國清百錄 2.67

2.67

弟子總持和南。爰逮高旨騰蔣州僧所及，竊以僧居望剎食惟分衛，所立精舍本依聚落。近年奉詔專征弔民伐罪，江東混一、海內又寧，塔安其堵市不易業，斯亦智者備所明見。而亡殷頑民不慚懷土，有苗恃險敢恣螳蜋，橫使寺塔焚燒，如比屋流散，鐘梵輟響，鷄犬不聞。廢寺同於火宅，持鉢略成空返，僧眾無依，實可傷歎。彼地福盡方成丘墟，所餘堂塔本不壞毀，其有現僧亦許房住。唯虛廊檐宇會當倒壓，所以移來還充寺館。其外椽版權借築城，若空寺步廊，有完全者亦貸為府廨，須一二年間民力展息，即於上江結筏以新酬故。本勒所司具條孔目，無慮零漏。恐遠僧未能曲見，頓用仰誣，必願言提冥諸其掌，猥延滿軋戀側良深。謹和南。

Your disciple Zongchi bows his head. When your noble message arrived, forwarding what was raised by the monks of Jiangzhou, I humbly reflected that monks dwell in monasteries and eat only by alms-gathering (piṇḍapāta); the vihāras they erect are originally based upon settlements. In recent years, having received imperial decree to command the punitive expedition to console the people and punish the guilty, the region east of the Yangtze was unified and the realm was pacified once more; pagodas rested securely in their precincts and markets did not alter their trade—this is also something the Wise One (Zhizhe) has fully witnessed. Yet the stubborn remnants of the fallen Chen did not feel ashamed of their attachment to their former land; like the Miao relying on their fortifications, they dared to play the mantis [trying to stop a carriage], arbitrarily causing monasteries and pagodas to be burned, so that rows of houses were scattered in exile, bells and chanting ceased their sounds, and neither cocks nor dogs were heard. The abandoned monasteries became like the burning house, and carrying the bowl mostly ended in returning empty; the saṃgha was left without support, which was truly lamentable. It was only because the blessings of that locality were exhausted that it turned into ruins; the remaining halls and pagodas were originally not to be demolished, and any existing monks were also permitted to dwell in the cells. It is only the vacant corridors and overhanging eaves that will eventually collapse, which is why they were moved to supply other monasteries. Their exterior rafters and planks were temporarily borrowed to construct the city walls; if there were covered corridors of the empty monasteries that remained intact, they were also borrowed for government offices. Once the people's strength has rested and recovered within a year or two, rafts will be assembled upriver to replace the old with new. I had originally ordered the responsible officials to draw up detailed lists, without fear of missing anything. I fear that distant monks may not have understood this in detail and hastily made unwarranted accusations. I earnestly hope that you will explain this to ease their minds. Having extended your letter over the roads, my longing and attachment are exceedingly deep. Respectfully bowing my head.