續高僧傳 14.24

14.24

釋法恭。姓顧氏。吳郡吳人也。正信天發成德自然。妙識悟道高情拔俗。故知為道者貴其精力。通方者歸其至當。立朝者宗其篤誠。招隱者味其閑放。詳之於恭。諒法侶之羽儀。人倫之准的矣。初生之夕室有異光。爰洎撫塵便能捨俗。事武丘聚法師為弟子也。受具之後。聽餘杭寵公成實屺公毘曇。逮寵將亡。乃以麈尾付囑。凡斯先達皆人傑也。恭既受法寄相續弘持。三吳九派之流。爭趨問道。而勞謙終日應對不疲。行高而挾如愚。學廣而陳面壁。後言遊建業歷詢宗匠。深疑碩難每祛懷抱。固有無得之道大弘。遺名之情斯著。乃旋軫舊壤。幽居於武丘山焉。燒指供心。痛惱之情頓遣。檐禽庭獸。長往之志彌存。開皇中年。州將劉權。政成吳土心遊釋教。乃嚴駕山庭屈還城邑。住迴向寺。既迫茲固請翻然迴慮。以為體道由心。道存則喪於彼我。立教在迹。教行則混其顯晦。乃遊洛轉法通流甘露。挹河仰岳均美前奇。大唐闡化彌崇弘演。貞觀十一年下勅赴洛。常州法宣同時被召亦既來儀。深降恩禮對揚帷扆。辯說紛綸明像教之興滅。證遺法之囑付。入侍讌筵既摛雅什。田衣作詠仍即賜縑。有感聖衷深見顏色。特詔留住傳送京師。四事資給務令優厚。雍州牧魏王。遙加欽請以為戒師。親降疏曰。昔道安晦迹襄陽。聲馳秦闕。慧遠栖心廬岳。名振晉京。故知善言之應非徒千里。明月所照不隔九重。法師笠澤上仁震維高德。律行淨於青眼。威儀整於赤髭。傳燈之智不窮。法施之財無盡。弟子攝此心馬。每渴仰於調御。墾此身田常載懷於法雨。若得師資有託。冀以祛此六塵。善尊啟行。庶無迷於八正。謹遣諮祈佇承慈誘。既膺斯請供施特隆。自爾朝野明達緇素清高。聞風延佇望室奔湊者。厥罕書矣。然其廣植德本遐舉勝幢。寶殿臨雲金容照日。講筵初闢負笈相趨。談疏纔成名都紙貴。加以博通內外。學海截其波濤。鴻筆彫章。文囿開其林藪。以貞觀十四年十月六日。遷神于西京大莊嚴寺。春秋七十有三。冕旒興悼有識含悲降勅加以賻贈。并造靈輿。遞給傳乘。付弟子慧襲送柩還鄉。以十五年二月十五日。窆於武丘之南嶺。道俗奔赴望途悼泣。門人等師資增感歲序易馳。非夫琓琰孰陳不朽。乃共竪豐碑。式陳偈頌。中書令江陵公岑文本制序。朝散大夫著作郎劉子翼制銘。兩敘風聲各其志矣。

Śramaṇa Fagong was surnamed Gu and was a native of Wu in Wu Commandery. Correct faith was born in him by nature, and perfected virtue came naturally; with profound discernment he awakened to the Way, and his exalted temperament rose above the vulgar. Thus we know that one who pursues the Way values concentration of energy; one who is thoroughly versed turns toward the utmost propriety; one who establishes himself at court honors wholehearted sincerity; and one who summons the recluse savors leisurely seclusion. Examining this in Fagong, he was indeed the ornament of his Dharma companions and a standard for the human realm. On the evening of his birth, a marvelous light filled the room. When he came of age to brush away the dust [of the world], he was already able to abandon worldly life, becoming a disciple serving Dharma Master Ju of Mount Wuqiu. After receiving the full precepts, he listened to Master Chong of Yuhang on the Chengshi [lun] and Master Qi on the Abhidharma. When Chong was about to die, he entrusted him with the fly-whisk. All these earlier luminaries were indeed exceptional men. Having received the entrustment of the Dharma, Gong continuously propagated and preserved it. Followers from the three regions of Wu and the nine river courses vied to hasten to him to ask about the Way; yet he was humble and untiring all day long, responding to them without fatigue. While his conduct was lofty, he maintained an appearance of simplicity; while his learning was broad, he kept to the discipline of facing the wall. Later he traveled to Jianye, successively consulting the ancestral masters; whenever profound doubts and great difficulties arose, they were promptly dispelled from his mind. Truly, the way of non-attainment was broadly propagated, and his spirit of renouncing fame became evident. He then turned his carriage back to his native soil and secluded himself on Mount Wuqiu. Burning his fingers as an offering from his heart, feelings of pain and affliction were dispelled at once; birds beneath the eaves and beasts in the courtyard accompanied him, while his resolve to withdraw permanently remained ever firm. In the middle of the Kaihuang reign, Liu Quan, the regional inspector of the prefecture, having accomplished his governance in the land of Wu, set his mind on roaming within the Buddha's teachings. He then prepared carriages to visit the mountain courtyard and urged Gong to return to the city, where he resided at Huixiang Temple. Being pressed by this persistent request, he turned his thoughts around, considering that realizing the Way arises from the mind, and when the Way is present, distinctions between self and other are eliminated; establishing teachings depends on traces, and when the teachings are practiced, the manifest and the hidden blend together. He then traveled to Luoyang, turning the Dharma wheel and widely dispensing the sweet dew. Dipping from the River and gazing up at the Peak, he was an equal match for the marvels of old. Under the Great Tang, the transformation unfolded and the broad exposition was even more revered. In the eleventh year of Zhenguan, an imperial edict summoned him to go to Luoyang. Faxuan of Changzhou was summoned at the same time. After they arrived, profound imperial favors and courtesies were conferred, and they presented their arguments before the imperial curtain. Their eloquence was overflowing, illuminating the rise and fall of the Semblance Teaching and verifying the entrustment of the bequeathed Dharma. Entering to attend the imperial banquet, he composed elegant verses; composing a poem on the rustic robe, he was immediately rewarded with silk. Having moved the sage emperor's inner feelings and being deeply received in the imperial presence, a special decree kept him to reside and be conveyed to the capital, with the four requisites abundantly provided. The Prince of Wei, who served as Governor of Yongzhou, sent an admiring request from afar to make him his Precept Master, personally sending a letter which said: 'In antiquity, Dao'an concealed his traces in Xiangyang, yet his renown galloped to the Qin court; Huiyuan sheltered his mind in the Lu Mountains, yet his fame shook the Jin capital. Thus we know that the response to good words is not merely over a thousand li; the shining of the bright moon is not barred by the ninefold palace gates. The Dharma Master is a supreme virtuous one of Lizawa, a lofty virtue of the eastern realm. His discipline is purer than Blue Eyes; his decorum is more dignified than Red Beard. His wisdom in transmitting the lamp is boundless; his wealth in the gift of Dharma is inexhaustible. This disciple reins in the horse of this mind and ever thirsts for the Charioteer; tilling this field of the body, I constantly cherish the Dharma rain. If I may gain reliance on a master, I hope to dispel these six sense-objects; when the virtuous and venerable one guides my practice, I trust I shall not go astray regarding the Eightfold Path. Respectfully I send this inquiry and request, awaiting your compassionate guidance.' Having acceded to this request, the offerings and donations were particularly lavish. From then on, discerning persons of the court and the countryside, both monastic and lay of pure and lofty character, who heard his reputation, waited eagerly, and rushed toward his chambers, were rarely fully recorded. Furthermore, he broadly planted roots of virtue and raised high the supreme banner: jeweled halls touched the clouds, and golden icons reflected the sun. When the lecture platform was first opened, people hastened with their book-boxes; when his commentaries were newly completed, the paper of famous capitals became scarce. In addition, he was thoroughly versed in both internal and external learning, cutting through the waves of the ocean of study; with a great pen and carved rhetoric, he opened forests and groves in the literary garden. On the sixth day of the tenth month of the fourteenth year of Zhenguan, he passed away at Dazhuangyan Temple in the Western Capital at the age of seventy-three. The Emperor was moved to mourn, and all with awareness were grieved. An imperial decree was issued bestowing funeral gifts, along with the provision of a funerary carriage and relay transport, entrusting his disciple Huixi to escort the coffin back to his native region. On the fifteenth day of the second month of the fifteenth year, he was buried on the southern ridge of Wuqiu. Monastics and laypeople rushed to the road, mourning and weeping. His disciples and followers felt an ever-deepening reverence for their master, and seeing how swiftly the years pass, they thought that without engraved jade and fine stone, how could his immortality be displayed? Thereupon they jointly erected a grand stele to set forth verses and eulogies. Cen Wenben, the Director of the Secretariat and Duke of Jiangling, composed the preface; Liu Ziyi, Gentleman for Closing Court and Editorial Director, composed the inscription. Both recounted his style and reputation, each expressing his own sentiments.