57Case 57
Introduction 垂示
未透得已前，一似銀山鐵壁；及乎透得了，自己元來是鐵壁銀山。或有人問，且作麼生？但向他道：若尚箇裏，露得一機，看得一境，坐斷要津，不通凡聖，未為分外。苟或未然，看取古人樣子。
Before you break through, it's a wall of silver, a mountain of iron. Once you break through, you find out you were the iron wall and the silver mountain all along. Suppose someone asks how that works. Just tell him: if right here you can show one move, see through one scene, sit astride the throat of the road and let nothing pass, neither the ordinary nor the holy, that's still nothing special. And if you can't manage even that? Then take a good look at how the old masters did it.
僧問趙州：「至道無難，唯嫌揀擇，如何是不揀擇？」州云：「天上天下，唯我獨尊。」僧云：「此猶是揀擇。」州云：「田厙奴，什麼處是揀擇？」僧無語。
A monk asked Zhaozhou, "'The Great Way isn't hard; it only hates picking and choosing.' So what is not picking and choosing?"
Zhaozhou said, "Above the heavens, below the heavens, I alone am the honored one."
The monk said, "That's still picking and choosing."
Zhaozhou said, "You hick. Where's the picking and choosing?"
The monk had nothing to say.