法華傳記 3

English (machine translation) 3

Language: English

3.1

Sympathetic Resonance in Expounding and Explaining, Part Seven, Division Two; Merits of Chanting and Reciting, Part Eight, Division One

3.2

Shi Guanding, one
Shi Huiru, two
Shi Senglong, three
Shi Kuiji, four
Shi Xuanlang, five
Shi Huiming, six
Shi Zhiyin, seven
Shi Zhishi, eight
Shi Dao'ang, nine
Shi Zhiyuan, ten

3.3

Shi Guanding of Guoqing Monastery under the Tang, one

Shi Guanding, styled Fayun, whose secular surname was Wu, was a native of Yixing in Changzhou. His ancestors fled to Dong'ou and never returned; thus he became a native of Zhang'an in Linhai. His father died early, and his mother raised him. When he was barely three months old, in the night she called upon the names of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha; Ding repeated them after her mouth, his pronunciation and phrases clear and articulate, which astonished everyone. She reported this to Dharma Master Huizheng of Shejing Monastery. Hearing it, he sighed and said, "This child is extraordinary (feifan)"; he immediately gave him the courtesy name Feifan. When he reached seven years of age, he returned to become Master Zheng's disciple, advancing to receive the full precepts and observing the deportment. In the eleventh year of the Kaihuang era, when the Prince of Jin was garrisoning Yangzhou, [Guanding] accompanied the Master of Wisdom when he arrived at the regional ditch. He resided at Chanzhong Monastery as the foremost general of the Dharma, investigating the subtle and seeking out the obscure daily. Soon after, he followed the Master of Wisdom on his eastward return to reside on Mount Tiantai. Later he went out to the Chengxin Hermitage to lecture on the Lotus Sūtra. Flowers rained down resembling lotuses, descending like snow, with an extraordinary fragrance. He surpassed Lang, Long, and Ji, and excelled beyond Yun, Yin, and Liu. As a senior disciple of the Master of Wisdom, he fully recorded the Profound Meaning, Mohe zhiguan, and other teachings delivered by his master. Whenever the doctrinal teachings of the Mountain School spread and transformed the world, were translated upon request from India, or brought benefit to the Eastern Xia, it was entirely through the efforts of Dharma Master Guanding. (Drawn from the Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks, separate biographies, records of Dharma lectures, etc.)

3.5

Shi Huiru of Zhenji Monastery in the Tang Capital, two

3.6

Shi Huiru resided at Zhenji Monastery. He practiced bitter austerities with diligent devotion, taking seated meditation and entering samādhi as his chief duty. During the Daye era of the Sui, in intervals between seated meditation, he cultivated the practice of the Saddharma. When the lecture hall dispersed, he entered a samādhi and remained motionless for seven days, which amazed the community. After the seven days had elapsed, Huiru opened his eyes, weeping tears that streamed down like rain. Startled, the assembly asked the cause. Huiru answered, saying: "My feet were burned by fire, and the agony was unbearable." He immediately showed them his sores; smoke and open cavities passed through the burns on his feet. The community asked the Dhyāna master again: "How did you obtain these sores?" Huiru said: "An official of the underworld came and presented a sealed letter, claiming to be an envoy of King Yama. Opening the document, it said: 'The Master's jewel of precepts is pure and lofty. Having abandoned the heretical three-stage doctrine of Chan Master Xinxing and taken refuge in the Lotus Sūtra, expounding and lecturing on it, you serve as an oarsman across the sea of suffering. We pray you will grant your compassionate pity.' I was thereupon invited by King Yama to expound the Lotus Sūtra for seven days. Countless sinners planted causes and conditions for the Buddha Path. The king was overjoyed, and presented thirty bolts of yellow silk to me as an offering. When the lectures ended, the king asked: 'Do you wish to see your deceased spiritual friends?' I replied that I wished to see two persons. The king immediately sent for one of them, but I saw only a turtle come and lick the soles of my feet, shed tears from its eyes, and depart. Regarding the other person, [the king] said: 'His sins are grave and he cannot be summoned; you must go to him to see him.' The envoy led me to the prison gate. The gate was bolted fast. The envoy called to the guard, and someone answered the Master: 'Step aside at once and do not stand facing the gate!' No sooner had I moved aside than the gate opened, and a great fire surged out of the gate like sparks bursting from forged iron; it immediately struck my feet. As I brushed it away and raised my eyes to look at the gate, it had already shut. Unable to meet him, I departed. I returned to the king's place and recounted the matter from beginning to end. The king said: 'Hell is like this; without the power of the Lotus Sūtra, one cannot be delivered. If one wishes to save them, one must lecture on and recite the Saddharma.' Such were the events; I have simply related what I saw, heard, and realized." Those among the assembly who heard it felt grief and joy. (Taken from the Mingzhiji. However, although the Mingbaoji records this event, it does not mention expounding the Lotus Sūtra; one should know that what was heard by the authors differed.)

3.7

Shi Senglong, Dharma Master, the third

3.8

Shi Long, Dharma Master, was of unknown origin. During the Zhenguan era, he travelled along the northern route and set out for North India, seeking to exhort and convert beings. Later, in Central India, he memorized a Sanskrit manuscript of the Lotus Sūtra. Arriving in Gandhāra, he himself began to lecture on it; people gathered in clouds from the four quarters, and gazed toward him like stars from myriad commanderies. Later he fell ill and died, but revived after three days, saying: "I saw the Heavenly Son Yama, who asked: 'What merit does the religious man possess?' I answered: 'I memorized the Lotus Sūtra and opened a lecture hall myself to exhort and convert sentient beings.' The king said: 'Reading and reciting is genuine; lecturing and expounding is superficial and empty, merely making distinctions according to one's thoughts—how could it surpass [recitation's] merit?' I replied: 'Reading and reciting are concentrated on oneself; lecturing and expounding constitute the gift of wisdom. Benefiting beings is the aspiration of a bodhisattva—how could it be superficial and devoid of merit?' Overjoyed, the king descended from his seat, knelt upright, and said: 'Excellent, excellent! Ascend the seat and explain its meaning.' Thereupon Long mounted the high seat, proclaimed the title, and unfolded the doctrine. The sinners in the hall were freed from suffering and gained bliss wherever Long's voice reached; their cangues and fetters fell away on their own, and some were reborn among humans and devas. The king said: 'Cease, cease! Your life is not yet spent; return to your original body.' Following the road back, I was restored to life." One should know that the Saddharma is the essential practice for humans and devas, and the direct path to bodhi. Concentrate your mind and practice with single-mindedness; do not be negligent! Those who heard this shed tears, and their respectful faith increased all the more. All who saw or heard him abandoned the Hīnayāna and took refuge in the Mahāyāna. A monk from the north arrived and related this tale. (Taken from the Qiufa xinlu. Although the Tang gaoseng zhuan also records Master Long's story, the account is not detailed; here we follow the expanded text.)

3.9

Shi Kuiji of the Great Cien Monastery under the Tang, the fourth

3.10

Shi Dacheng Ji was the foremost disciple who studied the Tripiṭaka comprehensively. Among three thousand disciples, seventy attained mastery, and four were chiefs, among whom he was supreme in every respect. His mother dreamt of a golden man holding a ruyi scepter in his hand, saying, "I wish to lodge in your womb"; having spoken, he entered her mouth, and she conceived. When he was born, purple clouds covered him above like a canopy. At the age of nine he left home, and at seventeen he joined the monastic community. By special imperial decree, he assisted the Tripiṭaka Master Xuanzang as an attendant at the court translation bureau, often serving as the recorder for translations of sūtras and treatises. Consequently, he commented on one hundred sūtras and treatises; the new texts from Yuhua were widely promoted throughout the Eastern Xia, and the Faxiang Mahāyāna once again illuminated the realm of sand-like worlds—this was truly due to Master Ji's effort. When he wrote commentaries on the sūtras and treatises in the dark night, his teeth emitted light. On his journey of preaching, he reached Boling, where monastics and laypeople made an earnest plea for him to expound the scripture of the Lotus. Thereupon he composed a new commentary, drafting by night and preaching by day; wondrous portents frequently manifested. Someone dreamt of an adorned and pure Buddha-land, filled with Buddhas who came to speak to the Dharma Master; this was when he composed the commentary on the Apparition of the Jeweled Stūpa chapter. When the lectures ended and the commentary was finished, he composed a verse, saying:

3.11

"I have gathered the essential practices and principles from the various sūtras, / and briefly praised the true Dharma meaning of the One Vehicle. / May these practices and words accord with reality and be bestowed on all living beings; / I vow that together we may swiftly achieve the unsurpassable fruit."

3.12

A worthy gentleman dreamt that Master Ji praised the One Vehicle with this verse, extending to the extinction of a thousand Buddhas, and that he made a vow to be reborn above in Tuṣita Heaven to serve Maitreya. (Xinlu)

3.13

Shi Xuanlang of Zuoxi under the Tang, the fifth

3.14

Shi Xuanlang, styled Huiming, was of the Fu lineage and a native of the North. Hearing that the calming and insight (zhiguan) of Tiantai Zhiyi unified the Buddha's teachings, originating from Nāgārjuna and transmitted midway through Nanyue Huisi, he traced and investigated the stream of the Dharma. He resided at Qingtai Monastery, being an elder statesman of the Dharma door and eyes and feet for the cool pond [of nirvāṇa]. His career was lecturing on the Buddha Vehicle. Whenever he occupied the lecture hall, opening the texts and sentences, he would sigh silently and say: "Observing their principles, they subtly accord with the Buddha; but examining the phrasing, there are parts that lack proper order. The holy intention is difficult to fathom; I merely believe with veneration." The listeners frequently urged and petitioned him, saying: "Those of sharp faculties awaken easily, but those of middling and lower faculties miss the meaning; if you would kindly arrange them in sequence, the widespread benefit would be immense." Lang considered this repeatedly, single-mindedly contemplating the Great Master and praying for divine confirmation whether it was permissible. In a dream, a divine monk pointed to him, saying: "Zhiyi possessed unhindered eloquence and took pleasure in preaching like a torrent; Zhang'an Guanding recorded his words in haste and did not capture everything from beginning to end. In the presence of the Buddha King of Emptiness, you both listened to this scripture; today on Gṛdhrakūṭa, you were both in the assembly. Aided by roots planted in previous lives, help to fan the mysterious breeze! Make further additions and deletions to accord with the assembly's sentiments; all three types of faculties will benefit, and the enrichment will be vast." Moved by what he experienced in the dream, he only then systematized the arrangement according to what was fitting for their needs. Such was the sympathetic resonance of Master Lang's lecturing on the Lotus. (Xinlu)

3.15

Shi Huiming under the Tang, the sixth

3.16

Shi Huiming was of unknown origin, and his secular surname is also lost. His demeanor was serene, and he was intelligent and learned, intuitively understanding the Buddha Vehicle and taking it as his refuge. When lecturing on the Lotus Sūtra, he made independent judgements with innate natural insight, expounding and explaining it continuously. Once, he entered deep mountains and sat in a stone chamber to expound the sūtra. Several troops of macaques had arrived before to listen to the Dharma, and strange birds, elephants, and tigers lay before the stone chamber, listening to the Dharma and eating fruit for three months. Later, at night, a light appeared above the stone chamber, gradually drawing near to the cave. This was a deva, who said: "I was the old, blind macaque in the troop. Through hearing you lecture, at death I was reborn in Trāyastriṃśa Heaven. My original corpse lies over seventy paces southeast of the chamber. In heaven I enjoy bliss without interruption; but remembering the Master's kindness, I came to listen to the lectures, descending to this stone step. Because I delight in hearing, I have come to listen to the Saddharma being expounded." Ming said: "How shall I expound it?" The deva said: "I must return to heaven in haste; please divide the single text into eight parts to lecture." Ming said: "The scripture I hold has seven fascicles, which I would divide into seven sessions; why must there be eight lectures?" The deva said: "The Lotus was expounded over eight years. To lecture for eight years would be too long, but I would delight in opening eight sessions to model the eight years of preaching, which roughly accords with the Buddha's intention." Convinced, Ming divided the seven-fascicle sūtra into eight scrolls and opened eight sessions of lectures for the deva. When finished, overjoyed, the deva offered eight genuine pearls to Huiming and spoke a verse, saying:

3.17

"Śākyamuni Tathāgata has departed far from this world; / The transmission of the Saddharma is difficult to encounter. / Though one may encounter it, understanding its meaning is also difficult; / Though one understands, expounding and proclaiming it is most difficult of all. / If one hears a single verse or gāthā of this Dharma, / Or hears it without slander for even a moment, / The karmic hindrances of the three times will all be extinguished, / And one will naturally achieve the Buddha Path without doubt.

3.18

Now, having listened to your lectures, I shed my animal body and was born in the second heaven of the desire realm. My majestic radiance surpasses that of the devas born there before; the superior benefits are inconceivable and cannot be spoken." Having spoken this verse, he returned to his original heaven. Ming fully recorded the event and deposited it in the stone chamber, but where he went is unknown. The stone chamber and the written record still exist today. (Xinlu)

3.19

Shi Zhiyin under the Tang, the seventh

3.20

Shi Zhiyin originally had the surname Jia, and was a native of Loufan in Yanmen, a descendant five generations removed from Master Huiyuan. His family met with misfortune, his ancestors died young, and he was raised by his maternal grandfather. At the age of ten he left home. His spiritual nature was intelligent, and he was endowed with innate natural understanding. He sought out the Path and received the Lotus Sūtra, thoroughly mastering its profound principles. He lectured on the sūtra one hundred and fifty times; crows and doves entered the hall to listen to the lecture, and wild boars and deer stayed by his side without leaving. At first, he lectured through the entire work at once. He dreamt of a foreign monk who said to him: "Your exposition is good; next lecture on it roll by roll." Thereupon Yin lectured roll by roll. He dreamt again: "Lecturing roll by roll was very fine; now lecture chapter by chapter." Yin then lectured chapter by chapter. He dreamt again: "Lecturing chapter by chapter was very good; you must compose a commentary." Yin then composed a commentary, and made a vow, saying: "If my commentary does not deviate from the Buddha's intention, let burning the commentary serve as proof!" He gathered firewood, placed the commentary upon it, and applied fire; a fine rain fell, the fire was extinguished, and the commentary was unharmed. Those who saw and heard this marveled in praise, and those hurrying to gaze upon his lecture hall were like a crowded market. (Xinlu)

3.21

Shi Zhishi under the Tang, the eighth

3.22

Shi Zhishi had the surname Wei, and was a native of Fuliu in Changshan, a distant descendant of Dao'an. At the age of seven he read books; upon reading them twice he could recite them, never needing a third time. He traveled to famous mountains to inquire about the Way, and at seventeen he left home. His scholastic pursuits were pure and lofty. Detesting the impermanence of the world, he avoided the crowds and hid among mountains and marshes, gathering grasses to serve as a ruyi scepter while lecturing on the Lotus Sūtra. The sky rained down fine flowers; alarmed, he suspected it was a demonic transformation, ceased lecturing, and returned to the monastic community. In a dream he was visited by a Dharma-revering yakṣa, who said: "Do not be indolent and abandon it! This was the devas raining flowers. Among all merits, none is supreme over causing people to listen to the Dharma. The Buddha praised the fiftieth rejoicer—how could you become indolent in the Path?" He spurred his resolve and lectured on the sūtra one hundred times. At that time, in a neighboring county, there was a recluse named Lin Da. While asleep, he suddenly saw officers and soldiers in red caps driving him along; Lin fled into Shi's lecture hall. The officers rode up to the hall gate on horseback, dismounted, and called to Lin: "Since you have entered the lecture hall, we release you!" Lin awoke with mixed grief and joy, and thereupon went to Master Shi's place to recount the circumstances in full. The assembly submitted to him in admiration. (Xinlu)

3.23

Shi Dao'ang of Xiangzhou, the ninth (Hanlingshan Monastery)

3.24

The monk Dao'ang was lecturing on the Lotus Sūtra in Xiangzhou. He saw an assembly of musicians arrive from the sky, announcing: "This is Tuṣita Heaven, descending to welcome you." Ang said: "The heavenly realms are the root of birth and death; I have never desired them. My aspiration is only for the Western Direction." As soon as he spoke, he saw music and dancers rotating and arriving from the Western Direction to welcome him. "My faith has arrived; I must not linger." An extraordinary fragrance arose, the incense burner fell from his hand, and he peacefully passed away upright on the high seat.

3.25

Shi Zhiyuan of Jiangnan, the tenth

3.26

Shi Zhiyuan was of the secular surname Song, a native of Jiangnan. He lost his father early, and was raised solely by his mother. He complied with her wishes and obeyed her expressions day and night without transgression. By nature intelligent and perceptive, he intuitively grasped the Lotus. At the age of eighteen, he asked his mother for permission to leave home. He received instruction from a master, serving him with filial respect and unflagging labor. His practice was lecturing on the Lotus Sūtra, expounding the Tiantai perfect and sudden teaching. He made a vow, saying: "If my understanding does not contravene the Buddha's intention, may heaven and earth be moved!" Immediately, flowers rained down, and the earth shook like thunder. He practiced with diligent vigor for over twenty years, never abandoning his lecture hall. At the time of his death, he said to his disciples: "The twenty-five holy beings have arrived to welcome me; I am going to be reborn in the Pure Land."

3.27

Chanting and Recitation Benefits, Section Eight, Part One

3.28

Shi Huisi, 1
Shi Dashan, 2
Shi Zhiyue, 3
Shi Zhitong, 4
Shi Zhixi, 5
Shi Zhizao, 6
Shi Faxi, 7
Shi Huicheng, 8
Shi Huiyong, 9
Shi Huichou, 10
Shi Yuanguang, 11
Shi Shanyi, 12
Shi Hongjing, 13

3.29

Shi Huisi of Mount Heng in Nanyue under the Chen, 1

3.30

Shi Huisi's secular surname was Li; he was a native of Wujin in Xiangcheng. As a child, because of a dream in which an Indian monk exhorted him to enter the Buddha's way, and another dream in which several monks instructed him in the fasts and precepts to eat only one meal a day and not accept separate offerings, he would at that time see his peers reciting the Lotus Sūtra and developed deep joy and heavy devotion. Having never recited it before, he borrowed the sūtra daily from others, and within empty tombs he read it by himself. With no one to teach him, he wept day and night. Tombs are dwellings of non-humans, and his terrors were not just one. He moved and lodged in an ancient city, digging a cave to reside in. By day he begged for food, and by night he did not sleep; facing the sūtra he shed tears and made obeisance without rest. That year, the summer had much rain; the rain made the cave damp and stifling, so that his whole body swelled with edema and he was unable to move about. Yet with an urgent mind before the sūtra, the strength of his resolve grew ever sturdier. Suddenly he realized it had cleared away, and he was fully healed as before. He dreamt that Samantabhadra, riding a six-tusked white elephant, came, rubbed the crown of his head, and departed. Though he had never before recognized the text of the entire Lotus Sūtra, he naturally understood it. The place where his head had been rubbed naturally rose slightly like a uṣṇīṣa. Throughout ten years in all, the sound of his reciting the Lotus Sūtra never ceased. Moreover, he awakened to the Great Vehicle teaching of the Lotus Samādhi; the realm was clearly understood, and he attained the level of purification of the six sense faculties (from his biography).

3.31

Dashan of Nanyue, National Preceptor of the Chen, 2

3.32

Shi Dashan was a disciple of Dhyāna Master [Hui]si. He resided at Bore Temple on Nanyue. He made chanting the Lotus Sūtra his practice; only after three days would he finish one complete copy. In addition, he cultivated the Samantabhadra Repentance: for seven days heavenly flowers rained down. Further, he entered the samādhi of loving-kindness and compassion, enabling cornered deer to escape.

3.33

Shi Zhiyue of Guoqing Temple on Mount Tiantai under the Sui, 3

3.34

Shi Zhiyue's secular surname was Zheng; he was a native of Nanyang. When young he cherished the resolve to leave the dust [of the world]. His father sought a marriage for him, but he tactfully pleaded to stop it. As he grew up, he was brave, capable, pure, and handsome. At that time, His Highness the Prince of Leyang was governing Jingzhou and summoned him to a very high post, but it was not what he desired; his only heartfelt wish was to leave home. The Prince was moved by his simple sincerity and accordingly fulfilled his longstanding wish. After he was tonsured, he sought the Way in all directions, and proceeding to Jinling, he met the Wise One [Zhiyi]. Facing north, he requested instruction. [Zhiyi] taught him dhyāna methods, and he thereupon penetrated the five gates and thoroughly mastered the six wondrous [doors]. His precept conduct was pure, and his monastic comportment genuine and unalloyed. He also recited the Lotus Sūtra more than ten thousand times; that the water pitcher filled by itself was the power of the sūtra. Although the disciples were numerous, he ranked at their head. In Linhai was the Lushan Hermitage, built by a foreign monk, which was immensely endowed with numinous anomalies. Whenever the Wise One arrived, he commanded Yue to respond and harmonize with it. After [Zhiyi] hid his traces, the assembly on the ridge of Mount Tiantai was unified under him. Entrusted with this for twenty years, he patiently and skillfully guided them, never contravening what had been bequeathed to him. He thus became the refuge of the two assemblies [of monks and nuns], revered and honoured by the fourfold assembly. His demeanor was imposing, and his virtue moved the hearts of beings; he was quite devoted to attracting and guiding others. On every anniversary of his master's death, an imperial order decreed an official vegetarian feast for a thousand monks; Yue used what remained from his robes and bowl to provide grand gifts. On the day Empress Xian, consort of Emperor Wen of the Sui, died, he conducted a vegetarian feast and recited prayers of blessing; each time he received a hundred bolts [of cloth], but never retained them. Zheng Xibo, the governor of Kuazhou, and Yang Shenggui, the garrison commander of Linhai, regarded him with deep righteousness as teacher and friend, treating him with no light esteem. On the twenty-third day of the eleventh month in the twelfth year of the Daye era, he fell ill in bed. After ten days, lying on his right side, he passed away in his old room at Guoqing [Temple], at the age of seventy-four. At the time of his passing, mountains crumbled and the earth shook; the monastics and laity within the territory all saw and heard it. The Wise One had very many disciples, so only a few are narrated here (Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks, fascicle 17).

3.35

I privately note: At the end of this master's biography, older copies often mistakenly included another person's biography. Therefore, I now remove it and append it alongside the root biography to show it to later people.

3.36

The ninth fascicle of the Chronicle states: 'Fayan was of the Zhang clan of Qinghe. In the seventh year of the Dajian era of the Chen, he served the Wise One at Tiantai and received the essentials of dhyāna. He sat silently amidst the forest and did not reside in rooms. He often entered samādhi for seven days before arising. The Wise One confirmed it for him, saying: "As you have described, this is the sign of the second contemplation in the eight liberations (aṣṭa-vimokṣa)." Mountain spirits repeatedly harassed and tested him, but he remained tranquil and unmoved. Exclusively cultivating dhyāna methods, for more than thirty years he constantly sat and did not lie down. On the last day of the second month in the seventh year of the Daye era of the Sui, he passed away seated cross-legged at Guoqing [Temple].'

3.37

Shi Zhitong of the Xiyan Sanctuary in Hedong under the Sui, 4

3.38

Shi Zhitong's secular surname was Cheng; he was a native of Yishi in Hedong. Born with innate knowledge, sincere faith, and a love for honouring the wisdom of the Way, when he was about to study writing and reckoning, he wished to leave home. His parents found this extraordinary and permitted him. At ten years of age he was already tonsured, cultivating and upholding the precept conduct, chanting the holy words of the Dharma, and reciting through the Lotus Sūtra day and night without ceasing. He recited more than three thousand essential verses praising the Buddha from various sūtras for some fifty years, never professing weariness. On the twenty-fourth day of the tenth month in the seventh year of the Daye era, he passed away from illness at the mountain temple, at the age of sixty-four. At first, several days before his demise, he was indisposed. When the karmadāna struck the bell, the mallet broke of itself; commentators took this to mean that [his life] would not extend further. When Tong heard of it, he ordered an attendant to invoke the names of Amitābha Buddha and the Lotus Sūtra, turning his mind and collecting his thoughts, vowing to be born in that Western realm. Toward evening he opened his eyes, gazed straight ahead for a long while without blinking, as if seeing something. The side attendants added incense and stood respectfully in silence for about the time of a meal before stopping. He then snapped his fingers and said, "Inconceivable!" When asked the reason, he said, "I see jeweled banners, flower canopies, and the adornments of stūpas and shrines." In the first watch of the night he again turned his head, looked around, and said, "I just saw a bright pearl; where is it now?" He also said, "What matter is there that requires such brightly lit lamps and candles?" They then covered the lamps to make it dark. After a short while he spoke again: "Why has the firelight grown ever brighter?" The chamber was actually completely dark. He then joined his palms, and by dawn said, "I am born in the Pure Land!" Thereupon his breathing ceased; the mountain and earth shook, doors and windows rattled and cracked, and flocks of pheasants cried in alarm, which was not normally heard. The temple monk Daohui had dozed off before dawn, and at this point awoke in alarm, went out to lean under the corridor, and said, "If the Dhyāna Master passes away, he will certainly be born in the Pure Land. How do I know this? Just now in my sleep I saw that atop the western ridge were multistoried pavilions and palaces, ascending into the sky and departing." As he finished speaking, Zhitong had already passed away. Furthermore, Gai's mother, Lady Wang, had long cherished earnest faith, reading and reciting various sūtras, paying homage and repenting, giving rise to the aspiration [for awakening], and making rebirth [in the Pure Land] her duty. In the second month of the eleventh year of the Zhenguan era, when she was approaching the end of her life, she grew ever more diligent. She saw before her bed a red lotus flower, about the size of a five-hú vat, and also saw blue lotus flowers filling the residence. Amitābha Buddha, Avalokiteśvara, and Mahāsthāmaprāpta arrived all at once. Gai and his nephew Kuang Daxing personally heard and recounted this; Xing saw that there was a Buddha whose bodily form was exceedingly large, along with bodhisattvas, who naturally disappeared after a long while. These are all recent events, and thus a true record is transmitted (Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks, fascicle 18).

3.39

Shi Zhixi of Guoqing Temple in Taizhou under the Tang, 5

3.40

Shi Zhixi. His secular surname was Chen, and he was a native of Yingchuan. An ancestor had held office and drifted to settle in Minyue. When Xi was a young child, he did not mingle with the crowd, and from his youth he cherished thoughts beyond mundane things. Seeing old age, sickness, and death, he understood that the world is fleeting and perilous. Examining his own torpor, he took pity on those sinking and drowning, and he developed a profound revulsion and renunciation, as though pursued by enemies. He vowed to leave the defilements of the world and seek out supreme realms. Having humbly heard that Zhiyi had set his mind upon Mount Tiantai, peacefully cultivating dhyāna at Folong, alerting and instructing those who had lost their way, and serving as a ford and guide for the world, Xi's sincere heart sped toward him in veneration. Crossing the deep blue waters from afar, when he reached the age of twenty he finally fulfilled his wish. As soon as he was received in audience, their master-disciple relationship was established. Fully observant of the monastic precepts, he received the decisive instructions on dhyāna, intensified his cultivation of tranquil concentration, and recited the Lotus Sūtra as if putting out a fire on his head. The wild horse of his mind gradually grew tamed, and scattered, agitated thoughts fell away. Having received the Master's testamentary instructions, he constantly dwelt at the Folong meditation sanctuary. Those who took pleasure in samādhi all came together to take refuge in and venerate him. In his leisure hours from seated meditation, he would also direct the construction of the monastery's halls, chambers, and quarters, all of which were neat and solemn. Only the sūtra platform had not yet been built. Just as work was about to begin, there was Incense Burner Peak (Xianglu Feng), with steep crags and extraordinary woods; however, the spirits of that peak were exceedingly potent in displaying their supernatural powers. From antiquity onward, no one had dared even to look upon its peaks and cliffs, let alone climb upon them to fell timber. At that time, the assembly deliberated, saying: "Now that we are constructing a sūtra platform to make offerings to the Dharma-jewel, we should value only the finest. How could we do this casually? The tamarisk and cypress wood on Incense Burner Peak are the finest and most supreme among timbers; we might take them together to supply the offering." The discussion having concluded, they went to consult Xi and presented the matter in full. After a long pause he replied, "The mountain spirit protects and cherishes them; one must not act rashly." None dared speak further, and each returned to his quarters. That night, [Xi] dreamed that a person delivered a document stating: "The tamarisk and cypress trees of Incense Burner Peak are entirely relinquished and given to the sūtra platform." Having thus received this unseen indication, he immediately issued instructions, prepared food and provisions, assigned the laborers, and sent them into the mountain to fell the trees. An attendant asked, "Yesterday you did not permit it; why take them today?" He replied, "Yesterday depended on another; today depends on me. Just take them without worry; there will surely be no error." Following his instructions, they went to take them without any hindrance. His late master Zhiyi had previously urged and converted the common people from the shoals of Tiantai all the way to the seashore: all the rivers and creeks were relinquished as ponds for releasing life, and fishing and hunting were permanently banned. This was also the case in the Sui era, all having been approved by imperial decree. After the fall of the Sui, many among the younger generations did evil, competing to set up weirs and fish traps that filled the rivers and creeks, causing untimely death and injury to aquatic creatures who had nowhere to appeal. Thereupon they joined together in paying homage to the Dhyāna Master, going to the late master's shrine room to burn incense and make vows. At that time, a fisherman saw a monk standing upon a fish weir; thinking that he had fallen into the water, he took his boat to rescue him, but just as he arrived, [the monk] vanished. From then on, neither weirs nor traps caught any fish. People warned one another, reformed their evil ways to follow goodness, and thereupon ceased fishing. At that time, his disciple Daoxuan was reciting the Lotus Sūtra in his room. [Xi] went in person to call him, saying, "This evening a monk will come." Just as he finished speaking, he headed toward the gate and immediately saw a monk, dressed entirely in patched robes, holding a khakkhara and carrying an alms bowl, whose form and spirit were crisp and handsome, extraordinary and unlike ordinary men. Coming from outside, when about twenty paces away, no sooner had he entered the east of the path than he faded away and did not appear again. In a short while, the sound of a bronze bell was heard from the eastern mountain, greatly shaking the mountains and valleys. [Xi] then said, "Ah, he is calling me!" A few days before his death, he told his disciples: "My life will not last long; you may prepare fragrant water." As soon as his bath was finished, birds and beasts from the mountains of unusual colors and rare forms, such as were never ordinarily seen, all came and gathered beside his room, treading the earth and soaring in the air, crying and calling mournfully, dispersing only after a day had passed. On the night of the seventeenth day of the twelfth month, he sat upright in the cross-legged posture, holding a ruyi scepter, and preached the Dharma with profound words and principles. When he had finished, he told his disciples: "It was by a fleeting encounter that I met you; now we must part forever, with no set time to meet again." Having spoken, he remained silent without a sound for a long while. As the disciples wept, he opened his eyes again and admonished them: "In human life there is death; what has a beginning must have an end. Such is the nature of the world; why is it worth grieving over? Now that I am departing, do not disturb me in this way!" He also said, "Ever since I began practicing dhyāna and reciting the sūtras until today, forty-nine years have passed during which my back has never touched a bed. I have not failed the faithful donations, nor have I failed the incense and lamp-fire. If you wish to see me again, you must diligently urge yourselves on in practicing the Way; effort never fails a person." The disciples then asked, "We do not yet know where the Preceptor will be born?" He replied, "According to the dream I saw, my rebirth is reported to be in the left of Tuṣita, in a blue-green palace situated in the northwest of the heaven. I saw the Great Master Zhiyi, with celestial beings on his left and right, all seated upon jeweled thrones; only a single seat was vacant. When I asked the reason, he answered: 'Guanding, after six years, will come and ascend this seat to preach the Dharma.'" On the morning of the eighteenth day, he told his disciples, "You should all take the midday meal early; my life will end in a moment." That day, villagers climbed the mountain to inquire after his illness; having finished eating, they took their leave to return. He said further, "Since you have troubled yourselves to come from afar, stay a little longer and wait until this poor monk departs." The people did not understand, and insisting on taking their leave, they would not stay. At that time, the bright sun adorned the sky, completely free of clouds. He said to the visitors, "Since you will not stay, you may leave quickly; rain will soon fall." Shortly after the visitors departed, a sudden downpour poured like a deluge. His age was seventy-two. At the hour of the horse on the eighteenth day of the twelfth month of the first year of Zhenguan, he sat peacefully in the cross-legged posture, upright and dignified; his breathing was soft and faint as if entering dhyāna concentration, and from this he did not return. At that time, the sound of stringed and woodwind instruments was heard in the sky, audible to the entire assembly, and ceased only after a long while. After a delay of several days, he was placed into a stone shrine. His facial complexion was radiant and joyful, and his hands and feet were soft, no different from when he was alive. The appointed site for his shrine-tomb was more than two hundred paces in front of the shrine of his late master Zhiyi.

3.41

Shi Zhizao of Guoqing Monastery on Mount Tiantai under the Tang, 6

3.42

Shi Zhizao. His secular surname was Zhang, and he was a native of Qinghe. When the Jin royal house was displaced, his family settled in Linhai. His grandfather, Yuanxiu, was a Vice Minister of the Granary Section under the Liang and served as Palace Administrator of Linhai. His father, Wenhuai, was a General of the Central Guard under the Chen. In the years when Zao received the Lotus Sūtra, his words were never spoken in vain, and his conduct brought no shame before others; his relatives, townsmen, and neighbors deeply revered and loved him. When he reached the age of seventeen, both of his parents passed away. No sooner had he put off his mourning garments than he was stricken with illness. After frequent years had passed, medicines proved ineffective. Thereupon, in the stillness of the night, leaning on a cane and dragging his sick body, he went out into the central courtyard, lay facing the moon, and with utmost sincerity focused exclusively on Moonlight Bodhisattva (Candraprabha), praying: "May your great compassion rescue me from this lingering malady." Fastening his mindfulness in this manner, months passed. In the middle of the night, he dreamed of a person of extraordinary form and color coming from the east, who said to Zao: "I have come especially now to heal your illness." He then placed his mouth against Zao's body, sequentially sucking and drawing out [the disease]. This occurred for three nights, and from this [Zao] gradually recovered. Deeply knowing that the Three Jewels were his refuge and rescue, he sought to leave secular life, and went to Master Huiping of Anjing Monastery to become his disciple. Hearing from afar that Zhiyi's conduct and practice were preeminent and that he was a fine guide for the world, he immediately sailed a boat upon the surging waters, heading straight for the peaks of Tiantai, to submit his heart and receive the Way. [Zhiyi] then sent him to practice the Lotus Repentance and recite the sūtra. In the early night of the fourteenth day, having finished the repentance, he returned to his meditation platform; just as he was about to sit in quiet contemplation, he saw a nine-headed dragon emerge from the earth and ascend into empty space. The next morning he consulted and reported this [to Zhiyi], who said, "This signifies that the sentient beings of the nine paths, upon hearing the Lotus Sūtra, will in future ages break through the ground of ignorance and enter into the emptiness of Dharma-nature." Furthermore, in the fourth year of Zhide of the Chen, Bozhi, the Prince of Yongyang, served as governor of Xiandu and invited Zhiyi to come to his administrative seat. Zao accompanied his master in accepting the invitation, traveling together to Mount Kuaiji. When the ninety-day retreat concluded, he took leave of the prince to dwell at the Baolin Mountain monastery and practice the Lotus Samādhi. On the first day during the early night, it seemed as if someone came and shook the door. Zao immediately asked, "Who are you, coming at night to shake the door?" In a drawn-out voice [the other] replied, "I have only come to look at the lamp." This occurred repeatedly several times, with questions and answers as before. In that monastery there was previously an elder, Dhyāna Master Huicheng, who heard it all at night and said to his disciples, "In that hall there has always been a great, evil ghost; hearing this voice now, it must surely be the ghost coming to take someone." As dawn approached, Master Cheng knocked on the door and called for Zao; before [Zao] had time to answer, [Cheng] circled the hall crying out, "How bitter, how bitter! The man is finished!" Zao immediately opened the door and asked his intent. [Cheng] replied, "You are still here? I thought the ghost had already harmed you last night, which is why I lamented thus." Master Cheng reported the matter to the prince, and the prince dispatched several tens of men armed with staves to guard him. Zao said to the guards, "Life depends on karma; how could it be assisted by guards? I hope, good sirs, that you will take your men back to the city and report this to the prince." On the second night after the guards departed, the ghost entered the hall, pounding on the walls and striking the pillars, all around from east to west. There were six lamps inside the hall; Zao extinguished five and kept one, circumambulating, practicing seated meditation, and reciting the sūtra, calm and fearless. Throughout the twenty-one days, matters were constantly like this. As the practice was about to conclude, he saw a boy dressed in blue-green clothing praising him: "Excellent, excellent!" Having spoken, he vanished. Although Zao encountered these two conditions, his mind knew neither sorrow nor joy. On another occasion, Zao went out to Kuaiji on business, traveling by way of Xiaoxing Village in Shan County to beg for food. The host mistakenly boiled poisonous mulberries to serve him. After Zao finished eating, he proceeded on his way. The host afterward ate the leftovers, and all [who did so] vomited and had diarrhea, suffering agony as if dying. A neighbor who saw this immediately took medicine and pursued Zao for ten li before catching up to him, only to see Zao walking briskly and unharmed. When [Zao] asked, "Why are you looking for me?" the neighbor explained the whole matter. Zao smiled and answered, "This poor monk has nothing wrong. You may throw away the medicine and turn back; there is no need to pursue me to test this. Perfumed by the power of the Way, poison cannot harm me." Later, when Zao returned to the mountain, he held a vegetarian feast for one thousand monks on behalf of Zhiyi, ordained forty-nine people, and donated two thousand bolts of goods, three thousand piculs of rice, as well as incense, ghee, and other items to the monastery. He also built earthen walls on all four sides of the monastery. Again, on behalf of Zhiyi, he held a vegetarian feast for one thousand monks, ordained one hundred people, and donated one thousand bolts of goods to the monastery, with one bolt of silk as an offering to each monk at the feast. In the seventh year [of Daye], he went again to Zhuo Commandery to inquire after [the emperor], who thanked him for coming from afar, bestowed five hundred bolts of goods for the monastery, and dispatched fifty men with staves to guard and escort him back to the mountain. In total, he had audiences with the Son of Heaven eight times, and all met with imperial favor and joy, receiving abundant provisions. In the twelfth year of Zhenguan, he passed away at the monastery, aged eighty-three.

3.43

Shi Faxi of Jinliang Monastery in Yongzhou under the Tang, 7

3.44

Shi Faxi, whose secular surname was Li, was a native of Xiangyang. He went forth from the household life at seven years of age, and Chan Master Hao served as his preceptor and mentor. Master Hao's path was plain, gentle, and abundant, and he was renowned. His companions later resided in Chan meditation. On the eve before his passing, the wall of the room where he resided collapsed outward of itself. Hao said: 'The dependent reward has already fallen away; I am about to depart this world.' Thereupon he sat upright, closed his eyes as though apprehending an object of focus, and passed away abruptly, without any prior feeling [of sickness]. Faxi was reverent and solemn by nature, and served him for many successive years. Hao devoted himself exclusively to meditation practice and was sparing in spoken admonitions; he would know people through contemplation and appraisal. Discerning Faxi's capacities and measure, [Faxi's accomplishments] in deeds surpassed his former training, and without sternness he attained perfection. He looked up with longing to eminent deeds and assisted only virtue. In the mountain temple of Qingxi in Jingzhou there were more than forty monks; Faxi, as a novice, served them personally with offerings. By day he cooked and gathered firewood, and by night he recited and practiced the scriptures. Living in the mountains without torches, he burned firewood to get light. Setting himself a daily task every evening, he recited until he mastered one sheet. In this way, over a long time, what he apprehended became fluent and unobstructed. Although he studied the various classifications of the scriptures, he specifically took the Lotus Sūtra as his principal focus. He often used the intervals of eating and resting to recite an extra scroll in addition; at other times he concentrated exclusively on meditation practice, tying his mindfulness before him. As soon as drowsiness arose in his mind, he would review what he had studied. During the Renshou reign-period, Emperor Wen issued an edict summoning him, bringing him to the capital, where he resided at Chanding Temple. The offerings and ceremonies accorded him were grand and exceptional, yet he made frugal conduct his priority; he nurtured his peers, and through humbleness accomplished virtue. In that place was a Buddha-tooth relic, treasured and revered in the imperial capital, supported on a jewelled platform and placed in the upper chamber; exquisite gems dazzled the eye. Without virtue it could not be magnified. Because Faxi's conduct and understanding secretly penetrated the subtle and unseen, often evoking downward responses, the assembly entrusted the sanctuary to him, charging him with its supervision and protection. Faxi then organized the offerings, looking up with reverence morning and night. Furthermore, because Master Hao had passed away, desiring to bestow unseen aid upon his spirit, he made a vow to recite the Lotus Sūtra one thousand times. He therefore did not stay in his old room, but simply circumambulated the temple stupas, engaging in the two postures of walking and sitting, vowing to fulfill his original aspiration completely. When his count reached eight hundred, his heart was ardent through dawn and night, his focused mind undispersed, and he felt increasingly hale and robust. A monk of the same temple saw a white ox drawing a jewelled carriage enter Faxi's room; following to look, there was no trace at all. Only then was it known that through the resonant response of unseen penetration, there were those who fulfilled the teachings and attained results early. From the beginning he guarded and cared [for others]; whenever anyone suffered from illness or pain, whether a stranger or an old companion, he would fully supply, support, and inquire after them, nursing and treating them in person. As for excrement, urine, pus, and vomit, he would approach and even taste them. Truly, although the suffering of illness is universally despised by the world, Faxi felt no defilement or baseness, and his joy was doubled, taking this as his constant practice. (The above three accounts are from the Further Biographies of Eminent Monks, fascicle nineteen.)

3.45

Master of Emperor Xuan of the Chen: Huicheng of Jiangling, eight.

3.46

Shi Huicheng was a disciple of Chan Master [Huisi]. He practiced the Lotus Chan and recited the sūtra, attaining the samādhi of the speech of all living beings. Holding himself upright in the middle of the river, he trod upon the water as if upon dry land.

Linked texts (1)

法華傳記 — Classical Chinese