佛祖統紀 26.7

26.7

Dharma Master Huiyuan, surnamed Jia, was a native of Loufan in Yanmen. From his youth he was fond of learning; at the age of thirteen, he accompanied his maternal uncle, of the Linghu clan, to study in Xuchang and Luoyang. He comprehensively integrated the Six Classics and was especially proficient in the Laozi and Zhuangzi; senior scholars and elders all deferred to the profundity of his understanding. At twenty-one, wishing to cross the Yangzi to study under Fan Ning, he was blocked by the southern roads being cut off following the sudden death of Shi Hu, so his ambition went unfulfilled. At that time, the śramaṇa Shi Dao'an was founding monasteries in Changshan in the Taihang Mountains. Once Huiyuan met him, he showed complete reverence, taking Dao'an as his true teacher. When he first heard Master Dao'an lecture on the Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, he experienced an abrupt awakening and sighed: 'The varied doctrines of the nine schools of thought are all mere chaff!' He then discarded his official hairpin together with his younger brother Huiqi, received ordination, and devoted himself to study, reflecting deeply and chanting day and night without interruption. Desiring to serve the monastery, the śramaṇa Tanyi (a northerner, not one of the members of the White Lotus Society on Mount Lu) frequently provided him with money for lamps and candles. Hearing of this, Master Dao'an remarked: 'The gentleman truly knows men.' Huiyuan's intellect was brilliant and extraordinary, his mind attuned to Principle. By twenty-four, he was exceptionally adept at lecturing and expounding. A visitor, having heard him explain the meaning of true reality, raised repeated objections, only becoming more perplexed; the Master then cited the words of Zhuangzi for comparison, whereupon the questioner's doubts dissolved. Dao'an consequently granted him permission not to abandon secular texts, and often sighed before the assembly: 'If the Way is to flow into the Eastern Realm, will it not rest on Huiyuan?' Later he accompanied Master Dao'an south to Xiangyang. When the Qin general Fu Pi launched an invasion, Dao'an divided his disciples to let each go where they would. As the elder monks faced parting, all received parting instruction and benefit, but the Master alone did not hear a word. Kneeling, he pleaded: 'Am I alone given no admonition? I fear I am not counted among human beings.' Master Dao'an said: 'With someone like you, what is there to worry about?' Huiyuan then went south with several dozen disciples to Jingzhou, staying at Shangming Temple. Recalling his old pact with his fellow disciple Huiyong to build dwellings on Mount Luofu, he reached Xunyang in the sixth year of Taiyuan (under Emperor Xiaowu of Jin). Seeing Mount Lu secluded and vast, ideal for settling the mind, he established a hermitage. Because it was far from water, he raised his staff, tapped the ground, and said: 'If this place can be dwelled in, let fresh water gush from the crumbling earth.' As soon as he finished speaking, a clear stream welled up. Later, Xunyang suffered a severe drought; the Master went beside the pool and read the Ocean Dragon King Sūtra (Sāgara-nāgarāja-paripṛcchā). Suddenly, a divine serpent emerged from the pool, and in a moment heavy rain fell, resulting in a bountiful autumn harvest. Hence it was named Longquan Hermitage (Dragon Spring Hermitage). Huiyong had earlier dwelt at Xilin on Mount Lu and wished to invite Huiyuan to stay together with him, but the Master's followers were becoming numerous. Yong then said to the regional inspector Huan Yi: 'The venerable Yuan is about to propagate the Way, but my humble dwelling is cramped and cannot accommodate him.' At that time, the Master dreamt that the mountain deity told him: 'This mountain is ample to shelter your spirit; please do not go elsewhere.' That night there were heavy rains and thunder; by dawn, the forested foothills were widely cleared, covered with white sand, and large timber like camphor and catalpa lay strewn over the ground, though none knew whence it came. Deeply moved with reverence, Huan Yi built a monastery for him, naming the hall 'Shenyun' (Divinely Transported). Because it stood east of Huiyong's quarters, it was called Donglin (Eastern Grove). This was the eleventh year of the Taiyuan era. This mountain has nine tiered ridges, soaring precipitously into the sky, and its dwelling enjoys the utmost beauty of woods and ravines: leaning against Furnace Peak, flanked by waterfalls, clear streams encircling the steps, and white clouds rising from the rafters. (The Lu Shan ji states: Master Kuang Yu, at the turn of Yin and Zhou, received the Way from an immortal and turned the cliff into a dwelling, which people called the Hermitage of the Immortals; hence it was named Mount Lu. The Xunyang ji states: The mountain is 3,360 zhang high and 250 li in circumference; it has nine tiers and nine branching rivers. The Junguo zhi states: Nine layers of craggy barriers enclose immortal traces.) Separately, he built meditation cells in the quietest, deepest recesses; whoever visited felt mental clarity and solemn awe. Hearing that the Buddha's shadow in India was an auspicious trace left when the Buddha formerly converted a poisonous dragon, the Master felt joyous reverence. Later, when the Vinaya Master Yaśas described its radiant features, Huiyuan backed against the mountain facing the stream and built a grotto shrine, applying pale colors to paint the likeness so that it appeared like mist. He also composed five inscriptions carved on stone. The Grand Protector of Jiangzhou, Meng Huaiyu; Vice Governor Wang Qiaozhi; Attendant-in-Ordinary Zhang Ye; Grand Protector of Jin'an, Yin Yin; Yellow Gate Attendant Mao Xiuzhi; Recorder Yin Wei; Adjutant Wang Muye; Filial and Incorrupt Nominee Fan Yuezhi; Recluse Zong Bing, and others all composed inscriptions and eulogies (see the Mount Lu Collection). Earlier, when Tao Kan of Xunyang was regional inspector of Guangzhou, a fisherman saw a divine light in the sea; casting his net, he obtained a golden image of Mañjuśrī, whose inscription said it was made by King Aśoka. Later, a merchant found a circular halo east of the sea and brought it to fit onto the statue, which joined as if perfectly matched. Kan sent it to Hanxi in Wuchang. The abbot, monk Sengzhen, once went to Xiakou; at night he dreamt the temple was on fire, but this image room was guarded by a spirit. He galloped back, and the temple was indeed burned, while the image room alone survived. When Kan was transferred to govern Jiangzhou, he went to welcome the image to take it with him, but on reaching the boat it sank into the water. The folk of Jing and Chu made a song about it: 'Tao relies only on martial prowess, while the image displays divine wonder. Flying among clouds, lodging in mud—how far away and unreachable! It may be brought by sincerity, but can hardly be summoned by force.' When the temple was completed, the Master went to the river to offer sincere prayers; the image suddenly floated up, whereupon it was received into the Shenyun Hall and a two-story pavilion was built to enshrine it. He then composed a eulogy on the auspicious image of Mañjuśrī. Huiyuan once stated that among the samādhis of the various teachings, although their names are many, mindfulness of the Buddha takes precedence as being high in efficacy and easy of progress. Soon, those who observed the discipline to still their minds, and pure laymen detached from dust, arrived unsummoned: Huiyong (who shared the same teacher Dao'an and lived at Xilin), Huiqi (Yuan's brother by the same mother), Daosheng and Tanshun (both disciples of Kumārajīva), Sengrui, Tanhang, Daobing, Tanxun, and Daojing (all disciples of Huiyuan), Buddhayasás (called Jueming in Chinese, from Jibin), Buddhabhadra (called Juexian in Chinese, from Kapilavastu), renowned scholars Liu Chengzhi (styled Yimin), Zhang Ye, Zhou Xuzhi, Zhang Quan, Zong Bing, Lei Cizong, and others. They formed a society for Buddha-mindfulness, known to the world as the Eighteen Sages. Furthermore, leading a congregation of 123 persons, they jointly cultivated the Pure Land practice, fashioned images of the Three Sages of the West, established vegetarian feasts, and swore vows, commissioning Liu Yimin to compose the text of the vow, while Wang Qiaozhi and others composed poems on the Buddha-mindfulness Samādhi to express their aspiration. The Master's appearance was solemn and awe-inspiring; those who gazed upon him trembled in heart. Once, a śramaṇa holding a ruyi scepter came to present it, but dared not speak, quietly leaving it in a corner of the seat before departing. Dharma Master Huiyi was unyielding and seldom impressed; he said to Huiyuan's disciple Huibao: 'You gentlemen are shallow, which is why you submit to Master Yuan's reputation from afar.' Once he went to the mountain just as the Master was lecturing on the Lotus Sūtra; intending to raise difficult questions, he immediately trembled inside and broke into sweat, remarking to Huibao: 'This master's speech and demeanor are truly worthy of reverent submission.' When Yin Zhongkan was governor of Jingzhou, he entered the mountain to pay respects; accompanied by the Master beside the northern ravine beneath the pines, they conversed on the Book of Changes all day without fatigue. Zhongkan sighed: 'The Master's wisdom and insight are profound and bright; it is truly difficult to approach him.' The Master also said: 'Your eloquence is like this flowing spring.' (Later people named the place Congming Spring, 'Spring of Intelligence'.) Minister over the Masses Wang Mi and Army Protector Wang Mo both admired his virtuous character and sent homage from afar (Wang Mi exchanged letters with him). When Lu Xun held Jiangzhou, he entered the mountain to visit the Master. In his youth, the Master had been a fellow student with Xun's father, Xia; on seeing Xun, he cheerfully spoke of old times. His disciples remonstrated: 'Xun is an enemy of the state; will this not cause suspicion?' The Master replied: 'In our Buddha-Dharma, the mind has no grasping or rejection; those with discernment will perceive this of themselves. What is there to fear?' When Emperor Wu of Song advanced to subdue Lu Xun, Xun set up camp at Sangwei. The emperor's attendants said: 'Master Yuan has long held high standing on Mount Lu and is on close terms with Lu Xun.' Emperor Wu of Song said: 'Master Yuan is a man beyond this world; how could he be suspected?' He then dispatched a messenger with a letter and gifts of money and silk. A practitioner came to attend on the Master who was skilled at expelling snakes, and the snakes completely disappeared; thus he was called the Snake-Expelling Practitioner. There was also a tiger that came and went, its tracks often seen, but it never harmed anyone; people called it the Mountain-Roaming Tiger. Whenever the Master and his community strolled to rest on the upper peak, they were troubled by its distance from water; later, a tiger knelt at a boulder and water sprang forth from it, which was consequently named Hupao Spring (Tiger Crouching Spring). On another peak, he composed a commentary on the Nirvāṇa Sūtra, hence named Zhibi Peak (Pen-Casting Peak). Initially, when the Great Teaching spread east of the Yangzi, sūtra texts were incomplete, meditation methods unheard of, and the Vinaya Piṭaka largely lacking. The Master sent his disciples Fajing, Faling, and others across the Congling Mountains; after many years they returned, having obtained Sanskrit texts. Formerly, when Master Dao'an was in Guanzhong, he had requested Dharmānandi to produce the Abhidharmahṛdaya, but as the translator was not proficient in Chinese, many doubts remained. Later, when Saṃghadeva arrived, Huiyuan requested him to retranslate it as well as the Tridharmakakhaṇḍa-śāstra; from this, the two treatises flourished, and the Master composed prefaces to impart them to learners. Hearing that Kumārajīva had entered Guanzhong, he sent a letter to establish ties. Kumārajīva replied: 'Having received your letter via transmission, I have learned of your virtuous manner. The sūtra says: 'In the latter age, there is a bodhisattva protecting the Dharma in the East.' How admirable! O benevolent one, propagate this Way well.' When Dharmaruci entered Qin, the Master sent his disciple Tanyong to request him to produce the Sarvāstivāda-vinaya in Guanzhong to circulate it in the Jin state. Monks from the Western regions all said that the land of Han had a Mahāyāna great being, and they frequently bowed eastwards and sent their devotion to Mount Lu. When Buddhabhadra arrived, the Master requested him to translate various sūtras on meditation and doctrinal enumeration. Thereupon, sūtras on meditation and precepts emerged from Mount Lu amounting to nearly a hundred fascicles. Previously, this land had no teaching on the permanence of nirvāṇa, speaking only of longevity. The Master said: 'The Buddha is the ultimate; being the ultimate, he undergoes no change. Can the principle of changelessness have an end?' He then composed the Treatise on Dharma-Nature in fourteen chapters. When Kumārajīva saw it, he praised it: 'Though in a distant land without having seen the sūtras, his understanding darkly harmonizes with Principle.' The Qin ruler, admiring Huiyuan's reputation and having recently translated the Da zhidu lun (Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa), sent a letter asking for a preface. Deeming its text extensive and verbose, the Master extracted its essentials into twenty fascicles and composed a preface for it (Kumārajīva's translation of the Treatise was originally one hundred fascicles). When Huan Xuan went to campaign against Yin Zhongkan, he invited the Master to come out across Tiger Creek, but Huiyuan pleaded illness and did not go. When Xuan was about to enter the mountain, his attendants said: 'Formerly Yin Zhongkan paid homage to Huiyuan; we request that you not humble yourself.' Xuan said: 'Zhongkan was a dead man.' Yet upon seeing the Master, Xuan unwittingly bent his knees, and the difficult questions he had harbored he dared not utter. When Xuan mentioned his military campaigns, the Master did not answer. Later, wielding his power that intimidated the ruler, Xuan urged him to accept official post, but the Master replied with righteous words, so Xuan could not force him. Soon Xuan wished to purge the monastic community, issuing an order to his subordinates: 'Only those śramaṇas capable of explaining the scriptures and maintaining disciplined practice may be entrusted with promoting the great transformation; all who violate this shall be defrocked. Mount Lu alone, as the dwelling of virtue, is excluded from scrutiny.' The Master thereupon sent a letter comprehensively laying down regulatory codes, all of which Xuan accepted. Earlier, when Yu Bing governed, he held that śramaṇas ought to pay homage to the ruler, while He Chong submitted a memorial stating they should not. When Huan Xuan resided in Gushu, he revived Bing's argument. The Master sent a reply saying: 'The kāṣāya is not court attire; the alms-bowl is not a vessel for imperial halls. Those of appearance beyond the dust should not pay homage to a ruler.' He then authored the Treatise on Śramaṇas Not Paying Homage to Rulers in five sections: First, clarifying that householders possess natural familial affection and the ritual duty of serving a sovereign. Second, clarifying that home-leavers transform custom to attain the Way in pursuit of their aspiration; how could they share the same rituals of homage with worldly codes? Third, clarifying that seeking the ultimate goal does not conform to mundane transformation: the ultimate goal means unalterable nirvāṇa, taking the cessation of changes as one's abode (nirvāṇa is translated as non-arising and non-ceasing). Not conforming to transformation means that physical birth can be extinguished and the spirit can merge into quietude; merging the spirit and transcending objects is called nirvāṇa, not following along with the ceaseless, flowing realms of birth and change. This is why they do not serve kings and lords, holding their enterprise noble; how could they offer ritual homage? Fourth, clarifying that those who embody the ultimate do not respond simultaneously to all realms: successive sovereigns, as masters who embody the ultimate, only manage worldly matters within the realm, but cannot govern affairs beyond it; hence it is said they do not respond to both simultaneously. The way of Heaven and Earth exhausts its merit in rotation and transformation; the virtue of rulers reaches its ultimate in smooth order. Compared to the peerless teaching and unaltering principle, the difference in superiority is clear. As for the Way of the Tathāgata, there is nothing to which it does not respond. Fifth, clarifying that when form is exhausted, the spirit is not extinguished: just as fire transfers from one piece of firewood to another, so does the spirit transfer from one form to another. Fire transferring to different firewood is like the spirit transferring to different bodies; arising and dying, coming and going without end. Only those who awaken return to the origin, while those confused by principle chase after things. Shortly thereafter, Xuan usurped the throne and issued a decree: 'The Buddha-Dharma is vast and profound, beyond my comprehension. Formerly, emphasizing loyalty to the ruler, I ordered homage to be paid. Now that affairs rest with me, I ought to exhibit modesty and radiance; let none of the monks pay homage any longer.' When Huan Xuan fled west, Emperor An returned to the capital from Jiangling. General Supporting the State He Wuji urged the Master to go and welcome the emperor, but the Master pleaded illness and did not go. The emperor sent an envoy with comforting greetings; the Master submitted a memorial declining on account of illness, and the emperor issued an imperial decree in consoling reply. The Master once lectured on the Mourning Dress Sūtra (likely the Xiaoji, Daji, Sishi, and other chapters of the Book of Rites); Lei Cizong and Zong Bing held the texts and received his instructions. Later, when Cizong authored a commentary, he entitled it at the head with 'Master Lei'. Zong Bing sent him a letter rebuking him: 'Formerly you and I received oral instruction directly from the Buddhist master; how can you now call it Master Lei's?' (Lu Deming's Maoshi Yinyi states: 'Zhou Xuzhi and Lei Cizong both received the meaning of the Odes from Master Huiyuan', which is of this sort.) The monk Huiyao, troubled by the lack of a clepsydra in the mountain, floated a twelve-petaled lotus upon the water; turning with the ripples, it determined day and night to set intervals for walking the Way, which was called the Lotus Clepsydra. The monk Sengche was skilled in literature; once he went south of the mountain, climbed a pine tree, and whistled, whereupon a gentle breeze gathered and birds sang dolefully, giving him a transcendent sense of contentment. Returning, he asked the Master: 'The Vinaya forbids musical strings and dance; can one hum and smile?' The Master said: 'Whatever distracts the mind is unwholesome.' Che agreed and ceased. The Master lived in the mountain for thirty years, his footsteps never entering secular society; he applied himself diligently only to Buddha-mindfulness for the Pure Land. In the first eleven years, clearing his mind and focusing his thoughts, he three times beheld holy visions, but kept them quietly to himself. Later, on the last evening of the seventh month in the nineteenth year, having just arisen from meditation in the eastern shrine of the Prajñā Platform, he saw the body of Amitābha Buddha filling empty space; within the circular halo were various transformation Buddhas, with Avalokiteśvara and Mahāsthāmaprāpta flanking him on either side. He also saw light-bearing streams of water dividing into fourteen currents flowing up and down, expounding the sounds of suffering, emptiness, impermanence, and non-self. The Buddha spoke to him, saying: 'By the power of my fundamental vow, I have come to comfort you; seven days hence, you shall be born in my land.' He also saw Buddhayasás, Huiqi (who had passed away earlier in the eighth year of Yixi), Huiyong (who had passed away earlier in the tenth year of Yixi), and Liu Yimin (who had passed away earlier in the sixth year of Yixi) beside the Buddha; they stepped forward, bowed to the Master, and said: 'Master, your vow was made earlier; why do you arrive so late?' The Master told Fajing and Huibao: 'In the first eleven years of my dwelling here, I saw the Buddha's form three times. Now seeing it again, my rebirth in the Pure Land is certain.' He also said: 'The seven-day term is approaching.' Falling ill, he composed a final admonition: 'Formerly, at the age of knowing my destiny (fifty), I committed myself to this mountain. Judging that my time must come to an end, I wished to sever external ties to pursue my aspiration. Yet because my nature was weak in severing bonds, companions drew me along and worthy contemporaries showed excessive affection; emotions were stirred by kind, and unawares my body decayed with time. Now I am already eighty-three years old. Looking up, I remember the instructions from which I have departed; looking down, I lament my self-reproach, having vainly let this life pass, grieving deeply for past faults. Now that the time has arrived, let my bones be exposed beneath the pine forest, the ridge itself serving as my grave, blending with earth and trees; this was the ritual of ancients, so do not disobey. If the spiritual principle is not obscured, may my sincerity reach it; the Great Compassionate World-Honored One will surely assist me with the Way.' The disciples wailed as if mourning their parents. Because worldly sentiment is hard to sever, the Master permitted seven days to express grief, passing away only when the time arrived: the sixth day of the eighth month in the twelfth year of Yixi. Disciples, unable to bear leaving his body exposed, joined with Grand Protector Ruan Kan of Xunyang to bury his whole body on the Western Ridge, heaping stones to make a stūpa. Xie Lingyun erected a stele inscribing his bequeathed virtue; Zhang Ye wrote the preface, calling himself a disciple; and Zong Bing also erected a stele at the temple gate to display his virtuous deeds. When the Master was near his end, elders requested that fermented bean wine be used to treat his illness; the Master said: 'The Vinaya contains no permissive text.' They asked him to drink rice water; the Master said: 'The sun has passed noon.' They then asked him to drink honey mixed with water; he ordered them to unroll the Vinaya to find a passage, but before the scroll was half-read, he passed away. His prefaces, inscriptions, eulogies, poems, and records on various sūtras and treatises totaled ten fascicles, called the Mount Lu Collection (printed on woodblocks in Yue Prefecture). From Fotudeng, Master Dao'an, Master Yuan, Tanshun, to Sengrui, five generations were revered as National Preceptors. In the second year of Dazhong under Xuanzong of the Tang, he was posthumously granted the title 'Great Master Bianjue'; in the third year of Shengyuan, he was posthumously granted 'Zhengjue' (the reign era of the First Ruler Li of the Southern Tang, which corresponds to the fourth year of Tianfu under Emperor Gaozu of the Later Jin); in the third year of Taiping Xingguo under Emperor Taizong of the Great Song, he was posthumously granted the title 'Great Master Yuanwu' and his stūpa named 'Tower of Congealed Tranquility'.