宋高僧傳 29.40

29.40

貞元初，居于東溪草堂，欲屏息詩道，非禪者之意，而自誨之曰：「借使有宣尼之博識，胥臣之多聞，終朝目前矜道侈義，適足以擾我真性。豈若孤松片雲，禪座相對，無言而道合，至靜而性同哉？吾將入杼峯，與松雲為偶。」所著《詩式》及諸文筆，併寢而不紀。因顧筆硯曰：「我疲爾役，爾困我愚，數十年間了無所得。況汝是外物，何累於人哉？住既無心，去亦無我，將放汝各歸本性，使物自物，不關於予，豈不樂乎？」遂命弟子黜焉。至五年五月，會前御史中丞李洪自河北負譴，再移為湖守，初相見未交一言，怳若神合。素知公精於佛理，因請益焉。先問宗源，次及心印，公笑而後答。他日言及《詩式》，具陳以宿昔之志。公曰：「不然。」固命門人檢出草本，一覽而歎曰：「早年曾見沈約《品藻》、慧休《翰林》、庾信《詩箴》，三子所論殊不及此，奈何學小乘褊見，以宿志為辭邪？」遂舉邑中辭人吳季德——梁常侍均之後——，其文有家風，予器而重之。晝以陸鴻漸為莫逆之交，相國于公頔、顏魯公真卿命裨贊《韻海》二十餘卷。好為五雜徂篇，用意奇險，實不忝江南謝之遠裔矣。晝清淨其志，高邁其心，浮名薄利，所不能啖。唯事林巒，與道者遊，故終身無惰色。又興冥齋，蓋循燋面然故事，施鬼神食也。晝舊居州興國寺，起意自捐衣囊施之。甞有軍吏沈釗，本德清人也，夕從州出，乘馬到駱駝橋，月色皎如。見數人盛飾衣冠，釗怪問之：「如何到此？」曰：「項王祠東興國寺然公修冥齋，在茲伺耳。」釗翌日往覆，果是鬼物矣。又長城赳胥錢沛行役，泊舟呂山南，見數十百人，得非提食器、負束帛，怡然語笑而過。問其故，云：「赴然師齋來。」時顏魯公為刺郡，早事交遊而加崇重焉。以貞元年終山寺。有集十卷，于頔序集。貞元八年正月勅寫其文集入于祕閣，天下榮之。觀其文也，亹亹而不厭，合律乎清壯，亦一代偉才焉。晝生常與韋應物、盧幼平、吳季德、李萼、皇甫曾、梁肅、崔子向、薛逢、呂渭、楊逵，或簪組，或布衣，與之交結，必高吟樂道。道其同者，則然始定交哉。故著《儒釋交遊傳》及《內典類聚》共四十卷、《號呶子》十卷，時貴流布。元和四年，太守范傳正、會稽釋靈澈同過舊院，就影堂傷悼彌久，遺題曰：「道安已返無何鄉，慧遠來過舊草堂。余亦當時及門者，共吟佳句一焚香。」其遺德，後賢所慕者相繼有焉。又唐黃州大石山釋福琳，姓元氏，荊州人也。父為襄陽判司，素崇釋氏。琳幼好佛門，恒循檢操，早知割愛，就玄靜寺謙著師下剃染。登滿足法已，躬禮荷澤祖師，乃契真心。後至黃陂，剪茅營舍，終成大院，安集四方禪侶。琳終時年八十二，興元二年四月入塔。

At the beginning of the Zhenyuan era, he lived in a thatched hut by the Eastern Creek, intending to abandon the craft of poetry, thinking it not the true purpose of a practitioner of dhyāna. Admonishing himself, he said: 'Even if I had the encyclopedic knowledge of Confucius or the wide hearing of Xuchen, spending all day vaunting the Way and elaborating on principles before my eyes would merely suffice to disturb my true nature. How could it compare to facing a solitary pine and a wisp of cloud from a meditation mat—communing with the Way in silence, identical in nature through perfect stillness? I shall enter Mount Zhu and make pine and clouds my companions.' He put aside his work *Shishi* (Poetic Patterns) along with all his other prose and verses, no longer recording them. Glancing at his brush and inkstone, he said: 'I am fatigued by your labor, and you are exhausted by my folly; in several decades, nothing at all has been gained. Moreover, you are external things; how could you burden a person? Since dwelling holds no mind, departing holds no self; I shall release you each back to your original natures, so that things remain things, having nothing to do with me—would that not be joyful?' He then ordered his disciples to discard them. In the fifth month of the fifth year, it happened that the former Vice Censor-in-chief Li Hong, having incurred censure from Hebei, was reassigned as prefect of Huzhou. When they first met, before exchanging a single word, their minds seemed attuned as if by spiritual resonance. Knowing that Li was well versed in Buddhist principles, Jiaoran asked him for instruction. He first inquired about the source of the school and next about the mind-seal; Li smiled and answered. On another day, when their conversation touched upon the *Shishi*, Jiaoran related in full his former resolution. Li said: 'Not so.' He firmly instructed Jiaoran's disciples to retrieve the draft manuscript, and upon perusing it, sighed and said: 'In my early years I read Shen Yue's *Pinzao*, Huixiu's *Hanlin*, and Yu Xin's *Shizhen*; the discussions of these three masters fall far short of this. Why should you adopt the narrow view of the Hīnayāna and use an old vow as an excuse?' He then praised Wu Jide, a man of letters from that district and a descendant of Changshi Wu Jun of the Liang, noting that his prose possessed familial style, and that he valued and respected him. Zhou formed an unreserved friendship with Lu Hongjian (Lu Yu). Chancellor Lord Yu Di and Duke Yan Zhenqing of Lu engaged him to assist in compiling over twenty fascicles of the *Yunhai*. He loved composing five-miscellaneous irregular verses with extraordinary and adventurous conception, truly showing himself not unworthy as a distant descendant of the Xie clan of Jiangnan. Zhou kept his intentions pure and his mind lofty and transcendent; fleeting fame and meager profit could not tempt him. He devoted himself solely to the forests and peaks, roaming with men of the Way, and never showed a slackened countenance throughout his life. He also initiated offerings to the unseen realms, following the precedent of the Burning-Faced Ghost (Yamānīka) to feed ghosts and spirits. When Zhou formerly resided at Xingguo Temple in the prefecture, he initiated the practice by donating his own garments and robes. There was once a military clerk named Shen Zhao, originally from Deqing, who rode on horseback from the prefecture at dusk to Camel Bridge under clear moonlight. He saw several men dressed in formal robes and caps. Shen found it strange and asked them: 'Why have you come here?' They replied: 'Master Ran is performing an offering to the unseen realms at Xingguo Temple east of Xiang Yu's shrine; we are waiting here.' When Shen went to check the next day, they were indeed ghosts. There was also the Changcheng soldier Qian Pei on official duty, who moored his boat south of Mount Lü. He saw dozens or hundreds of people carrying food vessels and bundles of silk, passing by in cheerful conversation. When asked the reason, they said: 'We are coming from Master Ran's feast.' At that time, Duke Yan of Lu was prefect of the commandery; he had early on cultivated friendship with Jiaoran and held him in ever higher esteem. Zhou died at the mountain temple during the Zhenyuan era. He left a collection of ten fascicles, prefaced by Yu Di. In the first month of the eighth year of Zhenyuan, an imperial order commanded that his collected works be copied and placed in the Secret Archives, an honor celebrated throughout the empire. Looking at his writings, they flow tirelessly without causing weariness, matching the poetic meter with freshness and vigor; he was truly a great talent of an entire generation. During his life, Zhou frequently associated with Wei Yingwu, Lu Youping, Wu Jide, Li E, Huangfu Zeng, Liang Su, Cui Zixiang, Xue Feng, Lü Wei, and Yang Kui, whether officials or commoners. Whenever he socialized with them, they would recite aloud and delight in the Way. Only when their ways aligned would Jiaoran establish friendship with them. He therefore composed the *Rushi jiaoyou zhuan* (Biographies of the Interactions between Ruists and Buddhists) and the *Neidian leiju* (Classified Collection of Buddhist Scriptures), totaling forty fascicles, as well as the *Haonaozi* in ten fascicles, which circulated widely and were treasured at the time. In the fourth year of Yuanhe, Prefect Fan Chuanzheng and Shi Lingche of Kuaiji jointly visited his former courtyard; standing before his portrait hall, they mourned him for a long time and left this inscription: / 'Dao'an has already returned to the realm of nowhere, / While Huiyuan comes to visit the old thatched cottage. / I too was among his disciples in those days; / Together we recite fine verses, lighting a single stick of incense.' / His lingering virtue continued to be admired by later worthy men in succession. Furthermore, there was Shi Fulin of Mount Dashi in Huangzhou of the Tang, surnamed Yuan, a native of Jingzhou. His father served as administrative assistant in Xiangyang and had always venerated Buddhism. From his youth Fulin loved the Buddhist path and constantly maintained strict discipline. Knowing early to sever mundane affections, he shaved his head and took monastic robes under Master Qianzhu of Xuanjing Temple. Having received the full ordination, he personally paid homage to the patriarch master of Heze and thereby accorded with the true mind. Later he went to Huangpi, cleared thatch to build a hermitage, which eventually became a great monastery where he gathered and settled Chan companions from all directions. Fulin died at the age of eighty-two; in the fourth month of the second year of Xingyuan, he was entombed in a stupa.