Shōyōroku / Congrong lu · CASE 60
Ryū Tetsuma, the Old Cow
The Book of Serenity
Banshō's pointer
Nostrils high and proud, each bears the marks of a great person. Heels firm and solid, who would consent to study “old-woman Zen”? Only upon penetrating the mechanism without a handle do the methods of a true adept first appear. Now say: who is this person?2
Case
Ryū Tetsuma arrived at Isan. Isan said, “Old cow, you have come.” Tiemo said, “Tomorrow there is a great communal feast at Mount Tai. Reverend, will you go?” Isan stretched out and lay down. Tiemo immediately went out.
Hongzhi's verse
A hundred battles won, old age at peace. Gentle and unhurried—who would painfully struggle to compete? Jade whip and golden horse, idle the whole day. Bright moon and clear wind, wealth for a lifetime.
Footnotes 4
- “Marks of a great person” and “old-woman Zen” encode strength as male and weakness as female. Liu's central role disrupts that stereotype within a record that still reproduces its vocabulary. ↩
- “Though she was a nun” marks Banshō's male-institutional viewpoint, in which Liu's authority requires comment. Her long practice and independent hermitage indicate recognized standing, though the biography needs external verification. ↩
- Zihu's striking Liu is a transmitted encounter narrative. It neither proves anyone's realization nor supplies ethical authorization for physical violence in teaching. ↩
- The Chen Fan passage uses penal and castration status as disparagement. It reflects elite premodern contempt toward punished people and eunuchs; those conditions do not determine moral or intellectual worth. ↩
About this version and its sources
- Full source citation
- Source title: 鐵磨牸牛. Base: CBETA T2004, T48n2004_p0264c22–p0265a16. Angle brackets represent inline notes.
- Method
- Direct critical-edition translation from the cited received base text. Source claims, hagiography, uncertainty, and unresolved readings remain identified in the notes and project record.
- Editorial uncertainty
- Independent philological and reader review remain pending.
- Rights
- Project translation © Tulsa Zen Center Critical Edition contributors. Source text is cited by edition; redistribution policy requires final organizational approval.
- Revision identifier
- f2ab44e7e543
Banshō's commentary on the case
Isan called himself a water buffalo and called Iron Grindstone a cow. Bestowing a name and awarding a title—this was an encounter between adepts. Though she was a nun, she had long investigated with Isan and established a hermitage ten li from the mountain.3 One day she visited Zihu. Zihu asked, “Is this Ryū Tetsuma?” Tiemo said, “I do not presume.” Zihu asked, “Turn left or turn right?” Tiemo said, “Reverend, do not be upside down.” Zihu immediately struck her.4 Look at her with Isan: when releasing, both release; when gathering, both gather. Foguo called this a “body-separating phrase”: intention connects while language remains separate. Do you want to know when intention and phrase both arrive? Watch Tendō bring it out in a whole-body verse. Young monks talk much about Buddha; old generals do not discuss war. The wheat before the mountain has not yet distinguished green from yellow; one does not know whether the price of rice in Luling is high or low. Who has even dreamed of further discussing Buddha-Dharma? The biography of Chen Fan in the History of the Later Han says that Fan could establish a moral reputation and speak forcefully against benighted customs. Yet he raced amid danger and obstruction, competing for balance with punished men and castrated palace servants.5 When these two met, they did not establish a reputation or race amid dangers. They were relaxed, easy, level, and plain: mature and completely seasoned. Why can Tendō never finish praising them? Upon attaining, one naturally forgets calculation. When it comes into use, it costs no effort.