廣弘明集 22.88

22.88

Prostrating, I received the imperial ink decree, which humbly bestowed praise and encouragement upon me. Revering and receiving the silk words, my concentrated observance was filled with trembling awe. Xuanzang's karma and practice are empty and sparse, having erroneously joined the ranks of the Dharma. Fortunately, I belong to an era when the nine continents are united and the four seas free of peril. Relying on the imperial spirit to make a distant expedition, and depending on the prestige of the state to seek the Way, I exhausted the distant regions and braved dangers; although I exerted my foolish sincerity, gathering the extraordinary and cherishing the desolate truly depended upon the transforming influence of the court. The sūtras and treatises obtained have been translated under imperial decree; the completed scrolls have not yet received an explanatory preface. Prostrating, I reflect: Your Majesty's sagacious thoughts spread like clouds, and your heavenly flowers shine with radiant splendor. Their principles encompass the hexagrams and images; their melodies surpass the Xianchi and Daying. Striding across a thousand ages to send forth renown, you eclipse a hundred kings to spread true substance. I venture to consider that spiritual power is limitless; without spiritual thought, it is insufficient to explain its principles. The sacred teaching is profound and far-reaching; without sacred writing, how could its source be prefaced? Therefore, braving your awe-inspiring majesty, I ventured to hope for an inscription. The imperial gaze was lofty and distant, and did not grant permission. Examining myself and sighing repeatedly, we looked at one another at a loss for a plan. Xuanzang has heard that when the sun and moon cling to heaven, they dispense their radiance to doors and windows; when rivers and streams pattern the earth, they also send their moisture to crags and cliffs. The grand music of Yunhe does not withhold its sound from the deaf and ignorant; the wondrous treasures of gold and jade—how could they hide their lustre from the foolish and blind? Venturing to rely on this principle, I entreat you once again. I prostrate myself to beg that thunder and rain bend down to grant [favor], and the celestial patterns shine down from above, enduring as long as the Two Modes, and hanging aloft together with the two luminaries. In that case, the subtle words of the Vulture Peak will rely on the divine brush to become vast and far-reaching; the profound meaning of the Rooster Garden will be entrusted to brilliant words to be broadly declared. How could it merely be that the humble Sangha alone bears your gracious favor? It will also cause the wriggling, deluded beings to transcend worldly defilements! Respectfully presenting this memorial to be heard. Respectfully stated. The imperial decree thereupon granted it, saying to Prince Consort Gao Lüxing: 'Previously you asked Zhen to compose a stele for your father. Now my energy is not what it used to be. I wish to perform merit and write a preface for the Master of the Law; I cannot write the stele, as you know.' In the twenty-second year of Zhenguan, when visiting Yuhua Palace, the Emperor summoned Xuanzang and asked what sūtra or treatise he was translating. He replied that he was translating the Yogācārabhūmi. The Emperor asked what sage composed it and what doctrine it clarified. When he had answered in full, the Emperor ordered that the treatise be fetched and read it himself. He then issued an edict to make nine copies of the newly translated sūtras and treatises, and distribute them to the nine great prefectures including Yong, Luo, Xiang, Yan, Jing, and Yang. Xuanzang further requested an inscription for the scriptures; the Emperor then produced it, entitling it 'Preface to the Sacred Teachings of the Tripiṭaka of the Great Tang'. In the Mingyue Hall, he commanded Scholar Shangguan Yi of the Institute for the Advancement of Literature to read it before all the officials.