釋氏稽古略 3.211

3.211

元和九年正月。柳子厚作南嶽大明律師碑。其略曰。儒以禮立仁義。無之則壞。佛以律持定慧。去之則喪。是以離禮於仁義者不可與言儒。異律於定慧者不可與言佛。達是道者惟大明師。凡浮圖之道衰。其徒必小律而去經。大明恐焉。於是究戒律而大法以立。通經教而奧義以修。凡衣服器用動有師法。言語行止皆為物軌。全文載柳集。

In the ninth year of the Yuanhe era, in the first month, Liu Zihou composed the stele inscription for Vinaya Master Daming of Nanyue. An excerpt reads: "Confucianism establishes benevolence and righteousness by means of ritual propriety; without it, they are ruined. Buddhism maintains meditative concentration and wisdom by means of monastic discipline; discarding it, they are lost. Therefore, one who separates ritual propriety from benevolence and righteousness cannot be spoken of together with Confucianism; one who divorces monastic discipline from concentration and wisdom cannot be spoken of together with Buddhism. The only one who has penetrated this Way is Master Daming. Whenever the Way of the Buddha declines, its adherents inevitably make light of monastic discipline and cast away the scriptures. Daming feared this. Thereupon he thoroughly investigated the monastic precepts and regulations so that the Great Dharma was established; he mastered the canonical teachings so that the profound meaning was cultivated. In all robes and utensils, in every movement he adhered to the model of a master; his speech, conduct, action, and stillness served as a standard for all beings." The complete text is contained in the Collected Works of Liu.