Small Group Consultation

A small sermon. "To penetrate the ultimate barrier, one must rouse an extraordinary, transcendent aspiration. Only then can one transcend life and death and carry on the lineage of the patriarchs.

Lately, students of the Way give no thought at all to life and death. They merely seek to pass the time, dawdling through winter here and summer there. They gobble up others' leftover scraps, chewing and swallowing without even knowing their true flavor. Yet they say: 'That abbot's repartee is sharp!' or 'That abbot's verses are excellent!'

Such people not only harm beginners but also defile the sages of old. Therefore, the ancients regarded this great matter as urgent as saving their heads from fire. From morning till night, they kept it in mind, never letting go for a single moment, until they had thoroughly investigated life and death and reached a place of unwavering certainty.

If you remain vague and uncertain, be warned: one day you will surely have a share in the boiling cauldrons and fiery furnaces. Don't say this mountain monk never made it clear to you."

A small reflection. "To understand the matter of life and death, one must be determined and unwavering. Do not be idle, do not indulge in sleep. The path is slippery, the stones are sharp and new. If you walk without opening such eyes, even straw sandals will be deceived by the stones."

Transmitting the precepts, a brief teaching. "Grasp firmly the power of the precepts, set aside all distractions to gather the mind; don the armor of patience, sweep clear the six directions before settling in peace. Thus it is said: 'One who kills without blinking an eye attains Buddhahood on the spot; one who attains Buddhahood on the spot kills without blinking an eye.' Yet even so, for those of excessive fierceness, it is better to proceed from here to there, from below to above—for who has ever ascended Mount Tai without treading the path? Therefore, our Buddha, in his transmission, transmitted only this robe; our ancestors, in their succession, passed on only these precepts. These precepts, this robe, cover all like the sky, uphold all like the earth, illuminate all like the sun, blow upon all like the wind. Not only do later learners and beginners rely on them to practice, but even the Buddhas of the three times and all venerable masters throughout the world attain realization through them. Why is this? After all, water must flow to the sea; in the end, clouds surely seek the mountains to return."