續高僧傳 1.3

1.3

原夫至道無言。非言何以範世。言惟引行。即行而成立言。是以布五位以擢聖賢。表四依以承人法。龍圖成太易之漸龜章啟彛倫之用。逮乎素王繼轍前修舉其四科。班生著詞後進弘其九等。皆所謂化道之恒規。言行之權致者也。惟夫大覺之照臨也。化敷西壤迹紹東川。踰中古而彌新。歷諸華而轉盛。雖復應移存沒法被澆淳。斯乃利見之康莊。缺有之弘略。故使體道欽風之士。激揚影響之賓。會正解而樹言。扣玄機而即號。並德充宇宙。神冠幽明。象設煥乎丹青。智則光乎油素。固以詳諸經部。誠未纘其科條。竊以葱河界於剡洲。風俗分於唐梵。華胥撰列非聖不據。其篇則二十四依付法之傳是也。神州所紀賢愚雜。其題引則六代所詳群錄是也。然則統斯大抵。精會所歸。莫不振發蒙心網羅正理。俾夫駘足九達。貴蹤望而可尋。徇目四馳。高山委而仰止。昔梁沙門金陵釋寶唱撰名僧傳。會稽釋惠皎撰高僧傳。創發異部品藻恒流。詳覈可觀華質有據。而緝裒吳越敘略魏燕。良以博觀未周。故得隨聞成采。加以有梁之盛明德云繁。薄傳五三數非通敏。斯則同世相侮。事積由來。中原隱括未傳簡錄。時無雅贍誰為譜之。致使歷代高風颯焉終古。余青襟之歲。有顧斯文。祖習乃存經綸攸闕。是用憑諸名器竚對殺青。而情計栖遑各師偏競。逖聽成簡載紀相尋。而物忌先鳴藏舟遽往。徒懸積抱終擲光陰。敢以不才輒陳筆記。引踈聞見即事編韋。諒得列代因之更為冠冕。自漢明夢日之後梁武光有已前。代別釋門咸流傳史。考酌資其故實。刪定節其先聞。遂得類纘前驅昌言大寶。季世情縶量重聲華。至於鳩聚風猷。略無繼緒。惟隋初沙門魏郡釋靈裕。儀表綴述有意弘方。撰十德記一卷。偏敘昭玄師保。未奧廣嗣通宗。餘則孤起支文。薄言行狀。終亦未馳高觀。可為長太息矣。故霑預染毫之客。莫不望崖而戾止。固其然乎。今余所撰。恐墜接前緒。故不獲已而陳之。或博諮先達。或取訊行人。或即目舒之。或討讎集傳。南北國史附見徽音。郊郭碑碣旌其懿德。皆撮其志行舉其器略。言約繁簡事通野素。足使紹胤前良允師後聽。始岠梁之初運。終唐貞觀十有九年。一百四十四載。包括岳瀆歷訪華夷。正傳三百四十人。附見一百六十人。序而伸之。大為十例一曰譯經。二曰解義。三曰習禪。四曰明律。五曰護法。六曰感通。七曰遺身。八曰讀誦。九曰興福。十曰雜科。凡此十條。世罕兼美。今就其尤最者。隨篇擬倫。自前傳所敘。通例已頒。迴互抑揚。寔遵弘撿。且夫經道兩術。掩映於嘉苗。護法一科。綱維於正網。必附諸傳述。知何績而非功。取其拔滯宏規。固可標於等級。餘則隨善立目。不競時須。布教攝於物情。為要解紛靜。節總歸于末第。區別世務者也。至於韜光崇岳朝宗百靈。秀氣逸於山河。貞槩銷於林薄。致有聲諠玄谷神遊紫煙。高謝於松喬。俯眄於窮轍。斯皆具諸別紀。抑可言乎。或復匿迹城闉。陸沈浮俗。盛業可列。而吹噓罕遇。故集見勣風素。且樹十科。結成三帙號曰續高僧傳。若夫搜擢源沠。剖析憲章。組織詞令。琢磨行業。則備于後論。更議而引之。必事接恒篇。終成詞費。則削同前傳。猶恨逮于末法。世挺知名之僧。未覿嘉猷有淪典籍。庶將來同好。又塵斯意焉。

Fundamentally, the ultimate Way is without words, yet without words, how could one regulate the world? Words serve solely to guide practice, and it is upon practice that words are established. Therefore, the five stations were arranged to elevate sages and worthies, and the four reliances were manifested to perpetuate human beings and the Dharma. The Dragon Chart inaugurated the gradual unfolding of the Great Changes; the Turtle Writings initiated the application of the constant norms. Coming down to the Uncrowned King continuing the precedent, the former masters set forth his four categories; Master Ban composed expressions, and later generations promoted his nine classes. All of these are the constant regulations of transforming through the Way, and the expedient aims of words and deeds. Now, as for the shining illumination of the Great Awakened One: his transformation spread across the western lands, and his traces succeeded in the eastern rivers. Surpassing the middle antiquity, it becomes ever fresher; traversing the Chinese lands, it grows ever more flourishing. Although responsive manifestations shift between existence and extinction, and the Dharma covers both the degenerate and the pure, this is indeed the broad highway for beneficial appearance, the grand strategy for remedying deficiency. Thus, it causes masters who embody the Way and admire his influence, as well as visitors who are stirred by resonance and shadow, to meet in right understanding and establish words, to tap the dark mystery and assume appellations. Their virtues fill the universe, and their spirits outshine the unseen and the manifest. Their painted images shine brightly in vermilion and cyan; their wisdom gleams upon oiled silk. Truly, details may be found in the scriptural collections, yet none have yet compiled their systematic rubrics. I submit that the Congling River marks the boundary of the Jambudvīpa continent, and customs diverge between China and India. When Hua-xu lists genealogies, none are grounded except on the sages—the texts of which are the Traditions of the Transmission of the Dharma through the Twenty-Four Reliances. That which is recorded in the Divine Land mixes the worthy with the foolish—the titles and references of which are the various catalogues compiled during the Six Dynasties. Yet, taking the main threads of these overall and synthesizing their ultimate import, none fail to stimulate the benighted mind and encompass the correct principles, enabling those of clumsy gait to reach all nine directions and discern the noble footprints that may be followed, and those whose eyes race everywhere to look up and rest at the towering mountains. Formerly, in the Liang, Śramaṇa Shi Baochang of Jinling composed the Mingseng zhuan, and Shi Huijiao of Kuaiji composed the Gaoseng zhuan. Initiating diverse classifications, they appraised continuous currents; their investigations were worthy of scrutiny, their florid and plain styles well grounded. Yet their compilations gathered from Wu and Yue, but were brief and omitted Wei and Yan. This was truly because their broad observations were not exhaustive, so they made selections merely according to what they heard. Furthermore, during the height of the Liang dynasty, illustrious virtues were abundant, but a meager few were recorded, their numbers by no means thorough. This is the mutual belittling among contemporaries, a state of affairs accumulated since long ago. The Central Plains remained concealed and summarized, without transmitting records; when the age lacked broad erudition, who could compile a register for them? Consequently, the lofty demeanor of successive generations was swept away into antiquity. In the years of my youth, I paid heed to these writings; though following ancestral traditions remained, comprehensive ordering was lacking. I therefore relied upon various eminent figures, awaiting the drying of the green bamboo slips. Yet minds were unsettled, each following partial rivalries; distant reports were turned into documents, and successive records followed one another. However, creation envies those who cry out first, and the boat hidden in the marsh swiftly slips away; vainly holding long-cherished intentions, one ultimately wastes time. Daring with my lack of talent, I have ventured to set down notes, collecting sparse things seen and heard, and binding bamboo and leather according to the events. It is hoped that the successive generations may thereby gain a crowning adornment. From Emperor Ming of Han's dream of the sun down to Emperor Wu of Liang's glorious possession, the histories of the Buddhist order across the various eras have all circulated. Examining and weighing them, I drew upon their ancient facts; editing and revising them, I abridged previous reports. Thus, I was able to compile following the pioneers and speak forthrightly of the Great Jewel. In this degenerate age, minds are fettered, valuing reputation and worldly fame heavily; as for gathering together exemplary winds, the continuation has almost completely broken off. Only at the beginning of the Sui was there the śramaṇa Shi Lingyu of Wei Commandery, whose exemplary bearing in compiling writings showed an intention to expand broad methods. He composed the Records of the Ten Virtues in one fascicle, but it selectively narrated only the preceptors of the Court of National Monastic Affairs and did not broadly propagate or illuminate the overarching tradition. The rest were merely isolated subsidiary texts and brief accounts of conduct, which ultimately did not attain a lofty perspective; this may truly cause one to sigh deeply. Hence, those writers who took up the brush all stopped upon gazing at the cliff—and was this not indeed so? Now, in what I have composed, fearing that the continuity of the former threads might be lost, I had no choice but to set it forth. Some parts were widely consulted with elder masters, some inquired of travelers, some described directly from what I witnessed, and some investigated and collated from collected biographies. The northern and southern dynastic histories furnished supplementary accounts of their fine reputations; suburban stone stelae displayed their admirable virtues. In all cases, I gathered their aspirations and conduct, and highlighted their capacities and methods. The wording abridges the verbose, while the accounts integrate both the unpolished and the refined, sufficient to let them succeed the former virtuous and truly instruct future listeners. Beginning with the early fortune of the Liang and ending in the nineteenth year of the Zhenguan reign of the Tang, covering one hundred and forty-four years, it embraces mountains and rivers and visits both China and abroad, comprising three hundred and forty primary biographies and one hundred and sixty supplementary figures. Arranging and expounding them, they are divided broadly into ten categories: first, Translation of Scriptures; second, Doctrinal Exegesis; third, Practice of Meditation; fourth, Exposition of the Vinaya; fifth, Defense of the Dharma; sixth, Spiritual Resonance; seventh, Abandonment of the Body; eighth, Cantillation and Recitation; ninth, Promotion of Merit; and tenth, Miscellaneous Categories. In all these ten categories, it is rare in the world for one to combine all excellences. Now, turning to the most outstanding among them, they are classified according to the chapters. Since the accounts of the former biography, the general precedents have already been promulgated; the balancing and adjustments truly comply with broad regulations. Furthermore, the two arts of scriptural study and the Way shine upon the fine shoots, while the single category of Defense of the Dharma serves as the main cord of the correct net. In appending them to the accounts, which achievement could not be considered merit? Selecting their grand models for lifting hindrances, they may surely be marked in their proper ranks. The rest establish headings in accordance with goodness, without competing with contemporary needs. Propagating teachings accommodates the sentiments of beings; regarding the essentials, resolving disputes and maintaining serenity are grouped together in the final categories to distinguish worldly affairs. As for those who concealed their light among towering peaks, worshipped by the hundred spirits, whose extraordinary spirit transcended mountains and rivers, and whose chaste integrity dissolved into thickets—causing their voices to echo in dark valleys and their spirits to roam among purple vapors, bidding lofty farewell to Song and Qiao, and looking down upon impoverished ruts—all of these are detailed in separate records; how could they be suppressed from mention? Or again, there were those who hid their traces in city walls and sank into floating vulgarity; their flourishing achievements were worthy of listing, yet they rarely met with praise. Therefore, gathering the records of their conduct and character, I have tentatively established ten categories, combining them into three sets, entitled the Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks. If one seeks to investigate the sources and branches, analyze the canons and rules, weave refined words, and polish conduct and practice, these are fully provided in the treatise that follows, where they are further discussed and cited. If events were continually appended throughout the regular chapters, it would ultimately become a waste of words; hence, they have been excised just as in the former biography. Still, I regret that reaching the period of the final Dharma, although renowned monks have emerged in the world, their fine models have not been witnessed, and some have been lost from the records. May future like-minded persons also sprinkle their thoughts upon this.