永嘉證道歌 證道歌Song of Realizing the Way · Song of Realizing the Way

Placement of the passage as a whole. This unit is the whole of the Song of Realizing the Way of Yongjia: the title 「永嘉證道歌」—“Song of Realizing the Way of Yongjia,” five characters〔T48 0395c06〕 (the song is commonly known in English as the Song of Enlightenment; this edition does not adopt that rendering); the signature 「唐慎水沙門玄覺撰」—“composed by the śramaṇa Xuanjue of Shenshui, of the Tang”〔T48 0395c08〕; the song, two hundred and sixty-seven lines (two hundred and fourteen of seven characters, fifty-two of six, one of three), one thousand eight hundred and thirteen characters; the closing title 「永嘉證道歌〔終〕」—“Song of Realizing the Way of Yongjia 〔ends〕”〔T48 0396c29〕; one thousand eight hundred and thirty-two characters in all. The song has an old line-by-line commentary; this edition takes the Commentary on the Song of Realizing the Way (X63n1241) as its mirror, and sets the commentary of Venerable Miaokong of Lingyan (X65n1292) beside it in parallel columns; the continuing verses of Fayuan of Nanming (X65n1291) go into the column of the old masters’ verses in the seventh topic. Fascicle thirty of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp receives the full text and serves as the collation text; for its variant readings, see the tenth topic. For the nineteen Taishō collation notes, see the ninth topic.

I. Doctrinal-Outline Placement

The song has no doctrinal outline by the old masters. Both commentaries take up the song line by line and explain beneath each line, without setting up divisions. At the head of the fascicle the commentary explains the title:

「從緣悟入之謂證，千聖履踐之謂道，吟咏其道之」—“Entering by awakening through conditions is called realizing (證); what the thousand sages tread is called the Way (道); to chant that Way is”〔X63n1241 0260c20〕「謂歌，故曰證道歌也。」—“called a song (歌); hence it is called the Song of Realizing the Way (證道歌).”〔X63n1241 0260c21〕

Another explanation of the title, before the fascicle, tells why the song was composed:

「祖留一宿，時謂一宿覺，遂作此謌。以其所證」—“The patriarch kept him one night; at the time he was called the one-night awakening, and so he composed this song. Because what he had realized”〔X63n1241 0260b14〕「之道，述而書之，故謂證道謌也。」—“was the Way, he set it out and wrote it down; hence it is called the Song of Realizing the Way.”〔X63n1241 0260b15〕

Its place in the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp — fascicle thirty, titled 「永嘉真覺大師證道歌」—“Song of Realizing the Way of Great Master Zhenjue of Yongjia”〔T51n2076 0460a14〕, with no signature below the title; the text runs from 「君不見。絕學無為閑道人。」—“Have you not seen? The man of the Way at leisure, done with learning, practicing non-doing.”〔T51n2076 0460a15〕 to 「管見謗蒼蒼。未了吾今為君決。」—“…a view through a tube to slander the blue heavens; if you have not understood, I now decide it for you.”〔T51n2076 0461b05〕.

Start and end of this unit:

The natural divisions of the song (the reading text is divided into twenty-four segments; what follows is given only as hints for reading; it is not an outline by the old masters, and it is not set in quotation marks):

II. Collation with the Alternate Translations

This song is a composition of the Chinese lands and has no alternate translation; the full text received in fascicle thirty of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp serves as the collation text, and its variant readings are given in the tenth topic.

III. Scriptural and Treatise Grounding (the “eye”)

The song does not itself name the sūtras and treatises it relies on. Where the commentary, beneath a line, marks the sūtra relied on, it is listed verbatim below—all in the commentary’s own words; the original texts of the sūtras are not listed here, and this is not to say that the song must have come from them:

淨五眼得五力—“purify the five eyes, gain the five powers”〔T48 0395c23〕—the commentary marks the Vimalakīrti Sūtra:

「論唯淨名經所出，且依文解之。所謂五眼者，一天」—“As discussed, this is found only in the Vimalakīrti Sūtra; let us explain it according to the text. The so-called five eyes are: first, the heavenly”〔X63n1241 0264b12〕「眼、二肉眼、三慧眼、四法眼、五佛眼也。」—“eye; second, the flesh eye; third, the wisdom eye; fourth, the dharma eye; fifth, the buddha eye.”〔X63n1241 0264b13〕

達者同遊涅槃路—“those who have arrived roam together on the road of nirvāṇa”〔T48 0395c25〕—the commentary cites a sūtra:

「經云：十方薄伽梵，一路」—“A sūtra says: The bhagavats of the ten directions—one road”〔X63n1241 0264c12〕「涅柈門。」—“the gate of nirvāṇa.”〔X63n1241 0264c13〕

我師得見然燈佛—“my teacher came to see Dīpaṃkara Buddha”〔T48 0396a12〕—the commentary relates the occasion of Dīpaṃkara’s prediction:

「所言然灯佛者，世尊因地為」—“As for what is called Dīpaṃkara Buddha: the World-Honored One, in his causal stage, was”〔X63n1241 0267c06〕「雪山童子，時值然灯如來出世，將五百金錢，親買」—“the youth of the Snow Mountains; at that time he met the Tathāgata Dīpaṃkara appearing in the world, and with five hundred gold coins personally bought”〔X63n1241 0267c07〕

頓入無生知見力—“enters at once the power of knowledge and vision of non-arising”〔T48 0396b02〕—the commentary cites the Great Prajñā Sūtra:

「大般若經云：甚深般若波羅蜜多，是」—“The Great Prajñā Sūtra says: The most profound prajñāpāramitā is”〔X63n1241 0270c09〕「諸佛母，能示世間諸法實相。」—“the mother of all buddhas, able to show the real mark of all dharmas of the world.”〔X63n1241 0270c10〕

二十空門元不著—“the twenty gates of emptiness were never clung to”〔T48 0396b21〕—the commentary cites the twenty emptinesses of the Great Prajñā Sūtra:

「故大般若經云：所謂內空．外空．內外空．空空．」—“Hence the Great Prajñā Sūtra says: namely, inner emptiness, outer emptiness, inner-and-outer emptiness, the emptiness of emptiness,”〔X63n1241 0274c23〕

學人不了用修行—“students who do not understand use it to practice”〔T48 0396a29〕—the commentary raises the ten kinds of immortal-cultivators of the Śūraṅgama Sūtra:

「正在生死岸頭，如棱嚴十種修仙，」—“standing right on the bank of birth and death, like the ten kinds of immortal-cultivators in the Śūraṅgama,”〔X63n1241 0270b18〕

是則龍女頓成佛。非則善星生陷墜—“right, and the dragon girl suddenly becomes a buddha; wrong, and Sunakṣatra sinks down alive”〔T48 0396c04〕—the commentary relates the two matters of the dragon girl and Sunakṣatra:

「即往南方無垢世界，坐寶蓮華，成等正覺，號華鮮」—“at once she went to the Stainless World in the south, sat on a jeweled lotus, attained perfect right awakening, and was called the Tathāgata”〔X63n1241 0276b22〕「如來也。非則善星生陷墜者，昔有比丘，名曰善星，」—“Huaxian. ‘Wrong, and Sunakṣatra sinks down alive’: once there was a monk named Sunakṣatra,”〔X63n1241 0276b23〕

勇施犯重悟無生—“Yongshi broke a grave precept and awakened to non-arising”〔T48 0396c15〕, 有二比丘犯婬殺—“there were two monks who committed lust and killing”〔T48 0396c17〕, 粉骨碎身未足酬—“to grind the bones and shatter the body would not suffice to repay”〔T48 0396c20〕—the commentary relates the occasion of each (Yongshi〔X63n1241 0278a04〕, the two monks〔X63n1241 0278b11〕, the bodhisattva Ever-Weeping (常啼)〔X63n1241 0278c20〕); the commentary does not name, one by one, the sūtras they come from.

IV. Essentials of the Commentary on This Passage

The commentary relied on: the Commentary on the Song of Realizing the Way, X63n1241; the catalog reads Yanqi · the volume head reads “compiled by the attendant Dezui, recorded by Huiguang.” Names are signed in four kinds of place within the fascicle; they are recorded verbatim side by side (recorded without adjudication):

What follows selects, segment by segment, the key words of the commentary; in the text it is called 「註」—“the commentary.”

〔1〕

絕學無為閒道人—“the man of the Way at leisure, done with learning, practicing non-doing”— 「絕學者，絕世間之學，學無為之學也，世間之學，非」—“‘Done with learning’ means done with worldly learning, and learning the learning of non-doing; worldly learning is not”〔X63n1241 0261b11〕 「閑道人者，與道相應，不與塵勞抅繫，故名為閑」—“The man of the Way at leisure is one who accords with the Way and is not tied to the dust of toil; hence he is called at leisure”〔X63n1241 0261b15〕

無明實性即佛性。幻化空身即法身—“the real nature of ignorance is buddha-nature; the empty body of illusion is the dharma-body”— 「無明者，無般若大智之明也。佛性者，即究竟清淨覺性也。」—“Ignorance is the absence of the light of the great wisdom of prajñā. Buddha-nature is the ultimately pure nature of awakening.”〔X63n1241 0261c10〕 「既了無明即是佛性，當知幻身即是法身也。」—“Once one understands that ignorance is buddha-nature, one should know that the illusory body is the dharma-body.”〔X63n1241 0261c21〕

證實相無人法—“realizing the real mark, there is neither person nor dharma”— 「無相之相，故名實相。證此實相，即無人法二空也。」—“It is the mark of no mark, and so it is called the real mark. To realize this real mark is the twofold emptiness: no person and no dharma.”〔X63n1241 0262b09〕

若將妄語誑眾生—“if I deceive beings with false words”— 「此即永嘉大悲願力，發此言也。」—“This is Yongjia uttering these words by the power of his vow of great compassion.”〔X63n1241 0262b19〕

〔2〕

頓覺了如來禪—“suddenly awakened to the dhyāna of the Tathāgata”— 「非漸次而知，故云頓覺也。如來禪者，簡異四種禪那」—“It is not known by gradual steps; hence it is called sudden awakening. The dhyāna of the Tathāgata is distinguished from four kinds of dhyāna”〔X63n1241 0262c05〕

六度萬行體中圓—“the six pāramitās and myriad practices are complete within the body”— 「乃於一念之中，圓修六度，故云體中圓也。」—“Within a single thought one cultivates the six pāramitās in full; hence it says ‘complete within the body.’”〔X63n1241 0262c18〕

夢裏明明有六趣—“in the dream, clearly, clearly, there are the six destinies”— 「迷時三界有，悟則十方空，」—“When deluded, the three realms exist; when awakened, the ten directions are empty,”〔X63n1241 0262c21〕

誰無念誰無生—“who is without thought? who is without arising?”— 「上句拈情，下句顯法。」—“The first line takes up feeling; the second line reveals the dharma.”〔X63n1241 0263a21〕

〔3〕

喚取機關木人問—“call the mechanical wooden man and ask him”— 「重為譬出，令其易曉也。」—“Again a simile is put forward, to make it easy to understand.”〔X63n1241 0263b06〕

放四大莫把捉—“let go the four elements, do not grasp them”— 「今了四大性空，於法自在，」—“Now, understanding that the four elements are empty in nature, one is free with regard to dharmas,”〔X63n1241 0263b16〕

決定說表真僧—“a decisive statement shows a true monk”— 「內懷聖胎，發言殊異，果敢無猶豫之辭，故云決定說也。」—“Inwardly he carries the sacred embryo; his words are out of the ordinary, resolute, without a word of hesitation; hence it says ‘a decisive statement.’”〔X63n1241 0263c16〕

直截根源佛所印—“cutting straight to the root-source is what the Buddha sealed”— 「直下頓入佛之知見，不隨漸次教相涉歷，故云直截也。」—“Directly and at once one enters the Buddha’s knowledge and vision, not passing step by step through the marks of the teaching; hence it says ‘cutting straight.’”〔X63n1241 0264a01〕

〔4〕

摩尼珠人不識—“the maṇi jewel people do not recognize”— 「梵語摩尼，此云如意珠也。」—“The Sanskrit word maṇi is here called the wish-fulfilling jewel.”〔X63n1241 0264a10〕

如來藏裏親收得—“within the tathāgata-womb it is received in person”— 「所言如來藏者，有在纏如來藏，有出纏如來藏。」—“As for what is called the tathāgata-womb, there is the tathāgata-womb in bondage, and there is the tathāgata-womb out of bondage.”〔X63n1241 0264a14〕

六般神用空不空—“six kinds of spiritual function, empty and not empty”— 「此摩尼珠，珠有六竅，喻六根也。」—“This maṇi jewel has six openings, a simile for the six faculties.”〔X63n1241 0264b01〕

鏡裏看形見不難—“seeing a form in a mirror is not hard”— 「雖鏡裡之形可見，且水中之月不可取也。」—“Though the form in the mirror can be seen, the moon in the water cannot be taken.”〔X63n1241 0264b21〕

達者同遊涅槃路—“those who have arrived roam together on the road of nirvāṇa”— 「達者，達法之人也。涅柈者，即不生不滅也。」—“Those who have arrived are people who have arrived at the dharma. Nirvāṇa is neither arising nor ceasing.”〔X63n1241 0264c11〕

〔5〕

窮釋子口稱貧—“a poor son of Śākya says with his mouth that he is poor”— 「有道人，不假外飾，故曰貧也。」—“A person who has the Way does not depend on outward adornment; hence he is called poor.”〔X63n1241 0265a06〕

貧則身常披縷褐—“poor: the body always wears a tattered coarse robe”— 「貧則身乏嚴飾，謂之身貧也。其道可尊可貴，實非貧也。」—“Poor: the body lacks adornment; this is called the poverty of the body. His Way is to be honored and prized; truly it is not poor.”〔X63n1241 0265a19〕

三身四智體中圓。八解六通心地印—“the three bodies and four wisdoms are complete within the body; the eight liberations and six supernormal powers are the seal of the mind-ground”— 「三身、四智、八解、六通者，乃覺性功用得名也。地以能生為義，印以号令為義也。」—“The three bodies, four wisdoms, eight liberations, and six supernormal powers take their names from the function of the nature of awakening. ‘Ground’ means that which can give rise; ‘seal’ means that which commands.”〔X63n1241 0265b14〕

〔6〕

上士一決一切了—“the superior person settles it at one stroke and all is finished”— 「是以上士相見，目擊道存，」—“Thus when superior people meet, the eye strikes and the Way is there,”〔X63n1241 0265c07〕

從他謗任他非—“let them slander, let them find fault”— 「以言毀辱謂之謗，以是為不是謂之非也。」—“To revile and insult with words is called slander; to take what is right as not right is called finding fault.”〔X63n1241 0266a08〕

觀惡言是功德—“to see harsh words as merit”— 「耳聞惡言，不起嗔心，即能成就定慧之力也。」—“Hearing harsh words with the ear and not raising anger—this can accomplish the power of concentration and wisdom.”〔X63n1241 0266a22〕

宗亦通說亦通—“the source penetrated, the teaching penetrated too”— 「宗通者，即法通也。法非言說，言說非法。」—“Penetrating the source is penetrating the dharma. The dharma is not speech; speech is not the dharma.”〔X63n1241 0266b12〕

定慧圓明不滯空—“concentration and wisdom perfectly bright, not stuck in emptiness”— 「因中謂之止觀，果上謂之定慧，定慧不二，謂之圓明。」—“In the cause it is called calming and contemplation; in the fruit it is called concentration and wisdom; concentration and wisdom not two is called perfect brightness.”〔X63n1241 0266c06〕

師子吼無畏說—“the lion’s roar, the fearless speech”— 「以喻大乘菩薩所說圓頓法音，」—“a simile for the perfect and sudden dharma-voice spoken by the bodhisattvas of the great vehicle,”〔X63n1241 0266c23〕

〔7〕

遊江海涉山川—“roaming rivers and seas, crossing mountains and streams”— 「乃為參尋知識，決擇死生。」—“It was to seek out good friends and settle the matter of death and birth.”〔X63n1241 0267a16〕

自從認得曹谿路—“since I came to know the road to Caoxi”— 「自從往曹溪六祖印證心地法門，了知一切諸法無生無滅，無去無來，」—“Since going to Caoxi, where the Sixth Patriarch sealed and confirmed his dharma-gate of the mind-ground, he understood that all dharmas are without arising and without ceasing, without going and without coming,”〔X63n1241 0267a22〕

縱遇鋒刀常坦坦—“even meeting the sword’s edge, always calm”— 「假饒有人以利刀、毒藥加及我，我則坦然閑暇，無所畏也。」—“Even if someone were to set a sharp blade or poison upon me, I would be calm and at leisure, with nothing to fear.”〔X63n1241 0267b14〕

入深山住蘭若—“entering the deep mountains, dwelling in a hermitage”— 「入深山者，則非闠閙之處也。」—“Entering the deep mountains: that is, not a place of market bustle.”〔X63n1241 0268a18〕

〔8〕

覺即了不施功—“awakened, it is done; no effort applied”— 「覺了一切諸法，即不施有為功行也。有為功行，非究竟也。」—“Awakening to all dharmas, one does not apply conditioned effort and practice. Conditioned effort and practice are not ultimate.”〔X63n1241 0268b07〕

住相布施生天福—“giving while dwelling on marks earns the merit of birth in heaven”— 「住相布施者，不與般若相應，為著相故，成有為功行，非究竟故。」—“Giving while dwelling on marks does not accord with prajñā; because it clings to marks, it becomes conditioned effort and practice, for it is not ultimate.”〔X63n1241 0268b15〕

但得本莫愁末—“only get the root; do not worry over the branches”— 「若得其本，末可知也。」—“If one gets the root, the branches can be known.”〔X63n1241 0269a03〕

〔9〕

佛性戒珠心地印—“buddha-nature, the jewel of the precepts, the seal of the mind-ground”— 「般若是一法，佛說種種名，或謂之佛性，或謂之戒珠，或謂之心地，或謂之心印，皆一法也。」—“Prajñā is one dharma; the Buddha spoke of it under many names: sometimes he called it buddha-nature, sometimes the jewel of the precepts, sometimes the mind-ground, sometimes the mind-seal—all are one dharma.”〔X63n1241 0269b03〕

降龍鉢解虎錫—“the bowl that subdued the dragon, the staff that parted the tigers”— 「鉢盂、錫杖，皆道具之名也。」—“Bowl and staff are both names of implements of the Way.”〔X63n1241 0269b11〕

〔10〕

不求真不斷妄—“not seeking the true, not cutting off the deluded”— 「不求真故，越凡夫法也；不斷妄故，越二乘法也。」—“Because it does not seek the true, it goes beyond the dharma of ordinary people; because it does not cut off the deluded, it goes beyond the dharma of the two vehicles.”〔X63n1241 0269c16〕

無相無空無不空—“no mark, no emptiness, no non-emptiness”— 「上句展轉拂迹，下句直明真諦也。」—“The first line brushes away the traces step after step; the second line directly makes the true meaning clear.”〔X63n1241 0269c22〕

心鏡明鑒無礙—“the mind-mirror shines clear without obstruction”— 「心鏡既明，鑒物無碍。」—“Once the mind-mirror is bright, it reflects things without hindrance.”〔X63n1241 0270a05〕

〔11〕

豁達空撥因果—“a wide-open emptiness that dismisses cause and effect”— 「豁達空者，乃西天外道所修斷滅空也。撥因果者，一向著空，撥無因果也。」—“The wide-open emptiness is the emptiness of annihilation cultivated by the outsiders of the western land. Dismissing cause and effect is clinging wholly to emptiness and brushing cause and effect away as nonexistent.”〔X63n1241 0270a19〕

捨妄心取真理—“rejecting the deluded mind to take the true principle”— 「若捨虗妄之心，欲取真如之理，則取捨之心，成巧偽之行也。」—“If one rejects the false, deluded mind and wishes to take the principle of suchness, then the mind of taking and rejecting becomes a practice of cunning falsehood.”〔X63n1241 0270b10〕

是以禪門了却心—“therefore the gate of Chan finishes with the mind”— 「唯般若一法，方為究竟。」—“Only the one dharma of prajñā is ultimate.”〔X63n1241 0270c08〕

〔12〕

大丈夫秉慧劍—“the great man grips the sword of wisdom”— 「所言金剛者，金中最剛，故曰金剛。極堅極利，喻般若焉。」—“As for what is called vajra: it is the hardest among metals, hence it is called vajra. Utterly firm and utterly sharp, it is a simile for prajñā.”〔X63n1241 0270c24〕

震法靁擊法鼓—“sounding the dharma-thunder, beating the dharma-drum”— 「般若是一法，佛說種種名，或謂之慧劍，或謂之法雷，或謂之法鼓，或謂之慈雲，或謂之甘露，」—“Prajñā is one dharma; the Buddha spoke of it under many names: sometimes he called it the sword of wisdom, sometimes the dharma-thunder, sometimes the dharma-drum, sometimes the cloud of kindness, sometimes sweet dew,”〔X63n1241 0271a14〕

雪山肥膩更無雜—“the rich grass of the Snow Mountains has no admixture”— 「西竺雪山有草，名曰肥膩，潔淨香美，白牛食之，所出皆成醍醐上味，」—“In the Snow Mountains of western India there is a grass called ‘rich grass,’ clean, fragrant, and fine; when white oxen eat it, all that they yield becomes ghee, the highest of flavors,”〔X63n1241 0271b13〕

〔13〕

一性圓通一切性—“one nature pervades all natures”— 「一性即一真之性也，一法即一心之法也。」—“One nature is the nature of the one true; one dharma is the dharma of the one mind.”〔X63n1241 0271b21〕

一月普現一切水—“one moon appears everywhere in all waters”— 「一月普現一切水者，如青霄一月，普現江河、池沼、滄海、溪潭等，凡有水處，悉皆現月也。」—“One moon appearing everywhere in all waters: as the one moon in the blue sky appears everywhere in rivers, ponds, the blue sea, streams, and pools—wherever there is water, the moon appears in all.”〔X63n1241 0271c17〕

諸佛法身入我性—“the dharma-body of all buddhas enters my nature”— 「眾生心內諸佛，念念證真；諸佛心內眾生，心心作佛。」—“The buddhas within the minds of beings realize the true thought after thought; the beings within the minds of the buddhas become buddhas mind after mind.”〔X63n1241 0272a05〕

彈指圓成八萬門—“in a fingersnap the eighty thousand gates are perfected”— 「一彈指頃成就八萬法門，一剎那間能滅三祇劫罪也。」—“In the space of a fingersnap the eighty thousand dharma-gates are accomplished; in a single instant the sins of three incalculable kalpas can be extinguished.”〔X63n1241 0272a24〕

〔14〕

不可毀不可讚—“it cannot be reviled, cannot be praised”— 「毀譽不動者，唯見性之人方能解脫也。」—“To be unmoved by blame and praise—only a person who has seen the nature can be freed in this way.”〔X63n1241 0272b20〕

不離當處常湛然—“never leaving this very place, always limpid”— 「謂此靈覺之性，不離十二時中見聞」—“This means that this nature of numinous awakening does not leave, through all twelve hours, seeing and hearing”〔X63n1241 0272c04〕

取不得捨不得—“cannot be taken, cannot be rejected”— 「諸佛悟之而不曾得，眾生迷之而未曾失。」—“The buddhas awaken to it and have never gained it; beings are deluded about it and have never lost it.”〔X63n1241 0272c12〕

默時說說時默—“silent, it speaks; speaking, it is silent”— 「默時說者，即是默時常說也。」—“‘Silent, it speaks’ means that when silent it is always speaking.”〔X63n1241 0272c23〕

〔15〕

有人問我解何宗—“someone asks me what school I understand”— 「梵語摩訶，此云大．多．勝，即多含不翻也。」—“The Sanskrit word mahā is here called great, many, excellent; because it holds many senses, it is left untranslated.”〔X63n1241 0273b05〕

吾早曾經多劫修—“I have long since passed through many kalpas of cultivation”— 「莫非宿有般若種性，豈是今等閑之事？」—“Is it not that he had from former lives the seed-nature of prajñā? How could it be an idle matter of today?”〔X63n1241 0273b23〕

建法幢立宗旨—“raise the dharma-banner, establish the tenet”— 「皆是建大法幢竪立宗旨也。」—“All of this is raising the great dharma-banner and setting up the tenet.”〔X63n1241 0273c07〕

第一迦葉首傳燈—“first was Kāśyapa, the first to transmit the lamp”— 「是最初傳法，」—“he was the very first to transmit the dharma,”〔X63n1241 0273c20〕

菩提達磨為初祖—“Bodhidharma was the first patriarch”— 「梵語菩提達磨，此云覺法。西竺為二十八祖，此土為初祖，」—“The Sanskrit name Bodhidharma is here called ‘awakening-dharma.’ In western India he is the twenty-eighth patriarch; in this land he is the first patriarch,”〔X63n1241 0274a12〕

〔16〕

真不立妄本空—“the true is not set up; the deluded is originally empty”— 「真既不立，妄亦本空，良由真妄本無自性，因真立妄，因妄立真。」—“Since the true is not set up, the deluded too is originally empty; truly, because true and deluded originally have no self-nature—on account of the true the deluded is set up, and on account of the deluded the true is set up.”〔X63n1241 0274c16〕

二十空門元不著—“the twenty gates of emptiness were never clung to”— 「二十空門者，如來破二十種執有之見，因成二十空名。」—“The twenty gates of emptiness: the Tathāgata broke twenty kinds of views that cling to existence, and so the twenty names of emptiness came to be.”〔X63n1241 0274c22〕

心是根法是塵—“mind is the faculty, dharma is the dust”— 「心是根者，根以能生為義，」—“‘Mind is the faculty’: ‘faculty’ means that which can give rise,”〔X63n1241 0275a07〕

心法雙忘性即真—“when mind and dharma are both forgotten, the nature is the true”— 「痕垢若盡，心法雙亡，自然心光透脫，明見佛性也。」—“If the marks and grime are gone and mind and dharma both perish, naturally the mind’s light breaks through, and one clearly sees buddha-nature.”〔X63n1241 0275a13〕

〔17〕

嗟末法惡時世—“alas, the final age of the dharma, an evil time”— 「嗟，即歎辭也。」—“‘Alas’ is a word of lament.”〔X63n1241 0275a18〕

去聖遠兮邪見深—“far from the sage, wrong views run deep”— 「去聖遙遠，邪見轉深，於正法中返生怨害。」—“Far removed from the sage, wrong views grow ever deeper, and toward the right dharma they instead give rise to enmity and harm.”〔X63n1241 0275a24〕

欲得不招無間業—“if you would not bring on the karma of the uninterrupted hell”— 「謗法之罪，非小過也。」—“The sin of slandering the dharma is no small fault.”〔X63n1241 0275c09〕

〔18〕

旃檀林無雜樹—“in the sandalwood forest there are no other trees”— 「栴檀林，喻一真妙境。無雜樹者，無小機權位之雜也。」—“The sandalwood forest is a simile for the wondrous realm of the one true. ‘No other trees’ means no admixture of those of small capacity or provisional stages.”〔X63n1241 0275c16〕

師子兒眾隨後—“the lion’s cubs follow behind”— 「所言師子兒者，喻菩薩初發心時，即便成等正覺也。」—“As for what is called the lion’s cubs: a simile for bodhisattvas who, at the moment of first arousing the mind, at once attain perfect right awakening.”〔X63n1241 0276a05〕

若是野干逐法王—“if it is a jackal that would chase the king of the dharma”— 「野干喻凡夫二乘也，師子喻大乘菩薩也，」—“The jackal is a simile for ordinary people and the two vehicles; the lion is a simile for the bodhisattvas of the great vehicle,”〔X63n1241 0276a17〕

〔19〕

圓頓教勿人情—“the perfect and sudden teaching has no room for human sentiment”— 「圓謂圓滿，頓非漸次也。」—“‘Perfect’ means complete; ‘sudden’ means not by gradual steps.”〔X63n1241 0276a23〕

不是山僧逞人我—“it is not that this mountain monk flaunts self and other”— 「此是永嘉自謂也，豈是山僧馳逞人我之心？」—“This is Yongjia speaking of himself: how could it be that this mountain monk is driven by a mind that flaunts self and other?”〔X63n1241 0276b06〕

是則龍女頓成佛—“right, and the dragon girl suddenly becomes a buddha”— 「龍女善星者，明顯是非之相也。」—“The dragon girl and Sunakṣatra make plain the marks of right and wrong.”〔X63n1241 0276b20〕

〔20〕

吾早年來積學問—“in my early years I piled up learning”— 「大師少時，歷諸講肆，聽集天台智者教觀，深於經論，積學愽問也。」—“When young, the Great Master passed through the lecture halls, attended to and gathered the teaching and contemplation of Zhizhe of Tiantai, went deep into sūtras and treatises, piling up learning and inquiring widely.”〔X63n1241 0276c03〕

分別名相不知休—“distinguishing names and marks without knowing when to stop”— 「經論之學豈有過失？乃我佛如來金口所說，」—“How could the learning of sūtras and treatises be at fault? It is what our Buddha, the Tathāgata, spoke from his golden mouth,”〔X63n1241 0276c12〕

數他珍寶有何益—“counting another’s treasures—what gain is there?”— 「如來訶責多聞之士，雖則多聞，不獲修證。」—“The Tathāgata rebukes men of much learning: though they have heard much, they do not attain cultivation and realization.”〔X63n1241 0276c19〕

從來蹭蹬覺虛行—“all along stumbling, I came to feel it an empty journey”— 「蹭蹬者，行不進之㒵也。」—“‘Stumbling’ is the look of walking without making headway.”〔X63n1241 0277a02〕

〔21〕

二乘精進勿道心—“the two vehicles are diligent but without the mind of the Way”— 「二乘之人，精進修行，斷三界見思，」—“People of the two vehicles practice diligently and cut off the errors of views and of thought of the three realms,”〔X63n1241 0277a17〕

亦愚癡亦小騃—“foolish, and childishly dull besides”— 「大人無智曰愚，小兒無智曰騃。」—“An adult without wisdom is called foolish; a small child without wisdom is called dull.”〔X63n1241 0277b05〕

執指為月枉施功—“taking the finger for the moon, they apply effort in vain”— 「若迷指為月，非獨迷月，亦乃迷指，」—“If one mistakes the finger for the moon, one is deluded not only about the moon but about the finger as well,”〔X63n1241 0277b13〕

不見一法即如來—“not seeing a single dharma is the Tathāgata”— 「此一句乃永嘉盡力拽到門前，祇欠擡足入來也。」—“With this one line Yongjia drags you with all his strength right up to the gate; all that is lacking is for you to lift your foot and come in.”〔X63n1241 0277b21〕

〔22〕

了即業障本來空—“understood, the obstruction of karma is originally empty”— 「了達罪福性空，無有罣碍，」—“understanding that sin and merit are empty in nature, there is no hindrance,”〔X63n1241 0277c07〕

在欲行禪知見力—“practicing Chan amid desire is the power of knowledge and vision”— 「欲界而行禪那清淨者，以其有般若知見之力也。」—“That one can practice dhyāna purely in the desire realm is because one has the power of the knowledge and vision of prajñā.”〔X63n1241 0277c21〕

勇施犯重悟無生—“Yongshi broke a grave precept and awakened to non-arising”— 「過去久遠，有一比丘名勇施，忽於如來禁戒有所」—“Long ago in the past there was a monk named Yongshi who suddenly, with regard to the Tathāgata’s prohibitive precepts, had something”〔X63n1241 0278a04〕

〔23〕

師子吼無畏說—“the lion’s roar, the fearless speech”— 「諸佛說法圓頓大乘自在無畏，猶如獅子吼時無畏自在也，」—“The buddhas’ preaching of the perfect and sudden great vehicle is free and fearless, just as the lion is fearless and free when it roars,”〔X63n1241 0278a12〕

秖知犯重障菩提—“they know only that breaking a grave precept obstructs bodhi”— 「祇知犯前四種重罪，障於無上涅槃妙心，不能了罪性空也。」—“They know only that committing the four grave offenses obstructs the wondrous mind of unsurpassed nirvāṇa, and cannot understand that the nature of sin is empty.”〔X63n1241 0278a17〕

波離螢光增罪結—“Upāli’s firefly light only added to the knot of their sin”— 「螢光者，小乘猶如螢光不能破暗也。」—“Firefly light: the small vehicle is like the light of a firefly, which cannot break the darkness.”〔X63n1241 0278b10〕

維摩大士頓除疑—“the great layman Vimalakīrti removed their doubt at once”— 「今維摩大士而以理說性空無相法門，」—“Now the great layman Vimalakīrti, by way of principle, spoke the dharma-gate of empty nature and no mark,”〔X63n1241 0278b23〕

不思議解脫力—“the power of inconceivable liberation”— 「不思議者，不可以心思，不可以口議，」—“Inconceivable: it cannot be thought with the mind and cannot be discussed with the mouth,”〔X63n1241 0278c07〕

法中王最高勝—“the king among dharmas, highest and most excellent”— 「高超三界，獨步大方，故云最高勝也。」—“It rises high above the three realms and strides alone through the great expanse; hence it says ‘highest and most excellent.’”〔X63n1241 0279a17〕

〔24〕

了了見無一物—“clearly, clearly seeing, there is not one thing”— 「真如界內，無生佛之假名，平等性中，無自他之形相，即無物無人無佛也。」—“Within the realm of suchness there are no provisional names of beings and buddhas; in the nature of equality there are no forms of self and other: this is no thing, no person, no buddha.”〔X63n1241 0279b13〕

大千沙界海中漚—“the great thousandfold worlds, as many as sand, are a bubble in the sea”— 「三千大千世界在覺性之中，猶如水上一漚爾。」—“The three-thousand great thousandfold world, within the nature of awakening, is like a single bubble on the water.”〔X63n1241 0279b19〕

日可冷月可熱—“the sun may turn cold and the moon may turn hot”— 「日性本熱，寧可說冷？月性本冷，寧可說熱？」—“The sun’s nature is originally hot—how could it be called cold? The moon’s nature is originally cold—how could it be called hot?”〔X63n1241 0279c13〕

大象不遊於兔徑—“the great elephant does not roam the rabbit’s path”— 「即以世間象兔為」—“that is, taking the elephant and the rabbit of the world as”〔X63n1241 0280a06〕

莫將管見謗蒼蒼—“do not take a view through a tube and slander the blue heavens”— 「無上般若，唯接上根上器，中下之機，卒難銘模。」—“The unsurpassed prajñā receives only those of highest root and highest capacity; those of middling and lesser faculties can hardly take its impress.”〔X63n1241 0280a13〕

V. Divergent Readings of the Commentators (in parallel columns — recorded without adjudication)

Where the lemmata of X65n1292 differ from the base text (recorded together): 「淨五根，得五力」—“purify the five faculties, gain the five powers”〔X65n1292 0450b17〕 (the base text reads 「淨五眼」—“purify the five eyes”); 「自從頓悟入無生」—“since the sudden awakening, entering non-arising”〔X65n1292 0451b12〕 (the base text reads 「了無生」—“understanding non-arising”); 「招得當來不如意」—“brings on a time to come that does not go as one wishes”〔X65n1292 0451b22〕 (the base text reads 「來生」—“next life”); 「我今解，如意珠」—“I now understand—the wish-fulfilling jewel”〔X65n1292 0451c07〕 (the base text reads 「既能解此如意珠」—“once one can understand this wish-fulfilling jewel”); 「覓則知君不可覩」—“the moment you search, you know you cannot behold it”〔X65n1292 0452c10〕 (the base text reads 「覓即知君不可見」—“the moment you search, you know you cannot see it”); 「歷江海，入此土」—“passing over rivers and seas, it entered this land”〔X65n1292 0453a15〕 (the base text reads 「法東流」—“the dharma flowed east”); 「有無共遣不空空」—“being and nothing dismissed jointly, and non-emptiness emptied”〔X65n1292 0453a22〕 (the base text reads 「俱遣」—“dismissed together”); 「眾生薄福難調制」—“beings, of thin merit, hard to tame”〔X65n1292 0453b11〕 (the base text reads 「福薄」—“thin in merit”); 「了則業性本來空」—“understood, the nature of karma is originally empty”〔X65n1292 0454a24〕 (the base text reads 「了即業障」—“understood, the obstruction of karma”); 「深嗟懞懂頑皮靼」—“deeply I sigh over the muddled, stubborn as thick hide”〔X65n1292 0454b23〕 (the base text reads 「懵懂」—“muddled”); 「未了吾今為君決」—“if you have not understood, I now decide it for you”〔X65n1292 0455a22〕 (the base text reads 「訣」—“the settling word”).

Recorded without adjudication: the titles before the fascicle and the signatures in the two texts both read 「妙空和尚註」—“commentary by Venerable Miaokong” and 「德最集」—“compiled by Dezui,” and the explanations of the title before the fascicle are the same text (differing by one character: 「印澄」〔X63n1241 0260b14〕／「印證」〔X65n1292 0449a17〕, “seal of clarification”／“seal of confirmation”); the afterword of X65n1292 says 「靈巖老師訥公所注」—“annotated by the old teacher of Lingyan, Master Ne”〔X65n1292 0455b19〕. X63n1241 further has the preface and closing title of Venerable Qi of Fantian; see the head of the fourth topic. How the two texts are to be attributed is recorded side by side without adjudication. On the five eyes and five powers, one text has the lemma 「五眼」—“five eyes” and explains it by the Vimalakīrti Sūtra; the other has the lemma 「五根」—“five faculties” and explains it by 「佛法謂之五眼」—“buddha and dharma are called the five eyes”; both are recorded.

VI. Terms (first occurrences — glosses drawn only from the old masters’ citations)

Of the Sanskrit names in the song (摩尼, 摩訶般若, 蘭若), only the Sanskrit senses that the commentary itself gives are recorded; none is newly proposed here.

VII. Similes and Rhetoric

Similes the song uses of itself:

Points of rhetoric worth recording:

1. Opening in three characters—「君不見」—“have you not seen”〔T48 0395c09〕 is the only three-character line in the whole song, and leads the whole piece.
2. Reduplicated characters—「夢裏明明」—“in the dream, clearly, clearly”〔T48 0395c14〕, 「覺後空空」—“after waking, empty, empty”〔T48 0395c15〕, 「常坦坦」—“always calm and at ease”〔T48 0396a11〕, 「也閒閒」—“still unhurried and at leisure”〔T48 0396a12〕, 「生死悠悠」—“birth and death drift on and on”〔T48 0396a13〕, 「莽莽蕩蕩」—“reckless and vast”〔T48 0396a27〕, 「了了見」—“clearly and distinctly seeing”〔T48 0396c23〕.
3. Paired statement and circling return—「常獨行常獨步」—“always walking alone, always striding alone”〔T48 0395c25〕; 「宗亦通」—“the source penetrated”〔T48 0396a05〕 「說亦通」—“the teaching penetrated too”〔T48 0396a06〕; 「行亦禪坐亦禪」—“walking is Chan, sitting is Chan”〔T48 0396a10〕; 「取不得捨不得」—“taking, it cannot be taken; rejecting, it cannot be rejected”〔T48 0396b13〕; 「默時說說時默」—“when silent, it is speaking; when speaking, it is silent”〔T48 0396b14〕; 「非不非是不是」—“wrong is wrong, right is right”〔T48 0396c03〕; 「日可冷月可熱」—“the sun may turn cold and the moon may turn hot”〔T48 0396c25〕.
4. Head-to-tail linking—「道則心藏無價珍。無價珍用無盡」—“the Way: the heart hides a priceless treasure; this priceless treasure is used without end”〔T48 0395c28〕; 「我性同共如來合」—“my nature is joined together with the Tathāgata” takes up 「入我性」—“enters my nature”〔T48 0396b09〕; 「痕垢盡除」—“when marks and grime are wholly removed” takes up 「鏡上痕」—“marks on the mirror”〔T48 0396b23〕.
5. One-and-all phrasing—「一性圓通一切性。一法遍含一切法」—“one nature perfectly pervades all natures; one dharma everywhere holds all dharmas”〔T48 0396b07〕; 「一地具足一切地」—“one ground is complete with all grounds”〔T48 0396b09〕.
6. Repetition earlier and later—「師子吼無畏說」—“the lion’s roar, the fearless speech” appears twice (〔T48 0396a07〕·〔T48 0396c16〕); 「如意珠」—“wish-fulfilling jewel” appears twice (〔T48 0396a20〕·〔T48 0396c22〕), and 「摩尼珠」—“maṇi jewel” once〔T48 0395c22〕, so the simile of the jewel occurs three times in all; 「定慧圓明」—“concentration and wisdom perfectly bright” appears twice (〔T48 0396a06〕·〔T48 0396c25〕); 「剎那滅却」—“in an instant extinguished” appears twice (〔T48 0395c12〕·〔T48 0396b10〕). This records only the repetition of the characters; no doctrinal judgment is made.

Verses of the old masters (X65n1291, the continuing verses of Fayuan; the head of the fascicle is titled 「永嘉真覺禪師證道歌」—“Song of Realizing the Way of Chan Master Zhenjue of Yongjia”〔X65n1291 0439b06〕 and signed 「千頃山沙門　法泉　繼頌」—“continuing verses by the śramaṇa Fayuan of Mount Qianqing”〔X65n1291 0439b08〕; selected from those that bear on the song’s similes):

VIII. Citation and Carrying Forward

The Blue Cliff Record — in the commentary on Heshan’s instruction to the assembly, the song is cited to explain 「絕學」—“done with learning”:

「禾山垂示云。習學謂之聞。絕學謂之隣。」—“Heshan, instructing the assembly, said: Practicing learning is called hearing; being done with learning is called nearness.”〔T48n2003 0181a02〕 「一宿覺道。吾早年來積學問。亦曾討疏尋經論。習學既盡。謂之絕學無為閑道人。」—“The One-Night Awakening said: ‘In my early years I piled up learning, and I too once searched the commentaries and hunted through sūtras and treatises.’ When practicing learning is exhausted, this is called ‘the man of the Way at leisure, done with learning, practicing non-doing.’”〔T48n2003 0181a05〕

The two places in the citation that agree with the song: 「吾早年來積學問。亦曾討疏尋經論」—“In my early years I piled up learning, and I too once searched the commentaries and hunted through sūtras and treatises” (segment 20 · 〔T48 0396c05〕) and 「絕學無為閒道人」—“the man of the Way at leisure, done with learning, practicing non-doing” (segment 1 · 〔T48 0395c09〕); the four characters 「習學既盡」—“when practicing learning is exhausted” are the words of the commentary, not the text of the song.

The Record of the Transmission of the Lamp — the whole text is received in fascicle thirty, titled 「永嘉真覺大師證道歌」—“Song of Realizing the Way of Great Master Zhenjue of Yongjia”〔T51n2076 0460a14〕.

Commentaries and verses — besides the two texts relied on in the fourth and fifth topics and the continuing verses of Fayuan in the seventh topic, the old commentaries and continuing verses on this song include one more text, whose head reads 「竺原禪師註證道歌序」—“Preface to Chan Master Zhuyuan’s Commentary on the Song of Realizing the Way”〔X65n1293 0456a03〕.

The following three places record further matters concerning the song or its author; only their locations are given here, and their text is not cited:

• Record of the Transmission of the Lamp, chapter on Xuanjue T51n2076 0241b12
• Record of the Source-Mirror T48n2016 0670a11
• Continued Record of the Transmission of the Lamp T51n2077 0598a29

IX. Placement Among the Recensions

The Taishō collation notes for this unit come to nineteen in all (the collated witness is marked 【甲】; where 『CB』 is noted under the lemma, the reading is an emendation by CBETA, against the original Taishō print 【大】):

Recorded without adjudication: for 01, the title, the text of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp reads 「永嘉真覺大師證道歌」—“Song of Realizing the Way of Great Master Zhenjue of Yongjia,” agreeing with the 「真覺大師」—“Great Master Zhenjue” of 【甲】; for 02, no signature, the text of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp likewise has no signature. In 06 · 11 「怨」—“resentment,” 08 「我今」—“I now,” 10 「歷江海」—“passing over rivers and seas,” 13 · 14 「還須償宿」—“must still repay the former,” and 18 「決」—“decide,” 【甲】 agrees with the lemmata of the commentary (see the tenth topic ④); in 06 · 11 「怨」, 13 · 14, and 18 「決」, the text of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp also agrees with 【甲】; in 08 and 10, the text of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp agrees with the base text. In 05 「折」—“break,” 12 「駭」—“startled,” 15 「愈」—“healed,” 17 「螳螂」—“mantis,” and 19 「證道歌之」—“… of the Song of Realizing the Way,” neither collation text agrees with 【甲】. Not one character of the base text is changed on their account. Interlinear note: in this unit, only one place, the 「〔終〕」—“〔ends〕” of the closing title. Gaiji: none in this unit.

X. Verse Form and Variant Readings

① Line form: the song has two hundred and sixty-seven lines: two hundred and fourteen of seven characters, fifty-two of six characters, and one of three characters. The three-character line appears only once, in the opening 「君不見」—“have you not seen”〔T48 0395c09〕. The six-character lines are all two threes stacked together, as 「頓覺了如來禪」—“suddenly awakened to the dhyāna of the Tathāgata”〔T48 0395c14〕 and 「無罪福無損益」—“no sin and no merit, no loss and no gain”〔T48 0395c15〕; often a thought is begun with six-character lines and carried on with seven-character lines.

② Rhyme: the old masters have left no notes on the rhyme of this song; where the rhyme changes would have to be established by the study of ancient pronunciation, and that is not attempted here.

③ Collation notes of the 【甲】 witness: nineteen (including five CBETA emendations), each given in the ninth topic.

④ Variant readings of the collation text — reading the base text and the text of fascicle thirty of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp character by character, the differences are as follows (recorded together, without adjudication):

At 45, the text of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp has 「此即成吾善知識」—“this makes them my good friend” in place of 「妙用恒沙也無極」—“its wondrous use as many as the Ganges sands, is without limit”; this line is close to 「此則成吾善知識」—“this makes them my good friend” of segment 6〔T51n2076 0460b10〕, differing by one character, 「即」—“at once” against 「則」—“then,” and so recurs earlier and later within the text of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp; at 26 it has 「阿鼻業」—“the karma of Avīci” in place of 「三祇劫」—“three incalculable kalpas,” the same text as 「剎那滅却阿鼻業」—“in an instant the karma of Avīci is extinguished” of segment 1〔T51n2076 0460a18〕. Recorded without adjudication.

Where the lemmata of the commentary (X63n1241) differ from the base text (recorded together; differences of character form in the commentary’s lemmata, such as 「閑」「覔」「󳫠」, are listed selectively):

訣／決: the base text has 「訣」—“the settling word” in the last line〔T48 0396c28〕; 【甲】 has 「決」—“decide” (collation note 18); the text of the Record of the Transmission of the Lamp 「為君決」—“decide it for you”〔T51n2076 0461b05〕, the commentary 「為君決」〔X63n1241 0280a12〕, X65n1292 「為君決」〔X65n1292 0455a22〕, and Fayuan’s continuing verses 「吾今為君決」—“I now decide it for you”〔X65n1291 0448a21〕 all have 「決」. The reading text follows the base text with 「訣」. Recorded without adjudication.

⑤: every column above has an entry; there are no empty columns.