弘贊法華傳 3.16

3.16

釋玄璧。未詳其氏。蘇州吳縣人也。幼小出家。住流水寺。好學不倦。多遊巖壑。棲神妙觀。不以世務嬰心。猛獸毒蟲。妖精惡賊。頻繁遭遇。未始忤其情守。常坐一床方四尺。傍無塵雜。未曾倚臥。每講中百十二門。攝大乘等論。花嚴涅槃法花等經。二十餘州。咸來聽受。甞講法花經。忽有一鶴。從外飛來。於殿下池中。三度含水。噴灑於地。徑詣佛邊聖僧座上。一立不動。直至講了。然始飛去。如此經年。後乃恒住。上堂即鼓翼引前。下講即傾身隨從。法師或令其舞。即搙翮𩒮足。顧影迴頭。乍起乍仰。或來或去。變態殊絕。難以具名。凡歷二年。周旋不去。數州文翰之士。莫不偉而同詠。後刺史江王來向寺。長史司馬。遣人來報法師。法師云。好。準常安坐。王至寺門。長史自報。師云。已知。如常安坐。王怪不來迎。遂即却去。至其夜一更。王總喚合郭眾僧。為國行道。諸僧並馳集王所。王忿形於色。遣長史千行自喚法師。法師報云。王為國轉經。心須殷重。未潔淨輒即迎僧。大夫輕慢。不敬三寶。如此轉經。亦非得力。王令宅內所有酒肉五辛。並皆除却。香湯灑掃。貧道。又須洗浴潔淨。然可轉經。公且去。後日來。王大瞋。更遣人喚法師。依常安坐。一無懼色。至後日。乃去至彼。王問諸僧曰。玄璧何如人。皆曰。禪行高僧也。王意少解。令人喚入。安一高座。遣三五美姬。側近看侍。璧聊敘暄寒。即禮佛上座。結加趺坐。凝神寂定。乃經七日。身衣塵積。初無搖動。王大發善心。問眾僧曰。若為得令其出定。僧云。以音樂供養。王命侍妓奏之。經半日。璧乃從禪定起。王及大夫人。請法師懺悔。受戒。所有獵拘鷹鷂。並皆解放。璧勸王誦般若心經。王依言敬受。每旦恒誦。於是傾捨名玲。奉酬師德。一無所受。皆令散施。王自爾之後。每齋日。常來就寺。參問幽玄。道化之聲。於斯更遠。即貞觀中年之事也。後不知所終。

Shi Xuanbi, whose secular surname is not detailed, was a native of Wu County in Suzhou. He left home in his youth and lived at Liushui Temple. Fond of learning without tiring, he frequently roamed crags and ravines, resting his spirit in marvelous contemplation, not letting worldly affairs entangle his mind. Though he frequently encountered ferocious beasts, venomous insects, phantoms, and wicked bandits, they never perturbed his emotional resolve. He constantly sat on a single couch four feet square, with no worldly clutter beside it, and never leaned back to lie down. Whenever he lectured on the Mūlamadhyamakakārikā, the Śataśāstra, the Dvādaśamukha Śāstra, the Mahāyānasaṃgraha, and other treatises, as well as the Avataṃsaka, Mahāparinirvāṇa, Lotus, and other sūtras, people from more than twenty prefectures all came to listen and receive them. Once when he was lecturing on the Lotus Sūtra, a crane suddenly flew in from outside. In the pond below the hall, it took water into its beak three times and sprinkled it on the ground. It then went straight up to the seat of the holy monks beside the Buddha and stood motionless, remaining until the lecture was concluded, only after which it flew away. This went on for years, and later it came to reside there permanently. Whenever he ascended the hall, it would flutter its wings and lead ahead; whenever he concluded the lecture, it would incline its body and follow him. If the Dharma master bid it to dance, it would pull in its wings, lift its feet, look back at its reflection, and turn its head, now rising, now craning, now coming, now going, its distinct postures so extraordinary they can hardly be fully described. After two years of this, it hovered about without leaving. The literary gentlemen of several prefectures all marveled at it and composed poems in unison. Later, the prefect, the Prince of Jiang, came to the temple. The chief administrator and the adjutant sent someone to inform the Dharma master. The Dharma master said, "Very well," and sat peacefully as usual. When the prince arrived at the temple gate, the chief administrator personally reported it. The master said, "I already know," and remained seated peacefully as usual. The prince, puzzled that he did not come out to welcome him, thereupon turned back and left. By the first watch of that night, the prince summoned all the monks within the walled city together to practice the Way on behalf of the state. The monks all hurried to assemble at the prince's quarters. The prince's anger showed on his face, and he dispatched the chief administrator, Qianxing, to summon the Dharma master personally. The Dharma master reported, "When the prince turns the sūtras for the state, his mind must be earnest and solemn. If without purifying oneself one abruptly summons monks, a grand master acts with slight and arrogance, failing to revere the Three Jewels. Turning the sūtras in such a manner will also yield no benefit. Let the prince have all alcohol, meat, and the five pungent roots within the residence completely removed, and let the place be sprinkled and swept with scented hot water. I, too, must bathe and purify myself, only after which the sūtras may be turned. You may go for now, and I will come on a later day." The prince became extremely enraged and sent another person to summon him, but the Dharma master sat peacefully as usual, showing no sign of fear at all. On the appointed later day, he then went there. The prince asked the monks, "What kind of person is Xuanbi?" They all replied, "He is an eminent monk of dhyāna practice." The prince's displeasure lessened somewhat, and he had him called in. Setting up a high seat, he sent several beautiful maidens to wait upon and attend him closely at his side. Xuanbi briefly exchanged pleasantries, then bowed to the Buddha, mounted the seat, sat cross-legged, and focused his spirit in quiet absorption. Seven days passed: dust accumulated on his body and robes, but from the beginning he did not move at all. The prince aroused great goodness of heart and asked the assembly of monks, "How may we bring him out of absorption?" A monk said, "Make offerings with music." The prince ordered his attendant courtesans to play. After half a day, Xuanbi arose from dhyāna absorption. The prince and his primary consort asked the Dharma master to administer repentance and bestow the precepts, and all their hunting dogs, falcons, and hawks were completely released. Xuanbi encouraged the prince to chant the Heart Sūtra of Prajñā; the prince respectfully accepted his words and chanted it constantly every morning. Thereupon he emptied his treasury of famous bells and treasures to repay the master's virtue, but Xuanbi accepted nothing at all, having it all distributed in almsgiving. From then on, on every vegetarian feast day, the prince regularly came to the temple to inquire into the profound and obscure. The fame of his teaching and conversion spread even farther; this occurred during the middle of the Zhenguan era. Later it was not known where he ended his life.