佛祖統紀 21

English (machine translation) 21

Language: English

21.1

Compiled by the Śramaṇa Zhipan of Donghu in Siming during the Jingding era of the Song.

21.2

Miscellaneous Biographies of the Various Masters, Part 7:

Dharma Master Jìngjué Rényuè,
(Second Generation) Dharma Master Zǐfǎng of Wúxīng,
Dharma Master Kějiǔ of Qiántáng,
Dharma Master Huìqín of Qiántáng,
Dharma Master Cífàn of Zhàchuān,
Dharma Master Yíngkē of Zhàchuān,
Dharma Master Nǎirén of Yǒngjiā,
Dharma Master Língzhào of Chāoguǒ,
Bureau of Military Affairs Commissioner Hú Sù,
Dharma Master Shénzhì Cóngyì,
(Second Generation) Dharma Master Huèiyuè Liǎoruì,
Dharma Master Cǎo'ān Dàoyīn,
(Second Generation) Dharma Master Zǐ'ān Yǒulún,
Dharma Master Guǎngshòu Fǎyīn,
Dharma Master Dàoshí of Siming,
Confucian Scholar Shù'ān Xuē Chéng.

21.4

The composition of the Miscellaneous Biographies is intended to record those among the various masters who were not unadulterated and orthodox. Thus Jìngjué is recorded for turning his back on the lineage; Shénzhì is recorded for attacking the Patriarch; and Cǎo'ān is recorded for losing the transmission. Some may say: 'In the time of Fazhi, there were those who maintained differing views both earlier and later; should they all be relegated to the Miscellaneous Biographies?' However, between Zhāoyuán and Siming, there was no mutual inclusion in master-disciple lineage; later people broadly referred to them as 'Off-Mountain' (Shānwài), which was already sufficient to reprove them. As for Fazhi's descendants who occasionally made contrary statements, none were as egregious as Jìngjué and Shénzhì. They were invoked as kin yet were not of the same kind, so for now I designate these two men as the foremost. (For *zhu* [praying/invoking], the pronunciation is *zhi* and *jiu* reversed; the matter is found in Yangzi.)

21.5

Dharma Master Rényuè was of the Jiāng clan of Zhàchuān, and gave himself the style Qiánfū. Hearing of Fazhi's teaching activities at Southern Lake, he went to rely on him for study. Arriving at the Shuǐyuè Bridge, he threw his bamboo hat into the water and said, 'If my study does not succeed, I will not cross this bridge again.' Fazhi esteemed his talent, and housed him in the eastern wing, where he burned the oil lamp by daylight, exclusively devoted to untangling and weaving the teachings. When letters from his home arrived, he threw them all on top of his bed curtains and never opened them to look. Once, when he went outside the boundaries to seek alms and was travelling by boat on the water, he lay flat, stretched his feet, and was suddenly self-realized, as if expanding into open space; the mast snapped on account of it. Whenever he requested instruction or brought texts, he would walk with large strides and lock the large latch; the assembly looked on his presence with awe. At that time, Master Zhāo abridged the *Guāngmíng xuán* without using contemplation of the mind; the Master assisted Siming in composing the *Wènyí shū* (Inquiry into Doubts) to challenge it. When Siming produced the *Miàozōng* (*Record of the Wondrous Sect*) and the *Xiāofú sānyòng* (*Three Functions of Dispelling and Subduing*), Master Rùn composed the *Zhǐxiá* (*Pointing Out Flaws*) to raise difficulties against them; the Master composed the *Zhǐyí juémó* (*Quelling Doubts and Removing the Film*) to rectify them. When Siming discussed 'the distinct principle according with conditions', Master Qí composed the *Zhǐlàn* (*Pointing Out Overlaps*) to reject it; the Master wrote the *Shínàn* (*Ten Difficulties*) to support [Siming]. In this way, his assistance to Siming was powerful. Later, he cultivated the Invocation of Guanyin Samādhi together with ten like-minded companions. Due to an illness, while convalescing, he sat in peaceful contemplation in a quiet chamber and felt as if awakening from a dream. He considered that what he had studied previously was entirely wrong. He then composed the *Sānshēn shòuliàng jiě* (*Explanation of the Threefold Body and Lifespan*) to raise difficulties against the *Miàozōng*. Since their paths were no longer in accord, he returned to Lingshan in Zheyang, where he was accepted by Cíyún into his Dharma lineage. Siming thereupon added the *Thirteen Discriminations* (*Shísān liàojiǎn*) to refute him. The Master again submitted the *Shíjiàn xuěbàng* (*Ten Remonstrances to Clear Slander*), with debates going back and forth incessantly. (Details appear in the Basic Annals of Siming.) When Zhāoqìng had an invitation, Cíyún composed a poem to see him off. Half of the disciples followed him there, and Yún did not stop them. Having moved to Shíbì, he later relocated to Língzhī. At that time, Fazhi had already passed into extinction; the Master stood before the assembly and boasted to himself, 'Just because I pressed the Master of Siming to death with difficulties, who would dare open his mouth at Língzhī?' Practitioner Yǒurén invited him from Yǒngjiā to reside at Jìngshè; he stayed for ten years, greatly propagating the Dharma transformation. Due to old age, he returned to his home region. The prefect of Zha invited him to preside over Xiángfú. Surveillance Commissioner Liú Cóngguǎng memorialized on his behalf for an imperial monastic robe. Commissioner of the Bureau of Military Affairs Hú Sù petitioned for the title 'Jìngjué' on his behalf. In his late years, he exclusively cultivated Pure Land practices and burned three fingers as an offering to the Buddha. He observed the precepts with extreme strictness and never changed his standards on account of mundane matters. He founded the Yǐnlún Hall and Xiū Room as his private dwelling. In the spring of the first year of Zhiping [1064], he said to his disciples, 'I shall depart tomorrow at noon.' Indeed, leaving behind a verse, he sat peacefully and died. It was the twenty-fifth day of the third month. His entire body was entombed in a stupa on the western corner of Mount He. His Dharma heirs, such as Cífàn and Nǎirén, were all outstanding models of their generation. The Master was especially attentive to the *Śūraṅgama*; synthesizing various explanations, he composed the *Huìjiě* (Synthesized Commentary) in ten fascicles, the *Xūnwén jì* (Record of Fumigated Hearing) in five fascicles (explaining his own *Huìjiě*), and the *Léngyán wénjù* (Words and Phrases of the Śūraṅgama) in three fascicles. Laying out the Fivefold Profound Meaning, there was the *Léngyán shuōtí* (Elucidation of the Title of the Śūraṅgama); clarifying the profound purport of practice and realization, there was the *Léngyán chànyí* (Śūraṅgama Repentance Ritual). Furthermore, he regulated the musical notes and melodies for the dhāraṇī chapters as a method for chanting and performing them. He also authored the *Jīngāng bōrě shū* (Diamond Sūtra Commentary) in two fascicles, the *Fāzhěn chāo* (Opening the Carriage-Wheel Commentary) in five fascicles (explaining his own *Diamond Sūtra Commentary*), the *Mítuó jīng shū* (Amitābha Sūtra Commentary) in two fascicles, the *Zhǐguī jì* (Record of Pointing toward the Ultimate) in two fascicles (explaining his own *Amitābha Sūtra Commentary*), the *Wénxīn jiě* (Explanation of the Mind of the Text) in two fascicles (explaining the *Door of Non-duality*), the *Zálù míngyì* (Miscellaneous Record of Names and Meanings) in twelve fascicles, the *Yìxué zábiān* (Miscellaneous Compendium on Doctrinal Studies) in six fascicles, the *Cintāmaṇicakra Practice Method*, the *Nirvāṇa Praise and Veneration Text*, the *Arhat Praise and Veneration Text*, the *Nánshān Praise and Veneration Text*, the *Essential Guidelines for the Distribution of Food*, the *Abhidharma Diagram of the Seven Worthies and Seven Nobles*, and the *Awakening of Faith Diagram of the Arising of Dharmas from Ālayavijñāna*, each in one fascicle; the *Chánmén shūyào* (Essentials of the Chan Gate), the *Jìngmíng jīngyīng* (Essence of Vimalakīrti), the *Dàlùn shūjié* (Key Points of the Great Treatise), the *Dàlùn wén* (Passages of the Great Treatise), the *Tiáoxī jiǎngwài jí* (Collection Outside Lectures at Tiáoxī), the *Chuāng'àn jì* (Record of the Window Desk), and the *Zhūzǐ záyán shǐsuǐ* (Marrow of History and Miscellaneous Sayings of the Masters).

21.6

The Record states: Mount He was later converted into a Chan dwelling, and the stupa site was turned into a vegetable plot. Subsequently, someone in the monastery assembly had a dream in which the Master said that irrigating at the stupa site was inconvenient and requested to be relocated. When the shrine was opened, his physical body was undamaged and relics were overflowing. Thereupon, with complete ritual decorum, they reburied him. This is extremely similar to the relocation of the stupa of Shénzhào of Dōngshān: both had their whole bodies entombed at the time, and exceptionally revealed spiritual wonders after two hundred years. How extraordinary!

21.7

The appraisal says: The Tiantai school refers to those who study Huayan or Yogācāra as other traditions, broadly meaning that they do not accept the doctrines of the rules of the periods and teachings. Jìngjué was initially very rigorous in his study of the Home-Mountain school; he composed the *Zhǐyí juémó* and the *Ten Difficulties* to refute the four masters with great force. Yet one day, when master and disciple had a minor disagreement, he abruptly produced the divergent doctrine on the lifespan, going so far as to write the *Ten Remonstrances to Clear Slander*, engaging in unrelenting contention. First he assisted him, and later he rebelled against him; how does his error differ from those who study other traditions? The father creates, and the son transmits; since he is said to have turned his back on the school, why should he be considered a Dharma heir? Placing him in the Miscellaneous Biographies is also sufficient as a reproof. However, this is also merely an explanation made to protect the school's framework and distinguish the Dharma lineage. If one examines it with the Buddha-eye, when sages and worthies propagate the Way, they alternate between suppression and promotion; how could one fix their superiority and inferiority? Just like Devadatta and Pāpīyas, who both manifested heterodox views through great expedient means, how could mundane sentiments measure them? Therefore we know that those who critique Jìngjué should understand him with this intention.

21.8

Dharma Master Zifang was a native of Wuxing, who was bestowed the title Puzhao. In his early years he relied upon Jingjue. When Song Mingjiao [Qisong], relying on the Meditation Sūtra (Chan jing), compiled the Chart Determining the Patriarchs (Dingzu tu) and denounced the Account of the Transmission of the Dharmapiṭaka (Fu fazang zhuan) as fit to be burned, the Master wrote the Exposition on the Patriarchs (Zu shuo) to rescue it. Three years later, when Song realized that the Meditation Sūtra had inconsistencies, he arbitrarily claimed that there had been copying errors in its transmission. The Master then wrote the Halting Errors (Zhi'e) to refute him. It stated in brief: "Qisong established twenty-eight patriarchs by arbitrarily relying on the Meditation Sūtra, misleading all under heaven and denouncing the Account of the Transmission of the Dharmapiṭaka as a false book. This originated from the Tang dynasty's Zhiju, who wrote the Baolin Record (Baolin zhuan). Because the Meditation Sūtra lists nine individuals, of whom the eighth is named Damoduoluo [Dharmatrāta] and the ninth Banruomiduoluo [Prajñātāra], Zhiju, seeing that the sounds of the two characters 'Damo' were phonetically similar, altered it to 'Damo' [Bodhidharma], added the two characters 'Puti' [Bodhi-], and transposed him to follow Prajñātāra. Furthermore, he took two names from elsewhere—Basiasiduo [Basiasita / Vasuasita] and Buruomiduo [Puṇyamitra]—to continue the twenty-four individuals, tallying twenty-eight in all. Ju falsely laid this out before, and Song erroneously concurred with it afterward, defiling and throwing into disorder the correct teachings and bringing blemish to the Chan school. I once refuted him to his face, yet Song felt no shame. Furthermore, relying on Sengyou's Records of the Tripiṭaka (Sanzang ji), which transmits fifty-three Vinaya patriarchs, the last of whom is named Dharmatrāta, Zhiju took him to be Bodhidharma of the Liang dynasty. He completely failed to understand that Sengyou's record in fact records those who propagated the Vinaya in the Śrāvakayāna. Since Ju and Song revere Chan as the Mahāyāna, how could they conversely take a Śrāvakayāna Vinaya figure to be their patriarch? Moreover, the Meditation Sūtra does not even have the designation of twenty-eight patriarchs; together with the Records of the Tripiṭaka, it merely clarifies the meditation of the Śrāvaka Little Vehicle. Since Ju and Song lacked the eye of the teachings, no sooner did they see the character 'Chan' than they took it to be their own school. This was conversely to peddle Bodhidharma of the Liang dynasty as transmitting only the meditation methods of the Little Vehicle—grossly slandering the ancient sages, an error of no small measure."

21.9

Dharma Master Kejiu was of the Qian clan of Qiantang. In the early Tiansheng reign, he was ordained through imperial favor, and studied the teachings and contemplation under Jingjue. He had no ambition for worldly fame and enjoyed composing old-style regulated verses. When Su Shi served as Vice Governor of the commandery, he was often poetic friends with the Master, as well as with Huiqin and Qingshun. He resided at Xiangfu on the West Lake, in a solitary room, pure and uncompromising in maintaining poverty, never showing a sorrowful countenance. When Shi came to govern Qiantang, viewing the lanterns at Jiuqu on the Lantern Festival, he left his attendants and walked alone into the Master's room. There was not a single lamp or fire, only the lingering fragrance of gardenia. Admiring him with praise, he left a poem, which included the lines: 'Not using lapis lazuli to idly illuminate the Buddha; / One knows the inexhaustible in the world is fundamentally not a lamp.' When Pu Zongmeng compiled the ancient and modern poetry of Qiantang, he sought [manuscripts] from the Master. The Master said: 'They are lost as soon as they are composed; I have never kept them.' Those who heard this esteemed him. In his late years, he closed his gate; when seeing off guests, he did not cross the threshold. He abstained from grains, sat peacefully, and practiced contemplation, refinement, smoking, and cultivation. In this manner passed more than ten years. Outside his window there were only a few red plantains and a hundred green bamboos, plain and indifferent. One day he said to others: 'When I die, the plantains and bamboos will also die, and Master Zeying will also die.' Before long, all proved true. People sighed in wonder.

21.10

Dharma Master Lingzhao was of the Lu clan of Lanxi. Having lost his parents in youth, he spoke to his elder brother requesting to leave household life. His brother took three rattan canes, showed them to him, and said: 'If these canes are used to tie you until both you and they are broken to pieces, I may grant your wish.' The Master gladly entered the forest, gathered a bundle of canes, placed it before him, and said: 'If you truly permit me to enter the Way, use these to tie me; even if broken to pieces, I shall have no regret.' His brother could not bend his resolve. He then entered Baohui Temple. He vowed to cast aside pillows and mats, and with incense and lamp, bowed and recited. In less than a year, he recited and mastered the Lotus Sūtra and the Golden Light Sūtra. At his coming of age, he presented himself for examination; the authorities commended him and rewarded him on a separate roster. Having received full ordination, he immediately went to Qiantang and relied upon Master Xiangyan Zhan to study the teachings and contemplation. After several years, he went to Wuxing and relied upon Jingjue. He thoroughly comprehended the household teachings without exception. At first he presided over Jiekong on Mount Wu, and subsequently moved to Jingde. During the Xining reign, he moved to Chaoguo in Yunjian. From the Yuanfeng reign onward, at the beginning of spring every year, he established a pure karma society for a seven-day period. Those who participated numbered twenty thousand; the verifications obtained through reciting the Buddha's name could not be recorded. He once dreamed of the majestic appearance of the Three Noble Ones; he knelt before them and bowed, saying: 'Throughout my life, Lingzhao has recited Mahāyāna sūtras, aspiring to be born in the Land of Peaceful Nurture. Will my vow be fulfilled?' Avalokiteśvara pointed and said: 'The Pure Land is not far; wherever there is a vow, one is immediately born there.' While reciting sūtras deep in the night, he suddenly dreamed of Samantabhadra revealing his body; he then gave rise to the aspiration to make his image and recite ten thousand fascicles of sūtras to adorn his pure recompense. In the winter of the fifth year of the Yuanfeng reign, he lay ill and said to his attendants: 'The time for my [departure to] the Land of Peaceful Nurture has arrived.' He then placed his head to the north and faced west, crossed his feet, and passed away. At the cremation, an extraordinary fragrance struck people, and relics surged forth. A stupa was erected in the southeast corner of the monastery courtyard.

21.11

Hu Su, styled Wuping, was a native of Jinling in Changzhou. His scholarship and literary compositions were esteemed by his contemporaries. In the third year of the Zhiping reign, from Vice Commissioner of Military Affairs, he went out to garrison Hangzhou. Whenever he came to visit Master [Bao]yue, he inquired into the marvelous Way, personally performing the etiquette of a disciple. The Master sat at ease without yielding in the least.

21.12

Dharma Master Congyi was a native of Pingyang in Wenzhou, surnamed Ye. At seventeen, he recited and mastered the Lotus Sūtra, was ordained, and studied under Fuzong. He presided over Dayun, Wufeng, and Baoji. He was constantly distressed that other schools merely followed their own personal opinions; in his Supplementary Commentary (Buzhu) and Collected Explanations (Jijie), he clarified and distinguished this everywhere. For example, he argued that Xianshou arbitrarily classified the Huayan Sūtra; censured Ci'en for exclusively using Consciousness-Only; demonstrated that there are no twenty-eight patriarchs in the patriarchal transmission; and judged that the Daoist school should be subsumed into the Confucian tradition. His diction and reasoning were incisive and straightforward, winning the trust of the world (all detailed in the Treatise on the Establishment of Teachings by Various Schools). In his late years he resided at Shousheng in Xiu[zhou], greatly invigorating the school and teachings. In the spring of the sixth year of the Yuanyou reign, he manifested illness and took to his couch, passing away auspiciously on his right side. His relics were buried at Baozang in Qiantang, and he was posthumously titled Shenzhi. Surveillance Vice Commissioner Liu Tao recorded his deeds and conduct, stating: 'Upright, resolute, pure, and unblemished, he did not associate promiscuously. Waking and sleeping, he kept to the three contemplations; he took deep delight in writing works. He did not eat past noon; he did not speak of what was contrary to the Dharma; he did not lie down except on his right side; he did not drink water that had not been filtered. His walking had regularity; he sat and stood like an upright tree. He never sought the acquaintance of high ministers; he may indeed be called worthy.' He authored the Supplementary Commentary to the Great Treatises (Dabu buzhu) in fourteen fascicles, the Record of Accordance with the Correct (Shunzheng ji) in three fascicles (explaining the Profound Meaning of the Golden Light Sūtra), the New Record (Xin ji) in seven fascicles (explaining the Words and Phrases of the Golden Light Sūtra), the Record of Rebirth (Wangsheng ji) in four fascicles (explaining the Commentary on the Contemplation Sūtra), the Record of Perfect Penetration (Yuantong ji) in three fascicles (explaining the Gate of Non-Duality), the Compilation of Essentials (Zuanyao) in six fascicles (explaining the Illustrative Examples), the Collected Explanations (Jijie) in three fascicles (explaining the Outline of the Four Teachings), the Parables (Yuyan) in four fascicles (explaining the Golden Lever), the Abridged Record of the Vimalakīrti (Jingming lüeji) in ten fascicles, and the Inquiry into the Profound (Souxuan) in three fascicles (miscellaneous excerpts on the doctrinal outlines).

21.13

The appraisal states: Shenzhi followed Fuzong and regarded Siming [Zhili] as his great-grandfather [in Dharma lineage], yet he exerted every effort to denounce and reject the doctrines that [Zhili] established. Fifty years had already passed since his patriarch's time, and the doctrines had already been settled; yet he intentionally created differences to destroy the patriarchal heritage, showing an utmost lack of filial devotion. This was not comparable to the mutual suppression and exaltation between Gushan and Jingjue at the time. Formerly he was attached to Fuzong; now we therefore demote him and place him among the Miscellaneous Biographies to demonstrate that the family regulations remain intact.

21.14

Dharma Master Liaorui was a native of Jiaxing, styled Huiyue. He had a reputation for learning the teachings, and relied upon Shenzhi at Shousheng for a long time. In Xiu[zhou], a gentry family invited Shenzhi to pray for healing from an illness, and the Master accompanied him. Upon returning, Shenzhi rebuked him, saying: 'Because you are pure and sincere, I took you along; why did you glance left and right in a secular residence?' The Master simply apologized deeply for his fault. Shenzhi said: 'Did you perhaps see something?' The Master secretly reported: 'There was a female ghost upon the sickbed. Seeing the Master enter, she immediately ran down. Since people were crowding the doorway, she went out through a crack in the wall; unconsciously, I looked about like that.' Shenzhi said: 'I also saw it.' Soon after, the sick person recovered. After Shenzhi passed away, the Master succeeded to his seat. A daughter of the Wang family of Sixi died, and they requested a distribution of food; because the river was frozen, boats could not cross. He then sent someone to inform them to set a seat before the grain-measure, and from the boat he recited dhāraṇī aspirations from afar. In the middle of the night, a girl came aboard the boat and said: 'Thank you, Master, for the precepts and Dharma; I have already attained deliverance.' Leaving behind a pair of shoes, she suddenly vanished. The next day, Lord Wang came to the boat and exclaimed in shock: 'These are the shoes my deceased daughter wore when laid in her coffin!'

21.15

Dharma Master Daoyin called himself Cao'an. He belonged to the Xue clan of Siming. In relation to the seat of Fazhi, he regarded Dharma Master [Wen]can as his great-uncle. When he was conceived, his mother dreamed that Can parted the bed-curtain and entered, and upon waking gave birth to him; at daybreak, the news of Can's demise arrived, so everyone knew he was Can's later rebirth. In his palms there were circular signs that formed rings when clasped; beneath his feet extraordinary patterns clearly showed a pair of fish. At seventeen he received full ordination and spent the summer retreat at Nanhu. When someone asked about the doctrine of the teachings, he slowly explained it, and it matched the texts precisely; those with discernment knew it was his habitual practice from previous lives. When Mingzhi resided at Baoyun, [Daoyin] went to study under him. Thereafter, he traveled broadly among doctrinal seats and repeatedly visited Chan halls. Because he read the Commentary on the Essentials (Zhiyao chao), he had a profound awakening. At first he presided over Chanyue, directly succeeding Siming. (The succession document in the Cao'an Record says: 'Three times I entered Chan halls, and five times climbed lecture rostrums. From beginning to end I attended upon eight good spiritual friends, all of whom were illustrious and great, possessing virtue and teachings. Yet my conditions did not lie with them; it was like throwing water upon stone. This single stick of incense I offer for the first generation of Yan[qing], the Venerable Fazhi, to repay the Dharma-grace. However, when one is alive, there is the person; when gone, there are the books. If those on the side do not approve, let them not begrudge tapping the rhythm.') Next he moved to Yongming, Baoyun, Guangshou, and Zhiping. In his late years he presided over Yanqing, and his disciples filled the hall. On the seventeenth day of the fourth month of the third year of the Qiandao reign, he bid farewell to his disciples, saying: 'The Avataṃsaka world is thoroughly clear and serene, exceedingly suited to my heart; I am now about to depart.' He then ordered them to chant the Praise to Amitābha he had composed: 'The boundless ocean of kṣetras contains empty space; / Space and the ocean are wholly the Lotus Palace. / The Lotus Palace pervades the empty ocean; / In the empty ocean alone is revealed the countenance of Amitābha. / Amitābha Buddha neither arises nor ceases; / Hard to seek, hard to grasp, like the moon in the water. / Cut off from negation, separated from phrases—such is the body; / Such is the sympathetic response, such is the teaching. / I and Amitābha are fundamentally not two; / Deluded consciousness quietly arose, suddenly making difference. / From now on, sweep clean the dust of emptiness and existence; / Father and son naturally encounter each other. / I vow to cultivate the three blessings and be diligent in the six mindfulnesses; / May karma of body, speech, and mind be without blemish. / I now use this to be mindful of Amitābha; / Not seeing Amitābha, I shall never weary.' When the praise ended, he joined the assembly in chanting the Buddha's name several hundred times, recited the Contemplation Sūtra up to the highest level of the highest grade of rebirth, then gathered his thoughts and passed away sitting upright. After three days, his crown and feet were still warm. His whole body was buried in the patriarchal stupa. The Master's demeanor was austere and resolute, and his eloquence flowed like a torrent; those who encountered his edge felt as if they had leaped the Dragon Gate. He once wrote the Treatise on Guanzheng (Guanzheng lun) to rectify the flaws of Chan practitioners, and went to the temporary capital to present it to the Grand Councilor Qin Hui; he submitted memorials three times, but none received a reply, so he crossed the river and returned. Later, Councilor Qin read his book and was greatly astonished; he was about to grant an audience, but the Master had already left. When he lived at Nanhu, he composed the Explanation Assisting the Correct (Fuzheng jie) to rebuke the error of Vinaya followers in arbitrarily explaining the Contemplation Sūtra. Such was his resolute determination for the Dharma. He once lived in a thatched hut (Cao'an) south of the city, and therefore took it as his sobriquet.

21.16

The appraisal states: Cao'an initially studied under Mingzhi; one day, reading the Essentials, he had an awakening, and moreover regarded himself as the later rebirth of Wencan, which is why he offered a stick of incense to Siming. However, Siming was [comparable to] Rāhula; one has never heard of receiving the Buddha himself as one's predecessor [bypassing the intermediate lineage]. If one considers what Cao'an transmitted, he would become an elder brother to Guangzhi and a grandson to Mingzhi. How could one face north and serve a person as teacher, yet conversely treat him as a grandson? The twenty-four patriarchs of the Western Land declared by the Golden Mouth all have an orderly sequence. If one says that [Huisi of] Beiqi remotely received from Nāgārjuna, that was the inception of establishing contemplation, not something that Cao'an ought to have emulated. Therefore Jing'an remarked upon it, saying: 'The teachings and contemplation of our single school must rely upon transmission; how could one disrupt and cause them to lose their proper order? What is more, at that time there was already the mockery of "reaching high to the nine patriarchs and remotely succeeding Siming." In the old chart he was attached to Mingzhi, which ultimately was not Cao'an's original intention; in the new chart he is attached to Siming, which inevitably runs contrary to public consensus. Now we therefore place him among the Miscellaneous Biographies, which may also serve as a warning to those who lose their lineage order.'

21.17

Dharma Master Youlun was of the Wang clan of Siming. He undertook his studies at Shousheng [Monastery] in Xiaoxi and styled himself Zian. He studied under Cao'an for a long time; when he shared the seat to preach the path at Nanhu, his teachings were profound and meaningful. In his later years, he presided over Yuebo, where his students submitted with pleasure. Men of Boting's generation all faced north to receive instruction from him. In the single room where he resided, he was never seen to relieve himself; everyone found this extraordinary. When someone asked him the reason, he refused to answer.

21.18

Dharma Master Fayin styled himself Kuxin. He was of the Gu clan of Cixi in Siming. He studied under Cao'an and fully mastered his purport. Because he shared the same personal name as his master, he was called Little Yin by contemporaries. He presided over Guangshou for thirty years, preaching day and night, and never once went calling at the gates of donors. Whenever an almsgiver arrived, he would always feel apprehensive and ashamed, sighing to himself: "The Dharma of a bhikṣu is to beg for food to sustain life. Who am I to sit and rob the fruits of their toil and hardship?" He would reject them and send them back, accepting only a small portion when he had no choice. His dwelling was dilapidated, and when people were about to renovate it, he said, "This bodily form is itself impermanent; why attend to external things?" One day, when he gathered the assembly for a lecture, the attendant reported that the assembly had gone to the doors of donors and had not yet returned. The master said, "The devas in empty space are just now wishing to hear the Dharma; why must the human assembly gather?" He immediately struck the drum and ascended the seat. In the eighth month of the fourth year of Shaoxi, he manifested illness. In meditative absorption, he saw two bodhisattvas of the Pure Land, and said to his attendants, "I behold a Lotus Bodhimaṇḍa, vastly different from what I normally see. I am about to depart." He then assembled the community to recite the Contemplation Sūtra and invoke the Buddha's name. Leaving behind a verse, he sat upright, formed a mudrā, and passed away. His entire body was entombed to the east of the monastery.

21.19

Xue Cheng, courtesy name Qingqing, styled himself Shu'an. He regarded Cao'an as his uncle. He once studied under him, greatly clarifying the path of objective realm and wisdom. When Cao'an passed away, he composed a sacrificial text for him, an abridgement of which reads: "Alas! Our Buddha illumined the mind: Chan must use doctrine, and doctrine must use Chan. Like rivers and lakes, though their streams differ, what they gather into is a single source. Like the sun and the moon, though their times are said to be distinct, what they hang upon is the one heaven. It is like two medicines treating the illnesses of all people: what is hoped for is recovery. How lamentable that along the final paths the two lineages have been affected by Māra! Practitioners cling to partiality, privately setting up designations and contradicting each other. Those of that gate inevitably specialize in doctrine and view Chan as entirely incompatible, like a needle set against felt; those of Chan view doctrine as an excrescence on the throat that one wishes to cut away but cannot. Not seeking their origin, doctrinalists say, 'I am right,' but who clarifies the gradual and the perfect? Chan practitioners, only desiring to be heard as strange, say, 'I am right,' and merely profess a separate transmission. Once the two lineages were estranged, within their lineages they further divided like scattered stars: some base themselves on Siming, some boast of Zhaichuan, and some emerge from Bailian. The glorious purports of Tiantai have become superficial chatter and reckless words, like a drifting boat. Some practice Guiyang, some take refuge in Yunmen, and some succeed Caodong. The Tathāgata's mind-seal is thrust up and dashed down, like an inverted ape. Holding on to this superior mindset to combat that superior mindset, it is using Yan to attack Yan! Magnificently imposing was my venerable elder, who could penetrate the marvelous and profound in both lineages..." (and so forth). He also composed a memorial text on the anniversary of Cao'an's death, which reads: "All dharmas are originally empty, and being empty, they become real. The consummate person does not die; though dead, he is as if alive. The Venerable Anzhu (the master styled himself Anzhu-zi) was endowed with rare spiritual vigor, his past causes unobscured. He probed the precept-jewel beneath the black dragon's chin, and flew the sword of wisdom at the Dragon Gate. Early on, he moved his blade freely through the forest of literati, leaving no book unread; later, he took a raft onto the sea of doctrine, penetrating wherever there was resonance... (and so forth). Being supreme in the Path, he tore off his scholar's cap and robe without regret; when doubts remained unresolved, he would endure bonds and prison to press his dispute... (and so forth). Meeting eight spiritual friends, there was not half a word of accord; presenting a single petal of incense, he held it forth for Siming." (Of the sixteen persons in this roll, the basic annals omitted five, recording only eleven).

21.20

Fozu tongji, Roll Twenty-One (End)

Linked texts (1)

佛祖統紀 — 志磐, Classical Chinese