dialogue
Five Ranks: Dialogue with a Student
Record of Caoshan
Text
A monk asked Caoshan, 'How is it when the absolute is within the relative?' Caoshan said, 'Like a lotus flower in the midst of fire.' The monk asked, 'How is it when the relative is within the absolute?' Caoshan said, 'Nothing in the entire universe is hidden.' The monk asked, 'How is it when absolute and relative arrive together?' Caoshan said, 'No one in the whole city of Changan.' The monk asked, 'What is their mutual integration?' Caoshan said, 'Sitting alone on the great peak.'
Attribution
By Caoshan Benji
From Record of Caoshan
Sources
Record of Caoshan: Five Ranks: Dialogue with a Student