宗鏡錄序
Preface to the Record of the Mirror of the Source
大宋吳越國慧日永明寺主智覺禪師延壽集
Collected by Chan Master Yanshou, the Wise Enlightenment, Abbot of the Yongming Temple of Huiri in the State of Wuyue, Great Song Dynasty.
伏以。真源湛寂。覺海澄清。絕名相之端。無能所之迹。最初不覺。忽起動心。成業識之由。為覺明之咎。因明起照。見分俄興。隨照立塵。相分安布。如鏡現像。頓起根身。次則隨想。而世界成差。後即因智。而憎愛不等。從此遺真失性。執相徇名。積滯著之情塵。結相續之識浪。鎖真覺於夢夜。沈迷三界之中。瞽智眼於昏衢。匍匐九居之內。遂乃縻業繫之苦。喪解脫之門。於無身中受身。向無趣中立趣。約依處則分二十五有。論正報則具十二類生。皆從情想根由。遂致依正差別。向不遷境上。虛受輪迴。於無脫法中。自生繫縛。如春蠶作繭。似秋蛾赴燈。以二見妄想之絲。纏苦聚之業質。用無明貪愛之翼。撲生死之火輪。用谷響言音。論四生妍醜。以妄想心鏡。現三有形儀。然後。違順想風。動搖覺海。貪癡愛水。資潤苦芽。一向徇塵。罔知反本。發狂亂之知見。翳於自心。立幻化之色聲。認為他法。從此。一微涉境。漸成戞漢之高峯。滴水興波。終起吞舟之巨浪。邇後將欲反初復本。約根利鈍不同。於一真如界中。開三乘五性。或見空而證果。或了緣而入真。或三祇熏鍊。漸具行門。或一念圓修。頓成佛道。斯則剋證有異。一性非殊。因成凡聖之名。似分真俗之相。若欲窮微洞本。究旨通宗。則根本性離。畢竟寂滅。絕昇沈之異。無縛脫之殊。既無在世之人。亦無滅度之者。二際平等。一道清虛。識智俱空。名體咸寂。逈無所有。唯一真心。達之名見道之人。昧之號生死之始。復有邪根外種。小智權機。不了生死之病原。罔知人我之見本。唯欲厭喧斥動。破相析塵。雖云味靜冥空。不知埋真拒覺。如不辯眼中之赤眚。但滅燈上之重光。罔窮識內之幻身。空避日中之虛影。斯則勞形役思。喪力捐功。不異足水助氷。投薪益火。豈知重光在眚。虛影隨身。除病眼而重光自消。息幻質而虛影當滅。若能迴光就已。反境觀心。佛眼明而業影空。法身現而塵跡絕。以自覺之智刃。剖開纏內之心珠。用一念之慧鋒。斬斷塵中之見網。此窮心之旨。達識之詮。言約義豐。文質理詣。揭疑關於正智之戶。薙妄草於真覺之原。愈入髓之沈痾。截盤根之固執。則物我遇智火之焰。融唯心之爐。名相臨慧日之光。釋一真之海。斯乃內證之法。豈在文詮。知解莫窮。見聞不及。今為未見者。演無見之妙見。未聞者。入不聞之圓聞。未知者。說無知之真知。未解者。成無解之大解。所冀因指見月。得兔忘罤。抱一冥宗。捨詮檢理。了萬物由我。明妙覺在身。可謂搜抉玄根。磨礱理窟。剔禪宗之骨髓。標教網之紀綱。餘惑微瑕。應手圓淨。玄宗妙旨。舉意全彰。能摧七慢之山。永塞六衰之路。塵勞外道。盡赴指呼。生死魔軍。全消影響。現自在力。闡大威光。示真寶珠。利用無盡。傾祕密藏。周濟何窮。可謂。香中爇其牛頭。寶中探其驪頷。華中採其靈瑞。照中耀其神光。食中啜其乳糜。水中飲其甘露。藥中服其九轉。主中遇其聖王。故得法性山高。頓落群峯之峻。醍醐海闊。橫吞眾派之波。似夕魄之騰輝。奪小乘之星宿。如朝陽之孕彩。破外道之昏蒙。猶貧法財之人。值大寶聚。若渴甘露之者。遇清涼池。為眾生所敬之天。作菩薩真慈之父。抱膏肓之疾。逢善見之藥王。迷險難之途。偶明達之良導。久居闇室。忽臨寶炬之光明。常處裸形。頓受天衣之妙服。不求而自得。無功而頓成。故知。無量國中。難聞名字。塵沙劫內。罕遇傳持。以如上之因緣。目為心鏡。現一道而清虛可鑒。辟群邪而毫髮不容。妙體無私。圓光匪外。無邊義海。咸歸顧眄之中。萬像形容。盡入照臨之內。斯乃曹谿一味之旨。諸祖同傳。鵠林不二之宗。群經共述。可謂萬善之淵府。眾哲之玄源。一字之寶王。群靈之元祖。遂使離心之境。文理俱虛。即識之塵。詮量有據。一心之海印。揩定圓宗。八識之智燈。照開邪闇。實謂。含生靈府。萬法義宗。轉變無方。卷舒自在。應緣現迹。任物成名。諸佛體之號三菩提。菩薩修之稱六度行。海慧變之為水。龍女獻之為珠。天女散之為無著華。善友求之為如意寶。緣覺悟之為十二緣起。聲聞證之為四諦人空。外道取之為邪見河。異生執之作生死海。論體則妙符至理。約事則深契正緣。然雖標法界之總門。須辯一乘之別旨。種種性相之義。在大覺以圓通。重重即入之門。唯種智而妙達。但以根羸靡鑒。學寡難周。不知性相二門。是自心之體用。若具用而失恒常之體。如無水有波。若得體而闕妙用之門。似無波有水。且未有無波之水。曾無不濕之波。以波徹水源。水窮波末。如性窮相表。相達性原。須知體用相成。性相互顯。今則細明總別。廣辯異同。研一法之根元。搜諸緣之本末。則可稱宗鏡。以鑒幽微。無一法以逃形。則千差而普會。遂則編羅廣義。撮略要文。鋪舒於百卷之中。卷攝在一心之內。能使難思教海。指掌而念念圓明。無盡真宗。目覩而心心契合。若神珠在手。永息馳求。猶覺樹垂陰。全消影跡。獲真寶於春池之內。拾礫渾非。得本頭於古鏡之前。狂心頓歇。可以深挑見刺。永截疑根。不運一毫之功。全開寶藏。匪用剎那之力。頓獲玄珠。名為一乘大寂滅場。真阿蘭若正修行處。此是如來自到境界。諸佛本住法門。是以普勸後賢。細垂玄覽。遂得智窮性海。學洞真源。此識此心。唯尊唯勝。此識者。十方諸佛之所證。此心者。一代時教之所詮。唯尊者。教理行果之所歸。唯勝者。信解證入之所趣。諸賢依之而解釋。論起千章。眾聖體之以弘宣。談成四辯。所以掇奇提異。研精洞微。獨舉宏綱。大張正網。撈摝五乘機地。昇騰第一義天。廣證此宗。利益無盡。遂得正法久住。摧外道之邪林。能令廣濟含生。塞小乘之亂轍。則無邪不正。有偽皆空。由自利故。發智德之原。由利他故。立恩德之事。成智德故。則慈起無緣之化。成恩德故。則悲含同體之心。以同體故。則心起無心。以無緣故。則化成大化。心起無心故。則何樂而不與。化成大化故。則何苦而不收。何樂而不與。則利鈍齊觀。何苦而不收。則怨親普救。遂使三草二木。咸歸一地之榮。邪種焦芽。同霑一雨之潤。斯乃盡善盡美。無比無儔。可謂括盡因門。搜窮果海。故得創發菩提之士。初求般若之人。了知成佛之端由。頓圓無滯。明識歸家之道路。直進何疑。或離此別修。隨他妄解。如搆角取乳。緣木求魚。徒歷三祇。終無一得。若依此旨。信受弘持。如快舸隨流。無諸阻滯。又遇便風之勢。更加櫓棹之功。則疾屆寶城。忽登覺岸。可謂資糧易辦。道果先成。被迦葉上行之衣。坐釋迦法空之座。登彌勒毘盧之閣。入普賢法界之身。能令客作賤人。全領長者之家業。忽使沈空小果。頓受如來之記名。未有一門匪通斯道。必無一法不契此宗。過去覺王。因茲成佛。未來大士。仗此證真。則何一法門而不開。何一義理而不現。無一色非三摩鉢地。無一聲非陀羅尼門。甞一味而盡變醍醐。聞一香而皆入法界。風柯月渚。並可傳心。烟島雲林。咸提妙旨。步步蹈金色之界。念念嗅薝蔔之香。掬滄海而已得百川。到須彌而皆同一色。煥兮開觀象之目。盡復自宗。寂爾導求珠之心。俱還本法。遂使邪山落仞。苦海收波。智檝以之安流。妙峯以之高出。今詳祖佛大意。經論正宗。削去繁文。唯搜要旨。假申問答。廣引證明。舉一心為宗。照萬法如鏡。編聯古製之深義。撮略寶藏之圓詮。同此顯揚。稱之曰錄。分為百卷。大約三章。先立正宗。以為歸趣。次申問答。用去疑情。後引真詮。成其圓信。以茲妙善。普施含靈。同報
I respectfully submit that this text, while containing Buddhist terminology, is not a traditional Buddhist scripture but rather philosophical writing in the Chan/Zen tradition—specifically the introductory section of the *Zongjing Lu* (Records of the Mirror of the Source), composed by Master Yongming Yanshou (904–975 CE).
Below is a faithful yet accessible English rendering:
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Homage to the true source, serene and still; to the ocean of awakening, clear and calm. It transcends all names and forms, with no trace of subject or object.
In the beginning, there was no awareness of awakening itself—then a thought suddenly stirred. This became the origin of karmic consciousness, the fault of seeking brightness where none was needed. From this seeking arose illumination, and with it, the perceiving faculty. Following perception, objects appeared; forms arranged themselves like images in a mirror. Suddenly, body and sense organs arose. Then, through thought, the world took on its many distinctions. Later, through intellect, likes and dislikes emerged, unequal in strength.
From this point onward, humanity lost its true nature, clinging to forms and chasing after names. Desires accumulated like dust, and the waves of consciousness rolled on without end. True awakening was locked away in the night of dreams, and beings sank into the three realms of existence. The eye of wisdom was blinded on the dark road, crawling within the nine abodes of sentient life. Thus they were bound by the suffering of karmic entanglement and lost the gate of liberation.
Within what was originally formless, they took on form. Within what had no destination, they established destinations. In terms of environments, there are twenty-five realms of existence. In terms of living beings, there are twelve classes of birth. All of this arose from emotional attachments and mental constructs, leading to differences in body and world.
On what is fundamentally unchanging ground, they suffered through endless cycles of rebirth. Within what was originally free, they created their own bondage—like spring silkworms spinning their own cocoons, or autumn moths flying into flames. With the threads of dualistic views, they wrapped themselves in the suffering of karmic existence. With the wings of ignorance and craving, they hurled themselves into the burning wheel of birth and death.
They used echo-like words to debate the beauty and ugliness of the four kinds of birth, and the mirror of deluded thought to project the forms of the three realms. Then, blown by the winds of like and dislike, they stirred the ocean of awakening. The waters of greed, delusion, and craving nourished the sprouts of suffering. Always chasing after sense objects, they never knew how to return to their true source.
They developed wild and confused views that clouded their own minds. They mistook the illusions of form and sound for something separate from themselves. From this, a single speck of sensory contact grew into towering mountains of obstruction. A single drop of water became waves that could swallow a whale.
Later, when beings wished to return to their original nature, their capacities differed—sharp or dull—so within the single true suchness, the three vehicles and five natures were distinguished. Some realized emptiness and attained the fruit. Some understood dependent origination and entered truth. Some, over three countless eons, gradually perfected their practice. Some, in a single thought, accomplished the Buddha way completely.
Though these paths differ in realization, the fundamental nature is not different. Because of these stages, the names of ordinary and sacred arose, and apparent distinctions between truth and convention appeared.
If one wishes to penetrate the subtle and reach the source, to grasp the essential meaning and master the tradition, then one finds that fundamental nature is beyond all characteristics, ultimately quiescent, with no distinction between rising and falling, no difference between bondage and liberation. There is no one who lives in the world, and no one who enters final cessation. Both extremes are equal; the single path is clear and empty. Consciousness and wisdom are both empty; names and forms are all still. Nothing whatsoever remains—only the true mind.
To realize this is to be called one who has seen the path. To be ignorant of it is to be called the beginning of birth and death.
There are also those of wrong views and externalist tendencies, of small wisdom and provisional understanding. They do not understand the root of suffering, nor the origin of self and other. They only wish to reject noise and activity, to break apart forms and analyze atoms. Though they speak of tasting stillness and contemplating emptiness, they do not realize they are burying their true nature and rejecting awakening. It is like someone who cannot see the cataract in their own eyes but tries to extinguish the halo of light around a lamp. They fail to investigate the illusory body within consciousness, and vainly try to avoid the shadow cast by the sun.
Such people exhaust their bodies and weary their minds, wasting their strength and efforts—no different from adding water to ice or throwing firewood on a fire. How could they know that the halo comes from the cataract, and the shadow follows the body? Remove the diseased eye, and the halo disappears. Stop the illusory body, and the shadow vanishes.
If one can turn the light inward, reverse the gaze, and observe the mind, then the Buddha eye becomes bright and karmic shadows vanish. The Dharma body appears and the dust of worldly traces ceases. With the sword of self-awakened wisdom, one cuts open the mind-jewel wrapped in entanglement. With the sharp edge of a single thought, one severs the net of views within the dust of sensory experience.
This is the essential meaning of investigating the mind, the final teaching of understanding consciousness. The words are few, but the meaning is vast. The language is simple, yet it reaches the truth. It opens the gate of right wisdom, clears the weeds of delusion from the ground of true awakening, heals the deepest chronic illness, and cuts through the most stubborn attachments.
When self and other meet the fire of wisdom, they melt in the furnace of mind-only. When names and forms encounter the light of the wisdom sun, they dissolve into the ocean of the one true reality.
This is the dharma of inner realization—how could it be captured in words? Intellectual understanding cannot exhaust it. Seeing and hearing cannot reach it.
Now, for those who have not yet seen, I speak of the wonderful seeing that is beyond seeing. For those who have not yet heard, I point to the perfect hearing that is beyond hearing. For those who do not yet know, I express the true knowing that is beyond knowing. For those who have not yet understood, I accomplish the great understanding that is beyond understanding.
My hope is that beings will use the finger to see the moon, and once the rabbit is caught, forget the snare. Hold to the one and contemplate the source. Set aside words and examine the principle. Understand that all things arise from the mind. Realize that wonderful awakening is within this very body.
This may be called: plumbing the profound root, polishing the cave of principle, extracting the marrow of the Chan tradition, and establishing the framework of the teaching net. Remaining doubts and minor flaws dissolve effortlessly. The profound meaning of the true school appears completely with a single thought. It can topple the mountain of the seven kinds of pride and forever block the road of the six sense obstacles. Defilements and heterodox teachers all come under its command. The armies of birth and death vanish like shadows and echoes.
It manifests the power of freedom and radiates great brilliance. It reveals the true jewel, whose usefulness is inexhaustible. It opens the secret treasury and gives aid without end.
It may be said: among fragrances, it is the burning of aloeswood; among treasures, it is the pearl from beneath the dragon's chin; among flowers, it is the most auspicious bloom; among lights, it is the most radiant; among foods, it is milk-rice; among waters, it is sweet nectar; among medicines, it is the elixir of nine transformations; among rulers, it is the holy king.
Thus the mountain of Dharma-nature rises high, dwarfing all lesser peaks. The ocean of ambrosia is vast, swallowing the waves of every stream. Like the evening moon, it outshines the stars of lesser vehicles. Like the morning sun, it breaks through the darkness of heterodox views.
For those poor in the wealth of Dharma, it is a great treasure hoard. For those thirsting for nectar, it is a cool pool. To beings who revere it, it is a heaven. To bodhisattvas, it is a true loving father. For those afflicted with terminal illness, it is the king of physicians with the perfect remedy. For those lost on dangerous roads, it is a wise guide. For those long trapped in darkness, it is the sudden light of a great torch. For those always naked, it is the sudden gift of heavenly garments.
What is not sought is found on its own. What is not cultivated is accomplished in an instant.
Therefore know: in countless lands, it is difficult to even hear its name. Throughout eons of dust, few encounter its transmission. For these reasons, this text is called the Mirror of the Source. It reveals the single path, clear and pure, reflecting all. It repels all false views with not a hair's breadth of tolerance. Its subtle body is without partiality. Its perfect light is not outside. The boundless ocean of meaning returns to its gaze. The forms of all things enter its illumination.
This is the single-taste teaching of Caoxi, transmitted by all ancestors. This is the non-dual school of the Twin Trees, expounded in all scriptures. It may be called the storehouse of all goodness, the profound source of all wisdom, the jewel-king of a single word, the primal ancestor of all living beings.
Thus, those states apart from mind—their patterns and principles are both empty. The dusts that arise from consciousness—their explanations and measures have a basis. The single seal of the mind-ocean fixes the perfect tradition. The wisdom lamp of the eight consciousnesses illuminates and dispels false darkness.
Truly, this is the spiritual home of all beings, the essential meaning of all dharmas. It transforms without limit, opens and closes freely. It responds to conditions and manifests traces. It accords with beings and establishes names.
The Buddhas embody it and are called the Three Bodhis. Bodhisattvas cultivate it and call it the Six Perfections. The Wisdom Sea transformed it into water. The Dragon King's daughter offered it as a jewel. The heavenly maiden scattered it as unstained flowers. The virtuous friend sought it as the wish-fulfilling gem. The pratyekabuddha awakened to it as the twelve links of dependent origination. The sravaka realized it as the four noble truths and the emptiness of self. The heterodox take it as the river of wrong views. Ordinary beings cling to it as the ocean of birth and death.
In its essence, it wondrously accords with ultimate truth. In its function, it deeply connects with correct conditions.
Although it is pointed to as the universal gate of the Dharma realm, one must distinguish the special meaning of the one vehicle. The various characteristics of natures and forms are perfectly understood in great awakening. The countless interpenetrating gates are only fully realized by complete wisdom.
But because beings are weak in capacity, they cannot clearly see. Their learning is too limited to comprehend the whole. They do not know that the two gates of nature and form are the substance and function of their own mind.
If one has function without the constant substance, it is like waves without water. If one attains substance but lacks the gate of wonderful function, it is like water without waves. Yet there has never been water without waves, nor waves that are not wet. Since waves are transparent to their source in water, and water is fully present at the tip of every wave—so too is nature found throughout form, and form reaches back to its origin in nature.
One must understand that substance and function complete each other, that nature and form illuminate each other.
Now I will clarify the general and the particular in detail, broadly discriminate the similar and the different, investigate the root of the one dharma, and search out the beginning and end of all conditions. This may then be called the Mirror of the Source—a mirror for examining the subtle and the obscure. No single dharma escapes its reflection. Thousand differences are all gathered into unity.
Thus I have gathered the vast meanings, selected the essential passages, and arranged them in a hundred scrolls, yet all folded within the single mind.
This enables the inconceivable ocean of teachings to be seen in the palm of the hand, thought by thought, perfectly clear. The inexhaustible true school is seen directly, mind to mind, in perfect accord. Like holding a divine pearl in hand, all seeking ceases. Like sitting in the shade of the awakening tree, all shadow and trace disappear.
One finds the true jewel in the spring pond; the pebbles are seen as worthless. One recovers the original head before the ancient mirror; the mad mind comes to rest at once.
One can deeply remove the thorn of views and permanently sever the root of doubt. Without using the slightest effort, the treasure store is fully opened. Without spending even an instant, the mysterious pearl is obtained.
This is called the great field of perfect stillness of the one vehicle, the true place of correct practice, the original abode of retreat. This is the realm the Tathagata himself has reached, the Dharma gate in which all Buddhas dwell.
Therefore, I urge all later students: examine this with care and depth. Then wisdom will exhaust the sea of natures, and learning will penetrate the true source.
This consciousness and this mind—they alone are honored, they alone are supreme.
This consciousness is what the Buddhas of the ten directions have realized. This mind is what the entire canon of the Buddha's teachings has expounded. That which is honored is the gathering point of teaching, principle, practice, and fruit. That which is supreme is the destination of faith, understanding, realization, and entry.
All the worthy ones relied on it to compose their commentaries, producing thousands of treatises. All the sages embodied it to proclaim the Dharma, completing the four types of eloquence.
Thus they gathered what was extraordinary, investigated what was profound, held up the great net of the true teaching. They fished out the grounds of the five vehicles and ascended into the sky of the supreme truth. This teaching is broadly verified and benefits without limit.
Thus the true Dharma endures long, and the forests of heterodox views are toppled. It saves all living beings broadly and blocks the wrong paths of the lesser vehicles.
Then there is nothing wrong that is not corrected, and all that is false becomes empty. Through self-benefit, the source of wisdom is revealed. Through benefiting others, the deeds of compassion are established. When wisdom is complete, compassion arises without conditions. When compassion is complete, loving-kindness embraces all as one body. Because all are one body, the mind arises without attachment. Because conditions are transcended, transformation becomes the great transformation.
When the mind arises without attachment, what joy is not given? When transformation becomes great transformation, what suffering is not gathered in? What joy is not given—then the sharp and the dull are seen equally. What suffering is not gathered in—then enemy and friend are saved alike.
Thus the three plants and two trees all return to the glory of one ground. The wrong seeds and withered sprouts all receive the moisture of one rain.
This is complete goodness, complete beauty—without comparison, without equal. It may be said to encompass the entirety of causal practice and exhaust the ocean of resulting enlightenment.
Thus those who first awaken the bodhi mind, those who first seek prajna, understand the basis of Buddhahood and perfectly complete it without obstruction. They clearly recognize the road home and advance without hesitation.
If one departs from this and practices something else, following others' deluded interpretations, it is like milking a horn to get milk, or climbing a tree to find fish. One may pass through three eons and never gain anything.
But if one relies on this teaching, receives it with faith, and upholds it broadly, it is like a swift boat moving with the current without obstruction. With a favorable wind and the added strength of oars, one quickly reaches the jewel city, suddenly ascending the shore of awakening.
It may be said: provisions are easily gathered, the fruit of the path is achieved first. One wears the robe of Kashyapa's supreme practice, sits on the throne of Shakyamuni's dharma-emptiness, ascends to Maitreya's tower of Vairocana, and enters Samantabhadra's body of the Dharma realm.
One enables the hired laborer to inherit the full estate of the elder. One enables those sunk in emptiness and small fruits to suddenly receive the Tathagata's prophecy of enlightenment.
There is no gate that does not open through this path. There is no dharma that does not accord with this school. The awakened kings of the past became Buddhas because of this. The great beings of the future will realize truth through this.
Then what Dharma gate is not opened? What principle is not revealed? There is no form that is not the samadhi ground. There is no sound that is not a dharani gate. Tasting one flavor, everything becomes ambrosia. Smelling one fragrance, one enters the Dharma realm.
The wind through the branches, the moonlight on the isle—all transmit the mind. The misty islands and cloud forests all reveal the profound meaning. Step by step, one walks on the ground of golden light. Thought by thought, one smells the fragrance of the champaka flower.
Cupping the great ocean, one has already obtained all the rivers. Arriving at Sumeru, all is one color.
Radiant—the eye opens to contemplate all forms, and all return to their own source. Still—the mind that sought the pearl is guided back to the original dharma.
Thus the mountain of false views crumbles. The ocean of suffering calms its waves. The boat of wisdom sails in peaceful waters. The wonderful peak rises high.
Now, having examined the great meaning of the ancestors and Buddhas, the true teaching of the sutras and treatises, I have cut away the excess and gathered only the essential. I have set up questions and answers, broadly cited evidence, and raised the one mind as the essential teaching, reflecting all dharmas like a mirror.
I have woven together the deep meanings of the ancient tradition and drawn from the perfect teachings of the treasure store. All of this is now set forth in this Record. It is divided into one hundred scrolls and roughly three chapters: first, establishing the true teaching as the destination; second, presenting questions and answers to dissolve doubt; third, citing the true teaching to perfect faith.
May this wonderful goodness be offered to all living beings, as repayment for the kindness of all—
佛恩共傳斯旨耳。
The Buddha's compassion is shared in transmitting this teaching.
宗鏡錄卷第一
The Record of the Mirror of the Source, Volume 1