神僧傳 5.30

5.30

釋僧朗。一名法朗。俗姓許氏。南陽人。年二十餘欣欲出家尋預剃落。栖止無定多住鄂州。飲噉同俗為時共輕。常養一猴一犬。其狀偉大皆黃赤色。不狎餘人唯附於朗。日夕相隨未曾捨離。若至食時以木盂受食。朗噉飽已餘者用飼之。既同器食訖。猴便取盂戴之騎犬背上先朗而行。人有奪者輒為所咋。朗任犬盤遊略無常度。陳末隋初行於江嶺之表。章服麁弊威儀越序。杖策徒行護養生命。時復讀誦諸經偏以法華為志。素乏聲弄清靡不豐。乃潔誦之一坐七遍。如是不久聲如雷動。知福力之可階也。其誦必以七數為期。乃至七十七百七千逮于七萬。聲韻諧暢任縱而起。其類箏笛隨發明了。故所誦經時傍人觀者視聽皆失。朗唇吻不動而轉起咽喉。遠近亮徹因以著名。然臂脚及手。伸縮任懷有若龜藏。時若肉聚或住酒席。同諸讌飲。而嚼噍猪肉。不測其來。故世語曰。法華朗五處俱時縮猪肉滿口顙。或復巡江洄泝拱手舟中。猴犬在傍都無艤棹。隨意所往。雖陵犯風波瞬息之間便達所在。有比丘尼為鬼所著。超悟玄解說辯經文。居宗講導聽採雲合。皆不測也。莫不讚其聰悟。朗聞曰。此邪鬼所加何有正理。須後檢校。他日清旦猴犬前行徑至尼寺。朗往到禮佛繞塔至講堂前。尼猶講說。朗乃厲聲呵曰。小婢吾今既來何不下座。此尼承聲崩下走出。堂前立對於朗。從卯至申卓不移處。通汗流地默無言說。聞其慧解奄若聾癡。百日已後方復本性。其降行感通皆此類也。大業末卒。

Shi Senglang, also named Falang, had the lay surname Xu and was a native of Nanyang. When he was in his twenties, he joyfully desired to renounce household life, and soon underwent tonsure. His dwelling was not fixed, and he mostly resided in Ezhou. Eating and drinking like a layperson, he was held in light esteem by his contemporaries. He regularly kept a monkey and a dog; they were large in build and both yellowish-red in color. They were not intimate with others, attaching themselves only to Lang, following him day and night without ever leaving. When it was mealtime, Lang would receive food in a wooden bowl; when he had eaten his fill, he would feed the remainder to them. After they had finished eating from the same vessel, the monkey would take the bowl, wear it on its head, ride upon the dog's back, and walk ahead of Lang. If anyone tried to snatch it away, they were invariably bitten. Lang let the dog wander at will, having scarcely any regular routine. Between the end of the Chen and the beginning of the Sui, he roamed south of the Yangtze and the mountain ridges. His robes were coarse and tattered, his deportment breached proper order, and carrying a staff he walked on foot, preserving and sustaining life. From time to time he chanted various sūtras, particularly devoting his aspirations to the Lotus Sūtra. He was originally lacking in vocal melody, with a voice neither clear nor rich. He then cleansed himself and recited it seven times in a single sitting. Before long, his voice moved like thunder, by which he realized that the power of merit could be attained step by step. His recitation was always regulated by sets of seven, reaching seventy, seven hundred, seven thousand, and even up to seventy thousand. The tones and rhythm were harmonious and fluid, rising freely at will, like zithers and flutes, clear and distinct as they sounded forth. Therefore, when he chanted the sūtra, the sight and hearing of bystanders watching were completely captivated. Lang's lips did not move, yet the chanting resonated up from his throat, clear and penetrating far and near, whereby he became famous. Furthermore, his arms, legs, and hands could extend and contract at will, like a tortoise retracting its limbs; at times they became like a lump of flesh. Or when staying at a drinking banquet, joining in with the various revelers, he would chew and eat pork, without anyone discerning where it came from. Therefore, people of the time said: "Lotus Lang contracts his five extremities all at once, his mouth and throat stuffed full of pork." Or again, he would travel up and down the Yangtze with hands folded inside a boat, with the monkey and dog beside him, without any oars or rudders, going wherever he pleased; though braving winds and waves, in the blink of an eye he would reach his destination. There was a bhikṣuṇī possessed by a ghost, who showed transcendent comprehension and profound understanding, explaining and debating the scriptural texts; leading assemblies and lecturing, listeners gathered like clouds, none able to fathom her, all praising her intelligence and discernment. Hearing of this, Lang said, "This is the doing of an evil ghost; how could there be any correct principle in it? I must inspect and correct her later." One clear morning, with the monkey and dog walking ahead, he went straight to the nunnery. Lang went in, bowed to the Buddha, circumambulated the stupa, and went to the front of the lecture hall, where the nun was still lecturing. Lang then scolded her in a stern voice, saying, "Little maidservant, now that I have come, why do not step down from the seat?" Upon hearing his voice, the nun collapsed from the seat and ran out, standing opposite Lang before the hall; from the hour of the rabbit to the hour of the monkey, she stood upright without moving from her spot, sweating profusely all over the ground, silent without a word. Hearing her previously famed wisdom and understanding, she suddenly became as if deaf and foolish. Only after a hundred days did she return to her original nature. His subduing of spirits and spiritual responses were all of this kind. He passed away at the end of the Daye era.