淨土往生傳 2.20

2.20

Shi Fachi, whose secular surname was Zhang, was a man of Jiangning in Runzhou. At the age of nine, he served Dhyāna Master Fang of Mount Qingcheng; his natural endowment was brilliant, and his every action attained profound depth. At thirteen, he relied on Great Master Ren of Huangmei and attained the mind[-transmission]. Soon he returned to Qingcheng to serve Dhyāna Master Fang, further clarifying the ultimate tenet. From then on, students from all quarters gathered to admire and take refuge in him, and his renown grew daily, even heard across the seas. When Huangmei was about to pass away, he once said to the assembly, “There are ten people who will transmit my Dharma in the future, and Fachi of Jinling is one of them.” For nine years, Chi tied his mindfulness to the Pure Land; in every bodily movement, he always relied on contemplative visualization. On the fifth day of the ninth month in the second year of the Chang'an era, he died at Yanfu Monastery. Before passing away, he said one day to his disciple Zhiwei, “During my life, I was unable to guide and teach all beings through the Pure Land. After my death, you should expose my corpse beneath the pines, so that the beasts and birds that eat my flesh and blood may generate the causes for the Pure Land. Keep this in mind.” Zhiwei said, “I will respectfully obey your clear instruction.” When he died, Wei and the people of the commandery prepared the full ceremonial procession and escorted his body to beneath the pines, just as Chi had willed. On that day, some monks of the monastery saw several tens of divine banners fluttering in the sunlight as they descended toward the west, casting extraordinary light that illuminated his room. The bamboo grove at Chi’s former residence, the old Youqi Monastery, also all turned white.