During the Tang Dynasty, Chan Master Baizhang Huaihai was renowned for his strict adherence to monastic rules and his profound teachings.
Whenever the Chan Master held gatherings, an old man would attend and listen to the Dharma alongside the assembly and he would leave as the assembly dispersed.
One day, however, the elderly man didn’t leave with the crowd as usual.
The master asked:”Who stands before me now?”
The old man replied: “I am not human. In the time of Kāśyapa Buddha, I was a monk resided on this mountain. A disciple once asked me, ‘Do those who attain great cultivation still fall under causality?’ I answered, ‘They are not subject to causality!’ For this error, I was reborn as a wild fox for five hundred lifetimes. Now, I implore you, Master, to offer a turning phrase to free me from this fate.”
Baizhang said: “Ask your question again.”
The old man asked: “Do those who attain great cultivation still fall under causality?”
Baizhang replied: “They are not obscured by causality!”
Upon hearing this, the old man was instantly liberated. He bowed and said: “I am now freed from the fox body. My remains lie behind the mountain. I beg you, Master, to perform the rites accorded to a deceased monk.”
The master instructed the precentor to strike the wooden gavel and announce to the assembly: “After the meal, we shall hold a funeral for a departed monk.” The monks whispered in confusion:”All are well here, and no one in the Nirvana Hall is ill. Why such an order?”
After the meal, the master led the assembly to a rocky slope behind the mountain. With his staff, he lifted the corpse of a dead wild fox and conducted its cremation according to monastic rites.
Cultural & Philosophical Notes
The Law of Karma (Cause and Effect):
The old monk’s mistake — claiming enlightenment erases karma — reveals a dangerous misunderstanding. No one, not even a Buddha, is exempt from cause and effect. Enlightenment means understanding karma, not escaping it.
Not subject to vs. not obscured by causality
The former denies causality (a heretical view), while the latter acknowledges its operation yet transcends attachment to it.
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