續高僧傳 16.31

16.31

釋僧可。一名慧可。俗姓姬氏。虎牢人。外覽墳素內通藏典。末懷道京輦默觀時尚。獨蘊大照解悟絕群。雖成道非新。而物貴師受。一時令望咸共非之。但權道無謀顯會非遠。自結斯要誰能繫之。年登四十。遇天竺沙門菩提達摩遊化嵩洛。可懷寶知道一見悅之。奉以為師。畢命承旨。從學六載精究一乘。理事兼融苦樂無滯。而解非方便慧出神心。可乃就境陶研淨穢埏埴方知。力用堅固不為緣陵。達摩滅化洛濱。可亦埋形河涘。而昔懷嘉譽傳檄邦畿。使夫道俗來儀請從師範。可乃奮其奇辯呈其心要。故得言滿天下意非建立。玄籍遐覽未始經心。後以天平之初。北就新鄴盛開祕苑。滯文之徒是非紛舉。時有道恒禪師。先有定學王宗鄴下。徒侶千計。承可說法情事無寄。謂是魔語。乃遣眾中通明者。來殄可門。既至聞法泰然心服。悲感盈懷無心返告。恒又重喚亦不聞命。相從多使皆無返者。他日遇恒。恒曰。我用爾許功夫開汝眼目。何因致此諸使。答曰。眼本自正。因師故邪耳。恒遂深恨謗惱於可。貨賕俗府非理屠害。初無一恨幾其至死。恒眾慶快。遂使了本者絕學浮華。謗黷者操刀自擬。始悟一音所演。欣怖交懷。海迹蹄瀅淺深斯在。可乃縱容順俗。時惠清猷乍託吟謠。或因情事澄汰恒抱寫割煩蕪。故正道遠而難希。封滯近而易結。斯有由矣。遂流離鄴衛亟展寒溫。道竟幽而且玄。故末緒卒無榮嗣有向居士者。幽遁林野木食。於天保之初道味相師。致書通好曰。影由形起響逐聲來。弄影勞形。不知形之是影。揚聲止響。不識聲是響根。除煩惱而求涅槃者。喻去形而覓影。離眾生而求佛喻默聲而尋響。故迷悟一途愚智非別。無名作名。因其名則是非生矣。無理作理。因其理則諍論起矣。幻化非真誰是誰非。虛妄無實何空何有。將知得無所得失無所失。未及造談聊伸此意。想為答之。可命筆述意曰。說此真法皆如實。與真幽理竟不殊。本迷摩尼謂瓦礫。豁然自覺是真珠。無明智慧等無異。當知萬法即皆如。愍此二見之徒輩。申詞措筆作斯書。觀身與佛不差別。何須更覓彼無餘。其發言入理未加鉛墨。時或纘之。乃成部類。具如別卷。時復有化公廖公和禪師等。各通冠玄奧。吐言清逈托事寄懷。聞諸口實。而人世非遠碑記罕聞。微言不傳清德誰序。深可痛矣。時有林法師。在鄴盛講勝鬘并制文義。每講人聚乃選通三部經者。得七百人。預在其席。及周滅法與可同學共護經像。初達摩禪師以四卷楞伽授可曰。我觀漢地惟有此經。仁者依行自得度世。可專附玄理如前所陳。遭賊斫臂。以法御心不覺痛苦。火燒斫處血斷帛裹乞食如故。曾不告人。後林又被賊斫其臂。叫號通夕。可為治裹乞食供林。林怪可手不便怒之。可曰。餅食在前何不自裹。林曰。我無臂也。可不知耶。可曰。我亦無臂。復何可怒。因相委問方知有功。故世云無臂林矣。每可說法竟曰。此經四世之後變成名相。一何可悲。有那禪師者。俗姓馬氏。年二十一居東海講禮易。行學四百南至相州遇可說法。乃與學士十人出家受道。諸門人於相州東設齋辭別哭聲動邑。那自出俗。手不執筆及俗書。惟服一衣一𭽽。一坐一食以可常行。兼奉頭陀。故其所往不參邑落。有慧滿者。滎陽人。姓張。舊住相州隆化寺。遇那說法便受其道專務無著。一衣一食但畜二針。冬則乞補。夏便通捨覆赤而已。自述一生無有怯怖。身無蚤虱睡而不夢。住無再宿。到寺則破柴造履。常行乞食。貞觀十六年。於洛州南會善寺側宿栢墓中。遇雪深三尺。其旦入寺見曇曠法師。怪所從來。滿曰。法友來耶。遣尋坐處。四邊五尺許雪自積聚不可測也。故其聞有括訪諸僧逃隱。滿便持衣𭽽周行聚落無可滯礙。隨施隨散索爾虛閑。有請宿齋者。告云。天下無人方受爾請。故滿每說法云。諸佛說心。令知心相是虛妄法。今乃重加心相。深違佛意。又增論議殊乖大理。故使那滿等師常齎四卷楞伽以為心要。隨說隨行不爽遺委。後於洛陶中無疾坐化。年可七十。斯徒並可之宗系。故可別敘。

Śramaṇa Sengke, also named Huike, had the secular surname of Ji and was a native of Hulao. Externally he read the ancient classics, and internally he mastered the canonical scriptures. Later, harboring the Way in the capital, he quietly observed the trends of the time. Alone harboring profound illumination, his understanding surpassed the crowd. Although his attainment of the Way was not recent, people valued transmission from a master; for a time, figures of eminent reputation all condemned him. However, expedient means require no contrivance, and their clear convergence was not distant; once he had bound himself to these essentials, who could tie him down? When he reached the age of forty, he encountered the Indian śramaṇa Bodhidharma touring and converting in the Songshan and Luoyang regions. Ke, harboring the jewel and understanding the Way, took delight at their very first meeting. He served him as his teacher and carried out his instructions with his whole life. Following and studying under him for six years, he thoroughly investigated the One Vehicle. Principle and phenomena were mutually integrated, and he was unhindered by suffering or joy; yet his understanding did not come from expedient contrivance, and his wisdom emerged from a wondrous mind. Ke then subjected himself to worldly conditions to refine and temper it, just as clay is fashioned into pottery, only then realizing that its power and function were solid and could not be overpowered by circumstances. When Bodhidharma passed away by the banks of the Luo, Ke also concealed his presence on the riverbank. Yet his past fine reputation spread far and wide through the regional commanderies, causing monks and laity to come to pay respects and request to follow him as their model. Ke then unleashed his marvelous eloquence and presented his mind essentials; thus, his words filled the realm, though his intent was not to establish doctrines. Vastly perusing abstruse texts, he never let them linger in his mind. Later, at the beginning of the Tianping era, he went north to the new city of Ye and broadly opened the secret garden [of the Dharma]. Those clinging to the letter raised disputes of right and wrong in confusion. At that time, there was Dhyāna Master Daoheng, who had previously mastered meditative learning and was revered as a master in Ye, commanding thousands of followers. Hearing that Ke preached the Dharma without reliance on concepts or phenomena, he claimed it was the speech of Māra. He then sent intelligent and clear-minded members among his assembly to destroy Ke’s school. But once they arrived and heard the Dharma, their minds were peacefully subdued; full of sorrow and inspiration, they had no intention of returning to report. Heng called them back again, but they did not obey his summons; of the many messengers sent one after another, none returned. On another day Heng met them and said: ‘I expended so much effort to open your eyes; why has this caused all of you messengers [to stray]?’ They replied: ‘Our eyes were originally upright; it was because of you, Master, that they were astray.’ Heng then harbored deep hatred and calumniated and harassed Ke, bribing secular officials to slaughter and harm him unjustly. Ke initially harbored no resentment at all, even when pushed close to death. Heng’s assembly was joyful and elated. As a result, those who understood the fundamental abandoned superficial scholarly floridness, while those who slandered held blades and targeted themselves. They only then awakened to the one sound expounded [by the Buddha], their minds alternating between joy and terror; just as footprints vary between the ocean and puddles, depth and shallowness reside therein. Ke then acted with ease and accorded with the mundane; occasionally he bestowed pure counsel, or at times expressed it in poetic songs, or used everyday matters to clarify and purge persistent attachments, dispelling burdensome complications. Truly, the correct Way is distant and difficult to seek, while clinging to obstructions is near and easy to form; there is good reason for this. Thus he drifted between Ye and Wei, frequently exchanging pleasantries; his Way was ultimately profound and abstruse, so in the end his final lineage had no glorious succession. There was Upāsaka Xiang, who secluded himself in forests and wilderness, feeding on tree fruits. At the beginning of the Tianbao era, sharing a mutual appreciation of the flavor of the Way, he sent a letter establishing friendly ties, saying: ‘Shadows arise from forms, and echoes follow sounds. Playing with the shadow exhausts the form, not knowing that the form is the shadow. Raising the voice to stop the echo fails to recognize that the voice is the root of the echo. Seeking nirvāṇa by getting rid of afflictions is like discarding the form to seek the shadow. Seeking buddhahood away from sentient beings is like silencing the voice to search for the echo. Therefore, delusion and awakening share a single path; the foolish and the wise are not different. Applying names to the nameless, right and wrong arise on account of those names. Establishing principles for the unprincipled, disputes and debates arise on account of those principles. Phantasmagoric transformations are unreal—who is right and who is wrong? Delusive falsity lacks reality—what is empty and what exists? One should know that gain is nothing gained, and loss is nothing lost. Before I have the chance to visit and speak with you, I briefly express these thoughts, hoping you will reply.’ Ke took up his brush to express his thoughts, saying: ‘Expounding this true Dharma is entirely in accordance with reality; / it is not distinct at all from the true, profound principle. / Originally mistaking the maṇi jewel for rubble, / one suddenly awakens oneself to find it is a true pearl. / Ignorance and wisdom are equal and without difference; / know that the myriad phenomena are just thusness. / Pitying those people of dualistic views, / I express words and apply the brush to write this letter. / Contemplating the body and the Buddha without distinction, / why should one further seek that remainderless [nirvāṇa]?’ His words entered into principle without having been premeditated with lead and ink; occasionally someone compiled them, and they formed collections, as detailed in a separate scroll. At that time, there were also Master Huagong, Master Liaogong, Dhyāna Master He, and others, each surpassing others in penetrating profound subtleties; their spoken words were pure and lofty, expressing their inner thoughts through everyday events. These were heard by word of mouth, yet human generations are not far removed, and stelae inscriptions are rarely heard of; if the subtle words are not transmitted, who will narrate their pure virtues? This is deeply lamentable. At that time, there was Dharma Master Lin, who lectured widely on the Śrīmālādevī Sūtra in Ye and composed commentaries on its meaning. Whenever he lectured, crowds gathered, and selecting those proficient in three collections of sūtras, he found seven hundred persons who took seats there. When the Zhou suppressed the Dharma, he and Ke, being fellow disciples, jointly protected the scriptures and images. Originally, Dhyāna Master Bodhidharma gave the four-fascicle Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra to Ke, saying: ‘I observe that in the land of Han there is only this scripture; if you, virtuous one, practice according to it, you will naturally attain deliverance.’ Ke devoted himself to its abstruse principles as set forth before. Encountering bandits who chopped off his arm, he controlled his mind with the Dharma and felt no pain. He burned the chopped area with fire to stop the bleeding, wrapped it in cloth, and begged for food as usual, never telling anyone. Later, Lin’s arm was also chopped off by bandits, and he cried out the entire night. Ke dressed and wrapped it for him and begged for food to supply Lin. Lin found it strange that Ke’s hand was clumsy and became angry with him. Ke said: ‘The bread is right before you, why do you not wrap it yourself?’ Lin said: ‘I have no arm; do you not know that?’ Ke said: ‘I too have no arm; what cause is there to be angry?’ Upon inquiring into the matter, Lin only then knew of his attainment; therefore the world called him ‘Armless Lin’. Whenever Ke finished preaching the Dharma, he would say: ‘After four generations, this sūtra will turn into mere names and marks; how lamentable!’ There was Dhyāna Master Na, whose secular surname was Ma. At the age of twenty-one, he lived in Donghai lecturing on the Rites and the Book of Changes; traveling students numbered four hundred. Heading south to Xiangzhou, he met Ke preaching the Dharma, whereupon he and ten scholars renounced the household life and received the Way. His fellow disciples held a feast east of Xiangzhou to bid farewell, their weeping shaking the town. After Na renounced secular life, his hand never held a brush or secular books; he wore only one robe, carried one bowl, sat in one sitting, and ate one meal, taking Ke’s constant practice as his standard, while also upholding the dhūta austerities; therefore wherever he went, he did not enter towns and villages. There was Huiman, a native of Xingyang surnamed Zhang, who previously resided at Longhua Monastery in Xiangzhou. Meeting Na preaching the Dharma, he received his path and dedicated himself to non-attachment. With one robe and one meal, he kept only two needles; in winter he begged for patches, and in summer he discarded them completely, merely covering his nakedness. He related of himself that throughout his life he experienced no fear, had no fleas or lice on his body, and slept without dreaming. He never lodged in a place for two nights; upon arriving at a monastery, he chopped firewood and made sandals, and constantly practiced begging for food. In the sixteenth year of Zhenguan, he slept among the cypress graves beside Huishan Monastery south of Luozhou, encountering snow three feet deep. That morning he entered the monastery and met Dharma Master Tankuang, who wondered where he had come from. Man said: ‘Has a Dharma friend come?’ Tankuang sent someone to search the place where he had sat; for about five feet on all four sides, the snow had accumulated by itself, which was unfathomable. Therefore, when he heard that monks were being audited and sought after and were fleeing into hiding, Man took his robe and bowl and wandered freely through settlements without any obstruction. Giving away whatever was offered, he remained carefree, empty, and leisurely. When someone invited him to lodge and take a meal, he told them: ‘Only when there is no one left under heaven will I accept your invitation.’ Therefore, whenever Man preached the Dharma, he said: ‘The Buddhas preached the mind to make people know that mind-marks are empty and false dharmas. Now people instead add further mind-marks, which deeply opposes the Buddha’s intention; moreover, they increase debates and arguments, which greatly strays from the Great Principle.’ Thus Masters Na and Man always carried the four-fascicle Laṅkāvatāra as their mind essential; speaking and practicing according to it, they never deviated from what was transmitted. Later, inside a kiln in Luo, he passed away in the seated posture without illness, around the age of seventy. These disciples all belonged to Ke’s lineage, and thus are recounted separately with Ke.