歷代三寶紀 8.174

8.174

右四部合四卷。晉安帝世。京兆沙門釋僧肇著。肇家素貧以傭書為業。遂因繕寫乃得寓心。歷觀經史備盡墳籍。性好玄微每以莊老為心要府。嘗讀老子至道德章。乃嗟歎曰。美則美矣。然則斯神冥累之方猶未盡也。後因遇見舊維摩經。歡喜頂受披尋翫味。乃言。今始知所歸矣。因此出家。學善方等兼通三藏。及在冠年而名振關輔。時競譽之。徒莫不猜其早達。或千里負糧入關抗辯。肇既才思幽玄又善談說。承機挫銳曾不留滯。時京兆宿儒及關外英彥。莫不挹其鋒辯負氣摧衂。後羅什至姑臧。肇自遠從之。什嗟賞無極。及什適常安。肇亦隨焉。姚興命肇與僧叡等入逍遙園助詳定經論。肇甚才慧。以為像季去聖久遠文義舛雜。先舊所解時有乖謬。及預詳譯諮稟羅什。所悟更多。因出大品之後。肇便著般若無知論。出二千言。竟以呈什。什讀稱善。乃謂肇曰。吾解當不謝子辭敢相挹。時廬山隱士劉遺民。見肇此論。乃歎曰。不意方袍復有平叔。因以呈遠。遠乃撫机歎曰。未嘗有也。因共披尋翫味更存往復。遺民乃致書於肇曰。頃飡徽問有懷遙仰。歲末寒嚴體中何如。音寄壅隔用增悒蘊。弟子枕痾草澤常有弊瘁。願彼大眾康和外國法師休愈不。去年夏末見上人般若無知論。才運清俊旨中沈允。推步聖文婉然有歸。披味慇懃不能釋手。真可謂浴心方等之淵悟懷絕冥之肆。窮盡精巧無所間然。但闇者難曉猶有餘疑。今輒條之如別。願從容之暇粗為釋之。肇答書曰。不面在昔佇想用勞。得前疏并問披尋反覆。欣若暫對涼風。戒節頃常何如。貧道勞疾每不能佳。即此大眾尋常。什法。師休勝。秦主道性自然天機邁俗。城塹三寶弘道是務。由使異典勝僧自遠而至。靈鷲之風萃乎茲土。領公遠舉乃是千載之津梁。於西域還得方等新經二百餘部。什師於大寺出新至諸經。法藏淵曠日有異聞。禪師於瓦官寺教習禪道。門徒數百。日夜匪懈。邕邕肅肅。致自欣樂。三藏法師於中寺出律部。本末精悉若覩初制。毘婆沙法師於石羊寺出舍利弗毘曇。梵本雖未及譯。時問中事發言新奇貧道一生猥參嘉運遇茲盛化。自不覩釋迦泥洹之集。餘復何恨。但恨不得與道勝君子同斯法集耳。稱詠既深聊復委及。然來問婉切難為郢人。貧道思不關微兼拙於筆語。且至趣無言。言則乖趣。云云不已竟何所論。聊以狂言示詶來旨也。後著不真空論物不遷論等并注維摩及製諸經論序。竝傳於世。及什亡後追悼永往翹思彌勵。乃著涅槃無名論。其辭曰。經稱有餘無餘涅槃者秦言無為。亦名滅度。無為涅槃者取乎虛無寂寞妙絕於有為。滅度者言乎大患永滅超度四流。斯蓋鏡像之所歸。絕稱之幽宅也。而曰有餘無餘者。蓋是出處之異號。應物之假名。余嘗試言之。夫涅槃之為道也。寂寥虛曠不可以形名得。微妙無相不可以有心知。超群有以幽昇。量太虛而永久。循之弗得其蹤。迎之罔眺其首。六趣不能接其生。力負無以化其體。眇漭恍惚若存若往五目莫覩其容。二聽不聞其響。冥冥窈窈誰見誰曉。彌淪靡所不在。而獨曳於有無之表。然則言之者失其真。知之者反其愚。有之者乖其性。無之者傷其軀。所以釋迦掩室於摩竭。淨名杜口於毘耶。須菩提唱無說以顯道。釋梵絕聽而雨花。斯皆理為神御。故口為緘默。豈曰無辯。辯所不能言也。經曰。真解脫者離於言數寂滅永安。無終無始。不晦不明。不寒不暑。湛若虛空。無名無證。論曰。涅槃非有亦復非無。言語路絕心行處滅。尋夫經論之作豈虛構哉。果有其所以不有。故不可得而有。有其所以不無。故不可得而無耳。何者本之有境則五陰永滅。推之無鄉則幽靈不竭。幽靈不竭則抱一湛然。五陰永滅則萬累都捐。萬累都捐故與道通同。抱一湛然故神而無功。神而無功故至功常在。與道通同故冲而不改。冲而不改不可為有。至功常在不可為無。然則有無絕於內。稱謂淪於外。視聽之所不暨。四空之所昏昧。恬兮而夷。泊焉而泰。九流於是乎交歸。眾聖於此乎冥會。斯乃希夷之境太玄之鄉。而欲以有無題牓標其方域。而語其神道者不亦邈哉。其後十演九折。凡數千言。文多不載。論成之後上表於姚興曰。肇聞天得一以清。地得一以寧。君王得一以治天下。伏惟陛下叡哲欽明。道與神會。妙契寰中。理無不統。故能遊刃萬機弘道終日。化被蒼生垂文作範。所以域中有四大王居其一焉。涅槃之道。蓋是三乘之所歸。方等之淵府。眇𣾘希夷。絕視聽之域。幽致虛玄。非群情所測。肇以人微猥蒙國恩得閑居學肆。在什公門下十有餘年。雖眾經殊趣勝致非一。涅槃一義常為聽先。但肇才識闇短。雖屢蒙誨喻猶懷漠漠。為竭愚不已亦如似有解。然未經高勝先唱不敢自決。不幸什公去世。諮參無所。以為永恨。而陛下聖德不孤。獨與什公神契目擊道存。決其方寸。故能振彼玄風以啟末俗。一日遇蒙答安成侯嵩問無為崇極。頗涉涅槃無名之義。今輒作涅槃無名論。有十演九折。博採眾經託證成喻。以仰述陛下無名之致。豈曰開詣神心窮究遠當。聊以擬議玄門班喻學徒耳。若少參聖旨願勅存記。如其有差伏承旨授。興答旨慇懃備加讚述。即勅令繕寫班諸子姪。其為時所重如此。

The above four works comprise four fascicles in total. They were composed during the reign of Emperor An of Jin by the śramaṇa Shi Sengzhao of Jingzhao. Sengzhao's family was originally poor, and he made his living as a copyist. By copying manuscripts, he was able to apply his mind [to study]. He read through the classics and histories, fully mastering the ancient texts. By nature he was fond of the profound and subtle, and always regarded Zhuangzi and Laozi as the treasury of his mind. He once read the Laozi up to the chapters on the Dao and its Virtue, whereupon he sighed and said, 'Beautiful indeed it is! Yet as a means to cause the spirit to dwell beyond worldly encumbrances, it is still not exhaustive.' Later, when he happened upon the old Vimalakīrti Sūtra, he rejoiced, received it reverently on his crown, and studied and savoured it. He then remarked, 'Only now do I know where to take refuge!' Thereupon he left the household life. He studied and excelled in the Vaipulya teachings and also mastered the Tripiṭaka. By the time he was capped (twenty years of age), his renown shook the Guanzhong region. Contemporaries competed to praise him, yet his peers could not help but be suspicious of his precocious attainment, and some carried provisions for a thousand li, entering the Pass to debate him. Because Sengzhao possessed subtle and profound intellect and was also skilled in discourse, he took advantage of every opportunity to blunt their sharpness, never hesitating in the slightest. The senior scholars of Jingzhao and the luminaries from outside the Pass all yielded to his sharp eloquence, their pride crushed and defeated. Later, when Kumārajīva arrived in Guzang, Sengzhao came from afar to follow him. Kumārajīva admired and praised him boundlessly. When Kumārajīva went to Chang'an, Sengzhao also accompanied him. Yao Xing ordered Sengzhao, Sengrui, and others to enter the Xiaoyao Garden to assist in scrutinizing and establishing the scriptures and treatises. Sengzhao was exceptionally talented and wise. He considered that in this semblance age, far removed from the sages, textual meanings had become corrupt and mixed, and the interpretations of predecessors often contained errors. When he participated in the detailed translation and received instruction from Kumārajīva, his understanding deepened even further. Accordingly, after the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra was translated, Sengzhao composed the Treatise on Prajñā without Knowing, running to more than two thousand words. When finished, he presented it to Kumārajīva. Kumārajīva read it, praised it as excellent, and said to Sengzhao, 'My understanding should not fall short of yours, but for your literary expression I dare to yield to you.' At that time, the hermit Liu Yimin of Mount Lu saw this treatise of Sengzhao and exclaimed with a sigh, 'Who would have thought that among the square-robed monks there would be another He Pingshu?' He then presented it to [Hui]yuan. Huiyuan stroked his table and sighed, 'Such a work has never existed before!' Thereupon they studied and savoured it together and maintained a correspondence. Yimin then sent a letter to Sengzhao, saying: 'Lately I have heard of your fine reputation, and my heart has long looked up to you from afar. In this severe cold at year's end, how is your physical health? Communication has been blocked and distant, which only increases my melancholic yearning. Your disciple lies ill in the marshes, constantly weary and afflicted. I pray that the great assembly there is in good health and harmony, and is the foreign Dharma master well and recovered? At the end of last summer I saw your Venerable Sir's Treatise on Prajñā without Knowing. Its literary brilliance is pure and eminent, and its purport profound and fitting. Investigating the sacred texts, it gracefully reaches its destination. Savoring it attentively, I could not lay it down. It may truly be called bathing the mind in the abyss of the Vaipulya and awakening the heart in the lodge of absolute mystery. It exhausts subtlety and skill, leaving no fault to be found. Yet for those who are obtuse it is hard to fathom, and some doubts still remain. I now list them separately as attached. I hope that in your leisurely moments you may roughly elucidate them.' Sengzhao replied in a letter, saying: 'It has been long since we met in person, and my longing thoughts have grown weary. I received your previous letter and inquiries, and have studied them repeatedly. My joy was like suddenly facing a cool breeze. How have you been keeping your vows and health lately? This poor monk is troubled by illness and seldom feels well. The great assembly here is as usual. Dharma Master Kumārajīva is well and flourishing. The Lord of Qin's nature of the Way is natural, and his heavenly capacity transcends the mundane. Fortifying the Three Jewels, his business is the promotion of the Way. Because of this, uncommon scriptures and superior monks arrive from afar. The style of the Vulture Peak gathers in this land. Master [Dao]ling's distant journey has served as a bridge of a thousand ages. From the Western Regions he brought back over two hundred works of new Vaipulya scriptures. Master Kumārajīva translates newly arrived scriptures at the Great Monastery; the treasury of Dharma is deep and vast, and extraordinary things are heard every day. The Dhyāna Master teaches the practice of the path of dhyāna at Waguan Monastery, with hundreds of disciples working day and night without tire, harmonious and solemn, which brings great joy. The Tripiṭaka Master translates the Vinaya section at the Middle Monastery, so precise and thorough in origins and details that it is like witnessing its original institution. The Vibhāṣā Master translates the Śāriputrābhidharma at Shiyang Monastery; although the Sanskrit text has not yet been translated, from time to time inquiries are made into its contents, yielding novel and extraordinary statements. In my lifetime, this poor monk has haphazardly partaken of this fortunate destiny and encountered such flourishing transformation. Aside from not witnessing the assembly at Śākyamuni's nirvāṇa, what other regret could I have? My only regret is that I cannot share this Dharma gathering with gentlemen of superior virtue like yourself. My praise and song are profound, so I venture to write in detail. However, your inquiries are so refined and acute that it is hard for me to be the master carver of Ying. This poor monk's thoughts do not penetrate the subtle, and I am moreover clumsy in writing. Furthermore, the ultimate truth is wordless; to speak is to deviate from the truth. Continuing on and on, what would actually be discussed? I offer these wild words merely to respond to your esteemed intention.' Later he composed the Treatise on the Emptiness of the Unreal, the Treatise on the Immutability of Things, and other works, and wrote commentaries on the Vimalakīrti and prefaces to various scriptures and treatises, all of which circulate in the world. After Kumārajīva passed away, mourning his eternal departure, Sengzhao was even more spurred on in his contemplation, and thus composed the Treatise on the Namelessness of Nirvāṇa. Its words run: 'What the sūtras call nirvāṇa with residue and without residue is translated into the language of Qin as non-action (wuwei), and is also called parinirvāṇa (miedu). Nirvāṇa as non-action takes its sense from emptiness, stillness, and sublime transcendence over conditioned dharmas. Parinirvāṇa expresses the eternal extinguishing of the great affliction and transcendence across the four currents. This is indeed the refuge of mirrored images, the secluded abode beyond appellation. As for the designations "with residue" and "without residue", they are merely different names for arising and abiding, provisional terms responding to things. Let me attempt to speak of it: The Way of nirvāṇa is solitary, vast, and empty; it cannot be grasped through form or name. Subtle and signless, it cannot be known with a conceptual mind. Transcending the multitude of existences, it ascends obscurely; rivaling the great void, it is enduring. Following it, one cannot find its tracks; greeting it, one cannot see its head. The six destinies cannot lay hold of its life; physical force cannot transform its substance. Boundless and indistinct, as if existing yet as if departed, the five eyes cannot view its form, and the two listenings cannot hear its sound. Dark and deep, who sees it and who understands it? Pervading everywhere, there is nowhere it is not present, yet it moves alone beyond being and non-being. Therefore, those who speak of it miss its reality; those who claim to know it turn back to folly. Those who affirm its being contravene its nature; those who affirm its non-being harm its essence. Thus Śākyamuni closed his chamber in Magadha, and Vimalakīrti shut his mouth in Vaiśālī; Subhūti proclaimed non-preaching to manifest the Way, and Śakra and Brahmā ceased their listening and rained down flowers. In all these cases, the principle steered the spirit, and therefore the mouth remained silent. Could it be said they lacked eloquence? It was that eloquence could not express it. The sūtra says: "True liberation is free from words and numbers, quiescent and eternally tranquil, without end and without beginning, neither dark nor bright, neither cold nor hot, clear as empty space, without name and without realization." The treatise says: "Nirvāṇa is neither existent nor non-existent; the path of language is cut off, and the place of mental activity is extinguished." Considering the composition of the sūtras and treatises, how could they be fabricated in vain? Indeed, there is that by which it is not existent, and thus it cannot be had as existent; there is that by which it is not non-existent, and thus it cannot be had as non-existent. Why so? Traced to the realm of existence, the five aggregates are eternally extinguished; pursued to the realm of non-existence, the subtle spirit does not cease. When the subtle spirit does not cease, it embraces oneness and remains clear. When the five aggregates are eternally extinguished, the myriad encumbrances are entirely cast aside. Because the myriad encumbrances are entirely cast aside, it is in complete union with the Way. Because it embraces oneness and remains clear, it is spiritual without exertion. Because it is spiritual without exertion, ultimate efficacy is ever present. Because it is in complete union with the Way, it is empty and unchanging. Being empty and unchanging, it cannot be considered existent; ultimate efficacy being ever present, it cannot be considered non-existent. Thus being and non-being are cut off within, and appellations vanish without. It is beyond the reach of sight and hearing, and obscured to the four formless attainments. Calm and tranquil, peaceful and serene. Here the nine currents converge, and all sages merge in darkness. This is indeed the realm of the subtle and minute, the land of the Great Mystery. Yet to attempt to mark its domain with the placards of being and non-being, and speak of its spiritual Way—is that not far removed indeed?' After this there were ten expositions and nine refutations, totaling several thousand words, which are not recorded here due to length. After the treatise was completed, he submitted a memorial to Yao Xing, saying: 'Zhao has heard: Heaven attained the One and thereby became clear; Earth attained the One and thereby became tranquil; kings and lords attained the One and thereby brought order to the world. Prostrating, I reflect that Your Majesty possesses sagely brilliance, reverent and luminous; your Way unites with the spirit, wondrously matching the realm of the world, and there is no principle that you do not govern. Thus you can handle the myriad affairs with ease and promote the Way throughout the day. Your transformation blankets the common people, and you bestow writings as models; thus within the realm there are four greats, and the king occupies one of them. The Way of nirvāṇa is indeed the destination of the Three Vehicles, the deep treasury of the Vaipulya. Vast, subtle, and minute, it is beyond the realm of sight and hearing; secluded, empty, and profound, it cannot be fathomed by common minds. Zhao is a person of low status who has undeservedly received the state's kindness to reside at leisure in the house of study, remaining under Master Kumārajīva's gate for over ten years. Although the diverse sutras have distinct orientations and superior purports that are not singular, the single doctrine of nirvāṇa was always the primary thing heard. Yet Zhao's talent and discernment are dim and deficient; though repeatedly receiving instruction and metaphors, my mind still harbored obscurity. Straining my folly unceasingly, I seemed to gain some understanding, yet without having it affirmed by eminent superiors, I dared not determine it myself. Unfortunately, Master Kumārajīva has passed away, leaving me nowhere to seek counsel, which will be my eternal regret. However, Your Majesty's sagely virtue is not solitary; alone you share spiritual accord with Master Kumārajīva, perceiving the Way immediately upon sight, resolving matters in your heart. Thus you are able to stir that profound wind to enlighten the final age. One day, I was fortunate enough to witness your reply to Yao Song, the Marquis of Ancheng, regarding the exalted culmination of non-action, which considerably touched upon the meaning of the Namelessness of Nirvāṇa. Now I have ventured to compose the Treatise on the Namelessness of Nirvāṇa, consisting of ten expositions and nine refutations, widely gathering various sūtras and drawing upon proofs and parables, to reverently express Your Majesty's nameless purport. How could I claim to enlighten your spiritual mind or exhaust the distant truth? I offer it merely as a tentative discussion of the profound portal to instruct and guide students. If it slightly conforms to Your Sagely intention, I pray you will order it to be preserved; if there are errors, I humbly await your instruction.' Yao Xing replied with earnest intent, lavishing praise and commentary, and immediately ordered it to be transcribed and distributed among his sons and nephews. Such was the esteem in which he was held by his contemporaries.