Rinzai's "True Person"
Rinzai addressed the assembly, saying, "
There is a true person of no rank, always going out and in through the gates of your face.
Those who have not yet confirmed this, look!
Look!"
A monk stepped forward and asked,
"What is this true person of no rank?"
Rinzai came down from his seat, seized the monk, and demanded, "Speak!
Speak!" The monk hesitated.
Rinzai released him, shoved him away, and said,
"The true person of no rank what a dried-up shit-stick!"
Reflection
Linji's 'True Person of No Rank' emphasizes that our fundamental nature has no status, no fixed identity. When a monk asks to define it, Linji's aggressive response – seizing, demanding, shoving – shows that the true person cannot be captured in words or hesitation. The final crude remark removes any last trace of reverence for the concept. The true person is not an idea but the one reading these words right now.