佛祖統紀 11.32

11.32

Dharma Master Sishang early on followed Jinghui and exhaustively penetrated his path. In the first year of Zhenghe [1111], he was decreed to reside at Upper Tianzhu and was bestowed the name Yuanwu. His lectures were concise and clear, looked up to by scholars. He once said: “Our tradition is doctrinal study. If one does not broadly master Confucian texts yet engages in lecturing, I fear he will not exhaust their principles. If the principles are not exhausted, where does the meaning reside? To grasp the meaning and forget the words—that is for those whose learning is already accomplished. If a beginner sets their mind toward learning, they must first seek the textual meaning, and that will do.”