唐護法沙門法琳別傳 3.2

3.2

Li Wei and others further questioned the Dharma Master, saying: "Fascicle Six of your treatise states: 'They adorn themselves in the garb of Dao Yu, which brought calamity upon the Song; they trail the skirts of Sun En, which brought ruin upon the Jin; they wear the kerchief of Nanzheng, which rebelled against the Han; and they hold the tablet of Gongqi, which brought destruction upon their clan.' Yet the provision of large and small caps began in the Han dynasty, and the donning of hide kerchiefs and deer-skin caps arose in remote antiquity. The cap models itself on seasonal cycles, and the tablet rivals that of high officials. Furthermore, their robes resemble cloud-patterned gossamer, producing Daoists who grasp the morning clouds; their attire is like feathered gauze, so that one often hears of immortals treading the mist. Thus we know their traces may be sought, and the Three Funguses are not far; their manner may be looked up to, and the Eight Cassias are near at hand. Therefore, Xiao Shi, harmoniously, rode the cinnabar phoenix in the palace of Qin; Shuqing, brilliantly, drove a team of white stags in the court of Han. Yet you say they brought ruin to states and destruction to clans—from what charts or histories does this come? Since you have advanced groundless accusations, the law has severe penalties." The Dharma Master replied: "I, Falin, have heard that when the tune is in harmony the echo is accordant, and when the body is upright the shadow is straight. I have never seen anyone drill fire and obtain ice, or plant beans and harvest wheat. Hence, when Su Qin and Zhang Yi met at Guigu Cave, they each took the lead in superficial deceit; when Yan Hui and Min Ziqian met at Confucius' gate, both established the inception of virtuous conduct. Thus we know that practicing the teachings of the two chapters [of the Laozi] seeks the subtlety of non-action, whereas pursuing the style of the Three Zhangs plans to be the vanguard of rebellion. Why so? In the time of Emperor Shun of the Later Han, Zhang Ling of Pei traveled as a guest to the land of Shu. He heard an ancient tradition passed down, saying: 'Anciently, Gaozu of the Han responded to the twenty-four solar terms and sacrificed to twenty-four mountains, subsequently ruling as king over all under Heaven.' Ling did not measure his own virtue, and so concocted this plot. He slaughtered oxen to sacrifice at twenty-four places, erected earthen altars topped with thatched huts, and established twenty-four parish lodges (zhi guan). The rise of parish lodges began from this. Twenty-three places were in the land of Shu, and Yin Xi's single place was in Xianyang. Thereupon he deceived and enticed the foolish populace and gathered a vicious faction, extorting taxes of rice and scheming steps to rebellion. At that time, he was swallowed by a serpent, and his mutinous rebellion was prevented from breaking out. Furthermore, Ling's grandson, Zhang Lu, practiced his ancestor's arts; during the Later Han, he proclaimed himself Master Lord (Shijun). Just as calamity and chaos arose, he was annihilated by Duke Cao [Cao Cao]. Moreover, in the first year of Zhongping, Zhang Jiao of Julu proclaimed himself Master of the Department of Yellow Heaven; he had thirty-six commanders, all wearing yellow turbans. From afar he coordinated with Zhang Lu; his host reached a hundred thousand, and they burned the city of Ye. The Han emperor dispatched He Jin, the Governor of Henan, who led troops to crush and destroy them. Again, in the second year of Xianning under Emperor Wu of the Jin, there was a Daoist, Chen Duan, who deluded the populace with heterodox arts and styled himself Heavenly Master (Tianshi); his followers numbered several thousands over the course of years, until he was executed and exterminated by Wang Jun, the Regional Inspector of Yizhou. Again, in the first year of Taihe under Emperor Wen of the Jin, Lu Song, a Daoist of Pengcheng, styled himself Libationer of the Great Dao. Using perverse arts to delude the masses, he assembled followers, observed the sun and divined the celestial branches, and attacked the Guanghan Gate, claiming he was welcoming the Duke of Haixi. At that time, Huan Mi and others in the Palace detected this and fought them, and they were soon executed and beheaded. Again, in the fifth year of Datong under Emperor Wu of the Liang, the Daoist Yuan Jin deluded the populace with wicked words and practiced incantations and pacing the stellar grid (bugang); the government army seized him, and he was soon executed and exterminated. Again, in the tenth year of Kaihuang under Emperor Wen of the Sui, in Changlong County of Mianzhou, there was a Daoist named Pu Tong who, together with a certain Zuo Tong, claimed in Bengxi Lodge to have attained sagehood. Deceiving and confusing the people, they stacked couches up to the roof-beams, sat atop them, and said, 'Only fifteen-year-old virgin maidens are capable of receiving the Dharma.' They made the girls climb onto the couch, surrounded it with curtains, and then engaged in illicit relations with them. This went on for months. Later the matter was discovered, and they subsequently fled. Again, in the eighteenth year of Kaihuang, the Daoist Han Lang of Yizhou and the Daoist Huang Rulin of Mianzhou incited and deluded the Prince of Shu to initiate evil rebellion, saying: 'If you wish to establish a great enterprise, you must rely on superior conditions.' They then instructed the Prince of Shu to empty the granaries and exhaust the treasuries to fashion a thousand-foot Daoist image, host a thousand-day great vegetarian feast, paint the likeness of the late emperor, tie his hands and head behind his back, and cast spells to subjugate him. Zhao Zhongqing, Duke of Hebei, investigated and found the truth, and sent their persons to the capital department. Interrogated, they confessed their crimes and were executed in the marketplace. Recently, in the third year of Wude, Li Wang, a native of Changlong County in Mianzhou, had previously served Huang-Lao and constantly engaged in sorcery. Late in the Daye era, there was a Daoist named Pu Zizhen who was slightly versed in Daoist arts; he was sent to the Eastern Capital and died upon reaching Lianghan, and was buried there. Yet Li Wang falsely claimed, 'Zizhen has recently returned.' Furthermore, by the side of a mountain in that county, there was a stone cavern—a crag-cave so secluded and dark that no one dared peek inside. Wang relied on this to perpetrate his deceptive sorcery: when out in the light, he opened his throat and spoke loudly to receive and transmit messages; when entering the darkness, he choked his breath and spoke in a tiny voice, falsely pronouncing fortunes and misfortunes. He then had Daoists spread these tales, reaching the county and coming to the notice of the prefecture. When the officials initially investigated, they all believed and accepted it. Later, Regional Inspector Li Dali said, 'This matter is not trivial; it must be reported in a memorial. We must personally verify it before determining right from wrong.' He then went with the officials of the prefecture and county, along with over a hundred mounted Daoists, arriving together at the cave. They bowed twice and prayed, and Wang gave false replies at the time; those who heard were completely convinced. Only the Magistrate of Baxi County, Yue Shizhi, saw deeply into the underlying truth and knew it was fraudulent. Secretly watching in the dark, he saw Wang choking his voice; Zhi immediately shouted at him, and Wang promptly made a full confession. He was arrested and confined in the prefectural prison. Just as they were about to sentence him for his crimes, before several days had passed, he took poison and died. Thus we know that when what is practiced is not orthodox, rebellious plots follow one after another. The saying that 'heterodox ways bring chaos to the flock' is indeed trustworthy! I observe that the rebels adorning themselves with yellow turbans arose from Julu; the ghost writings on cinnabar slips originated from Yangping. Yet to say that 'their robes resemble cloud-patterned gossamer' is outright exaggeration; to say that 'their attire is like feathered gauze' defies human reality. How could one drive a crane or ride a dragon while draped in coarse hemp and plain cloth, or spur a luan-bird and whip a phoenix while wearing a hide kerchief on one's head? Therefore, the likes of Baishi and Chisong were by no means ghost-troops; the peers of Wang Qiao and Xianmen were not parish heads. Furthermore, when Li Dan served the Zhou, his attire was the same as that of the Ruists and Mohists; only on the day Gongqi plotted against the Han did the yellow turban first appear. If they take Boyang [Laozi] as their ancestral model, the Daoists should all perform court audiences; if they take [Zhang] Gongqi as their model, this evil especially ought to be extirpated." Li Wei and others further questioned the Dharma Master, saying: "Fascicle Seven of your treatise states: 'Jian'an was moved by a dream and his ailment was cured; Wenxuan experienced the descent of a spiritual presence and his illness was healed. When the King of Wu besieged the monastery, the relics floated in radiance; when the Lord of Qi carried out an execution, the blade promptly shattered. When Yuwen destroyed the saṅgha, his sores festered; when Tuoba abolished the monasteries, his pus flowed. When Sun Hao urinated on an image, his genitals suffered agony; when Helian was brutal and obstinate, he was struck dead by thunder.' Examining what you cite, all are emperors and kings. How could it be that momentarily turning one's heart brings the clearing of affliction and eradication of sickness, while temporarily abolishing and destroying brings the loss of the state and death of the person? From this we know that the rise and fall of imperial dynasties naturally depend on the length of destined cycles; the flourishing and decline of sovereign monarchs, on reflection, do not stem from faith or desecration. Why do you falsely state fortunes and misfortunes, and deceitfully recount portents and omens? To linger on such claims is not without reproach toward the state." The Dharma Master replied: "The Book of Changes states: 'A house that heaps up goodness will have a surplus of blessings; a house that heaps up evil will have a surplus of calamity.' The Book of Documents says: 'The retribution of good and evil corresponds just as an echo follows a sound and a shadow follows a form.' Therefore, in the reigns of Wen, Wu, Cheng, and Kang, the way of governance flourished in peace; in the era of the First Emperor of Qin and Ershi, cruelty poisoned all under Heaven. This was because treading the Way brought a long-lasting mandate, whereas excessive punishments brought a brief succession. The classic canons speak of this abundantly; how could it depend merely on destined cycles? How much more so when the Buddha is proclaimed the Tamer, uniquely honored across the three realms (traidhātuka), and the saṅgha is called the field of merit (puṇyakṣetra), revered by the four modes of birth (catus-yoni)! How could it be that devout reverence yields no proof of blessing, while destruction and eradication show no verification of disaster? Previously, I briefly presented karmic retributions to counter those perverse people, so that having heard of blessings in the morning, they might be content to perish in the evening. As for the peers of Wenxuan and Jian'an, the company of the King of Wu and the Empress of Qi, and Tuoba, Yuwen, Helian, Sun Hao, and the like, the records and biographies of their good and evil deeds are fully clear, as extensively expounded in works such as Xuanyan ji, Mingxiang ji, Soushen ji, and Ganying zhuan. Moreover, the distinction between good and evil, in principle and order, is brilliant and clear; recorded in canonical statutes, it hangs as high as the sun and moon. It is sufficient to make people, seeing the unworthy, examine themselves within, so that those who have lost their way in youth may know where to return; and beholding the worthy, emulate them, so that those on confused paths may become enlightened. I, Falin, merely presented one corner of the matter, to cause them to reflect thrice upon it. In the present age,