續高僧傳 9.19

9.19

Śramaṇa Luoyun's secular surname was Xing. He was a native of Songzi in Nanjun. He initially went forth from the household at the East Monastery of Shangming. His mind and conduct were focused on associating with men of accomplished virtue. Hearing that the Dao flourished in Jinling and that those who sought out its hidden depths were like a forest, he made light of a thousand li to travel far in pursuit of superior companions. It happened that Daoism and Buddhism flourished under Daolang of the Xinghuang Monastery in the capital Yangdu, so he bowed his head before that Dharma seat and drilled into and looked up to Lang's glorious deeds. The One Vehicle and the Four Treatises were deeply analyzed there to clear the path. At that time, Lang frequently had his disciples delve into obscure and hidden points. Yun was only sixteen, just in his youth, yet with keen determination he came forward to ask about the meaning of the permanent and impermanent. His countenance was unperturbed, and both host and guest acted with ease and grace, so that the assembly all praised him. Lang then took off the mantle he was wearing and presented it to him before the crowd. From this time on, his reputation spread far and wide, transmitted everywhere. Yet he took inexhaustible delight in the Dharma; like a simpleton, he was never impeded [by self-satisfaction]. After Lang passed away, Yun broadly inquired about what he had heard, and he further culled and gathered what had been left out from Dharmabhāṇaka Gen of Fuyuan Monastery. Gen set free his understandings without reservation, allowing him to drill into and examine them. Considering that the profound meaning of the Three Treatises had not yet reached Jingnan and that the two obstacles presented many hindrances, Yun vowed to broadly propagate them. At Qishan Monastery there was Dhyāna Master Zhi, who cultivated both samādhi and prajñā and devoted his mind to analyzing the teachings. At that time, the realm under heaven was unified, and the three regions of Chu were in full prosperity; the crowds were as numerous as rice plants and hemp, and men of talent were abundant. Yun founded Huanxiang Monastery. Taking advantage of this opportune moment, he sat in the seat of honour as a master from whom instructions were requested, and uttered pure words as the foremost in sustaining the Dharma. The Area Commander-in-Chief, Wang Shiji, Duke of Yiyang, and the imperial emissary, Secretariat Drafter Xiao Zibao, personally attended the Dharma assembly, and all chanted his virtuous voice. There was Longquan Monastery, where the site was isolated from noise and dust, and his mind dwelled in leisurely openness; so he resided there for over fifty years. He repaired its halls and buildings and constantly sat without lying down. He led five hundred disciples, often showing outstanding talent. Emperor Yang, having heard of his fame, issued an imperial order summoning him to the court. Yun hid his traces by sealing his doorway with clay, and withdrew on account of illness. Long ago, Śramaṇa Dao'an built a hall of seven bays at the East Monastery of Shangzhou, and Tanyi later built five bays, connecting their ridges and adjoining their rafters so that twelve bays were laid out in a row. In this hall, Yun lectured on the four sūtras and the three treatises, each several tens of times. Outside the text, he made no separate writings; everything was conceived in his mind and expounded by mouth, resolving doubts like melting ice and making the principles flow smoothly. Thus, he was able to leave behind both emptiness and existence, and uphold both teaching and meaning. At that time in Songzi there was a Daoist named Yu (pronounced with the fanqie chou-you). His learning surpassed the Li lineage (Daoism) and his scholarship encompassed Confucianism and the histories. He frequently lectured on Zhuangzi and Laozi while privately appropriating Buddhist sūtras. Yun instructed his disciples Huicheng and Daosheng, saying, 'That Daoist gathers followers like swarming bees and ants, plundering our cattle and stealing our Dharma. In truth, this can hardly be tolerated. You shall convey my intention and smash his heterodox traces.' Cheng and the other went to his place and took their seats. The Daoist said, 'When humans and devas interact, both are able to meet.' Cheng said, 'Taking off precious royal garments and putting on filthy, soiled clothes, one frequents the impoverished and deluded in order to open the way to gradual transformation.' People at the time considered this an exquisite reply. Cheng had addressed Yu as 'Sir' (xiansheng). Yu angrily said, 'I am no secular scholar. Why do you address me as "Sir"?' Cheng said, 'Since you are averse to being called "Sir" (xiansheng, literally "born before"), please remove the word "before" (xian) and return to your original surname and name, being called "Yu Born" (Yusheng, meaning "Yu the living being").' Therefore, in every single sentence he constantly inserted 'Yusheng'. At that time, the great assembly laughed endlessly. The Daoist was filled with shame and had his horns broken (was defeated). Yun upheld lofty detachment and gracefully steadied the customs of the age; in matters of welcoming, sending off, congratulations, or condolences, he took part in none. Some who took pride in worldly honour and looked down on the Dao heard of him and went to visit; when they arrived and paid their respects, sweat poured from them and their hearts trembled. His place of birth was at the foot of Shenshan. For one summer retreat, he resided in a quiet place contemplating the profound. His mother personally climbed up each day carrying provisions to make offerings. When someone asked the reason, he answered, 'This is precisely how I repay my mother's arduous toil.' Long ago, when Zhu Can raided and disturbed Jingnan, most monasteries were burned and destroyed; only Longquan Monastery, which Yun had built, survived intact. Because an Area Commander-in-Chief among the rebels had previously received the precepts from Yun, he honoured the master and respected the Dharma, and thus the monastery was preserved. Yun had five brothers, all of whom became dharmabhāṇakas, but Yun was the youngest and had an exceptionally penetrating spiritual radiance. There were ten disciples who entered his chamber, such as Chun, Shen, Cheng, and Qi, who transmitted the Dao and transformed people throughout Min, Shu, the Yangzi, and the Huai regions, so their biographies have not yet been arranged here. On the twenty-third day of the fourth month in the twelfth year of the Daye era of the Sui (616 CE), he passed away sitting upright in his monastery room, at the age of seventy-five. The Director of the Secretariat, Cen Wenben, composed his stele inscription. Śramaṇa Daoyong was Yun's elder brother. His learning encompassed both the Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna, and his name was known to both the religious and the secular. At the East Monastery of Shangming, he erected a multi-storied pavilion north of Master An's Donkey Shrine. Tradition says that Master An rode a red donkey from Shangming to Tanxi in Xiangzhou; in a single night he went back and forth to inspect and supervise two monasteries and three four-storied structures. People today honour it, calling it the Donkey Shrine; this shrine is the place where the donkey was tethered.