佛祖歷代通載 6.64

6.64

The commentary says: A sūtra says, 'The three realms are impermanent; conditioned phenomena do not endure.' The foundation of the Jin clan was distant lineage to the Wei royal house. They executed Cao Shuang and extinguished his clan; they devised imperial plans and displayed their merits. With metal succeeding the phase of earth, the celestial mandate rested on his person. They pacified Shu and brought Great Wu to surrender; enjoying peaceful times, they spread lenient governance. Civil accomplishments were fully perfected, and military arms were put away. Then the crisis of the 'one hundred and six' suddenly arrived, and the royal court lost its positions; the grand chaos of the realm was entirely due to this. At that time, clergy and laity broke apart and scattered; the court could not plan for longevity. Entrusting the administration to Jiangbiao, the Dharma arose along with the dynastic transition. Śramaṇas and faithful laymen assembled there accordingly. Therefore we record it consecutively, under the distinct designation Eastern Jin. Emperor Yuan was the great-grandson of Emperor Xuan and the son of Prince Gong, Sima Jin. His taboo name was Rui and his courtesy name Jingwen. At his birth, there was a spiritual light within, illuminating the entire room. A white curl grew to the left of his forehead. He held successive offices as Commander-in-Chief of Military Affairs in Yangzhou and Chancellor of the Left. After the defeats of Emperors Huai and Min, the hundred officials scattered: some fled south of the Yangtze, while others were captured and slaughtered. Chang'an lost its hold, and the emperor was held captive in Pingyang. At that time in Jiangdong, five suns suddenly appeared together. Those in the capital urged Rui that he ought to assume the title of King of Jin, to oversee the myriad affairs and govern the millions of people. After Emperor Min passed away, he thereupon ascended the supreme throne, establishing the era Jianwu. He took Jianye as his capital, renaming it Jiankang to avoid the taboo of Emperor Min. Prior to this, in the second year of Taikang, the former Wu general Guan Gong rebelled. The Grand Astrologer Wu Zhen divined: 'Gong will be destroyed forthwith. However, in another thirty-eight years, Yangzhou shall have a Son of Heaven.' When the time arrived, it proved true just as he had predicted. Furthermore, during the time of the First Emperor of Qin, those who observed the atmospheric emanations said: 'Five hundred years hence, Mount Jinling in Wu will produce a Son of Heaven.' The First Emperor feared this, so he dispatched troops to excavate and sever Mount Jinling, changing its name to Moling in the hope of extinguishing its royal aura. In total, from [Qin Shi Huang's name] Zheng to Rui was five hundred and twenty-six years; the Jin, with the movement of metal, suddenly lorded over all within the four seas. Moreover, a contemporary ditty sang: 'Five horses swim across the river; one horse transforms into a dragon.' In the chaos and loss of the Yongjia era, of the imperial clan only the five princes of Langya, Xiyang, Runan, Nandun, and Pengcheng succeeded in crossing to Jiangbiao; and Rui was the very first to establish himself as emperor. We may thus know that receiving the mandate is inspired from above by the celestial spirits, while wishing to command the territorial realm is aided from below by the land's configuration. The earth sustained its configuration, so the First Emperor excavated it without destroying it; heaven bestowed its spiritual favor, so Liu Yao slaughtered without eradicating it. From Jianwu down to Yuanxi, there were twelve rulers in total spanning one hundred and four years. Clergy and laity from the Chinese and barbarian realms translated nearly six hundred rolls of sūtras, vinaya, and treatises; the undertaking of propagating the Dharma flourished with particular splendor at this time.