續高僧傳 15.27

15.27

釋行等。姓吉氏。馮翊人。十二出家。與會公同事總師為弟子。服章麁素立性鏗卓。登聽淨影遠公涅槃。伏讀文義。時以榮之。相從講說百一十遍。中逢阻難必預先知。或聞異香或感怪夢。幢折蓋翻以為標據。即令大眾同念般若。所有魔事無何而退。故每講後常禮佛名及讀華嚴。以為消障之本也。又與玄會同住慈悲。弘法之時。等必先登。會隨後赴。時以為相成之道也。故常講時感鷄伏聽。從受戒者死而還活。冥曹所放。云傳等教。斯亦駭動幽顯。非言厝也。以貞觀十六年三月六日因疾而終。春秋七十有三。初臨終累日。護戒之語吾何重及。但少欲知足可為永誡。吾今死後勿作威儀。惟以一椽輿送山所。願食吾身早成正覺。有乖此願非吾門人。弟子等營辦幢輿盛設威儀將欲塋送。其夜列宿大明地方欲了。大雨洪注。道俗同擁一不得往。還依遺訣單輿至山。雨即通霽。收葬于京南神和原。起塔樹松立銘塔所。

Shi Xingdeng, whose surname was Ji, was a native of Fengyi. He left the household at the age of twelve, serving Master Zong alongside Master Hui as his disciple. His garments were coarse and plain, and his character was resolute and eminent. He attended the lectures on the Nirvāṇa by Master [Hui]yuan of Jingying and submissively read its text and meaning, being honored for this at the time. Following each other, they lectured and expounded it one hundred and ten times. Whenever obstacles and difficulties were encountered on the way, he would certainly know in advance: either smelling an extraordinary fragrance, or having strange dreams, or taking broken banners and overturned parasols as signs. He would then immediately bid the great assembly to recite the Prajñā[-pāramitā] together, whereupon all demonic affairs quickly receded. Thus, after every lecture, he would constantly pay homage to the Buddha names and read the Avataṃsaka, taking this as the basis for eliminating obstacles. He also lived together with Xuanhui at Cibei [Monastery]. When it was time to propagate the Dharma, Deng would always take the podium first, and Hui would follow afterward; people at the time considered this their way of complementing each other. Therefore, when he lectured, he often inspired chickens to crouch and listen; and those who took the precepts from him and died came back to life, having been released by the nether court saying that they were to transmit Deng's teachings. These were things that startled both the unseen and visible realms, beyond what words can convey. On the sixth day of the third month in the sixteenth year of Zhenguan, he died of illness at the age of seventy-three. Earlier, during the several days before his demise, [he said,] 'Why should I speak again of guarding the precepts? Only having few desires and knowing contentment can serve as an eternal admonition. After my death now, do not put on solemn funeral ceremonies; simply convey me to the mountains on a single-rafter bier. I wish for my body to be eaten so that [those creatures] may swiftly attain true awakening. Anyone who goes against this wish is no disciple of mine.' The disciples prepared banners, a bier, and arranged a splendid funeral cortège to bury and send him off. That night, the constellations were brilliant, and the earth was just about to grow light when heavy rain poured down in torrents. Monks and layfolk alike were completely blocked, not one able to go forward. They then reverted to his testamentary instruction and took him to the mountain on a simple bier, whereupon the rain instantly cleared. He was gathered and buried at Shenheyuan south of the capital; they built a stūpa, planted pines, and erected an inscription at the stūpa site.