續高僧傳 1.16

1.16

釋法泰。不知何人。學達釋宗跨轢淮海。住楊都大寺。與慧愷僧宗法忍等。知名梁代。並義聲高邈宗匠當時。有天竺沙門真諦。挾道孤遊遠化東鄙。會虜𡨥勍殄。僑寓流離一十餘年。全無陳譯。將旋舊國。途出嶺南。為廣州刺史歐陽頠固留。因欲傳授。周訪義侶。擬閱新文。泰遂與宗愷等。不憚艱辛。遠尋三藏。於廣州制旨寺。筆受文義。垂二十年。前後所出五十餘部。并述義記。皆此土所無者。泰雖博通教旨。偏重行猷。至於律儀所及。性無違越。諦又與泰譯明了論。釋律二十二大義。並疏五卷。勒于座右遵奉行之。至陳太建三年。泰還建業。並齎新翻經論創開義旨。驚異當時。其諸部中。有攝大乘俱舍論。文詞該富理義凝玄。思越恒情尠能其趣。先是梁武宗崇大論。兼翫成實。學人聲望從風歸靡。陳武好異前朝。廣流大品。尤敦三論。故泰雖屢演。道俗無受。使夫法座絕嗣閴爾無聞。會彭城沙門靜嵩。避地金陵。學聲早被獨拔千載。希斯正理。晝談恒講夜請新宗。因循荏苒乃經涼燠。泰振發玄門明衷弘詣。覈其疑義每湊玄極。皆隨機按旨。披釋無遺。事出嵩傳。泰博諮真諦。傳業嵩公。知我者希。浮諺斯及。不測其終。智愷。俗姓曹氏。住楊都寺。初與法泰等前後異發。同往嶺表奉祈真諦。愷素積道風詞力殷贍。乃對翻攝論。躬受其文。七月之中文疏並了。都合二十五卷。後更對翻俱舍論。十月便了。文疏合數八十三卷。諦云。吾早值子。綴緝經論絓是前翻。不應缺少今譯兩論詞理圓備。吾無恨矣。愷後延諦。還廣州顯明寺。住本房中。請諦重講俱舍。纔得一遍。至陳光大中。僧宗法准慧忍等。度嶺就諦求學。以未聞攝論。更為講之。起四月初。至臘月八日方訖一遍。明年宗等又請愷。於智慧寺講俱舍論。成名學士七十餘人。同欽諮謁。講至業品疏第九卷。文猶未盡。以八月二十日遘疾。自省不救。索紙題詩曰。千秋本難滿。三時理易傾。石火無恒焰。電光非久明。遺文空滿笥。徒然昧後生。泉路方幽噎。寒隴向凄清。一朝隨露盡。唯有夜松聲。因放筆。與諸名德握手語別。端坐儼思奄然而卒。春秋五十有一。即光大二年也。葬於廣州西陰寺南崗。自餘論文。真諦續講。至惑品第三卷。因爾乖豫。便廢法事。明年肇春三藏又化。諦有菩薩戒弟子曹毘者。愷之叔子。明敏深沈雅有遠度。少携至南受學攝論。諮承諸部皆著功勣。太建三年。毘請建興寺僧正明勇法師。續講攝論。成學名僧五十餘人。晚住江都綜習前業。常於白塔等寺開演諸論。冠屨裙襦服同賢士。登座談吐每發深致。席端學士並是名賓。禪定僧榮日嚴法侃等皆資其學。時有循州平等寺沙門智敫者。弱年聽延祚寺道緣二師成實。并往北土沙門法明。聽金剛般若論。又往希堅二德。聽婆沙中論。皆洞涉精至研覈宗旨。必得本師臨聽言無浮雜義得明暢者。方始離之。餘例准此。及翻攝論。乃為廣州刺史安南將軍陽山公頠請宅安居。不獲專習。後翻俱舍方預其席。及愷講此論。敫與道尼等二十人。並掇拾文疏。於堂聽受。及愷之云亡。諦撫膺哀慟。遂來法准房中。率尼響敫等十有二人。共傳香火。令弘攝舍兩論誓無斷絕。皆共奉旨仰無墜失。至三藏崩後。法侶彫散宗嗣將虧。太建九年。敫相續敷弘。最多聯類。同聽諦席。未有高者。太建十一年二月。有跋摩利三藏弟子慧哿者。本住中原。值周武滅法。避地歸陳。晚隨使劉璋至南海獲涅槃論。敫曾講斯經。欣其本習伏膺請求。便為開說。止得序分種性分前十三章玄義。後返豫章鶴嶺山。敫又與璣法師隨從。因復為說第三分。具得十海十道。及進餘文。哿因遘疾不任傳授。乃令敫下都覓海潮法師當窮論旨。以十四年至於建業。所尋不值。乃遇栖玄寺曉禪師。賜與曇林解涅槃疏釋經後分。文兼論意而不整足。便還故寺。常講新文十三章義。近二十遍。開皇十二年。王仲宣起逆。焚燒州境及敫寺房。文疏並盡。其年授敫。令任廣循二州僧任。經五載廢闕法事。後解僧任方於本州道場寺。偏講攝論十有餘遍。坐中達解二十五人。璣山瞰等並堪領匠。仁壽元年。遘疾終於本寺。敫撰諦之翻譯歷。始末指訂。并卷部時節人世詳備。廣有成敘。道尼住本九江。尋宗諦旨。興講攝論騰譽京師。開皇十年下勅追入。既達雍輦開悟弘多。自是南中無復講主。雖云敷說蓋無取矣。

Shi Fatai was of unknown origin. His learning comprehended the Buddhist tradition, outshining all in the Huai and Hai regions. He resided at the Great Monastery in the capital of Yangdu, and together with Huikai, Sengzong, Faren, and others, was renowned during the Liang dynasty, their doctrinal fame reaching high and far as leading masters of the time. There was an Indian śramaṇa, Paramārtha, who carried the Dharma on a solitary journey to transform the distant eastern borders. It happened that ferocious northern bandits invaded and destroyed [the realm], and he lived as an exile and vagrant for over ten years, without translating anything at all. When he was about to return to his homeland, his path took him south of the ridges, where he was detained by Ouyang Wei, the regional inspector of Guangzhou. Wishing then to transmit his teachings, he sought throughout the land for doctrinal companions to examine the new texts. Fatai, together with [Seng]zong, [Hui]kai, and others, not dreading hardship and toil, sought out the Tripiṭaka master from afar. At Zhizhi Monastery in Guangzhou, he took down the texts and meanings brush in hand for nearly twenty years. In all, they produced over fifty works along with doctrinal commentaries, all of which had never existed in this land before. Although Fatai was widely versed in doctrinal tenets, he laid special emphasis on noble conduct; where the Vinaya and decorum were concerned, by nature he never transgressed them. Paramārtha also translated the *Vyakhyāyukti* (*Vinayadvyāviṃśatinidāna*) with Fatai, which explains the twenty-two great topics of the Vinaya, together with a commentary in five fascicles; Fatai inscribed it beside his seat and reverently put it into practice. In the third year of the Taijian era of the Chen dynasty, Fatai returned to Jianye, carrying with him the newly translated scriptures and treatises to introduce their doctrinal principles for the first time, astonishing his contemporaries. Among those works were the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha* and the *Abhidharmakośaśāstra*, whose words and expressions were comprehensive and rich, their principles and tenets profound and subtle; their thought transcended common sentiments, and few could grasp their purport. Previously, Emperor Wu of the Liang had revered the *Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa* while also taking pleasure in the *Satyasiddhiśāstra*, and prominent scholars had flocked [to them] like the wind bending the grass. Emperor Wu of the Chen, wishing to differ from the previous dynasty, widely promoted the *Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā* and paid special veneration to the Three Treatises. Therefore, although Fatai repeatedly expounded [the new texts], neither clergy nor laity would receive them, causing the Dharma seat to remain without a successor, silent and unheard. It happened that the śramaṇa Jingsong of Pengcheng had taken refuge from worldly troubles in Jinling. His reputation for learning had long been celebrated as uniquely preeminent across a thousand years. Yearning for these correct principles, he discussed them throughout the day in regular lectures and inquired into the new tradition by night. As time elapsed and seasons changed, Fatai gave voice to the profound approach, his lucid mind reaching great attainments. Whenever Jingsong examined dubious points, they penetrated the ultimate subtlety, and Fatai, following each capacity and adhering to the text, explained and expounded them without reserve. This matter appears in the biography of [Jing]song. Fatai extensively consulted Paramārtha and transmitted his teachings to Master Song; 'Those who know me are few'—the common saying truly applied here. His end is unknown. Zhikai, whose secular surname was Cao, resided at the Yangdu Monastery. Initially, he set out at a different time from Fatai and the others, yet went together with them beyond the ridges to pay reverent homage to Paramārtha. Zhikai had long accumulated the manner of the Way, and his verbal power was rich and abundant; thus he participated in translating the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha*, personally receiving the text. Within seven months, both the text and commentary were completed, totalling twenty-five fascicles. Later, he again participated in translating the *Abhidharmakośaśāstra*, which was finished in ten months, the text and commentary totalling eighty-three fascicles. Paramārtha said: 'Had I met you earlier, of the scriptures and treatises I compiled and translated previously, none would have been lacking. Now that these two treatises have been translated, their phrasing and principles are fully complete; I have no regrets.' Later, [Zhi]kai invited Paramārtha to return to Xianming Monastery in Guangzhou to reside in his original quarters, and requested him to lecture again on the *Abhidharmakośaśāstra*, but they managed only a single round. During the Guangda era of the Chen, Sengzong, Fazhun, Huiren, and others crossed the ridges to seek learning from Paramārtha. Because they had not yet heard the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha*, he lectured on it for them once more, beginning on the fourth day of the fourth month and finishing a single round only on the eighth day of the twelfth month. The following year, [Seng]zong and the others again requested [Zhi]kai to lecture on the *Abhidharmakośaśāstra* at Zhihui Monastery. More than seventy renowned scholars came together to pay homage and consult him. The lectures had reached the ninth fascicle of the commentary on the 'Chapter on Karma', with the text still unfinished, when on the twentieth day of the eighth month he fell ill. Realizing he would not recover, he asked for paper and inscribed a poem: 'A thousand autumns are truly hard to fulfill; / The three seasons by principle easily decline. / A flint's spark has no lasting flame; / A flash of lightning does not shine for long. / Posthumous writings fill the baskets in vain; / To no purpose do they leave later generations in the dark. / The road to the springs is just now dark and choked; / The cold burial mound faces desolation. / One morning, expiring with the dew, / There is only the sound of pines at night.' He then put down the brush, shook hands to bid farewell to the eminent bhadantas, sat upright in dignified contemplation, and suddenly passed away. His age was fifty-one, in the second year of Guangda. He was buried on the south ridge of Xiyin Monastery in Guangzhou. As for the rest of the treatise's text, Paramārtha continued the lectures until the third fascicle of the 'Chapter on Defilements', when he became indisposed and the Dharma assembly was abandoned. In the beginning of spring the next year, the Tripiṭaka master also passed away. Paramārtha had a disciple in the bodhisattva precepts named Cao Pi, who was the son of [Zhi]kai's uncle. He was clever, profound, and possessed an elegant and far-reaching character. Taken south in his youth, he studied the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha*, and in consulting on and receiving the various texts, he achieved meritorious results in all. In the third year of Taijian, Pi invited the monastic rector Dharma Master Mingyong of Jianxing Monastery to continue lecturing on the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha*, and more than fifty eminent monks accomplished in learning attended. Later, he resided in Jiangdu, synthesizing and practicing what he had previously studied, frequently expounding the treatises at Baita and other monasteries. Wearing the cap, shoes, robe, and tunic, he dressed like a worthy gentleman; ascending the seat to speak, he consistently brought forth profound insights. Those seated around him were all illustrious guests; Sengrong of Zhanding Monastery, Fakan of Riyan Monastery, and others all relied upon his learning. At that time, there was the śramaṇa Zhijiao of Pingdeng Monastery in Xunzhou. In his youth, he listened to the *Satyasiddhiśāstra* under Masters Dao and Yuan of Yanzuo Monastery, and went to the northern land to listen to the *Vajracchedikā-prajñāpāramitā-śāstra* under the śramaṇa Faming. He also went to the two bhadantas Xi and Jian to hear the *Vibhāṣā* and the *Mūlamadhyamakakārikā*. In all cases he plumbed the depths with utmost refinement and thoroughly examined the essential tenets. Only after he found a root teacher whose spoken words during lectures were free of superficiality and whose meaning was clear and unimpeded did he leave him. The rest followed this standard. When the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha* was being translated, [Zhi]jiao was invited by the regional inspector of Guangzhou and General Pacifying the South, Duke of Yangshan, [Ouyang] Wei, to conduct the retreat at his residence, so he could not study it exclusively. Later, when the *Abhidharmakośaśāstra* was translated, he was finally admitted to the assembly. When [Zhi]kai lectured on this treatise, [Zhi]jiao, together with Daoni and twenty others, collected the texts and commentaries, listening and receiving them in the hall. When [Zhi]kai passed away, Paramārtha beat his breast in deep grief and went into Fazhun's room, leading twelve men including [Dao]ni, [Fa]xiang, and [Zhi]jiao to pass the incense together, bidding them to propagate the two treatises, the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha* and the *Abhidharmakośaśāstra*, swearing that they would never cease. They all revered the instruction together, determined not to let it fail. After the Tripiṭaka master passed away, the Dharma companions withered and scattered, and the lineage was on the verge of waning. In the ninth year of Taijian, [Zhi]jiao continually set forth and propagated the teachings, having the most peers; among those who attended Paramārtha's lectures together, none surpassed him. In the second month of the eleventh year of Taijian, there was Huige, a disciple of the Tripiṭaka master [Dharma]bhadra, who originally resided in the Central Plains. Facing the suppression of the Dharma by Emperor Wu of the Zhou, he fled to take refuge in the Chen. Later, following the envoy Liu Zhang to the Southern Sea, he obtained the *Mahāparinirvāṇa-śāstra*. [Zhi]jiao had previously lectured on this sūtra, and delighting in his previous study, he submitted himself to request instruction. Huige then expounded it for him, but only reached the preface and the first thirteen chapters of profound meaning in the chapter on lineage. Later, Huige returned to Mount Heling in Yuzhang; [Zhi]jiao, together with Dharma Master Ji, followed him. Huige then expounded the third part for them, fully transmitting the ten seas and the ten paths, and proceeded to the remaining text. Huige then fell ill and was unable to continue teaching, so he instructed [Zhi]jiao to go down to the capital to seek Dharma Master Haichao to thoroughly plumb the treatise's tenets. In the fourteenth year, [Zhi]jiao arrived in Jianye, but could not find the one he sought. Instead, he met Dhyāna Master Xiao of Qixuan Monastery, who gave him Tanlin's commentary explaining the latter part of the *Nirvāṇa Sūtra*; the text included the purport of the treatise but was not complete. He then returned to his old monastery and regularly lectured on the meaning of the thirteen chapters of the new text, nearly twenty times. In the twelfth year of Kaihuang, Wang Zhongxuan staged a rebellion, burning the administrative seats of the prefectures and [Zhi]jiao's monastic quarters, destroying all texts and commentaries. That year, [Zhi]jiao was appointed to monastic administration over Guang and Xun prefectures, and for five years he neglected his Dharma duties. After being relieved of his monastic duties, he then lectured exclusively on the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha* more than ten times at Daochang Monastery in his native prefecture. Among his audience, twenty-five attained deep understanding, and [monks such as] Ji, Shan, and Kan were all capable of being leading masters. In the first year of Renshou, he fell ill and passed away at his home monastery. [Zhi]jiao compiled a record of Paramārtha's translations, verifying the beginning and end, and giving a detailed account of the fascicles, texts, dates, and people involved, composing an extensive narrative. Daoni originally resided in Jiujiang. Seeking out the lineage of Paramārtha's teachings, he raised lectures on the *Mahāyānasaṃgraha*, his fame soaring in the capital. In the tenth year of Kaihuang, an imperial decree summoned him to enter [the capital]. Having arrived in the imperial chariot of Chang'an, he enlightened very many people. From this time onward, there were no longer lecture masters in the south; even if any were said to expound the teachings, they were hardly worth taking note of.