淨土論 3.8

3.8

沙門曇鸞法師者，并洲汶水人也，魏末高齊之初猶在，神智高遠，三國知聞；洞曉眾經，獨步人外。梁國天子蕭王，恒向北禮曇鸞菩薩。注解天親菩薩《往生論》，裁成兩卷。法師撰集《無量壽經》，奉讚七言偈百九十五行，并問答一卷，流行於世。勸道俗等，決定往生，得見諸佛。恒請龍樹菩薩，臨終開悟。誠如所願，此方報盡，半霄之內現聖僧像，忽來入室云：「我是龍樹。」便為說曰：「已落之葉，不可更附枝也。未束之粟，不可倉中求也。白駒過隙，不可暫時留也。已去叵反，未來未可追，現在今何在，白駒難可迴。」法師妙達言旨，如是告終，即半夜內發遣使者，遍告諸村白衣弟子及寺內出家弟子，可三百餘人一時雨雲集。法師沐浴著新淨衣，手執香爐，正面西坐，教誡門徒索西方業。日初出時，大眾齊聲念彌陀佛，便即壽終。寺西五里之外，有比丘尼寺，並是門徒。明相出後，集堂食粥，舉眾皆聞空內有微妙音樂西來東去。中有智者告大眾言：「法師和上一生教人修淨土業，今此音聲向東去者，必應多是迎法師來。」食訖，相命覲法師去，庭前相待。未出寺庭之間，復聞音樂遠在空中向西而去。尼僧等相與至彼，乃見無常。此依經論，定得生西方也。

Dharma Master Śramaṇa Tanluan was a native of Wenshui in Bingzhou. He was still present at the end of the Wei and the beginning of the Northern Qi. His spiritual wisdom was lofty and far-reaching, renowned across the three kingdoms; he had a penetrating understanding of the numerous sutras, walking alone beyond ordinary men. The Emperor of Liang, King Xiao, constantly bowed northward in homage to the Bodhisattva Tanluan. He annotated the Bodhisattva Vasubandhu's Wangsheng lun, arranging it into two fascicles. The Dharma Master compiled the Amitāyus Sūtra, respectfully praising it in a hundred and ninety-five lines of seven-character verses, together with one fascicle of questions and answers, which circulated widely in the world. He exhorted monastics and laypeople alike to attain rebirth definitely and behold the Buddhas. He constantly prayed to the Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna for awakening at the time of death. Truly, as he wished, when his karmic retribution in this region was exhausted, within the middle of the night the image of a holy monk appeared, suddenly entering the room and saying: 'I am Nāgārjuna.' He then spoke to him: 'A leaf that has already fallen cannot be reattached to the branch. Millet not yet bundled cannot be sought in the storehouse. A white colt passing a crack cannot be detained for a moment. What is already gone cannot return; the future cannot yet be pursued. Where is the present now? The white colt is difficult to turn back.' The Dharma Master deeply understood the meaning of the words. As he thus neared his end, in the middle of the night he dispatched messengers to announce everywhere to the white-robed disciples of the various villages and the monastic disciples within the monastery, so that around three hundred people gathered at once like raining clouds. The Dharma Master bathed, put on clean new robes, held an incense burner in his hands, sat facing directly west, and admonished his disciples to pursue the karma for the Western [Land]. At sunrise, the great assembly recited [the name of] Amitābha Buddha with one voice, and he thereupon reached the end of his life. Five li west of the monastery, there was a convent of bhikṣuṇīs, all of whom were his disciples. After dawn appeared, they gathered in the hall to eat congee, and the entire assembly heard wondrous music in the air coming from the west and going east. A wise person among them addressed the assembly, saying: 'Our master, the Dharma Master Upādhyāya, taught people throughout his life to cultivate the karma for the Pure Land. Now, this sound going eastward must surely be mostly welcoming the Dharma Master.' When the meal was over, they urged one another to go visit the Dharma Master, waiting in front of the courtyard. Before they had even left the monastery courtyard, they again heard the music far off in the sky heading west. The nuns went there together, only to find that he had passed away. Based on the sutras and treatises, he was definitely reborn in the Western [Land].