釋鑑稽古略續集 1.90

1.90

The monk Yuanyi of Shu returned to court after traveling to the Western Heavens, presenting jade Buddha images and palm-leaf scriptures. The Emperor asked: "Is there a Buddha in the Western Heavens?" Yuanyi memorialized: "The present ruler of the living beings of the Eastern Lands—how is he different from Siddhārtha of the Western Heavens?" The Emperor asked Yuanyi: "Why are the disciples of the Daoist school few, while the disciples of the Tathāgata are many?" Yuanyi said: "The rich consider even a household of a thousand too few; the poor resent having even a single body." The Emperor asked Yuanyi: "Does the Venerable Monk still involve himself in worldly conditions?" He replied: "Not knowing the Dharma, one transgresses; once one knows the Dharma, there should be none."