佛祖歷代通載 22.185

22.185

（十八　甲寅）　正月廿二日。改延祐。大赦○（十一月遣使經理江西江浙湖廣田糧）弘教佛智三藏法師入寂。公積寧氏。諱沙囉巴觀照。事上師著栗灻學佛氏法。善吐番文字。頗得祕密之要。世祖皇帝嘗受教於帝師發思巴。詔師譯語。辭致明辨允愜聖衷。詔賜大辯廣智法師。河西之人。尊其道而不敢名。止稱其氏。至呼其子弟皆曰此積寧法師家。其為見重如此。公昆弟四人。公其季也。總丱之歲。依帝師發思巴薙染為僧。學諸部灌頂之法。時有上士名刺溫卜。以焰曼德迦密乘之要。見稱於世。帝師命公往學此法。溫卜以公器偉識高非流輩比。悉以祕要授之。於是王公大人凡有志茲道者皆於公師而受焉。帝師迦囉思巴幹即哩。以公之能薦之世祖。詔譯諸祕要。俾傳於世。時僧司雖盛風紀寖蔽。所在官吏既不能干城遺法抗禦外侮。返為諸僧之害。桂蠹乘癰雖欲去之。莫能盡也。頹波所激江南尤甚朝廷久選能者欲使正之。以白帝師。僉謂諸色之人豈無能者。必以為識時務孰與公賢。以詔授江浙等處釋教總統。既至削去煩苛務從寬大。其人安之。既而改授福建等處釋教總統。以其氣之正。數與同列乖迕而不合。公謂天下何事。況教門乎。蓋吾人之庸自擾之耳。夫設官愈多則事愈煩。今諸僧之苦。蓋事煩而官多也。十羊九牧。其為苛擾可勝言哉。建言罷之。以聞。詔罷諸路總所。議者稱其高。公既得請廼遁迹壟坻。築室種樹蓋將終焉。至大中以皇太子令召至京師。詔授光祿大夫司徒。仁宗皇帝龍德淵潛之日。嘗問法於公。知公之賢。既踐天位眷遇益隆詔給廩既舘於慶壽寺。詔公所譯皆板行之。公幼而頴悟。諸國語言皆不學而能。自為兒人皆以為必成大器。既長果能樹立。致位三公。雖以德藝。抑亦遭遇於時也。其始為佛誦其言觀其義。既涉其涯遂厲於深。為人好賢愛能。尤能取諸人。以為善。談論之際發其端已。得過半之思。故其所有皆以好問而致。是以名勝之流皆從之。游以師友相處。延祐元年十月五日歿。年五十有六。其始疾也。詔賜中統鈔萬緡俾求醫藥。太尉瀋王往眎疾焉。既歿。又賜幣萬緡以給葬事。遣使驛送其喪歸葬故里。門弟子相與建塔以表其藏。壽安山雲麓洪公。作銘有謂。佛法之傳必資翻譯。故譯梵為華。或敵對名物。或唯以義。必博通經論。善兩方之言。始能為之。是以道安嘗謂。翻譯微言有五失本三不易。故非能者不足以有為也。所以傳列十科。翻譯居首者。豈非以其為之難功之大乎。予嘗以詔與京邑諸公校讐藏典。歷觀自古翻譯之家。以義譯經如秦之羅什。譯論唐之奘公。十數人之作。所謂禹吾無間然矣。其餘或指義曖昧。或文辭疎拙。夫義之曖昧。蓋譯者之未盡文。或疎拙潤色之失也。因思安公之言。以謂以彌天之高。尚稱不易。今之譯者何其易哉。自季葉以來。譯場久廢。能者蓋寡。豈意人物凋殘之際乃見公乎。觀其所譯可謂能者哉。

(18. Jiayin) On the twenty-second day of the first month, the era was changed to Yanyou, and a great amnesty was proclaimed. (In the eleventh month, envoys were dispatched to manage the fields and grain in Jiangxi, Jiangzhe, and Huguang.) The Tripiṭaka Master of Propagating the Teaching and Buddha-Wisdom entered quiescence. The Master was of the Jining clan; his taboo name was Shaluoba (Shes-rab) Guanzhao. He served the Guru Zhuolichi (Chos-rje) and studied the Buddha's teachings. He was skilled in the Tibetan script and largely grasped the essentials of the Esoteric teachings. When Emperor Shizu received instruction from Imperial Preceptor 'Phags-pa, he issued an edict commanding the Master to translate the words; his expressions were clear and discriminating, fully satisfying the imperial mind. An edict bestowed upon him the title 'Dharma Master of Great Eloquence and Broad Wisdom.' The people of Hexi revered his way and did not dare utter his personal name, calling him only by his clan name, going so far as to refer to his sons and younger brothers as 'the household of Dharma Master Jining'—so greatly was he esteemed. The Master had four brothers, and he was the youngest. In the years of childhood, he took the tonsure and became a monk under Imperial Preceptor 'Phags-pa, studying the abhiṣeka methods of the various classes of tantra. At that time, there was an eminent master named Ciwenbu (Dbon-po), who was acclaimed in the world for the essentials of the Yamāntaka Vajrayāna. The Imperial Preceptor commanded the Master to go and study this method. Wenbu, considering the Master's vessel to be grand and his discernment lofty—far beyond his peers—transmitted all the secret essentials to him. Thereupon, princes, dukes, and high officials who had an aspiration for this Way all took the Master as their teacher and received it from him. Imperial Preceptor Karaspa-odzer, on account of the Master's abilities, recommended him to Emperor Shizu, and an edict commanded him to translate the various secret essentials so that they might be transmitted to the world. At that time, although the Buddhist offices were flourishing, discipline had gradually fallen into decline. The local officials could neither shield the bequeathed teachings nor repel outside insults; instead, they caused harm to the monks. Though one wished to remove the destructive parasites and lancing sores, they could not be eradicated completely. The surging wave hit Jiangnan with particular severity. For a long time, the court sought capable men, intending to have them rectify it, and consulted the Imperial Preceptor. All agreed: 'Among the various kinds of people, how could there be no one capable? But when it comes to understanding the affairs of the times, who can compare with the Master's worthiness?' By imperial decree, he was appointed General Director of the Buddhist Teachings for Jiangzhe and Other Circuits. Upon his arrival, he eliminated vexatious and harsh regulations, devoted himself to leniency, and the people were put at ease. Soon after, he was reassigned as General Director of the Buddhist Teachings for Fujian and Other Circuits. Because of his upright spirit, he repeatedly clashed with his colleagues and did not get along. The Master said: 'What great matters are there under heaven, let alone in the realm of the teachings? It is merely our own mediocrity that stirs up trouble. Indeed, the more offices are established, the more vexatious the affairs become. The distress of the monks today is precisely because the affairs are vexatious and the officials are many. With nine shepherds to ten sheep, how can the harsh disruption be fully told?' He submitted a proposal to abolish them and reported it to the throne. An edict abolished the general directorates in the circuits, and commentators praised his loftiness. Having obtained his request, the Master then retired to the hills and ridges, building a cottage and planting trees, intending to end his days there. During the Zhida era, he was summoned to the capital by order of the Crown Prince. An edict appointed him Grand Master of Glorious Happiness and Minister of Education (Situ). During the days when Emperor Renzong's dragon virtues were still hidden in the deep, he had inquired about the Dharma from the Master and knew his worthiness. After ascending the imperial throne, his favor and treatment grew even more generous: he decreed that grain rations be provided and lodged him at Qingshou Temple; he also decreed that all the Master's translations be carved on printing blocks and circulated. From childhood, the Master was perceptive and intelligent; he mastered the languages of various countries without study. From the time he was a boy, everyone considered that he would certainly become a great vessel. When he grew up, he indeed established himself and attained the rank of the Three Excellencies. Although this was due to his virtue and talents, he also encountered his proper time. At the beginning of his study of the Buddha, he chanted his words and contemplated their meanings; having traversed the shallows, he then strove toward the depths. By nature he was fond of the worthy and loved the capable; he was particularly adept at adopting what was good in others. When discussing things, as soon as the opening point was made, he had already anticipated more than half of the ideas; hence, everything he possessed was acquired through his fondness for inquiry. For this reason, the eminent and famous flocked to him, associating with him as teachers and friends. On the fifth day of the tenth month in the first year of the Yanyou era, he passed away at the age of fifty-six. When he first fell ill, an edict bestowed ten thousand strings of Zhongtong paper money to seek medical treatment, and Grand Commander the Prince of Shen went to look after his illness. After his demise, an additional ten thousand strings of cash were bestowed to provide for his funeral affairs, and envoys were dispatched to convey his remains by courier service back for burial in his native place. His disciples jointly erected a stupa to mark his sepulcher. Master Hong of the Yunlu Hermitage on Mount Shou'an composed an inscription, saying: 'The transmission of the Buddha's teachings must rely on translation. Therefore, in translating Sanskrit into Chinese, whether matching names and objects or conveying only the meaning, one must be thoroughly versed in the sutras and treatises and skilled in the languages of both sides before one can accomplish it. For this reason, Dao'an once stated that translating subtle words involves five losses of the original and three difficulties. Therefore, unless one is truly capable, one cannot undertake this work. Among the ten categories of the biographies, translation holds the first place—is this not because the task is difficult and its merit great? I once received an edict to collate the Tripiṭaka together with various gentlemen in the capital. Observing the translators from ancient times, those who translated sutras by meaning like Kumārajīva of the Qin, or translated treatises like Master Xuanzang of the Tang—the works of a dozen or so men—can truly be called flawless, just as Confucius said of Yu. As for the rest, their expressed meanings were either obscure, or their literary phrasing was crude and unpolished. An obscurity of meaning is due to the translator's failure to fully comprehend, while crudeness of phrasing is a failure of polishing. Thinking thus of Master Dao'an's words, that one of his sky-filling stature still called it