佛祖統紀 43.49

43.49

述曰。磐少時客南海。見鄉落僧居畜妻養子。皆能執鈸鼓從事於赴請。問其度牒否。則曰。但於本郡給帖耳。此等皆因守郡者規微利。而不知慁瀆三寶之為過也。今此詔旨專戒長吏。可謂得護法之心焉。嘗聞蜀僧在鄉多畜妻子。平時習熟公私不以為非。今之西蜀遊學東南者。真成出家之士也。

The author remarks: In my youth, when I traveled in Nanhai, I saw that monastics dwelling in rural villages kept wives and raised children, and all were able to hold cymbals and drums to take part in responding to ritual invitations. When I asked if they had ordination certificates, they said: "We were only issued permits by the local commandery." Such men were all the result of commandery governors seeking petty gain, ignorant of the fault of desecrating the Three Jewels. Now, this imperial decree specifically admonishes the senior officials; it can indeed be called embodying the mind of protecting the Dharma. I have often heard that monks in Shu mostly keep wives and children in their home villages, and over time this has become such a familiar habit that neither the public nor private sphere regards it as wrong. Nowadays, those from Western Shu who travel and study in the Southeast are truly genuine renunciants.