In my daily life there are no other chores than
Those that happen to fall into my hands.
Nothing I choose, nothing reject.
Nowhere is there ado, nowhere a slip.
I have no other emblems of my glory than
The mountains and hills without a spot of dust.
My magical power and spiritual exercise consists in
Carrying water and gathering firewood.
- P'ang Chü-shih
A lonely hut on the mountain-peak towering above a thousand others;
One half is occupied by an old monk and the other by a cloud:
Last night it was stormy and the cloud was blown away;
After all a cloud could not equal the old man's quiet way.
- Kuei-tsung Chih-chih
The ten directions converging,
Each learning to do nothing,
This is the hall of Buddha's training;
Mind's empty, all's finished.
- P'ang Yün
Monks sit peacefully among the trees,
Ridding themselves of illusion with a calm mind.
Quietly realizing enlightenment,
They experience a joy that is beyond that of heaven.
Laymen seek fame and profit,
Or fine robes, seats, and bedding.
Though the joy in getting them is only fleeting,
They are untiring in their quest.
Monks, however, beg for food in humble robes,
Their daily actions being one with the Way.
With their Wisdom-eye opened
They realize the essence of the Law.
Gathering all together to listen
To the countless Buddhist teachings,
They leave behind the world of illusion,
Quietly enveloped in enlightenment's Wisdom.
- Bodhisattva Nâgârjuna
|