In a while, Issan requested Gyosan, “Did Rinzai present himself ungrateful to Obaku?” Gyosan stated, “In no way.” Issan stated, “What do you imply?” Gyosan stated, “One has to know the kindnesses one has obtained so as to have the ability to repay them.” Issan stated, “Have there been comparable precedents among the many outdated masters?” Gyosan stated, “Sure, there have been. But it surely was way back, and I don’t wish to speak about it.” Issan stated, “This can be so, but I want to know. Simply inform me.” Gyosan stated, “It’s simply because the incident within the Ryogon Sutra when, on the meeting, Ananda made this Gatha of the Buddha, ‘This profound coronary heart serves in a dusty temple. That is known as requiting the Buddha’s kindness. How may it not be a case of requiting kindness?’” Issan stated, “Simply so, simply so! Perception as deep as that of the grasp diminishes by half the grasp’s advantage; perception surpassing that of the grasp makes one worthy to obtain the succession.”
Commentary:
In a while, Issan requested Gyosan if, through the dialog between Obaku and Rinzai, Rinzai had been ungrateful to Obaku. Gyosan answered that Rinzai had revealed the true-Self by way of seemingly rude phrases, by saying that Rinzai had been clever sufficient to recognise Obaku’s kindnesses and repay them. Then, Issan requested Gyosan to check him additional to see if he may current comparable precedents from the outdated masters. Gyosan, initially refusing to inform comparable precedents as a result of doing so was at greatest merely taking part in with illusions, lastly offered an analogous precedent by quoting Ananda’s phrases from the Ryogon Sutra ‘This profound coronary heart serves in a dusty temple. That is known as requiting the Buddha’s kindness’. Ananda meant the true-Self by ‘this profound coronary heart’ and kind by ‘a dusty temple’, which means that the true-Self is hidden in kind. Every time we see and listen to issues, having the ability to recognise the true-Self isn’t any apart from to requite the Buddha’s kindness. Then, Issan, very glad with Gyosan’s response, authorised his enlightenment.
Scholar: “How can we see the profound coronary heart when it serves in a dusty temple?”
Grasp: “Clear the dusty temple.”
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All photos ©Simon Hathaway
