宋高僧傳 21.47

21.47

釋寗師者，岐陽人也，亡其名，時以姓呼之耳。往來無恒止，出處如常僧。昭宗即位初年，居山寺中，忽暴終，安臥體暖，忽忽如爛寢焉。僧徒環守，不敢殯斂。三日而蘇。眾驚奔問之。曰：「我為冥司追攝，初見一判官云：『和尚壽在而無祿。』乃召吏，語之與檢覆。吏曰：『只有乾荷葉三石。』因令注於簿。又命一人引之巡歷觀遊去。乃入一門，見數殿各有牓。於是徙步至一殿，署云李克用。於牖間，窺有一黑龍，眇一目，中立鐵柱，連鎖縶維之。次一殿署曰朱全忠，乃青鞟白額虎，鎖繫如初，而前有食噉人血狼藉之狀。次署曰王建，黃金床上臥一白兔焉。次署曰李茂貞，具冠冕如王者，左右數侍女焉。次署曰楊行密，窓牖庳黑，不能細瞻。問使者曰：『此諸怪狀者何邪？』曰：『將來王者也。』旁廂數殿，望之黯黯，使者不容。引去，還至本所判官廳事，謂使者曰：『好送師迴，但多轉念《功德經》。』寗問曰：『孰是《功德經》？』曰：『《金剛般若》是歟！此經冥間濟拔，功力無比。』」及乎穌醒，四顧久之，乃述前事。聞者駭然，遂聞于官。後岐帥怪宏迂而妄，都不之信。厥後茂貞果封秦王。李克用枉濫殺戮，號獨眼龍也。朱氏革于唐命，殘害安忍，傅翼擇肉，非虎而何？蜀王建屬兔，阻兵自固。天祐丁卯，僣偽號，以金飾床也。諸皆符合。寗自此每斷中，唯荷葉湯而已。其諸食饌，逆口不飡。秦、隴之人往往請寗入冥，預言吉凶，更無蹉跌。或請齋，爭辦淨池嫰荷，號為入冥和尚，終于岐下。

Shi Ning was a man of Qiyang; his given name is lost, and people at the time simply called him by his surname. His comings and goings had no fixed dwelling, and his outward conduct was like that of an ordinary monk. In the first year of Emperor Zhaozong's ascension, while staying in a mountain temple, he suddenly died abruptly. As he lay peacefully, his body remained warm, as if in a deep, oblivious sleep. His monastic disciples surrounded and watched over him, not daring to prepare him for burial. After three days, he revived. The assembly rushed in astonishment to ask him about it. He said, "I was summoned and seized by the underworld court. At first I saw a magistrate who said, 'The Master's lifespan remains, but he has no stipend [of food].' He then summoned a clerk and told him to inspect and verify. The clerk said, 'There are only three dan of dried lotus leaves.' He therefore ordered this to be recorded in the register. He also commanded a person to lead me on a tour of observation. We then entered a gate and saw several halls, each with a name placard. Thereupon, walking on foot, we arrived at a hall whose placard read 'Li Keyong.' Peering through the window, there was a black dragon, blind in one eye; in the center stood an iron pillar, with chains binding and tethering it. Next, a hall was labeled 'Zhu Quanzhong,' which housed a green-hided, white-browed tiger, chained as before, and before it was the messy scene of human blood having been devoured. Next was labeled 'Wang Jian,' where a white rabbit lay on a golden bed. Next was labeled 'Li Maozhen,' wearing a crown and robes like a king, with several maidservants to his left and right. Next was labeled 'Yang Xingmi,' whose windows were low and dark, so that one could not inspect it closely. I asked the messenger, 'What are these strange sights?' He replied, 'These are the kings of the future.' Of the several halls in the side wings, looking toward them they were dim and gloomy, and the messenger would not permit entry. Leading me away, we returned to the original hall of the magistrate, who told the messenger, 'Escort the Master back well, and tell him simply to recite the Merit-Virtue Sūtra more.' Ning asked, 'Which is the Merit-Virtue Sūtra?' He replied, 'It is the Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā! The power of this sūtra in rescuing and delivering in the underworld is incomparable.'" When he revived, he looked around for a long time and then recounted the preceding events. Those who heard were astonished, and it was subsequently reported to the authorities. Later, the Military Governor of Qi thought it bizarre, exaggerated, and false, and gave it no credence at all. Afterward, Maozhen was indeed enfeoffed as Prince of Qin. Li Keyong unjustly and recklessly slaughtered, and was called the "One-Eyed Dragon." Zhu replaced the mandate of the Tang, was cruel, harmful, and callous, like a tiger given wings selecting flesh—what else could he be? Wang Jian, King of Shu, was born in the year of the rabbit and relied on military force to secure himself; in the dingmao year of Tianyou, he usurped the imperial title and adorned his bed with gold. All corresponded completely. From then on, whenever Ning took his midday meal, he drank only lotus-leaf broth. All other food and delicacies were repulsive to his mouth, and he would not eat them. People of Qin and Long often invited Ning to enter the underworld to foretell good and bad fortune, and there was never any error. Or when someone invited him to a vegetarian feast, they vied to prepare tender lotus from clean ponds. He was called the "Underworld-Entering Monk" and ended his days in Qixia.