釋迦方志 2.118

2.118

自釋教之來振旦。開濟極焉。發悟疎通廓清塵染。其中瑞應具編前聞。且述數條用程無惑。昔士行尋教意在大乘。將發西域乃有留難。遂將經投火。經身不灰火為之滅。東達此土即放光經是也。又曇無讖獲涅槃經。至於涼土盜者夜竊。舉而不起稽首謝焉。周武之凌法也。像毀經焚咸見藏經。相從騰上奄入空際。如斯眾矣。不可具書。然弘教在人有國為本。度人立寺圖像譯經。世約相求。故敘由來昌明佛教。而漢魏以往固無得而聞。晉宋迄今輒略銓序。

Ever since the Śākya teaching arrived in China, its salvation has been supreme, awakening and opening minds, clearing away defilements. Auspicious omens among them are fully recorded in earlier records; here several items are briefly recounted to demonstrate there is no doubt. Formerly, Zhu Shixing sought the teaching with his heart set on the Mahāyāna; when he was about to depart the Western Regions, hindrances arose, so he threw the sūtra into a fire; the body of the sūtra was not reduced to ashes, and the fire went out on its account. Brought east to this land, this is the Fangguang jing. Again, Dharmakṣema obtained the Nirvāṇa Sūtra; when he reached the land of Liang, thieves stole it by night, but when they tried to lift it, it could not be raised, so they bowed their heads in apology. When Emperor Wu of the Zhou suppressed the Dharma, as images were destroyed and sūtras burned, everyone saw the storehouse of scriptures ascend together into the sky. Such occurrences are numerous and cannot be fully recorded. However, propagating the teaching depends on individuals, and having a state serves as the foundation: ordaining people, establishing monasteries, painting images, and translating scriptures are sought out in every generation. Therefore the origins are recounted to illustrate the flourishment of Buddhism. What occurred prior to the Han and Wei cannot be firmly known, but from the Jin and Song down to the present, it is here briefly set in order.