弘明集 10.101

10.101

辱告。頒示勅旨垂答臣下審神滅論。竊聞標機之旨非凡所窺。符神之契唯仁是極。故眾教徘徊理詣於惇善。群經委曲事盡於開濟。伏惟至尊先天製物。體道裁化理絕言初。思包象外攻塞異端。闡導歸一萬有知宗。人天仰式。信滄海之舟梁玄霄之日月也。神滅之論宜所未安。何者前聖摛教抑引不同。括而言之理實無二。易云。積善之家必有餘慶。積惡之家必有餘殃。孝經云。生則親安之。祭則鬼享之。雖未顯論三世其旨已著。薪盡火滅。小乘權教妙有湛然。究竟通說因情即理。理實可依。且慎終追遠民德歸厚。有國有家歷代由之。三才之寶不同降情。神滅之為論妨政寔多。非聖人者無法。非孝者無親。二者俱違難以行於聖世矣。弟子庸乏懵於至道。濫蒙頒訪所據凡淺。荷惕之誠追以無厝弟子馬元和和南。

I am honoured by your letter, promulgating the imperial decree answering the ministers to clarify the treatise on the extinction of the spirit. I have heard that the purport of the pivot cannot be peered into by ordinary minds, and matching the tally of the spirit can only be perfected by benevolence. Therefore, the various teachings hover and their principles arrive at cultivating goodness; the various scriptures wind about and their affairs exhaust deliverance and aid. Respectfully I consider that the Most Venerable precedes Heaven in regulating things, embodies the Dao in ordaining transformation, and his principles transcend the origin of words. His thoughts encompass what lies beyond form, attacking and blocking heterodox branches; expounding and guiding return to the One, the myriad existences know their ancestor. Humans and devas look up to him as a model; he is truly the boat and bridge of the dark sea, the sun and moon of the profound firmament. The treatise on the extinction of the spirit should not have been accepted. Why? The former sages set forth teachings, restraining or guiding differently, but summing them up, their principles are truly not two. The Yijing says: 'A family that accumulates good will surely have an excess of blessings; a family that accumulates evil will surely have an excess of calamity.' The Xiaojing says: 'When they are alive, one serves them with reverent joy; when they are sacrificed to, the spirits enjoy it.' Although they did not explicitly discourse on the three times, their purports are already evident. Fire goes out when the firewood is exhausted; this is the provisional teaching of the Hīnayāna. Wondrous existence is tranquil and clear; this is the definitive, comprehensive explanation. Approaching principle by means of sentiment, the principle can truly be relied upon. Furthermore, 'carefully attend to the end and pursue the distant, and the virtue of the people will return to thickness'—states and clans across generations have followed this. The treasures of the three powers do not lower their sentiments equally. The treatise on the extinction of the spirit brings much hindrance to governance. 'Those who deny the sage have no law; those who deny filial piety have no parents.' Violating both, it is hard to put into practice in a sagely era. I, your disciple, am mediocre, deficient, and ignorant of the supreme Dao. Unwarrantedly receiving your consultation, what I rely upon is shallow. Bearing gratitude and awe, I find no place to put myself. Your disciple Ma Yuanhe pays homage.