Book III Dharma Cross-Examination
1. Precept Ceremony
In l969, before the winter retreat, Sudok-Sa Temple held a precept ceremony for the nuns. They invited the Venerable Masters Hye-Am and Choon-Song to lead some Ch’an discussions.
First Venerable Master Hye-Am and then the Venerable Master Choon-Song, gave their dharma speeches. After Choon-Song finished his talk, Master Hye-Am went to his room and requested of his attendant, “Since I am hard-of-hearing, I cannot hear anybody’s talk. You tell me what he said.”
The attendant said, “After Venerable Master Choon-Song sat on the podium, he began with, ‘What I am about to say today is the dharma story which was delivered here by Venerable Master Mann-Gong thirty years ago’.”
He continued, “Venerable Master Mann-Gong pointed out the trace of the ox in a picture, from the series of ten ox-herding pictures which were displayed in the Master’s room, and said,
“Why do we see the traces in the picture but no ox?”
At that time, no one answered. Now, then, today, among you, what would you say? Tell me quickly!’
In the crowd, one monk walked to the front of Master Choon-Song, bowed to him, and returned to his seat. Right after him one nun stood up, bowed to Master Choon-Song, and then imitated the sound of a calf,
Moo, Moo.
Next was Wol-San S’nim, who ordered,
Attendant, give him one bundle of hay!
Right after Wol-San S’nim, Hae-Gong S’nim (Won-Dam) shouted
Giddyup! Giddyup!
Venerable Master Hye-Am’s Remarks
If I were him, when one imitated the calf’s sound, “Moo Moo,” I would “Moo” louder. When the other one ordered the bundle of hay, I would pretend I was eating the hay. When the last one shouted, Giddyup, Giddyup!” I would stop walking for a while. all, if one bowed through his true understanding, I would also bow back to him Above with pleasure.
Venerable Master then sang a Gatha:
One rabbit which got away from the cloud’s edge
Doesn’t know where he is supposed to go.
Hungry hawk did not know how to catch the rabbit after sunset,
Crying alone and moaning futilely.
Venerable Master Hye-Am also commented
“As ancient sages told us,
Only crystal-clear question yields a transparent answer.”
2. Jeweled Knife
Once Reverand Il-Bong from Sunahm Temple prostrated before Hye-Am and said,
“Master, recently I have been carrying the jeweled knife.”
Venerable Master Hye-Am asked, “Why don’t you show me that knife?”
Reverend Il-Bong lifted his arm straight up.
Venerable Master said, “Besides that knife.”
Reverend Il-Bong made a loud shout.
Venerable Master Hye-Am said, “Knife is shouting.”
Reverend Il-Bong was silent. Then he left.
3. Half of Nothing
One Bhikuni came to the Venerable Master Hye-Am, prostrated once, and asked,
“One student went to the Master Jon-Kang and requested,
Tell me half of the Wu (nothing).
The Master Jon-Kang answered by saying,
Wu.
Master! Would you tell me half of the Wu?
The Master hit the student with his Dharma staff, instead.
4. Cup Of Tea
One day Venerable Tae-Ryun Park was drinking tea with Venerable Master Hye-Am. He asked, “How is the taste of the tea?” Master answered,
It is the taste of baking charcoal at the mountain in front.
5. Midnight Talk
One night while visiting Venerable Master Jon-Kang’s Yongwha Temple, Venerable Master Hye-Am was sleeping deeply. Suddenly Jon-Kang S’nim pinched him very hard. With the sound of “ouch” he awoke. While he was still confused, Master Jon-Kang asked him,
Tell me the essence of Mahakasyapa’s smile.
Venerable Master said, “….” (It cannot be written here to protect the dharma).*
Then he asked him in return,
What do you think of this?
He responded,
Therearenoadditionalwordstosay.
6. Healing Disease
When the Venerable Master was sick, the attendant Na-Wol asked,
“S’nim! Does the body hurt or doest he mind hurt? “
The Master said. “Neither the mind nor the body hurts.”
The attendant asked him again, “Then what hurts?”
The Master exclaimed, “Ouch, Ouch.”
7. Two Summits
In Ox-Searching Hut, while the Venerable Master Hye-Am was visiting America,
Eun-Bong S’nim was helping him bathe.
Venerable Master asked Eun-Bong S’nim,
Which Summit is correct between Profound Summit (Myo-Bong) and Hidden Summit (Eun-Bong)?
Eun-Bong S’nim said, “I have no idea.”
The Venerable Master then responded while splashing hot water on himself,
Oh boy, it feels so good.
8. Awakened Calmness is Also Deluded
Once in O-Dae Mountain’s Woljung Temple, Venerable Master Hye-Am asked the Temple Master, “Is there delusion while calmly awakened or not?”
He told Master Hye-Am, “Since it is awakened and calm, there shouldn’t be delusion.”
Master Hye-Am told himself,
Awakened calmness itself is already deluded,
then he bowed to him again and left.
9.Happy Heaven (Nirvana)
One time eighteen Catholic Nuns came to the Venerable Master Hye-Am and
inquired, “Is there really a Nirvana?”
Venerable Master Hye-Am said, “Yes, there is.”
They curiously asked, “If there is, can you see it?”
Venerable Master answered, “Yes, I see.”
Deeply doubting, they questioned further,“If so, then can it be seen only by the enlightened man and not seen by the one who is not enlightened? Is that what you are saying?”
Venerable Master Hye-Am answered, “Yes,everybodycanseeit.”
The nuns left in silence.
After this, Venerable, Venerable Master asked himself, “Why did they just leave after questioning? If someone asked me,
‘How do you see it?’
I would point out the lamp and say,
I see it just as I see the lamp.”
10. Slit Your Throat
Once Venerable Master Hye-Am was staying in the Korean Ch’an Academy when a monk came to see him. He bowed and asked, “What would you do if I tried to slit your throat right this minute?”
Without hesitation, Venerable Master Hye-Am shouted,
One who has lost his life cannot speak!
That monk prostrated and left without uttering a word
11. Smoking Beneath the Ocean
One day a Ch’an student pointed out Bodhidharma’s picture with a Gatha written in Chinese characters and asked, “What does this mean?”
Venerable Master Hye-Am said, “I do not know the writing.”
The student said, “Without depending upon the writing, tell me with your own words.”
Venerable Master Hye-Am said, “Fine. Ask me once more.”
After reading the Gatha, the student asked, What is the essence of this Gatha?
Venerable Master Hye-Am responded,
“It is smoking beneath the ocean.”
This student did not understand and asked, “Smoking beneath the ocean? Does it leave any trace or not?”
Venerable Master asked, “Where did you see the trace?”
Speechless, the student left.
12. The Stone Statue Of Avalokita
One day the Venerable Master Mann-Gong was standing in front of a statue of Avalokita when he abruptly asked Po-Wol S’nim,
How does the Buddha Statue look?
Po-Wol S’nim answered, “Oh, it’s really great!”
Immediately Venerable Master paused and returned to his room.
Behold
Here, if one carefully observed this conversation, he would see that Po-Wol S’nim had actually tried to knock down the Venerable Master. But, before he could knock down the Venerable Master, he had already fallen down himself. When Po-Wol S’nim said, “It’s really great,” the Venerable Master did not need to return to his room, but rather should have said,
I have lost my face
and then asked,
Since you said it’s really great, where did you see the greatness of the statue?
It is really too bad that he returned without saying a word. Besides that, in principle,
it was a terrible mistake that Po-Wol S’nim created. Even in a practical sense as the Sutra said,
Everything which has a form,
As a whole, is delusory.
Since he raised a thought of the greatness of the phenomenal form, it already opposes what the Sutra says. Furthermore, he himself became a bad student of Buddha.
Venerable Master responded for himself
If the Venerable Master asked me, “How does the Buddha statue look?” I would not have answered like Po-Wol S’nim, but instead, would have responded,
“Where the old monkey whistles, there is wall after wall.”
13. Sounds of the Cicadae
This story concerns the Venerable Master Mann-Gong while he was staying in Junghye-Sa.
One time the Venerable Master and all the monks were ready to eat some watermelon. At the time, the cicadae were singing in the trees. The Venerable Master Mann-Gong heard the sound, looked around at the monks, and exclaimed,
“Whoever is the quickest one here, go and approach the nearest cicadae, fetch me the sound of the cicadae, and that man does not have to pay the price of this watermelon. The ones who cannot fetch it have to pay $3.00.”
One among them pretended to catch the cicadae. Another one made the sound of the cicadae. At the same time, Kum-Bong S’nim appeared in front of the Venerable Master Mann-Gong, drew a circle and said,
“In the form, there is no Buddha.”
He continued,
“In the Buddha, there is no form.”
The Venerable Master, however, made no comment.
At this moment, the Master saw Po-Wol S’nim enter and said, “Now everyone has given his own answer; what would you do?”
Po-Wol S’nim opened his cloth wallet, took out the $3.00 and gave it to the Master.
The Venerable Master was happy, saying, “You are with me.”
Behold
When Po-Wol S’nim took out $3.00, it sat on the tip of the tongue, but it could not yet open the lips. How does one open the lips?
One should answer,
Attendant, fetch a watermelon and serve it to the Master.
But, no one did. Venerable Master himself should have said to Po-Wol S’nim,
It sat on the tip of the tongue, but couldn’t yet open the lips.
The Venerable Master, however, did not do that either, committing the same error as Po-Wol S’nim.
When Po-Wol S’nim took out the money and handed it to the Master, the Master’s response actually meant, “You understand me.”
Venerable Master Hye-Am’s Comments
If I had been there, I would have asked,
Master, where did you see the cicadae singing?
I would also have said, “If you tell me where you saw the cicadae singing, then I would serve you a piece of watermelon. If not, even though the watermelon is here next to me, I would not serve you at all.”
In either case, I would still ask him again,
Where did you see the cicadae singing.
14. Lost Ox
A long time ago all the brothers under Venerable Master Mann-Gong were gathered together. Among them one monk raised a question, “How are we supposed to see the ox?”
Go-Bong S’nim said, “I see it just like this (gesturing as if to peer into a small opening).”
Po-Wol S’nim explained, “Oh no!” and said, Ox has already been lost.
Venerable Master Hye-Am heard this story and commented,
“What about the ox that had disappeared before?”
15. Washing Inside Scum
There was a bathhouse owner in Kwangju City who offered free baths to monks. When they arrived, she would ask a question, “Water washes surface scum, who is going to wash the inside scum?”
One day Venerable Wol-San went to the same bathhouse. She asked him, “Master, water washes your surface scum, but who is going to wash your inside scum?”
Venerable Wol-San was belated in answering.
Hearing this story, Venerable Master Hye-Am said,
Muddy waves hitting the jade stupa.
16. The Simplest Talk
One time Zen Master Seung-Sahn, along with his devotees, was visiting Master Hye-Am at the Ox-Searching Hut in Irvine, California. After a while Seung-Sahn requested,
Would you give us the simplest Dharma talk?
Venerable Master immediately said,
The one path at the door in front goes all the way to the capital.
Everyone was without response.
17. Shopping Center
In January of l985 while visiting in America, Venerable Master Hye-Am was in a shopping center with his attendants. He dropped by an antique shop where one saleswoman asked, “What do you do?”
Venerable Master said, “I am a monk.”
And she asked, What is your wish?
The Master said,
“Seeing right and seeing left, seeing is my wish.”
He then immediately composed a Gatha:
Accidentally dropped by and saw the market.
True outer perspectives are in hand.
If one asked about what is special,
Wooden man sees flower garden.
18. The Land of Sun Rising
One time Pop-Hong S’nim, from Pusan, visited the Venerable Master Hye-Am with a Japanese Bhikuni. The Bhikuni bowed to him and, while taking out her notes, requested a special lesson from him. The Venerable Master answered her with a question,
“Do you know “the first phrase” of this meeting between you and me?”
She did not respond.
The Venerable Master continued with a Gatha:
Sun emerged from the land of sun-rising.
Mountains cast on Southern Ocean.
19. Live Phrase and Dead Phrase
One time Young-San S’nim visited the Venerable Master Hye-Am in Sudok-Sa Temple where the following dialogue occurred:
Young-San: What is the Kong-an (Hwa-du)?
Hye-Am: On a Spring day, chicken crows.
Young-San: What is Ch’an?
Hye-Am: Holy turtle stretched out his wings.
Young-San: What is the word of the saint?
Hye-Am: Ancient Buddha has been gone since long ago.
Young-San: What is the live phrase? What is the dead phrase?
Hye-Am: It has been dead for so long.
He bowed to the Master and left.
20. Are You Enlightened?
When Venerable Wol-San visited Sudok-Sa Temple, every Bhikuni from Enlightenment Shrine bowed to him one by one. To each one Venerable Wol-San asked the same question, “Are you enlightened?”
No one responded.
At last, Bhikuni Ung-Min came and bowed. Venerable Wol-San asked again,
“Are you enlightened?”
“Yes, I am.”
“How is it?”
“Just so-so.”
Hearing this, Bhikuni Jin-O asked Venerable Master how he would respond.
“No word to say!” Master said.
She asked again, “What if you were asked, ‘Is there anyone enlightened?’”
Venerable Master stretched his palms out in front.
21. Ghost and Soul
At Shimgwang-Sa in Tae-Jon, a Ch’an student monk visited the Venerable Master Hye-Am, bowed three times and asked,“I have heard there is a ghost; what is the ghost?”
The Venerable Master immediately said, “Hair is growing on the ghosts’s fart.”
With that, the monk put his palms together and expressed appreciation, “I have heard such good dharma.”
He left for a while, then returned and asked again, “In the Sutra it has been said that there are three lives (past, present, and future). After the human-being passes away, is there a soul or not?”
The Venerable Master answered immediately,
“Soul itself neither is nor is not;
It is a book-reader at the door in front.”
The monk said, “I have not been able to resolve this doubt for such a long time. Now, today, by seeing you, the doubt in my mind has dissipated.”
22. Hungry Tiger
One layman visited Venerable Ku-San S’nim in Songkwang-Sa and asked him a question,
“What would you do if you met a hungry tiger on a dark night?”
“Neither tiger nor I subsist, Sir.”
“Observe this case like an apparition!’
“I don’t know what to do, Sir.”
Later he came to see Venerable Master Hye-Am and asked the same question.
Venerable Master asked in return,
“Where did you see the tiger?”
23. The Path to Paradise (Keungrak)
A bhikuni came to the Venerable Master Hye-Am and told a story,
“When I visited Master Kyung-Bong in his Keungrak (Paradise) Shrine, Tongdo-sa Temple, he asked me, ‘Which path did you take to come here since Paradise has no path?’ I could not answer. Master! If you were asked this question, what would you say?”
“Why don’t you go back and ask him?”
Months later she returned to the Paradise Shrine and met Master Kyung-Bong on the way to Tori (devaloka) Shrine.
“Master! Which path do you take since there is no path to Tori?”
Master Kyung-Bong hesitated, then grabbed her throat and shouted, “Look at this witch! Look at this witch!”
When she returned she asked the same question of Venerable Master Hye-Am, who said,
“I came by that path.”
24. Santa Claus
An American woman came before Christmas and asked Venerable Master Hye-Am, “Who is Santa Claus?”
Master said,
“Snowman’s son-in-law!”
She asked again, “From where does he come?”
Master replied,
Smoking in the cold chimney.
After a prolonged silence, she continued, “At the final moment in Jesus’ life, the man next to him said,
“Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.”
And Jesus told unto him,
“So be it (Amen), I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise. (Luke 23:42-43)”
What does this mean?”
Master answered with a Gatha:
One flower bloomed in Southern Mountain,
Abruptly colored red in Northern Mountain.
She was awakened by this.
25. All Does not Subsist
Venerable Master once went to Popju Temple with Pyok-Cho S’nim. That was also the forty-ninth day ceremony following the funeral of the late first lady, Mrs.Park.
After the ceremony the Venerable Master entered the Temple Master’s room, where there was a calligraphy hanging on the wall written by the famous dharma teacher, Sok-Sang. It read,
Seeing with True-Eye, all does not subsist.
Venerable Master immediately continued with a Gatha of his own:
Seeing with True-Eye, all does not subsist.
The moment True-Eye was opened, the not-real became dark.
Where seeing and opening are not different from each other,
The word and phrases are all real only in the dream.
26. Anecdote from Crossing the Ocean
Venerable Master Mann-Gong, Hye-Am S’nim, and novice Jin-Song (later Venerable Won-Dam) were in a boat on the way to Moon Watcher Shrine on Ahn-Myun Island. In the boat Venerable Master Mann-Gong asked,
“Jin-Song, which one is going, the ship or the water?”
At the time, Jin-Song didn’t say a word.
Hye-Am S’nim, however, quickly replied, “Neither ship nor the water is going.”
Venerable Master Mann-Gong then questioned again,
“Then what is going?”
Instead of saying a word, Hye-Am S’nim lifted up his handkerchief and waved it.
Seeing this, Venerable Master Mann-Gong exclaimed,
“Since when have you been so great?”
Hye-Am S’nim replied,
“It has been such a long time.”
27. Sucking Buddha’s Breast
One day Hye-Am S’nim attended Venerable Master Mann-Gong and entered the main hall. By chance Venerable Master looked at the Buddha Statue and told Hye-Am S’nim,
“Since Buddha’s breast is so big, the monks here won’t starve.”
At that time, Hye-Am S’nim asked,
“By what fortune is it possible to even drink the milk?”
Venerable Master looked back at him and said,
“What kind of fortune have you created?”
Hye-Am S’nim replied,
“Without building up any good fortune, how could one possibly drink that milk?”
Venerable Master exclaimed,
“That man is touching the Buddha but doesn’t know how to drink the milk.”
Venerable Master Hye-Am’s Comments
At the time, I couldn’t say a word to the Venerable Master. But, as a matter of fact, it would have been right for me to have shown him at least a gesture of sucking the breast.
28. Ten Principles of Joking
One time Hye-Am S’nim sent herbs to the Abbot Chong-Ha of the Taeheung Temple.
Chong-Ha S’nim immediately requested,
“Would you come down next spring and take care of the new germinations and cultivate their growth?”
Venerable Master Hye-Am replied with a Gatha:
In the days of spring when the whole universe becomes warm,
While embryo emerges, even truth departs.
If one asked, “What is so great?”
Baking charcoal in the Southern Mountain, but Northern Mountain is becoming red.
Dialogue
Student: Where do you cultivate the germination?
Hye-Am: In the Southern Mountain.
Student: Is there No need?
Hye-Am: If there is truly No need, you cannot even say No. And he sang a Gatha:
No need is also a need.
What really is no need?
If there truly is no need,
No-ness cannot be stated as No.
What finally is this?
Sun emerges from the land of sun-rising.
Mountains cast on Southern Ocean.
29. Neither Near nor Far
Hyon-Ju S’nim from Songkwang-Sa talked with venerable Master Hye-Am.
Hyon-Ju: What is the meaning of this drinking tea together between you and me?
Hye-Am: While baking charcoal in the Southern mountain, northern Mountain is becoming red.
Hyon-Ju: One woman was passing by the mountain when she was eaten by a tiger. The woman’s hair-pin stuck in the tiger’s throat. At that time, the tiger saw a monk passing through the mountain and begged him to save his life. If the monk took out the hair-pin, he would be eater by the tiger. If he did not take it out, then the tiger would die. Now, at this moment, how would you save the tiger without touching him at all?
Hye-Am: Where did you see the tiger?
Hyon-Ju immediately stood and prostrated three times.
Hye-Am: Not a chance, not a chance; that is what is called wandering. You just say only where you saw the tiger, nothing else. If you were to ask me I would answer,
I saw the tiger where water cannot depart from wave and wave cannot depart from water.
After a while Hyon-Ju continued questioning.
Hyon-Ju: What is the difference between full bowl and empty bowl?
Hye-Am: Neither near nor far.
Hyon-Ju: That’s extremely difficult. What would you say about the essence of Buddha-dharma?
Hye-Am: Holy tortoise stretched out his wings.
30. The Discovery Of One From Before The Buddha, King of Voice
One time Venerable Master Hye-Wol asked all of the temples about the Kong-an which originated from a famous Diamond Sutra interpreter named, Ju (Chou: 781-867).
Carrying the Shastras (commentaries) on the Diamond Sutra, Venerable Ju met an old lady selling rice cakes. He said, “I would like to buy a cake.” The old lady replied, “What are you carrying in your sack?” He told her, “These are my Shastras on the Diamond Sutra.” She said, “Let me ask you about the Diamond Sutra. If you answer, I’ll give you a free cake. If you do not, you will get nothing.”
Even though surprised, he agreed saying, “Ask me!”
She replied, “In the Diamond Sutra it says,
Present mind cannot be held.
Past mind cannot be held.
Future mind cannot be held.
None of the minds in the three different times can be held. Now, to eat the cake,
What mind would you point?”
Venerable Master Mann-Gong’s Answer
Later, the former attendant of Venerable Master Hye-Wol, Woon-Am Chong S’nim, could not solve this Kong-an and finally wrote and asked Venerable Master Mann-Gong, who was staying at Sudoksa Temple,
“None of the minds in the three different times can be held; now what mind would you point? I have studied this Kong-an for such a long time but still do not know the final word.”
In a letter, the Venerable Master answered this:
“I have already pointed out One from Before the Buddha, King of Voice.”
At that time, Po-Wol S’nim saw this letter and abruptly said, “I am sorry Venerable One.”
Then he burned the letter and said,
“Are you trying to blind someone with such an answer?”
Immediately upon hearing this, Venerable Master Mann-Gong went down to the Golden Saint Shrine (Kumson Dae), and held a special retreat for seven days.
Meanwhile, Po-Wol S’nim sent a letter to Woon-Am,
Left Western Lake, (name of the district where Mann-Gong stayed) for Southern Valley (where Woon-Am currently was staying).
Because you could eliminate your own doubt,
Now, still, you cannot yet eliminate the doubt.
As, soon as you see this, burn it up, and don’t be confused anymore.
After the Venerable Master completed the seven days retreat, he came up and called
Po-Wol S’nim.
“Po-Wol, you owe me ten years worth of food for our temple.”
The Venerable Master Mann-Gong commented on Po-Wol S’nim’s letter,
“That is a mistake!”
Then Po-Wol Snim asked,
“What would you say, Sir?”
Master Mann-Gong said, “Why don’t you ask me?”
Po-Wol S’nim said, “What mind would you point?”
Master Mann-Gong said,
“I would point where it points.”
Venerable Master Hye-Am’s Remarks
If Venerable Master Hye-Wol asked me that question, I would answer,
It has already pointed in the Southern Mountain.
31. Ch’an Master Jon-Kang
One time the Venerable Master Hye-Am visited Master Jon-Kang at his temple, Yongwha-Sa. The Venerable Master, however, soon got a bad cold and had to leave. Just as he was about to leave, the Master Jon-Kang said to him,
“Why don’t you stay and die in the Good-and-Wise One’s place?”
He immediately answered with a question,
“Do you know what a dead corpse standing in the ground with its head pointing skyward means?”
Master Jon-Kang was speechless.
After Master Jon-Kang accompanied Venerable Master Hye-Am to the foot of the mountain, he asked him the same thing again, ‘Why don’t you stay and die in the Good-and-Wise One’s place?”
Master Hye-Am asked again,
“Why don’t you tell me what a dead corpse standing in the ground with its head pointing skyward means?”
But Master Jon-Kang again was speechless.
The Master abruptly paused.
32. Knocking the Ashes from a Pipe
One Monk came inside the main hall smoking a pipe, blew smoke toward Buddha’s statue, and then knocked the ashes from his pipe onto the statue. At that time, the ceremony leader (No-Chon S’nim) appeared and scolded him, “How dare you knock ashes from a pipe onto the Buddha?”
The monk calmly turned his face toward No-Chon S’nim and said, “S’nim, I just read a verse on the temple pillar. It said, ‘Buddha’s body is omnipresent in the whole universe.’ Now, where should I knock the ashes from a pipe?”
Venerable Master Hye-Am’s Comments
He answered very well. He might have said, instead,
If you bring the Buddha-less world, I’ll not knock the ashes onto Buddha. Here, you cannot find a spot in this world without Buddha.
First Dialogue
Master Hye-Am once asked Seung-Sahn S’nim,
H.A: If I say, “If you bring the Buddha-less world, I’ll knock ashes onto Buddha,” how would you respond?
S.S: I would knock the ashes once more, Sir.
H.A: Now, how would you do away with the pipe?
S.S: I would hold the statue and shake it.
H.A: It’s in vain.
This story was stopped by a sudden interruption.
Second Dialogue
Later, the Venerable Master was asked by his attendant, “What if you were that monk and I said, ‘If you bring the Buddha-less world, I’ll knock ashes onto Buddha’?”
Instead of answering, Venerable Master hit the attendant.
The attendant asked again, “Now how would you do away with the pipe?”
The master gave the attendant another blow.
33. Searching for a Star
Dog chases the mud ball;
Lion bites the thrower.
One night Venerable Master Mann-Gong was watching the stars in the night sky and asked Master Jon-Kang, “Buddha was enlightened after he saw a bright star among those stars. Which one is your star?”
Master Jon-Kang immediately knelt down fumbling on the ground for the star.
The Venerable Master Mann-Gong watched him and said, “Well done. Well done.”
Venerable Master Hye-Am’s Comments
Right after this event he composed the transmission Gatha and gave him In-ga.
If the Master Jon-Kang did fumble searching for the star, believing the star was there, then it is truly sorrowful. There should be another way to answer this question which our Master Mann-Gong asked.
Without answering at all and just fumbling to search for the star makes it look like he has committed the error of the “mud ball-chasing dog.”
Also, Venerable Master Mann-Gong, without examination, praised him by saying, “Well done.” This could be criticized by bright eyes in the future saying that it is also a case of the “mud ball chasing dog.”
There should be doubt
Before searching the star.
If Venerable Master Mann-Gong asked the same dharma, I would re-ask,
“Master, where did you see my star?”
34. Crying
After a retreat one Bhikuni came to see the Venerable Master Hye-Am. She prostrated and asked, “On the final day of the three-year-long retreat, Master Wol-Ha said in his formal talk,
“When children cry, you can comfort them with the Yellow Leaves (Sutras).”
After a period of meditation, an idea struck me, so I went to him crying sorrowfully, and asked,‘When children are crying, the Yellow Leaves will comfort them; but how would you comfort me when I am crying?’
Instead of answering, Master Wol-Ha hit the dharma floor.
Tock! Tock! Tock!
Master! If you were him, what would you have said?”
The Venerable Master Hye-Am said, “Ask me in exactly the way you asked him.”
The Bhikuni asked, “When children are crying, the Yellow Leaves will comfort them; but how would you comfort me when I am crying?”
The Master replied,
“Warm winds are naturally coming from the south.”
35. Sublime Gate
Once while the Venerable Master Jon-Kang was visiting Master Hye-Am, he asked,“What is the Sublime Gate (one of the Master’s Buddhist names)?”
The Master promptly replied, “You have fallen ill with whatness.”
Immediately Jon-Kang S’nim asked again, “What would you do if you were me?”
The Venerable Master Hye-Am said, “Hurry in.”
36. Superior Phrase
One monk came to the Venerable Master Hye-Am and related following case:
“A monk asked the Ch’an Master Woon-Moon, ‘What is the phrase which is superior to each and every Buddha and Patriarch?’
The Master Woon-Moon said,”Cookie”
“What does this mean?”
The Venerable Master said,
“Finally, the frosty moon,
Fell freely into the stream in front.”
37. Samadhi of No-Disputation
The attendant asked, “What is the Samadhi of no-disputation?”
The Master responded, “Hair grows on the ghost’s fart?”
38. Teacher of the Buddha
Ch’an Master Tong-San Yon (Tung-Shan) once` said, “Shakyamuni Buddha and Maitreya are slaves of another.”
A monk asked, “Who is that other?”
The Venerable Master answered, “Charcoal salesman who baked charcoal in the kiln.”
The Master sang a Gatha:
Crystalline wind and bright moon prevailing;
Night by night through the window someone loomed.
39. Every Dharma Returns to the One
One monk asked the Venerable Master, “Every dharma returns to the one, to where does the one return?”
The Venerable Master replied, “After introverting on body, already it has flown by the Northern Lake.”
40. Age
One monk asked, “How old is master?”
The Master replied, “Nine times nine is eighty-two.”
41. Thus I Have Heard
The attendant asked, “Every Sutra begins with, ‘Thus I have heard.’ Before this phrase, Shakyamuni didn’t say a word. What did Ananda hear in the beginning?”
“Thus I have heard.”.
42. Small Beads
One Ch’an student self-confidently came to the Venerable Master Song-Wol and told him, “Finally I understand Chao-Chou’s Moo Hwa-du.”
The Master took him to his room and asked, “Tell me what Moo is”
That monk pushed the wooden pillow towards the master.
Master Song-Wol said, “Besides that.”
The Ch’an monk this time pulled that wooden pillow towards himself.
The Venerable Master took the small beads down from the wall, held them in his hands, and said, “Take these small beads away from me—not manually, but verbally.”
The Ch’an monk, however, left without an answer.
In early morning when Venerable Master saw the master, Hye-Am, he cited this dialogue and asked, “What do you think of this man?”
Master Hye-Am said, “Nine-tenths.”
43. Before Distinction
The attendant related the following story:
“One dharma teacher who had mastered the Lotus Sutra said, ‘This Sutra cannot be understood by speculative distinctions.’ Master, how do you talk about the dharma without the speculative distinctions?”
The Master answered, “Before any thought arises, talking has already been finished.”
44. Profoundly Dead
Jin-Jae S’nim from Haewoondae in Pusan came to the Venerable Master and asked, “How is it when one, profoundly dead, is profoundly revived?”
The Master answered,
“The man is dead before the soul has scattered.”
45. Informed Letter
The Master said, “From the formless letter emerged the formed letter.”
The attendant asked, “What is the formless letter?”
The master quoted the fragment,
Word and utterance are for all time severed,
Thought and its abiding place, also annihilated.
46. Eighty-four Thousand Sutras
One monk visited the Master after the closing of the seasonal retreat.
The Master asked, “Where are you coming from?”
“I came from Hein-Sa.”
“What did the Head Master Song-Chol say?”
“On that podium he said the Buddha’s eighty-four thousand Sutras are all delusive thoughts,” replied the student.
The Master promptly questioned, “How would you do away with the delusion coming from your mouth?”
47. Heaven
The attendant asked,
“What is heaven?”
The master replied,
“Fiery hell.”
(Update time : 2008-03-20 오후 3:53:34, view : 982)
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