法華傳記 5.12

5.12

釋道泰。元魏末人。住常山衡唐精舍。夢人謂曰。若至其年。當終於四十二矣。至期年遇重病甚憂。悉以身資為福。友人曰。余聞。供養六十二億菩薩。與一稱觀世音同。君何不至心歸依。可必增壽。泰乃感悟。遂於四日四夜。專精不絕。所坐帷下。忽見光明從戶外而入。見觀音足趺踝間。金色朗照。語泰曰。汝念觀世音耶。亦復誦法華不。泰褰帷頃便不復見。悲喜流汗。便覺體輕。所患遂愈誦通法華文。念彼觀音。年四十四。方為同意說之。泰後終於天命耳。

The monk Daotai was a man of the late Yuan Wei. He dwelt in Hengtang Monastery in Changshan. In a dream, a person said to him: "When you reach that year, you shall die at the age of forty-two." When he reached that year, he fell gravely ill and was filled with anxiety, so he gave away all his bodily possessions to make merit. A friend said: "I have heard that making offerings to sixty-two koṭis of bodhisattvas is equal to a single invocation of Avalokiteśvara. Why do you not take refuge with utmost sincerity? Your lifespan will surely be extended." Thereupon Tai had a realization, and for four days and four nights he concentrated his devotion without interruption. Beneath the curtain where he sat, he suddenly saw a bright light enter from outside the door, and beheld Avalokiteśvara's instep and ankle, shining brightly in a golden color. [Avalokiteśvara] said to Tai: "Do you contemplate Avalokiteśvara? Do you also recite the Lotus Sūtra?" As soon as Tai lifted the curtain, [the vision] was no longer seen. Weeping with both sorrow and joy, drenched in sweat, he immediately felt his body grow light, and his illness was thereby cured. He recited the text of the Lotus Sūtra until he was fluent in it, and contemplated that Avalokiteśvara. Only at the age of forty-four did he speak of this to like-minded persons. Tai later died having lived out his natural lifespan.