佛祖統紀 44.42

44.42

The commentary states: When Emperor Zhenzong was on the throne, he exalted the three teachings together, yet his reverence for the Buddha and veneration of the Dharma surpassed that of previous reigns. Thus, among his imperial brush compositions were the Preface to the Holy Teachings, the Treatise on Venerating Buddhism, the Collection of Dharma Sounds, and commentaries on the two scriptures: the Scripture in Forty-Two Sections and the Bequeathed Teachings Sūtra; all of which deeply comprehended the ultimate principle. In a single year, he ordained as many as 230,000 monks, and monks who committed offenses were merely subjected to redemption penalties. On the Lantern Festival, he visited various monasteries to pay homage to the images, never declining to bow over a hundred times. He restored the ponds for releasing life throughout the realm established by the Tang dynasty to broaden love for living things. These were all rooted in past vows and arose from his sage nature, not waiting upon external exhortation. As for continuing the translation of scriptures across generations and widely opening Sanskrit learning, the tripiṭaka masters of the Five Indias gathered like clouds at the imperial court, while he exclusively appointed prime ministers and literary officials to concurrently hold the post of text-polishers. His profound reverence for the work of translation was like this! At that time, worthy Confucians such as Wang Dan, Wang Qinruo, Yang Yi, and Chao Jiong were all able to assist the sage's plans from above and jointly bring about a peaceful era. The felicitous encounter between sovereign and ministers was truly at this time; looking back at antiquity, there has never been any match for it.