Song of the Jewel Mirror Samadhi

Precious Mirror Samadhi

Baojing Sanmeike by Dongshan Liangjie
Hokyo zammai by Tozan Ryokai (Jap.)
1

The teaching of thusness

has been intimately communicated by Buddhas and ancestors.
Now you have it,
so keep it well.
Filling a silver bowl with snow,
hiding a heron in the moonlight -
Taken as similar, they are not the same;
when you mix them you know where they are.
!"The meaning is not in the words,
#$%&yet it responds to the inquiring impulse.
'()*Move and you are trapped,
+,-.miss and you fall into doubt and vacillation.
/012Turning away and touching are both wrong,
345for it is like a massive fire.
6789Just to depict it in literary form
:;<=is to stain it with defilement.
>?@It is bright just at midnight,
ABCit doesnt appear at dawn.
DEFIt acts as a guide for beings,
GHIJits use removes all pains.
K2LDAlthough it is not fabricated,
MNit is not without speech.
OPQIt is like facing a jewel mirror;
7RSTform and image behold each other -
Uyou are not it,
U@in truth it is you.
VWXLike a babe in the world,
YSZ[in five aspects complete;
2
\#it does not go or come,
]^nor rise nor stand.
__`` Baba wawa-
LaMais there anything said or not?
bEUltimately it does not apprehend anything
Nc@dbecause its speech is not yet correct.
efghIt is like the six lines of the illumination hexagram:
i@jkrelative and ultimate interact -
lmnopiled up, they make three,
pq(Ythe complete transformation makes five.
rstIt is like the taste of the five-flavored herb,
uvwlike a diamond thunderbolt.
@xyzSubtly included within the true,
{|}~inquiry and response come up together.
Communing with the source, travel the pathways,
zzembrace the territory, and treasure the road.
Respecting this is fortunate;
do not neglect it.
AmyNaturally real yet inconceivable,
;it is not within the province of delusion or enlightenment.
With causal conditions, time and season,
quiescently it shines bright.
MIn its fineness it fits into spacelessness,
3in its greatness it is utterly beyond location.
+A hairsbreadths deviation
will fail to accord with the proper attunement.
LNow there are sudden and gradual,
in which teachings and approaches arise.
Once basic approaches are distinguished,
:then there are guiding rules.
But even though the basis is reached and the approach comprehended,
3
true eternity still flows.
xOutwardly still while inwardly moving,
-like a tethered colt, a trapped rat -
the ancient sages pitied them
Dand bestowed upon them the teaching.
According to their delusions,
Dthey called black as white;
when erroneous imaginations cease,
the acquiescent mind realizes itself.
If you want to conform to the ancient way,
please observe the sages of the former times.
(When about to fulfill the way of Buddhahood,
one gazed at a tree for ten eons,
like a battle-scarred tiger,
like a horse with shanks gone gray.
LBecause there is the common,
Pthere are jewel pedestals, fine clothing;
Lbecause there is the startingly different,
there are house cat and cow.
Yi with his archer's skill,
xcould hit a target at a hundred paces.
SBut when arrow-points meet head on,
what has this to do with the power of skill?
When the wooden man begins to sing,
]the stone woman gets up dancing;
2its not within reach of feeling or discrimination -
how could it admit of consideration in thought?
Ministers serve their lords,
children obey their parents;
2not obeying is not filial
2and not serving is no help.
4
GPractice secretly, working within,
like a fool, like an idiot.
6SJust to continue in this way
xis called the host within the host.
(807-869) Cave Mountain, Virtuous Servant
translated by San Francisco Zen Center
based on translation by Thomas Cleary
5
Precious Mirror Samadhi
Hky zanmai Qo
tr. by Sotoshu Shumucho
The Administrative Headquarters of Soto Zen Buddhism, Tokyo
The dharma of thusness is intimately
transmitted by buddhas and ancestors.
Now you have it;
preserve it well.
A silver bowl filled with snow,
a heron hidden in the moon.
Taken as similar, they are not the same
not distinguished, their places are known.
The meaning does not reside in the words,
but a pivotal moment brings it forth.
Move and you are trapped,
miss and you fall into doubt and vacillation.
Turning away and touching are both wrong,
for it is like a massive fire.
Just to portray it in literary form
is to stain it with defilement.
In darkest night it is perfectly clear
in the light of dawn it is hidden.
It is a standard for all things
its use removes all suffering.
Although it is not constructed,
it is not beyond words.
Like facing a precious mirror
6
form and reflection behold each other.
You are not it,
but in truth it is you.
Like a newborn child,
it is fully endowed with five aspects.
No going, no coming, no arising, no abiding;
"Baba wawa" - is anything said or not?
In the end it says nothing,
for the words are not yet right.
In the hexagram "double fire,"
when main and subsidiary lines are transposed,
piled up they become three
the permutations make five.
Like the taste of the five-flavored herb,
like the five-pronged vajra.
Wondrously embraced within the complete,
drumming and singing begin together.
Penetrate the source and travel the pathways,
embrace the territory and treasure the roads.
You would do well to respect this;
do not neglect it.
Natural and wondrous,
it is not a matter of delusion or enlightenment.
Within causes and conditions, time and season,
it is serene and illuminating.
So minute it enters where there is no gap,
so vast it transcends dimension.
A hairsbreadth deviation,
and you are out of tune.
Now there are sudden and gradual,
7
in which teachings and approaches arise.
With teachings and approaches distinguished,
each has its standard.
Whether teachings and approaches are mastered or not,
reality constantly flows,
Outside still and inside trembling,
like tethered colts or cowering rats.
The ancient sages grieved for them,
and offered them the dharma.
Led by their inverted views,
they take black for white.
When inverted thinking stops,
the affirming mind naturally accords.
If you want to follow in the ancient tracks,
please observe the sages of the past.
One on the verge of realizing the buddha way
contemplated a tree for ten kalpas.
Like a battle-scarred tiger,
like a horse with shanks gone grey.
Because some are vulgar,
jeweled tables and ornate robes.
Because others are wide-eyed,
cats and white oxen.
With his archer's skill,
Yi hit the mark at a hundred paces.
But when arrows meet head-on,
how could it be a matter of skill?
The wooden man starts to sing,
the stone woman gets up dancing.
It is not reached by feelings or consciousness;
8
how could it involve deliberation?
Ministers serve their lords,
children obey their parents.Not obeying is not filial,
Failure to serve is no help.
With practice hidden, function secretly,
like a fool, like an idiot.
Just to continue in this way
is called the host within the host.
9
Seal of the Precious Mirror Samadhi
translated by Lu Kuan Yu (Charles Luk)
Chan and Zen Teaching Vol II
Such is the esoteric Dharma
Inherited from Buddhas and Patriarchs.
Now that you have received it,
You should guard it carefully.
Like snow in a silver bowl,
An egret in the moonlight,
All species which are not uniform
Can be distinguished when assembled
Though Its aim lies beyond (all) words,
It is responsive to enquiring seekers.
To stray from it produces pitfalls,
To deviate leads to false thinking
Rejection and acceptance are both wrong
For it is like a mass of fire
Elegantly to express it
Will only make it (seem) impure,
It shines in the dead of night
But does not appear at dawn.
Being a pattern for the living
Its function saves them from (all) miseries;
Though not of the wordly plane,
It is not altogether dumb.
It is like looking in a precious mirror
In which you see your own reflection;
You are not what it is
(But) it is what you are?
10
Like a babe (born) in the world,
Complete with all five characteristics,
It neither goes nor comes,
Arises not nor stays,
And when words are stammered
About the "Is" and "Is not",
They will lead to no result
Through the inefficiency of speech.
The six lines of the Chung Li Hexagram
Representing the intermutable real and seeming,
Are interlaid to establish a triple basis
Which transforms into five positions.
They taste like five-flavoured herbs
And look like a thunderbolt
The real is wonderfully inclusive;
Both it and the seeming should be brought out,
For guest and host are intermutable
By (direct) pointing and (expedient) teaching.
Devotion to it will earn blessings;
On no account should it be offended.
Wonderful is the eternal reality
Beyond delusion and enlightenment;
With concurrent cause and time prevailing,
It will appear both bright and still.
Reduced in size it is all pervasive;
If extended it is beyond location and direction.
A slight deviation from it
Destroys the perfect harmony.
Since there are instant and gradual aptitudes
(Our) sect sets up (five) different phases.
When the Sect is known and its phases reached,
11
True eternity emerges in an endless flow.
Still without, it moves within,
Like a tethered colt and hidden rat;
This is what saddened saints of old.
You should act as a bestower of the Dharma
And follow his perverted thoughts
Turning them upside down (disorderly).
When his inverted views have been wiped out,
For his quest will make up his mind.
To be in accord with the ancient Path,
Just look back to the olden times
When the Buddha before he won enlightenment,
Contemplated the tree [of wisdom] for ten aeons,
Like a tiger that leaves behind (a portion of) its prey,
(And) a horse (indifferent to) a left hind leg that's white.
There are those of low spirituality
Who cannot forsake their cherished clingings,
While others are of quick propensities
Like (agile) cats and bullocks white.
You should, like bowman I, use skill
To hit the target a hundred feet away;
It is the arrow's head that flies straight
And not the bowman's skill.
When the wooden man sings his song
(And] the stone girl moves to dance,
There is no room to feel and know,
To think or to consider.
A minister should serve his prince
(And) a son obey his father.
Disobedience (to father)is neglect of filial piety
(And) refusal to serve (the prince) is lack of loyalty.
12
Keep your conduct hidden and your function secret,
Appearing as a stupid and vulgar man.
If you thus can act without interruption,
This is called (the final) host in host.
13
The Precious Mirror-Samadhi
by Tung-shan Liang-jie (China, 807-869)
translation Hakuun Barnhard
The dharma of this as it is,
Passed on in person by Buddha's and Ancestors,
Is now yours;
Guard it well.
A silver bowl full of snow and
A heron hidden in the moonlight
When you compare them they are not the same,
Brought together they find their place.
The meaning that does not lie in words
Accommodates motions arising;
Move towards and you become ensnared,
Miss it and you fall into dilatory hesitation.
Turning away, going towards, both are inept,
Just as when you relate to a giant fireball.
Express it in fancy words
And you colour it at once.
In the middle of the night it is clear and bright
But in the daylight it cannot be seen.
It acts as a compass for all beings,
And when used, liberates from suffering.
14
Although not a doing
It is not without expression.
Just as when you look into a reflecting jewel,
Being and mirror-image behold each other:
You are not it, it is truly this that you are.
Just as a baby born to this world
Has all five aspects complete, and
Neither comes nor goes, neither arises nor stays,
It babbles, speaking without words
So we end up comprehending nothing,
As its words have not yet meaning.
It's just like the six lines of the hexagram Fire',
Wherein phenomena and real intermingle.
Stacked up, there are three pairs of combinations,
The whole transformation is completed with the fifth.
It is like the schizandra, which has five flavours,
Or like the diamond sceptre, which has five prongs.
The real is held within the subtle,
Drum and song arise together.
We penetrate the source walking the pathways,
We unify with the land covering the roads.
When these get mixed up, that is auspicious,
Do not oppose it.
Originally real and subtle,
Neither a realm of illusion nor of enlightenment,
It serenely illuminates
15
Times of cause and of effect.
It is so fine that it fits where there is no space
And so broad that it transcends all dimension.
One hair's breadth off
And you are not in harmony with it.
So now we have sudden' and gradual'
And we clarify school's meanings and tones.
Once meanings and tones have been defined
They become a measure of practice.
Meaning and tone gone beyond,
Timeless truth flows forever.
The old masters had compassion for those
Who are quiet of body but restless of mind,
Like a tethered horse or a trapped rat,
And offered them Dharma.
In their topsy-turvy state
These people take black for white,
But when confused thinking comes to an end,
The still accepting mind is naturally present.
If you wish to join the ancients,
Contemplate the ways of old.
Close to realizing the Buddha's Way,
One sat for ten eons gazing at a tree
Like a lame tiger
Or a hobbled horse.
16
Because there is inadequacy
We reach for precious furniture and rich clothes.
Because of our fear or wonder
We see black shadows* or white oxen.
The archer Yi used his skill
To hit a target at a hundred paces.
But when two arrows meet head on
Does this depend on skill obtained?
As the wooden man begins to sing
A stone woman gets up to dance.
This cannot be reached by feeling, thought,
So why try to work it out!
A minister serves their lord,
A child obeys their parent;
Without obedience there is no filial piety,
Without service there is no advice.
Doing this inner work unseen
You may seem dull and foolish,
But when you are able to persist in it
You will be called master of masters.
Black shadows literally means: 1. a slave of dark colour 2. a wild cat. The
wild cat is rather popular in Zen the untrained mind. As opposite to white
ox, which symbolizes the Buddha Mind. Both translations would do. Here I
think the author points at the admired and the despised. To avoid making
this passage obscure I translated it as black shadows.
17
THE S!" # THE P$E%&'S M&$$$
S(M()H&
by Tung-shan Liang-chieh 807-869
translated *y Ming +ee ,ang and Pei-gwang )owiat
It is this very Dharma
The Buddha and Patriarchs secretly transmitted.
Now that you have it
Protect it well. Like a silver bowl full of snow
Or an egret hidden against the bright moon
They are similar but not identical.
When mingled their difference can be recognized.
The meaning does not lie in words,
Yet those who are ripe must be taught.
As soon as you act it is a dead issue,
So consider their varying attainments.
Rejecting words or clinging to them are both mistakes,
Like a blazing fire, useful but dangerous.
If it is only expressed in language
The precious mirror will be stained.
At midnight it is truly bright;
By daylight it no longer shows.
It serves as the law which governs all things;
Use it to uproot all suffering.
Though it is not a way of action
Still, it is not without words.
As before the precious mirror,
The form and reflection gaze on each other.
You are not it,
18
But it is just you. Just as an infant
Is equipped with five sense organs.
It neither comes nor goes,
It neither arises nor abides. P'o-p'o H'o-h'o
A phrase without meaning.
You can never get the substance of it
Because the language is not correct.
Doubling the Li trigram makes six lines.
The outer and inner lines mutually interact.
Stacked, they become three pairs;
At most they can transform into five.
Like the five aromas of the hyssop plant
Or the five branches of the vajra scepter.
The exact center subtly harmonizing,
Drumming and singing simultaneously.
Penetrate the goal and you will fathom the way.
In order to lead there must be a road.
To be wrong is auspicious;
Do not oppose it.
Natural and subtle
It is neither ignorance nor enlightenment
Causes and conditions have their time and season,
Tranquil and illuminating.
It is so small it enters the spaceless,
So large it is beyond dimension.
If you are off by a hair's breadth
Then you would be out of harmony.
Now there is sudden and gradual (enlightenment)
In order to establish the fundamental guidelines.
When the fundamental guidelines are clear
They become the rule.
19
Realization of the basic principle is the ultimate standard,
Genuine, constant, yet flowing,
With still body but racing mind,
Like a tethered horse or a mouse frozen by fright.
Past sages pitied them
And liberated them with Buddhadharma.
Following their upside-down ways
They took black for white.
When inverted thinking disappears,
They realize mind of their own accord.
If you want to merge with the ancient track
Then contemplate the ancients.
At the completion of the Buddha path
Ten kalpas of contemplation will be established.
Like a tiger's lame foot,
Like a shoeless horse,
Because there is a defect
You seek the jeweled bench and priceless halter.
Because you are astonished
You realize you were like the brown or white ox.
Hou-i used his skill
To hit the target at a hundred paces.
As soon as the arrow hits the mark
Of what further use is his skill?
When a wooden man breaks into song,
A stone woman gets up to dance.
Since this cannot be understood by reasoning
How can it be analyzed?
The minister serves his lord;
The son obeys his father.
If he does not obey, he is not filial;
20
If the minister does not serve, he is not loyal.
To cultivate in hiding, functioning in secret,
Like a fool, like a dolt;
If only you are able to persist,
You will be called a master among masters.
21