勅修百丈清規 4.64

4.64

視田界至修理莊舍。提督農務撫安莊佃。些少事故隨時消弭。事關大體申寺定奪近時叢林凋弊百出。而莊中尤甚。略舉其三。諸方通害初爭莊職。安能遍及。搆怨住持上下不睦一也。一充其職離寺相遠。靡所不為。致爭起訟。供眾錢糧盡皆耗費。復積逋負以累于後。因而紀綱不振。莊佃生侮租課不還。其弊二也。縱使老成能事充之。而州縣應酬。吏胥管幹。鄉都職役。隣里富豪。皆合追陪。既啟其端。稍有不及。便生釁隙。雖不明支。而巧立除破公私無益。故莊中之費或半於寺。其弊三也。只如大家業產巨富不聞分遣子弟。遍居莊所。蓋耕種有佃。提督則有甲幹。收租之時自有監收僧行。此外縱有輸納修圩依糧等項。只臨時分委勤舊知事。限期使辦。事畢旋歸。非唯省費。有補常住而消禍未萌。公私攸濟。今諸方之廢如逃亡家。住持勤舊能恤念寺門。欲撙費救弊汰除濫冗。請自此始。其初例有當重難。而應充莊職者別議酬補之。

He inspects field boundaries, repairs manor buildings, supervises agricultural affairs, and pacifies the manor tenants. Minor incidents are resolved on the spot as they arise; matters concerning the broader situation are reported to the monastery for decision. In recent times, the decline of monastic groves has spawned a hundred abuses, which are especially severe in the manors. To mention three briefly: a general harm in all regions is that monks initially compete for the manor office, but how could all receive it? Resentment against the abbot arises, causing discord between superiors and inferiors; this is the first abuse. Once filling the office, being far from the monastery, they do as they please, stirring up disputes and lawsuits; money and provisions meant for the assembly are completely depleted, and unpaid debts accumulate to burden successors, thereby breaking down discipline so that tenants show contempt and withhold rents; this is the second abuse. Even if an experienced and capable person fills it, in social interactions with counties and prefectures, managing clerks, sub-county and township officials, and wealthy neighbors, he must accompany them all. Once that begins, the slightest shortcoming gives rise to rifts; even if expenditures are not openly claimed, funds are cleverly written off with no benefit to public or private interest, so that expenses at the manor may amount to half those of the monastery; this is the third abuse. Take great families of vast wealth: one does not hear of them dispatching sons and brothers to reside across every manor. Cultivation has tenants, supervision has bailiffs, and at rent collection time there are monks and postulants overseeing collection. Beyond this, even if there are tax deliveries, dike repairs, or grain requisitions, they merely temporarily delegate retired officers and administrators to complete them within a deadline and return immediately upon completion. This not only saves expense and benefits the monastery, but also nips disasters in the bud, benefiting both public and private sides. Nowadays, the decay in various quarters is like that of abandoned households. If the abbot and retired officers can care for the monastery, wishing to curtail expenses, remedy abuses, and eliminate redundancies, please begin with this. Those who originally faced grave difficulties and were due to serve as manor masters may be compensated through other arrangements.