廬山蓮宗寶鑑 4.51

4.51

師名延壽，字冲玄，號抱一子，丹陽人，父王氏。生而早異，父母有諍，即從高榻奮身于地，二親息諍。長為儒，十六歲獻吳越王《齊天賦》，眾推間世之才。欲出家，父母不聽，遂刺心血濡毫斷葷，終期副心。三十四歲依龍冊寺永明大師落髮受具，朝供眾、夜習禪。因覽《智度論》云「佛世一老人求出家，舍利弗不許。佛觀此人曩劫採樵，為虎所逼上樹，失聲念南無佛。有此微善，遇佛得度，獲羅漢果。」師念世間業繫眾生不能解脫，惟念佛可以誘化，乃印彌陀塔四十萬本，勸人禮念。一日懺堂遶旋次，忽普賢像前蓮華在手，因思宿願進退未決，遂作二紙鬮，一曰一心禪定、一曰萬善生淨土。中夜冥心自期曰：「於此二途功行成者，須七度拈起。」並得萬善生淨土鬮，一無間隔。於是每日誦經禮佛、念佛說戒、施食放生，日行利益事一百八件，未嘗暫怠。越王剏淨慈寺，命住持，賜智覺禪師號。會三宗師德，製《宗鏡錄》一百卷。《萬善同歸集》、《神棲安養賦》等九十七卷，並行于世。師志誠殷重，專以念佛勸人同生淨土，世稱宗門之標準、淨業之白眉。臨終預知時至，殊勝甚多，荼毘舍利鱗砌于身。嘗有僧死入冥，見閻王殿左供養畫僧一㡧，禮拜勤致，云：「是永明壽禪師。此人生西方上品，故禮敬之。」

The master's name was Yanshou, his courtesy name Chongxuan, his sobriquet Baoyizi, a native of Danyang, of the Wang family. From birth he was precocious: whenever his parents argued, he would cast himself down from the high couch to the ground, and both parents would cease arguing. Grown up, he became a Confucian scholar; at sixteen, he presented the "Rhapsody on Equaling Heaven" to the King of Wuyue, and the multitude praised him as a talent appearing once in an age. Desiring to leave home, his parents refused permission, so he pricked his heart's blood to moisten his writing brush and abstained from meat, ultimately hoping his wish would be fulfilled. At thirty-four, he went to Great Master Yongming at Longce Temple to shave his head and receive full ordination. In the morning he served the assembly, and at night he practiced dhyāna. Because he read the Dazhidu lun, which says: "In the Buddha's time, an old man sought to leave home, but Śāriputra would not permit it. The Buddha observed that in a past kalpa, this man had been gathering firewood, was cornered up a tree by a tiger, and involuntarily cried out, 'Namo Buddha!' Because of this slight root of goodness, he met the Buddha, attained deliverance, and achieved the fruit of arhatship." The master reflected that worldly sentient beings bound by karma could not obtain liberation, and only buddhānusmṛti could entice and transform them. He therefore printed four hundred thousand copies of the Amitābha Stūpa, exhorting people to pay homage and recite. One day, while circumambulating in the repentance hall, suddenly a lotus flower appeared before the statue of Samantabhadra and rested in his hand. Pondering whether to advance or retreat regarding his past vows and remaining undecided, he made two paper lots: one read "Single-minded Chan concentration," and the other read "Ten thousand goods giving rise to rebirth in the Pure Land." At midnight, focusing his mind, he set a condition for himself: "Whichever of these two paths' practices is to be accomplished, I must draw it out seven times." He drew the lot for "ten thousand goods giving rise to rebirth in the Pure Land" every time without exception. Thereupon, every day he chanted sūtras and paid homage to buddhas, recited the Buddha's name and explained the precepts, and gave food and released living beings, performing one hundred and eight beneficial acts a day without a moment's negligence. The King of Yue founded Jingci Temple and appointed him abbot, conferring the title Chan Master Zhijue. Gathering the virtuous masters of the three lineages, he composed the Zongjing lu in one hundred fascicles. His Wanshan tonggui ji, Shenqi anyang fu, and other works, totaling ninety-seven fascicles, circulated widely in the world. The master's sincerity was deep and solemn; he exclusively exhorted people with buddhānusmṛti to be reborn together in the Pure Land, praised by the world as the standard of the Chan school and the foremost exemplar of pure karma. When approaching the end, he knew the time in advance; extraordinary signs were numerous, and after cremation, relics were layered like scales upon his body. A monk once died and entered the netherworld, where he saw a painted portrait of a monk enshrined to the left of King Yama's hall, receiving diligent and respectful homage. It was said: "This is Chan Master Yanshou of Yongming. Because this person attained rebirth in the highest grade of the Western Direction, he is paid homage and revered."