Kassan Wields the Sword

Banshō's commentary on the case

Zen Master Qingzhu of Sekisō in Tanzhou first served as rice steward at Isan. As he was sifting rice, Isan said, “The donors' goods must not be discarded.” Sekisō said, “I do not discard them.” Isan picked up one grain from the ground, showed it to him, and asked, “You say you do not discard. Where did this come from?” The teacher had no answer. Isan said, “Do not deceive yourself about this one grain. Hundreds of thousands of grains arise from it.” Sekisō asked, “If so, from where did this one grain arise?” Isan laughed loudly and returned to his quarters. That evening he ascended the hall and said, “Assembly, there is an insect in the rice.”³ Later Sekisō studied with Dōgo. He asked about “bodhi touching the eyes.” Dōgo called a novice to add water to the clean vase. Sekisō awakened, as raised previously. He spent two summers with Dōgo and received the seal.⁴ During the Huichang calamity he concealed his identity in the potters' quarter at Liuyang in Tanzhou, wandering there by day and lodging there by night.⁵ At the beginning of the Dazhong era, a monk came from Dongshan and quoted Dongshan's end-of-summer instruction: “Brothers, whether going east or west, you must go where for ten thousand li there is not an inch of grass.” After a long pause Dongshan had added, “But how do you go where for ten thousand li there is not an inch of grass?” Sekisō said, “Outside the gate is immediately grass.” The monk returned and reported this to Dongshan. Dongshan said, “This is a statement of a spiritual friend capable of guiding fifteen hundred people. How many such people can there be in the Great Tang?” The awl in the bag began to show. Sekisō took up residence at the Mount Sekisō practice site, fulfilling Wuben's prediction. For twenty years his oceanic assembly numbered more than a thousand. Many sat for long periods without lying down, standing like dead stumps; the name Dead Tree Hall began from this.⁶ The monks' question about brushing aside dust and seeing Buddha was one and the same. Kassan said, “If you do not wield the sword, the fisherman nests.” Sekisō said, “He has no country. Where could you meet him?” Banshō says: In deep discussion entering principle, Kassan does not equal Sekisō. In gate-and-court facility, Sekisō remains a hundred steps behind Kassan. Is there not a single contest with two colors? What does Tendō say? The Rinzai house style has the precious sword of the Diamond King, killing Buddha and killing patriarch. Kassan cuts through old tangled vines and breaks apart fox dens.² The History of the Jin says Lei Huan was skilled in celestial patterns. Zhang Hua, observing an anomalous vapor constantly appearing between the Dipper and Ox, invited Lei Huan to climb a tower at night and look upward. Lei Huan said, “I have examined it for a long time. The essence of precious swords rises into heaven from the region of Fengcheng County in Yuzhang.” Zhang Hua recommended Lei as magistrate of Fengcheng. While repairing the prison and excavating its foundation, he found a stone chest containing two swords that emitted brilliant light. He sent one to Zhang Hua and kept one to wear himself. Zhang Hua was executed and his sword disappeared. After Lei Huan died, his son, serving as a provincial official, wore his father's sword to the Yanping ford. The sword leapt into the water. He sent someone diving after it, who saw two patterned dragons. Terrified, the diver returned.⁷ The Garden of Persuasions says that when King Wu went to attack Zhou, he encountered rain. Sanyi Sheng asked, “Is this not an evil omen?” The king said, “No. Heaven is washing the weapons.”⁸ This versifies, “If you do not wield the sword, the fisherman nests.” The Book of Changes says, “The Yellow Emperor, Yao, and Shun let their upper and lower robes hang down and governed all beneath heaven.” Transformation through nonaction proceeds without commands. This versifies that there is no nest in which to lodge, he has no country, there is no sword to wield—where could you meet him? Zen Master Cha of Tong'an said: The wondrous body originally has no location; throughout the body, how could there be further trace or cause? Banshō says: I grant that you personally saw Sekisō, yet you remain a hundred steps behind Kassan. Do you want to see Kassan? For injustice, the sword leaves its precious case; responding to illness, medicine emerges from the golden bottle.