宋高僧傳 26.19

26.19

釋慧明，俗姓陳氏，漢太丘長寔之後，世居頴川。永嘉南渡，祖為司徒掾，曾祖仲文有佐命于陳，封丹陽公。祖為雙溪、穀熟二縣令。考為蘭陵長，乃為蘭陵人也。明母氏初感之日，如持佛戒，足惡履于葷園，口不甞于鱻器。神夢髣髴，如聞法音。既而誕焉，年漸及丱，方祈捨俗，父母偕聽。至受具時，即開元七年也。習學律藏，甞謂人曰：「昔者繁刑首作，伯成子遁焉。吾雖不捨律儀，而惡乎諍論紛紛。若心印心之法至矣哉！」乃西詣方巖，頓開心地。天寶中有願於清涼山，淮汴阻兵，明即旋策。與禪客遇，同遊宛陵，於上石門置蘭若三所，有大[虥-儿+巾]來擾，如撫尨焉。時荐饑，群盜欲至，必號呼先告，往往有徵焉。先是此鄉好弋獵，明化之，皆焚罝網器仗矣。至天寶五年，爰止乎魚陂道場。有瑀公者——白土史宗之流，迹邇行微，世莫之識——，始相見曰：「南祖傳教菩薩，來何晚耶？」他日同登魚陂峯頂，見東南有山，蒼琅獨秀，謂瑀公曰：「吾與此山宿有緣矣。」天寶八年，有制度人。州將韋南金舉高行，黑白狀請，隷名州中寧化道場。明固辭，改隷佛川——即疇昔魚陂所望之峯，梁吳均故宅之所，地《志》云：「青山南掘得古佛二軀，莫知年代。獲像之地，靈泉涌起，因名『佛川』焉。」泉側有吳王古祠，風俗淫祀，濫以犧牲。於是明夜泊廟間，雷雨荐至，林摧瓦飛。頃之，雨收月在，見一丈夫容衛甚盛。明曰：「居士，生為賢人，死為明神，奈何使蒼生每被血食，豈知此事殃爾業耶？」神曰：「非弟子本意，人自為之。」禮懺再三，因與受菩薩戒。神欣然曰：「師欲移寺，弟子願捨此處，永奉禪宮。」後果移寺於祠側，獲銅盤之底篆文，有「慧明」二字焉。建中元年正月示疾，其日庭水春染，山雨晝冥，猛虎繞垣悲嘯而去。十二日，奄然長往，春秋八十四，僧臘五十一。二月十二日建塔于寺西山焉。傳法弟子慧解、慧敏、如知三人也——若鶖子、採菽之倫也。菩薩戒弟子，刺史盧幼平、顏真卿、獨孤問俗、杜位、裴清，深於禪味。俾晝公為塔銘焉。

Śramaṇa Huiming, whose lay surname was Chen, was a descendant of Chen Shi, Chief of Taiqiu in the Han dynasty; his lineage had resided in Yingchuan for generations. When the court fled south during the Yongjia period, his ancestor served as an assistant to the Minister over the Masses, and his great-grandfather Zhongwen assisted the founding of the Chen dynasty, being enfeoffed as Duke of Danyang. His grandfather served as Magistrate of Shuangxi and Gushu counties. His father was Chief of Lanling; thus, he became a native of Lanling. On the day his mother first conceived him, she behaved as though observing the Buddhist precepts: her feet loathed walking in gardens of pungent herbs, and her mouth never tasted vessels that had touched fish. In vague, spiritual dreams, she seemed to hear the sound of the Dharma. Soon after, he was born. When his age reached youth, he only then begged to leave the secular world, and his parents both consented. By the time he received full ordination, it was the seventh year of the Kaiyuan era (719). He studied the Vinayapiṭaka, and once said to others: "In ancient times, when excessive punishments first arose, Master Bocheng went into hiding. Although I do not abandon the vinaya codes, I loathe turbulent disputations. How supreme indeed is the method of mind sealing mind!" Thereupon, he traveled west to Fangyan and suddenly opened up his mind-ground. During the Tianbao era, he had a vow [to make a pilgrimage] to Mount Qingliang; because soldiers blocked the Huai and Bian rivers, Ming at once turned his staff back. Meeting with Chan companions, he traveled together with them to Wanling and founded three hermitages at Upper Shimen. A large tiger came to disturb them, but he stroked it as if caressing a dog. At that time, there was frequent famine; whenever bandits were about to arrive, he would certainly cry out and announce it beforehand, which repeatedly came true. Previously, this area was fond of hunting; Ming transformed them, and they all burned their hunting nets and weapons. In the fifth year of the Tianbao era (746), he went to stay at the Yupi Bodhimaṇḍa. There was a Venerable Yu—of the same sort as Shizong of Baidi—whose traces were approachable and conduct subtle, whom the world did not recognize. When they first met, Yu said, "Bodhisattva who transmits the teachings of the Southern Patriarch, why have you come so late?" Another day, when they climbed together to the summit of Yupi Peak and saw a mountain to the southeast standing out solitary and azure, Ming said to Venerable Yu: "I have had a past connection with this mountain." In the eighth year of the Tianbao era (749), an imperial decree was issued to ordain people. Regional Commander Wei Nanjin recommended him for his eminent conduct; monastics and laymen petitioned in writing to register his name at the Ninghua Bodhimaṇḍa in the prefecture. Ming firmly declined and had his registration transferred to Fochuan—namely, the peak he had gazed upon that day from Yupi, the former residence of Wu Jun of the Liang dynasty. The Local Gazetteers say: "South of Qingshan, two ancient Buddha statues were dug up, their era unknown. At the place where the images were unearthed, a spiritual spring gushed forth, hence it was named 'Fochuan' (Buddha Stream)." Beside the spring was an ancient shrine to the King of Wu, where local custom performed excessive sacrifices, indiscriminately using animal victims. Thereupon, Ming stayed overnight in the shrine; thunder and rain came repeatedly, trees were smashed, and roof tiles flew. After a short while, the rain ceased and the moon appeared, and he saw a gentleman whose retinue was very grand. Ming said, "Layman, in life you were a worthy person, and in death you are an illustrious spirit; why do you cause living beings to constantly make bloody food offerings to you? Do you not know that this brings calamity upon your karmic retribution?" The spirit said, "This was not my original wish; people did it of their own accord." He bowed and repented repeatedly, whereupon Ming conferred the bodhisattva precepts upon him. The spirit said joyfully, "If the Master wishes to move the temple here, your disciple is willing to abandon this place and forever offer it to the Chan monastery." Later, the temple was indeed moved to the side of the shrine, and on the bottom of a bronze platter an inscription in seal script was obtained, bearing the two characters 'Hui Ming'. In the first month of the first year of the Jianzhong era (780), he showed signs of illness. On that day, the waters of the courtyard took on spring colors, mountain rain darkened the daylight, and a fierce tiger circled the walls, roaring mournfully before departing. On the twelfth day, he passed away peacefully, at the age of eighty-four, with fifty-one saṅgha years. On the twelfth day of the second month, a stupa was built on the western mountain of the temple. There were three disciples who received the Dharma transmission: Huijie, Huimin, and Ruzhi—peers comparable to Śāriputra and Maudgalyāyana. His bodhisattva-precept disciples included Regional Inspectors Lu Youping, Yan Zhenqing, Dugu Wensu, Du Wei, and Pei Qing, all deeply steeped in the flavor of Chan. They commissioned Venerable Zhou to compose the stupa inscription.