宋高僧傳 27.8

27.8

The śramaṇa Zhengan, whose secular surname was Wu, was a man of Yunzhong. His spiritual bearing was lofty and far-reaching, and he devoted himself to dhyāna and silence. Dragging his staff, he walked alone, traveling south to seek holy sites. When he reached Guzhang, there was Kunshan Temple with its lush forests and springs; it was where the Song-dynasty monk Zhitandi had once built his hermitage, relishing the Way and exalting conversion for more than twenty years, and its foundations still remained. During the Yuanjia reign-period, it was built into a great saṅghārāma. When Emperor Wuzong suppressed the Buddhist teachings, the temple was abolished. Zhengan arrived and stayed here, and together with Lord Lu Xi of Fanyang, he revived the celebrated site of Dharma Master Hongjue's second incarnation. When the temple was completed, the Jinshi Yao Fu composed a poem about it. Later Zhengan traveled to present-day Changshui in Xiuzhou, where he saw Lingguang Temple and learned that the local people wished to erect a massive hall. At that time, Magistrate Lu was reassigned to govern the people of that district, and they met with delight; Zhengan had known of this beforehand in all details. Some said he had attained the supernormal powers of reading others' minds and knowing past lives. The magistrate then requested that Zhengan take the lead in chanting the invocation. Zhengan, however, disliked the clamor of the guest rooms, so he stayed behind the foundation of the hall, weaving rushes into a crude shelter to dwell in. Benefactors from the four directions arrived on their own without being summoned. Together with the monks Linggong, Jundao, and others, it took several years to complete the present hall. Its height and breadth were rarely matched in the realm. Once the task was done, he picked up his worn bag, shook his old staff, and returned to the north; none knew how he ended.