神僧傳 8

English (machine translation) 8

Language: English

Śramaṇa Dizang was of the secular surname Jin and a collateral branch of the royal house of Silla. His heart was compassionate but his appearance was fierce, and his natural understanding was innate. At that time he shaved his hair and renounced household life, crossed the sea on foot, and shook his khakkhara to observe various regions. Arriving at Chiyang, he saw Mount Jiuzi and his heart took great delight in it, whereupon he went straight to its peak and dwelt there. Dizang was once stung by a poisonous creature, but sat upright without any thought. Presently, a beautiful woman bowed and presented medicine, saying, 'My young child was ignorant; I wish to bring forth a spring to make amends for the fault.' Having spoken, she vanished. Looking beside his seat, water flowed copiously. At that time, it was said that the mountain spirit of Mount Jiuzi had gushed forth a spring to supply his needs. Early in the Zhide era, there was Zhuge Jie, who led village elders from the foot of the mountain up to the heights. It was utterly remote and deserted, with only Dizang sitting alone with eyes closed in a stone chamber. In his room was a broken-legged tripod caldron, in which white clay mixed with a little rice was cooked for food. The elders sighed in astonishment, saying: 'The master practices such austerities! It is the fault of us who reside below the mountain.' Together they constructed a Chan cloister, and in not many years it became a great monastery. When his native land heard of it, they came across the sea in succession to seek him out. His disciples became numerous, and there was nothing to support them through the year. Dizang then dug the stone and obtained clay, whose color was pure white and not coarse, like flour, and ate it together with the community. The community requested the Dharma to nourish their spirits, not relying on food to sustain life. In the south they were called the 'Withered and Desiccated Assembly', and there were none who did not venerate them. By the side of the Dragon Pool was a quarry of white pipe clay, which yielded inexhaustibly. One day, he suddenly summoned the assembly to take his leave, and no one knew where he was going. They only heard rocks falling in the mountain valley and the striking of the bell sounding hoarse and faint; he sat cross-legged and passed away. His age was ninety-nine. His corpse sat inside a casket. After three years, when they opened it to place him in a stūpa, his facial features were as if alive. When they lifted and carried it, his joints sounded as if shaking a golden lock.

8.3

Jianzhen

8.4

Śramaṇa Jianzhen had the secular surname Chunyu and was a native of Jiangyang County in Guangling. When his hair was bound in tufts, he followed his father into Dayun Monastery. Seeing the Buddha image, his innate aspiration was stirred; he therefore told his father and requested to renounce household life. His father marveled at his resolve and granted it. Later he became the foremost leader of his region. At that time, the state of Japan had the śramaṇas Yōrei, Fushō, and others, who came east to seek the Dharma. Jianzhen agreed to go. He then purchased a boat, departed from Guangling carrying sūtras, vinaya, and dharmas, and left the shore. Reaching the haven of Yuezhou, he halted at Mount Shufeng. Jianzhen had a dream that was exceedingly miraculous. As soon as they set out to sea, they encountered fierce wind and waves. The boatmen, seeing that they were about to sink, began to cast out agarwood logs. They heard a voice in the sky saying, 'Do not cast them out!' At that time, spirit generals clad in armor and grasping weapons were seen at both the prow and the stern. Soon the wind subsided, and before long they drifted into the Sea of Snakes. The snakes were over thirty feet long, colored like patterned brocade. Later they entered the Sea of Fish; the fish were over a foot long and flew filling the air. In the next ocean, they saw only flying birds, which gathered on the back of the boat and weighed it down so that it almost sank. When they emerged from the Sea of Birds, they ran short of water. Presently they moored at an island, where there was a pool of clear water that tasted sweet to those who drank it. In due course they reached Japan. The king of the country rejoiced, welcomed him into a great monastery in the capital to reside, and called him Great Preceptor. In the first year of the Guangde era of Emperor Daizong, without illness, he took leave of the assembly and passed away in a seated posture. His body did not decay or collapse. Down to the present, his body has not been treated with ramie or lacquer; the king, nobles, and faithful laymen of that country frequently apply precious incense to it.

8.5

Wulou

8.6

Śramaṇa Wulou had the secular surname Jin and was the second son of the king of Silla. In his youth, he took an ocean vessel to arrive in China, wishing to travel through the Five Indias and pay homage to the Buddha's eight stūpas. Having crossed the desert and traveled west of Khotan, he reached the Congling Mountains and entered a great monastery. The monks therein were all unfathomable men. They asked about Wulou's destination and purpose: 'Without extraordinary conduct, why go to Tianzhu?' A monk said, 'Your name is not in the ancient records; you must not go casually. Here there is a poisonous dragon's pool; you may go there and convert it. If there is efficacy, only then will it be beneficial to cross.' Wulou complied with the request and climbed to the bank of the pool, seeing only a folding chair; he then took it and sat. Toward the end of the night, thunder and lightning flared together. The monstrous creature exhaled vapors, surging vigorously and manifesting in diverse forms, dazzling without cease. Wulou closed his eyes and did not stir. After a long time, an enormous serpent reared its head onto his knees. Wulou was moved by utmost compassion, conferred the three refuges upon it, and it left. It reappeared in the form of an old man to offer thanks, saying: 'Having been delivered by the master, in principle I should not remain here long. After three days, I shall shed this torment of scales and armor, and rely on this to be born in an exalted place. Going south from here there is a flat boulder, which is the place where this disciple will cast off his form. I also hope that in your spare time you will search out my remains.' Wulou silently consented. The old man further said: 'If you must wish to go to Tianzhu, here there is a sacred image of Avalokiteśvara, whose prayers are never unanswered; you may pray to it. If you receive an auspicious sign, you may go without doubt.' Wulou then stood before the image and entered samādhi. Thus forty-nine days passed; his body suffered from dropsical swelling, yet he did not lean or waver at all. Soon a little mouse, the size of a pellet, bit his left shin, discharging a thin yellow pus amounting to several dou, whereupon he recovered. Wulou had fulfilled the period and attained the response. The monks said to him: 'Observing the master's conditions for conversion, they belong in the land of Tang. Keeping your mind on transforming beings, what you benefit will be abundant. When feet grow weary of wandering abroad, it merely adds to what you hear and see, but one cannot force conversion. Do you understand this, Master?' Wulou reasoned that the words of sages must not be uttered in vain, and so he turned back. When he was about to depart, they said to Wulou: 'When you meet Lan, stop.' On the road back, a mountain was named Lan; remembering the previous words, he entered it. Finding the Valley of White Grass, he thatched a hut and dwelt there. Soon afterward came the rebellion of An Lushan and Shi Siming. Emperor Suzong trained troops at Lingwu and repeatedly dreamed of a golden-colored person reciting the name of the Buddha Prabhūtaratna before the imperial presence. The next day, he asked his attendants about the matter in the dream. Someone answered: 'There is a śramaṇa whose conduct is extraordinary dwelling in this mountain, constantly reciting this Buddha's name.' He was summoned. The Emperor looked at him and said, 'He is truly the person in my dream!' When he was brought back, he was housed in the palace chapel and provided with offerings. He repeatedly submitted memorials wishing to return to his former hermitage, but the Emperor held him in deep affection and would not allow him to return to the mountain. Soon it was said that he manifested extinction. One day, a pair of feet suddenly manifested above the right leaf of the inner gate, several feet above the ground. The gatekeeper submitted a memorial, and the Emperor rode in a sedan chair to the site in person. He obtained his final memorial requesting permission to return and be buried beneath the mountain of his former hermitage. It was immediately approved, and an imperial envoy was dispatched to oversee and escort him. Previously, Wulou had often traveled to Huaiyuan County to convert people, and an official residence had been set up there, known as the Lower Cloister. When the funerary cortege arrived there, the spirit seat could not be lifted. The assembly consulted and moved it inside, constructing a separate hall to enshrine him. Down to the present, his true body sits upright and has never deteriorated.

8.7

Amoghavajra

8.8

Shi Bukong (Amoghavajra). His Sanskrit name was Amoghavajra; in the language of China this means 'Infallible Diamond' (Bukong jingang), the two characters being an abbreviation. He was originally of a brahman clan from North Tianzhu. Having lost his father in his youth, he accompanied his uncle on a tour of the Eastern Lands. At the age of fifteen, he served the Tripiṭaka master Vajrabodhi (Jingangzhi) as his teacher. At first [Vajrabodhi] instructed him in the Sanskrit Siddham script and the treatise on phonology (Śabdavidyā); in ten days he had already mastered them. Later, together with twenty-one disciples including Sheguang and Huibian, he boarded a Kunlun merchant ship and departed from the Southern Sea. Reaching the borders of the kingdom of Ho-ling, they encountered a great black gale. The merchants were terrified and each performed the rites of their native lands, but exorcising it proved of no avail. They all prostrated themselves, imploring mercy and begging for deliverance. When Huibian and the others wept bitterly, Bukong said: 'I now have a method; do not worry.' Thereupon, holding a five-pronged bodhicitta vajra in his right hand and a volume of the Prajñāpāramitā-mātṛkā Sūtra in his left hand, he performed the rite and recited the Mahāpratisarā [dhāraṇī] once; instantly the wind subsided and the sea became calm. Again, they encountered a great whale emerging from the water, spouting waves like mountains, worse than the previous peril. The merchants resigned themselves to death. Bukong performed the rite as before and ordered Huibian to recite the Sāgara-nāgarāja Sūtra; in a moment the perils all ceased. After arriving in the Lion Kingdom (Siṃhala), the king sent an envoy to welcome him and provided offerings most abundantly. One day, the king held a sport of taming elephants; people all climbed to high places to watch, none daring to approach. Bukong, reciting with his mouth and forming hand seals (mudrās), dwelt in the samādhi of loving-kindness and stood facing the thoroughfare. Several wild elephants all suddenly knelt down; the entire country marvelled at him. Next he traveled through the regions of the Five Indias, repeatedly manifesting auspicious responses. In the fifth year of the Tianbao era, he returned to the capital. In that year, the end of summer suffered from drought; an imperial decree ordered him to pray for rain, stating: 'The time must not be delayed, and the rain must not be violent.' Bukong submitted a memorial requesting the establishment of a Mahāmāyūrī-vidyārājñī altar; before three days had passed, copious rain fell everywhere. The emperor was greatly pleased. Later, one day a great wind suddenly arose, and a decree ordered Bukong to avert it. He requested a silver bottle, performed the rite, and empowered it; in a moment it became calm and quiet. Suddenly, a pond goose accidentally knocked the bottle over, and the wind arose again, violent and urgent beyond before. An imperial decree ordered him to stop it again; wherever he stopped it, the effect followed. The emperor thereupon bestowed on him the title 'Zhizang' (Treasury of Wisdom). In the eighth year of the Tianbao era, he was permitted to return to his home country. Riding five postal relay horses, he reached the commandery of Nanhai, where an imperial decree detained him once more. At the beginning of the Zhide era, the imperial carriage was at Lingwu and Fengxiang. Bukong constantly sent secret memorials to inquire after the emperor's health; Emperor Suzong also secretly dispatched envoys to seek the secret Dharmas. When the capital was retaken and the dynasty restored, matters were just as he had anticipated. At the end of the Shangyuan era, when the emperor was indisposed, Bukong cleansed [the illness] with the Mahāpratisarā dhāraṇī up to seven times; the next day [the emperor] recovered, and the emperor accorded him even more extraordinary etiquette. When Suzong passed away, Daizong ascended the throne, and the imperial favors grew even deeper. Furthermore, because no rain had fallen in the capital during spring and summer, an imperial decree ordered Bukong to pray for it, [stating]: 'If it rains within three days, it is the venerable's Dharma power; if it pours after three days, it is not Dharma power.' Bukong received the decree and erected an altar; on the second day, abundant rain fell in sufficiency. In another year there was a great drought again. The Mayor of Jingzhao, Xiao Xin, went to the monastery and asked him to establish an altar to bring rain. Bukong ordered his disciple to take a piece of birch bark just over a foot long and paint a small dragon upon it, placing an incense burner and a bowl of water before it; turning and vibrating his tongue, he blew and summoned it with incantations. In the space of a meal, he handed the painted dragon to Xin, saying: 'You may cast this into the Qujiang River. Once you have cast it, return quickly; do not get caught in the wind and rain.' Xin cast it as instructed. Soon, a white dragon just over a foot long, shaking its mane and fluttering its scales, emerged from the water. In a short while the dragon grew several tens of feet long, resembling drawn plain silk, and instantaneously spanned the sky. Xin whipped his horse and galloped swiftly, but before he had gone several tens of paces, the clouds turned dark and murky, and a violent rain poured down. By the time he reached his residence in the Yongchong Ward, the water in the street had already overflowed the ditches. In the Yongtai era, having bathed in scented water, he lay down with his head to the east. Facing toward the palace courtyard, he passed into quiescence in samādhi with the Great Seal posture. After the cremation fires went out, several hundred grains of relics (śarīra) were collected. His cranial bone did not burn, and inside it was a relic, half hidden and half visible. By imperial decree, a separate stūpa was erected for him in his own courtyard. Earlier, Xuanzang had summoned the occultist Luo Gongyuan to contest methods with Bukong, being together in an informal hall. Luo repeatedly reached behind his back to scratch it. Bukong said: 'Lend this venerable master your ruyi sceptre.' At that time there was a variegated stone in the hall; Bukong swung the ruyi sceptre and smashed it to pieces before him. Luo tried repeatedly to retrieve the ruyi sceptre but could not get it. When the emperor intended to rise and take it, Bukong said: 'Your Majesty, do not rise; this is merely a shadow.' He then raised his hand to show Luo: the ruyi sceptre was once again intact in his hand. Furthermore, on Mount Beimang there was a giant serpent that woodcutters often saw; it raised its head like a hill, and at night it constantly inhaled the dew. Seeing Bukong, it spoke in human speech, saying: 'This disciple suffers an evil retribution. How can the venerable master deliver me? I constantly wish to overturn the river waters to submerge the city of Luoyang to satisfy my grudge.' Bukong conferred the refuges and precepts on it and explained cause and effect to it, saying: 'Because of an angry mind you received your present retribution; how could you harbor resentment again? How could my power avail? If you follow my words, you will surely cast off this body.' Later, woodcutters saw the serpent dead below a ravine, its stench smelling for several leagues. On another day, the wind and rain did not stop; people in the wards and markets were swept away and drowned, and trees were uprooted and blown over. They hastily summoned Bukong to stop it. In the monastery courtyard, Bukong molded five or six clay old women, washed them with water, and scolded them in Sanskrit; before long the sky cleared. Once, the three kingdoms of Tibet, the Arabs (Dashi), and Kang (Samarkand) led troops to besiege the prefecture of Xiliang. An imperial decree summoned Bukong to enter; the emperor was present in the bodhimanda. Bukong held an incense burner and recited the secret words of the Benevolent Kings [Sūtra] twice seven times. The emperor saw divine troops of about five hundred officers in the palace courtyard, and asked Bukong in astonishment. Bukong said: 'The prince of the Heavenly King Vaiśravaṇa is leading troops to rescue Anxi. Please urgently arrange food and dispatch them.' On the twentieth day of the fourth month, a memorial indeed arrived saying: 'On the eleventh day of the second month, about thirty li northeast of the city, towering divine soldiers were seen amidst the clouds and mists; drums and horns sounded loudly, and the mountain and earth collapsed and shook. The barbarian forces fled in terror. In their camp there was a golden rat that chewed through all the bow and crossbow strings. On the north gate tower of the city, there was the Heavenly King of Clear Light, who glared angrily, causing the barbarian commanders to flee in great rout.' The emperor read the memorial and thanked Bukong; he then decreed that statues of the Heavenly King be placed on the gate towers of all circuits; this was the beginning of it.

8.9

Daozhao

8.10

The śramaṇa Daozhao said of himself that he was a native of Jianzhou, with the secular surname of Kang. In his youth, having contracted an illness and fallen unconscious, it was said that he went to the underworld administration and witnessed matters of karmic retribution for good and evil; thereupon he renounced household life. He resided on Mount Taihang for forty years, his moral practice being refined and austere. He often spoke of people's future affairs, which seemed obscure at first but were later all clearly verified. Once, two guests came: one was named Yao Miao, who had been recommended for the Mingjing examination; the other was surnamed Zhang, through hereditary privilege. The monk said to Zhang: 'You will receive an official appointment for four terms of administration; be cautious never to draw an official salary in Fanyang. On the eighth day of the fourth month you will fall ill and will be beyond cure.' Next, he said to Miao: 'Hairpins and tablets (an official career) are not advantageous for you. If you can enter the military, you will also be without want for thirty years. If you fall ill, do not let a foreigner (hu) treat it.' That year, Zhang held office in the Xiang and Deng region; later he went through repeated selections, once seeking southern prefectures, and obtained them all. Later, in another selection, he was indeed appointed Magistrate of Lushi County in Guo Prefecture. Two days after taking up his post, he died; the day he died was indeed the eighth day of the fourth month. Only later did they realize that Fanyang was the ancestral choronym of the Lu clan. Miao failed the examination and served on the staff in Rongzhou with the acting title of military command for thirty years, repeatedly promoted to martial posts. Later, when taking a second wife, he sought an attendant; falling ill, he took the medicine of an old woman surnamed Huang and died. When they later inquired into the origin of Mrs. Huang, she was an emancipated maidservant of a cave chieftain and was a barbarian woman.

8.11

Xuanzong

8.12

Shi Xuanzong had the secular surname of Wu and was a native of Yongjia. When young, he left worldly dust, his bearing magnanimous and lenient. At the Baoshou Cloister on Mount Yongding in his home commandery, he took Changjing as his teacher. Having received the full precepts, he traveled to various regions to study. Reaching Jiangling, he went to the gate of Chan Master Lang to resolve his doubts. Striking his staff, he traveled elsewhere; seeing Mount Zijin, his heart was pleased with it, and he remained there to practice Chan contemplation. Previously, this mountain had many violent tigers, which would either devour traveling merchants or injure woodcutters. From the time Xuanzong chose to dwell there, their roars ceased entirely, and those entering the mountain had no fear. One day, when his Chan followers gathered around, they saw an old man hurry forward to the seat, bowing and prostrating with diligence and respect. Xuanzong asked: 'Who are you, sir?' He replied: 'I was originally a tiger. In this mountain I devoured living beings. Because the Great Master converted [this place], my mind was invisibly transformed, and I was able to shed my karmic body. Having already been reborn in the heavenly realm, I have come to express my gratitude.' In the space of turning around, he was nowhere to be seen. In the second year of the Dali era, taking leave of his disciples with final instructions, he passed away suddenly at the age of eighty-six. In the second month, he was entombed in a stūpa, and a stele was erected, which still survives.

8.13

Huizhong

8.14

Shi Huizhong had the secular surname of Wang and was a native of Shangyuan in Runzhou. When his mother was pregnant with him, she suddenly met an extraordinary monk who said to her: 'The noble son to be born will become a [guide of] devas and humans.' From the time of his birth, he did not eat meat or pungent roots, differing from ordinary children. His endowed nature was honest and earnest. At the age of twenty-three, he was ordained through his mastery of scripture study, which was in the first year of the Shenlong era. He was then assigned to Zhuangyan Monastery. Hearing of Chan Master Wei of Mount Niutou, he went to the mountain to pay homage. When Wei saw Huizhong, he said: 'The master of the mountain has come!' He then expounded the Dharma for him. Thereupon, morning and night, [Huizhong] practiced with vigor, constantly undertaking dhūta practices in mountains and marshes, drinking from springs and bedding on grass, extending his days on a single meal a day. Each time he used a single pot to cook all flavors together, and after using it he hung it on a treetop; only then did he sit on a rope chair, absorbed in banquet meditation all day like an uncarved block of wood. His robes did not change with the seasons; he wore a single patched robe through cold and heat. Having accumulated this for forty years, his spiritual efficacy became manifest. The prefects and luminaries frequently went to the mountain to pay homage, repeatedly inviting him to the commandery to bestow conversion upon monastics and laity. At the beginning of the Tianbao era, he first went out to stay at Zhuangyan. Huizhong considered that Zhuangyan was an old monastery of the Liang dynasty, once most prosperous, but now aged and dilapidated, and conceived the wish to repair it. Thereupon, to the east of the hall, he planned to build a Dharma hall. There was an ancient tree with a magpie's nest on top; when the workmen were about to fell it, Huizhong said: 'Stop for a while. Only after the magpie has moved away should you fell it.' He then went to the tree and prayed: 'A hall is to be built on this ground; you should move away quickly.' As soon as he finished speaking, the magpie held twigs in its beak and moved to lodge in another tree. Among the monastics and laity who watched, none did not sigh in wonder. Furthermore, when the foundation had not yet been fixed, two divine beings suddenly came and stood at the spot, and thus it was determined. Although he never ceased guiding and converting, his spirit was broad and unperturbed. Companions from the four directions arrived daily to rely on him. In the third year of the Dali era, in front of the stone chamber at the mountain gate, there was a vine on which Huizhong hung his robe; in the height of summer that year, it suddenly withered, and the numinous lingzhi and immortal mushrooms grew no more. In the ninth month, when Huizhong expounded the Dharma from the high seat, water came forth without cause and circled around the seat. On the fifteenth day of the sixth month of the fourth year, he gathered the assembly for the poṣadha (uposatha). Toward evening, he ordered his attendant to shave his hair and bathe his body. That night, auspicious clouds covered the monastery, and heavenly music was heard in the sky. On the morning of the sixteenth, he sat and passed away peacefully. At that time, wind and rain shook, and trees broke; birds and beasts in the mountains wailed sorrowfully in the forests and valleys, and the sound of weeping among the crags stopped only after several days. His age was eighty-seven.

8.15

Chonghui

8.16

Shi Chonghui, surnamed Zhang, was a native of Hangzhou. In his youth, he went to pay homage to Dhyāna Master Guoyi of Jingshan and became his disciple. He then made a vow to conceal his traces at Luoyun Monastery in Qian. Soon, a spirit reported to Chonghui, saying: "The master chants the Uṣṇīṣa [Dhāraṇī] but rarely concludes with 'svāhā', leaving the secret mantra incomplete. 'Svāhā' signifies accomplishment. At present, the Buddha's teaching in the capital is being oppressed by external teachings, hanging in balance as precarious as a row of attached banners. It awaits only the Master's deliverance." Chonghui set off on his journey westward. In the third year of Dali, the Daoist Shi Hua of Daqing Palace submitted a memorial requesting a contest between the contemporary luminaries of the Buddhist school and himself to determine the superiority of the Buddha's power versus Daoist arts. At that time, Emperor Daizong revered the Buddhist gates, and the adherents of different paths were indignant at his partiality; hence this request was made. A ladder of swords was subsequently constructed before the altar of Dongming Abbey. Shi Hua ascended and stepped upon it as though mounting ordinary stone stairs. At that time, the monastic assembly looked at one another, hesitating and stepping back, none daring to climb it. Hearing of this, Chonghui went to visit the Regional Commander Yu Chao'en. Yu submitted a memorial requesting to erect a ladder in the courtyard of Zhangxin Monastery, crosswise set with blades gleaming like frost and snow, yet increasing its height by a hundred feet; the ladder at Dongming was exceedingly low in comparison. At that time, court officials, noblemen, and market inhabitants stood shoulder to shoulder and heel to toe to witness this deed. Chonghui walked barefoot, ascending the rungs and descending the steps as though walking on a level road, without the slightest sign of difficulty. Furthermore, he trod upon fierce flames and plunged his hands into boiling oil. He also ate iron leaves, calling them noodle dumplings, and chewed iron nail wire, the sound resembling brittle malt sugar. Shi Hua was frightened, ashamed, and terrified, covering his sleeves and retreating. At that time, the assembly snapped their fingers in admiration, their cries resounding like thunder. The Emperor dispatched the palace attendant Gong Tingyu to offer imperial condolences and praise repeatedly, and thereupon presented him with a set of purple square monastic robes.

8.17

Lingtan

8.18

Shi Lingtan, surnamed Wu, was a native of Wenshui in Taiyuan. He was a grandnephew of Empress Dowager Zetian. His father, Xuan, served as Magistrate of Luoyang. When his mother, Lady Xiahou, was first pregnant with Lingtan, she dreamed of a divine monk presenting her with a precious mirror, lustrous both inside and out, who said: "I entrust this to you; protect it well." When he grew up, he studied under Dhyāna Master Shenhui. In the eighth year of Dali, he travelled and converted beings as far as Liangyuan. At that time, Prime Minister Lord Tian Shenggong made offerings in succession. Arriving at Liuhe in Weiyang, while he was sighing over the decline of the Great Dharma, he suddenly heard a voice in the sky say: "When the ground of mind opens, you shall directly see the Bodhisattva in the likeness of Mañjuśrī." It said: "I give you a verification mark." He was told to raise his crown, and a hand pressed upon it. Looking immediately afterward, there were red marks of four fingers; this imprint remained constantly visible. He also stayed at Jinshan in Runzhou. On the northern face of the mountain was a dragon's cave, which constantly spewed poisonous vapor like clouds. Those who approached it mostly fell ill or died. When Lingtan took up residence there, the poisonous clouds vanished without a trace. He also built a hermitage at Ding Mountain in Jiangyin. Suddenly he heard sounds of praise; looking, he saw two white turtles. Lingtan conferred the refuges and precepts upon them. He also saw two great white serpents, several tens of feet in length, and likewise conferred the precepts and repentance upon them. Following this, he went back to Lin Mountain in Wuxing to build an araṇya. Three men dressed in gold and purple approached with slow and upright steps, praising the place of practice. In the fifth year of Yuanhe, he stayed at Hualin Monastery. Within the monastery was the tomb of General Zhang Liao, and the monastery monks were often troubled and disordered by ghostly entities. When Lingtan resided there, all signs ceased in utter tranquility. Furthermore, the people of Yangzhou were frequently deluded by mountain sprites and tree monsters, all of which Lingtan restrained and warded off. In the tenth year, he suddenly saw two foreigners from the Western regions who claimed to have come from the kingdom of Qiuci (pronounced Qiuzi). They said there was no supreme teaching there and came from afar to invite the Venerable to propagate it. On the thirteenth day of the fifth month of the eleventh year, he informed the assembly that he was about to depart for the distant invitation. On the eighth day of the last month of autumn, he passed away at the age of one hundred and eight, with eighty-four years of monastic seniority.

8.19

Huiwen

8.20

Shi Huiwen was a native of Xin'an. He often exhorted dānapatis that meritorious deeds are paramount. He once attempted to cast an eighteen-foot golden image by the Su River. The prefecture had not granted permission, and there was no way to obtain the bronze. He said: "Wait for a great donor." Before long, a husband and wife from Qingxi County came to donate a dowry mirror. Huiwen made a vow and prayed over it, saying: "If this mirror, when smelted and cast, comes to rest before the Buddha's heart, it will demonstrate the utmost sincerity of this couple's resolve." When the mold was removed and the image revealed, it was indeed so: the mirror was directly at the Buddha's chest and heart. On another occasion, he went to Yuzhang to solicit donations and obtained several yis of gold. Suddenly encountering bandits intent on robbery and plunder, in the urgency of the moment, he threw the gold into the water, saying: "I fear harming your field of merit, gentlemen; please dredge it up yourselves." Huiwen left, and the bandits entered the water searching for it but could not find it. By the time Huiwen arrived at the prefecture, the gold was mysteriously already in his courtyard. At that time, there were tigers and leopards on the mountain paths. When Huiwen happened to meet them, he would tap their heads with his staff and say: "Do not harm people. I am generating merit; why do you not join the condition?" The next day, a tiger carrying a wild boar in its mouth placed it before Huiwen, wagged its tail, and departed. Whatever undertakings he commenced were all accomplished. People taking refuge and believing flowed like a stream, accompanied by many wondrous marvels.

8.21

Nanda

8.22

Shi Nanda—translated into Chinese as "Joy" (Xi)—had unknown family origin and country of birth. He was bizarre and unconventional in character, alternating unpredictably between reverence and insolence. During the Jianzhong reign period, without explanation he arrived in the Min and Shu regions, around the time Duke Zhang Yanshang of Wei took up his post in Chengdu. Xi personally claimed: "I have attained the illusion-like samādhi (māyopama-samādhi); I can enter water and fire, penetrate metal and stone, and produce infinite transformations." When he first entered Shu, he traveled in the company of three young nuns, sometimes singing wildly in deep drunkenness. The garrison commander intended to punish him, but when the monk arrived, he said: "I merely lodge my traces in the monastic order; I possess other medicinal arts." He then pointed to the three nuns: "These are wondrous singers and musicians." The garrison commander instead came to respect him and detained him as a guest, preparing wine and meat for him. At night, he gathered guests and drank heavily with him. When the three nuns took their seats, they cast side-glances, flirted and laughed, displaying unrestrained beauty matchless in the world. As the drinking drew to a close, the monk said to the nuns: "You may step to such-and-such a melody for the commander." They slowly stepped forward, danced face-to-face, trailing scarves like swirling snow, moving swiftly and leaping with skills also peerless. After a long while, the music ended, but their dancing did not stop. The monk shouted: "Are you women mad?" He suddenly got up, grabbed the garrison commander's side sword, and the assembly, thinking he was crazed with wine, fled in alarm. The monk then drew the sword and slashed their backs, felling them to the ground, with blood spurting several feet. The garrison commander was terrified and called his attendants to bind the monk. The monk laughed, saying: "Do not be flustered." He slowly lifted the nuns: they were three bamboo canes, and the blood was merely wine. On another occasion at a drinking banquet, he had someone cut off his head and nail his ears to a pillar; there was no blood. His body sat upon the mat. When wine arrived, it was poured into the neck wound, his face turned red, and the singer's hands kept beating time. When the banquet ended, he stood up, picked up his head, and set it back on; originally there was not even a scar. From time to time, he foretold people's misfortunes and demises, all in riddles, which were understood only after the events occurred. In Chengdu, a commoner made offerings to him for several days. The monk did not wish to stay, but the host barred the gates to detain him. The monk thereupon ran into a crack in the wall. The commoner pulled at him frantically, but he gradually entered until only the corner of his kāṣāya remained, and shortly afterward that too was gone. The next day, there was a painted monk on the wall, resembling his form, but with the color of the sun and moon. It gradually faded over seven days, leaving only a dark trace; by the eighth day, even the dark trace vanished. The monk was already in Pengzhou. Afterwards, it was not known where he went.

8.23

Hehe

8.24

Hehe's family origin was unknown. As a monk, he appeared mad and unruly, yet his utterances often hit the mark, and people at the time hailed him as a sage. Princess Yueguo had been married to Zheng Wanjun of Xingyang for several years without bearing children. Wanjun petitioned him, saying: "I have no heir and wish to obtain a son. May the Master bestow your grace?" The Master said: "Give me three thousand bolts of silk, and the Princess shall give birth to two sons." Jun made the donation as instructed. He took the silk to the monastery, saying it was to cultivate merit, and then said to Jun: "The Princess is pregnant. I have commanded two devas to descend and become the Princess's sons." He also said: "The Princess's belly is small; can she carry two boys at once? I shall have them born in the same year, one earlier and one later." The Princess indeed became pregnant. At the beginning of the year and at the end of the year, she gave birth to a son each. The elder was named Qianyao, and the younger was named Huiming. Both grew into handsome men, broadly learned and possessing keen discernment.

8.25

Yishi

8.26

Shi Yishi was of unknown origin. In appearance he seemed crazed, and his speech was confused and disorderly. At the beginning of Zhenyuan, he begged for alms around the Wu Park. He foresaw many events, for which people regarded him with wonder. In the marketplace, there were several bays of houses belonging to commoners; Yishi took an axe and chopped off their eaves, and could not be stopped. The owner, often aware of his divine marvels, bowed and said to him: "This disciple relies on these for livelihood; do not destroy my houses." Looking back, he said: "Do you begrudge them?" He threw down the axe and left. That night, a fire spread through the marketplace and consumed it, leaving only those several bays of houses whose eaves had been cut intact. He liked to stay in abandoned monasteries. Winter or summer, he constantly gathered broken banners, canopies, and wooden Buddha statues to use in place of firewood and charcoal. Moreover, he roasted carp over the charcoal embers, which jumped about vigorously as ashes billowed all around; he would clap his hands and laugh heartily, eating them without using spoons or chopsticks. His face was covered in grime and he never washed it; whenever he did wash it, overcast rain would ensue, which the people of Wu took as an omen for weather forecasting. When he was about to die, he drank dozens of decalitres of ash water, chanted the Buddha's name, and sat down. Scholars and commoners watched him, and after seven full days he passed away. In the peak of summer, his complexion did not change and his limbs did not stiffen. The commoners carried him out to the suburbs and cremated him.

8.27

Daibing

8.28

Shi Daibing was a native of Tiantai, surnamed Chen. On the day of his birth, auspicious light filled the room, startling the neighbors. At the age of seven, he lost his father, grieving to the point of almost destroying his own life. He informed his mother of his wish to renounce household life; when his mother showed slight hesitation and reluctance, he immediately severed one of his fingers. His relatives earnestly persuaded his surviving parent, and he was finally sent to Guoqing Monastery. Having completed the full precepts, he vowed to wander and observe the regions. At first he stayed in the Eastern Capital, and subsequently in Heyang, where he relieved drought for the people. In accordance with the scriptures, he painted the eight dragon kings and established a place of practice; after offering invocations and prayers, he cast them into the river. The entire assembly witnessed the painted images bobbing up and down unsettled in the water. In an instant, clouds arose from small beginnings, thunder and rain burst forth, and over a thousand li, relief was proclaimed. From this time forward, those who took refuge in him were numerous. Prior to this, violent winds and hailstorms frequently occurred among the Three Fortresses, constantly damaging crops and battlements; people called it the harm of a poisonous dragon. Daibing recited secret mantras for them, and throughout subsequent years there was no such affliction at all. Together they erected a hall as a shrine for him during his lifetime. In the first year of Dali, he ascended the Taihang Mountains and wandered Mount Huo, venturing deep into the secluded recesses to build a thatched hut and dwell there. Someone stole his bowl and food; soon after, two tigers were seen blocking the path. Just then they encountered Daibing; the thief knocked his head on the ground and confessed his wrongdoing. Having comforted and admonished him, Daibing stroked the tigers' heads. In this way, he repeatedly subdued ferocious beasts. Among these places was a mountain spirit shrine, whose spiritual responses were widely rumored between Jin and Jiang. Daibing entered the shrine and exhorted the spirit to receive the refuges and precepts, and to put an end to the slaughter and boiling of livestock victims. The spirit's stone statue repeatedly nodded in assent and obeyed his instructions following his exhortations. Consequently, donors and faithful followed one another shoulder to shoulder and heel to toe. Someone placed poison in wine and bribed an impoverished woman to go and offer it. Daibing already knew this. The impoverished woman deceived him, saying: "My family's brew has turned out delicious; I pour and offer it to the Venerable to seek blessings, especially since the Buddha does not go against the wishes of sentient beings." Daibing said: "You too are a Buddha." Thereupon the poor woman grew terrified, turned the drinking vessel over, and told him the truth. Daibing held the cup and sipped it. In a moment, the fumes of the wine reached down to his shins and feet, and the ground cracked and burst apart violently beneath them, terrifying all who heard it. The practice of making offerings of wine began from this. When the people of Fen, Xi, and Xihe fell ill, he merely gave them pure water; upon drinking it, they were invariably cured. During the Zhenyuan era, he suddenly sat in the lotus posture and manifested extinction.

8.29

Great Master Guangling

8.30

There was a monk visiting Guangling whose name is lost. He called himself the Great Master, and the people of Guangling consequently addressed him as Great Master. The Great Master's appearance was extremely uncouth. He was fond of eating wine and meat. He constantly wore a coarse fur coat and would not take it off even in the height of summer, so fleas and lice gathered upon it. He resided temporarily at Xiaogan Monastery, staying alone in a single room. Every evening he would close the doors and sleep, which was his normal custom. By nature he was unruly and obstinate, fond of slaughtering dogs and pigs. Daily he brawled and fought with the young toughs of Guangling, or lay drunk by the roadside. The people of Guangling all detested him for this. There was a youth renowned for his strength. One day this youth was gambling with someone. The Great Master grew furious, struck the gaming board with his hand, and smashed it to pieces. The youth smiled and said: "How dare an idiot child defy a champion?" The Great Master cursed and spat in his face. Thereupon he fought with the youth, while onlookers numbered in the thousands. In the end, the youth was no match for him and fled. From then on, the people of Guangling considered the Great Master to possess superhuman strength. The Great Master also took pride in his own strength; frequently he plundered money and clothing from the marketplace, and the townsfolk all feared his boldness, none daring to resist. Later, an elderly monk summoned the Great Master. When he arrived, [the elder] said: "A monk should devote himself wholeheartedly to upholding the monastic teachings and precepts. How can you drink wine, eat meat, and slaughter dogs and pigs? You plunder money and goods from townsfolk, and moreover brawl and fight with young men. How is this the way of a monk? If one day the bailiffs seize you and report you to the officials, will you not be ashamed before Heaven?" The Great Master cursed angrily, saying: "Flies and gnats merely crave the fishy and the foul; how could they know the heart of a dragon or a crane? Thus my way is likewise not something you can understand. Moreover, I am pure within while mingling with the vulgar without; how am I like you, narrow-minded and devoid of magnanimity?" In the end, the elderly monk could not confute his words. One day thereafter, the Great Master returned from outside, and having entered his room, closed the door. Someone looked through a crack in the door: the Great Master was sitting on his mat, and a wondrous radiance emanated from his eyebrows, brightly illuminating the entire room. The watcher marveled at it and reported everything to the assembly of monks. The monks came and saw the radiance from the Great Master's eyebrows; pointing to one another, they said: "We have heard that the Buddha's brow has the light of the white curl mark (*ūrṇā-lakṣaṇa*); now that the Great Master possesses it, he is truly a Buddha!" Thereupon they joined together in veneration. At dawn the next morning, the monks all gathered in the courtyard waiting to pay audience to the Great Master; but when they opened the door, the Great Master was already dead. The assembly marveled all the more at this occurrence, and therefore called the Great Master "the Great Master Buddha."

8.31

Lingmo

8.32

Shi Lingmo's secular surname was Xuan, and he was a native of Piling. At first he studied under Great Master Ma of Yuzhang. Later he stayed at Baisha Sanctuary for two years; fierce tigers came to be tamed, and one gave birth to cubs near the woods as if seeking shelter. He also stayed at the Eastern Sanctuary, where the place was remote and people were few. One night, the mountain spirit sent violent thunder and rainstorms, causing the sheer cliff to collapse; by daybreak a large tree had fallen askew beside the hermitage, its branches interlaced, yet the thatched eaves suffered not the slightest damage. Far and near, those who heard of it came to behold and marvel. Later he traveled to Mount Dongbai, where he was suddenly poisoned. Instead of seeking a physician, he shut his doors and sat quietly in meditation; before long, the poison transformed into perspiration and dripped away, whereupon he returned to normal. Early in the Yuanhe reign, there was a prolonged drought, and the people all looked about in panic like wolves. Mo walked along a mountain stream and saw a blue snake coiled handsomely, staring with fixed eyes as if gazing at passers-by without moving. He scolded it, saying: "The common people are parched and the crops are withering; why do you not send rain to save the people?" When night came, heavy rain indeed fell, and throughout the entire region it was reported to be sufficient; the people were indebted to his blessing. Sometime later, he bathed, burned incense, sat upright on a rope-bed, and passed away. His age was seventy-two, his monastic age forty-one.

8.33

Chengguan

8.34

Shi Chengguan, whose surname was Xiahou, was a native of Shanyin in Yuezhou. When he was just eleven years old, he renounced household life under Chan Master Pei at Baolin Monastery and chanted the *Lotus Sūtra*. At fourteen he received an imperial grace permitting his ordination, and was subsequently registered at this monastery. Chengguan was brilliant, lofty, and unfettered, impossible to constrain with petty matters. Later, when he was about to compose a commentary on the *Avataṃsaka-sūtra*, between waking and sleeping he saw a golden man standing tall directly facing the sun; [Chengguan] welcomed and embraced him with his hands, and before long chewed and swallowed him entirely. Upon awakening, sweat poured from him, and he rejoiced at this omen of having ingested the light that shines everywhere. Beginning in the first month of the first year of Xingyuan, he completed his labor in the twelfth month of the third year of Zhenyuan, producing twenty scrolls. He then provided a meal for a thousand monks to inaugurate the commentary. At that time, a lotus flower with five joined stalks sprouted in the pond before the hall, each stalk having three nodes; everyone was amazed and admiring. Chengguan frequently pondered the transmission [of the teaching]. Suddenly one night he dreamt that his body transformed into a dragon, lifting its head at the Southern Terrace and coiling its tail at the northern mountains, claws stretching across the azure sky, its scales and mane shining against the sun; in a moment it wound along and transformed into thousands of small dragons, soaring into the blue vault and dispersing away. This was indeed a figure for the branching and widespread dissemination of the doctrinal teachings. He then took up residence at Xiyan Monastery on Mount Zhongtiao. At the monastery there was a Chan mendicant with knitted brows and shorn hair, whose style name was the Madman. Dressed in short coarse garments and holding a long staff, he sang madly and uttered confused words; yet whatever he pointed to or criticized mostly proved true. Before Chengguan arrived, the mad monk drove the monks to sprinkle and sweep, saying: "Soon a bodhisattva will arrive here." Chengguan showed his passing during the Yuanhe reign, at the age of over seventy.

8.35

Yinfeng

8.36

Shi Yinfeng, whose secular surname was Deng, was a native of Shaowu in Jianzhou. In his early years he was wild and unruly, refusing to obey his parents' wishes; he renounced household life and received the monastic teachings. In the Yuanhe reign, he set out to travel to Mount Wutai, his path taking him through Huaxi. It coincided with Wu Yuanji raising troops in rebellion against the imperial court. The government forces engaged the rebels in combat, with victory yet undecided. Feng said: "I shall go and resolve their slaughter." He then threw his monk's staff into the air and flew gently after it, passing between the battle lines of the two armies. The soldiers on both sides watched the monk soaring, and unconsciously sheathed their lances and cased their blades. After that, he traveled throughout all sacred sites. Suddenly, in front of the Diamond Cavern, he died standing on his head, tall and erect as a planted post. At the time it was debated that before the sacred cavern he should be lifted away to be cremated; yet he stood resolute as a mountain, unmoving even when all combined their strength. Observers from far and near marveled at the rarity of the spectacle. Feng had a younger sister who was a nun; she entered Wutai, glared at him, and scolded: "Old brother, formerly you did not follow the monastic rules, and even in death you bewilder people! The assembly now already knows. Though I am your kin, how could I harbor any second thought? Pray follow the constant norm!" She lightly pushed him with her hand, and he collapsed with a thud. Thereupon they cremated him and collected his relics into a pagoda; he was known as Deng Yinfeng. He left behind a verse that ran: / "A single-stringed lute I pluck for you; / Pines and cypresses stay ever green, uncowed by cold. / Though mixed together with the ore, the nature of gold is distinct; / You may take it before yourself and examine it as you will."

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神僧傳 — Classical Chinese