Friday, February 11, 2011

Zen X-files : Case #14 – Zen Resides in Silence (禪門國際公案14 – 有性無言)

Case #14 : Zen Resides in Silence

A monk asked : “Master teacher, Can you please tell me how to answer a question when everything is just nothing.” [1]

Zen master answered : “One can ask and one can answer, Zen says none.” [2]

[1] The original text is “How to use no words and no images to answer a question?”. But here I borrow the previous file about everything is nothing as a reference, so it’s easier to understand the true meaning of this question.

[2] We often think that there must be an answer to a question. And people think the teachings of Zen are complex and difficult. But actually, Zen resides in silence. 
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公案14 : 有性無言

僧問:「請和尚離聲色外答!」[1]


中度禪師曰:「木人常對語,有性不能言。」[2]

[1] 聲色,是代指佛經中所謂六根六塵的眼耳鼻舌身意,色聲香味觸法,也就是世間一切因緣事物。問如何離聲色外,就是在考問禪師如果聲色都是虛妄,那要怎麼用言語聲音文字影像來求得禪的真意呢?

[2] 木人指的是就是一般人,未開悟的人。有性指的是已悟道者。所以常言和尚不打誑語,就是指我們每天說三道四,其實都只是空口妄語,人云亦云,真正要悟道絕不能光打嘴皮。禪門悟道,無聲更勝有聲。

註:和尚的梵文是upâdhyâya,原本只指親傳教導出家眾的導師,和尚這個詞則是輾轉音譯後的簡稱。再後來原本尊稱得道高僧的和尚一詞,慢慢的平民化又被用來泛稱出家眾。
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