宏智禪師廣錄 9.513

9.513

to be established as head monk. When Danxia resided at Dahong, the master managed the recording office. In the third year of the Xuanhe era, he was promoted to head monk. At that time, Zhi of Jinxiu, Zong of Xuedou, Wu of Baofu, and Zhao of Fengshan all studied and followed him. The following year, he shared the seat under the assembly of Zhaochanti of Yuantong on Mount Lu. When Zhenxie resided at Changlu, hearing of the master's name, he sent a letter inviting him. Striking the bell, he went out to welcome him, and the great assembly looked on in awe. The master's whiskers and brows were strikingly antique, leaning forward and dark; his robes were tattered, and his sandals and socks were worn through with holes. Zhenxie sent an attendant to replace them with new shoes, but the master declined, saying, "Did I come here for the sake of shoes?" Zhenxie and the assembly earnestly implored him to occupy the first seat. At that time, the assembly exceeded one thousand seven hundred. Seeing the master's youth, they initially took him lightly; but when he held the whisk, even those veteran in inquiry and instruction submitted to him from their hearts. Two years later, he took up residence at Puzhao in Sizhou, which truly marked his emergence into the world as a Dharma successor of Venerable Danxia Chun. Prior to this, half of the monastery had been requisitioned to become a Shenxiao Daoist Temple, and furthermore, both Huai regions suffered repeated famines, so the monastic kitchen was empty. What was needed for the two daily meals had to be mixed with beans and wheat. When the master arrived, he ordered that pure non-glutinous rice be used. The storehouse monk objected that supplies were insufficient, but the master repeated the order as before. Soon after, donations from dānapatis arrived in abundance.