宋高僧傳 9.26

9.26

Shi Faqin had the secular surname Zhu and was a native of Kunshan in Wujun. His family background was refined and Confucian; his grandfather and father were both versed in the profound [Daoist] and Confucian traditions, yet they looked proudly upon the forests and wilds without serving in officialdom. When Qin was conceived, his mother, Lady Guan, suddenly dreamt that a lotus blossom grew in the courtyard; she then plucked a pod and tied it to her garments, and upon waking, she developed an aversion to pungent and meaty foods. When he reached infancy and still wore his hair braided, he loved performing Buddhist deeds. Mild and gentle by nature, he had an elegant penchant for high pursuits; diligent in the classics and histories, he took part in the local recommendations. At the age of twenty-eight, he packed his baggage to travel to the capital. Journeying through Dantu, he happened to meet Dhyāna Master Su of Helin. Su, possessing inner insight and profound discernment, recognized his extraordinary character and said to him: "Observing that the lodge of your spirit is warm and pure, you are nearly born with innate knowledge. If you can leave home, you will surely accord with the Tathāgata's knowledge and vision." Hearing this, Qin awakened to his fundamental mind. Su personally shaved his head and said to his disciple Fajian, "This young man will greatly flourish our teaching in the future and serve as a master to others." Soon afterward, he mounted the platform to receive the precepts, polished his conduct, settled into dhyāna, grasped the single direct word, and transcended the comprehensive threefold learning. From then on, he took leave of Su to journey south. Su said, "Proceed by following the currents; halt when you encounter 'Jing' (path/Mount Jing)." Later, reaching Lin'an, he looked at the high peaks to the northeast, which were the branch paths of Tianmu; inquiring by chance of a woodcutter, who told him it was Mount Jing, he resolved to hang his staff there. Seeing a thatched covering over hunting nets, he approached without disdain, made his dwelling there, and sat upright. At that time, rain and snow had just cleared, and there was no hearth fire nearby. When hunters arrived to retrieve their gear, they were greatly astonished and marveled at him; they all burned their nets, broke their bows, and learned to cease killing. They went down the mountain to recruit people to build a small lodge and invited him to dwell in it. Living near the mountain, Wu Zhen, former magistrate of Linhai, donated his villa to support him. From then on, his transformation of others flourished, and students of Chan gathered in great numbers. In the second month of the third year of the Dali era (a wushen year) under Emperor Ruiwu (Daizong), an imperial edict was issued saying: "We have heard that in Jiangzuo there is a dhyāna practitioner who embodies the Dao, whose virtuous character is like ice and frost, practicing pure deeds in the forest and wilds. We look up to you with an empty mind and yearn for you with deep longing. Where there is resonance, there must be communion, which is also a great blessing for the realm. We pray that the Venerable One will condescend to travel far to the central capital to fulfill Our devotion. Do not go against the power of your vows; manifest form in response to beings. We now dispatch the palace attendant Huang Feng to proclaim the decree and specially welcome you; swiftly accord with Our wish. The spring is warming; is the Master well? We dispatch this without extensive detail." The decree ordered: "His home prefecture shall provide provisions and escort; wherever he arrives at prefectures and counties, a pure courtyard shall be opened to lodge him. Officials are not permitted to seek audience, lest they exhaust the master's physical and mental strength. His disciples shall not be limited in number, and are permitted to attend him." When the emperor met him, he inquired about the essentials of the Dharma with great reverence, and provided diligent and lavish offerings. Situ Yang Guan, deeply devoted to the pivot of the Dao and distinguished in conduct above ordinary men, saw Qin among the assembly and sighed upon withdrawing: "This is truly a lofty scholar beyond the secular realm; his excellence is difficult to capture in name!" The emperor repeatedly bestowed fine silks upon him and presented imperial meals, but Qin declined them all without accepting. He wore only plain cloth and ate only vegetarian food, directing his disciples to beg for food and using only pottery vessels on his rounds. His few desires and contentment were without peer. When the emperor heard this, his reverence deepened, and he said to Dhyāna Master Zhong of Nanyang, "I wish to bestow a name upon Qin." He issued a handwritten decree bestowing the title "National Master First" (Guoyi). In the fifth year of the Zhenyuan era of Emperor Dezong, an envoy was dispatched carrying an imperial letter to convey greetings and present abundant gifts. During Qin's stay in the capital and upon his return to Zhe, regional governors, princes, dukes, and eminent literati of prefectures and cities who showed discipleship toward him included Chancellor Cui Huan, Duke Pei Du of Jin, Diwu Qi, and Chen Shaoyou. From the Huai River south, women who bowed and requested titles all referred to him as the "Mountain of Merit." In the sixth year, Prefect Wang Yan requested that he move out to be accommodated in the pure courtyard of Longxing Temple at the prefectural seat, thereby tactfully avoiding Han Huang's destruction of mountain chambers. In the twelfth month of the eighth year, a renshen year, he manifested illness, expounded the Dharma, and passed away forever at the age of seventy-nine, with a dharma age of fifty. Dezong bestowed the posthumous title Great Awakening (Dajue). Among the disciples he ordained was Dhyāna Master Chonghui; next was Dhyāna Master Yan of Mount Dalu, Dhyāna Master Wu of Mount Xing in Fanyang who came to study under him, and next Dhyāna Master Guangfu of Qingyang. At that time, those presiding over the funeral rites were disciples such as Shixiang and Changjue, who erected a stupa for his complete body in the pure courtyard of Longxing. Earlier, when Qin lived on the mountain, ferocious beasts and birds of prey became tame and familiar. Two white rabbits knelt beside his staff and sandals. He also once raised a rooster that did not eat living creatures, following him like a shadow and never straying elsewhere. When Qin entered Chang'an, it crowed mournfully for three days and died. The rooster's grave is now on the mountain peak. Qin's appearance was commanding, standing seven feet tall, with extraordinary bone structure. The master's likeness is now sculpted within the stupa, leaning on an armrest as though alive. When the Qian clan of Hangzhou ruled the country, during the Tianfu era (a renxu year), the rebel Xu Si staged an insurrection; soldiers mixed with troops from Xuancheng opened this stupa, believing there were precious treasures inside. They saw two urns joined upper and lower, enclosing the fleshy body completely intact, with hair long enough to cover the face. The soldiers closed the urns and left. Prefect Wang Yan composed a stele commemorating his virtue; Cui Yuanhan, director of the Bureau of Review; Cui Xuanliang, prefect of Huzhou; the late Chancellor Li Jifu; and Qiu Dan each composed stele inscriptions.