宋高僧傳 28
English (machine translation) 28
- Language
- English
28.1
Compiled under imperial order by Śramaṇa Zanning and others, Recipient of the Purple Robe, Grand Master Tonghui of Tianshou Temple on the Left Street of the Song
28.2
Cultivating Blessings, Section Nine, Part Three (fifteen main biographies, one appended)
28.3
Later Tang Biography of Zhihui of Zhongtan Bathhouse in Luoyang
28.4
Śramaṇa Zhihui was surnamed Gao and was a native of the Xian-Qin region. In his earliest youth with bound hair, he sprouted the desire to leave the worldly life; he did not consort in children's games, and in all his movements he followed his natural endowments. Suddenly he encountered Chan Master Wen of Guifeng, whose bearing was magnificent, who emptied his mind to realize the Way, and around whose gates the good and the bad were clearly distinguished. He said to Zhihui: "You are truly a vessel of talent, an accomplished person of many capacities." Zhihui requested to be accepted by him. At twenty he received the precepts; his character was tall and prominent, and his preferences were exceptional. In the mountains it was tranquil without any other concerns; he solely searched through the Tripiṭaka teachings, penetrating both Chan and vinaya. Daily he recited hundreds of thousands of words, chewing over the flavor of their meanings. Hearing that the Buddha permitted secular studies for a time, he became quite skilled in reciting poetry, mastering the styles of the sao and ya. Beyond skill in calligraphy, his small paintings were especially fine; when his inspiration ran high upon white-plastered walls, clouds and mountains lay within his palm. He constantly said: "I admire the six principles [of painting] of Sengzhen and Daofen, and regret that I did not live at the same time to paint alongside them on adjacent walls, each bringing lifelike vitality to all things." He was indeed a man of untrammeled spirit! At times, shaking his staff, he traveled, freely taking in the landscape of mountains and rivers; at times, treading in straw sandals, he arrived and toured the markets and courts. Where his mind wished to stop, he stayed; when his inspiration was exhausted, he left. At times he entered the society at Donglin, or practiced walking meditation on the Southern Peak; he awakened to the ancestral tenets at Caoxi without bothering to stay a single night, or sought immortals at Ruan's Grotto, intending to reach the Three Purities. He pursued affairs according to his aspirations, and time was never spent in vain. Beyond this, he gathered herbs in the mountain valleys to cure the illnesses of traveling monks, single-mindedly keen on benefiting others with no other concern in his heart. In the fourth year of Qianhua of the Liang, he arrived at the imperial capital from south of the Yangtze. Looking around at the various Buddhist temples, he saw that nothing was lacking except for the bathhouses to wash away snow and dirt, in which there was a deficiency. He resided on an islet in the Luo River, cutting openings to make rooms, spanning the north and south banks; he repaired a dwelling of several mu and displayed placards, inviting those who delighted in deeds of merit to occupy it. Before a year was out, it was gradually constructed, every corner complete, with bathing utensils and monks' quarters neatly ordered. Because of this, the black-robed assemblies of Luoyang and the eminent figures of Daoist abbeys came as if returning home, with none barred from arrival. Every five days after the new moon, it opened for washing without any interruption. In one year there were more than seventy gatherings; in a single bathing, two to three thousand monks gathered from near and far! Hui personally labored at the service, never once complaining of weariness. Moreover, he used wooden clogs beneath his feet and wore garments stitched of raw hemp; how far removed from Kāśyapa was he! When he had leisure from serving the monks or moments of rest from chanting poetry, he would call for brush and ink—recalling the blue waves of the Jialing River and the Lotus Peak of Mount Taihua, with concentrated and distant spirit, he painted once he caught the inspiration; the misty vistas of the Five Streams and the wintry groves on the four walls were brought before one's eyes, turning summer days piercingly cold! In addition, he applied extraordinary ingenuity, fashioning a wheel to draw water with incomparable speed. He also built sixteen images of Arhats in the western corridor of the bathhouse, along with an Avalokiteśvara Hall, all completed over the years. At that time, Vice Director Yang Ningxi, who had retired and feigned madness, calling himself "Madman Yang," deeply esteemed Hui and composed an inscription praising his virtue. Where he ended is unknown.
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Jin Biography of Guangsi of Zhenrong Cloister on Mount Wutai
28.6
Śramaṇa Guangsi was surnamed Li and was a native of Wenshui in Taiyuan. In his youth he was solitary and quiet, rarely mingling with children. Believing in and esteeming Mount Wutai, he became a foremost disciple of Haowei of Zhenrong Cloister. After receiving the precepts, his capacity was vast, and with a heart rooted in steadfastness, he went out to seek Chan teachings. Over the years, his learning in both inner and outer texts became superior, and his ocean of eloquence surged so that it was difficult to match. Thereupon he resolved to cross the multiple lakes and ascend the mountains of Min, extensively speaking on the world of Mañjuśrī, so that his listeners were stirred with awe. King Zhongyi of the Wang clan made great offerings of incense and tea, sending an envoy to dispatch them to the mountain temple! In the gui-you year, he arrived in Liangzhe to have an audience with King Wusu of the Qian clan, who treated him with generous courtesy and deference, donating offerings of incense, tea, and ten thousand sets of bowls for the holy assembly of Mañjuśrī. The governors and magistrates across the prefectures of Wu and Yue all docked their stipends to contribute. He then sailed by sea to Cangzhou and transported the goods into the mountain. At that time, Grand Master Xianglong commanded and restrained the assembly, and the monks held him in awe; he distributed the supplies equally among the various temples and hermits, balancing the larger and smaller groups. At that time, the followers earnestly requested Si to preside over the cloister, and the court proclaimed his appointment as a saṅgha official governing the cloisters of the various terraces, calling him Rector, with the master's title Chaohua. He resided above the saṅgha like a kun fish or a phoenix leading the fish and fowl! For fifteen years, he erected Buddhist temples and provided meals for monks and nuns beyond measure. In the first year of Tianfu, he contracted an illness, and on the fifth day of the ninth month he passed away. His disciples built a stūpa to enshrine his sacred bones and relics, which still exist today.
28.7
Jin Biography of Zunhui of Xiangguo Temple in the Eastern Capital (Yanqiu)
28.8
Shi Zunhui, whose secular surname was Li, was a native of Qiaojun. For generations his family did not hold office. His mother, Lady Zhang, dreamed that a divine being gave her a precious gem, whereupon she became pregnant. At birth and infancy he was extraordinary; while nursing, he was adept at recognizing people's joy and anger. As he grew older, whenever he saw a temple or monastery, he would inevitably slow his steps and linger, looking about and unwilling to leave. When he was just eleven, he took Vinaya Master Chongyin of Kaiyuan Temple in Baocheng as his exemplar. He recited the Lotus Sūtra, completing the entire text in two weeks, and from this applied himself diligently to study. When he was nearly twenty, he received the precepts and Vinaya; in keeping those Vinaya rules, he was as unyielding as a fixed boulder. He sought teachers in West Luoyang and inquired into the Way in Liangyuan, initially receiving the Lotus Sūtra from Dharma Master Zhiqian. When lecturing on its subtle meaning he penetrated it miraculously, fluent and confident in his criticisms. In the second year of Kaiping of the Liang (a wuchen year, 908), he resided in the Bhaiṣajyaguru Cloister of Xiangguo Temple and first lectured on what he had mastered. By the second year of Changxing of the Later Tang (a xinmao year, 931), disciples successively requested his instruction; he had already completed nineteen rounds, and more than twenty people were admitted to his hall. In the second year of Tianfu (937), Grand Master Jiyong of Mount Wutai, who had thoroughly mastered the great Avataṃsaka Sūtra, personally entered the Eastern Capital to present merits on the birthday festival of the Jin founder. Hui admired Master Yong’s river of eloquence and ocean of scripture, followed him with humility, and received permission to lecture and expound. Hui was good at being low so that all rivers flowed to him, densely accumulating into an ocean-treasury! In the Liang and Song areas, because Yong ceased lecturing, they requested Hui to expound; the vacant hall was completely packed, monastics and laypeople gathering like clouds. He solicited the fourfold assembly to carve a copy of the Avataṃsaka Sūtra on the stone walls on three sides of the lecture hall. Sighing over the vulnerability of paper to fire, he had it inscribed on this durable stone so it would never suffer the gnawing of silverfish. Before the work was declared finished, the donations were already sufficient. He also summoned monastics and laypeople, each to recite one roll, obtaining 240 people to form three complete sets, and held scripture assemblies in the four seasons for nearly twenty years without interruption. He also separately offered water-and-land ritual food to ghosts and spirits, urging everyone to adorn their practice with the bodhicitta. The court revered him and honored his merit, bestowing the title Grand Master Zhenxing. On the sixteenth day of the first month of the second year of Kaiyun (an yisi year, 945), he showed signs of illness. Leaning on his staff, he finished instructing his disciples, then lay down on his right side, intoned the Buddha's name, and after a moment passed away for ever. He lived to the age of seventy-one, with a dharma age of fifty-one. Following his bequest, his disciples buried him north of the Sui River, on the eastern plain of the temple’s estate. Next, there was Shi Yanqiu of Longhua Temple in Hangzhou, whose secular surname was Ye and was a native of Jinyun. He received the precepts during the Zhenming era of the Liang and approached Jingxiao’s Vinaya lecture seat, gaining a transcendent insight into the profound secrets of the Vinaya. Just as he was about to pass it on and lecture, he suddenly became enlightened like a pātravyūha arhat, and turned to seek the steadfast Dharma. Thereupon he traveled to the mountains of Min, obtaining the mind-seal from Dhyāna Master Changqing. Returning to Zhejiang, he accepted the invitation of the people of Danqiu and resided at Liutong Cloister; his reputation in the Way was purely fragrant, rivaling the Sichuan pepper and mountain cinnamon in intense scent. Qian, King of Hannan, admired his lofty conduct and ordered him to reside at Gongchen Cloister. In his later years he returned to the prefectural seat at Longhua Temple, gathering disciples and expounding the teaching. Qiu was fond of managing communal affairs and always took the lead himself, making the benefiting of others his only urgency, and whenever he received offerings he always surrendered them. The door of his dwelling room was never latched, and his trunks were never locked; he did not permit nuns to pay respects, and did not fawn on prestige and power. Whenever ordinands took the precepts, people gathered from all around; he provided daily meals for thousands of monks without ever claiming a shortage. All told, he fed tens of thousands of people. He passed away at his temple during the Jianlong era of the Song.
28.9
Biography of Zhilang of Hutong Cloister in Caozhou under the Jin
28.10
Shi Zhilang, whose secular surname was Huang, was a native of Chengwu in Shanzhou. His mother, Lady Liu, dreamed of several monks sitting in a circle expounding the Dharma for her, their voices ringing clearly in her ears; thereupon she became pregnant with Lang. When he was born and grew up, he naturally possessed the habits of a monk, remaining pure, tranquil, and simple. He earnestly took leave of his parents to enter the monastic life, went to Hutong Cloister in Caozhou, served Master Xingman, and provided for him with the utmost reverence. When he was tonsured and became a fully ordained monk, he studied the Four-Part Vinaya and the Vimalakīrti-nirdeśa-sūtra, mastering both domains. He then said: 'Why should one who has renounced the secular world be bogged down in one direction and guard a tree stump, unable to break free of halters and chains? One would be incapable of broad knowledge and vision.' He then took up his bottle and bowl, traveled south to Hengyang, ascended the peak, and lodged at Prajñā Temple. He practiced the art of embryonic respiration, and having completed his reading of the Tripiṭaka, he entered the mountains of Min with no companion, keeping company only with his own shadow. Several times he encountered ferocious beasts, all about to bare their fangs and swallow him, but they then walked away with slow steps. He met the two ancestral masters, Dongshan and Xuefeng, and thoroughly resolved the teachings of Chan. Whenever anyone inquired, his answers flew forth without hesitation, for his comprehension was unobstructed. Later he returned to his home cloister, where people turned to him with faith like returning home. He served the monks with the four provisions without ever resting; for more than forty years, he toiled without weariness. He passed away on the twenty-third day of the eleventh month in the dingwei year at the end of the Jin (947). At that time, laypeople swallowed their grief and monastics wept with sorrow; beasts lost their ferocity and wailed, and birds halted their flight and wheeled in distress. Some said: 'Who will rescue those drowning in the river of craving and the ocean of suffering?' His age was seventy-seven, and his dharma age was fifty-three. He was cremated, his śarīra were collected, and a stupa was erected at the cloister. As a disciple of the Buddha, Lang vowed that his clothes would never be washed by a woman's hands, and he never put his disciples to labor. The funds, images, and treasures given by donors were never interchanged, because he first practiced the Vinaya and then Chan, refining his spiritual function. Li Xuan, Junior Vice Governor of Daming Prefecture, composed the stele inscription for him.
28.11
Biography of Shihui of Tianshou Chan Cloister in the Eastern Capital under the Han
28.12
Shi Shihui, whose secular surname was Ju, was a descendant of Wu, Inspector of Jingzhou under the Han; his grandfather moved the household to Northern Yan, so he became a native of Jimen. His father was named Zhigu, and his mother was Lady Zhao. Hui renounced the secular life as a child, taking Daopi of Wenquan Cloister in Jizhou as his master. When his studies were completed and he came of age, he received full ordination at the altar of Jintai Baocha Temple. During the Kaiping era of the Liang, like floating duckweed he drifted across Heshuo, and carrying his bowl followed his steps along the Changjiang and Huai Rivers. He arrived in Hannan and met Yanjun of Guanyin Cloister; they sat on the rush mats talking of the Way and clapped hands discussing the mind. Jun said: 'Have you heard of Chan Master Datong of Mount Touzi?' He replied: 'I have heard of him but have not seen him.' Jun said: 'You should go there immediately.' When he visited Datong, within half a step and beyond words, he was cleansed and made lucid, his mind completely at peace. In the second year of Qianhua (912), he came to Liangyuan and thanked Master Jun, saying: 'At first, the branching roads were endless, and life and death were vast and dim; purple was truly confused with vermilion, and folly was mingled with wisdom. Had I not received guidance from teachers and friends, I would have nearly spent a lifetime in vain. Now, like foul weed, I ask to be stored in the same vessel with sweet scent; may I?' Master Jun and Hui mutually appreciated each other’s virtue, and he stayed to join the assembly. In the autumn of the fourth year (914), Zhixiu of Luohan Cloister in Baoji Ward firmly requested Hui to take his place and reside there; it was only a five-bay thatched building. Thereupon he moved the donors, Wu Ai, Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs, and Zhang Gun, Vice Minister of War—just as Yuan Can had visited Baoliang, and Xu Zhanzhi had paid respects to Huitong—who jointly submitted a memorial, and an imperial plaque naming it Tianshou was bestowed. Monks from across the four seas gathered like a flock. Over thirty-five years, he provided meals for more than two million monks, and in using their wealth and treasures, there was not the slightest confusion; his uprightness can be known from this. In the seventh year of Tianfu (942), Emperor Gaozu of Jin, because Hui’s conduct was perfected within and his reputation was heard abroad, imperial decreed to bestow a purple robe. In the first year of Kaiyun (944), he was granted the title Faxiang. The purple robe he stored away according to the precepts, and the master's title he ignored being addressed by. He said: 'I originally did not seek fame; fame came of its own accord seeking me.
28.13
Biography of Zhijiang of Guangshou Cloister in Songzhou under the Zhou
28.14
Shi Zhijiang, whose secular surname was Shan, was a native of Nanguan in Sanhe, Youzhou. Originally the son of a wealthy and chivalrous family, even when riding a hobbyhorse he loathed returning to the door of the burning house; when playing with piles of sand, he loved to build stupas. Whenever he caught wind of the teachings of India, his thoughts grew tranquil and his emotions condensed, as if meeting an old friend along the Xiao and Xiang rivers. In the fourth year of Qianning of the Tang (897), when he was just fifteen, he went to Ganhua Temple on Mount Pan to take the vows of a novice, and completed the training of a novice. In the third year of Tianfu (903), he went to Liyuan Temple on Mount Wutai to receive the Prātimokṣa rules. From then on, carrying his umbrella, he sought instruction, choosing trees to lodge in under teachers; he mastered the two scriptures, the Vimalakīrti-nirdeśa and the Maitreya-upapatti, understanding them as easily as melting ice, yet his mind was never satisfied. In the first year of Longde of the Liang (921), he lectured on a branch of the 'Categories of Terms' at Kaiyuan Temple in Shangqiu; what is called penetrating subtle meanings miraculously and branching out extensively led him to compose the Ruiying chao in eight rolls, which was transmitted by the adept. Students followed him like shadows, and transcriptions were numerous. In the first year of Tongguang of the Later Tang (923), he resided at a cloister in the ruins of Weizi, constructing halls and buildings that were grand and magnificent. He also sculpted images of the two honored ones, Maitreya and Śākyamuni, and of the sixteen arhats, painting them in bright colors to perfectly resemble the sacred forms. Just as good works were accomplished, he suddenly contracted a severe illness, and passed away peacefully in the first month of autumn in the fifth year of Xiande of the Zhou (958), at the age of seventy-four. As he drew his final breath, the whole cloister was crowded with devas as if welcoming and escorting him, which was a clear resonance of his former vow to be born in Tuṣita. Li Xuan, Vice Director in the Ministry of Personnel, composed the 'Stupa Inscription'.
28.15
Appraisal: When predecessors established doctrinal interpretations, they all followed the scriptural teachings; how could likes and dislikes depend on personal feelings, and right and wrong be left to subjective views? If an overturned cart ahead did not overturn the cart behind, why not prudently follow it? In response it is said: 'Those who initiate writings have four reasons: first, earlier explanations were utterly wrong and obscure in the text; second, eccentric views produced erroneous interpretations, so comprehension naturally went astray; third, they enjoyed detail and disliked brevity; fourth, they favored simplicity and were amazed by roundabouts. If one of these applies, none fails to produce a writing. Master Jiang’s Ruiying chao has not been examined by me, but hearing of it from travelers, they say it also serves its time. If it were truly not useful and merely revised the doctrinal treatises of past worthies, how would that differ from saying: "One who destroys an old dike thinking it useless will surely suffer a disaster of flood"?'
28.16
Biography of Guangyu of Zhenrong Cloister on Mount Wutai under the Zhou
28.17
Śramaṇa Guangyu, whose secular surname was Han, was a native of Jincheng Town in Yingzhou. In his youth, he read the Confucian classics and possessed the ambition to assist the state and shepherd the people. Repeatedly, a divine figure admonished him in dreams, saying, 'You have a great karmic connection with the Buddha-Dharma.' Thereupon he went to Zhenrong Cloister to attend upon Fawei, serving as attendant carrying his water pitcher and staff, scrupulously fulfilling the duties of a disciple. After receiving the full precepts, he recited the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa-sūtra thoroughly. Whenever he came to the passage 'rely on the meaning, do not rely on the words,' he informed his original master and asked permission to listen and study [elsewhere]. Wei soon granted his request, and he proceeded to the Three Studies Cloister in Taiyuan. Braving cold and heat, he investigated and scrutinized diligently through the passing seasons. He then gave two series of lectures on the Vimalakīrti-sūtra and the Sūtra on Maitreya's Rebirth Above. Suddenly, he said to his fellow practitioners, 'I recall how in former years I constantly contemplated "rely on the meaning." Recently I have dwelt in this study cloister, and now I have lectured on these two scriptures, fathoming the principle and seeing the nature, knowing the fruition and verifying the cause. Must I not initiate practice according to the teachings, so as to avoid violating the practice of the four reliances?' Soon he bade farewell to the Jin River and returned to his home mountain. Bearing the Avataṃsaka-sūtra on his head, he circumambulated the Bodhisattva Hall, circumambulating clockwise six times a day to worship the Buddha. This was in the third year of the reign of Emperor Gaozu of the Later Jin. His renown reached the imperial palace, and he was bestowed a purple robe. The following year, he was granted the honorific title Tongwu. The mountain monastery's monastic officers and the great assembly adamantly commanded him to preside over the ordination platform; his requests to decline were not permitted. A monastic officer said to him, 'Master, your practice and understanding surpass others; yet you only cultivate yourself alone. If fine jade is not carved, one will surely weep tears of blood.' Having no alternative, he ordained people for two or three years, persistently pleading to be released. When the young king succeeded to the throne, the cloister lacked an abbot, and the great assembly unanimously selected him, asking: 'Who else could it be but Yu?' He declined, saying, 'This mountain is a place frequented by travelers from the four seas. How could I have not stepped outside the cloister gates for years? Let someone who understands offering manage it; what need is there for me?' Although he asked to be excused, they did not consent. From then on, offerings and donations were transported in; over eighteen years, he provided offerings to more than a million monks. One evening, clouds and fog arose together, and sleet and snow fell mingled. A piece of white silk covering the scriptures of Yu, measuring about three to four feet, suddenly disappeared. Late the following night, the lost silk suddenly returned to its former place—was it perhaps returned by a hidden spirit? In the tenth month of the gengshen year, the seventh year of Xiande, he manifested illness and said to his disciples, 'He who was like a dragon abhorred the great calamity; he who sighed over the phoenix grieved over the flowing river. All conditioned things are impermanent; this is the law of arising and ceasing.' Having finished speaking, he shed his body like a cicada. His secular age was sixty-six, and his saṅgha age was forty-six. He was cremated beneath the eastern peak; his sacred relics were collected and buried in a pagoda pillar, while his śarīra were distributed according to conditions for veneration.
28.18
Song Biography of Yanjun of Guanyin Chan Cloister in Dongjing
28.19
Śramaṇa Yanjun, whose surname was Lian, was a native of Xingtai. From his birth, numerous miraculous signs manifested; he cast off his bonds and vowed to enter the gate of emptiness. Once he upheld the jewel of the precepts, he remained completely pure throughout his life. Carrying his almsbowl and staff, he traveled widely to study, scaling Mounts Heng and Lu, and ascending the Min and Shu regions. Once, arriving at Fenglin, he suddenly encountered a deep valley and saw an area shining brightly, covered everywhere with the seven precious treasures. At that time, his companions looked at each other and said, 'How extraordinary! May we bend down and gather them?' Jun said, 'When the ancients hoed the garden, gold was touched just like broken tiles. If you desire to keep it, you will only bring disaster upon yourselves. Wait until a thatched roof covers my head, and I shall need this to provide for monks from the four quarters.' Having spoken, he left. He paid his respects to the master of Mount Touzi in Shuzhou, who asked him, 'Where did the guest lodge last night?' Jun said, 'At the immovable place of awakening.' The master said, 'Since you call it immovable, how did you arrive here?' He replied, 'How could coming here be movement?' The master said, 'So you lodged nowhere from the start.' The mountain master silently acknowledged him. When he wished to return to Zhao, his route passed through Chenliu and reached present-day Dongjing. At that time, Duke of Longxi Zi, Junior Protector of the Liang—the elder brother of Zhi, Military Commissioner of Heyang and posthumously appointed Director of the Chancellery—though occupying a high noble office, harbored profound faith in the gate of emptiness. When he received Jun to discuss the esoteric, it was just like Liu Yimin serving Huiyuan. Together they agreed to donate his mansion to establish a benevolent monastery. Jun did not refuse, using it to settle body and nature. Having constructed meditation halls and promoted the ancestral tradition, those yearning for the Way and fathoming the esoteric filled the halls to overflowing. Before Emperor Gaozu and Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou took the throne, they had been friends in plain clothes with Jun; whenever they entered his abbot's quarters, they invariably knelt before him. When they ascended the throne, they extended him generous hospitality. When court officials saw him, they inevitably prostrated; engaging in lofty discussion and transcendent inquiry with him was like reaching a mountain of treasures. In the third month of the bingyin year of Qiande, he manifested physical illness. In his final illness, his disciples sought doctors and offered medicine, but he closed his eyes and kept his lips tight, refusing food. Having imparted his final admonitions to his disciples, with a serene and dignified expression, he joined his palms, bid farewell to the assembly, and passed away. He lived to the age of eighty-five, with a saṅgha age of sixty-five. Earlier, when Jun received imperial favour and was granted a purple kāṣāya, he accepted it but did not wear it; when granted the title Master of Pure Precepts, he had it but did not use it. Because he walked with a staff and was frail and emaciated, Emperor Gaozu of the Zhou ordered his attendants not to limit the grand master to a single midday meal, and to have him take khādanīya snacks when the sun declined. Jun gave his assent, but found it difficult to comply. His compassion and gentleness reached all beings, and from small beginnings it expanded until there were three cloisters under a single gate—the two halls to the east and west never held fewer than several hundred people. Over fifty years, he provided offerings to hundreds of thousands of monks. Among the Chan monasteries of the capital, his ranked foremost. On the eighth day of the fourth month of that year, he was buried in Fengtai Village in the eastern suburbs, where a white pagoda still stands. On that day, the monasteries of the divine capital each led their banners and streamers, blew conches, and sounded cymbals, continuing uninterrupted for two or three li. Monastics and laypeople attending the funeral numbered in the tens of thousands. Drafting Official of the Secretariat Wang Zhu composed a stele inscription to proclaim and exalt his virtue.
28.20
Song Biography of Congyan of Baotan Cloister in Xijing
28.21
Śramaṇa Congyan, whose surname was Mi, was a native of Yan. From the time he first recognized the jade ring and soon understood the filial devotion of the kneeling-citron story, his character was lofty and upright, his mind open and expansive. When he reached fifteen, his parents permitted him to leave home at Huijue Chan Cloister in Bingbu. After receiving the precepts, he navigated the river of scriptures and transformed into a giant fish in the sea of treatises; his peers stood in awe of him and all took him as their exemplar. He set his mind upon the ancestral teaching, hoping to polish his jade against the stone of other mountains. Therefore, he bid farewell to the frozen lands in the north and observed the cassia sea in the south, fearing no foul miasmas, longing only for the monastic communities. He had the joy of meeting the Chan Master of Mount Longya, who resolved his doubts, whereupon he blossomed into an enlightened master. In the bingzhen year of Qingtai of the Later Tang, he returned to travel through Mounts Song and Shaoshi. Luoyang was just becoming peaceful and people were harmonious; Yan constructed a meditation cloister, inviting and gathering monastics to provide them offerings. Spanning three dynasties—Jin, Han, and Zhou—he was repeatedly conferred imperial favors. He said, '"Favour and disgrace bring anxiety"—I have long been without anxiety! Yet within the realm of worldly truth, I am moved that worldly rulers use embroidered silk to adorn rotten wood.' On the third day of the eighth month of the second year of Kaibao, he manifested illness and passed away. In the xinwei year, the fourth year, the temporary burial was converted to a permanent one, and he was interred in a tiered pagoda.
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Song Biography of Changjue of Pujing Cloister in Dongjing
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Śramaṇa Changjue, whose surname was Li, was a native of Chenliu. Even in infancy, his bearing was extraordinary. When he entered the village school to chant and read the scriptures, all the children were beneath him. Upon reaching the age of twenty, he went to Mount Lu, touring the two forests and scaling the Five Old Men Peaks; there he paid homage to the Chan Master of Guizong Temple and performed ascetic practices. In the second year of Qianhua of the Liang, he was permitted to shed his worldly attire and don monastic robes. The following year, he received the prātimokṣa of liberation upon the Sweet Dew Ordination Platform of Donglin Temple. Thereafter, he cultivated himself and practiced his words; though the Tripiṭaka remained beyond his concerns, he took the study of mind as his ultimate task. He again went to Mount Wutai to pay homage to the sacred traces of Mañjuśrī. In the third year of Tiancheng of the Later Tang, he first erected a small meditation cloister to the right of Lijing Gate in Dongjing, and an imperial placard designated it Pujing. On the third and eighth days of each month, he provided baths for all the monks of the capital. If the fragrant water was poured and the firewood failed to be supplied, Jue would always order small buildings torn down and rafters and beams extracted to fuel the fire. Princes and nobles held him in high esteem and petitioned to present him with a purple robe, but he resolutely refused to accept it, solely dedicating himself to benefiting beings and aiding people. On the third day of the twelfth month of the fourth year of Kaibao, he fell ill, remaining calm and untroubled. On the eleventh day, he addressed the assembly and passed away lying on his right side. He lived to the age of seventy-six, with a saṅgha age of fifty-six. Following cremation, his śarīra were gathered, five-colored, luminous, and countless. While residing in the capital, I frequently visited this cloister and read the preface and poems presented to Jue by Minister of Personnel Tao Gu of Beihai for Zhang Zhongxun of Xiangdong, which said: 'From the Tiancheng era of the Later Tang to the Qianyou era of the Han, on every third and eighth day of the dark and bright fortnights, the great assembly of the capital was bathed; over many years, the cost was approximately 1.36 million coins, amounting to thousands of strings of cash. Although completed through common patronage, it was truly the power of Master Jue's conversion. Alas! Under the Great Fire constellation lies the ancient fief of Chenliu; since the Zhou and Qin, it has been a realm of war and strife. Its population is dense, its local customs favor profit; boats and carts assemble and merchandise is intermingled. Anciently, King Hui of Liang was a worthy among feudal lords, yet he once said to Mencius, "How will you profit my state?" From this one knows that the transformation of ritual and deference cannot overcome the heart that desires profit—how clear this is! Moreover, Liang was barely a thousand li from Lu, yet their paths were still not identical; how much more so across a hundred and eight thousand li? King Hui of Liang and Mencius were men of the same era, yet their minds differed; how much more so with the Venerable Gautama? Mencius lived when the culture had not yet perished, yet he could not glorify the Way of the Uncrowned King; now this Venerable One, living ever further from the sage, was ultimately able to practice the teachings of the Dharma King. If he had not purified the three karmas within and cleansed the six dusts without, transforming people with a conduct of utmost selflessness, who would have received transformation with a mind of utmost selflessness?' Tao reiterated: 'Since the basket of earth was emptied on Vulture Peak and the ocean of the Dharma was blocked, the jade urna has dimmed, subtle words have ceased, the golden staff has broken, and heterodox paths have arisen. Only this Venerable One viewed form and emptiness as equal, and self and other both vanished. A single meal of hemp and wheat was naturally akin to the joy of meditation; a single patched robe against heat and cold barely covered his withered frame. Repeatedly, princes and ministers wished to memorialize the throne requesting the title of Grand Master for him and offering robes dyed purple, but he firmly refused them all.' Zhang Zhongxun presented Jue with an almsbowl, staff, and straw sandals, composing five-character poems for each, carved upon a small stone tablet. Such was the honor and distinction accorded him by famous luminaries and eminent scholars.
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Song Biography of Yong'an of Bao'en Temple in Hangzhou
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Śramaṇa Yong'an, surnamed Weng, was a native of Yongjia in Wenzhou. In his youth he was pure and honest, possessing inner harmony and understanding principle. It happened that Grand Master Huizheng of the same commandery sang like a phoenix across the peaks of Yue and shone like jade from Lantian; his talent was magnificent as in the Wenxin, and he deeply fathomed the subtleties of learning, having emerged from the lineage of Grand Scribe and Reminder Sun He of Le'an. Yong'an felt admiration for one superior to him and went to pay homage and beg for ordination. Zheng was by nature aloof and reserved, seldom mixing with others, yet when An served him he complied in every way as smoothly as a jade ring, simply because [Zheng] took pity on his youthful wisdom in choosing a teacher. During the Tiancheng era (926–930), he accompanied him out of Hangzhou. Soon he formed the desire to follow the twelve dhūtas and secretly fled, intending to cross the Min mountains and inquire into the Chan school. As the borders were fraught with peril and obstacles, he turned back and built a hermitage on Mount Tiantai. Later, encountering the Dharma assembly of Chan Master [Tiantai Deshao], his many doubts were suddenly dispelled, and he returned to pay homage to Zheng. Zheng rebuked him, saying: 'Having abandoned your filial duty of supporting [your teacher], you brought guilt upon yourself. In abandoning proper conduct for this, do you have any plan to make up for your former fault?' An knelt and replied: 'Fundamentally there is nothing at all; please let this fulfill my duty.' Zheng nodded in assent. The King of the Southern Han [region], of the Qian family, summoned him to reside at Bao'en Temple and conferred on him the title of 'Chan Master'. He then took Li [Tongxuan]'s Treatise on the Avataṃsaka Sūtra as the essential compendium; combining it with the sūtra itself, he solicited patrons to carve printing blocks to print and distribute it. Whenever he received offerings from donors, he was rarely heard to store them up, but donated them back to the two fields [of merit]. In the jiaxu year of the Kaibao era (974), he passed away and was cremated; his tongue remained unconsumed. Though repeatedly cast into fire and forged, its color matched glowing charcoal, yet when cold it was soft and supple. It is now enshrined in the Samantabhadra sanctuary. He lived sixty-four years, with a dharma age of forty-four.
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Song Dynasty Biography of Yanshou of Yongming Temple in Qiantang
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Śramaṇa Yanshou, surnamed Wang, was originally a native of Qiantang. When the two Zhe regions were an independent state, he served as a clerk supervising the collection of military provisions. By nature he was pure and upright, never speaking with two tongues; he chanted the Lotus Sūtra completely, his voice resounding without pause. When Master Cuiyan Can was widely transforming beings, Shou abandoned his wife and children, shaved his head, and received the precepts. He once practiced meditation on Tianzhu Peak of Mount Tiantai for ninety days; a bird resembling a quail nested in the folds of his robe. Having received confirmation of his realization from Chan Master Shao, he withdrew and retreated to Mount Xuedou, where aside from instructing others, he sat in silent Chan meditation and recited sūtras before a waterfall. For clothing he wore neither silk nor wadding, passing the years in a coarse cloth robe; for food he did not partake of fine flavors, fasting past midday on wild vegetables. King Qian of the Southern Han [region] held him in the highest veneration and invited Shou to conduct the Vaipulya Repentance and ransom living creatures to release them. He had universal love and was gentle and compassionate; if provoked unjustly, his expression never altered. He recited the Lotus Sūtra approximately thirteen thousand times. He frequently exhorted faithful patrons to build stūpas and cast images. He kept no stores himself, was deeply fond of poetry, and composed treatises such as Wanshan tonggui (All Good Deeds Returning to the Same Source) and Zongjing lu (Record of the Source Mirror), numbering tens of millions of words. The King of Goryeo read his records and dispatched envoys presenting a kāṣāya woven with gold thread, prayer beads of purple crystal, a golden water flask, and other items. In the eighth year of Kaibao, the yihai year (975), he passed away at his dwelling temple, at the age of seventy-two, with a dharma age of thirty-seven. He was buried on Mount Daci, and a pavilion was erected with a commemorative inscription.
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Song Dynasty Biography of Yizhuang of Tiangong Temple in the Western Capital
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Śramaṇa Yizhuang, surnamed Zhang, was a native of Huatai. When he left his parents' arms and reached the age of going to a tutor, his spiritual radiance was distinctly bright, and worldly entanglements suddenly vanished. Thereupon, at Kaiyuan Temple in his home prefecture, he joined the ranks of Sudhana and ascended to the virtuous status of the precepts. Fond of itinerant wandering, he began by hearing and studying the Lotus Sūtra in Luoyang. His insight exceeded ordinary men; he expounded the teachings and instructed living beings, and the community requested that he reside in the Jiuyao Cloister. Without any shortfall in the Dharma food, he assisted those coming and going. With compassion he benefited living beings without intermission from beginning to end. At the beginning of the Jianlong era (960), Left Policy Adviser Lord Shen memorialized the throne to bestow on him a purple robe; more than thirty monks and nuns received instruction under him. Zhuang was earnest and diligent by nature; beyond lecturing, for fifty years he was scrupulously watchful, paying homage and repenting twice a day without fail even into old age. In the eighth month of the wuyin year of the Taiping Xingguo era (978), he suddenly passed away at the worldly age of seventy-eight, with a saṅgha age of fifty-nine. In the second month of the following year, his stūpa was relocated to the west of Bodhi Temple in Longmen.
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Song Dynasty Biography of Pusheng of Guang'ai Temple in the Western Capital
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Śramaṇa Pusheng, surnamed Zhang, was a native of Luze in Shenzhou. In his youth his worldly attachments were slight, and he suddenly resolved to go to Huayan Temple on Mount Wutai, where he served Grand Master Chaohua as his teacher. Someone asked him, saying: 'Why do you cross mountains and pass beyond borders to seek ordination? In Raoyang over there, are there no benevolent sanctuaries or wise masters?' Sheng replied: 'By attaching oneself to a divine steed, one can travel a thousand li in a single day. I know that the wondrous auspicious signs and spiritual traces at the pure sanctuary of Mañjuśrī are deeply potent, enabling a petty ordinary person like me to quickly attain realization. Is this not so?' When the assembly heard this, they said: 'For a child of spirited temperament to possess such elevated understanding, none of us can compare to him.' Sheng said: 'I am not of the sort who puts on metal armor and dies without regret; I only wish to enter the gate of compassion and contemplate benefiting beings.' When he received the full precepts, he went south to Lu Prefecture and lectured through the Maitreya's Rebirth Above Sūtra. Hearing that Grand Master Chongfa was transmitting the Vijñaptimātratā-śāstra and widely converting beings in Luoyang, he went to study under him. Whatever commentaries and subcommentaries met his eyes, he understood them at once. In just a few years, he mastered them with thorough proficiency. What Sheng transmitted was Zhenbian's Commentary from Zhongshan, in which many lectures missed the proper points; Sheng proclaimed: 'The expansions and condensations are unequal, and the explanations and judgments are inappropriate.' He then excised the superfluous and supplemented what was lacking into four volumes, which circulated in the world. Emperor Taizu the Divine and Virtuous bestowed upon him a purple robe and the master's title 'Proclaimer of the Teachings'. On the fourth day of the autumn seventh month in the fourth year of Taiping Xingguo (979), he manifested illness and passed away at Jingtu Cloister, living to the age of sixty-three, having sat forty-three retreats. His disciples collected his relics and buried them on the western mound of Baoying Temple on Mount Longmen, erecting a stūpa to commemorate him.
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Song Dynasty Biography of Shilü of Kaibao Temple in the Eastern Capital
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Śramaṇa Shilü was a native of Fanyang, surnamed Jia; he was a descendant of the Grand Chancellor and Duke of Wei, Jia Dan, who has a biography in the Tangshu. From his childhood days, Lü was upright and prudent, never engaging in games of skill with other children. At barely fifteen years of age, he shaved his head at Minzhong Temple and took Zhenshe as his teacher. Strictly disciplined, he held to standards without straying beyond boundaries. She silently marveled at him and said: 'One should not bend oneself into a low position and suppress one's reputation and integrity! Once you become a bhikṣu, you may go wandering.' Lü obeyed the instruction and journeyed south, obtaining the essentials of Chan. Carrying his staff, he returned to his native land. From the Liang dynasty down to the Great Zhou dynasty, emperors and important ministers throughout that time all revered him. He resided at Mount Yimen—the ancient site of the feng and shan sacrifices—where he constructed halls, sacred statues, a bountiful kitchen, and a secret treasury, providing for the monks in abundance. Disciplining the younger generation, his separate cloister was harmonious, never violating standard regulations. The court used a purple robe and an honorific title to honor his virtue, but Lü regarded them as nothing. One day he said to his disciple Shuiji: 'I have no vow left unfulfilled, and my years are about to decline; you should know this. Do not follow worldly sentiments and mourn in sorrow.' On the twenty-third day of the first month in the second year of Qiande (964), he passed away at the age of eighty-one, with a dharma age of sixty-two. In the third month of the fifth year of Taiping Xingguo (980), he was reburied on the plain of Junyi in the northern sector; the jinshi Jia Shoulian composed the stūpa inscription.
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The appraisal states:
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When the Buddhas appear in the world and scriptures are translated in their times, the essential point lies in cause and effect, which boil down to sin and merit. Sin is the staircase leading down to the three bad destinies. Merit is the staircase leading up to the noble ones. The staircases are identical; the upward and downward directions alone differ. The reason this chapter is entitled 'Cultivating Blessings' is to benefit others. Just like the rising and falling of a balance, or the light and darkness of a room, one knows that the two things cannot exist at the same time. It is also like: 'Fragrant and foul herbs are not stored in the same vessel; Yao and Jie do not govern the same state.' In the ordinary person's temperament, they speak only of abundant sins; among the ranks of the noble ones, one hears only of abundant merit. Because it conforms to worldly nature, sin is easy to create; because it goes against desires, merit is difficult to cultivate.
28.36
Cultivation has many gates, and practice has numerous paths. Broadly speaking, one looks to dāna-pāramitā to bring about deliverance to the infinite. First is the 'meritorious practice of humans and devas', giving food and drink, building bridges and digging charity wells. Next is the 'practice of the wheel-turning king', consisting of middling and lower wholesome deeds. The superior ten wholesome deeds constitute the 'meritorious practice of Brahmā': first, constructing stūpas; second, repairing old temples; third, requesting the Buddhas to turn the wheel of the Dharma. Next is the 'pure meritorious practice of the two vehicles', which is identical with the three grades of wholesome deeds, differing only in the greater force of self-benefiting efficacy. Next is the 'meritorious practice of the ultimate stage', which accomplishes the two adornments, adorning the major and minor marks. From the unimpeded three wheels, seeing the empty nature of all phenomena, it obtains manifold benefits extending to the ends of the future. Thus, how vast is merit! How great it is! Then one knows that for the noble ones, performing meritorious deeds is easy. Why is that? Because they are purely clean. Ordinary persons are the opposite, because they are easily defiled. Therefore, even the Buddha engaged in the merit of threading a needle, knowing that one should not tire of merit. Maudgalyāyana lit lamps, Kāśyapa trod mud, Akṣayamati offered jeweled necklaces, and Dabba Mallaputta assigned bedding to the saṅgha. These were all deeds of great beings and skillful means of the noble ones, who wished that due to past sins one would never tire of expelling them, and with respect to merit one would never tire of gathering it. Moreover, as the teaching spread south of the ridges and the Dharma was disseminated in the Central Plains, the passing years have grown ever deeper, and practice has gradually waned. The monastic assembly cultivates merit by adopting that gate of observance; the ancient sages eradicated faults by practicing repentance rituals. In practicing the 'principle repentance', one calms one's thoughts and contemplates the mind: the mind has nothing that arises, and what arises has nowhere to abide. At that very time, compliance and defiance are without characteristics; this is the realm where sins are extinguished and merit is born. If practicing the 'phenomenal repentance', the mind relies on superior objects, and the objects induce the mind to intensify; thought after thought supports one another in an unbroken stream. In homage, the five wheels touch the ground; in repentance, the head and heart reflect on the seven categories of offenses. Or, expecting auspicious signs as confirmation, one sees the signs of sin being eliminated. Formerly, the Grand Mentor of Qi composed the Pure Abiding Method, Emperor Wu of Liang repented for the gates of the six sense faculties, Chengzhao abbreviated it into the Chart of Abiding Methods, and Zhenguan expanded it into the Compassion Repentance. When it came to the Huichang era, Grand Master Xuanchang requested the addition and compilation of the Sūtra of Fifteen Thousand Buddha Names. Thus, when paying homage to scriptures in the two capitals, they would chant aloud and bow their heads, striking the chime once, which was called the 'Lesser Homage'. South of the Huai River, the common people only practiced the Liang Emperor Wu's Repentance as their Buddhist service. Or several monks would chant melodies, vying with one another in singing hymns, calling it the 'Apotropaic Repentance Method'. As for those who practiced the Water Repentance Method in the Jiangbiao region, repenting the faults of wasteful extravagance, this was forged by someone and was not the authentic Dharma. There are also those who emulate the ancients by bowing character by character to the Avataṃsaka and Lotus sūtras, regarding it as homage to the undefiled treasury of the Dharma. Because of this, there are disciples of the fourfold assembly who place 'Namo' above each character and 'Buddha' below each character, which is truly an excessive transgression.
First 36 of 40 passages. Read on
Linked texts (1)
- 宋高僧傳 — 贊寧, Classical Chinese