大唐故三藏玄奘法師行狀 1.2.4

1.2.4

Suddenly, he dreamed that he saw Nālandā Monastery: the courtyards and quarters were desolate and filthy, water buffaloes were tethered everywhere, and no monks remained. The Dharma Master entered from the west gate of Bālāditya Court. On the fourth multistoried pavilion, he saw a golden person whose appearance was dignified and majestic, his bright radiance filling the sky. Pointing afar outside the monastery, he said to the Dharma Master, 'Follow me and look.' He immediately looked out in the direction pointed, and saw villages, towns, woods, and pools all being consumed by fire and turned completely to ashes and embers. The golden person said, 'You should return home early. In this place, in a little over ten years, King Śīlāditya will pass away. India will fall into wilderness and disorder, and evil men will harm one another, just like this land. You ought to know this.' Having spoken, he disappeared. When the Dharma Master awoke, he marvelled and sighed over it, and recounted it to Jayasena. [Jayasena] answered, 'There is no peace in the three realms; how could it not be so? This is an admonition bestowed by a sage; you must not fail to rely on it.' Thus, in all that the Dharma Master did, he was protected and kept in mind by the Bodhisattva: when he was about to set out for India, [the Bodhisattva] informed Śīlabhadra so that he would stay and await him; when he lingered and did not return, [the Bodhisattva] showed impermanence to urge his return. If what he did had not accorded with the holy mind, who could have received such blessings? At the end of the Yonghui era, King Śīlāditya indeed passed away, and India suffered famine and disorder, all just as had been foretold. The envoy of the State, Wang Xuance, witnessed these events. In the days when the Dharma Master was there, he observed that venerable figures of Nālandā Monastery such as Siṃharaśmi had established the doctrine of the Madhyamaka and Śata treatises to refute the tenets of the Yogācāra and the like. The Dharma Master told them, 'When sages compose treatises, they never contradict each other; it is merely that scholars fail to comprehend them.' He thereupon composed the *Hui zong lun* (Treatise on the Harmony of Doctrines) in three thousand verses. From Master Śīlabhadra on down, all who saw it praised it as excellent, and it circulated widely there. Previously, there was an initiation master of a South Indian king named Prajñāgupta, who was versed in the doctrine of the Saṃmatīya school and had composed the *Po dasheng lun* (Treatise Refuting the Mahāyāna) in seven hundred verses. At that time, when King Śīlāditya was on an expedition to quell bandits, the Hīnayāna masters of the country of Oḍra, treasuring this treatise, took it and presented it to the king, requesting that a debate be held against the Mahāyāna. The king consented, and thereupon sent a letter to Nālandā Monastery, ordering that four venerable figures well versed in the Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna doctrines as well as non-Buddhist texts be dispatched to his temporary camp, intending for them to debate the doctrines with the Hīnayāna and non-Buddhists. The Treasury of the True Dharma (Śīlabhadra) then dispatched Sāgaramati, Jñānaprabha, Siṃharaśmi, and the Dharma Master, four persons, to respond to the king’s order. Before they set out, a Lokāyata non-Buddhist came seeking debate, writing forty theses and hanging them upon the monastery gate. The Dharma Master sent for them and set up his counter-theses, summoning the non-Buddhist to debate. After three or four rounds of exchange, the brāhmaṇa was reduced to silence and had nothing to say. There had been an agreement beforehand that the defeated party would have his head severed by way of apology. The non-Buddhist asked to abide by the prior agreement. The Dharma Master said, 'I am a Śramaṇa, a disciple of the Śākya; I must not harm even an insect, much less kill a human being.' The non-Buddhist was overjoyed and asked to serve him for the rest of his life. None among those who heard it failed to offer congratulations. At that time, wishing to go to Oḍra, he sought out that [Saṃmatīya] treatise and examined it, finding several places that raised doubts. He said to the subdued brāhmaṇa, 'Have you ever heard this doctrine?' He replied, 'I have heard it; at that time I was proficient in it.' The Dharma Master had him explain it once, completely grasping its essential purport. He then traced its errors and immediately set forth the Mahāyāna meaning to refute it, composing sixteen hundred verses titled *Zhi e jian lun* (Treatise on the Subjugation of Evil Views). He presented it to Śīlabhadra and the venerable assembly, all of whom praised it as excellent, saying, 'With this penetrating exhaustiveness, what opponent could fail to be subdued?' Having thoroughly mastered their school, the Dharma Master released the subdued brāhmaṇa to go wherever he pleased. The non-Buddhist departed joyfully and went to Eastern India, where he spoke to King Kumāra of the Dharma Master's virtues. The king was greatly delighted to hear of them and sent envoys to invite him. Only after the king's envoys came repeatedly did he set out. At that time he was just intending to return [to China], and his baggage was already packed. The venerable ones and assembly of Nālandā all urged him to stay. The Dharma Master, reflecting that these sūtras and śāstras were somewhat incomplete and that his original intention was to obtain them for dissemination, felt he could not abandon his longstanding aspiration, and firmly refused [to stay]. Thereupon taking his leave, he took the scriptures and images and went to King Kumāra's place. In that country, the Buddha Dharma had never previously been practiced, and most people believed in non-Buddhist brāhmaṇa teachings. When the Dharma Master arrived, dissenting factions gathered like clouds, asking the king to hold a debate to test who would prevail. As soon as the Dharma Master opened his wondrous eloquence, the heterodox followers bent like grass before the wind. The king revered him all the more, humbly inquiring: 'Of the merits of the Buddhas, I pray you show me the cause.' For the king, the Dharma Master praised the Tathāgata's three bodies and their benefit to living beings, and right then composed for him the *San shen lun* (Treatise on the Three Bodies) in three hundred verses. The king rejoiced as never before, receiving it with bowed head and upholding it. At that time, King Śīlāditya, hearing that the Dharma Master was at King Kumāra’s place, said in surprise, 'I repeatedly invited him but he did not come; for what reason is he here?' He sent an envoy to say to King Kumāra, 'Send the Dharma Master of China here.' King Kumāra, knowing Śīlāditya's admiration and longing, ordered an array of twenty thousand elephant-drawn chariots and thirty thousand boats, and the Dharma Master sailed up the Gaṅgā River to proceed to the king's encampment. When he reached the country of Kajangala, the king saw the Dharma Master, bowed his head to both his feet, scattered countless flowers, and finished reciting verses of praise. He then said, 'Your disciple previously sent to invite the Dharma Master; why did you not come?' The Dharma Master replied, 'When I received the command, my studies were not yet finished, so I could not visit the Great King.' The king said, 'The Master has come from the land of China. There they have the musical dance of the Prince of Qin’s Defeat of the Battle Array. Who is the Prince of Qin? What merits does he have that have led to such songs?' The Dharma Master reported, 'The Prince of Qin is the present Son of Heaven of China. In our native land, when we see that a sovereign possesses sagely virtue, able to eradicate violence, curb cruelty, and nourish all living beings, we sing and chant of him. The Prince of Qin is a great sage; for the multitude of common people, he brought order out of chaos, restored peace to the universe, and caused the three luminaries to shine anew. The six directions cherish his benevolence, and therefore there is this song.' The king said, 'Such a sage was indeed sent by Heaven to be the lord of all creatures!' Thereupon, he ushered him into his traveling palace and set out various offerings. The king said, 'I hear that you composed the *Zhi e jian lun*; where is it?' The Dharma Master replied, 'It is here.' The king then sent for it to read, was greatly pleased, and said to his own teachers, 'Your disciple has heard that when the light of the sun comes out, the brilliance of fireflies and candles is stolen away. The doctrine that you, masters, hold precious has been completely refuted by another. Try and see if you can rescue it.'