佛祖統紀 11.28

11.28

Dharma Master Dexian was a native of Lin’an, bestowed with the name Yuanying. When he was a child, a physiognomist said, “In the future he will face an official misfortune; only by becoming a monk can he avoid it.” His father believed this and sent him to rely on his paternal uncle, Haiyue. Haiyue reprimanded him, saying: “Only after generations of fathers and grandsons succeeding one another has our family enterprise been established. Do you wish to come here to become the master?” The Master then left. When his hair was shaved, he went again to Tianzhu to visit Jinghui, and came to understand thoroughly the path of teaching and contemplation. After a long time, he came to occupy the first seat. A layman visited Jinghui and said: “An unmarried maiden in my house is troubled by a possessing spirit, suddenly weeping and suddenly crying out. I pray the Master will compassionately save her.” Jinghui said: “My head monk can cure this.” The layman went to ask him. The Master then ordered a couch to be set up in the upper room where the maiden lived. When he arrived, he went to the couch and slept. After a short while, he finally left. The maiden reported to her father: “Just now I was favored with the Dharma Master’s awakening me; now it is gone forever.” From then on her mental faculties became calm and settled. When Jinghui retired to live in Caotang, the Master succeeded to his seat, which indeed matched Haiyue’s prediction of his becoming the master. After residing there for five years, he died without illness. He said to his disciples: “During my life I avoided disaster through the power of the Way; after my death I fear I cannot escape it.” When his disciples made an image of him to place in the Patriarchal Hall, they used iron to protect its neck. During the Jianyan era, the Jin Jurchen prince Zhenzhu led troops to invade Zhejiang. Entering Tianzhu, he ascended to the Patriarchal Hall; all the images moved aside from their seats and bowed, but only the Master’s image remained unmoved. The prince was enraged and ordered it to be decapitated, but because there was iron on its neck it could not be damaged. He then ordered firewood to be piled up to fill the gate and set on fire to burn it. When the firewood was consumed, the building remained as before. The Jurchens were greatly startled, praised and bowed to it, and withdrew.