釋門自鏡錄 2.52

2.52

法界寺尼妙覺身當直歲。將錢二十六貫。憑開業寺僧玄湛。糴官粟二百碩。欠一十三貫錢粟。未還其錢。官典腹內。其僧苦索不得。遂經三年。至聖歷元年九月內。尼妙覺在房。忽得重病。遂有人追云。王追師。即隨使至閻羅王所。王問。阿師何以用寺家錢。尼妙覺云。一生不曾用寺家錢。王言。身當直歲。用錢十三貫糶粟。粟既不得。錢何不還。尼妙覺云。此錢僧玄湛將付官典。妙覺實不自用。王急遣覓僧玄湛對當其尼。當即於冥道中。兩日處處。覓僧玄湛不得。遂請王為追。王亦許追。其妙覺亡在冥道。覓僧之時。妙覺在床上臥。口數數云。急喚僧玄湛。傍人遂即為覓經兩日。覓得此僧病。尼既聞此僧來。不覺床上忽起大嗔云。為阿師被追喚太急。兩日處處覓師不得。脚總破盡。阿師何為不來。當時傍人撿尼脚下總破作瘡。尼語僧云。阿師莫不為急還寺家物。若不得物終不相放。王亦現追阿師。如是紛紜苦索其僧。玄湛遂即立帖求還。云到明年臘月內不還。乞現在房內物總與任阿師取。尼妙覺領得帖了還。至冥中具陳委曲云。僧玄湛總與知當。不關妙覺事。冥中官典猶自苦留不放。遂見隱法師邃法師勸云。事既不相關。何為不放。其冥中典吏。遂給妙覺抄。云放師去。其尼病遂差。其僧於後至臘月內。還錢遂了。兩寺徒眾並具知之。

The nun Miaojue of Fajie Monastery served as annual prefect. She took twenty-six strings of cash and entrusted the monk Xuanzhan of Kaiye Monastery to purchase two hundred shi of government grain. A balance of thirteen strings of cash remained unpaid for the grain, and the money had not yet been returned, remaining inside the custody of the government clerk. The monk demanded it earnestly without success, and three years went by. In the ninth month of the first year of the Shengli reign era, the nun Miaojue suddenly fell gravely ill in her room. Someone came to summon her, saying, 'The King summons the master!' She immediately followed the messenger to King Yama's place. The King asked, 'Why did you, Master, use the monastery's money?' The nun Miaojue said, 'In my entire life I have never used monastery money.' The King said, 'You personally served as annual prefect, and used thirteen strings of cash to purchase grain. Since you did not obtain the grain, why did you not return the money?' The nun Miaojue said, 'The monk Xuanzhan took this money and delivered it to the government clerk. Miaojue truly did not use it herself.' The King urgently dispatched someone to find the monk Xuanzhan to confront the nun. Straightway, for two days in the underworld roads, search was made everywhere, but the monk Xuanzhan could not be found. She then requested the King to issue a summons for him, and the King granted the summons. While Miaojue had perished and was on the underworld paths searching for the monk, Miaojue lay in bed, repeatedly uttering, 'Quickly summon the monk Xuanzhan!' Those nearby immediately searched for him, and after two days they found the monk, who was ill. When the nun heard that the monk had arrived, without realizing it she suddenly rose from the bed in great rage, saying, 'Because of you, Master, the summons was so urgent! For two days I searched everywhere for you without finding you, until my feet were entirely worn through with wounds! Why did you not come, Master?' Those nearby then examined the bottoms of the nun's feet, and found they were indeed entirely broken into sores. The nun said to the monk, 'Master, you must quickly return the monastery's property. If it is not obtained, they will never release you! The King is even now pursuing you, Master!' With such turbulent distress she demanded it of the monk. Xuanzhan immediately drew up a contract pledging repayment, stating that if he had not repaid it by the twelfth month of the following year, he begged that all the goods currently in his room be given over for the Master to take at will. The nun Miaojue took the contract and returned. Going back to the underworld, she fully stated the details: 'The monk Xuanzhan has undertaken full responsibility; it is no concern of Miaojue.' The underworld clerk was still stubbornly detaining her without release. Thereupon she saw Dharma Master Yin and Dharma Master Sui, who urged, 'Since the matter no longer concerns her, why do you not release her?' The underworld clerk then gave Miaojue a certificate, saying, 'Release the master to leave.' The nun's illness was immediately cured. Later, in the twelfth month, the monk completely repaid the money. The communities of both monasteries knew of this in full detail.