Thursday, January 06, 2011

Zen X-files : case #1 (禪門國際公案1)

Case #1 : The way of eats and sleeps in Zen

A Buddhist Vinaya[1] master asked a Zen master : “Are you still practicing the way of enlightenment?”

Zen master answered : “Yes.”

Vinaya master : “How?”

Zen master : “Eat, when I am hungry. Rest, when I am tired.”

Vinaya master : “Everyone does these same things. Is your way different than others?”

Zen master: ”Different.”

Vinaya master : “Different how?”

Zen master : “When people eat, they do not eat because they are hungry, but craving. And when people are tired, they do not just rest, but desiring all sorts of entertainments. That’s the difference.”

Vinaya master pondered.


[1] Buddhist Monks in Vinaya school (faction) focus their efforts on monastery discipline. They can trace their origins to the birth place of Buddhism from ancient India. 

[2]Both Vinaya master and Zen master have their monk’s names in the original text. But during my translation, I think it is best not to translate them, either through pronunciations or meanings. Since the content is more important than the context.

[1] Vinaya 毗奈耶 是梵語戒律的意思, 古印度佛教僧侶所持的戒律. 傳至中土佛教後傳承為律宗. 律宗的大師就稱為律師, 有源是他的法諱.因為不想音譯就當作兩位大師都是無名吧. 名號也是表象不是?

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公案1 : 用功異同

有源律師來問:「和尚修道,還用功否?」

大珠慧海禪師曰:「用功!」

曰:「如何用功?」

師曰:「饑來喫飯,睏來即眠。」

曰:「一切人總是如是,同師用功否?」

師曰:「不同!」

曰:「何故不同?」

師曰:「他喫飯時,不肯喫飯,百般須索。睡時不肯睡,千般計較,所以不同。」

律師杜口。
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