冥報記 3.24

3.24

華州鄭縣人。張法義。年少貧野。不修禮度。貞觀十年。入華山伐枝。遇見一僧坐巖中。法義便就與語。會天晦冥。久坐不能歸因宿焉。僧設松柏末以食之。謂法義曰。貧道居此久。不欲外人知。檀越出。慎勿言相見也。因為說。俗人多罪累。死皆入惡道。誠心懺悔。可滅之。乃令洗浴清淨。被僧衣。為懺悔。且而別去。至十九年。法義病死。埋於野外。貧無棺槨。以薪柴不瘞之。七日而蘇。自推去。出歸家。家人驚愕。審問知活。乃喜。法義自說。初死。有兩人來取。乘空南行。至官府。入大門。又巡巷。左右皆是官曹。門閭相對。不可勝數。法義至一曹。見官人。遙責使者曰。是華州張法義也。本限三日至。何因乃淹七日。使者曰。法義家狗惡。兼有呪師神見打甚。因袒而示之背。背皆青腫。官曰。稽過多咎。與二十杖。言杖亦畢。血流灑地。官曰。可將法義過錄事。錄事署發文書。令送付判官。判官召主典。取法義案。案簿甚多。盈一床。主典對法義前。披撿之。其簿多先朱句畢。有末句者。典則錄之曰。貞觀十一年。法義父使刈禾。義反顧張目私罵。不孝。合杖八十。始錄一條。即見巖穴中僧來。判官起迎。問僧何事。僧曰。張義是貧道弟子。其罪並懺悔滅除。天曹案中已勾畢。今枉追來不合死。主典曰。經懺悔者。此案亦勾了。至如張目罵父。雖蒙懺悔。事未勾了。僧曰。若不如此。當取案勘之。應有福利。判官令主典將法義諮王。宮在東。殿宇宏壯。侍衛數千人。僧亦隨至王所。王起迎僧曰。師當直來耶。答曰。未當次直。有弟子張法義。被錄來此。其人宿罪。並貧道勾訖。未合死。主典又以張目事諮王。王曰。張目在懺悔後。不合免。然師為來。請可特放七日。法義謂僧曰。七日既不多時。復來恐不見師。請即住隨師。師曰。七日七年也。可急去。法義固請隨僧。僧因。請王筆書義掌作一字。又請王印。印之曰。可急去。還家修福。若後來不見我。宜以印呈王。王自當放汝也。法義乃辭之。僧令人送至其家。家內正黑。義不敢入。使者推之。遂活。覺在土中。甚輕虛。以手推排得出。因入山。就山僧修道。掌中所印之處文。不識然皆為瘡。終莫能愈。至今尚在。隴西王博居與法義近。委知之。為臨說云爾。

Zhang Fayi was a native of Zheng County in Huazhou. In his youth he was poor and rustic, and did not cultivate etiquette or restraint. In the tenth year of the Zhenguan era, he went into Mount Hua to gather firewood, and encountered a monk sitting within a rocky cavern. Fayi went up and spoke with him. As it happened, the sky grew dark, and having sat for a long time he could not return, so he stayed the night there. The monk served him ground pine and cypress to eat, and said to Fayi, 'I, a poor monk, have lived here long and do not wish outsiders to know. When you go out, patron, be careful not to speak of our meeting.' He then explained to him that worldly people have many sins and entanglements, and upon death all enter the evil destinies; but through sincere repentance, they can be eliminated. He then had him bathe cleanly, put on monk's robes, and performed repentance for him. At dawn they parted. In the nineteenth year, Fayi died of illness and was buried in the wilds. Being poor and without an inner or outer coffin, he was covered only with firewood and not buried deep. After seven days he revived, pushed it away himself, and returned home. His family was shocked and terrified, but upon examining and questioning him they knew he was alive, and rejoiced. Fayi himself recounted: When he first died, two men came to take him, and traveled south through the sky to a government office. Entering the great gate, they moved through alleys; on both sides were government bureaus, with gates facing one another, too numerous to count. Fayi arrived at one bureau and saw an official, who rebuked the messengers from afar, saying, 'This is Zhang Fayi of Huazhou. His deadline was to arrive in three days; why was he delayed for seven days?' The messenger said, 'Fayi's household dogs were fierce, and moreover there was an incantation master whose spirits struck us severely.' He then bared his back and showed it; the back was all bruised and swollen. The official said, 'Being late is heavily blameworthy; give them twenty lashes.' As soon as he spoke, the lashing was finished, blood spilling on the ground. The official said, 'Take Fayi over to the recording secretary.' The recording secretary's office issued a document ordering him sent to the judge. The judge summoned the chief clerk to fetch Fayi's dossier. The dossier registers were very numerous, filling a couch. The chief clerk unrolled and examined them in front of Fayi. Most of the registers had previously been checked off with red marks; for those that had not been checked off, the clerk recorded them, saying, 'In the eleventh year of the Zhenguan era, Fayi's father ordered him to reap grain; Fayi looked back with glaring eyes and secretly cursed him. This is unfilial; he should receive eighty lashes.' Just as he had recorded this one entry, they saw the monk from the rocky cavern arrive. The judge rose to greet him and asked the monk what business he had. The monk said, 'Zhang Fayi is this poor monk's disciple. His sins have all been eliminated through repentance, and have already been checked off in the records of the Celestial Bureau. Now he has been wrongly summoned here and ought not to die.' The chief clerk said, 'Those that have undergone repentance have indeed been checked off in this dossier. But as for glaring and cursing his father, although he received repentance, the matter has not yet been checked off.' The monk said, 'If that is not so, you should retrieve the dossier and investigate it; there should be meritorious blessings.' The judge ordered the chief clerk to take Fayi to consult the King. The palace was in the east, the halls magnificent, with several thousand attendants and guards. The monk also followed to the King's place. The King rose to greet the monk and said, 'Master, has your turn on duty arrived?' He replied, 'It is not yet my turn on duty. I have a disciple, Zhang Fayi, who was recorded and brought here. This man's past karma has all been checked off by this poor monk; he ought not to die.' The chief clerk also consulted the King regarding the glaring matter. The King said, 'The glaring occurred after the repentance; it ought not to be remitted. However, since the master has come to make this request, he may be specially released for seven days.' Fayi said to the monk, 'Seven days is not much time; if I come again, I fear I will not see you, Master. I request to stay and follow you immediately.' The monk said, 'Seven days means seven years. You should leave quickly.' Fayi firmly begged to follow the monk. Thereupon the monk requested the King's brush and wrote a character on Fayi's palm, and also requested the King's seal to stamp it, saying, 'You should leave quickly. Return home and cultivate merits. If later you do not see me, you should present this seal to the King, and the King will naturally release you.' Fayi then took his leave. The monk had someone escort him to his home. Inside the house it was pitch black, and Fayi did not dare enter. The messenger pushed him, and he revived. Feeling that he was in the earth, which was very light and loose, he pushed with his hands and was able to get out. He then entered the mountains and went to the mountain monk to cultivate the Way. The markings where he was stamped on his palm were unrecognizable, but they all turned into sores that could never heal, and they still remain to this day. Wang Bo of Longxi lived near Fayi and knew this thoroughly, and recounted it thus to me, [Tang] Lin.