Buddhism

From the time the true Dharma was transmitted from the Buddha to the First Ancestor, it has been directly and solely transmitted through twenty-eight generations in India and six generations in China without the addition of so much as a single strand or the destruction of a single particle. The robe (kashaya) was handed down to the Sixth Ancestor who lived in Sokei (Caoqi), and the Dharma spread throughout the world. Subsequently, the Tathagata’s True Dharma Eye flourished in China. The Dharma cannot be acquired by groping or seeking. When it is seen, perception of it is lost. When it is attained, discriminating mind is transcended. One practitioner lost his face on Mt. Obai. Another cut off his forearm on Mt. Shoshitsu. The latter gained Bodhidharma’s marrow. This turned his mind and he gained the most refined way of life. The former prostrated himself [before the Fifth Ancestor], stepped back, and settled in the functioning of the Dharma. Neither of them had any attachments to his mind and body. They never stayed in one place; never became stagnant. A monk asked Jo-shu whether or not a dog has buddha-nature. The master replied, “Mu (Wu).” Being within “Mu”, can you fathom “Mu” or hold “Mu”? There is no way to grasp it. I say to you, open your hands. Just let everything go, and see. What is body and mind? What are daily activities? What is life and death? What is the buddha-dharma? What is the secular way of life? Ultimately, what are mountains and rivers, the great earth, human beings, animals and dwellings? Take a careful look at these things again and again. By doing so, the dichotomy of movement and stillness is clearly and naturally unborn. However, at this time, nothing is fixed. No one can realize this [from the human point of view]. Many have lost sight of this. People practicing Zen! You will attain this first midway on the path. Do not stop practicing even after you arrive at the end of the path. This is my wish!