佛祖統紀 37.5

37.5

First year of Tianjian. The Emperor dreamt that a sandalwood image of Śākyamuni entered the realm (the one made by King Udayana of Tianzhu). He then sent Hao Qian and others to Western Tianzhu to seek it. ○ The Kingdom of Youdali came to offer tribute, saying that its king had dreamt of an extraordinary monk who said, 'In the Eastern Land a holy king has appeared; after ten years, the Buddhadharma will greatly flourish.' ○ An imperial decree ordered that whenever monks and nuns commit offenses, they are to be punished entirely in accordance with the Buddhist Vinaya. ○ Yu Shen had been friendly with the Emperor since his youth. When the Emperor raised troops, he appointed him as clerk, but Shen did not accept the post. He dwelt in the mountains, ate vegetarian food, and six times a day performed penance and recited the Lotus Sūtra. Late one night he saw a man of the Way who called himself Master Yuan, who addressed Shen as 'Gentleman of Superior Conduct.' Later, waking with a start from sleep and food, he said, 'Master Yuan has come again; I must depart!' The whole family heard that the Gentleman of Superior Conduct had already been born into the Pure Land. An imperial edict posthumously conferred upon him the title 'Chaste and Resolute Retired Scholar.'