天台九祖傳 1.20

1.20

The upādhyāya's secular surname was Wang. He was a scion of Langya; his ancestral home was the Western Capital (Chang'an). For successive generations his family wore embroidered robes (held official posts), which cannot be recounted in full. He himself was appointed investigating censor (jiancha yushi). Untying his official ribbons and renouncing worldly glory, he followed a master to study the Way. At age twenty-four, he received full ordination. In the land of Qin he studied the vinaya, and having mastered upholding and violation [of precepts], he thought to study the Mahāyāna (The original text lacked the word 'study'; Śramaṇa Renkai of Longcheng emended it based on the Inner Realization Lineage Chart). Thereupon he copied the Ci'en Commentary on the Lotus Sūtra. At night he saw a monk in a dream, who said, "Why do you not listen to the Tiantai tenets of the perfect and sudden?" When morning came, he recounted the dream to the assembly. The assembly said, "Since there is a dream, how could there not be an omen for it? We have heard that Ācārya Zhanran of Miaole Monastery in Changzhou is now propagating this teaching with great renown." Although he heard their words at the time, he did not take it as definite truth. Later, when a trustworthy message arrived, he finally knew it was not false. He then set aside what he had copied, shook his monk's staff, and journeyed south. Arriving at Fayun Monastery in Yangzhou, he intended to stay. Within ten days he again saw a monk in a dream, who said, "Miaole's lecture on the sūtra is already about to reach the 'Expedient Means' chapter; you should go quickly now." He then galloped in haste, and it indeed matched his dream. He studied and practiced for five years (Note: the character ji 'gather' should be xi 'practice'), without any other concerns. Continuing by candlelight through the night, his mastery was completed like the unicorn's horn. He then took leave of the master to travel alone. The master said, "Dwell according to circumstance; propagate the teaching according to your capacity. Even if you practice for yourself alone, it will still bring benefit." He then returned to Yang Prefecture, where he was invited by people to lecture on the Lotus Sūtra, Calm Abiding and Special Insight, and the Mysterious Meaning, each several times. Later he went to Tiantai. On the way, reaching Yuezhou, he met Censor Duan. Later, Duan was appointed prefect of Shezhou. Lu Can bowed and took him as his upādhyāya (Note: the character Lu is probably superfluous). Later, in the twelfth year of Zhenyuan (796 CE), he entered Tiantai. Living in the mountains for nine years, he lectured on the Lotus Sūtra, Calm Abiding and Special Insight, the Mysterious Meaning, and other texts without ever faltering. He practiced the path in the six periods of the day; reciting one copy of the Lotus Sūtra and the Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna precepts once daily, he never failed to complete it. In the twentieth year (804 CE), the prefect of Taizhou invited him down to Longxing [Monastery] to lecture on the Lotus Sūtra and Calm Abiding and Special Insight. Up to the second month of this year, because he was managing the doctrinal affairs of this realm, he merely paused temporarily. Qianshu has followed the upādhyāya for only ten years; the matters before that are not known in full, so I have only recorded them in brief.