宋高僧傳 9.7

9.7

The appraisal states: In human emotions there are love and hatred: those who love do not see what is hateful, and those who hate do not see what is lovable. Amid the myriad tangled things, though people follow their loves and hatreds, the middle path is lovable and not to be hated. Those who love it are gentlemen; those who hate it are petty men. Yet to love it not in accord with the Dao is a flaw in a gentleman. Governor Pei wore the robes and cap of high office and bore official duties upon himself; without avoiding secret observances, he openly drew contemporary slander—and rightly so. For instance, if monks indulge in worldly affairs, why do they not discard the kāṣāya and wear scholar's robes? If one has truly attained the Dao and finally casts off office like worn sandals, what could be wrong with that? Since Kuan did not take off his hairpin of office, why did he violate propriety before the gate of Confucius? But if Kuan was practicing the transcendent Dao outside the worldly realm, what blame could there be? To the grand vision of the enlightened, nothing in the world is unacceptable.