高僧傳 11.41

11.41

Shi Sengzhou—it is not known what sort of person he was. His character was lofty and resolute, and he had extraordinary aspirations and conduct. Yet he concealed his light and hid his traces, so that no one could know him. He constantly practiced dhūta and sat in dhyāna on Mount Songgao. When the Wei barbarians were about to eradicate the Buddhadharma, Zhou said to his disciples, "A great calamity is about to arrive." Thereupon, together with several dozen companions, he entered Mount Hanshan. The mountain was four hundred li southwest of Chang'an, its ravines and valleys treacherous and rugged, beyond the reach of military forces, and so they made their dwelling there. Soon after, the Wei barbarians gave free rein to violence, and all [monks] who had remained behind were killed. Later, [the Wei emperor] soon repented, exterminated the Cui clan, and revived the Buddhadharma. When the illegitimate Prince of Yongchang garrisoned Chang'an, he received an imperial decree to restore and rebuild, and searched for śramaṇas. At that time, someone said that on Mount Hanshan there was a monk of extraordinary virtue and practice, and the prince immediately sent an envoy to summon him. Zhou declined on account of old age and illness, ordering his disciple Sengliang to answer the summons and leave the mountain. Later, when Zhou was about to pass away, he said to his disciples, "I am about to depart." That evening, fire was seen emerging from behind his rope bed and burning his body; it took three days to burn out completely. The smoke and flames rose to the sky, yet the room was not consumed. The disciples gathered his remaining ashes and built a brick stūpa.