[Buddha-l] Master Sheng Yen passed away

[Weng-Fai Wong]

Hi Dan

Your translation is certainly better than mine. Thank you.

Weng-Fai

-----Original Message-----
From: buddha-l-bounces at mailman.swcp.com
[mailto:buddha-l-bounces at mailman.swcp.com] On Behalf Of Dan Lusthaus
Sent: Wednesday, February 04, 2009 4:44 PM
To: Buddhist discussion forum
Subject: Re: [Buddha-l] Master Sheng Yen passed away

I can perhaps add an alternate translation to Weng-Fai's rendering of Sheng
Yen's death poem (no translation ever does full justice to an original).

无事 (wushi) is a technical term borrowed by Linji (Lin-chi, J. Rinzai) from
Mencius, which he infused with new meaning, something like "having nothing
to do", in Linji's usage signifying someone enlightened who has "done what
needed to be done", as the Pali phrase for enlightenment goes. It also
implies someone who does not act from desire or compulsion (having something
to do), but from a desireless condition. Linji encourages us all to become a
person with nothing to do. Here it is contrasted with 忙 (mang) which means
something like hectic activities. So...

Amid the hectic activities of 'having nothing to do,' grown old.
In emptiness' environs there is weeping and laughter.
>From the beginning there is no self;
life and death, both can be cast away.


Dan Lusthaus

----- Original Message -----
> In traditional Zen style, this is the death-bed stanza of the Venerable
> Sheng Yan:
>
>
> 无事忙中老
> 空里有哭笑
> 本来没有我
> 生死皆可抛
>
> My lousy translation:
>
> "In a carefree (pointless?) hustle, one grows old.
>  In emptiness, there is tears and laughter.
>  As it is, there is no self.
>  Both life and death can be abandoned."
>
> W.F. Wong
>
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheng-yen

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