歷代三寶紀 5.2

5.2

The Catalogue of Wei and Wu covers the two capitals of Luoyang and Jianye. Cao Pi, whose courtesy name was Zihuan, was a native of Qiao in Pei Commandery, and the heir of Cao Cao, Prime Minister of the Han. On the day of his birth, there was a blue cloud shaped like a chariot canopy that lingered above him, retaining its azure color throughout the day. Physiognomists declared it an omen of supreme nobility, not the likeness of a subject. At eight years of age, he was skilled in literary composition. He succeeded to the position of Prime Minister, became King of Wei, accepted the abdication of the Later Han, changed the state name to Wei, and established his capital at Luoyang. The span of the Fiery Han reached its end, and of the Five Sacred Peaks, its sacrifices were split between two. When the Wei received the abdication in the Huangchu era, the Nine Prefectures were subsequently divided into three. The Sun clan dominated Wu, relying on the Yangtze River to scheme for the empire. The Liu clan ruled Shu as kings, depending on Jiange in their ambition to pacify the Central Plains. With the claws and teeth of crouching tigers and the prowess of reclining dragons, each occupied a realm, intent on swallowing the other. Vying to guard their borders and fortify their passes and watch-posts, they widely recruited heroes to serve as their limbs and backbone, and generously honored men of talent to treat them as national treasures. Skillful masters and marvelous Dharmas likewise arrived together at this time: Kang Senghui went to Wu, and relics manifested their divine radiance to the east of the Yangtze; Dharmakāla traveled to Wei, and the prohibitive precepts were promulgated throughout Luoyang. From this point the monastic regulations flourished widely; and Jianchu Monastery was erected specifically [for Senghui]. Translators followed the times, accommodating regional dialects to produce sūtras according to the occasion, entitling them on the spot—giving rise to the *Wu Chapter* and the *Shu Lalitavistara*. Redundant retranslations thus began, and divergent streams and lost translations genuinely originated here. Now that the three states of Wei, Shu, and Wu stood like the three legs of a tripod, why is it that Shu alone lacks an imperial catalogue? Could it not be that when the sun of the Buddha shines brilliantly in the sky, those without affinity cannot see it; and when the thunder of the Dharma shakes the earth, those under contiguous eaves fail to hear it? Moreover, although old catalogues note sūtras such as the *Shu Lalitavistara* and *Śūraṅgama*, they lack the translators' names and eras; should one wish to record them, there is nothing to rely upon. Being relegated to lost translations, Shu therefore has no separate catalogue. Sun Quan, whose courtesy name was Zhongmou, was a native of Fuchun in Wu Commandery, whose family had served in Wu for generations. Divine light and cloudy vapors frequently appeared over his ancestral tomb to the east. Furthermore, when Quan was conceived, his mother dreamed that her intestines were drawn forth to encircle the Changmen Gate of Wu; all said that the Sun clan would rise. When Quan was born, his eyes held an unusual light, and he had a square jaw and a broad mouth; his father was amazed by him. Quan became a hegemon king: striding across Min and Yue, taking his capital under the Dipper and Ox constellations, enfeoffing vassals, establishing reign titles, receiving the homage of the seas and mountains, and facing south to rule as king, styling [his state] Wu. He relocated his seat of government to Moling, renaming it Jianye. Two years after Wei succeeded the Han, Quan established himself. There were four rulers spanning fifty-nine years. Two years after Sun Hao ascended the throne, Wei abdicated to Jin; fifteen years after Jin was established, it subdued Wu. If reckoned by years, Sun Hao's fourteen years should belong to the Jin dynasty; but now they are collected together and concluded as the Wu Catalogue. From the first year of Emperor Wen's Huangchu era (gengzi) to the first year of Emperor Yuan's Xianxi era (jiashen), during these forty-five years under five rulers, there were ten monastics and laymen; the sūtras, vinayas, and karmavācanās they produced, together with formerly lost translations, total three hundred twelve works in four hundred eighty-three fascicles. These are collectively compiled as the dynastic records of the nine rulers and two capitals across the two eras of Wei and Wu.