..续本文上一页fore he had finished speaking. (Huang-po read right through him. Didn”t even let him finish.)

　　Then Lin-chi went back to the head monk and the same thing happened. The head monk prompted him and again he went back to the master and again he got hit. So then he came back to the head monk and said,

　　"It was so kind of you to send me to question the master."

　　(So you can tell he had this rather open mind. He still thought of this as kindness.)

　　"Three times I asked him and three times I was hit by him. I regret that some obstruction caused by my own past karma prevents me from grasping his profound meaning. I am going away for awhile."

　　The head monk said, "If you are going away, you should go and take your leave of the master."

　　Lin-chi bowed low and withdrew.

　　The head monk went to the master”s quarters before Lin-chi and said, "The young man who has been questioning you is a person of the dharma. If he comes to take his leave, please handle him expediently. In the future with training he is sure to become a great tree which will provide shade for the people of the world."

　　(So this head monk leaves nothing to chance.)

　　Lin-chi came to take his leave.

　　Huang-po said, "You mustn”t go anywhere else but to Ta Yu”s [Kao-an T”ai-yŸ, Ta Yu (Jap. Koan Taigu)] place by the river in Ta An."

　　(So Huang-po just says that.)

　　Lin-chi arrived at Ta Yu”s temple.

　　(So you can tell his sincerity here. He follows along. He feels stupid and he feels helpless, but he”s trying. He”s still trying to follow the current of the great river.)

　　"Where do you come from

　　" asked Ta Yu (which is the all purpose test question).

　　"I have come from Huang-po”s place," said Lin-chi.

　　"What did Huang-po have to say

　　"

　　"Three times I asked him what the cardinal principle of the Buddha dharma was and three times he hit me. I don”t know whether I was at fault or not."

　　(I think that”s a very beautiful answer, isn”t it

　　 He has a kind of integrity. He knows that he doesn”t know. And he doesn”t jump to conclusions. He doesn”t say, `Well, I”m stupid. It”s my fault.” Or, he doesn”t get angry and say, `This teacher”s no good.” He just says, `I really just don”t understand the situation.” A very important attitude because there”s an opening there where something can come through.)

　　Ta Yu said, "Huang-po is such a grandmother. He utterly exhausted himself with your troubles. (You know, the grandmother is traditionally softer than the mother or father.) And now you come here asking whether you were at fault or not."

　　With these words Lin-chi attained great enlightenment.

　　"Ah, there isn”t so much to Huang-po”s Buddha dharma after all."

　　Ta Yu grabbed hold of Lin-chi and said, (this is literally what he said), "You bed wetting little devil."

　　(Ruth Fuller Sasaki”s notes to this say, "This could be a term of insult or endearment depending on the context.")

　　"You just finished asking whether you were at fault or not and now you say there isn”t much to Huang-po”s Buddha dharma. What did you see

　　 Speak! Speak!"

　　Lin-chi jabbed Ta Yu in the side three times.

　　Shoving him away Ta Yu said, "You have Huang-po for a teacher. None of this is any of my business." and sent him off.

　　So Lin-chi left Ta Yu and returned to Huang-po.

　　Huang-po saw him coming and said, "What a fellow. Coming and going, coming and going. Where will it end

　　"

　　(So again, you can see there”s a certain amount of press going on here by Huang-po. He”s got a very strong context. The head monk, he knows, is helping him out, and he has Ta Yu helping. So he sort of presses to see if there is an opening.)

　　"Coming and going, coming and going. Where will it end

　　"

　　"It is all due to your grandmotherly kindness," Lin-chi said. Then he presented the customary gift (after enlightenment it”s customary to bring something) and s…

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