弘明集 14.19

14.19

夫二諦差別道俗斯分。道法空寂。包三界以等觀。俗教封滯。執一國以限心。心限一國則耳目之外皆疑。觀等三界則神化之理常照。執疑以迷照群生所以永淪者也。詳檢俗教並憲章五經。所尊唯天所法唯聖。然莫測天形莫窺聖心。雖敬而信之。猶矇矇不了。況乃佛尊於天法妙於聖。化出域中。理絕繫表。肩吾猶驚怖於河漢。俗士安得不疑駭於覺海哉。既駭覺海則驚同河漢。一疑經說迂誕大而無徵。二疑人死神滅無有三世。三疑莫見真佛無益國治。四疑古無法教近出漢世。五疑教在戎方化非華俗。六疑漢魏法微晉代始盛。以此六疑信心不樹將溺宜拯。故較而論之。若疑經說迂誕大而無徵者。蓋以積劫不極世界無邊也。今世咸知百年之外必至萬歲。而不信積萬之變至於曠劫。是限心以量造化也。咸知赤縣之表必有四極。而不信積極之遠復有世界。是執見以判太虛也。昔湯問革曰。上下八方有極乎。革曰。無極之外復無極。無盡之中復無盡。朕是以知其無極無盡也。上古大賢據理訓聖千載符契懸與經合。井識之徒何知得異。夫以方寸之心謀己身而致謬。圓分之眸隔牆壁而不見。而欲侮尊經背聖說誣積劫罔世界。可為愍傷者一也。若疑人死神滅無有三世。是自誣其性靈而蔑棄其祖禰也。然則周孔制典昌言鬼神。易曰。游魂為變。是以知鬼神之情狀。既情且狀其無形乎。詩云。三后在天王配于京升靈上旻。豈曰滅乎。禮云。夏尊命事鬼敬神大禹所祇。寧虛誕乎。書稱周公代武云。能事鬼神姬旦禱親。可虛罔乎。苟亡而有靈則三世如鏡。變化輪迴孰知其極。俗士執禮而背叛五經。非直誣佛亦侮聖也。若信鬼於五經而疑神於佛說。斯固聾瞽之徒非議所及。可為哀矜者二也。若疑莫見真佛無益國治。則禋祀望祑亦宜廢棄。何者蒼蒼積空。誰見上帝之貌。茫茫累塊。安識后稷之形。民自躬稼社神何力。人造墉畷蜡鬼奚功。然猶盛其犧牲之費。繁其歲時之祀者。豈不以幽靈宜尊而教民美報耶。況佛智周空界神凝域表。上帝成天。緣其陶鑄之慈。聖王為人。依其亭育之戒。崇法則六天咸喜。廢道則萬神斯怒。今人莫見天形而稱郊祀有福。不覩金容而謂敬事無報。輕本重末。可為震懼者三也。若疑古無佛教近出漢世者。夫神化隱顯孰測始終哉。尋羲皇緬邈政績猶湮。彼有法教亦安得聞之。昔佛圖澄知臨淄伏石有舊像露盤揵陀勒見盤鵄山中有古寺基墌。眾人試掘並如其言。此萬代之遺徵。晉世之顯驗。誰判上古必無佛乎。列子稱。周穆王時。西極有化人來。入水火貫金石。反山川移城邑。乘虛不墜觸實不礙。千變萬化不可窮極。既能變人之形。又且易人之慮。穆王敬之若神事之若君。觀其靈跡乃開士之化。大法萌兆已見周初。感應之漸非起漢世。而封執一時。為歎息者四也。若疑教在戎方化非華夏者。則是前聖執地以定教。非設教以移俗也。昔三皇無為五帝德化。三王禮刑七國摧勢。地常諸夏。而世教九變。今反以至道之源。鏡以大智之訓。感而遂通。何往不被。夫禹出西羗舜生東夷。孰云地賤而棄其聖。丘欲居夷聃適西戎。道之所在寧選於地。夫以俗聖設教猶不繫於華夷。況佛統大千。豈限化於西域哉。案禮王制云。四海之內方三千里。中夏所據亦已不曠。伊洛本夏而鞠為戎墟。吳楚本夷而翻成華邑。道有運流而地無恒化矣。且夫厚載無壃寰域異統北辰西北。故知天竺居中今以區區中土稱華以距正法。雖欲距塞而神化常通。可為悲涼者五也。若疑漢魏法微晉代始盛者。道運崇替未可致詰也。尋沙門之修釋教。何異孔氏之述唐虞乎。孔修五經垂範百王。然春秋諸侯莫肯遵用。戰代蔑之將墜于地。爰至秦皇復加燔燼。豈仲尼之不肖而詩書之淺鄙哉。邇及漢武始顯儒教。舉明經之相。崇孔聖之術。寧可以見輕七國而遂廢於後代乎。案漢元之世。劉向序仙云。七十四人出在佛經。故知經流中夏其來已久。逮明帝感夢而傅毅稱佛。於是秦景東使而攝騰西至。乃圖像於開陽之觀。藏經於蘭臺之室。不講深文。莫識奧義。是以楚王修仁潔之祠。孝桓建華蓋之祭。法相未融。唯神之而已。至魏武英鑒書述妙化。孫權雄略造立塔寺。晉武之初機緣漸深。耆域耀神通之跡。竺護集法寶之藏。所以百辟搢紳。洗心以進德。萬邦黎獻。刻意而遷善。暨晉明叡悟秉一捿神。手畫寶像表觀樂覽。既而安上弘經於山東。什公宣法於關右。精義既敷實相彌照。英才碩智。並驗理而伏膺矣。故知法雲始於觸石。慧水基乎濫觴。教必有漸神化之常限。感應因時非緣如何。故儒術非愚於秦而智於漢。用與不用耳。佛法非淺於漢而深於晉。明與不明耳。是知五經恒善而崇替隨運。佛化常熾而通塞在緣。一以此思可無深惑。而執疑莫悟。可為痛悼者六也。夫信順福基迷謗禍門。而況蒙蒙之徒多不量力。以己所不知而誣先覺之遍知。以其所不見而罔至人之明見。鑒達三世反號邪僻。專拘目前自謂明智。於是迷疑塞胸謗讟盈口。輕議以市重苦。顯誹以賈幽罰。言無錙銖之功。慮無毫釐之益。逝川若飛藏山如電。一息不還奄然後世。報隨影至悔其可追。夫神化茫茫幽明代運。五道變化于何不足。天宮顯驗。趙簡秦穆之錫是也。鬼道交報。杜伯彭生之見是也。修德福應。殷戊宋景之驗是也。多殺禍及。白起程普之證是也。現世幽微備詳典籍。來生冥應布在尊經。但緣感理奧因果義微。微難領故略而不陳。前哲所辯關鍵已正。輕率鄙懷繼之于末。雖文匪珪璋而事足鞶鑑。惟愷悌君子自求多福焉。

Now, the two truths differ, and thus the way of liberation and secular life are demarcated. The Dharma is empty and quiet; it encompasses the three realms to view them impartially. Secular teachings are confined and stagnant; they cling to a single kingdom to restrict the mind. When the mind is restricted to a single kingdom, everything beyond the reach of ears and eyes is doubted. When the view impartially encompasses the three realms, the principle of divine transformation is constantly illumined. Clinging to doubt so as to obscure illumination is why the multitude of beings are forever submerged. If one closely examines secular teachings, they all take the Five Classics as their model: what they revere is only Heaven, and what they emulate is only the sages. Yet none can fathom Heaven's form, and none can peer into the minds of the sages. Though men revere and believe in them, they remain dim and unenlightened. How much more so is the Buddha more venerable than Heaven and the Dharma more wondrous than the sages! His transformation extends beyond the mortal domain; its principles transcend mundane bounds. Jianwu was still frightened [by Jieyu's words as vast as] the Milky Way; how could secular scholars not be perplexed and terrified by the ocean of awakening? Being terrified by the ocean of awakening, their astonishment matches [Jianwu's fear of] the Milky Way. First, they doubt that the scripture's teachings are wildly fabricated, grandiose, and without verification. Second, they doubt, holding that when man dies the spirit is extinguished, and there are no three times. Third, they doubt because none sees the true Buddha, so he is of no benefit to the governance of the realm. Fourth, they doubt because antiquity had no Dharma teachings, which only recently emerged during the Han dynasty. Fifth, they doubt because the teachings arose in barbarian regions, so their transformation is not meant for Chinese customs. Sixth, they doubt because the Dharma was faint in the Han and Wei, only flourishing in the Jin period. Because of these six doubts, their faithful mind is not established; about to drown, they ought to be rescued. Hence I discuss and compare them. As for those who doubt that the scriptures' teachings are wildly fabricated, grandiose, and without verification, it is simply because accumulated kalpas are inexhaustible and worlds are boundless. People of the present age all know that beyond a hundred years there must be ten thousand years, yet they do not believe that the transformations of accumulated myriad [years] reach to vast kalpas. This is restricting the mind to measure the creation of the cosmos. They all know that beyond the Red County there must be the four extremities, yet they do not believe that far beyond the extremities there are further worlds. This is clinging to [narrow] views to judge the Great Emptiness. Formerly, Tang asked Ge: 'Do the upper, lower, and eight directions have an extremity?' Ge said: 'Beyond the boundless there is again the boundless; within the inexhaustible there is again the inexhaustible. From this, I know it is boundless and inexhaustible.' The great worthies of high antiquity instructed sages based on principle; across a thousand years their tallies match, coinciding from afar with the scriptures. How could men of well-frog understanding know the extraordinary? When, with a mind only a square inch in size, one schemes for one's own body and yet falls into error, and with pupils of a rounded fraction one cannot see through walls, yet one wishes to insult the revered scriptures, turn against the teachings of the sages, slander the accumulated kalpas, and deny the [countless] worlds—this is the first thing to be lamented. If they doubt, holding that when man dies the spirit is extinguished and there are no three times, they are slandering their own spiritual nature and despising their ancestors. Indeed, when the Duke of Zhou and Confucius instituted the canons, they spoke openly of ghosts and spirits. The Classic of Changes says: 'The roaming soul undergoes transformation; by this one knows the nature and circumstances of ghosts and spirits.' Since they have both nature and circumstance, how could they lack form? The Classic of Poetry says: 'The three former kings are in Heaven; King [Wen] is paired [with God] in the capital,' and 'His ascending spirit reached the high heavens'—how could they be said to be extinguished? The Classic of Rites says: 'The Xia revered the mandates [of Heaven], served ghosts, and respected spirits'—this was revered by the Great Yu; could it be empty and fabricated? The Classic of Documents records the Duke of Zhou offering himself in place of King Wu, saying: 'I am able to serve ghosts and spirits'—Ji Dan prayed for his kin; could this be empty and false? If in death there is a spirit, then the three times are like a mirror: who can know the limit of transformations and samsāra? Secular scholars cling to rites while turning their backs on the Five Classics; this is not only slandering the Buddha, but also insulting the sages. If one believes in ghosts from the Five Classics but doubts the spirit in the Buddha's preachings, such people are truly deaf and blind, beyond the reach of discussion. This is the second thing to be pitied. If they doubt because none sees the true Buddha and thus he is of no benefit to the governance of the realm, then the pure sacrifices and offerings from afar ought also to be discarded. Why? In the vast, azure sky, who has seen the countenance of the Lord on High? In the boundless mounds of earth, how can one recognize the form of Lord Millet? The people till the fields themselves; what strength does the God of the Soil exert? Men build ramparts and dykes; what merit do the Zha spirits have? Yet they still lavish expenses on sacrificial animals and multiply the seasonal offerings—is it not because unseen spirits ought to be revered, and because the people should be taught fine recompense? How much more so is the Buddha's wisdom all-pervasive throughout the realm of space, and his spirit concentrated beyond the mortal domain! The Lord on High completes Heaven owing to [the Buddha's] fashioning compassion; sage kings rule people relying on [the Buddha's] nurturing precepts. When the Dharma is venerated, the six heavens all rejoice; when the Way is abandoned, the myriad spirits grow furious. Today, though people do not see Heaven's form, they claim that the suburban sacrifice brings blessings; yet when they do not see his golden countenance, they say that revering and serving him brings no recompense. Neglecting the root and prizing the branches—this is the third thing to cause dread. If they doubt because antiquity had no Buddhist teachings and they only recently emerged during the Han dynasty: the concealment and manifestation of divine transformations—who can fathom their beginning and end? Tracing back to Fuxi, it is remote, and even his governing achievements are obscured; if there were Dharma teachings there, how could one hear of them? Formerly, Fotudeng knew that at Linzi there was an old image and a dew basin under a buried stone; Gandhara saw the foundations of an ancient monastery in Mount Panchi. When the multitude tried digging, it was all just as they had said. These are the surviving proofs of ten thousand generations, the evident verifications in the Jin period! Who can judge that there was definitely no Buddha in high antiquity? Liezi states: 'In the time of King Mu of Zhou, a transformed man came from the western extremity; he entered water and fire, pierced metal and stone, turned mountains and rivers around, and moved walled cities; he mounted the void without falling and touched solids without hindrance. His thousand changes and myriad transformations could not be exhausted. He could change a person's shape and alter a person's thoughts. King Mu revered him like a spirit and served him like a lord.' Viewing his miraculous traces, it was indeed the transformation of an opening being [bodhisattva]. The dawn of the Great Dharma was already visible at the beginning of the Zhou; the gradual emergence of resonance and response did not begin in the Han dynasty. Yet to cling stubbornly to a single period—this is the fourth thing over which to sigh. If they doubt because the teachings arose in barbarian regions, so their transformation is not meant for China: that would mean the former sages clung to locality to establish teachings, rather than setting up teachings to alter customs. In antiquity, the Three Sovereigns practiced non-action and the Five Emperors governed with moral transformation; the Three Kings used rites and punishments, and the Seven States destroyed each other through force. The land remained the lands of Xia, yet the secular teachings changed nine times. Now, conversely, with the fountainhead of the Utmost Way and mirroring the instructions of Great Wisdom, when stimulated it penetrates everywhere—whither would it not reach? Yu came from the Western Qiang, and Shun was born among the Eastern Yi: who says their land was lowly and thus discards their sagehood? Confucius wished to dwell among the Yi, and Laozi went to the Western Rong: does the place where the Way resides choose its territory? If secular sages in setting up teachings were still not bound by the distinction of Chinese and barbarian, how much more so with the Buddha who commands a great chiliocosm—how could his transformation be confined to the Western Regions? According to the 'Royal Regulations' in the Classic of Rites: 'Within the four seas it is three thousand li square'; the territory held by the Central Xia was already not vast. The Yi and Luo rivers were originally Xia territory but became ruins of the Rong; Wu and Chu were originally barbarian but turned into Chinese towns. The Way has its flowing movements, while land has no permanent transformation. Moreover, the Earth is boundless, realms have differing systems, and the Northern Dipper lies to the northwest; hence we know that Tianzhu resides in the center. Now, using a trivial central land to call oneself Chinese and resist the true Dharma—though one may wish to block it, divine transformations are ever-penetrating. This is the fifth thing to cause sorrow. If they doubt because the Dharma was faint in the Han and Wei and only flourished in the Jin period: the rise and fall in the course of the Way cannot be interrogated like this. Tracing the śramaṇas' cultivation of Śākyamuni's teachings, how does it differ from Confucius's recounting of Tang and Yu? Confucius compiled the Five Classics to leave a model for a hundred kings. Yet the feudal lords of the Spring and Autumn period refused to comply with and apply them; during the Warring States period they were despised and nearly fell to the ground. Then, under the First Emperor of Qin, they were burned to ashes. Was this because Confucius was unworthy, or that the Odes and Documents were shallow and base? Only when reaching Emperor Wu of the Han did Confucian teachings first become prominent: he raised ministers versed in the Classics and exalted the arts of the sage Confucius. Could it be that because they were slighted by the Seven States, they should have been discarded in later ages? According to the Han era of Emperor Yuan, Liu Xiang's Preface to the Immortals states: 'Seventy-four people appear in the Buddhist scriptures.' Thus we know that scriptures flowing into the Central Xia have a long history. Coming to Emperor Ming's sensing of the dream, Fu Yi spoke of the Buddha. Thereupon Qin Jing was sent east, and She Moteng and [Zhu Falan] arrived from the west. Images were painted at the Kaiyang Gate pavilion, and scriptures were stored in the Orchid Terrace chamber. Deep texts were not expounded, and no one recognized the profound meaning. Therefore, King of Chu practiced benevolent and pure sacrifices, and Emperor Xiaohuan established the canopy worship; the characteristics of the Dharma were not yet fully harmonized, and they merely treated it as a spirit. When Cao Cao with his heroic insight wrote an account of the wondrous transformation, and Sun Quan with his grand strategy erected stupas and monasteries, by the beginning of Emperor Wu of the Jin, the faculties and conditions gradually deepened. Jīvaka displayed the traces of divine penetration, and Dharmarakṣa assembled the treasury of the Dharma jewel. Thereupon the various officials and the gentry cleansed their minds to advance their virtue; the people and the worthy across the myriad states applied their wills to move toward goodness. When Emperor Ming of the Jin, with his sharp awakening, embraced unity and settled his spirit, he personally painted precious images to display them for joyous viewing. Soon after, Master Dao'an propagated the scriptures east of the mountains, and Master Kumārajīva proclaimed the Dharma west of the pass. Once the refined doctrines were unfolded, the true mark shone ever brighter. Heroic talents and profound intellects verified the principles and bowed in conviction. Hence we know that the cloud of Dharma begins by brushing against the rock, and the water of wisdom has its origin in a small cup. Teachings must proceed by degrees; this is the constant boundary of divine transformation. Resonance and response follow the times; without conditions, what can be done? Thus, Confucian arts were not foolish in Qin and wise in Han: it was simply a matter of being used or not used. The Buddha's Dharma was not shallow in Han and deep in Jin: it was simply a matter of being clarified or not clarified. From this we know that the Five Classics are constantly good, while their exaltation or decline depends on destiny; Buddhist transformation is constantly blazing, while its opening or blockage lies in conditions. If one reflects with this alone, one will have no deep confusion. Yet clinging to doubts without awakening—this is the sixth thing to be deeply grieved. Indeed, faith and compliance are the foundation of blessing; delusion and slander are the gate to disaster. How much more so when the dim-witted multitude mostly do not measure their own strength, using what they do not know to slander the all-knowing omniscience of the First Awakened One, and using what they do not see to deny the clear vision of the Utmost Person! Seeing through the three times is conversely branded as heterodox; exclusively bound to what is before their eyes, they call themselves wise. Thereupon, confusion and doubt congest their chests, and slander fills their mouths. With frivolous discussions they purchase heavy suffering; with overt denunciation they incur unseen punishments. Their words have not the least grain of merit; their thoughts have not the slightest fraction of benefit. The flowing stream passes as if flying; hiding the boat in the valley vanishes like lightning. Once a single breath does not return, suddenly they arrive at future lives. Retribution follows like a shadow; can regret then be overtaken? Indeed, divine transformations are boundless; the unseen and the visible alternate in movement. How could the transformations in the five destinies ever be deficient? The manifest verification of heavenly palaces is shown in the gifts given to Zhao Jianzi and Duke Mu of Qin. The mutual retribution of the ghostly realm is shown in the appearances of Du Bo and Pengsheng. Cultivating virtue with responsive blessings is shown in the verifications of Wu Ding of Yin and Duke Jing of Song. The disaster incurred by much killing is proven by Bai Qi and Cheng Pu. The unseen subtleties of the present world are recorded in detail in classical texts; the dark responses of future lives are spread throughout the revered scriptures. But the principle of conditioned response is profound, and the meaning of cause and effect is subtle. Because subtle things are difficult to grasp, I have passed over them and not set them forth in detail. What former philosophers have argued has already correctly fixed the crucial points. With rash and humble intent, I add this at the end. Although the phrasing is not of jade, the matters are sufficient to serve as an adornment and a mirror. May the gentle and dignified gentleman seek much blessing for himself!