神僧傳 5.42

5.42

Shi Zhixi, whose lay surname was Chen, was a native of Yingchuan. Only at age twenty was he able to fulfill his aspiration [to renounce household life]. Once he met his master, the teacher-disciple bond was firmly established. Complete in the monastic regulations and deportment, he received instructions on meditation, further cultivating tranquil absorption. He constantly resided at the Folong Meditation Bodhimaṇḍa, and those who delighted in samādhi all took refuge in and looked up to him. In the leisure hours between meditative sittings, he would occasionally direct construction: the monastery’s halls, pavilions, and living quarters were all made solemn and orderly. Only the Scripture Terrace was not yet built, and he had just begun seeking to hire laborers. There was Xianglu Peak (Incense Burner Peak), whose mountain crags were steep and rugged, with rare and wondrous forest trees. However, its local deity possessed tremendous numinous power; from antiquity to the present, none dared even gaze upon its peaks and cliffs, much less climb and fell timber there. At the time, the assembly deliberated, saying, 'Now that we are building a Scripture Terrace to make offerings to the Dharma-jewel, we should prioritize the most exquisite quality; how could we act casually? The tamarisk and cypress of Xianglu Peak are the finest and most superior among timber; we might harvest them together to supply the offering.' After their discussion concluded, they went to consult Zhixi and related the whole matter. After a long while, he replied, 'The mountain deity protects and treasures them; one must not act rashly.' None dared speak again, and each returned to his quarters. That night, [Zhixi] dreamed of a person delivering a written pledge that read, 'The tamarisk and cypress trees of Xianglu Peak are entirely relinquished and given to the Scripture Terrace.' At that time, there was a monk named Fayun who wished to go to Xianglu Peak to practice dhūta austerities. Zhixi admonished him, saying, 'The deity of that mountain is unyielding and fierce, while your spiritual power is frail. If you go there, you will surely find no peace. Be careful not to go.' Fayun did not heed his counsel and proceeded to the mountain. Before two nights had passed, the deity manifested in form and drove Fayun to return. Fayun confessed his experience, only then recalling the earlier admonition, and gave rise to deep reverence. Zhixi had a disciple named Daoxuan who was reciting scriptures in his room. Zhixi went personally to call him, saying, 'This evening, a monk shall arrive.' Just as he finished speaking, he headed toward the gate, where he immediately saw a monk wearing pure patched robes, holding a staff and carrying a bowl, his spirit and appearance bright and noble, surpassing ordinary men. Coming from outside, when about twenty paces away, he had barely entered the eastern side of the path when he vanished from sight. In an instant, the sound of bells and drums was heard from the eastern mountain, their loud reverberations shaking the valley. Zhixi then remarked, 'Ah, they are summoning me!' A few days before his passing, he said to his disciples, 'My life has not much left. You may prepare scented water for me to bathe.' Just as he finished, mountain birds and beasts of extraordinary colors and unique shapes, such as were never ordinarily seen, gathered beside his room. Walking the ground and soaring through the sky, they cried out mournfully, dispersing only after a full day. On the eighteenth day of the twelfth month in the first year of Zhenguan, at the hour of noon, he sat cross-legged, upright and solemn, his breath subtle and continuous as if entering meditative absorption, and thereupon did not return. At that time, the sound of stringed and wind instruments echoed in the void, heard by the entire congregation; only after a long time did it cease. After several days, he was placed into a stone niche; his complexion was blooming and joyful, and his hands and feet were soft and pliable, no different from life. His worldly age was seventy-two.