佛祖歷代通載 22.204

22.204

古之君天下者皆有師。惟其道之所存。不以類也。故趙以圖澄為師。秦以羅什為師。夫二君之師其人也。以其知足以圖國。言足以興邦。德足以範世。道足以參天地贊化育。故尊而事之。非以方伎而然也。皇元啟運北天奄荒區夏。世祖皇帝。舊神武之威。致混一之績。思所以去殺勝殘躋生民於仁壽者。莫大釋氏。故崇其教以敦其化本。以帝師拔思發有聖人之道。屈萬乘之尊。盡師敬之節。諮諏至道之要。以施於仁政。是以德加於四海。澤洽於無外。窮島絕嶼之國。卉服魋結之氓。莫不草靡於化風。駿奔而効命。白雉來遠夷之貢。火浣獻殊域之琛。豈若前代直羈縻之而已焉。其政治之隆而仁覆之遠。固元首之明股肱之良。有以致之。然而啟沃天衷克弘王度。寔賴帝師之助焉。皇上重離繼明應乾承統。以為法位久曠道統將微。以師猶子之子公哥祿魯斯監贊。嗣帝師位俾修其法。斂時五福祐我家邦。有河西僧高沙刺巴。建言於朝。以為孔子以修述文教之功。世享廟祀。而光帝師德俟將聖師表一人。製字書以資文治之用。迪聖慮以致於變之化。其功大且遠矣。而封號未追廟享不及。豈國家崇德報功之道哉。大臣以聞。詔郡國建祠宇。歲時致享。師薩思迦人。族欵氏。祖朵栗赤。當吐蕃之盛。相其君伯西海。後十餘世。皆以學德為國宗範。師生八歲。誦經數十萬言。又能約通大義。國人以為聖。故稱拔思癹。長而學富五明。故又稱班彌怛。其所師而學焉。友而問焉者。數十人。皆有盛名於時。故其所有汪不可涯矣。其所撰述皆辭嚴義偉制如佛經。國人家傳口誦。寶而畜之。夫敏者怠於博學。貴者恥於下問。才高而位重。則矜己而驕物。此人之恒也。師以生知之明。為天子師。可謂敏且貴矣。而乃博學無厭下詢遺老。人有一法不遠千里而求之。雖硜硜之諒。佼佼之庸。苟有可取無遺焉。負絕世之材。材莫大焉。處帝師之位。位莫重焉。而乃孜孜於道。循循誘物。惟恐德之不修。道之不弘。未嘗以多能自聖而有滿盈之色。曠若空谷靜若深淵。遠若雲霞。重若丘山。豈非至德。其孰能與於此哉。其道之所被。德之所及。猶杲日麗乎天。明無不照。陽和煦於物。氣無不浹。其高如天。不可階而升也。其大如海。不可航而涉也。以不言而民信。不勸而物從。所過者化。所存者神。匪天縱之將聖。孰能與於此哉。故天子法天地尚德右功之道。著皇王之盛典。崇廟享之報宜乎。龜趺螭首刻頌遺烈昭示無極（洪）以狂斐猥承明詔。序而銘之。其銘曰。佛道弘大。洋海無際。滔天沃日。並育萬類。於彼將聖。象罔得一。推厥緒餘。以匡王國。烈烈皇祖。草昧天造。奠是南紀。功格蒼昊。天錫睿哲。俾翊我后。敦彼薄俗。化于仁厚。汪濊漏泉。波及無外。航濬梯阻。萬邦咸會。郡邪鴟揚。維鳩之競。式遏詭類。率俾吾正。赳赳武夫。蚩蚩嚚鄙。德訓所及。風振草靡。惟月之恒。惟日之升。惟師之道。罔或不承。欒欒清廉。惟時享之。有偉其貌。惟時仰之。莫高匪山。莫深匪淵。刻銘頌烈。永世無遷。

The rulers of the world in ancient times all had teachers; they valued only where the Way resided, regardless of category. Thus Zhao took Fotudeng as teacher, and Qin took Kumārajīva as teacher. Now, the two rulers' taking them as teachers was because their knowledge was sufficient to plan for the state, their words were sufficient to prosper the nation, their virtue was sufficient to serve as a model for the world, and their Way was sufficient to join with Heaven and Earth and assist in transforming and nourishing [creation]. Therefore, they venerated and served them; it was not merely on account of magical arts. When the Great Yuan initiated its mandate, the northern skies suddenly brought under sway the lands of China. The August Ancestor Shizu, through his innate divine martial might, achieved the accomplishment of unification. Considering that in doing away with killing, overcoming cruelty, and elevating the living populace to benevolence and longevity, nothing surpassed the Śākya clan, he exalted its teaching to consolidate the foundation of transformation. Deeming that the Imperial Preceptor 'Phags-pa possessed the Way of a sage, he lowered the dignity of his ten-thousand-chariot status, fully discharged the etiquette of honoring a teacher, and inquired into the essentials of the supreme Way to apply them to benevolent government. As a consequence, virtue was extended over the four seas and favor reached beyond the borders. Nations on remote islands and isolated reefs, and peoples in grass garments and mallet-shaped hair-buns, without exception swayed like grass before the wind of his transforming influence, hastening forward to offer their services. White pheasants arrived as tribute from distant barbarians; asbestine cloth was offered as the treasure of peculiar realms. How could this be like former dynasties that merely maintained a loose rein over them? The height of its governance and the breadth of its benevolent shelter were certainly brought about by the brilliance of the sovereign and the excellence of his ministers; yet the enlightenment of the celestial mind and the vast expansion of the royal measures truly relied on the assistance of the Imperial Preceptor. When His Imperial Majesty succeeded to the throne in double illumination corresponding to Heaven and continuing the lineage, he considered that the Dharma seat had long been vacant and the lineage of the Way was on the verge of waning; thus he appointed the master's nephew's son, Kun-dga'-blo-gros-rgyal-mtshan, to succeed to the position of Imperial Preceptor, allowing him to cultivate its teachings, collect the five blessings of that time, and protect our state. A monk from Hexi named Gaoshala-ba submitted a memorial to the court, arguing that Confucius, on account of his merit in compiling and expounding the literary teachings, had enjoyed temple sacrifices for generations; meanwhile, the late Imperial Preceptor's virtue awaited the impending sageliness to serve as a model for the Sole Man, creating a written script to aid in civil administration and guiding the sage thoughts to bring about harmonious transformation, so that his merit was both vast and far-reaching; yet he had not received a posthumous title, and temple sacrifices had not reached him—how could this be the state's way of venerating virtue and requiting merit? The ministers reported this to the throne. An imperial decree ordered the commanderies and fiefs to erect shrines and offer sacrifices at the proper seasons. The master was a native of Sa-skya, of the ’Khon clan. His ancestor was sGrol-ma. In the heyday of Tibet, he served as minister to his lord, dominating the Western Sea. For more than ten generations thereafter, they were the state's models of scholarship and virtue. At the age of eight, the master chanted hundreds of thousands of words of scriptures and could grasp their general meaning in brief. His countrymen regarded him as a sage and thus called him 'Phags-pa ('Exalted'). When he grew up, his learning encompassed the five sciences, and so he was also called Paṇḍita. Those whom he took as teachers to learn from, and as friends to inquire of, numbered in the dozens, all of whom enjoyed high renown in their time; thus, his attainments were vast and boundless. His writings were rigorous in diction, grand in meaning, and structured like Buddhist sutras; his countrymen transmitted them through families, chanted them aloud, and treasured them. Now, the clever are often negligent in wide learning; the noble are often ashamed to consult inferiors; those of high talent and weighty rank are often boastful and arrogant toward others: such is human nature. The master, with his innate wisdom, became the teacher of the Son of Heaven; he may be called both clever and noble. Yet he learned broadly without satiation, consulting elder scholars below him; if a person possessed a single method, he would seek it out without regarding a thousand li as distant. Even if it were the obstinate trustworthiness [of the simple] or the commonplace skill [of the mediocre], if there was something worthy of adoption, he neglected none of it. Bearing unmatched talent, no talent was greater than his; occupying the seat of the Imperial Preceptor, no position was weightier than his. Yet he was ever diligent in the Way and gently led living beings, fearing only that his virtue was not cultivated and his Way not expanded; he never took pride in his versatility or showed an air of fullness. He was open like an empty valley, serene like a deep abyss, distant like clouds and mists, and heavy like hills and mountains. Were he not of the utmost virtue, who could match this? Where his Way was cast and where his virtue reached was like the bright sun shining in the sky, leaving nothing unilluminated; like the warm spring air nurturing living things, leaving no breath uninfused. His height was like Heaven, not to be scaled by steps; his expanse was like the ocean, not to be crossed by ship. Without speaking, the people trusted him; without encouragement, beings followed him. Where he passed, he transformed; where he remained, it was spirit-like. Were he not one whose impending sageliness was granted by Heaven, who could match this? Therefore, the Son of Heaven, modeling upon the Way of Heaven and Earth to esteem virtue and honor merit, manifested the grand ceremonies of the sovereign monarchs, and exalted the recompense of temple sacrifices as is proper. Inscribing this song of his lasting achievements upon turtle plinths and dragon finials demonstrates it to infinity. I, Fahong, with my crude talents, have humbly received the radiant decree to compose the preface and the inscription. The inscription states: / Broad and great is the Buddha's Way, / Vast as the ocean without shore. / Inundating heaven and washing the sun, / It nurtures all kinds together. / Ah, that impending sage, / Seized the One in the midst of obscurity. / Extending his surplus, / He assisted the royal state. / Martial and splendid was the August Ancestor, / When Heaven created the realm out of primal chaos. / Settling this southern boundary, / His merit reached to the azure heaven. / Heaven bestowed a sagacious philosopher / To assist our sovereign. / Refining those shallow customs, / Transforming them into benevolence and depth. / Vastly overflowing like a bubbling spring, / His waves reached beyond the borders. / Sailing deeps and scaling crags, / The ten thousand realms all convened. / The flocks of evil birds took flight, / Like quarreling doves. / Restraining the deceitful sorts, / He led them all to our correctness. / Valiant warriors, / Ignorant and vulgar folk: / Wherever his moral instructions reached, / They swayed like grass before the wind. / Like the moon ever waxing, / Like the sun rising high: / To the master's Way, / There was none who did not submit. / Pure, upright, and solemn, / At these times receive offerings! / Majestic is his countenance, / At these times look up to it! / Nothing is higher than the mountain; / Nothing is deeper than the abyss. / We carve this inscription to praise his achievements, / Never to be moved for eternal ages.