釋氏稽古略 1.583

1.583

When Sun Hao, the ruler of Wu, first ascended the throne, he destroyed spirit shrines everywhere, and this extended to Buddhist monasteries. His ministers remonstrated, saying, "The late emperor, moved by an auspicious omen, founded the monastery; it must not be destroyed." Hao then sent Zhang Yu to go and confront Kang Senghui. Hui refuted his arguments, his reasoning and debates sharp as spearheads. Yu could not confound him, and on returning, reported Hui's great talent. Hao summoned him and asked, "The Buddha spoke of karmic retribution for good and evil; may we hear of this?" Hui said, "When an enlightened sovereign governs all under Heaven with filial piety and compassion, red crows soar and the Old Man [star] appears; when he nurtures all creatures with benevolence and virtue, sweet springs run clear and auspicious grains sprout. As good has its response, so it is with evil. Therefore, when evil is done in secret, spirits may punish it; when evil is done in public, men may punish it. The Changes states that 'accumulating goodness leaves excess blessings,' and the Odes praises 'seeking blessings without turning back.' Though these are maxims of the Confucian texts, they are the clear admonitions of the Buddhist teaching." Hao said, "If that is so, then since the Duke of Zhou and Confucius have already made this clear, of what use is the Buddhist teaching?" Hui said, "The Duke of Zhou and Confucius did not wish to speak at depth, so they briefly indicated its outward traces; the Buddhist teaching does not stop at superficial words, so it explains its essentials in detail. Both are for goodness. The sages only feared that goodness would not be abundant; why should Your Majesty find fault with it?" Hao had nothing to reply with and ceased. When Hao fell ill, he invited Hui to preach the Dharma and confessed his sins. Hui expounded the profound essentials for him and conferred the five precepts upon him. In a short while, his illness was cured. From this, he revered Hui as his teacher and lavishly adorned monasteries and pagodas (Fayuan zhulin).