Pointing at the Moon - Alexander Holstein

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"In charge" refers to self-nature, and the true meaning of the master's first question was "Have you attained realization of the nature of the self, or not?" "Place" means Emptiness, the empty nature of all dharmas. Thus, Yang Shan risked losing this stance if he were to try to answer in spoken language. Once something is uttered, it is "off the track." The lesson here is that self-nature is something that cannot be talked about. It is everywhere, and cannot be differentiated through motion-motionlessness. The T'ang poet, Wei mo Chieh, once said:

      It seems to be here yet not coming.

      It seems to be there yet not going.

      I wonder, what is it? And I answer myself:

      It is here only because it never intends to come;

      It is there only because it never intends to go.

      It is the most invisible thing because everyone can see it.

      Perhaps this is the clearest definition of self-nature humanly possible.

      The Unit of Motion and Motionlessness

       AT A young age, Ch'an master Yin Feng was well-versed in a great deal of Buddhist teachings, his teacher being the famous master Ma Tsu.

      One day, while pushing a cart, Yin Feng was forced to a halt by his master, who was sitting on the road stretching a leg across it. The carter asked him to draw his leg back, to let the cart pass. Instead, Ma Tsu drew his body out across the road, saying, "I can only stretch out, never draw back."

      Yin Feng was not going to back up either, so he said, "As for me, I can only advance, but never retreat." So saying, he pushed his cart through Ma Tsu's barrier and wounded his foot quite seriously.

      As soon as the wounded master reached the monastery, he took down an ax and shouted, "Who was this idiot who wounded me on the road?! Come out!"

      Yin Feng appeared before the master, putting his neck under the ax. As a result, Ma Tsu laid his ax down.

      Commentary: In everyday life, when people say that a certain object is in motion and another one is motionless, it is due to the action of their own minds. Actually, all phenomena are created by our minds, but phenomena themselves do not make the distinction of being in motion or being motionless. Ch'an teaches people to clear from their minds any opposing concepts in order to attain perfect harmony and Enlightenment. The saying, "I can only stretch out, never draw back" meant "I am motionless and never in motion."

      To counterbalance this, Yin Feng expressed his opposite conception, "I am in motion and never motionless." At first glance things are like this. But in reality, the master, at the cost of his own foot, tested his disciple on whether he was able to overstep the motion-motionlessness doctrine, acting spontaneously on his own, or not. In fact, Yin Feng's mind was already clear of any distinctions. He needed to pass through and he did it without respect for the celebrated master. No models or idols are needed by those who search for the Truth through their minds.

      A Withered Tree, a Splendid Tree

       ONCE, WHEN the venerable master Yao Shan held the position of abbot, he was walking in a temple courtyard in the company of his two disciples, Tao Wu and Yun Yen. Two trees stood in front of the temple. One was withered and the other was in full splendor. Pointing at the trees the master asked, "Which of these trees is following the right way, the withered one or the one in splendor?"

      "The one in splendor," replied Tao Wu.

      "The brightness blinds the eyes," commented the master. He asked again, "Which is correct, a withered tree or one in splendor?"

      "A withered one," answered Yun Yen.

      "It is dominated by dullness," explained the master.

      At this point they were joined by a monk, and Yao Shan asked him the same question.

      "A withered tree complies with the withering of itself," the monk retorted, "a splendid tree follows its own splendor."

      "No! No!" exclaimed the master, addressing his disciples.

      Commentary: In ordinary people's thinking, all things can be differentiated by name and related to in terms of duality. In this case, "a tree in splendor," reflecting the positive concept of "is," was the answer chosen by Tao Wu. The master, however, didn't approve of this answer. On the other hand, "a withered tree," representing the negative concept, or "is not," was preferred by Yun Yen, but the master's reply indicated the equal delusion of Yun Yen's mind. Although the monk didn't choose either of the two opposing concepts, his answer assumed the existence of both and proved the fact that he wasn't released from the chain of rebirth and death. That's why the master couldn't accept the monk's answer, exclaiming, "No! No!" He did this not only to protest the error, but first and foremost to rouse his disciples' doubts, letting them come to an understanding on their own.

      Worship of Buddha

       THERE WAS once a master by the name of Huang Nieh who paid a visit to Ch'an master Yen Kuang. Entering the temple, he knelt respectfully before a statue of Buddha. At this time, a young emperor of the T'ang dynasty named Hsuan Tsung was attending his religious service there as a novice. By chance, he was in the Buddha Hall and saw everything Huang Nieh performed.

      "For one who seeks the Truth," Hsuan Tsung then dared to say, "there is no need to worship Buddha or become a monk, or be an adherent of any teaching. Say, Master, why do you pay your respects to the statue of Buddha?"

      "Since I need not worship Buddha, or become a monk, or be an adherent of any teaching, I do it," the master replied without delay. "I free myself, that's all."

      After pondering the matter a considerable while, the novice asked, "What is the use of the forms of worship, master?"

      Huang Nieh slapped him in the face in reply.

      "Why, how rude!" the young emperor said, enraged. "How boorish you are!"

      "Why?!" retorted the master. "You still dare to discuss who is boorish and who is not—this is really going too far!" said Huang Nieh, to the shame of Hsuan Tsung.

      Commentary: In the Ch'an school there is a warning: "Those who recite the Buddha's name once have to rinse their mouths for three days." The Ch'an masters believe that seeing the nature of the self and attaining Buddhahood is a personal matter. It is not possible to realize the Truth by depending on others, including the Buddha. On the other hand, we know how often the Ch'an masters allow themselves to swear at Buddhas. In the Ch'an tradition, there is even the ritual of the burnt Buddha. All this is used to destroy any distinction between "I" and "Buddha" in the practitioner's mind, but not to profane the name of Buddha. Hsuan Tsung thought to himself, "I am the emperor." That is why, although a novice, he dared break into the elder master's worship, and was duly rebuffed. Through the slap, the master destroyed his concept of "emperor" and "subject," showing that the temple was a temple, not the imperial court.

      You Still Have This in Mind?

       ONE morning, a Buddhist nun came to visit Ch'an master Chao Chou and asked him what the meaning of "the innermost mystery of all mysteries" was. Chao Chou pinched her in reply. The nun was most indignant at this saucy behavior. "Do you still have this in your mind?" she exclaimed. "No," roared the master, "it is you who still have this in your mind!"

      Commentary: "The innermost mystery of all mysteries" is the most important and highest principle of

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