佛祖歷代通載 20.52

20.52

（十一　癸未）　改隆興元年。是年六月十三日。天童應庵禪師曇華遷寂。姓江氏。蘄之黃梅人。生而奇傑。骨目聳秀。童稚便厭世故。具決定志津濟群品。年十七出家於邑之東禪。明年為大僧。又明年杖錫參方首謁隨州水南遂和上。染指法味。廼上雲居。圓悟禪師一見拊勞。痛與提策。以為法故服勞難事。趨走唯恐居後。會悟入蜀。指似往見彰教隆于宣。隆其子也。隆移虎丘。師實為先馳。未半載間通徹大法。頓明圓悟為人處。未幾禮辭遊諸方。初分座於處之連雲。處守遂以妙嚴請師出世。繼住衢之明果蘄之德章饒之報恩薦福婺之寶林報恩江之東林建康之蔣山平江之萬壽。兩住南康歸宗。末乃住今天童。皆緇白欽慕同辭公舉。處處開大施門垂手未悟。遠近奔湊如水赴壑。師於普說小參問答勘辯之屬。皆從容暇豫。曲盡善巧。而室中機辯操縱殺活。尤號明妙。師初有發明。即與此庵時號元布袋者同行。反覆博約日益深奧。及從此庵於護國。相得歡甚。此庵云亡。意於師不無所囑。而開堂嗣法不忘虎丘。與近世眩於名聞牽於利養燒香不原所得者異矣。每於住持泛應虛受。雖料理建置小物細故。動為無窮計。未甞苟且。纖毫不可於意。即翩然竟去。莫能回奪。甞自言。衲僧家看草鞋住院。何至如蚖蛇戀窟。勵勉徒眾不許放逸。事事必身率之。其將示疾也。猶掛牌入室至夜分他日多類此。將終或以辭世偈為請。師曰。吾甞笑諸方所為而自為之耶。區處院事纖悉不遺。奄然趺坐而化。春秋六十一。夏臘四十三。

(11. Guiwei [1163 CE]) The era was changed to Longxing, the first year. On the thirteenth day of the sixth month of this year, Chan Master Ying'an Tanhua of Tiantong passed away. His surname was Jiang, and he was a native of Huangmei in Qi. He was extraordinary and outstanding from birth, with prominent and striking features. Even as a child, he wearied of worldly affairs and possessed the firm resolve to ford and deliver all living beings across. At age seventeen, he left home at Dongchan in his district. The following year, he became a fully ordained monk. The year after that, he took his staff and traveled to various quarters, first calling upon Master Sui of Shuinan in Suizhou, tasting the flavor of the Dharma. He then went up to Yunju; upon seeing him, Chan Master Yuanwu consoled and encouraged him, vigorously urging and prompting him. For the sake of the Dharma, he undertook arduous labor and difficult tasks, hurrying about only fearing to lag behind. When Yuanwu went into Shu, he directed him to visit Long of Zhangjiao in Xuan. Long was Yuanwu's son. When Long moved to Huqiu, the master served as his advance messenger. In less than half a year, he thoroughly penetrated the Great Dharma and immediately understood how Yuanwu instructed people. Before long, he took polite leave and traveled through the various quarters. He first shared the seat at Lianyun in Chu. The prefect of Chu thereupon invited the master to assume the abbacy at Miaoyan. Subsequently, he resided at Mingguo in Qu, Dezhang in Qi, Bao'en and Jianfu in Rao, Baolin and Bao'en in Wu, Donglin in Jiang, Jiangshan in Jiankang, and Wanshou in Pingjiang; he twice resided at Guizong in Nankang, and finally resided at the present Tiantong. In all cases, clergy and laity admired him and jointly selected him. Wherever he was, he threw open the gate of great generosity, lowering his hands to guide those not yet awakened; people from near and far flocked to him like water rushing into a ravine. When it came to general addresses, small convocations, questions and answers, examinations and debates, the master was always relaxed and leisurely, exhausting every skillful means; his functioning and eloquence in the room—taking up, letting go, killing, and giving life—were especially celebrated as clear and wonderful. When the master first had an awakening, he traveled together with Ci'an, known at the time as 'Original Cloth Bag.' Repeating and condensing, their understanding grew deeper and more profound by the day. When he followed Ci'an to Huguo, they got along with great joy. When Ci'an passed away, his intention was not without entrusting the master; yet when the master opened the hall and succeeded to the Dharma, he did not forget Huqiu. In this, he was different from those of recent times who are dazzled by fame, led astray by gain and sustenance, and burn incense without acknowledging the source of what they received. In his abbacies, he responded to matters neutrally and accepted circumstances emptily. Even when managing and establishing minor things and petty affairs, he invariably made eternal plans and was never negligent. If the slightest hair was not to his liking, he would abruptly take his leave, and none could dissuade him. He once said of himself, 'A patch-robed monk should consider his straw sandals as his residence; how could he go so far as to cling to a burrow like an adder or a snake?' He exhorted and spurred the disciples, not permitting any indolence, and led by personal example in everything. When he was about to manifest illness, he still hung out the placard to conduct room interviews until the middle of the night; other days were mostly like this. When he was nearing his end, someone requested a verse for departing the world. The master said, 'I have often laughed at what those in various quarters do; should I do it myself?' He settled the affairs of the monastery without omitting the slightest detail, calmly sat cross-legged, and passed away. His worldly age was sixty-one, and his monastic age was forty-three.