神僧傳 8.20

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.