Chapter 24 After Reading "Speaking Zen Outside Zen"

I have known Mr. Zhang Zhongxing for more than forty years. At first, I often met in small cultural relics shops.Mr. likes to play with inkstones, and also likes to collect some literati's handwriting, which is different from striving for strangeness and wealth, and also different from indulging in collecting.When playing with something in your hand, it is always like whether you can buy it or not.Things were bought by others, and he didn't regret it. He heard that there was something in the distance, and he didn't see him rushing to see it.To say a crime, I really thought he was a "semi-expert" at the time.

Gradually, after many "movements" that reversed all living beings, Mr. Zhang always looked like a dull guy with a dull nerve.I can't help but have doubts: he is so interested in playing cultural relics, so broad in his knowledge, unpretentious in his life, and so meticulous in his actions. He is undoubtedly a person with a strong sense of justice. New things outside the universe are indifferent as if they have not seen them, let alone commented on them.Since then, I have learned about him consciously, and learned from my friends that Mr. Zhang is a philosopher with profound attainments.

When mentioning the title of philosopher, I have also seen some different faces: Some people, every sentence is the words of famous Western philosophers, and they say a foreign word in and out, and then say: "How do you say this word in Chinese?" What about it?" Then say another sentence of Chinese that Chinese people don't understand, even if this principle is finished.Some people copy half of the ancient Chinese philosophy materials translated from foreign countries and start storytelling, telling stories and knocking down at the same time. They have been in business for decades. Zhu Li is good at learning.Some people, who are rich men, can talk about the scriptures with tickets, and they can talk for ten and a half months with just one topic. They really can’t let the 50,000-word explanation of "Auruojigu" and several pieces of paper don't see the word "donkey" in the contract to buy a donkey. .Those who had finished listening looked at each other in dismay and joined hands.Others, beyond Jia Baoyu's "seeking sorrow and hatred for no reason", but "seeking hatred and hatred for no reason", pretending to be the "iron face" of Song monk Faxiu, "I am the only philosopher", others are waiting The supernatural reincarnation.The list goes on and on.This made me stay away from philosophy, not to mention its "home"!

When I found out that Mr. Zhang was actually a philosopher, I was really a little bit offended.So I looked through the publications he had edited and printed, and there were only a few "Modern Buddhism" left at hand, with many pseudonyms, and I didn't know which ones were written by him.But I have heard that when this publication lacks manuscripts, he often fills in the insufficient parts himself, so we know that there must be quite a few articles written by Mr. Wang.Cast a wide net, and there will always be a few "Zhang's authentic editions" among them, right?The terminology is so familiar, and the philosophy is mostly a guide to the vulgar that understands human feelings, and it must not be used to deal with monks. Is this philosopher really so "Buddha inside and vulgar outside"?

After a lot of time, Mr. Zhang suddenly showed me a large stack of manuscripts, and gave me a hard task, which was to write a preface.When I saw the title of this stack of manuscripts, it was impressive, so I clapped my hands and laughed loudly and said: "There is a preface." The husband couldn't help asking: "Where is the preface?" , I have finished the preface." My reason is: Anyone who is familiar with Zen understands that when Patriarch Bodhidharma didn't have written words, how could he talk about it?How can it be "inside and outside"?Isn't the truth very obvious!Anyone who talks about what Zen is, what Zen should be, and what is inside the school, he has fundamentally denied Bodhidharma and Zen.I have also read several books on Zen, and the more they are taught by experts in the sect, the less I can understand them.I think not only I don’t understand, but I dare to assert that if I show it to the sixth patriarch Huineng who can’t read, it’s guaranteed that he won’t understand it either.If you add 84,000 prefaces, then even Patriarch Bodhidharma would not understand.The advantage of this manuscript is that it is in the word "beyond Zen".Standing outside the door, you must realize how people who don’t understand Zen don’t understand, and what you say must make people who don’t understand understand, so what’s the order?

According to this manuscript of Mr., it is undoubtedly for the sake of Li Pak sentient beings. From the perspective of wisdom and compassion, writing a book is a convenient means.If there is an order, it will be more convenient for readers to get a ladder.I will cite a book below, which can be used as a ladder to read "Shuo Zen", rather than any words I wrote here. That book is called "Negatives of Negative Xuan", which was also written by Mr. Zhang Zhongxing.The content is about his memories of his teachers and friends when he was studying at Peking University decades ago, as well as other trivial matters.Some of those people were still alive until the beginning of the ten-year catastrophe, so the lower limit also involves some events in the catastrophe.He seems to have a great wish of compassion, but he uses a relaxed style of writing; the language is clearly very cold and meaningful, but it reads with fiery emotions.It almost makes people feel that he is "not stupid and confused" there, but I think it is extremely high Zen everywhere.The reason is very clear: the cypress tree in front of the court, what is the meaning of the patriarch's coming from the West?Is the function of the scriptures just to cover the eyes?The Buddha precepts to kill, why did Nanquan kill the cat?Why do mosquitoes eat a cow made of iron?And so on, Zen people read it and understand Zen, and ordinary people read it and laugh.If you read "Zuo Hua" before reading "Shuo Chan", it can be used as a ladder to read "Shuo Chan"; if you read "Zuo Hua" as after reading "Shuo Chan", it can be used as a footnote to reading "Shuo Chan".It is for sequence.

Someone asked: You politely wrote the "Postscript of the Reading" before, but here you say it is the "Preface" without shame. What is the reason?Jing replied: The prefaces are all written later, and the prefaces are written before the original book is read. That must be a self-deceiving lie.Therefore, all prefaces are written after reading.But the task Mr. Zhang gave me was to write a preface. If I didn't say the word "preface" when I handed in the paper, he would ask me for a second one, what should I do?So there must be a question.If the manuscript paper with more than a thousand characters is adopted, I can't do anything about whether to put it in front of the book or at the back of the book when it goes to press.Only the three words "after reading" in the title, I declare that I will not change it.

Qi Gong 1988.7.20