布袋和尚傳
Biography of Budai (Cloth Bag) Monk
明州奉化布袋和尚。不知何許人。自稱契此。未詳氏族。形裁腲(烏罪切)脮(奴罪切)。蹙額皤腹。出語無定。寢臥隨處。常以杖荷一袋囊并破席。凡供身之具。盡貯囊中。入廛肆聚落。見物則乞。或醯[醢-右+(乞-乙+口)]魚𦵔。纔接入口。分少許投囊中。時號長汀子。一日。有僧在師前行。師乃拊其背。僧回首。師曰。乞我一文錢。曰。道得即與汝一文。師放下布袋。叉手而立。白鹿和尚問。如何是布袋。師便放下布袋。曰。如何是布袋下事。師負之而去。先保福和尚問。如何是佛法大意。師放下布袋叉手。福曰。為祇如此。為更有向上事。師負之而去。師在街衢立。有僧問。和尚在這裏作甚麼。師曰。等箇人。曰。來也。來也。歸宗柔和尚別曰。歸去來。師曰。汝不是這箇人。曰。如何是這箇人。師曰。乞我一文錢。師有歌曰。祇箇心心心是佛。十方世界最靈物。縱橫妙用可憐生。一切不如心真實。騰騰自在無所為。閑閑究竟出家兒。若覩目前真大道。不見纖毫也大奇。萬法何殊心何異。何勞更用尋經義。心王本自絕多知。智者祇明無學地。非聖非凡復若平。不彊分別聖情孤。無價心珠本圓淨。凡是異相妄空呼。人能弘道道分明。無量清高稱道情。携錫若登故國路。莫愁請處不聞聲。又有偈曰。是非憎愛世偏多。子細思量奈我何。寬却肚腸須忍辱。豁開心地任從他。若逢知己須依分。縱遇冤家也共和。若能了此心頭事。自然證得六波羅。我有一布袋。虗空無𦊱礙。展開徧十方。入時觀自在。吾有三寶堂。裏空無色相。不高亦不低。無遮亦無障。學者體不如。來者難得樣。智慧解安排。千中無一匠。四門四果生。十方盡供養。吾有一軀佛。世人皆不識。不塑亦不裝。不雕亦不刻。無一滴灰泥。無一點彩色。人𦘕𦘕不成。賊偷偷不得。體相本自然。清淨非拂拭。雖然是一軀。分身千百億。又有偈曰。一鉢千家飯。孤身萬里遊。青目覩人少。問路白雲頭。梁貞明三年丙子三月。師將示滅。於岳林寺東廊下端坐磐石。而說偈曰。彌勒真彌勒。分身千百億。時時示時人。時人自不識。偈畢安然而化。其後復現于他州。亦負布袋而行。四眾競圖其像。
Monk Budai of Mingzhou in Fenghua—no one knew where he came from. He called himself Qieci, but his family name was unknown. He was short and stout, with a furrowed brow and a protruding belly. His speech was unpredictable, and he would sleep wherever he lay down. He always carried a cloth sack and a worn mat slung over a staff. All his belongings were stored inside the sack. When he entered markets or villages, he would beg for anything he saw. If given pickled fish or vegetables, he would take a bite and toss the rest into his sack. People called him "Long Son of Ting."
One day, a monk was walking ahead of the Master. The Master patted him on the back, and the monk turned around. The Master said, "Give me a penny." The monk replied, "If you can say something, I’ll give you a penny." The Master put down his sack, folded his hands, and stood still. Monk Baitlu asked, "What is the cloth sack?" The Master put down his sack. "What is the matter beneath the sack?" The Master picked it up and walked away.
Monk Baofu once asked, "What is the essence of the Buddha Dharma?" The Master put down his sack and folded his hands. Baofu said, "Is that all, or is there something higher?" The Master picked up the sack and walked away.
One day, the Master stood on a street. A monk asked, "What are you doing here, Reverend?" The Master replied, "Waiting for someone." The monk said, "I’m coming! I’m coming!" (Monk Guizongrou later commented, "Go and come back.") The Master said, "You are not that person." The monk asked, "Then what is that person?" The Master replied, "Give me a penny."
The Master also had a song:
"This very mind, this mind, this mind is Buddha, The most wondrous thing in all ten directions. Its freedom and subtle function are truly pitiable, Nothing compares to the heart of truth.
Free and easy, with nothing to do, Leisurely, a true renunciant. If you see this true Great Way, Not a trace remains, how marvelous!
All phenomena are no different from the mind, Why tire yourself searching through scripture? The mind-king itself is free from knowledge; The wise only know the land beyond learning.
Neither sacred nor ordinary, what is it? No need to impose distinctions, the sacred is solitary. The priceless mind pearl is naturally round and pure, All strange forms are false cries in the void.
A person can spread the Way, and the Way is clear, Boundless purity is called the mood of the Way. If you lift your staff and travel to your homeland, Worry not that no one hears your voice."
He also composed a verse:
"Right and wrong, love and hate—the world is full of them. Think carefully: what can they do to me? Widen your belly and practice forbearance, Open your heart and let everything pass.
If you meet a kindred spirit, rely on fate; Even if you encounter an enemy, stay at peace. If you can resolve this matter of the heart, Naturally, you will realize the Six Perfections.
I have a cloth sack, Empty as space, free from obstacles. Spread open, it fills all ten directions; When stored, Guanyin rests within.
I have a Three Jewel Hall, Empty inside, without form or color. It is neither high nor low, Without obstruction or barrier. Students cannot understand its essence, Those who come find it hard to grasp. Wisdom can only arrange it, But among thousands, not one is a master.
Four gates, four fruits arise, All ten directions offer support. I have a Buddha body, Which no one in the world recognizes. It is not molded or adorned, Not carved or engraved. Without a speck of ash or mud, Without a touch of color. People cannot paint it, Thieves cannot steal it.
Its form is naturally so, Pure, not needing to be wiped clean. Though it is one body, It manifests itself in countless billions."
Another verse:
"One bowl, a thousand families' meals, A lonely body, roaming ten thousand miles. Few people have clear eyes to see, They ask the way from the white clouds above."
In the third month of the year Bingzi (916 CE), during the Zhenming reign of the Later Liang, the Master was about to pass away. He sat upright on a boulder at the base of the eastern corridor of Yuelin Temple and spoke this gatha:
"Maitreya, true Maitreya, Manifesting in countless billions. From time to time, he shows himself to the people, But the people of the time do not recognize him."
Having recited this verse, he passed away peacefully. Later, he appeared in other regions, still carrying his cloth sack. Monastics and laypeople vied to paint his image.