集古今佛道論衡 4.46

4.46

維唐龍朔元年。京師西華觀道士朝散大夫郭行真所造。夫以。一實之道。理越於天仙。大覺之言。義該於空有。至如。陳思辨道。乃涉方士之科。何晏敘甜。未在聖門之列。然則道有小大之別。聖亦昇沈之儀。老君柱史之員。立教非為其主。釋乃法王之位。訓範統於幽明。故二篇述作。顯於山之論。兩諦大造。程於周氏之宗。所以㳂古至今罕能詳覈。余承正則。義取真乘。造佛書經無替心曲。用茲上善通被識情。願解大道發無上意。

In the first year of the Longshuo era of the Tang, made by Guo Xingzhen, Grand Master for Court Discussion and Daoist priest of Xihua Abbey in the capital. The path of the One Truth has principles exceeding those of heavenly immortals; the words of the Great Awakened One have meanings encompassing both emptiness and existence. As for Cao Zhi's discourse on the Dao, it touches merely on the category of esoteric adepts; He Yan's essay on sweetness is not ranked among the sacred gate. Thus the Dao has distinctions of great and small, and the sage likewise has degrees of rising and sinking. Lord Lao held the post of archivist beneath the pillar; his establishing of a teaching was not done as a sovereign. Śākya occupies the rank of dharmarāja; his instructional models encompass the unseen and the seen. Thus the composition of the two fascicles was made manifest in the discourse of Guan Yin; the great creation of the two truths was laid down in the lineage of the Zhou family. Therefore, from antiquity down to the present, few have been able to investigate this thoroughly. Following the correct rule and grasping the meaning of the True Vehicle, I make Buddhas and copy scriptures without altering my innermost intent. Using this supreme goodness to comprehensively cover all conscious beings, I vow that they understand the Great Dao and produce the unexcelled resolve.