[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Buddhist Literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha) › [Taishō Tripiṭaka (Chinese Buddhist canon)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho) › [淨土往生傳](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2071) › 3.5 # 淨土往生傳 3.5 淨土往生傳 3.5 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [3.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2071.3.5) 釋法照。不知何許人。唐大曆二年。棲于衡州雲峯寺。慈忍戒定為時所歸。一旦於僧堂食。鉢中覩五色雲。雲中有寺。寺之東北有大山。山有㵎。㵎北有石門。門去可五里。復有一寺。金牓題曰。大聖竹林寺照。雖目覩。而其心也尚懷隕穫。他日食時。復於鉢中見五色雲。雲現數寺。無有山林穢惡。鈍金色界。池臺樓觀。眾寶間錯。萬菩薩眾。而處其中。中有諸佛嚴淨國土種種勝相。照欣所見。因訪問之。有嘉延曇暉二僧曰。聖神變化。不可以凡情測。若論山川面勢。乃五臺爾。四年夏。照於衡州湖東寺。啟五會念佛道場。其年六月二日。五色祥雲彌覆其寺。雲中亦有樓閣。閣上有數梵僧。身可丈餘。執錫行道。又見阿彌陀佛與二菩薩。其身高大等虛空界。日既暮矣。照於道場之外。遇老人曰。汝先發願。於金色界禮覲大聖。今何輒止。照曰。時難路艱。不止如何。老人曰。但能亟去。則去之何其艱也。照未暇對老人失焉。照以所見勝異。重發願曰。願以此身奉覲大聖。雖復火聚氷河。終無退惰。其年八月十三日。與同志數人。由南嶽前去。果無艱險。五年四月五日。至五臺縣遙見寺。南有數道光。六日達佛光寺。一如鉢中所見。略無差脫。是夜四更。復有異光。北來射照。照不知所裁。乃問曰。此何祥也。吉凶焉。在僧云。此大聖不思議光。攝汝身心。何乃問也。照聞之即具威儀。前詣一寺。寺之東北可五里。果有山。山有㵎。㵎北有石門。門傍有二青衣。纔八九歲。顏貌端正。一稱善財。一稱難陀。引照入門。北行幾五里。見一金門。門上有樓。其樓之側復有一寺。寺門有大金牓。題曰大聖竹林寺。寺之方圓可二十里。一百餘院。院院皆有寶塔。黃金為地。華臺玉樹充滿其中。照入寺之講堂。見文殊在西普賢在東。皆據師子高座。說法之音。歷歷在耳。文殊左右菩薩萬數。普賢亦諸菩薩。以相圍繞。照於二菩薩前。作禮問曰。末代凡夫。智識淺劣。佛性心地。無由顯現。未審修行於何法門。最為其要。惟願大聖。斷我疑網。文殊曰。汝所請問。今正是時。諸修行門。無如念佛。我於過去劫中。因念佛故得於一切種智。是故一切諸法般若波羅蜜多甚深禪定。乃至諸佛正遍知海。皆從念佛而生。照曰。當云何念。文殊曰。此世界西有彌陀佛。彼佛願力不可思議。汝當繼念令無間斷。命終之後決定往生。說是語時。二大菩薩。舒金色臂。以摩照頂與授記曰。汝以念佛不思議故。畢竟證無上覺。若善男女。願疾出離。應當念佛。時二菩薩。互說伽陀。照得聞已益加踊躍。文殊又曰。汝可往詣諸菩薩院。巡禮以承教授。照如其言。歷請教授。次至七寶華園。從其園出於大聖前。作禮辭退。且見向者。善財難陀二青衣。送至門外。照復作禮舉頭俱失。至十三日。照與五十餘僧。往金剛窟。無著見大聖處。忽見其地。廣博嚴淨。琉璃眾寶。以成宮殿。文殊普賢可萬菩薩。佛陀波利亦在其中。照得見已。隨眾歸寺。其夜三更。於華嚴院之西樓又見寺。東巖壑之半有五枝燈。大方尺餘。照曰。願分百燈。以歸一面。燈分如願。重願分為千炬。炬亦如之。行行相當。光光相涉。光中殊異。遍於山野。照又前詣金剛窟。願見大聖。殆其三更。見一梵僧。自稱佛陀波利。引之入寺。至十二月朔日。於華嚴院。入念佛道場。於道場中。載念文殊普賢二菩薩。謂我畢竟證無上覺。又復記我念彌陀佛決定往生。於是一心念佛。正念佛時。倏見前來梵僧。入道場云。汝之淨土華臺生矣。後三年華開。汝其至矣。然汝所見竹林諸寺。何為不使群生共知。照聞之憶念昔者所見。因得命匠刻石。兼於所見竹林寺處。特建一寺。號竹林焉。寺之云畢。照曰。吾事已矣。吾豈久滯於此哉。不累日而卒焉。逆而推之。向聞梵僧之說果三年。 > Shi Fazhao: It is not known where he was from. In the second year of the Dali reign of the Tang dynasty, he resided at Yunfeng Monastery in Hengzhou. For his compassionate forbearance, precepts, and concentration, he was revered by his contemporaries. One morning, while eating in the sangha hall, he saw five-colored clouds within his alms bowl. Within the clouds was a monastery. To the northeast of the monastery was a great mountain. On the mountain was a ravine, and north of the ravine was a stone gate. About five li beyond the gate, there was another monastery with a golden plaque inscribed: “Monastery of the Great Sage’s Bamboo Grove.” Though Zhao saw it with his own eyes, his heart still felt unsettled. On another day at mealtime, he again saw five-colored clouds in his bowl. Within the clouds appeared several monasteries, completely free of the foulness of worldly mountains and forests, a realm of pure gold where ponds, terraces, and multi-storied pavilions were interspersed with myriad treasures, and an assembly of ten thousand bodhisattvas dwelt therein. Within it were all kinds of exquisite signs of the Buddhas’ adorned and pure lands. Rejoicing at what he had seen, Zhao inquired about it. Two monks, Jiayan and Tanrui, said, “The transformations of holy beings cannot be fathomed by ordinary sentiments. Judging from the disposition of the mountains and streams, it is none other than Mount Wutai.” In the summer of the fourth year, Zhao inaugurated a five-session buddhānusmṛti sanctuary at Hudong Monastery in Hengzhou. On the second day of the sixth month of that year, auspicious five-colored clouds covered the monastery completely. Within the clouds were also pavilions, and upon the pavilions were several Indian monks, each about a zhang in height, holding锡 staves and circumambulating in practice. He also saw Amitābha Buddha and two bodhisattvas, their bodies vast and tall, equal to the realm of empty space. When evening came, outside the sanctuary Zhao met an old man who said, “You previously made a vow to pay homage to the Great Sage in the golden realm; why have you now abruptly stopped?” Zhao said, “The times are difficult and the road is treacherous; how could I not stop?” The old man said, “If you only set out swiftly, then how could the journey be difficult?” Before Zhao had time to reply, the old man vanished. Because of the wondrous spectacles he had witnessed, Zhao renewed his vow, saying, “I vow to offer this body to behold the Great Sage; even if I must cross heaps of fire and rivers of ice, I shall never turn back or become remiss.” On the thirteenth day of the eighth month of that year, together with several like-minded companions, he set out from Mount Nanyue; indeed, there were no dangers. On the fifth day of the fourth month of the fifth year, they reached Wutai County and saw several rays of light south of the monastery in the distance. On the sixth day, they arrived at Foguang Monastery, which matched exactly what he had seen in his bowl without the slightest discrepancy. At the fourth watch of that night, an extraordinary light again came from the north and shone upon Zhao. Not knowing what to make of it, Zhao asked, “What kind of omen is this? Is it auspicious or calamitous?” A resident monk said, “This is the inconceivable light of the Great Sage, gathering in your body and mind; why do you even ask?” Hearing this, Zhao immediately adjusted his dignified demeanor and proceeded forward to a monastery. About five li to the northeast of the monastery, there was indeed a mountain. On the mountain was a ravine, and north of the ravine was a stone gate. Beside the gate were two boys in blue robes, barely eight or nine years old, with handsome features; one was named Sudhana (Shancai) and the other Nanda. They led Zhao through the gate. Walking north for nearly five li, he saw a golden gate with a tower above it. Beside that tower was another monastery. On the monastery gate was a large golden plaque inscribed: “Monastery of the Great Sage’s Bamboo Grove.” The monastery measured about twenty li in circumference, with more than a hundred compounds, and every compound possessed jeweled pagodas, with the ground made of yellow gold and filled with flowering terraces and jade trees. Zhao entered the lecture hall of the monastery and saw Mañjuśrī in the west and Samantabhadra in the east, both seated upon elevated lion thrones. The sounds of their expounding the Dharma were distinctly audible. To Mañjuśrī’s left and right were tens of thousands of bodhisattvas, and Samantabhadra was likewise surrounded by various bodhisattvas. Before the two bodhisattvas, Zhao made prostrations and asked, “Ordinary beings in the terminal age are shallow and inferior in wisdom and understanding; the mind-ground of Buddha-nature has no means to manifest. I do not know which Dharma door is the most essential to cultivate? I only pray that the Great Sages will cut through my web of doubts.” Mañjuśrī said, “The question you ask is just at the proper time. Among all the doors of cultivation, none surpasses buddhānusmṛti. In eons past, because of buddhānusmṛti, I attained omniscience. Therefore, all phenomena, prajñāpāramitā, profound dhyāna-contemplations, and even the ocean of the Buddhas’ samyaksaṃbuddha knowledge, all arise from buddhānusmṛti.” Zhao asked, “How should one practice buddhānusmṛti?” Mañjuśrī said, “West of this world is Amitābha Buddha. That Buddha’s vow-power is inconceivable. You should continuously practice recollection without interruption; after your life ends, you will definitively attain rebirth.” When he spoke these words, the two great bodhisattvas extended their golden-colored arms, rubbed Zhao’s crown, and bestowed a prophecy upon him, saying, “Because of the inconceivability of buddhānusmṛti, you shall ultimately realize unsurpassed awakening. If good men and good women wish swiftly to escape, they should practice buddhānusmṛti.” Then the two bodhisattvas recited gāthās to each other; having heard them, Zhao leaped with even greater joy. Mañjuśrī also said, “You may go to the various bodhisattvas’ compounds, make a pilgrimage, and receive their instructions.” Zhao acted according to his words, going round to request instructions. Next, he arrived at a garden of seven-jeweled flowers. Coming out from that garden, he bowed and took his leave before the Great Sages. He saw the two boys in blue robes from before, Sudhana and Nanda, escorting him outside the gate. Zhao bowed again, and when he raised his head, they had all vanished. On the thirteenth day, Zhao went with more than fifty monks to the Diamond Cave, the place where Asanga had seen the Great Sage. Suddenly he saw that the ground was vast, adorned, and pure, with lapis lazuli and myriad jewels forming palaces and halls. Mañjuśrī, Samantabhadra, some ten thousand bodhisattvas, and Buddhapāli were also among them. Having witnessed this, Zhao returned to the monastery with the assembly. At the third watch of that night, on the western pavilion of the Huayan Compound, he saw five lamps halfway up the eastern crags and valleys of the monastery, each more than a foot square. Zhao said, “I vow that they divide into a hundred lamps to illuminate one side.” The lamps divided as he wished. He vowed again that they divide into a thousand torches, and the torches did likewise, arranged in rows facing each other, their lights interpenetrating. The extraordinary sights within the light filled the mountains and plains. Zhao again went forward to the Diamond Cave, wishing to see the Great Sage. Around the third watch, he saw an Indian monk who called himself Buddhapāli, who led him into a monastery. On the first day of the twelfth month, in the Huayan Compound, he entered a buddhānusmṛti sanctuary. In the sanctuary, he repeatedly recollected that the two bodhisattvas, Mañjuśrī and Samantabhadra, had told him, “You shall ultimately realize unsurpassed awakening,” and had also prophesied to him that by practicing recollection of Amitābha Buddha, he would definitively attain rebirth. Thereupon he recollected the Buddha single-mindedly. While he was practicing recollection of the Buddha, suddenly he saw the Indian monk from before enter the sanctuary and say, “Your flower terrace in the Pure Land has already come into being; after three years, when the flower opens, you shall arrive there. But why do you not make the Bamboo Grove and other monasteries that you saw known to all living beings?” Hearing this, Zhao recalled what he had seen previously; he thus engaged artisans to carve stone and also built a special monastery at the place where he had seen the Bamboo Grove Monastery, naming it Bamboo Grove. When the monastery was completed, Zhao said, “My work is finished; how could I linger here for long?” Within a few days, he passed away. Calculating backward, it was indeed three years from when he had heard the Indian monk’s words. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) - [Previous: 3.4](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2071.3.4) - [Next: 3.6](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2071.3.6) - [Up: 3](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2071.3) ## Translations (1) - [English (machine translation)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2071~en-mt.3.5) — English, machine translation ## Linked texts (1) - [廬山蓮宗寶鑑](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1973.4.43) — Classical Chinese --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2071.3.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2071.3.5) · Pramāṇa