勅修百丈清規 8.9

8.9

僧堂鍾

day, enlightenment, and nirvana; 4) on the inauguration and fulfillment days of the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇīs prayer session and chanting; 5) during the proceeding of the morning rice gruel and noon meal at the practice hall and also during evening zazen practice before opening the bedding; and 6) on the day the temple will receive government officials, [a new] abbot, or renowned guest officials, and also when these people depart the temple and are seen off. In the last case, however, the tolling of the bell is not confined to the specific number cited above; the administrative official is in charge of this matter.

3. The Practice Hall Bell

Whenever the practitioners are to assemble [at the practice hall], the practice hall bell (sengtangzhong) is tolled. This bell is tolled seven times to signal the abbot’s entrance into the practice hall to meet with practitioners. The following occasions are signaled by tolling the bell three times: the abbot’s departure from the hall after the breakfast and the noon meal; to announce the cancelation of the evening session; when the abbot makes a round through the hall on the first day of the month and the mid-month day; and when the abbot leaves the hall after drinking tea. (If the abbot does not leave the hall, or if he is away from the temple at the time, there is no tolling of the practice hall bell.)

During the time of prayer chanting in the outer practice hall, a gentle tolling of the bell is required for each instance of calling the sacred names of the Buddhas; at the last calling of the name, another toll is added to signal the end. The practice hall official is in charge of this.

4. The Buddha Hall Bell

The Buddha hall bell (dianzhong) is tolled when the abbot comes to offer incense at the morning and evening service. The bell is tolled seven times to call the practitioners to assemble at the Buddha hall, but the tolling of this bell must be coordinated with the tolling of the practice hall bell without fail. The hall master is in charge of this matter.

According to the Records on All Things Concerned (Gantongchuan, by Vinaya Master Daoxuan), it is said that the Buddha Krakucchanda made a bell out of a granite rock at the Temple of Sutras in India. At sunrise, many Buddhas manifested themselves along with it and esoterically exhorted and revealed the twelve categories of sutras. Thus, it was impossible to count the number of those who had realized arhatship after listening to the teachings of those Buddhas [that were revealed through the sound of the bell]. The Ekottara Āgama (i.e., Aṅguttara Nikāya) has the following passage: “Whenever a bell is tolled, all evil paths and all suffering ceased to be.” Again, in the Chronicle of Jinling (Jinlingzhi) [written in the Yuan period (in the southern capital city of Jinling), it is said that there was a man who died a sudden, violent death and went down to the place of the underworld ruler. There he saw a man totally imprisoned and fettered by a wooden [torture] rack. This man told him that he was formerly the ruler of the Southern Tang but because Song Jiqiu mistakenly killed those of Hezhou who had surrendered, this suffering had been imposed upon him. When he listened to the sound of bells, his suffering ceased temporarily. Therefore, he requested the man to convey to the present ruler who had succeeded him his desire that a large bell be put up on behalf of his well-being. The man, thus instructed, returned to this world and reported the matter to the ruler. Thus the grand bell was built and dedicated to Qingliangsi. Engraved on this bell was the phrase: “This is presented to the eminent ancestor ruler, Emperor Xiaogao, so as to help him be liberated from darkness and suffering.”

5. The Large Metal Gong

The large metal gong (daban) is struck for three long rounds on two occasions during the day, as part of the breakfast and noon meal proceedings. After the fish-shaped wooden gong (muyu) is sounded, the metal gong is struck three times to signal the beginning of the meal and then struck continuously in diminishing intervals. This is called “the long metal gong” (changban). On occasions of prayer chanting and the Śūraṃgama-dhāraṇī prayer session, the metal gong should be sounded three times for each occasion, to warn against fire and candle flames. When used to announce night watches, it is to be struck according to their respective numbers.

6. The Small [Wooden] Blocks

The abbot’s office, the administrative office, the quarters of the primary seat official, and the other quarters each keep their own small wooden sounding blocks (xiaoban), and at the time of the release from silence in the early morning, all these blocks are struck simultaneously for one long round. When used to signal an event to a small group of people, each block is struck three times. The practitioners’ quarters have small wooden sounding blocks in both the inner and outer areas. The wooden sounding block located outside should be struck three times at the time of the practitioners’ greeting each day, and at the time of regular zazen practice as well as zazen practice prior to the evening session. It is also sounded before the practitioners’ return to their quarters. On the occasions of servings of tea and sweet hot water, the small wooden sounding blocks are also struck for a long round [at diminishing intervals]. The block located inside the quarters is struck three times on the occasion of the establishment of residency, two times when cups are delivered to the hall for tea or sweet hot water, once when the cups are retrieved, and three times when the practitioners leave the practice hall. In case of the minor propriety of serving sweet hot water, it is sounded for one longer round.