..續本文上一頁ead of him. Suddenly the Master lost his footing on the treacherous path and fell into the river, where he bobbed and floated for twenty-four hours. The current carried him downstream near Cai Jetty, where he was caught by a fisherman”s net. By that time the Venerable Master was nearly drowned. The fisherman pulled him up, then informed the nearby temple. Monks from Baoji ("Jewel Cluster") Monastery carried the Master back to the temple, where they revived him. The Venerable Master was bleeding from seven orifices, and was in critical condition, but he would not give up his original intent. After resting for a few days, the Master set aside his personal welfare for the sake of the Dharma, and, putting life and death out of his mind, he went on to Gaomin Monastery to join the Chan retreat.

　　高旻寺規矩非常嚴格，執行非常認真，如果有犯規矩的，就打香板，毫不客氣。當時住持月朗禅師，請他代職，虛老不答應，遂按規矩打香板。虛老接受不語，但經責打之後，他的病勢加重，血流不止，病況危殆。

　　According to Gaomin Monastery”s extremely strict regulations and their high standards of practice, anybody who broke the rules earned a beating with the incense-board (discipline-rod); there was no recourse to courtesy at all. The acting abbot, Chan Master Yue Lang ("Moon Radiance"), had requested the Venerable Hsu Yun to substitute for him in his position as official administrator. The Venerable Master declined the request, and thereby, according to the rules of the monastery, deserved a beating. He took his punishment without complaint. But after the beating, his illness grew worse; he bled non-stop from every orifice and his condition grew nearly fatal.

　　有人在想：「虛老這麼樣用功修道，爲什麼護法神不護持？還讓他掉在水裏？」其實，還是護法神在護持，不然的話，漁夫怎麼會用網把他打上來？所以在冥冥之中，都有佑護。

　　Someone may be wondering, "Since Venerable Hsu Yun was a sincere and diligent cultivator, why did the Dharma-protecting spirits fail to protect him, and let him fall into the river like that

　　" In fact, the spirits were still protecting him. If not, then how could he have been saved in the fisherman”s net

　　 Thus, we can know that he was protected invisibly at all times by the Dharma-protecting spirits.

　　這也是生死的考驗，看他遭受這次的災難，有什麼感想？是不是生了退道心？「啊！我修行這麼多年，又讀經，又拜忏，又燃指，又住茅棚，種種的苦行，我都認真去修，爲什麼一點感應也沒有？算了吧！我不修行了，我要還俗，過五欲的生活。」如果這樣一想，就不會做禅宗五宗的祖師了。

　　The entire episode was a life and death test to reveal his thoughts and feelings upon meeting such a disaster. The test determined whether or not he would retreat from his resolve for the Way. Would he entertain thoughts such as these: "Ha! I”ve been cultivating for so many years, reading Sutras, bowing repentances, burning a finger, living as a hermit, practicing all kinds of austerities, and my cultivation has been earnest, so why haven”t I had the least response

　　 Forget it! I”m giving up! I”m not going to cultivate any longer! I”m going to return to lay-life and indulge the five desires!" If he”d allowed such thoughts to occur, then he could never have become the Patriarch of the Five Sects of the Chan School.

　　高旻寺的規矩最認真，彼此不准講話，就是同住之人，也互相不知姓名。虛老在禅堂裏很守規矩，雖然病得很厲害，仍然只字不提，也不說出落水被救的事，只是一心一意參禅。二十天後，病況好轉，此乃蒙佛菩薩之加被矣！

　　The Venerable Hsu Yun obeyed the rules closely in the meditation hall, especially since Gaomin Monastery was noted for the extreme severity of its regulations. Nobody was allowed to hold conversations, and often it was the case that cultivators living side by side in the monastery would not even know each other”s name. Venerable Hsu Yun was seriously ill, but did not mention the fact to anyone, nor did he tell the story about falling into the river. He only investigated Chan with a single-minded concentration. Twenty days passed, and his sickness abated, thanks to the aid bestowed upon him by the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

　　有一天，采石矶寶積寺住持德岸法師，來到高旻寺，發現虛老在凳上端然正坐，容光煥發，大爲驚悅，于是乎將虛老落水被救的事，向大衆宣布。衆人皆欽歎不已，爲成就虛老用功修行，于是禅堂內職，不令虛老輪值。至此，虛老更能一心參禅，直至一念不生的境地。

　　One day, the Venerable Master De An ("Virtue …

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