宋高僧傳 8.9

8.9

釋神秀，俗姓李氏，今東京尉氏人也。少覽經史，博綜多聞。既而奮志出塵，剃染受法。後遇蘄州雙峯東山寺五祖忍師，以坐禪為務，乃歎伏曰：「此真吾師也。」決心苦節，以樵汲自役而求其道。昔魏末有天竺沙門達磨者，得禪宗妙法，自釋迦佛相傳授，以衣鉢為記，世相傳付，航海而來。梁武帝問以有為之事，達磨貴傳逕門心要，機教相乖，若水投石。乃之魏，隱於嵩丘少林寺，尋卒。其年魏使宋雲於葱嶺見之。門徒發其塚，但有衣履而已。以法付慧可，可付粲，粲付道信，信付忍。忍與信俱住東山，故謂其法為東山法門。秀既事忍，忍默識之，深加器重，謂人曰：「吾度人多矣，至於懸解圓照，無先汝者。」忍於上元中卒，秀乃往江陵當陽山居焉。四海緇徒，嚮風而靡，道譽馨香，普蒙熏灼。則天太后聞之，召赴都，肩輿上殿，親加跪禮。內道場豐其供施，時時問道。勅於昔住山置度門寺，以旌其德。時王公已下，京邑士庶兢至禮謁，望塵拜伏，日有萬計。洎中宗孝和帝即位，尤加寵重。中書令張說甞問法，執弟子禮，退謂人曰：「禪師身長八尺，厖眉秀目，威德巍巍，王霸之器也。」初，秀同學能禪師與之德行相埒，互得發揚無私於道也。甞奏天后請追能赴都，能懇而固辭。秀又自作尺牘，序帝意徵之，終不能起，謂使者曰：「吾形不揚，北土之人見斯短陋，或不重法。又先師記吾以嶺南有緣，且不可違也。」了不度大庾嶺而終。天下散傳其道，謂秀宗為北，能宗為南。南北二宗，名從此起。秀以神龍二年卒，士庶皆來送葬，詔賜諡曰大通禪師。又於相王舊邸造報恩寺，岐王範、燕國公張說、徵士盧鴻各為碑誄。服師喪者，名士達官不可勝紀。門人普寂、義福並為朝野所重，蓋宗先師之道也。

Shi Shenxiu, whose secular surname was Li, was a native of present-day Weishi in Dongjing. In his youth he read widely in the classics and histories, acquiring comprehensive and vast learning. Soon thereafter he resolved to leave the dust [of the world], shaved his head, dyed his robes, and received the Dharma. Later, he met Master Ren, the Fifth Patriarch of Dongshan Temple on Mount Shuangfeng in Qizhou. Seeing that he took seated meditation as his primary task, Shenxiu sighed in admiration and said, 'This is truly my master.' Resolute in his bitter asceticism, he served in fetching firewood and drawing water, thereby seeking the master's Path. Formerly, at the end of the Wei dynasty, an Indian śramaṇa named Bodhidharma obtained the wondrous Dharma of the Chan lineage, which had been transmitted from Śākyamuni Buddha down through generations, using the robe and bowl as a token of verification; passing it on through successive generations, he came across the sea. Emperor Wu of Liang questioned him on matters of conditioned meritorious deeds, but Bodhidharma valued only transmitting the direct and essential teaching of the mind. Faculty and teaching being mismatched, it was like throwing water upon a rock. He then went to Wei and lived in seclusion at Shaolin Temple on Mount Song, and passed away soon after. In that same year, the Wei envoy Song Yun saw him at the Congling Mountains. His disciples opened his tomb and found only his robe and shoes. He transmitted the Dharma to Huike; Ke transmitted it to Sengcan; Sengcan transmitted it to Daoxin; and Xin transmitted it to Hongren. Because Hongren and Daoxin both resided at Dongshan, their Dharma was called the Dongshan Dharma Gate. After Shenxiu came to serve Hongren, Hongren tacitly recognized him, held him in deep esteem, and said to people, 'I have liberated many people, but when it comes to untrammeled understanding and perfect illumination, none surpasses you.' Hongren passed away during the Shangyuan era, and Shenxiu then went to Mount Dangyang in Jiangling to reside there. Monks from across the four seas followed him like grass bending before the wind; the fragrance of his reputation for the Path broadly perfumed and inspired all. When Empress Dowager Zetian heard of this, she summoned him to the capital, where he ascended to the palace hall in a shoulder-carriage, and she personally prostrated before him. His offerings in the inner sanctuary were abundant, and she inquired about the Path from time to time. She issued an imperial order to establish the Dumen Temple at the mountain where he had previously resided, in order to manifest his virtue. At that time, from princes and dukes down to the gentry and commoners of the capital, people vied to pay him courtly visits; gazing upon his dust, they bowed and prostrated, numbering tens of thousands each day. When Emperor Xiaohe (Zhongzong) ascended the throne, he favored and honored him even more. Secretariat Director Zhang Yue once inquired about the Dharma and observed the etiquette of a disciple; stepping back, he said to others, 'The Chan master is eight feet tall, with bushy eyebrows and refined eyes; his majestic virtue is lofty, a vessel fit for kings and hegemons.' Earlier, Shenxiu's fellow student Chan Master Huineng was equal to him in virtuous conduct, and they promoted one another without partiality in the Path. Shenxiu once memorialized Empress Dowager Zetian, requesting that she summon Huineng to the capital, but Huineng earnestly and steadfastly declined. Shenxiu also wrote a personal letter setting forth the imperial intention to recruit him, but Huineng ultimately could not be moved to depart, and said to the envoy, 'My appearance is uncomely; if the people of the northern lands see this short and coarse exterior, they might not revere the Dharma. Moreover, my late master predicted that I have an affinity with Lingnan; it must not be contravened.' He never crossed the Dayu Ridge until his death. Their paths were disseminated across the empire, Shenxiu's tradition being called the Northern, and Huineng's tradition the Southern. The names of the Two Schools, Northern and Southern, originated from this. Shenxiu passed away in the second year of Shenlong. Gentry and commoners all came to attend his funeral, and an imperial decree conferred the posthumous title 'Chan Master Datong.' Furthermore, the Bao'en Temple was built at the former residence of Prince Xiang. Prince Fan of Qi, Duke Zhang Yue of Yan, and the recruited scholar Lu Hong each composed stelae and eulogies. Eminent scholars and prominent officials who wore mourning dress for the master could not be counted. His disciples Puji and Yifu were both held in high esteem by court and country, all because they adhered to their late master's Path.