勅修百丈清規 2.37

2.37

佛教入中國四百年而達磨至。又八傳而至百丈。唯以道相授受。或岩居穴處。或寄律寺。未有住持之名。百丈以禪宗寖盛。上而君相王公。下而儒老百氏。皆嚮風問道。有徒實蕃。非崇其位則師法不嚴。始奉其師為住持。而尊之曰長老。如天竺之稱舍利弗須菩提。以齒德俱尊也。作廣堂以居其眾。設兩序以分其職。而制度粲然矣。至於作務。猶與眾均其勞。常曰。一日不作一日不食。烏有庾廩之富輿僕之安哉。故始由眾所推。既而命之官。而猶辭聘不赴者。後則貴鬻豪奪。視若奇貨。然苟非其人。一寺廢蕩。又遺黨於後。至數十年蔓不可圖。而往往傳其冥報之慘。有不忍聞者。可不戒且懼乎。

Four hundred years after Buddhism entered China, Bodhidharma arrived. After another eight transmissions it reached Baizhang. They transmitted and received only by means of the Way: whether dwelling in crags and caverns, or lodging in vinaya monasteries, there was as yet no designation of 'abbot.' Because the Chan school was flourishing ever more, and from above, sovereigns, ministers, princes, and dukes, down to Confucians, Daoists, and the hundred schools, all were drawn to its style and inquired into the Way, the disciples were truly numerous. Without exalting his position, the master's teachings would lack gravity. Thus they first honored their master as abbot, revering him as 'elder,' just as in India Śāriputra and Subhūti were designated, being revered equally for age and virtue. He built a spacious hall to house the assembly, and established the two ranks to divide the duties, whereby the institutional system shone brilliantly. As for manual labor, he still shared the toil equally with the assembly, often saying: 'A day without work is a day without food.' How could there be the wealth of overflowing granaries or the ease of carriage servants? Therefore, at first, he was chosen by common acclamation of the assembly; later, appointments were made by the government, yet there were still those who declined appointments and refused to go. Later, offices were purchased for high prices or seized by brute force, viewed as rare commodities. If it is not the right person, an entire monastery falls into ruin, leaving factional cliques behind for decades that become an entanglement impossible to manage; and often the severity of their unseen retributions is spoken of, which one can hardly bear to hear. How could one not take warning and be fearful?