廣弘明集 13.12

13.12

The Bodhisattva says: According to the Collected Explanations of the Five Thousand Characters by Lu Jingyu, Dai Shen, Wei Chuxuan, and others, as well as the Examination of Categories of Meaning by Emperor Yuan of the Liang and Zhou Hongzheng, 'Supreme' has four meanings, referring to the Three Sovereigns and Yao and Shun. This means that in high antiquity there were these rulers of great virtue who oversaw the ten thousand people, and therefore they are called 'Supreme.' Guo Xiang and Zhuangzi state: 'The worthy of the time is the ruler; he whose talent is not suited to the age is the minister.' Laozi was neither emperor nor sovereign, and does not fall within the scope of these four categories. On what canonical authority does he arbitrarily claim the title 'Supreme'? Examining Daoist scriptures such as the Xuanmiao Jing, the Zhongtai Zhutao Yuzha Jing, and the Chusai Ji, it states that Laozi was born of Mother Li, and makes no mention of a 'Profound and Marvellous Jade Maiden.' Since it is not an orthodox account, it is all the more a fabricated and erroneous assertion. The Jade Register of the Immortals says: 'Immortals have no wives, and jade maidens have no husbands; though they receive a female body, they never give birth.' If there were such an auspicious sign, it would indeed be praiseworthy. Why then is there no text in the Records of the Grand Historian, and no record in the Book of Zhou? Seeking truth amidst falsehood, should one believe the words of deceivers?