[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Buddhist Literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha) › [Taishō Tripiṭaka (Chinese Buddhist canon)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho) › [續高僧傳](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2060) › 16.41 # 續高僧傳 16.41 續高僧傳 16.41 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [16.41](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2060.16.41) 釋僧實。俗姓程氏。咸陽靈武人也。幼懷雅亮。清卓不倫。嘗與諸僮共遊狡戲。或摘葉獻香。或聚砂成塔。鄉閭敬焉。知將能信奉之漸也。親眷愛結不許出家。喻以極言久而方遂。年二十六乃得剃落。有道原法師。擅名魏代。實乃歸焉。隨見孝文便蒙降禮。大和末從原至洛。因遇勒那三藏。授以禪法。每處皇宮諮問禪祕。那奇之曰。自道流東夏。味靜乃斯人乎。於是尋師問道備經循涉。雖三學通覽。偏以九次調心。故得定水清澄禪林榮蔚。性少人事退迹為功。所以高蓋駟馬未曾流目。清流林竹顧便忘返。加又口繞黑子欹若升形。目有重瞳光明外射。腋懷鳳卵七處俱平。奇相超倫有聲京洛。兼又道契生知化通關壤。聽業未廣而無問不明。能勤整四儀靜修三法。可憲章於風俗。足師表於天人。周太祖文皇。以魏大統中下詔曰。師目麗重瞳偏同虞舜。背隆傴僂分似周公。德宇純懿軌量難模。可昭玄三藏。言為世寶篤志任持。故有法相之宜興。俗務之宜廢。發談奏議事無不行。至保定年。太祖又曰。師才深德大。宜庇道俗以隆禮典。乃躬致祈請為國三藏。實當仁不讓默而受之。是使棟梁斯在儀形攸寄。周氏有國重仰玄風。禮異前朝受於歸戒。逮太祖平梁荊後。益州大德五十餘人。各懷經部送像至京。以真諦妙宗條以問實。既而慧心潛運南北疎通。即為披決洞出情外。並神而服之。於是陶化京華久而逾盛。忽一旦告僧曰。急備香火修理法事。誦觀世音以救江南某寺堂崩厄也。當爾之時。楊都講堂正論法集。數百道俗充滿其中。聞西北異香及空中妓樂。合堂驚出同共聞聽。堂欻摧壞大眾無損。奏聞梁主。乃移以問周。果知實祐。大送珍寶賜遺相續。而實但取三衣什物而已。餘隨散之。由爾名振三國事參至聖。以保定三年七月十八日。卒於大追遠寺。春秋八十有八。朝野驚嗟人天變色。帝哀慟泣之。有勅圖寫形像。仍置大福田寺。即以其日窆於東郊門外滕公酈食綦。塜南。碑石尚存。弟子曇相等。傳燈不窮彌隆華實。以業有從。爰於墓所立寺。還名福田。用崇冥福。并建碑于寺野二所。大中興寺釋道安。及義城公庾信製文。今在苑內。 > Śramaṇa Sengshi, whose secular surname was Cheng, was a native of Lingwu in Xianyang. In his youth he possessed refined clarity, remaining uncommonly pure and eminent. He once played mischievous games with other children, sometimes picking leaves to offer as incense, or gathering sand into stupas. The villagers respected him, knowing this was the beginning of his future devotion. Bound by affectionate attachments, his relatives would not permit him to leave home; only after long admonishing them with earnest words did he finally succeed. At the age of twenty-six he was able to have his head shaved. There was Dharma Master Daoyuan, whose fame was renowned in the Wei dynasty, to whom Sengshi took refuge. When he was subsequently granted an audience with Emperor Xiaowen, he was honored with humble courtesies. At the end of the Taihe era, he followed Daoyuan to Luoyang, where he met Tripiṭaka Master Ratnamati, who transmitted the meditation methods to him. Whenever \[Sengshi\] was in the imperial palace, \[the emperor\] consulted him on the secrets of meditation. Ratnamati was amazed by him, saying: "Since the Way flowed to the Eastern Xia, is this not the man who truly savors quietude?" Thereupon, seeking masters and inquiring into the Way, he traversed all avenues. Although he had thoroughly examined the Threefold Training, he applied his mind particularly through the Nine Successive \[Attainments\], so the water of his concentration was clear and pure, and his grove of meditation was luxuriant. By nature he had little care for worldly affairs and took retiring from public life as his achievement. Therefore, tall carriages and four-horse teams never caught his eye, whereas clear streams, groves, and bamboo made him gaze and forget to return. In addition, around his mouth was a birthmark sloping like the shape of a sheng measure; his eyes had double pupils radiating light outward; in his armpits he carried phoenix eggs; and his seven bodily parts were all flat and even. With extraordinary marks surpassing ordinary mortals, he was renowned in the capital Luoyang. Moreover, his understanding of the Way matched innate knowledge, and his transformation extended throughout the Guanzhong region. Though his study of lectures was not extensive, there was no inquiry he could not illuminate. Diligently maintaining the four deportments and quietly cultivating the three Dharmas, he could serve as a model for customs and was sufficient to be a teacher and guide for humans and devas. In the Datong era of the Western Wei, Emperor Wen, Taizu of the Zhou, issued an edict stating: "The Master's eyes are adorned with double pupils, uniquely resembling Yu Shun; his back rises with a slight stoop, partly resembling the Duke of Zhou. His virtuous countenance is pure and admirable, his standard difficult to emulate. He may serve as the National Tripiṭaka of the Zhaoxuan \[Office\]. His words are treasures to the world, and he upholds the Dharma with staunch resolve." Thus, when aspects of the Dharma were suitable to be promoted, or secular affairs were suitable to be eliminated, whatever he proposed in memorials was unfailingly implemented. Reaching the Baoding era, Taizu again said: "The Master's talent is profound and his virtue great; he ought to protect both the monastics and the laity to elevate the rites and statutes." He personally went to entreat him to become the National Tripiṭaka. Sengshi did not decline in the face of virtue, accepting it silently. This ensured that the pillar and beam remained present, and the exemplar was reliably entrusted. When the Zhou ruled the state, they deeply revered the profound style, honoring him with rituals distinct from the previous dynasty and receiving the refuges and precepts from him. After Taizu pacified Liang and Jing, more than fifty bhadantas from Yizhou arrived in the capital bearing scriptures and images. Point by point, they questioned Sengshi on the profound tenets of Paramārtha. As his wise mind moved imperceptibly, penetrating both north and south, he resolved the issues for them, seeing far beyond ordinary perception; they were all spiritually awed and submitted. Thereupon his civilizing influence over the capital grew ever more flourishing over time. Suddenly one morning he told the monks: "Hurry and prepare incense and fire, arrange the ritual paraphernalia, and recite Avalokiteśvara to rescue a certain temple hall in Jiangnan from collapsing!" At that exact time, the lecture hall in the capital of Yangdu was hosting a great doctrinal assembly, filled with hundreds of monastics and laypeople. Hearing an extraordinary fragrance from the northwest and celestial music in the sky, the entire hall was startled and ran out together to listen. The hall suddenly collapsed, but the great assembly was unharmed. When this was memorialized to the Liang ruler, he sent an inquiry to the Zhou and indeed learned of Sengshi's divine aid. Precious treasures and offerings were sent continuously, yet Sengshi accepted only the three robes and everyday utensils, distributing the rest as they came. Thenceforth his name shook the three kingdoms, and his deeds matched the utmost sagely. On the eighteenth day of the seventh month in the third year of Baoding, he passed away at the Great Zhuiyuan Temple at the age of eighty-eight. The court and the commons mourned in astonishment; humans and devas were disconsolate. The emperor wept in deep sorrow and issued an edict to have his portrait painted, which was then placed in the Great Futian Temple. On that very day he was buried south of the tumulus of Lord Teng, Li Yiji, outside the eastern suburban gate; the stele and stone still remain. His disciples, such as Tanxiang, passed on the lamp ceaselessly, making both the flowers and fruits ever more flourishing. Because of the succession of his teachings, they erected a temple at his tomb, also naming it Futian to honor his unseen blessing, and erected steles at both the temple and the field. Śramaṇa Daoxuan of the Great Zhongxing Temple and Yu Xin, Duke of Yicheng, composed the inscriptions, which are present within the imperial park today. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) - [Previous: 16.40](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2060.16.40) - [Next: 16.42](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2060.16.42) - [Up: 16](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2060.16) ## Translations (1) - [English (machine translation)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2060~en-mt.16.41) — English, machine translation --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2060.16.41](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2060.16.41) · Pramāṇa