弘明集 12.82

12.82

比獲來示。并諸人所論。並未有以釋其所疑。就而為難殆以流遷。今復重申前意而委曲之。想足下有以頓白馬之轡知辯制之有耳。夫佛教之所重。全以神為貴。是故師徒相宗莫二其倫。凡神之明闇各有本分。分之所資稟之有本。師之為功在於發悟。譬猶荊璞而瑩拂之耳。若質非美玉。琢磨何益。是為美惡存乎自然。深德在於資始。拂瑩之功寔已末焉。既懷玉自中。又匠以成器。非君道則無以申。遂此生而通其為道者也。是為在三之重而師為之末。何以言之。君道兼師。而師不兼君。教以弘之。法以齊之。君之道也。豈不然乎。豈可以在理之輕而奪宜尊之敬。三復其理。愈所疑駭。制作之旨將在彼而不在此。錯而用之其弊彌甚。想復領其趣而貴其事。得之濠上耳。

Recently I received your note and the essays of various people, none of which has resolved my doubts; proceeding to debate further will likely only lead us astray. Now I shall once more reiterate my previous intention and present it in detail; I hope you will be able to halt the reins of your White Horse and know that debate must have its limits. What the Buddhist teaching values is entirely based on prizing the spirit; therefore, masters and disciples respect one another, with no peer to compare with this relationship. Generally speaking, the brightness or darkness of spirits each has its original allotment; that which this allotment draws upon has its original endowment. The merit of a master lies in evoking awakening, just like polishing and burnishing the rough jade of Jing. If the substance is not fine jade, what benefit is there in cutting and grinding? Thus beauty and ugliness reside in nature; profound virtue lies in the initial endowment, and the labor of burnishing is truly secondary. Having jade within oneself and then being crafted into an implement by an artisan—without the way of the ruler, there would be no means to develop this life and allow the realization of its Dao. Thus among the weight of the 'Three to be Served', the master is secondary. Why do I say this? The way of the ruler embraces the master, whereas the master does not embrace the ruler. Teaching to broaden them, laws to equalize them—this is the way of the ruler. Is it not so? How can one, based on the lesser principle, strip away the respect due to the sovereign? Reading through this principle repeatedly, I am all the more perplexed and astonished. The intention of creating rituals belongs to the former, not the latter; applying them mistakenly will only make the harm worse. I hope you will grasp the purport and prize the substance, attaining it as if on the river Hao.