The locus classicus for this saying in Zen literature is the biography of the Chinese Zen master Huqiu Shaolong虎丘紹隆
, which appears in the Jiatai Era Inclusive Record of the Flame嘉泰普燈録
Chinese: Jiatai pudeng lu
, compiled around 1204:
In a convocation marking the end of the monastic retreat…the master [Huqiu] then said, “[to quote Zen master Zhaozhou (778-897)] ‘Do not attach to the place where buddhas exist.’ Above, there is nothing to look to for support. ‘Run quickly past the place where buddhas do not exist.’ Below, cut off your own self. From the start, there is no facing or turning away; fundmentally, the nets and cages [of conceptual thought] are ripped apart. Coming out of the gate, you ram into Subhūti; not an inch of grass grows for a thousand times ten thousand leagues. Of their own, the long-beaked birds cease their chatter and perch beneath fragrant trees. If you deceive yourself, you will speak of Zen and speak of the Way. Markaṭas [monkeys], even if their minds hang from the tops of trees in their minds, cannot prevent their bodies from sinking under the sea. Do not move in deluded attachment. If you move in deluded attachment, you deserve thirty blows. At the end of the retreat when we confess our transgressions, in a single verse, what should we say? [Let’s say] Bright Moon and Fresh Wind… We are All Together in One Family.”
解夏上堂。。。師乃云。有佛處不得住。上無攀仰。無佛處急走過。下絶己躬。從來無向背。本自絶羅籠。出門撞著須菩提。寸草不生千萬里。自是長觜鳥。休言芳樹不棲。謾自説禪説道。摩斯吒直饒心掛樹頭。未免身沉海底。莫動著。動著三十棒且置。休夏自恣一句作麼生道。青山綠水元依舊。明月清風共一家。
In this sermon, the “one family” that Huqiu refers to could be the community of monks who have spent the three months of the monastic retreat夏
in training together and are about to engage in the rite of confession自恣
that marks the end of the retreat. However, because he speaks of birds and monkeys, “one family” could also mean all living beings (including humans), who together share the natural world that is alluded to by the words “bright moon and fresh wind.” At the same time, the expression “bright moon”明月
is a symbol of awakening, and “fresh wind”清風
has the double meaning of “pure habits,” i.e. the lifestyle of monks who uphold rules of morality. In sum, the point of Huqiu’s verse saying seems to be that all living beings are both caught up in delusion and immoral action, and fundamentally awakened and pure.
