冥報記 1.13

1.13

Yan Gong of Yangzhou was originally a man of Quanzhou. His family was wealthy in possessions, and he had no brothers. His parents loved Gong and never went against anything he said. At the beginning of the Taijian era of the Chen dynasty, Gong came of age at twenty. He asked his parents, wishing to obtain fifty thousand cash to go to the market in Yangzhou to purchase goods. His parents agreed. Gong boarded a boat laden with the money and sailed downriver. Several tens of li before reaching Yangzhou, he encountered a boat on the river carrying softshell turtles, taking them to the market to sell. Gong inquired and learned the reason. Thinking that the turtles were destined to die, he asked to ransom them. The turtle merchant said, “My turtles are of large size; it will take a thousand cash each.” Gong asked how many there were, and he answered that there were fifty. Gong said, “I happen to have fifty thousand cash; I wish to ransom them.” The turtle merchant gladly took the money, handed over the turtles, and departed. Gong released all the turtles into the river and proceeded to Yangzhou with an empty boat. After parting from Gong, the turtle merchant traveled ten or so li, whereupon his boat sank and he drowned. That day, Gong's parents were at home. At dusk, fifty guests dressed in black came to their gate seeking lodging, and they delivered fifty thousand cash, handing it to Gong’s father, saying, “Your son is at the Yangzhou market and has sent this money home; please receive it according to the amount.” Gong’s father was astonished and bewildered, suspecting that Gong had died, and so questioned them closely. The guests said, “Your son is unharmed; he simply did not need the money, so he sent it home.” Gong’s father accepted it and noted that it was indeed the original money, yet it was completely wet with water. He detained the guests to prepare a meal for them. The guests stayed, and the next morning they bade farewell and departed. Over a month later, Gong returned. His parents were overjoyed. Afterward, they asked about the reasons for sending the money back, but Gong replied that he had done no such thing. His parents described the appearance of the guests and the month and day the money was sent back, which was indeed the day he had ransomed the turtles. Thereupon they knew that the fifty guests were all the ransomed turtles. Father and son were struck with wonder and sighing admiration. Consequently, they went together to Yangzhou to erect a vihāra exclusively for copying the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra, and subsequently moved their household to Yangzhou. Their family grew increasingly wealthy. They built large chambers and corridors to serve as rooms for copying sūtras, which were adorned and pure, and abundantly supplied. There were constantly several tens of scribes. The monastics and laity of Yangzhou revered and honored him together, calling him “Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Yan.” Once, a relative or acquaintance borrowed ten thousand cash of the sūtra funds from him, and Gong, having no choice, gave it to him. The borrower received the money and carried it home by boat. Mid-route, the boat capsized; the borrowed money fell into the water, but the people on the boat did not drown. That day, Gong entered the treasury and saw ten thousand wet cash as if just pulled from the water. Gong was very astonished at this. Later, he saw the person who had previously borrowed the money, and only then did he know that the wet money was the very money that had been borrowed. Furthermore, there was a merchant who went to Lake Gong; at the spirit shrine, he offered wine, food, and goods. That night he dreamed that the spirit returned the goods to him, saying, “I request you to take these on my behalf and offer them to Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Yan to support the expenses of the sūtras.” Moreover, the goods offered to the spirit were all there before him. Thereupon, the merchant marvelled at the anomaly, delivered them to Gong's place, and doubled the generous offering. Later, Gong went to the market to buy sūtra paper, but happened to be short of money. Suddenly he saw a man holding three thousand cash, who handed it to Gong, saying, “Sir, buy the paper.” Having finished speaking, he disappeared, and the money was before him. Wonders like this were not solitary occurrences. At the end of the Kaihuang era of the Sui, Gong died. His descendants carried on his endeavor. When bandits in the late Sui reached Jiangdu, they all made an agreement with one another not to enter Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Yan's ward. The ward’s people relied on this to remain safe and sound. His family still copies sūtras without cease to this day. (The whole prefecture and town witnessed this together, and many gentlemen of the capital also know of it. Xiao Rui, Prince Consort and Duke of Shouguo, investigated it most thoroughly.)