國清百錄 4.18

4.18

The two modes [of Heaven and Earth] opened wide;
the four vapors blended in fragrance.
Directions gathered according to kind;
things separated into their classes.
Pervading the worthy and pervading the holy,
illustrious rulers and enlightened sovereigns
set up teachings in response to capacities,
observed transformation and handed down writings.
Once musical odes were created,
rites and proper deportment were first regulated,
fixing who was kin and who was distant,
resolving doubts and blockages.
Unrolling charts, they distinguished things;
composing words, they clarified principles.
Yet these only transformed a single lifetime
and did not discuss the three periods of time.
The jade slips of the Dark Capital,
the silver scriptures of the Purple Court,
corpse-liberation leaving behind bones,
drinking fluids and swallowing essences:
riding dragons for ten thousand eras,
guiding cranes for a thousand years—
in the end these are not the real mark [of reality];
they are still passions of the dust.
There is only the Great Hero,
placidly ever-abiding,
neither arising nor ceasing,
neither coming nor going.
The wondrous tenets of a thousand gateways
he expounded and illustrated with a single sound,
delivering sentient beings
at the twin trees of nirvāṇa.
In dreams he connected with Empress Liu;
in resonance he answered the King of the Ji.
The fixed stars hid their radiance;
the full moon clarified its light.
His form was depicted in the eastern realm;
saints were pointed out in the western quarter.
A vast sea of compassionate vows,
a ferry-bridge of the Sugata.
Faxian returned to the Jin;
Kāśyapa Mātanga entered Luoyang.
Flowers scattered across the scripture terraces;
incense flowed through the icon pavilions.
The teaching of the Śākya flourished aloft;
sangha monks arose in abundance.
Dew glistened on pearl banners;
wind hummed through jewelled bells.
In the Zhenjun and Jiande eras,
destiny met with the destruction of the Way:
sinking and losing the four modes of birth,
destroying and eradicating the Three Jewels.
Our August Emperor initiated the sacred [rule];
his virtue equals the azure sky.
The wondrous Dharma was promulgated anew;
true images were remade.
The Chen clan usurped the title;
the Emperor's wrath launched this campaign.
The mists of Gouwu were rolled up;
Min and Yue were cleared and purified.
Thereupon meeting the Wise One (Zhizhe),
[the Prince] invited and received him at the mountain courtyard:
a pearl produced floating on the Han,
jade coming forth from the depths of Jing.
The flower peak towers high and sheer;
the rock cave hangs deep and precipitous.
Fragrant is the chrysanthemum shore;
trickling is the jade spring.
Winding like a valley,
covering ridges resembling a boat,
he arrived and assumed the seat of meditation;
wherever he stepped, all was quiet and serene.
Wondrously discerning the [four] siddhāntas,
deeply plumbing prajñā,
clergy and laity gathered like clouds,
drinking from the torrent of his river.
Some donated timber;
some contributed tiles.
Not days after beginning the work,
it turned into a great mansion.
Again he raised a Dragon Palace;
once more opened the Deer Park.
The mountain connects to the Purple Canopy;
the river embraces the Yellow Ox.
To the west it overlooks the Moon Gorge;
to the east it borders the Zhao Mound.
Sandalwood trees encircle it;
jade and beryl ring it round.
Spring casements and summer windows;
water pavilions and mountain towers.
The seats burst forth like lotuses;
from the shrines hang stone mirrors.
With the fine mark of the white curl (ūrṇā),
his indigo hair shines brightly.
Silver swallows hover about;
brocade-scaled fish swim freely.
The leaping monkey's mind grows still;
the frightened pigeon's shadow is calmed.
Splendid indeed is the wise prince,
appointed by fate as an imperial bulwark!
Endowed with virtue from Heaven,
he upholds both filial piety and sincere devotion.
Neither Dan [of Zhou] nor Shi [of Shao] are his equals;
how could Huo [Guang] or Zhang [Ping] be compared to him?
Abroad, he coordinates harnessed teams;
at home, he harmonizes the cauldrons of state.
Constructing this saṅghārāma
truly relied on his earnest request.
Demonic palaces loom high;
Mount Sumeru stands densely grouped.
In an instant one sees the end of the kalpa;
in a moment one watches it burned away.
How could it compare to the other shore,
where birth and death are both transcended?
Metal and stone do not decay;
Heaven and Earth may come to an end.
Carving and engraving this rock recess,
we hand down forever this magnificent achievement.