佛祖統紀 38.85

38.85

天和四年。沙門藏稱。於長安譯經。沙門至德譯法華經普門重頌偈○詔名儒僧道申述三教。沙門道安作二教論。以儒道九流為外教。釋氏為內教。帝信道士張賓衛元嵩之讚。以讖緯黑衣當王。心忌釋氏。張賓說帝曰。唐虞無佛圖而國安。齊梁有寺舍而祚短。但利民益國即稱佛心。夫佛以大慈為本。終不苦役黎民虔恭泥木。請造平延大寺容著四海蒼生。不立曲見伽籃遍安大乘五典。以平延者。無問道俗罔擇怨親。以城隍為塔寺。即皇帝是如來。用郭邑作僧坊。和夫妻為聖眾。推令德作三綱。尊耆年為上座。選仁智充知事。求勇恪作法師。是以六合無怨紂之心。八方有歌周之詠云云。

In the fourth year of Tianhe, the monk Zangcheng translated scriptures in Chang'an. The monk Zhide translated the repeated verses of the Universal Gate chapter of the Lotus Sūtra. An imperial edict commanded prominent Confucians, Buddhist monks, and Daoists to present expositions on the Three Teachings. The monk Dao'an composed the Treatise on the Two Teachings, designating Confucianism, Daoism, and the nine schools as the external teachings, and Buddhism as the internal teaching. The Emperor believed the counsel of the Daoists Zhang Bin and Wei Yuansong; based on the apocryphal prophecy that "the black-robed will rule," his mind grew suspicious of Buddhism. Zhang Bin persuaded the Emperor, saying: "In the times of Tang and Yu, there were no Buddhist stupas, yet the states were tranquil; the Qi and the Liang had monasteries, yet their reigns were brief. As long as one benefits the people and enriches the state, that is in accord with the Buddha's intention! Indeed, the Buddha takes great compassion as the foundation and would never impose bitter labor on the common people just to revere mud and wood. We request the building of the Great Temple of Pingyan to embrace the populace within the four seas, not establishing temples of narrow and biased views, but everywhere settling the Mahāyāna and the five classical scriptures. By Pingyan ["Universal Extension"], we mean: regardless of monastic or lay, making no distinction between foe and kin; taking the city walls and moats as stupas and monasteries, so that the Emperor himself is the Tathāgata; using districts and cities as monastic quarters, and uniting husbands and wives as the holy assembly; selecting those of illustrious virtue to serve as the Three Directors, honoring the aged as elders (sthaviras), choosing the benevolent and wise to serve as administrators, and seeking the brave and reverent to serve as Dharma masters. In this way, there will be no mind of resentment against a tyrant throughout the six directions, and all eight quarters will sing praises of the Zhou," and so forth.