釋氏稽古略 4.258

4.258

Imperial Praise for the Buddha's Tooth Relic: In summer, on the fifth day of the fifth month, under the Song, the Emperor welcomed the tooth relic of Śākyamuni Buddha—which had received imperial eulogies across three reigns (Taizong, Zhenzong, and Renzong)—from Daxiangguo Monastery into the imperial palace to make offerings. As the Emperor showed his veneration, relics emerged from through the crystal casket like drops of rain. The Emperor praised it with a verse, saying: "The Great Being, Śākyamuni, / Is equal to a single speck of dust in empty space. / Wherever there is a prayer, he responds to it; / There is no realm in which he does not manifest his divided bodies. / Pure as jade, the thousand wheels remain; / Like vajra refined a hundred times, it is ever new. / I now respectfully pay homage, / Universally wishing to deliver all living beings." (Fanyi mingyi, chapter 52).