集古今佛道論衡 4.12

4.12

顯慶三年冬十一月。上以冬雪未零憂勞在慮。思弘法雨雩祈雪降。爰構福場故能靜處中禁廣嚴法座。下　勅召大慈恩寺沙門義褒。東明觀道士張惠元等入內。於別中殿講道論始于斯時也。內外宮禁咸集法筵。釋李搜揚選窮翹楚。即斯榮觀終古無之。天子親問褒所來。邑於座具答。時道士李榮先昇高座。立本際義　勅褒云。承師能論義。請昇高座共談名理。便即登座。問云。既義標本際。為道本於際名為本際。為際本道名為本際。答云。互得進。難云。道本於際。際為道本。亦可際本於道。道為際元。答云。何往不通。並曰。若使道將本際互得相通。返亦可自然與道互得相法。答曰。道法自然。自然不法道。又並曰。若使道法於自然。自然不法道。亦可道本於本際。本際不本道。於是道士著難恐墜厥宗。但存緘默不能加報。褒即覆結難云。汝道本於本際。遂得道際互相本。亦可道法於自然。何為道自不得互相法。榮得重並既不領難。又不解結。便浪嘲云。法師喚我為先生。汝則便成我弟子。褒應聲挫云。今對聖言論。申明邪正用簡　帝心。芻蕘之嘲塵黷　天聽。義須棄置誠不可也。雖然無言不酬古有遺誥。聊以相答。我以事佛為師。我為佛之弟子。汝既稱為先生。汝應先道而生。我為弟子。佛是我師。汝若先道而生。汝則應為道祖　道士當時忸怩無對。麈尾垂頓聲氣俱下。褒因調曰。麈尾已萎鹿巾將折。語聲既䎡義鋒亦摧。李榮無對逡巡下席。尋即有　勅。令褒依法登座。便辭讓曰。義褒江表庸僧山中朽蘀。天光遠被漏影林泉。輕枉絲綸親臨御覽。然則佛法僧寶無上福田。梯蹬樂山津梁苦海。法身常住迹示興亡。像教住持取資帝力。伏惟　陛下道邁軒羲德隆堯舜。遊刃萬機弘顯三寶　皇后懋續宮闈　皇太子聲高啟頌。今為膏雨不降瑞雪未零。憂勞黎庶設齋祈福。紫庭之內建立勝幢。黃屋之中安施法座。欲使道風常扇佛日連輝。爰　詔緇黃各陳名理。玉堦闡玉京之教。金闕揚金口之言。以斯景福莊嚴聖御。伏願皇帝。金輪永轉玉鏡恒明。等敬北辰慶隆南嶽　皇后心明七耀體洞二儀。垂訓六宮母儀萬國　皇太子凝神望苑作睿春坊。布彩前星披圖下武。義褒海隅遺隱忽廁嵩華。以有怯之心登無畏之座。用木訥之口釋解頤之談云云。然則　聖旨斯臨課虛立義。今示義目厥號摩訶般若波羅蜜義。此乃大乘之象駕。方等之龍津。菩薩大師如來智母。摩訶大也。般若慧也。波羅蜜者到彼岸也。夫玄府不足盡其深華。故寄大以目之。水鏡未可喻其澄朗。假慧以明之。造盡不可得其崖極。借度以稱之云云。道士張惠元問曰。音是胡音。字是唐字。翻胡為唐。此有何益。答曰。字是唐字。音是梵音。譯梵為唐。彼此俱益　又難曰。胡音何能益人　答曰。佛出天竺。梵音為正教。流中夏利見甚多。云何無益　彼進無難返唱不通。褒體之曰。道士年耄今復發狂。答義若此。頓不思量　張曰。我那忽狂。褒調曰。子心不狂那出狂語。退亦佳矣。抒軸何為。張遂復座。姚道士次論義曰。般若非愚智。何以翻為智。答曰。為欲破愚癡。歎美稱為智　張責云。何者是愚癡而將智來破　答曰。愚人是道士將智以破之　張曰。我那忽是愚。答曰。般若非愚智。破愚嘆為智。道士若亡愚。我智藥亦遣。如是覆却數番。張遂飲氣吞聲周慞失守。無難坐默。褒因總調云。張生則逃狂無所姚道。又避愚無地。狂愚既退。李可進關　榮因問曰。義標般若波羅蜜。斯乃非彼非此。何以言到彼岸。答曰。般若非彼此。歎美為度彼　李曰。非彼非此歎度彼岸。亦應非彼非此歎到此岸。答曰。雖彼此兩亡歎彼令離此　李曰。歎彼不歎此。亦應非此不非彼　答曰。歎彼令離此。此離彼亦亡　李榮更無難。乃嘲曰。僧頭似彈丸。解義亦團欒。褒接聲曰。今一彈彈黃雀已射兩鵄鴞。彈彈黃雀足射射鵄鴞腰。于時李既發機被彈。張元乃拔箭助之。褒又調曰。李不自拔。張狂助亡姚生一愚。那不見助。姚即發言云云。褒合調曰。兩人助一人。三愚成一智。昔聞今始見。斯言無有從于時　天子欣然。內宮諠合　李榮俛首不已。便云。作如此解義。何須遠從吳地來。褒云。三吳勝地本出英賢。橫目苟身舊無人物云云。言訖下座。當斯時也。獨御黃老無敢抗言。可謂振論鼓於王庭。不異提婆之日。灑法音於帝掖。何殊身子之秋。事罷相從還栖公館。褒謂諸道士曰。駟不及舌明言非易。天下清論何有窮涯。等星曜之在天。類河山之鎮地。須便引用未待鄙言。何有面對　天顏輕為謔論。脫付法推罪當不敬賴。聖上慈弘恕其不逮不敬之罪。終難可逃。道士等大慚。張元曰。不須述也。褒曰。往不可咎來猶可追。請廣義方統詳名理。豈非釋李高軌不墜風流。勝負兩亡情理雙遣者也。筆者詳略褒之義道可曰。脫頴當時准的萬代。碎黃巾於黃屋。不藉漢師。列帝網於帝前。無勞秦陣。是以雲梯嬰帶。徒聞姚主之談。吞併合從。成祖宋君之美信矣。

In the winter, the eleventh month of the third year of the Xianqing era (658 CE), because the winter snow had not yet fallen, the Emperor was burdened with worry and concern. Thinking to widely spread the rain of the Dharma and to perform rainmaking prayers to supplicate for the falling of snow, he accordingly established a field of merit. Thus, in a quiet place within the imperial palace, he broadly adorned a Dharma seat. He issued an imperial decree summoning the śramaṇa Yibao of Da Cien Temple, the Daoist priest Zhang Huiyuan of Dongming Abbey, and others to enter the palace. The debates expounding the Dao held in a side hall began from this occasion. The inner and outer palace personnel all assembled at the Dharma feast. The elites of the Buddhist and Daoist traditions were thoroughly sought out and selected to the utmost extent; such a glorious spectacle had never occurred in all antiquity. The Son of Heaven personally inquired about where Yibao came from, and while on his seat he replied in full. At that time, the Daoist priest Li Rong first ascended the high seat and established the doctrine of the 'original limit' (benji). An imperial decree addressed Yibao: 'I have heard that the master is capable in debate. Please ascend the high seat and discuss the profound principles together.' He immediately mounted the seat and asked: 'Since your thesis marks the "original limit", is it that the Dao has its origin in the limit and is therefore called the "original limit", or is it that the limit has its origin in the Dao and is therefore called the "original limit"?' [Li Rong] replied: 'Both ways are admissible.' [Yibao] challenged him: 'If the Dao has its origin in the limit, then the limit is the origin of the Dao. Could it also be that the limit has its origin in the Dao, so that the Dao is the source of the limit?' [Li Rong] replied: 'Whichever way one goes, how could it not be coherent?' [Yibao] countered: 'If you allow the Dao and the original limit to be reciprocally coherent, conversely could it also be that naturalness and the Dao are reciprocally patterned on each other?' [Li Rong] replied: 'The Dao patterns itself on naturalness; naturalness does not pattern itself on the Dao.' [Yibao] countered again: 'If the Dao patterns itself on naturalness, while naturalness does not pattern itself on the Dao, then could it also be that the Dao has its origin in the original limit, while the original limit does not have its origin in the Dao?' At this, the Daoist priest was cornered by the objection; fearing that his school's doctrine would collapse, he merely remained silent and was unable to offer an answer. Yibao then pressed his objection further, saying: 'You say the Dao has its origin in the original limit, and thus allow the Dao and the limit to mutually originate each other; could it also be that the Dao patterns itself on naturalness? Why then can the Dao and naturalness not mutually pattern themselves on each other?' Having been pressed repeatedly, Rong could neither comprehend the objection nor untie the knot. He then began to jest recklessly, saying: 'The Dharma master calls me "elder-born" (xiansheng); you have therefore become my disciple!' Yibao immediately retorted to cut him down: 'Today, debating before the sacred presence, we are clarifying the heterodox and the orthodox to inform the imperial mind. Coarse jests of rustic woodcutters defile the heavenly hearing; properly speaking, they must be cast aside and are truly impermissible. Nevertheless, since antiquity there is an ancient precept that no word goes unreciprocated; so I shall briefly reply to you. I take serving the Buddha as my master, and I am a disciple of the Buddha. Since you are called "elder-born" (born before), you ought to have been born before the Dao! If I am a disciple, the Buddha is my master. If you were born before the Dao, you ought to be the ancestor of the Dao!' The Daoist priest was deeply embarrassed at that moment and had no reply; his chowry drooped, and his voice and energy sank together. Yibao thereupon taunted him: 'The chowry has already withered; the deer-skin cap is about to snap. The voice has already grown weak; the spearhead of doctrine is also broken.' Li Rong, having no answer, backed away and stepped down from the seat. Soon there was an imperial decree ordering Yibao to ascend the seat according to the ritual. He then modestly declined, saying: 'Yibao is an ordinary monk from south of the Yangzi, decayed bamboo sheath in the mountains. The heavenly light shines from afar, shedding its rays into the woods and springs, lightly deigning to send down the imperial decree so that I directly face the imperial gaze. Now, the Triratna of Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha is the unsurpassed field of merit, the stairway to the mountain of joy, the ferry bridge across the ocean of suffering. The Dharmakāya is eternally abiding, yet its traces display arising and falling; the maintenance of the semblance teaching relies on the imperial power. Prostrating, I reflect that Your Majesty's Dao surpasses Xuan[yuan] and [Fu]xi, and your virtue exceeds Yao and Shun; handling myriad affairs with effortless ease, you broadly manifest the Triratna. The Empress diligently carries on the palace virtues; the Crown Prince's renown resounds in praised hymns. Now, because fertilising rain has not descended and auspicious snow has not yet fallen, out of care and toil for the common folk you establish a fast to pray for blessings. Inside the purple court you erect the banner of victory; within the imperial yellow carriage-canopy you set out the Dharma seat. Desiring to make the wind of the Dao ever fan and the sun of the Buddha shine continuously, you have thereupon decreed that the black-robed and yellow-robed each set forth profound principles: expounding the teaching of the Jade Capital on the jade steps, and raising the words of the golden mouth at the golden palace gates, thereby using this immense blessing to adorn the sacred reign. I humbly pray that for the Emperor, the golden wheel will turn forever and the jade mirror remain perpetually bright, your veneration equal to the Northern Star and your fortune towering like the Southern Peak. May the Empress's mind be as bright as the seven luminaries and her person fathom the two forces [of Heaven and Earth], handing down instructions to the six palaces and serving as a maternal model to the myriad states. May the Crown Prince concentrate his spirit in the Wangyuan Palace and manifest wisdom in the Spring Quarter, spreading radiance to the front stars and unfolding the maps of succeeding martial virtue. As for Yibao, an obscure recluse from a maritime corner, I suddenly find myself intermingled with the heights of Song and Hua. With a fearful mind I ascend the fearless seat; with an inarticulate mouth I unfold remarks that provoke smiles.' And so forth. 'Now, as the sacred intention has deigned to reach me, bidding me to test emptiness and set up a thesis, I now present the topic of my thesis, whose title is "The Meaning of the Mahāprajñāpāramitā". This is the elephant carriage of the Mahāyāna, the dragon ferry of the Vaipulya, the great master of bodhisattvas, and the mother of wisdom of the Tathāgatas. "Mahā" is great; "prajñā" is wisdom; "pāramitā" is reaching the other shore. Because the dark mansion cannot exhaust its profound splendour, we provisionally designate it with "great"; because the water mirror cannot illustrate its pure clarity, we borrow "wisdom" to illuminate it; because striving to reach its end cannot attain its limits, we borrow "crossing over" to express it.' And so forth. The Daoist priest Zhang Huiyuan asked: 'The sound is a barbarian sound; the characters are Tang characters. Translating barbarian into Tang—what benefit is there in this?' [Yibao] replied: 'The characters are Tang characters; the sound is a Sanskrit sound. Translating Sanskrit into Tang benefits both this and that.' [Zhang] challenged again: 'How can a barbarian sound benefit people?' [Yibao] replied: 'The Buddha appeared in Tianzhu, where the Sanskrit sound is the correct teaching. Flowing into China, the beneficial appearances have been very numerous. How could there be no benefit?' The other could neither advance a challenge nor, turning back, could he assert incoherence. Yibao took pity on him and said: 'The Daoist priest is advanced in age and now falls into madness again! Replying to doctrinal points like this, he does not reflect at all.' Zhang said: 'How am I mad?' Yibao teased him: 'If your mind were not mad, how could you utter mad words? Withdrawing would be fine; why stay bound to the loom?' Zhang thereupon returned to his seat. The Daoist priest Yao next debated the doctrine, saying: 'Prajñā is neither foolishness nor wisdom; why is it translated as wisdom?' [Yibao] replied: 'In order to crush foolishness, it is praised and called wisdom.' Zhang reproached: 'What is foolishness, that one brings wisdom to crush it?' [Yibao] replied: 'The foolish person is the Daoist priest; wisdom is brought to crush him.' Zhang said: 'How am I foolish?' [Yibao] replied: 'Prajñā is neither foolishness nor wisdom; crushing foolishness, it is praised as wisdom. If the Daoist priest is devoid of foolishness, my medicine of wisdom is also discarded.' After several rounds of such rebuttals, Zhang choked back his breath, swallowed his voice, and became completely bewildered, having lost his ground. Having no counter-challenge, he sat in silence. Yibao then teased them comprehensively: 'Zhang has nowhere to flee from madness, while the Daoist Yao has no ground to escape foolishness. Now that the mad and the foolish have retreated, Li may approach the barrier!' Rong then asked: 'The thesis marks "prajñāpāramitā"; this is neither that [shore] nor this [shore]. Why speak of "reaching the other shore"?' [Yibao] replied: 'Prajñā is neither this nor that; it is praised as crossing over to that.' Li said: 'If, being neither that nor this, it is praised as crossing over to that shore, one should also, being neither that nor this, praise it as reaching this shore.' [Yibao] replied: 'Although both that and this are annihilated, praising that causes one to depart from this.' Li said: 'Praising that and not praising this—it should also be neither this nor not that.' [Yibao] replied: 'Praising that causes one to depart from this; when this is departed from, that is also annihilated.' Li Rong had no further challenges, so he joked: 'The monk's head is like a pellet; his understanding of the doctrine is also round and rolling!' Yibao responded immediately: 'Now one pellet strikes the yellow sparrow, / And has already shot two owls! / The pellet strikes the yellow sparrow's foot; / The shot hits the owls' waists.' At that time, since Li had released his mechanism and been struck by the pellet, Zhang Yuan pulled out his arrow to assist him. Yibao teased again: 'Li cannot extricate himself, / And mad Zhang helps him to perish! / The Daoist Yao's single foolishness— / Why does he not see assistance?' Yao then spoke, and so forth. Yibao mocked them all together: 'Two persons assisting one person; / Three fools make one wise man! / Heard of in the past, only now seen today; / These words have nowhere to follow.' At that time, the Son of Heaven was delighted, and the inner palace was filled with harmonious acclaim. Li Rong bowed his head repeatedly and then said: 'If you have such an understanding of doctrine, why did you have to come all the way from the land of Wu?' Yibao said: 'The excellent land of the Three Wu originally produces outstanding sages; people with horizontal eyes and four-legged bodies have never had men of talent.' And so forth. When he finished speaking, he descended from the seat. At that time, he alone held off the Huang-Lao masters, and none dared to resist in argument. It may truly be said that sounding the drum of debate in the royal court was no different from the day of [Ārya]deva, and sprinkling the sound of the Dharma in the imperial palace was no other than the time of Śāriputra. When the event ended, they accompanied each other back to lodge in the official quarters. Yibao said to the Daoist priests: 'A team of four horses cannot overtake the tongue; making clear speech is not easy. When has pure conversation under Heaven ever had an end? It is like the celestial bodies in the sky, resembling the rivers and mountains that stabilise the earth. You should directly cite principles without waiting for my vulgar words. How could you face the Heavenly Countenance and lightly engage in bantering discussions? If you were handed over to the law for investigation, your crime would surely be irreverence! Fortunately, the Sacred Sovereign's great compassion pardoned your shortcomings; yet the crime of irreverence is ultimately hard to escape.' The Daoist priests were greatly ashamed. Zhang Yuan said: 'There is no need to recount it.' Yibao said: 'What is past cannot be blamed, but what is to come can still be pursued. Please broaden the methods of doctrine and comprehensively examine the profound principles. Would this not mean that the noble tracks of Śākya and Li do not let their refined tradition fall, where victory and defeat are both forgotten, and feelings and principles are both cast aside?' The compiler states: Examining the essentials of Yibao's doctrinal paths, it may be said that his talent stood out in his time and served as a standard for myriad generations. Smashing the Yellow Turbans within the yellow carriage-canopy did not rely on the Han armies; arraying the imperial net before the Emperor did not burden the Qin battle-lines. Therefore, scaling ladders and waist-belts were heard of in vain in the discussions of Master Yao; swallowing up and joining the horizontal and vertical alliances truly completed the glory of the Duke of Song.