佛祖統紀 33.40

33.40

Water and Land Retreat: Emperor Wu of the Liang dreamt of a divine monk who told him, 'Sentient beings in the six destinies and four modes of birth suffer immeasurably. Why not establish the Great Water and Land Retreat to deliver them?' The Emperor asked various monks, but none understood it. Only Master Baozhi encouraged the Emperor, saying, 'If you search broadly through the scriptures and treatises, there will surely be a basis.' The Emperor immediately sent for the Tripiṭaka to be brought, and spent days perusing it, initiating the ritual text, which was completed after three years. Thereupon he established a bodhimaṇḍa, and in the middle of the night, holding the ritual text in his own hands, extinguished all the lamps and candles, addressing the Buddha: 'If this ritual text accords in principle with both the noble and the ordinary, may the lamps and candles light themselves when I rise from bowing. If the form and style are not yet appropriate, let the candles remain dark as before.' Having spoken, at the first bow the lamps and candles all lit up; at the second bow the palace shook; at the third bow flowers rained from the sky. On the fifteenth day of the second month in the fourth year of Tianjian (505 CE), relying on the ritual, it was performed at Jinshan Temple. The Emperor attended the earthly seats in person and decreed Vinaya Master You to proclaim the text. The miraculous responses at that time cannot be recorded in full. Between the Zhou and Sui dynasties, this ritual fell into disuse. In the Xianheng reign period of the Tang (670–674 CE), Dhyāna Master Ying of Fahai Temple in the Western Capital dreamt that the Lord of Mount Tai summoned him to preach the Dharma. Later, while sitting alone in his abbot's quarters, he saw an extraordinary person step forward and say to him, 'Earlier, at the residence of the Lord of Mount Tai, I stole a glance at your revered presence. I heard that in the world there is a Great Water and Land Retreat that can benefit the classes in the netherworld. Its text was compiled by Emperor Wu of Liang; now the Wu monk Yiji of Dajue Temple has obtained it. I pray that you, Master, will go seek it and perform it according to the Dharma.' The Master promptly went to Dajue Temple and indeed obtained the text; he then performed the retreat on the full moon. When it was finished, he again saw the extraordinary person arrive with more than ten followers to thank him, saying, 'Your disciple is King Zhuangxiang of Qin (Zhuangxiang was the father of the First Emperor of Qin; up to the Xianheng era of the Tang was nine hundred and forty years).' He also pointed to his followers, saying, 'These are Fan Sui, the Marquis of Rang, Bai Qi, Wang Jian, Zhang Yi, and Chen Zhen; all were ministers of Qin. All, through their own offenses, were imprisoned in the underworld administration. Formerly, when Emperor Wu of Liang established the assembly at Jinshan, the ministers of King Zhou of the preceding dynasty were all delivered; your disciple also temporarily ceased suffering at that time, but because the judicial case was not yet settled, I was not yet delivered. Now, receiving this retreat and repentance, your disciple together with these men, as well as the rulers and ministers of the various states, all rely on the power of the Dharma to attain rebirth in the human realm.' Having spoken, they vanished. From then on, Master Ying constantly performed this retreat, and it spread throughout the realm (Yang E's Water and Land Ritual of Dongchuan: in Shu, there is Judicial Commissioner Yang's ritual text, which circulates widely in the world).