don't wear cotton clothes. When they see the observances of Chinese monks, they don't praise them. "

4. The revered master Zuyong (Soei) of Xiuchansi on Mount Tiantai (present-day Dacisi; Daijiji) told me, "I hear that in VaiΩål∆,

India, there still stands Layman Vimalak∆rti's room, the size of a square zhang(højø). Monks from the South Asian Sea continually make a pilgrimage to the place below the bodhi tree and worship the image of Bodhisattva AvalokiteΩvara. In Nålandå Temple there are five thousand monks, most of whom recite the Tripi†aka texts. There are also the Buddha's bowl and ¸ånavåsin's robe. Many people go on pilgrimage to where the eight memorable stupas stand. "

All these belong to the contemporary age.

In the Song dynasty twenty miracles have been cited: 1. A monk from Weinan (Wainan) told me,

"On Mount Qing liang (Shøryø, of Wutaishan; Godaisan) MañjuΩr∆ appeared riding a lion.

"

2. In Mount Tiantai at times live arhats appear, whose traces also emit light.

3. At the stone bridge (in Mount Tiantai) blue dragons appear, and when they do, it rains.

4. The holy traces such as those in Guoqing (Kokusei) Temple176 still remain in dignity.

5. The Buddha's relics preserved in the temple in Mount Yuwang (Ikuø) emit light.

6. In Mount Yuwang eels appear, and as soon as they appear, it rains.

7. Monks maintain a dignified posture at all times. 8. Inside the temples it is calm and silent. 9. There are many who reduce themselves to ashes (i.e., die in samådhi). In the spring of Chunxi (Junki) the sixteenth year, jiyou, tsuchinoto-tori(1190) a monk of Xiangtian (Shøden) Temple reduced himself to ashes in samådhi.It is now the tenth year since then. 10. Among monks, many know when they are going to die. 11. Laypeople hold the precepts of the bodhisattva restraints. 177

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12. Young novices hold the five precepts.

13. Both laity and clergy are selfless.

14. In Mount Dongye (Tøekizan), Bodhisattva Samantabhadra emits light.

15. The Buddha hall in each temple looks as if a living Buddha abides there.

16. The storehouses for Buddhist scriptures and monks' halls look as dignified as in the Pure Land.

17. Emperors are unfailingly ordained in the bodhisattva restraints.

18. No monks possess or cultivate rice fields. 19. Animals are often observed to have human sentiments. 20. Government laws are never perverted to wrong the people. People in Japan, nevertheless, tend to refer to their favorite saying,

"In India and China the Buddha's teachings have already been extinguished. They flourish only in Japan. "

[According to the Great Tang Dynasty Record of the Western Regions,] after the passing away of the Tathågata monarchs of various countries were afraid that the "diamond seat"177 would be buried, so they had the seat marked with boundaries and had two statues of Bodhisattva AvalokiteΩvara built nearby. [According to the Record of the Transmission of the Dharma Treasury] (T. 50: 303c-304b), ¸åna våsin, the Third Patriarch who transmitted the Buddha-Dharma to his successor, had a robe he had worn since being an embryo, and which had grown together with him after his birth.This natural robe has been preserved by mysterious power for the sake of people's faith in the Dharma. [According to the Great Tang Dynasty Record of the West ern Regions] (T. 51, VIII, 915b), when Xuanzang visited the two sites, the AvalokiteΩvara statues [near the diamond seat in Maga dha] were buried half up to their chests; and (T. 51, I, 873b) a small part of ¸ånavåsin's robe [in Båmiyån] had become tattered.

Xuanzang's pilgrimage to India was during the years of Zhen-178

guan (Jøkan) (627-49) of the Tang;178 it was sixteen hundred years after the Tathågata passed away. The Tathågata had been dead more than a thousand years when the statues had become halfburied and a small portion of the robe had become tattered. Now it is only four hundred and some years after Xuanzang's observation. How could they all be extinguished now? How laughable people here are in their lack of estimation! The Sutra of the Original Practicesays:179 In the midland, under the bodhitree, when a Buddha does not appear, a sage appears. When no sage appears, a god of great strength abides.

The Mahåprajñåpåramitå Sutra(T. 5, CIII, 570b) says: No matter whether man or beast enters the hut under the bodhi tree, no ghosts can find an opportunity to attack them. A sutra says (unidentified):

Tribes that lack virtue are not born in the midland. The Sutra of the Original Practicesays:

Buddhas will not be born in borderlands; they will be born without fail in the midland.

The Sutra on[the Prince Coming into Being with] Auspicious Responses(T. 3, I, 473b) says:

Kapilavastu is in the center of the three thousand worlds that have their own sun and moon, and of the twelve thousand heavens and earths. The reason is that the dignity of the Buddha made it impossible for him to be born in a borderland. In the midland of India, the Tathågata attained awakening (bodhi) under a tree. There remains the diamond seat at the very site. In such a holy land, how could the Buddha's teachings not be alive now? Indeed, what Eisai heard directly from people while 179

staying in China must tally with the actual situation in India. Question:According to what has been mentioned, the Buddha's teachings vigorously flourish in India and China. Now I wonder if there are people who have attained the fruit of practice. Answer:As I have seen with my own eyes and heard with my own ears, there are those in China who reduce themselves to ashes in samådhi,just as those in India, mentioned above. Question:If that is the case, will Japan also have such people? Answer:Yes, there must be.

[Question:] Here is a criticism against this kind of answer: "India and China are supremely holy lands. There may appear those whose pure fruits of practice will mature to the attainment of awakening. Japan is just a borderland. Tribes that lack virtue reside here. Therefore, it is extremely di‡cult to have such attainers of awakening. Besides, people lack the practice of Ω∆la.This makes things more di‡cult for them, doesn't it?"

Answer:The Mahåprajñåpåramitå Sutra(T. 6: 539ab, quoted above, pp. 78, 83) says:

[A]fter my death, in the last time, on the last occasion, in the last five hundred-year period when my teachings are lost, a scripture [like this] will play a great part in helping people attain awakening in the direction of northeast [as well]. In the direction of the northeast is the land of Japan. There has been no dislike of this borderland, has there? As for Ω∆laand vinaya,keeping the two hundred and fifty precepts of the Buddha's day ought to be equivalent to refraining from committing the four grave o›enses in the latter-day world, far distant from the time of his parinirvå√a.The Record of the Transmission of the Dharma Treasury(T. 50: 307ab) says:180

A nun of one hunded and twenty years' age compared a group 180

of six evil mendicants with Upagupta. Upagupta, then, felt much ashamed. The nun said,

"Revered monk, you should

not feel ashamed or regretful. The Buddha said, 'After my

death, people of the first day will be better than [those] of the second day, while people of the third day will be far meaner. This will continue until their beneficial virtue diminishes, their ignorance and dullness increase, and their good nature decreases.

' Reverend monk, it has been one hundred years since the Buddha's parinirvå√a.Even if people do things unworthy of the Buddha's disciples, this is only natural. How could it be strange?"

This being the case, the fruit of attaining awakening, the extinction of the self-afflicting passions (åsravak≈aya), won't necessarily depend on the dignity of one's demeanor; what is required is just the eagerly attentive, real cultivation.

In Central India monks go through the year in an unlined robe. In other places they don't. In China and Japan monks wear lay garments, yet their attainment of the truth is the same in nature. The e‡cacy with which their attainment works on others is also no di›erent.

By "lay garments" I mean those other than the three robes for monks. The lay garments, which the Buddha prohibited monks from wearing, were two-shouldered robes, vests, and other [such clothing]. In cold districts, however, there was a robe permitted by the Buddha: the repa,

181 which is called the "waist robe" here.

The cold of our land cannot be as terrible as that of Båmiyån of the Himålayas, where snowflakes fly in June. And yet [monks in Båmiyån] wear a waist robe alone! Both Xuanzang and Yijing saw this on their pilgrimages.

Meanwhile, in China, the great masters Nanyue (Huisi; Nangaku Eshi, 515-77) and Tiantai (Zhiyi; Tendai Chigi, 531-97) attained the fivefold [preliminary] stage [on the way to ultimate awakening], and the sixfold [second stage, namely] purification of the six sense perceptions, [on the way toward ultimate awakening], 181

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respectively. In Japan Køkei (977-1049) and his disciple En'in (d. 1050) worked miracles, which surprised heavenly and earthly gods as well as humans, and they all wore lay garments. Although they did not show the dignity of uncovering the right shoulder [and kneeling on the right knee], they kept all the precepts in their practice. That is why they attained such excellent fruits. Recently I heard about a monk named Kakuben, of Øjøin Temple, Yamada-gun, Iga Province, Japan. Kakuben lectured on the Mahåparinirvå√a Sutrafrom the platform. When he finished talking about Daosheng, a Chinese Buddhist who had endured death182 [before he had a scriptural verification of his view that there should be no exception for attaining awakening], Kakuben entered into final calmness on the platform [just as Daosheng had done]. Since no one knows of this, it has not been recognized how miraculous it was. However, the Essentials of the Single Vehicle (T. 74, III, 351a) [praises Kakubenand] says:

Throughout the whole country of Japan people's capacity for the perfect teaching has reached maturity; both o‡cials and the public, those living near the capital and in remote areas, all have taken shelter in the One Vehicle.

Besides, this country, considering its physical features, is peerless, and the Three Treasures of Buddhism have vigorously flourished [here]. If people dedicate themselves to holding the Buddhist morality, have deep confidence in their true way of being, and cultivate the dignity of the Buddha, how could it be in vain? A layman of the Great Song named Wenbo (Bunhaku), who abides in Mount Emei (Gabisan), praised Japan, saying:

Who would divide that land from this land? Separating them is a short distance. Shining with sixty-six provinces (zhou; sh¥), the land extends over three thousand li.Its mountains are mines of diamonds inexhaustible. Gems that are abundant adorn the earth. The Four [Noble] Truths pervade the people's attention. The triple Buddha image is set up deep and quiet. 182

I look up casually, and see all this. Why do I wait for my legs to carry me there? Take good care of yourself. This being the case, this land is a holy place, where the Buddha's teachings pervade. If you practice Zen assiduously and seriously, the Tathågata will certainly be pleased; your attainment of the fruit will also be realized. I hope that you will stop arguing about whether the Buddha's teachings are flourishing or have declined in India and China, and will only cultivate the realization of selflessness, so that you will be able to let the Buddha's teachings flourish in this country.

Concerning the Buddha's teachings, the Sutra on the [Excellence of] the Donation of a Lamp Fire (T. 16: 803c) says: The Buddha has four kinds of excellent, living, good teachings: 1) Ω∆la,2) dhyåna,3) prajñå,and 4) the Mind that is free of defilement.

Among these four, dhyånacomes first, because it comprehends all. The Tiantai school's Great Calming and Contemplation(T. 46: 39c; quoted above, pp. 111, 143) says:

The Sutra on the Most Wondrous Supreme Dhyånasays: "Transgressors of the four grave o›enses and the five grave transgressions will, except for [dhyåna], have no way to be saved.

"

To extinguish sins, dhyånais essential. Giving rise to good is also [accomplished] through the power of dhyåna.The Mahåprajñå påramitå Treatisesays in e›ect:183 Although the three vehicles have di›erent spheres of activity, their attainment necessarily makes use of the power of dhyåna that is free from discrimination.

Since this is the case, the traditional eight schools of Buddhism, despite their di›ering spheres of activity, must always apply dhyåna to reach their respective attainments. The same is true 183

16c

with the practice of chengming(shømyø) and nianfo(nembutsu), 184

for except for dhyånanothing else would establish a practice for immediate fruition in the next life.

For this reason, when I think of the physical features of this land, considering the latter-day world, pitying the naivety of the people, and remembering the paths trodden by the patriarchs, I earnestly desire to make flourish what has been abandoned. Nevertheless, evil conditions of various kinds obstruct me from realizing this. Even some Buddhists, out of jealousy, want to suppress it. I wonder if I should give up this land now. The [Great] Heap of Jewels Sutra(T. 11, Vol. 92, 529a) says:

Where there is talk just for the sake of talk, controversy just for the sake of controversy, there arise many self-afflicting passions. Wise people should keep away from such occasions; they should stay a hundred yojanas away from such places. In the western seat of our government185 is a person who reproaches me; in the eastern capital there are people who stand in my way. While I want to avoid them both, I have no place to go [that is] a hundred yojanas away from either of them. I want to examine myself critically but I am far from being a wise person. What should I do in this situation? I might have to cross the vast sea again to conceal my traces in the clouds of Mount Tiantai. But my only regret is that I shall give up benefiting my native land to share in the benefit of Dharma water in a foreign land. An Approach to Truth through the Samådhi Called No Polemics186 (T. 46: 630a) says:

If somone should praise themselves as a person of great wisdom and despise all the practitioners of dhyåna,it is comparable to killing humans of the three thousand great worlds, though the gravity of this o›ense even surpasses the latter. Evil187 persons who may stand in my way will naturally commit this transgression; they will be useless to the imperial court and the state. My wrongly being accused of being the root source of 184