智悲

Wisdom and Compassion

真的修行人不是口头上说一些漂亮的话，最重要的是在思想上要有真正的遁世修道之心。

To speak impressively does not make one an authentic spiritual practitioner. What really counts is to genuinely turn the mind toward the Dharma while casting away the mundane world.

大梅禅师在马祖处见性开悟后，到浙江四明山隐居。多年以后，师兄盐官齐安得知下落，欣然派人迎请。禅师就写了两首偈子以示推辞，“摧残枯木倚寒林，几度逢春不变心，樵客过之犹不顾，郢人哪得苦追寻。”以无用之枯木自喻，以婉言谢绝。又写道“一池荷叶衣无尽，树树松花食有余，刚被世人知去处，又移茅舍入深居。”

The great Zen master Damei, after realizing the nature of the mind as pointed out by his teacher Mazu Daoyi, retreated to Mountain Siming in Zhejiang. Years later, Qi An, a salt trading officer and once his friend, learned of his whereabouts and sent emissaries to cordially invite him out. The Zen master declined the offer with these two verses:

To a ruined dead tree in chilly forest,
Many seasons of spring have brought no revival.
Even passing woodcutters heed it not,
Why do you, the man of Ying County, still pursue me so hard?

By describing himself as a useless dead tree, he declined the offer politely. And:

Clothing is plenty from the lotus leaves in the pond,
Food is abundant among pine berries and flowers.
My hideout will be moved deeper into the woods,
As the old one has just been exposed to visitors.

表明其出世意念已坚，任你春花秋月，再不为之开花绽叶，洗尽尘世之七情六欲，甘以荷叶为衣，松花为食，超三界，离五蕴，世事对之无可奈何的气魄，真乃大修行人之所为。实在令我深感惭愧。

These verses clearly show that he has firmly denounced the secular world; let there be spring flowers or the autumn moon, his heart will not be enticed into blossoming or sprouting. All his seven earthly emotions and the six sensory pleasures have been thoroughly cleansed away. He is content with wearing lotus leaves and eating pine berries. This imposing manner of his—transcending the three realms, free from the five aggregates, and unshakable by mundane affairs—is truly the conduct of a great practitioner. I feel deeply humbled when reflecting upon it.

色达霍西的秋甲堪布也是这样，他曾追随上师的足迹到石渠求道。一生中舍弃一切名闻利养，像前辈噶当派大德一样，十多年来一直住在霍西一间简陋的板皮房里，生活异常艰苦，却无牵无挂，逍遥自在地坚持修行，直至圆寂。他曾说过一段话：“真的修行人因为有智慧而不贪执一切，对众生无勤而生悲心。如果智慧悲心具足，则显密精要全部统揽；如果不具足，即使在嘴上夸夸其谈地谈论利众、闭关等等美妙的言辞，过几天还是会为一己私利而殚精竭虑地奔波。全知无垢光尊者说过：‘修行人应像衣服穿反了一样有很大转变。’”所以，说得再多，如果没有智慧和悲心，也是枉然。切记！

Khenpo Choja of Sertha Huoxi was exactly like this. Following his teacher’s footsteps, he went to Shiqu for Dharma teachings. Just like the great Kadampa masters, all his life he denounced fame, wealth, profit, and power; his dwelling in Huoxi for decades was a shabby room made from wood planks. Although his life was extremely difficult, he was worry-free and carefree; he practiced persistently until his final days. Once he said: “With wisdom, a genuine practitioner clings to nothing and his compassion for sentient beings arises effortlessly. Having wisdom and compassion, all the essence in the sutra and tantra is within reach. Missing them, he will easily revert to scheming for personal gain, even if a few days earlier he has just given big talks on altruism and doing a retreat.” Longchenpa the Omniscient also says: “Your training should bring a change in you as noticeable as if you had worn your clothes the wrong way.” Therefore, without wisdom and compassion, no amount of talk means anything. Bear this in mind!

壬午年正月十二日清晨
2002年2月24日

Early morning, 12thof January, Year of RenWu
February 24, 2002