---
title: "景德傳燈錄 · 司空山本淨禪師"
description: "景德传灯录由宋代高僧道原编纂，成书于景德年间（1004-1007年），是中国佛教禅宗重要史传类典籍。全书共三十卷，收录自释迦牟尼至五代末年的禅宗祖师1701人，以法脉传承为脉络，记录历代禅师的机缘语录、公案典故。作为现存最早的传灯体著作，该书系统记载了禅宗五家七宗的传承体系，保存了大量珍贵史料，对研究中国禅宗发展史具有不可替代的价值。景德传灯录与五灯会元并称为禅宗两大灯录，被后世奉为禅门经典，不仅影响了宋明理学的发展，更成为东亚禅佛教传播的重要文献依据。"
url: "https://rushiwowen.co/en/r/cmaarbqe400asjy04edyvon68"
---

司空山本淨禪師者絳州人也。姓張氏。幼歲披緇于曹谿之室受記。隸司空山無相寺。唐天寶三年玄宗遣中使楊光庭入山采常春藤。因造丈室禮問曰。弟子慕直斯久。願和尚慈悲略垂開示。師曰。天下禪宗碩學咸會京師。天使歸朝足可咨決。貧道隈山傍水無所用心。光庭泣拜。師曰。休禮貧道。天使為求佛邪問道邪。曰弟子智識昏昧。未審佛之與道其議云何。師曰。若欲求佛即心是佛。若欲會道無心是道。曰云何即心是佛。師曰。佛因心悟心以佛彰。若悟無心佛亦不有。曰云何無心是道。師曰。道本無心無心名道。若了無心無心即道。光庭作禮信受。既迴闕。庭具以山中所遇奏聞。即勅光庭詔師。十二月十三日到京勅住白蓮亭。越明年正月十五日召兩街名僧碩學。赴內道場與師闡揚佛理。時有遠禪師者。抗聲謂師曰。今對聖上校量宗旨。應須直問直答不假繁辭。只如禪師所見以何為道。師答曰。無心是道。遠曰。道因心有。何得言無心是道。師曰。道本無名因心名道。心名若有道不虛然。窮心既無道憑何立。二俱虛妄總是假名。遠曰。禪師見有身心是道以否。師曰。山僧身心本來是道。曰適言無心是道。今又言身心本來是道。豈不相違。師曰。無心是道心泯道無。心道一如故言無心是道。身心本來是道。道亦本是身心。身心本既是空。道亦窮源無有。曰觀禪師形質甚小。却會此理。師曰。大德。只見山僧相。不見山僧無相。見相者是大德所見。經云。凡所有相皆是虛妄。若見諸相非相。即悟其道。若以相為實窮劫不能悟道。曰今請禪師於相上說於無相。師曰。淨名經云。四大無主身亦無我。無我所見與道相應。大德。若以四大有主是我。若有我見窮劫不可會道也。遠公聞語失色逡巡避席。師有偈曰。

> The Zen Master Benjing of Sikong Mountain was from Jiangzhou and his lay surname was Zhang. In his youth, he became a monk under the tutelage of the Caoxi school and received the dharma transmission. He later resided at Wuxiang Temple on Sikong Mountain. In the third year of the Tianbao era of the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Xuanzong sent his envoy Yang Guangting into the mountains to gather evergreen vines. Yang Guangting took the opportunity to visit the Master's quarters and asked, "I have long admired the straightforward path. I beg the Master, out of compassion, to offer some brief guidance." The Master said, "All the great Zen scholars of the world have gathered in the capital. You, envoy of Heaven, can return to court and have your questions resolved there. I am but a poor monk living by the mountains and waters, with nothing much on my mind." Yang Guangting wept and bowed. The Master said, "No need to bow to me. Envoy of Heaven, are you seeking the Buddha or seeking the Path?" He replied, "My wisdom is clouded and dull. I do not understand the distinction between the Buddha and the Path." The Master said, "If you wish to seek the Buddha, then know that the mind itself is Buddha. If you wish to understand the Path, then know that no-mind is the Path." Yang Guangting asked, "How is it that the mind itself is Buddha?" The Master said, "The Buddha is realized through the mind, and the mind is made manifest through the Buddha. If you awaken to no-mind, then the Buddha is not either." Yang Guangting asked, "How is no-mind the Path?" The Master said, "The Path is fundamentally without mind, and no-mind is what we call the Path. If you truly understand no-mind, then no-mind itself is the Path." Yang Guangting bowed in faith and received the teaching. After returning to the capital, Yang Guangting reported to the emperor everything he had encountered in the mountains. The emperor then ordered Yang Guangting to summon the Master. On the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the Master arrived in the capital and was ordered to stay at the White Lotus Pavilion. On the fifteenth day of the first month the following year, the emperor summoned renowned monks and great scholars from both streets of the city to the inner Dharma hall to discuss Buddhist principles with the Master. At that time, a certain Chan Master Yuan spoke out in a strong voice, saying, "Now, facing the emperor, we are to examine the essentials of the teaching. We should ask direct questions and give direct answers, without excessive elaboration. In your view, what is the Path?" The Master answered, "No-mind is the Path." Yuan said, "The Path arises because of the mind. How can you say no-mind is the Path?" The Master said, "The Path is originally without name. It is because of the mind that we call it the Path. Since the name 'mind' exists, the Path is not falsely established. But when you thoroughly investigate the mind, it does not exist—so upon what basis does the Path stand? Both are empty illusions, merely provisional names." Yuan said, "Do you consider body and mind to be the Path?" The Master said, "This mountain monk's body and mind have always been the Path." Yuan said, "A moment ago you said no-mind is the Path. Now you say body and mind themselves are the Path. Are these not contradictory?" The Master said, "No-mind is the Path—when the mind ceases, the Path is also gone. Mind and Path are one and the same, so I say no-mind is the Path. Body and mind have always been the Path, and the Path has always been body and mind. Since body and mind are fundamentally empty, the Path, when traced to its source, is also nonexistent." Yuan said, "I observe that your physical form is quite small, yet you understand such principles." The Master said, "Venerable One, you only see this monk's physical appearance, but do not see this monk's formlessness. What you see is merely your own perception. The sutra says: 'All forms are illusory. If you see that all forms are not forms, you awaken to the Path.' If you take forms as real, you cannot awaken to the Path even in countless eons." Yuan said, "I now ask the Master to explain formlessness through the realm of forms." The Master said, "The Vimalakirti Sutra says: 'The four elements have no master, and the body has no self. One who sees without a view of self accords with the Path.' Venerable One, if you think the four elements have a master, that is the self. If you hold a view of self, you will never understand the Path, even in countless eons." Upon hearing these words, Master Yuan's face changed color, and he hesitantly withdrew from his seat. The Master then offered a verse: --- Do not seek the Buddha outside the mind, for the mind itself is Buddha. Do not seek the Path apart from mind, for no-mind is the Path. If you cling to the mind, you lose it; if you pursue forms, you miss them whole. When body and mind are both set aside, the Path appears—bright, clear, and free. What is born cannot be born again; what perishes cannot perish anew. When neither stillness nor motion binds you, you roam freely between the ten directions. Compassion flows from a single truth: emptiness is no other than the ground of all. If you ask where the ancients went, they abide right where you stand—right now.

四大無主復如水 遇曲逢直無彼此淨穢兩處不生心 壅決何曾有二意觸境但似水無心 在世縱橫有何事

> The four great elements have no master, like water— Meeting bends and straights, no "this" or "that" arises. In purity or filth, no mind is stirred— Blocked or released, how could two intentions be? Touching the world, just like water, with no clinging mind— Wandering freely in this life, what matters could there be?

復云。一大如是四大亦然。若明四大無主。即悟無心。若了無心自然契道。又有志明禪師者。問曰。若言無心是道。瓦礫無心亦應是道。又云。身心本來是道。四生十類皆有身心亦應是道。師曰。大德若作見聞覺知之解。與道懸殊。即是求見聞覺知之者。非是求道之人。經云。無眼耳鼻舌身意。六根尚無見聞覺知憑何而立。窮本不有何處存心。焉得不同草木瓦礫。志明杜口而退。師又有偈曰。

> Again, just as the great earth is like this, so too are the four elements. If you understand that the four elements have no inherent self, you will immediately realize that the mind is also empty. If you comprehend that the mind is empty, you will naturally align with the Path to Cessation. There was also a meditation master named Zhi Ming who asked, "If it is said that the mindless state is the Path, then tiles and pebbles, being mindless, should also be the Path. It is also said that body and mind are originally the Path. Then all four kinds of beings born from wombs, eggs, moisture, and transformation, and the ten categories of living beings, all having body and mind, should also be the Path." The Master replied, "Great Virtue, if you interpret things through seeing, hearing, feeling, and knowing, you are far from the Path. You are someone seeking after these perceptions, not someone seeking the Path. The scriptures say, 'No eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or mind.' If these six sense organs do not exist, then on what basis do seeing, hearing, feeling, and knowing stand? When you trace their origin and find nothing exists, where can the mind reside? How could you not be the same as grass, trees, tiles, or pebbles?" Zhi Ming fell silent and withdrew. The Master then gave a verse:

見聞覺知無障礙 聲香味觸常三昧如鳥空中只麼飛 無取無捨無憎愛若會應處本無心 始得名為觀自在

> Seeing, hearing, feeling, knowing—all unobstructed, Sounds, scents, tastes, touches—always in deep samadhi. Like a bird simply flying through the sky, No grasping, no rejecting, no aversion, no attachment. If you realize that where responses arise is fundamentally without mind, Only then can you be called Guanyin, the One Who Observes Freely.

又有真禪師者。問云。道既無心佛有心否。佛之與道是一是二。師曰。不一不異。曰佛度眾生為有心故。道不度人為無心故。一度一不度。何得無二。師曰。若言佛度眾生道無度者。此是大德妄生二見。如山僧即不然。佛是虛名道亦妄立。二俱不實總是假名。一假之中何分二。問曰。佛之與道從是假名。當立名時。是誰為立。若有立者何得言無。師曰。佛之與道因心而立。推窮立心心亦是無。心既是無即悟二俱不實。知如夢幻即悟本空。彊立佛道二名。此是二乘人見解。師乃說無修無作。偈曰。

> Another true Master was present and asked: "Since the Path has no mind, does the Buddha have a mind? Are the Buddha and the Path one or two?" The Master said: "Neither one nor different." The questioner said: "The Buddha saves sentient beings because of having a mind. The Path does not save people because it is mindless. One saves and the other does not—how can they be said to be not two?" The Master said: "If you say the Buddha saves sentient beings and the Path does not, this is your deluded view of duality. As for me, it's not like that. The Buddha is an empty name, and the Path is also a mistaken designation. Neither is real; both are just borrowed names. Within a single illusion, how can you divide it into two?" The questioner asked: "If the Buddha and the Path are just borrowed names, then when these names were established, who established them? If there is an establisher, how can you say there is nothing?" The Master said: "The Buddha and the Path arise because of the mind. But if you investigate deeply into what establishes the mind, that mind itself is also nothing. Since the mind is nothing, you realize both are unreal. Knowing they are like dreams and illusions, you awaken to their original emptiness. To forcibly hold up the two names of Buddha and Path—this is the view of those on the two lesser vehicles." The Master then spoke a verse on no practice and no cultivation: Neither practice nor cultivation is the true way, If you cling to practice, you're still far astray. Objects and mind both vanish—then it's clear: The mind that's empty is the Buddha's peer.

見道方修道 不見復何修道性如虛空 虛空何所修遍觀修道者 撥火覓浮漚但看弄傀儡 線斷一時休

> Seeing the Path, one cultivates the Path; Without seeing it, what is there to cultivate? The Path's nature is like space— What can be cultivated in space? Look at those who seek to cultivate: They rake fire to find a bubble. Just watch the puppet show— When the strings snap, all at once it stops.

又有法空禪師者。問曰。佛之與道俱是假名。十二分教亦應不實。何以從前尊宿皆言修道。師曰。大德錯會經意。道本無修大德彊修。道本無作大德彊作。道本無事彊生多事。道本無知於中彊知。如此見解與道相違。從前尊宿不應如是。自是大德不會。請思之。師又有偈曰。

> A monk named Fakong asked the Master, "Both the Buddha and the Path are merely provisional names. The twelve divisions of the scriptures should also be unreal. Why then have all the ancient masters spoken of cultivating the Path?" The Master replied, "Venerable sir, you have misunderstood the scriptures' intent. The Path is originally without cultivation, yet you force cultivation upon it. The Path is originally without action, yet you force action upon it. The Path is originally without affairs, yet you stir up many affairs. The Path is originally without knowledge, yet you force knowledge into it. Such views go against the Path itself. The ancient masters would never have spoken this way—this misunderstanding is entirely your own. Please reflect on this." The Master then offered a verse:

道體本無修 不修自合道若起修道心 此人不會道棄却一真性 却入鬧浩浩忽逢修道人 第一莫向道

> The Path itself is never practiced, Not practicing, one naturally aligns with it. If you stir a mind to cultivate the Path, Such a person has not yet understood it. They abandon their true nature, And rush into noisy, bustling crowds. If you ever meet a practitioner of the Path, Above all, do not point them toward the Path.

又有安禪師者。問曰。道既假名佛云妄立。十二分教亦是接物度生。一切是妄以何為真。師曰。為有妄故將真對妄。推窮妄性本空。真亦何曾有故。故知真妄總是假名。二事對治都無實體。窮其根本一切皆空。曰既言一切是妄。妄亦同真。真妄無殊。復是何物。師曰。若言何物。何物亦妄。經云。無相似無比況。言語道斷如鳥飛空。安公慚伏不知所措。師又有偈曰。

> Another master, named Master An, asked: "Since the Path is merely a borrowed name and Buddha is an arbitrary designation, and the twelve divisions of scriptures are only tools to guide sentient beings, if everything is illusory, what then is real?" The master replied: "Because there is illusion, we use reality to contrast with it. But when we trace the nature of illusion, it is fundamentally empty—so where can reality be found? Thus, we see that both reality and illusion are merely borrowed names. These two concepts are used to counter each other, but neither has any true substance. When we investigate their root, everything is empty." Master An asked: "If you say everything is illusory, then illusion itself is the same as reality. If reality and illusion are no different, what is this thing?" The master replied: "If you call it a 'thing,' that 'thing' is also illusory. As the sutra says: 'It has no likeness, no comparison. Words cannot reach it, like a bird flying across the sky.'" Master An felt ashamed and was at a loss for words. The master then offered a verse:

推真真無相 窮妄妄無形返觀推窮心 知心亦假名會道亦如此 到頭亦只寧

> When you investigate what is true, the true has no fixed marks; When you pursue what is false, the false has no fixed shape. Turn the light inward to examine the searching mind— You realize the mind too is only a borrowed name. Realizing the Path is just like this; In the end, there is only peace.

又有達性禪師者。問曰。禪是至妙至微。真妄雙泯佛道兩亡。修行性空名相不實。世界如幻一切假名。作此解時不可斷絕眾生善惡二根。師曰。善惡二根皆因心有。窮心若有根亦非虛。推心既無根因何立。經云。善不善法從心化生。善惡業緣本無有實。師又有偈曰。

> There was also Master Daxing, who asked: "Chan is the most wondrous and subtle. True and false are both dissolved; Buddha and the path both cease to exist. Spiritual practice and the nature of Emptiness—names and forms are not real. The world is like an illusion, all merely provisional names. Yet when one understands it this way, one cannot cut off the two roots of good and evil in sentient beings." The Master replied: "The two roots of good and evil both arise because of the mind. If you search the mind and find it exists, then the roots are not false either. But if you investigate the mind and find it does not exist, on what basis can the roots stand? The scripture says: 'Good and unwholesome dharmas are transformed and born from the mind. The karmic conditions of good and evil are fundamentally without any reality.'" The Master also had a verse:

善既從心生 惡豈離心有善惡是外緣 於心實不有捨惡送何處 取善令誰守傷嗟二見人 攀緣兩頭走若悟本無心 始悔從前咎

> Good arises from the mind, so how could evil be apart from the mind? Good and evil are but outer conditions— in the mind itself, they truly do not exist. If you discard evil, where do you send it? If you grasp good, who keeps it? How sad for those trapped in dualistic views, clinging to extremes and running back and forth. If you awaken to the mind's original emptiness, only then will you regret your past mistakes.

又有近臣。問曰。此身從何而來。百年之後復歸何處。師曰。如人夢時從何而來。睡覺時從何而去。曰夢時不可言無。既覺不可言有。雖有有無來往無所。師曰。貧道此身亦如其夢。又有偈曰。

> Another close minister asked, "Where did this body come from, and where will it return after a hundred years?" The Master replied, "Where does a person come from when they dream, and where do they go when they wake up?" The minister said, "While dreaming, you cannot say it doesn't exist. Once awake, you cannot say it exists. Though there is existence and non-existence, coming and going have no place." The Master said, "This poor monk's body is just like that dream." There was also a verse that said:

視生如在夢 夢裏實是鬧忽覺萬事休 還同睡時悟智者會悟夢 迷人信夢鬧會夢如兩般 一悟無別悟富貴與貧賤 更亦無別路

> Seeing life as if in a dream, within the dream it truly seems busy and real. Suddenly waking, all things come to rest, just like waking from sleep to realize. The wise understand they are dreaming, the deluded believe the dream is real. Understanding the dream, the two seem different, yet once awakened, there is no separate awakening. Wealth and honor, poverty and lowliness— there is no other path at all.

上元二年五月五日歸寂。勅諡大曉禪師。

> On the fifth day of the fifth month of the second year of the Shangyuan era, he passed into tranquility. By imperial decree, he was posthumously honored with the title Great Awakening Zen Master.