Why are you here?

English text: 

http://www.thezensite.com/ZenTeachings/Dogen_Teachings/Shobogenzo_2_NC.pdf

(scroll down to "[254] My late teacher Tendo...")
Question: "Why am I here?" at 1:24:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3i3Dn7WM3k&feature=youtu.be&t=5030

Alternative English translation by Hubert Nearman:

My former Master, the Reverend Monk Tendō, was a person from Yüeh or
thereabouts. At nineteen, he gave up academic religious study to explore the Matter
through training with his Master. He did not regress from that training even upon
reaching his seventies. During the Chinese Chia-ting era, the emperor offered him
a purple robe and the title of Meditation Master, but ultimately he turned them
down, writing letters to the throne in which he declined the honors with thanks.
Monks far and wide all greatly revered him, and the wise from near and far alike
all treasured him. The emperor also took delight in him, sending him a gift of
ceremonial tea. Those who found out about this spoke highly of it, as being
something rare in any age. Indeed, this was due to true ceaseless practice on my
Master’s part, since craving fame is even worse than acting contrary to some
Precept. Acting contrary to a Precept is a onetime wrong, whereas craving fame is
a whole lifetime of trouble. Do not foolishly fail to forsake fame and do not blindly
welcome it. Not welcoming it is ceaseless practice and forsaking it is ceaseless
practice. Each of the first six generations of our Ancestral Masters had the title of
Meditation Master bestowed upon them posthumously by an emperor, and this was
because they did not crave fame while they were in the world. Thus, we too should
quickly forsake any craving for fame within life and death, and aspire instead to
the ceaseless practice of the Buddhas and Ancestors.
Do not be the equal of birds and beasts through indulging your greeds. To
greedily look after the trivial self is what birds have in their thoughts, what animals
have in their hearts. The forsaking of fame and gain is considered rare among both
ordinary people and those in lofty positions, and no Ancestor of the Buddha has
ever yet failed to forsake them. There are some people who say that it is for the
benefit of sentient beings that they desire fame and crave gain, but this is a monstrously false assertion. These people are non-Buddhists who have connected
themselves with the Buddha Dharma; they are a bunch of demons who malign the
True Teaching. If you were to claim something like this, would it mean that the
Buddhas and Ancestors, who do not crave fame and gain, are therefore unable to
benefit sentient beings? How laughable, how truly laughable that would be! And
truly, there are others as well who are of benefit to living beings without being
greedy. Further, those who have not yet learned that, although there are many ways
to benefit beings, one should not label as benefiting beings that which is not of
benefit to them, must surely be some species of demon. Living beings who would
try to gain spiritual benefit from the likes of such demons will fall into all manner
of hellish states. How pitiful to spend one’s whole life like this! Do not call such
silliness ‘spiritually benefiting sentient beings’. So, even though the emperor’s gift
of the title of Meditation Master was graciously offered, letters were written to
decline it with thanks, which is an excellent example from the past, and today’s
trainees would do well to explore this example with their Master.
To meet my former Master face-to-face was to encounter an ordinary human
being. From the time my former Master left his hometown at the age of nineteen to
seek out a spiritual teacher, he did his utmost to practice the Way, and when he had
reached the age of sixty-five, he still had not regressed or turned aside from this
practice. He was not on intimate terms with any emperor nor was he ever the guest
of any emperor, and he was not on close terms with any minister of state or
government official. Not only did he decline the purple kesa and the title of
Meditation Master, but throughout his life he also did not wear a varicolored kesa,
but customarily used a black kesa with a black formal robe, whether he was giving
a talk in the Dharma Hall or letting trainees enter his private chambers for spiritual
counseling.

Japanese text:

先師天童和尚は越上人事なり。十九歳にして教學をすてて參學するに、七旬におよんでなほ不退なり。嘉定の皇帝より紫衣師號をたまはるといへどもつひにうけず、修表辭謝す。十方の雲衲ともに崇重す、遠近の有識ともに隨喜するなり。皇帝大悦して御茶をたまふ。しれるものは奇代の事と讃歎す、まことにこれ眞實の行持なり。そのゆゑは、愛名は犯禁よりもあし。犯禁は一事の非なり、愛名は一生の累なり。おろかにしてすてざることなかれ、くらくしてうくることなかれ。うけざるは行持なり、すつるは行持なり。六代の祖師、おのおの師號あるは、みな滅後の敕謚なり、在世の愛名にあらず。しかあれば、すみやかに生死の愛名をすてて、佛祖の行持をねがふべし。貪愛して禽獸にひとしきことなかれ。おもからざる吾我をむさぼり愛するは禽獸もそのおもひあり、畜生もそのこころあり。名利をすつることは人天もまれなりとするところ、佛祖いまだすてざるはなし。
あるがいはく、衆生利益のために貪名愛利すといふ、おほきなる邪説なり。附佛法の外道なり、謗正法の魔黨なり。なんぢいふがごとくならば、不貪名利の佛祖は利生なきか。わらふべし、わらふべし。又、不貪の利生あり、いかん。又そこばくの利生あることを學せず、利生にあらざるを利生と稱ずる、魔類なるべし。なんぢに利せられん衆生は、墮獄の種類なるべし。一生のくらきことをかなしむべし、愚蒙を利生に稱ずることなかれ。しかあれば、師號を恩賜すとも上表辭謝する、古來の勝躅なり、晩學の參究なるべし。まのあたり先師をみる、これ人にあふなり。
先師は十九歳より離郷尋師、辨道功夫すること、六十五歳にいたりてなほ不退不轉なり。帝者に親近せず、帝者にみえず。丞相と親厚ならず、官員と親厚ならず。紫衣師號を表辭するのみにあらず、一生まだらなる袈裟を搭せず、よのつねに上堂入室、みなくろき袈裟裰子をもちゐる。