樂邦遺稿 2.87

2.87

A note in the Chuandeng lu states: “The monk Tanyan of Yuezhou and the patron Xu Xun, courtesy name Xuandu, together built two stūpas. Yan possessed supernatural anomalies, and heaven sent down stūpa finials. Before the stūpas were completed, Xuandu suddenly died. Yan lived to be more than one hundred and twenty years old, waiting for Xuandu to come again. At that time, the Prince of Yueyang came to govern Yuezhou, and Yan announced beforehand: ‘Xu Xuandu is coming.’ His disciples thought the master was speaking out of senility. The Prince of Yueyang had once received a secret indication from Master Zhi, and as soon as he arrived he entered the monastery to visit Yan. Seeing him from afar, Yan cried out: ‘Xu Xuandu has come!’ The prince said: ‘I, your disciple, am Xiao Deng; why do you address me thus?’ Yan said: ‘Unless you have attained knowledge of past lives, how could you know of this matter?’ Yan then bestowed his samādhi power upon the prince, who suddenly awakened to his former life of having built the two stūpas together with Yan. Because of this, the construction of the stūpas was revived once more.”