續高僧傳 19.26

19.26

Śramaṇa Guanding, whose courtesy name was Fayun, was originally surnamed Wu, a native of Yixing in Changzhou. His ancestors fled troubled times to Dong'ou, and consequently did not return, so that he became a native of Zhang'an in Linhai. His father died prematurely, and his mother raised him with maternal care. When he had been born barely three months and was an infant to be named, she reflected on various creatures and things but did not know what to call him. At night, his mother recited the names of the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha; Guanding promptly imitated them with his mouth, his tone and phrasing clear and articulate, which astonished everyone. She thereupon informed Master Huizheng of Shejing Temple. Hearing of it, he sighed and said, 'This child is extraordinary (feifan),' and immediately gave him the courtesy name Feifan. When he reached seven years of age, he returned to become Zheng's disciple. Daily he progressed in literary composition; he pursued both the esoteric [Buddhist/Daoist] and Confucian teachings, and his polished rhetoric and elegant talent brought him renown at the time. At the age of twenty, he advanced to full ordination and observed the monastic deportment, devoting his thoughts all the more to the 'virtue jar and the bowl of oil'. When Master Zheng departed this life, Guanding bathed in the Dharma on Mount Tiantai, receiving and practicing the essential discipline of meditation without any lapse. In the first year of the Zhide era of the Chen dynasty, he followed Dhyāna Master Zhiyi out to reside at Guangzhai Temple, where he investigated and practiced the contemplation gates and frequently received verification. When the Chen dynasty lost rule, he followed his master up the Yangtze River; they traveled and rested among all the fine places and celebrated mountains. At the three shrines of Mount Lu and the nine peaks of Mount Heng, there was nowhere they did not leave their traces, receiving welcome and seeking out hermits. Later they arrived in Jingbu and stayed at Yuquan Temple, transmitting the Dharma, converting others, and spreading the teachings across Western Chu. In the eleventh year of the Kaihuang era, the Prince of Jin was stationed as defender of Yangzhou; Guanding accompanied Zhizhe as he arrived at Hangou and resided at Chanzhong Temple. Serving as a great general of the Dharma, he daily investigated the abstruse. Soon after, following Zhizhe, he returned east to reside on Mount Tiantai. Later he went out to Chengxin Hermitage to lecture on the Lotus Sūtra; his stature surpassed Jilang, eclipsed Ji, and went beyond Fa’yun and Bao’yin. Those who assembled and rushed to follow him with book-boxes packed like gushing streams. There was Dharma Master Jizang, who had entered the inner chamber of Xinghuang [Falang] and set up his teaching at Jiaxiang, holding sole sway over eastern Zhejiang. Hearing of Chengxin's superior way, he did not at first concede it, but asked to borrow the record of its commentaries to inspect their shallowness and depth. He then realized that Guanding had an internalized understanding that enraptured the mind, which indeed derived from a master. Consequently, he disbanded his lectures, dismissed his assembly, and cast himself at Mount Tiantai to receive the Lotus Sūtra, making a vow to promulgate it widely. In the seventeenth year, when Zhizhe displayed illness, Guanding attended to him day and night, exhausting his heart in hardship and toil. When [Zhizhe] entered extinction, Guanding personally received his final instructions; he presented his testamentary letter and various tokens of faith, weeping in grief as he knelt to confer them. The Prince of Jin touched all five points of his body to the ground, weeping tears of sorrow as he received them upon his crown. He observed the etiquette of a guest and deepened his affection as a Dharma relative. Soon he dispatched Wang Hong, marshal of the General Administration of Yangzhou, to escort Guanding back to the mountain, host a feast for a thousand monks on behalf of Zhizhe, and establish Guoqing Temple—the ancient site of Dan’guang and Daoyou of the Eastern Jin. The front peak, Folong Temple, had been named Xiuchan; during the Chen dynasty, Zhizhe had first founded it ten li south of the peak, a land named Danqiu. Its paths for circumambulation were flat and even, its view open and broad. Zhizhe had marked the foundation and cleared the trees, wishing to erect a sanctuary, but did not realize his intention; hence his testamentary wish remained. The prince’s artisans entered the valley and promptly engaged in construction, setting markers and stretching lines strictly according to the former instructions. In the first year of the Renshou era, the Prince of Jin succeeded to the throne [as crown prince] and toured his former fief in the east; along the myriad li of river routes, everyone in the countryside celebrated. Guanding, taking note that the dānapati had ascended in station and the temple buildings were newly completed, emerged from the mountain to offer congratulations. He was granted an audience, showered with repeated inquiries of comfort, and his replies came like an echo, without a single misplaced word, earning the admiration of both ruler and minister. The crown prince then dispatched the Supernumerary Gentleman of Cavalier Attendant Zhang Qianwei to escort him back to the mountain temple, donating three thousand bolts of silk, three hundred fine cotton robes, and again hosting a feast for a thousand monks. The temples, platforms, and halls were further renovated and repaired, so that the cinnabar and green decorations rivaled the morning clouds, and the ridge of pines and bamboos seemed suddenly wrapped in brocade—truly a magnificent spectacle west of the sea, profoundly matching Zhizhe’s words, as detailed in his biography. In the second year of the Renshou era, an order was issued inviting him, saying: 'The summer season is blazing hot; may the body of the Dharma be in good repose. As the joy of dhyāna nourishes the spirit, it brings many fine states. Recently, I commanded the two masters Zhuang and Lun of Huiri Sanctuary to lecture on the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa Sūtra, using Master Zhizhe's commentary entirely to interpret the scripture. Since the Dhyāna Master is the great master's foremost disciple to whom the Dharma gate was entrusted, I have sent this summons to invite you, hoping you will arrive like torrential rain. Please also bring the commentary on the Lotus Sūtra along with the envoy into the capital. Looking forward to your arrival, my letter cannot convey the full measure of my intention.' Guanding took his robes, shouldered his staff, and stepped proudly into the palace. During the three months of summer he expounded the teachings, and the crown prince rejoiced and revered him. Whenever it came to deep accord, the prince never failed to present questions, and Guanding answered all inquiries, thoroughly mastering the profound scriptures. Later, an envoy was sent to escort him back, with donations doubled. In the seventh year of the Daye era, [Emperor Yang] assembled troops in the wilderness of Zhuo and personally commanded the main armies, intending to sweep away the Eastern Barbarians and bring order to civilization. Asking his attendants, he recalled the Yellow Emperor: first admiring his crushing of tyranny at Banquan, and later sighing over his seeking of the Way at Mount Kongtong. Recalling Zhizhe, he was so moved by admiration that his expression changed. He issued an edict summoning Guanding from afar to the traveling encampment, received him before the imperial screen, and recalled the joy of their being fellow students. He then dispatched Vice Minister Wu Min to escort him back to the Tiantai temple. From then on, royal emissaries arrived continuously, without a vacant month for his chamber. Although Guanding set his heart on the hills and ravines, cutting off all ties with worldly entanglements, he practiced both meditation and wisdom, transforming others equally through speech and silence. Eminent monks and bhadantas from both nearby cities and distant lands, longing to behold the three contemplations, the ten suchnesses, the defilements of mind, and the afflictions of nature, all bowed their heads and cast themselves down, praying to strike the heavenly drum. All had their natures cleansed and their hearts purified; their three karmas repeatedly advanced, and their two adornments were inexhaustible. Suddenly, on the seventh day of the eighth month in the sixth year of the Zhenguan era, he passed away in his quarters at Guoqing Temple, at the age of seventy-two. At first, he manifested only a slight illness, showing no concern for medicine, while an unusual fragrance filled the room. Approaching the end, he instructed his disciples: 'The Maitreya Sūtra says that on the day the Buddha enters the city, the smoke of incense is like clouds. Burn much incense; I am about to depart.' He then gave his testamentary admonitions, the words and reasoning of which were profound and poignant. The disciples and monks looked upon him with weeping and tears. Suddenly he rose on his own, joined his palms as if revering someone, and thrice uttered with his mouth 'Amitābha Buddha.' He lowered his body, lay down, clasped his hands over his heart, his countenance joyful, and suddenly passed away. His whole body remained soft and supple, and his crown stayed warm for days. Formerly, his fellow disciple Zhixi, personally ordained by Zhiyi and famous for his purity, had died earlier in the first year of the Zhenguan era. Approaching his end, Zhixi said: 'I am born in Tuṣita. I saw our late master Zhizhe; in the rows of jeweled seats, everyone had one, except for a single seat that stood empty. It was said, "Six years from now, Dharma Master Guanding will ascend this seat to expound the Dharma."' Burning incense to verify the intent, the Compassionate Honored One indeed descended to welcome him; calculating the years and dates, Zhixi was confirmed not to have been mistaken. On the ninth day of that month, he was entombed on the southern mountain of the temple; people from near and far ran wailing, their cries shaking the forest and valleys. Earlier, when Guanding’s transformation flowed through the worldly masses, his spiritual efficacy was broad. A villager named Yu Falong, living more than thirty li from the mountain, contracted a disease and was about to die, failing to recover after all kinds of treatments. His son rushed into the mountain to pray for help. Guanding recited the Lotus Sūtra for him and burned sandalwood incense. Although the patient was far away, he smelled the sandalwood incense entering his nostrils and immediately recovered. Moreover, at the southern ridge of Le'an, in a place called Anzhou, the jade-green trees and clear stream submerged the springs, leaving no human path. Guanding lingered there and enjoyed it; looking around, he vowed: 'If this land becomes flat, I shall come here to lecture on scriptures.' In less than ten days, white sand gushed everywhere, making it as smooth as a jade mirror. Because this manifestation of spiritual resonance was evident, Guanding did not violate his former vow, and thereupon lectured on the Lotus Sūtra and the Golden Light Sūtra to fulfill the intention of the spirits. Once, while lecturing on the Nirvāṇa Sūtra at Shejing Temple in Zhang'an, sea pirates came up to raid, and monastics and laypeople fled in panic. Guanding was just striking the bell to commence the lecture, his countenance showing no fear. When the pirates waved their banners and approached the temple, they suddenly saw military banners shining in the sun, with men over ten feet tall holding bows and halberds, ferocious and brave. Seeing this, the band was frightened and dispersed all at once. Once at Folong, during a break in his lecturing, he led his students to pile up stones to build a stupa. They specifically needed two slabs to frame the stupa door. A disciple, Guangying, had earlier carted over a stone, but everyone suspected it was too thick and large, wanting to seek another elsewhere, which would cause more labor. Guanding raised his staff and merely gestured with it; the stone previously transported suddenly cracked with a snap, breaking into two pieces of equal thickness, which served as the door of the stupa, fitting exactly like a previous covenant. Spiritual responses such as this were truly manifold. From the time Guanding received his instruction at Tiantai and learned the Way from Hengyue [Huisi], through the three generations of Si, Yi, and [Guanding], their fundamental refuge was undivided. Whether in contemplation or in lecturing, he always relied on the Lotus, and also lectured on scriptures such as the Nirvāṇa, Golden Light, and Vimalakīrti, as well as delivering teachings such as the Perfect and Sudden Calm Abiding and Contemplation, and the Four Foundations of Mindfulness; his cycles of lectures were numerous. Moreover, Zhizhe’s eloquence was like clouds moving and rain falling, sometimes like Indra's net, sometimes resembling a necklace of gems; yet Guanding alone was able to retain and comprehend it. His private notes on Zhizhe’s words and intentions, along with his own commentaries and miscellaneous writings, were all inscribed on the back of the stele. His disciple Guangying, a refined talent of the younger generation who was deeply versed in doctrinal principles, together with the assembly of Guoqing Temple, recorded his conduct and erected a stele at the temple gate. Śramaṇa Faxuan of Hongshan Temple in Changzhou composed the text; its prose is exceedingly beautiful, and it is found in a separate collection.