法華傳記 6.36

6.36

達磨跋陀。唐云法賢。龜茲國人也。天性聰明。具通三藏。粗識外國言詞。謂小為極。自生貢高。陵辱摩訶衍眾。時有巡禮沙門。名曰須梨耶。誦達法華六千偈。無脫法。對法賢論所誦幽致。賢識三藏單淺。歸心大乘。從須梨耶。誦達法華。每日五遍為業。敬法夜叉。守護此人。又每夜草坊現異光。人謂失火諮法賢。答曰。四大天王。番番來護光明。臨終之時。語徒眾言。昔執小典為極。如執瓦石為金寶。今翫法華得真金也。以三年諷誦面見普賢。入正位得不退記。汝等專諷持此經。期正位不過三生。即注遺書而卒。如入禪定。於遺身骨上起塔。夏雨盛降。雨不能濕塔。鳥類群飛。不近塔邊。凡見聞者。禮拜供養如市而已（此出外國記）。

Dharmabhadra, translated in Tang as Faxian, was a native of the kingdom of Kucha. Naturally intelligent, he thoroughly mastered the Tripiṭaka. He had a slight knowledge of foreign languages. Considering the Hīnayāna to be the ultimate, he gave rise to arrogance and disparaged the Mahāyāna community. At that time there was an itinerant śramaṇa named Sūrya, who had memorized and mastered the six thousand verses of the Lotus Sūtra without omitting a single dharma. Facing Faxian, he discussed the profound purport of what he recited. Faxian recognized that the Tripiṭaka [he knew] was shallow and limited, and turned his mind to the Mahāyāna. Following Sūrya, he memorized and mastered the Lotus Sūtra, taking reciting it five times each day as his practice. Yakṣas who revere the Dharma protected this man. Furthermore, every night an unusual light appeared in his grass hut. People thought it was a fire and inquired of Faxian, who replied, “The Four Heavenly Kings take turns coming to protect me with their bright light.” When he was on the brink of death, he said to the assembly of disciples, “Formerly I clung to the lesser scriptures as ultimate, like grasping tiles and stones as gold and gems. Now, treasuring the Lotus Sūtra, I have attained true gold. Because of three years of chanting and reciting, I saw Samantabhadra face-to-face, entered the correct station, and received the prediction of non-retrogression. If you single-mindedly chant and uphold this sūtra, your expectation of the correct station will not exceed three lifetimes.” Thereupon he recorded his testamentary letter and passed away as if entering meditative absorption. A stūpa was erected over his mortal remains. When heavy summer rains fell, the rain could not wet the stūpa; when flocks of birds flew by, they did not approach the edge of the stūpa. All who saw or heard of it paid homage and made offerings as if in a marketplace. (This is drawn from the Waiguo ji.)