One day, Ch'an Master Tung-shan went to see a novice by the name of Te-chao who was very ill. When the Master arrived, the novice implored, "Oh, Master! Please be compassionate and save me? I've been seeking the Dharma earnestly. Can you bear to see your disciple die unenlightened?" "Whose child are you?" asked Tung-shan. "I'm a son of someone without the Buddha nature." Looking at the novice intently, Tung-shan was deep in thought. Te-chao grew impatient and asked anxiously, "Master, when mountains on all sides are pressing toward me, what should I do?" The Master replied, "I also used to walk under other' eaves." Te-chao asked, "Master, if you and I met under the same eaves, should we avoid each other or not?" "We shouldn't," said the Master. "If we shouldn't avoid each other, where do you want me to go?" "Since the five modes of existence, the six directions of reincarnation, and the ten Dharma worlds exist, there are roads everywhere. Why do you have to worry about it? If you can't rest assured, you may go and grow rice in the cultivated fields!" Tung-shan instructed. Upon hearing this, Te-chao said, "Master, please take care." He then sank into his chair with a blank look in his eyes and passed away. Tung-shan shook his staff in front of the young novice three times, saying, "Although you're able to depart this way, you will not be able to return the same way."
(Source: Hsing Yun's Ch'an Talk, Book 4) |