高僧傳 5.13

5.13

Dao'an often wrote commentaries on the scriptures, and fearing that they might not accord with reason, he made a vow, saying: "If what I have explained does not stray from the profound principle, may an auspicious sign be shown." He then dreamed of a foreign man of the Way with white hair and long eyebrows, who said to Dao'an: "The commentaries you have written on the scriptures accord exceptionally well with the truth. I am unable to enter nirvāṇa and reside in the Western Regions; I shall help you to propagate and circulate them, and you may offer me food from time to time." Later, when the *Daśādhyāya-vinaya* arrived, Venerable Huiyuan realized that the one the Preceptor had dreamed of was Piṇḍola. Thereupon, he set up a seat and offered food to him, which became a standard everywhere. As Dao'an's virtue was a model for all beings and his learning encompassed the Tripiṭaka, he formulated the *Regulations for Monks and Nuns* and *Constitutions of the Buddhadharma*. He categorized them into three sets of rules: first, the method of offering incense, fixing seats, ascending to recite the scriptures, and ascending to lecture; second, the method of performing circumambulation, taking meals, and announcing the hours during the six periods of the daily routine; third, the method of the poṣadha, assigning monastic duties, repentance of transgressions, and so forth. The monasteries of the empire then adopted them as models and followed them.