續高僧傳 25.66

25.66

釋叉德。姓徐。雍州醴泉人。形質長偉秀眉骨面。立履清白服麁素衣。而放言來事多所弘獎。年有凶暴毒勵流者。必先勸四民令奉三寶。其所施設或禮佛設齋。或稱名念誦。用其言者皆攘災禍。有不信者莫不殃終。預記未然略如對目。時遭亢旱。懼而問焉。叉以手指撝。某日當雨。但齊某處。約時雨至。必如其言。或蝗暴廣狹。澤潤淺深。事符明鏡不漏纖失。且執志清慎。不濫刑科。力所未行不受其法。故壯年在道惟遵十戒。而於篇聚雜相。多所承修。末於九峻山南。造阿耨達池。并鐫石鉢。即於池側用濟眾生。以貞觀十二年。卒於山舍。百姓感焉。為起白塔。苕然上表。

Śramaṇa Chade, surnamed Xu, was a native of Liquan in Yongzhou. He had a tall, majestic physique, handsome eyebrows, and a gaunt, boney face. He conducted himself with purity, wearing only coarse, plain clothing, yet his spoken words concerning future events brought widespread benefit. Whenever a year had calamities, pestilence, and raging plagues, he would invariably urge the four classes of people beforehand to venerate the triratna. In his instructions, he would have them worship the Buddha and host vegetarian feasts, or recite the Buddha's name and chant sūtras. Those who heeded his words averted disaster, while those who did not believe without exception met with calamitous ends. His foreknowledge of what had not yet happened was practically as clear as seeing it right before one's eyes. Once, during a severe drought, the frightened populace came to consult him. Chade pointed with his hand and said, “On such-and-such a day it will rain, but only up to such-and-such a place.” When the time came, the rain arrived exactly as he had foretold. Whether regarding the extent of locust swarms or the depth of rains and moisture, circumstances conformed to his words like a clear mirror without missing a hair's breadth. Furthermore, he held to his resolve with purity and caution, never overstepping the disciplinary codes; what his strength was not yet capable of practicing, he would not receive as an obligation. Thus, while in his prime on the spiritual path, he kept only the ten precepts, yet regarding the various categories and nuances of monastic offenses, he widely practiced and upheld them. Toward the end of his life, south of Jiuzong Mountain, he built an Anavatapta Pool and carved a stone bowl, which he used beside the pool to aid all living beings. In the twelfth year of the Zhenguan era (638 CE), he died at his mountain dwelling. The populace, moved with gratitude, raised a white stūpa for him that towered aloft.