廣弘明集 10.13

10.13

The Emperor decreed: "Although Buddhist doctrine is vast, We have also read it. Its words are mostly vacuous and grandiose, and its speech tends toward frivolous extravagance. As for sin, it loves to push it onto the past; as for lack of blessing, it points to the future. These matters have no proof, and practicing them brings much confusion. As for its exhortation to good, it does not differ from the ancient rites; as for its investigation into cutting off evil, how does it differ from mundane laws? Formerly We intended to abolish it, so We studied it temporarily; knowing with certainty that it is of no benefit, We eliminated it." Daolin memorialized: "The principle is profound and the words are grand; they cannot be measured by mundane sentiments. The time is distant and the matters are profound; how could petty capacities debate them? How could one, by the narrow vision of a single generation, reject the long-established consensus of eras? Clinging to delusion and ignoring awakening—is that not an error? Thus the Buddhist principle is consummate across the dharmadhātu, and the essence of the teaching encompasses both the external and internal. Discussing practice, it benefits both oneself and others; debating the fruit, it is eternal, blissful, and asaṃskṛta. Planting virtue, its kindness is vast; conferring the Way, it bestows boundless benefit on heaven and earth. Manifesting wonders, its spiritual penetrations are unhindered; spreading transformation, myriad states converge in return. Delivering beings, it aids enemies and kin alike; loving with compassion, it harms no conscious creature. Precepts eliminate external evils, and concentration halts faults of the mind; wisdom illuminates past and present, its insight penetrating myriad things. If every household practiced this, the people would all be well governed; if every state cultivated it, weapons of war would be useless. Now abandoning and not practicing it, where else will you seek benefit?" He then memorialized again: "Your servant has heard that filial piety is the utmost Way of Heaven, and obedience is the supreme nurture of Earth, by which one connects with the spirits and illuminates the four seas. Of the hundred conducts, what comes before filial piety? Formerly, when the way of the world was about to collapse and the house of Wei disintegrated, Emperor Taizu exerted his might to mend the heavens and quell difficulties, initiating the royal enterprise. Relying on this vast legacy, Your Majesty subsequently ascended the imperial throne, presiding over the four seas and extending your virtue throughout the world. Remembering this greatest debt, one can never repay it in a lifetime. How could you trust your own mind's intellect, stubbornly cleaving to your own interpretation, relying on your claws and fangs, and giving free rein to royal power to ruin and destroy the temples established by Taizu, smash the spiritual images worshipped by Taizu, abolish the scriptural teachings revered by Taizu, and degrade the venerable masters honored by Taizu? Moreover, one would not dare even damage the bed or desk of one's parents, let alone readily destroy what one's father personally served. The length or brevity of a state's mandate does not depend on the Buddha; the rise or fall of political governance has nothing to do with the Dharma. How could you trust a temporary consideration and incur the mockery of myriad generations? Risking death, your foolish servant insists that this must not be done."