真實做處。唯靜坐默究。深有所詣。外不被因緣流轉。其心虛則容。其照妙則準。內無攀緣之思。廓然獨存而不昏。靈然絕待而自得。得處不屬情。須豁蕩了無依倚。卓卓自神。始得不隨垢相。箇處歇得。淨淨而明。明而通。便能順應還來對事。事事無礙。飄飄出岫雲。濯濯流澗月。一切處光明神變。了無滯相。的的相應。函蓋箭鋒相似。更教養得熟體得穩。隨處歷歷地。絕稜角勿道理。似白牯貍奴恁麼去。喚作十成底漢。所以道。無心道者能如此。未得無心也大難。

The true practice lies solely in quiet sitting and silent investigation, deeply reaching its essence. Externally, one is not swept away by the flow of causes and conditions. When the mind is empty, it can contain all; when its illumination is subtle, it is precise. Internally, there are no thoughts of grasping or clinging—vast and solitary, yet never dull; luminous and independent, yet naturally attained. This attainment is not a matter of emotion; one must be open and free, with nothing to rely on, standing alone and spiritually awake. Only then can one avoid being stained by defilements.

When this place of rest is reached, it is pure and bright; bright and penetrating. Then one can respond smoothly to whatever arises, facing all matters without obstruction—like clouds drifting freely from the mountain peaks, like the moon shining clear over the stream. In every situation, there is radiant spiritual transformation, entirely free from stagnation. Everything corresponds perfectly, like an arrow fitting its bow.

Then, through further cultivation, one becomes adept and steady, clearly aware in every place, without edges or corners, beyond doctrines and principles—like a white ox or a black cat, simply being as it is. Such a one is called a person of complete attainment. Thus it is said: "Those who embody the Way of no-mind can be like this; but for those who have not yet attained no-mind, it is exceedingly difficult."

冲虛淨怕。寒淡純真。恁麼打疊了多生陳習。陳習垢盡。本光現前。照破髑髏。不容他物。蕩然寬濶。如天水合秋。如雪月同色。箇田地。無涯畛絕方所。浩然一片無稜縫。更須向裏脫盡始得。正脫盡時。心思口議。千里萬里。尚無辨白底道理。更那有指註處也。桶底脫漢。方信得及。所以道。唯證相應。相應處撥得。轉入得世。遊戲三昧。歷歷現前。聲色影響。直下無迹。彼我不相往來。只為其中無受處。只箇無受處。包含虛空法界森羅萬象。無一點遺漏底。本色漢。當恁麼體究。

Void yet tranquil, without fear. Cold and simple, pure and genuine. In this way, the accumulated habits of many lifetimes are stripped away. When the stains of these habits are gone, the original radiance manifests clearly, Shining through the skeleton, leaving no room for anything else. It becomes vast and open, like autumn skies merging with water, Like snow and moonlight sharing the same color.

This ground has no boundaries or limits, No direction or location. It is a vast, seamless expanse— But you must still withdraw completely into the core to realize it fully.

At the very moment of full withdrawal, The mind’s thoughts and the mouth’s words are a thousand miles away. There is no principle to articulate, No place for pointing or annotating.

Only a person whose bucket bottom has fallen out Can truly trust this. Thus it is said: *Only realization corresponds.*

When that point of correspondence is turned, You enter the world, Playing in samadhi, Everything vividly present before you— Sound and form, influence and shadow— Have no trace at all.

Self and other do not come and go, Because within, there is no place of grasping. And this very *no-place of grasping* Contains the entire universe, vast emptiness, and the myriad phenomena— Nothing is left out.

A true person Should investigate in this way.

淵湛寂默。徹照源底。箇處虛而靈。廓而明。雖有昭然自鑑之像。而無影響相偶。底時窺得破猶有辨白擔荷之功。更須退步。方詣環中。光發其間。卓卓獨存。却解借功。名為誕生。斯乃出沒幾微。細細明辨。既能分身。便可御事。有印萬象之印。其印不痕。游世對緣。自有塵塵三昧底受用。其用自冲。不可盈滿。空谷之受雲。寒溪之濯月。不出不在。迢然化外。更能放教無得無向。在在處處。還之舊地。毫髮不曾移動。跛跛挈挈。百醜千拙。鼎鼎地自然圜順。趙州洗鉢喫茶。不著安排。從來成現。若如是具眼。一一覷得徹。方是箇衲僧做處。

Profound, still, and silent, it illuminates the very source. This place is empty yet numinous, vast yet clear. Though there is a pristine image that reflects itself, it has no shadow or echo—no counterpart. If one can break through to see this, there is still the power of discernment and bearing the burden. Yet one must step back further to reach the center of the circle. Light radiates within it, standing alone and distinct. Yet it knows how to borrow function—this is called "birth." Here, it emerges and vanishes in subtlety, discerning finely. Once able to manifest multiple bodies, one can handle affairs. There is a seal that imprints all phenomena, yet the seal leaves no mark. Moving through the world, responding to conditions, you naturally enjoy the samadhi of each particle of dust. This enjoyment is self-emptying; it cannot be filled. Like the empty valley receiving clouds or the cold creek washing moonlight—neither present nor absent, it is untouchable beyond transformation. Furthermore, let go, free of gain and direction. Everywhere and anywhere, return it to its original place—not a hair's breadth has moved. Stumbling and awkward, a hundred uglinesses and a thousand clumsinesses, yet naturally rounded and smooth. Master Zhao Zhou washed his bowl and drank tea—no need for arrangement; it's always been right here, present. If you see with such an eye, penetrating each thing thoroughly, only then can you be considered a true monk's practice.

學佛究宗家之妙。須清心潛神默游內觀。徹見法源。無芥蒂纖毫作障礙。廓然亡像。如水涵秋。皎然瑩明。如月奪夜。正恁麼也。昭昭不昏。湛湛無垢。本來如如。常寂常耀。其寂也非斷滅所因。其耀也無影事所觸虛白圓淨。曠劫不移不動不昧。能默能知。底處行步得穩。玉壺轉側。一撥機回。分身應世。世界處所。差別境像。俱是自所建立。與我四大同出。何所礙焉。既一切不礙。彼我無異相。自他無別名。聲色叢中。飄飄超詣歷歷相投。所以道。山河無隔越。光明處處透。當恁麼體取。

To study Buddhism and explore the subtle essence of the tradition, you must clear your mind, quiet your spirit, silently wander within, and look inward. Penetrate to the very source of the Dharma, where no tiny obstacle—not even a speck—remains as a hindrance. A vast openness appears, formless, like autumn waters reflecting the sky. It shines with a pure brilliance, like moonlight overcoming the night. In that very state, clarity does not dim; stillness remains untainted. It is naturally thus, always tranquil yet constantly luminous. Its stillness is not the emptiness of annihilation; its radiance stirs none of the mind's shadows. It is an empty, white, perfect purity, unchanging and unshaken through countless ages, neither moving nor darkening. In this state, one can be silently aware; one can step in the world with stability. Turn the jade vessel, and with a single flick, the mind shifts. Then you manifest in the world through diverse forms. Every realm, every location, every conditioned phenomenon—all are established by your own nature. They arise together with your own four elements. What could obstruct you? Since nothing is an obstacle, self and other have no separate forms; I and they bear distinct names no longer. Amid the noise of sounds and sights, you drift through freely, clearly meeting all that arises. Hence it is said: "No mountain or river separates; the light penetrates everywhere." In that moment, realize it directly.

游踐十成去。無中邊絕稜角。圜輥輥地。更當空洞無滓。霽秋月寒。光明洗夜。錦雲花麗。氣象成春。關棙虛通。機輪轉側。俱是衲僧自受用事。諸塵不為我翳。萬法乃是心光。步步超方。鳥道無滯。歷歷應世。谷神不勤。其中混不得。底意類莫齊。剎剎塵塵。心心念念。初無異相。純一真明。箇是却來。用中得妙時節。若或收卷餘緣。單明自己。磨洗無瑕。掃蕩絕纇。孤明獨照。默味至游。智到環中。事隔關外。箇是卓卓一段不生滅底。須是退步歸家。欵欵說此話始得。

Walk the ten perfections fully, with no center or edge, no corners or angles— perfectly round and rolling.

Even more, be hollow and empty, without sediment. Like an autumn sky cleared after rain, cold and bright; like moonlight washing the night. Like brocade clouds and blooming flowers— the atmosphere turning to spring.

The vital gate opens through emptiness. The mechanism of the mind turns and responds— all these are the personal experience of a true practitioner.

No sense object obscures you. All phenomena are just the light of the mind. Step by step, you transcend dimensions; the birds' path has no obstruction.

Clearly responding to the world, the valley spirit never tires. Yet within it all, you cannot be mixed with the mundane. The hidden meaning cannot be compared to anything.

In every land, every speck of dust, every thought, every moment— there is fundamentally no different appearance, only pure, single true luminosity.

This is the time of returning, the moment of finding the wondrous within function.

If instead you roll up all conditions, focusing only on yourself, polishing until flawless, sweeping clean all traces— then you shine alone in solitary awareness, silently savoring the utmost wandering.

Knowledge reaches the hub of the circle, but matters remain outside the gate. This is a unique, unborn essence— but you must step back and return home, and speak of this gently, with care.

佛祖而來。元無僧俗。但人人有諦當。親證真得處。名入佛心宗。徹法源底。老盧是賣樵漢。一到黃梅。便道。我欲作佛。祖碓屋負舂。直到心鏡絕垢。自照歷然。半夜傳衣。度大庾嶺。信衣放下。明上座。盡力提不起。方知。箇人親證真得。而今但莫推賢讓聖。如著衣喫飯。念念無異思惟。心心不容染污。脫身空劫。撒手斷崖。透根塵窮頂底。孤明獨照。廓徹妙存。自然心花發明。應現剎土。何曾間隔變易來。便能入異類行鳥道。無礙自在矣。

From the time of the Buddha, there has never been any distinction between monks and laypeople. Each person has their own truth to realize—when they clearly experience this truth for themselves, they gain the direct penetration into the true heart of Buddhism. This is called "entering the Buddha's mind-seal," reaching the very bottom of the Dharma.

The Old Lu (the Sixth Patriarch, Huineng) was originally a woodcutter. When he first arrived at Huangmei Monastery, he simply said, "I want to become a Buddha." There, he worked the pestle in the rice mill until his "mind-mirror" was free from defilement, shining clearly by itself. In the middle of the night, he received the robe and transmission, and fled over Dayu Ridge. When the robe was put down, Senior Brother Ming tried with all his might to lift it but couldn't. Only then did he understand that each person's direct realization is truly their own.

Now, do not be so humble as to defer to the ancient sages. Just as you wear clothes and eat food, let every thought be free from distracting speculation, let every moment of mind be free from defilement. Free yourself from the realm of empty time; let go at the edge of the cliff. Pierce through to the absolute depths of sense faculties and sense objects. Then, in solitary brightness, you shine alone; vast and clear, the wondrous presence remains. Naturally, the flower of the mind blooms, revealing itself in all realms. When have there ever been any gaps or changes? Thus, you can enter the path of all beings, walk the "bird's path," unfettered and free.