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Source: pramana-mt · Machine translation by Gemini 3.8 Flash (2026-10-21) of in.bauddha.taisho.2106 · Machine output without human authorship: no copyright is claimed (CC0 1.0). The original text keeps its own…

1 — 84 parts
2 — 55 parts
3 — 99 parts

Text

1.1

Composed in the first year of the Linde reign era of the Tang by the śramaṇa Daoxuan of Zhongnan Mountain.

The beneficial appearance of the Three Jewels has an ancient origin. Yet because faith and denigration vie with one another, there are conditions for sympathetic responses. From the Han until the Tang, for more than six hundred years, numinous signs have been felt afar, as can be sought throughout various records. The divine transformations are without fixed bounds, awaiting an opportune juncture to be stirred into response. Luminous auspicious signs appear and vanish, inspiring faith in their own time; majestic images cast down their forms, displaying traces for ten thousand generations. Some appear in the past, and some are manifested in the future, brightly displayed before both monastics and laity, generating faith among both the deluded and the awakened. Therefore, I have gathered the essentials and formed this work in three fascicles.

1.3

First, the manifestation of stūpas through relics is clarified; next, numinous images descending are arranged; and afterwards, sacred temples, auspicious sūtras, and divine monks are adduced.

1.4

First, the manifestation of stūpas through relics is clarified. In the past, when the Tathāgata was walking for alms, a boy was playing by the roadside. Taking sand and earth for rice flour, he went to welcome [the Buddha] and offered this earthen flour. The Buddha accepted it because of [his intention], and instructed his attendant to turn it into an earthen wash to coat the Buddha's dwelling room, which covered the entire south side. [The Buddha] prophesied, saying: "One hundred years after my extinction, this boy will be king over Jambudvīpa, within forty li into the sky and beneath the earth. All ghosts and spirits will be his vassals. He will open the previous eight stūpas to obtain their relics, and within a single day and night, he will employ the ghosts and spirits to build eighty-four thousand stūpas." This is described extensively in various sūtras, and so is not fully recorded here. (This land is the eastern border of the continent, so the appearance of stūpas here gives no cause for doubt.) "Śarīra" is the western speech of Brahmā; here it is called "skeletal body." (Fearing it might be confused with the bones of ordinary persons, it is distinguished according to its original name.)

1.5

1. Conditions of the Mao stūpa in Kuaiji under the Western Jin
2. Conditions of the Changgan stūpa in Jinling under the Eastern Jin
3. Conditions of the Dongcheng stūpa in Qingzhou under the Shi Zhao
4. Conditions of the Puban stūpa in Hedong under the Yao Qin
5. Conditions of the southern stūpa on Mount Qi in Qi Prefecture under the Zhou
6. Conditions of the ancient stūpa east of the city of Gua Prefecture under the Zhou
7. Conditions of the Dacheng Temple stūpa inside the city of Sha Prefecture under the Zhou
8. Conditions of the western stūpa of the old capital in Luo Prefecture under the Zhou
9. Conditions of the Guzang County stūpa in Liang Prefecture under the Zhou
10. Conditions of the Shandan County stūpa in Gan Prefecture under the Zhou
11. Conditions of the southern stūpa on Mount Huo in Jin Prefecture under the Zhou
12. Conditions of the ancient stūpa east of the city of Fazhou under the Qi
13. Conditions of the Fugan Temple stūpa in Yi Prefecture under the Sui
14. Conditions of the Jinyuan County stūpa in Yi Prefecture under the Sui (with the Luo County stūpa appended)
15. Conditions of the Qihua Temple stūpa in Zheng Prefecture under the Sui
16. Conditions of the Miaole Temple stūpa in Huai Prefecture under the Sui
17. Conditions of the Jingming Temple stūpa in Bing Prefecture under the Sui
18. Conditions of the Yushe County stūpa in Bing Prefecture under the Sui
19. Conditions of the Linhuang County stūpa in Wei Prefecture under the Sui
20. Miscellaneous accounts of buried treasures in the mountains and rivers of the Divine Continent

1.6

First: The Mao stūpa in Kuaiji under the Western Jin. It is presently within the boundaries of Mao County, three hundred and seventy li east of Yue Prefecture; forty li east to the sea; seventy li southeast of the county [seat]; and twenty-five li south to Wu Village. According to earlier biographies, in the second year of the Taikang reign era of the Jin, there was a man named Liu Sahe from Lishi in Bing Prefecture. Born into a family of hunters, he made hunting his occupation. Falling ill, he died. Upon reviving, he saw an Indian monk who said to Sahe: "Your sins are heavy; you should enter hell. Pitying your ignorance, I release you for now. Presently, in Luoxia, the city of Qi, Danyang, and Kuaiji, there are ancient stūpas and stone images that floated down the river, all made by King Aśoka. You must diligently seek them out, pay homage, and repent, to be spared this suffering." After awakening, he reformed his former habits, went forth from household life to study the Path, and changed his name to Huida. As told, he traveled south to the seashore of Kuaiji. He sought everywhere among the mountains and marshes, but could discern no foundations or traces. Filled with grief and sorrow, Huida had nowhere to turn for help. Suddenly, in the middle of the night, he heard the sound of a bell beneath the earth. He immediately marked the place by carving wood to make a spire. Within three days, a precious stūpa and relics suddenly welled forth from the earth. The numinous stūpa's appearance was blue-green, resembling stone yet not stone, one foot and four inches high and seven inches square, with a five-tiered dew basin. It seemed to have been made in Khotan of the Western Regions. Its sides opened into windows, with heavenly bells all around. Inside was suspended a bronze chiming stone; whenever there was the sound of a bell, one suspected it came from this chiming stone. Encircling the stūpa's body were various images of buddhas, bodhisattvas, vajra-holders, holy monks, and diverse beings, their forms extremely minute. When one gazed intently without blinking, hundreds of thousands of images appeared, their faces, eyes, hands, and feet all complete. This can truly be called a divine work and sacred trace, beyond the reach of human wisdom. Now it is kept inside a large wooden stūpa. On the eight royal days, it is carried in procession through the cities and villages, and none who see it fail to bow down and recite the Buddha's name. The relics are at the base of the wooden stūpa. To the left side of the stūpa there are many ancient traces. Beside the stūpa is Zhuji County, the site of the old capital of Yue, which was composed of the four counties of Gouzhang, Mao, Shan, and so forth. One hundred and seven li northeast of Zhuji, in Dabu Township, is the ancient city of Yue, three li in circumference. The geographical gazetteers say that during the mid-period of Yue, its capital was located here. The remaining foundations of its detached palaces and separate lodges still exist, all overgrown with camphor trees, mostly beside the gates and stairs, standing in ranks in dense and charming array. During wind, rain, and the dark of the moon, the sounds of bells and chimes can still be heard. To this day, the common people mostly regard it with awe and reverence. Its traces are manifold. One hundred li northwest of Zhuji, in Xinyi Township, is Master Xu's Cliff. The regional gazetteers say that in the Jin period, Xu Xun of Gaoyang, whose courtesy name was Xuandu, was a friend of the śramaṇa Zhi Daolin. They often accompanied each other in touring mountains and waters, and upon arriving here, he settled down. The Jin summoned [Xu] Xun to be an aide to the Minister of Education, but he declined the summons. Later he went to Jianye, and all the city flocked to see him. Liu Hui, who served as Governor of Danyang and was famous in his time, visited him several times a day, sighing: "Seeing Master Xu now makes me feel frivolous." The metropolitan governor established a retreat within the commandery for him to reside in, and by the Liang dynasty, this building was still standing. After Assistant Xu returned, Governor Liu once visited his retreat and said: "Under the clear wind and bright moon, when do I not constantly think of Xuandu?" One hundred and thirty li southwest of Gouzhang County, in Ming Township, are mountains such as Siming, Tiantai, Chicheng, and Baobu, praised as the finest under heaven. One hundred and forty li northeast, there is the Shatang Road, several zhang wide, entering the sea for over a hundred li. The geographical gazetteers say this was where the First Emperor of Qin pursued Master Anqi to Penglai, stopping when the waters grew deep. Thus this causeway remains clearly intact to this day. The ancient city of Mao County is more than three hundred li east of Gouzhang, former capital of Minyue. The numinous stūpa is located in Xiaoyi Township within the county boundaries. The regional gazetteers state that King Aśoka built eighty-four thousand stūpas, and this is one of them. Under the Song, Meng Yi, Internal Historian of Kuaiji, repaired it. On the mountain is a stone hollow, approximately three feet square, whose water is pure and mellow, warm in winter and cold in summer. The gazetteer Yudi zhi states: "King Aśoka, a disciple of Śākya, was able to employ ghosts and spirits. In a single day and night, he built eighty-four thousand precious stūpas for the Buddha's bones throughout the world, all welling forth from the earth." According to the Jin śramaṇa Zhu Huiyuan, there are two stūpas in the east: one is here and one is in Pengcheng. Now, Changgan in Moling is another one, so there are three. Calculating at one stūpa per hundred million households according to experience, there is little reason to doubt that there are many in this eastern land. Moreover, seeing that there are two stūpas in Yangyue alone, they surely exist across the vast expanse of the nine regions. The Kuaiji ji states: "Wang Dao, Chancellor of the Eastern Jin, said: 'When I first crossed the Yangzi River, there was a man of the Path with an extraordinary bearing who said he had come from the sea to visit. Formerly, he had traveled with King Aśoka to Mao County, deposited genuine relics, and erected a stūpa to anchor the place. King Aśoka and various realized beings held up the stūpa, flew through the air, and entered the sea. The disciples pulled and clung to it, and all fell at once, transforming into black stones. The stones still have human forms. That stūpa is on Mount Cakravāḍa.'" Prefect Lord Chu said: "A sea voyager reported that on an island there are gathered black stones shaped like men of the Path, with some clothing. Chu ordered them to be chiseled and brought for inspection; the patterns of the stone all resembled monastic robes." Not far in the Eastern Sea, an island is the place where King Yan of Xu took refuge; the ancient foundations of his palace and city walls remain clearly intact. In the past, when King Mu of Zhou journeyed west and ascended the Kunlun Mountains, King Yan came to rule [over those domains]. Hearing of this, King Mu raced back, covering ten thousand li in a single day, and King Yan took refuge from him here. When Sun En revolted under the Jin, he relied on demonic arts to bewitch the masses and built a walled stronghold for self-defense, which still remains there. In the third year of the Putong reign era of the founding emperor of the Liang, revering its ancient traces, he built a wooden stūpa, fully surrounding it with halls, shrines, rooms, and corridors, and named it King Aśoka Temple. It is surrounded on all four sides by mountains, with bamboo groves verdant and lush, flowers blossoming in between, and birds and beasts delighting one another. It is truly a delightful place for those who seek seclusion and freedom. There is a stele commemorating it, composed by Gu Yinzu, Gentleman of the Editorial Service. Thirty-five li southeast of the temple, on a mountain, there is the Buddha's right footprint. Two li northeast of the temple, on a mountain peak, there is the Buddha's left footprint. Both appear on stone, and their origins cannot be fathomed. Two li north of the temple, there is a sacred well, which is actually a deep pond with an eel, popularly called the Fish Bodhisattva. When people come to the well to pay homage, the fish comes out following the sound. A bandit came and feigned paying homage; when the fish came out, the bandit struck it with a sword, severing its tail. Since then it has concealed itself, not coming out regularly. When those of utmost sincerity invite and pay homage to it, it merely spouts water. Initially, a monk heard of the stūpa and came to pay homage. The place was desolate, and relying on it for food was difficult. An old woman with an ailment in her legs came to prepare food for him and then left. Wondering at this, he quietly followed her after she left, and saw that she entered into the pond; judging by this, it was a transformation of the fish. The numinous wonders of this stūpa were varied and frequent. In general, they mostly manifested as auspicious signs: holy monks circumambulating the stūpa and practicing the Path, lighting lamps every evening, and appearing as figures circling and walking on the walls within the radiant shadows. I will set down just a few items, as too many would be a waste of words.

1.7

In the nineteenth year of the Zhenguan reign era, Dharma Master Min, who was enlightened in the Path at the Cave of Yu, toured the sacred traces. Deeply moved in spirit, he led hundreds of disciples to the temple for a month, giving lectures on the sūtras and treatises, where both gentlemen and commoners gathered. During the night, someone saw more than a hundred Indian monks circumambulating the stūpa and practicing the Path. When he reported this to the assembly, the temple monks said: "This happens constantly and is nothing to wonder at. From antiquity to the present, on the four great auspicious days, people from far and near come to the temple to hold vegetarian feasts and cultivate merit. And in the middle of the night, one constantly witnesses Indian monks practicing the Path, reciting sūtras, singing praises, and the like."

1.8

In the first year of the Yonghui reign era, the retired scholar Zhang Taixuan of Kuaiji was chanting and paying homage at the temple. The śramaṇa Zhiyue shared a bed with Taixuan, sleeping side by side. In the middle of the night, they heard the recitation of the Diamond Prajñā[-pāramitā], clear and distinct. The two listened quietly, body and mind peaceful and joyful, until the recitation ended. Although it matched in every respect as if real, when they looked around, there was no form to be seen. Thus it was clearly known to be divinely bestowed.

1.9

2. The Changgan stūpa in Jinling under the Eastern Jin. It is presently inside the abandoned Changgan Temple east of the ancient city of Yue, southeast of the Vermilion Bird Gate of the old Yang capital in Jiangning County, Run Prefecture. In the past, at the end of the Western Jin, it held sway over the region south of the Yangzi River and was called the state of Wu. In the old neighborhood of Changgan, there was the site of an ancient stūpa, which was constructed by King Aśoka. Following upon this settlement, after [Sun Quan] died and his son [Sun] Liang took the throne, Sun Lin took control of the government. During the Wufeng reign era, Buddhist temples were destroyed, and this stūpa was obliterated along with them, its relics sinking into the earth. After Wu was pacified, various monks settled at the former site and erected a three-tiered stūpa. But because they could not find the foundation of the old stūpa, its history had perished, and none recognized it. Until...

1.10

In the second year of Xian'an of the Eastern Jin, Emperor Jianwen erected a three-storey stūpa, and Emperor Xiaowu added a golden wheel and dew basin to it. The Mingxiang ji states: Emperor Jianwen intended to build it, but died before fulfilling his intent. That three-storey stūpa was suspected of having been erected earlier. By the late Taiyuan reign of Emperor Xiaowu, there was a monk from Xihe in Bingzhou named Liu Huida, whose original name was Xiehe, as recorded in the Biographies of Monks. He came looking for the ancient stūpa but did not know its location. Thereupon he climbed the fortress of Yuecheng to gaze in all four directions, and only saw an extraordinary aura at Changgan. He then went there to worship and take up residence. At dusk and evening, light would constantly appear. Having made a mental note of the place, he dug into the ground for about ten feet and found three stone steles, six feet in length. In the center stele, a square hole had been chiseled out, inside which were three nested caskets of iron, silver, and gold. Inside the golden casket were three śarīras, their light translucent and bright, as well as a fingernail, and also a hair. Uncoiled, it stretched several feet; coiled, it formed a spiral, gleaming with dazzling radiance. Everyone considered them to have been enshrined by King Aśoka. Thereupon, to the north of the stūpa, another stūpa was constructed. Emperor Xiaowu augmented it to three storeys; thus the temple had two stūpas, the one on the west being King Aśoka's ancient stūpa. Wang Ya, the Governor of Danyang, revered the Five Pecks of Rice Daoism and constantly asserted that the Buddhadharma should be abolished and stūpas and temples destroyed. On that day, an imperial edict was issued ordering the Prince of Kuaiji, Wang Daozi, to take Ya to view it. Just as the monks were carrying the śarīra in procession, Ya knocked over their bowl, but the śarīra clung to the inside of the vessel and never fell down. The prince then filled it with fresh water and burned incense, praying: 'Governor Wang of Danyang is severely lacking in faith in the Dharma. May the awe-inspiring numen of the World-Honoured One manifest something to guide him.' In response to his words, light blazed forth and leaped upward. From then on, although Ya could not become devoted and sincere, he never again slandered the Buddhadharma for the rest of his life. During the Datong reign of the Liang, when the moon encroached upon Wuche and Canopus appeared, the King Aśoka stūpa at Changgan Temple was rebuilt, and the śarīras, hair, and nail were brought out. The Son of Heaven visited the temple to hold a Great Unhindered Dharma Gathering, and issued an edict stating: 'Heaven and Earth wax and wane, ebbing and flowing with the seasons. The myriad things cannot share an identical wriggling existence, and the Two Primal Forces cannot perpetually maintain their covering and bearing. Therefore, toil and ease differ from year to year, and joy and sorrow from day to day. Last year the harvest failed and a peck of grain soared in price; the people are in dire straits and the fortune has reached such excess. Looking into the circumstances and examining the principles, some deserve pity. Stepping down from one's carriage to inquire into guilt is heard in ancient proclamations; the blame falls upon the sovereign and truly rests upon our own person. If all are restrained strictly by law, there will be no way for them to reform themselves. Does not the Book [of Documents] say: "Rather than slay the innocent, it is better to err on the side of irregularity"? The Changes says: "Great indeed is the meaning of according with the times!" Now the true-form śarīras have reappeared in the world; meeting with this rare event, thoughts of that which is hard to encounter arise. Now they are brought out at King Aśoka Temple to hold an Unhindered Gathering; neither the aged nor the young fail to rejoice, like the starved obtaining food, like meeting kin after long separation. In the unseen and the manifest, hearts turn in devotion, and near and far gaze up in reverent anticipation. Men and women spread out like clouds and caps and carriages gather like mist. Bestowing virtue at the same time truly accords with humans and spirits. All crimes under Heaven, whether light or heavy, are hereby pardoned and eliminated.' Today at the former site in Jiangning, Runzhou, there are only three tiers of brick foundations together with a spire and Buddha hall; the rest is an overgrown tangle of hazel and brush where no humans tread, showing only ancient foundations. Frequently there are tigers; many of those who dig at the stūpa foundations die naturally. The grass is deep and humans are few; only fierce beasts give birth and rear young among it, or carry deer whose blood defiles the stūpa, upon which they are immediately struck and beaten, howling and frightening people. It is now seven or eight li from the Zhanghou Bridge in Yong'an Ward. I originally resided at Quchi in the capital, at Riyan Temple. The temple was built by Emperor Yang of the Sui. Formerly, when he was in the feudatory of Jin guarding the Huai and sea regions, there was a stūpa at the capital temple where śarīras had not yet been enshrined. Thereupon, he excavated beneath the stūpa of Changgan Temple, took them to the capital, and buried them beneath the Riyan stūpa, placing an inscription on top. At that time, more than fifty eminent monks from Jiangnan all said that the śarīras beneath the capital stūpa were not those of King Aśoka, but that those of King Aśoka were at the original temple of Changgan; their truth or falsity could not be determined. In the seventh year of Wude, Riyan Temple was abolished. The monks were dispersed and reassigned, and the rooms and buildings were seized by the government. Only the śarīra stūpa had no one to guard it. The temple lands fell to the government, and the matter required relocation. My master and disciples, ten in all, were assigned to reside at Chongyi Temple. We then excavated beneath the stūpa and obtained three śarīras, white in color, luminous, and the size of millet grains; along with a nail, slightly yellow; and several tens of white hairs, as well as miscellaneous gems, lapis lazuli, ancient vessels, and so forth, all contained in a large bronze casket. Upon inspection, there was no spiral hair. We also doubted that the nail was yellow and small like a human's; for generally a Buddha is twice the size of a human and his nails are the color of red bronze, whereas this was not so. We then brought them to beneath the stūpa to the southwest of the Buddha hall at Chongyi Temple, contained them as before in a large stone casket, covered it with the original inscription, and buried it in the earth. When I asked southern monks from the beginning of the Sui, they all said: 'The nail and hair belong to Emperor Wu of the Liang.'

1.11

As for the śarīras, there was doubt. They were buried with the original inscription placed on top. Assessing by the facts, the Buddha's relics of Changgan were largely moved to the imperial capital. However, the ancient stūpa in Jiangnan still possessed divine anomalies, while those that flowed to Chongyi were virtually non-existent. Therefore, I have recorded both. Yet the years are distant, and later generations cannot discern them; I have briefly compiled this record to manifest their circumstances.

1.12

Third, the stūpa of Gucheng Temple in Qingzhou: Having passed through the Zhou and Qin dynasties, its location was unknown. In the time of Shi Zhao, Fotudeng was in Ye. Shi Le and Shi Hu revered him and built temples and stūpas extensively, but they lacked dew basins. Just as they were intending to make them, Fotudeng said: 'Inside the city of Linzi there is a King Ayu Temple. There are still a Buddha image and dew basin beneath a deep forest of giant trees, with a prostrate stone above them; you can search and retrieve them.' Shi Hu sent men to seek them. Following his spoken instructions, they went twenty zhang into the earth and obtained them. When brought to Ye, [people realized] Ayu and Ayuwang (King Aśoka) are just phonetic variants. The ancient sites and locations should be sought out. Thus Huida announced in the unseen realm, saying: 'The five places—Luoyang, Linzi, Jianye, Mao County, and Chengdu—all have King Aśoka stūpas. Those who worship them will not enter hell.' Thus it is known that this stūpa does not possess a hollow reputation.

1.13

Fourth, the ancient stūpa of Puban in Hedong: The uncle of Yao Lue of the Later Qin served as King of Jin and was stationed in Hedong. The elders transmitted that the ancient stūpa of Puban was indeed erected by King Aśoka. Suspecting this, since light frequently appeared, they dug according to [the sign] and obtained Buddha relics in a silver case inside a stone casket, shining with extraordinary brilliance, and presented them to Yao Lue. Lue personally welcomed and viewed them on the Ba River. Today on the eastern slope of Puzhou there is Jiuku Temple where monks reside; they erected a grand image that is extraordinarily magnificent, but the ancient stūpa has not been rebuilt, it is said.

1.14

Fifth, the ancient stūpa south of Mount Qi in Fufeng: It is on a plateau, low to the south and high to the north. Ten li east is the Wuting Stream, twenty li west is Qishan County, thirty li south is the Wei River, and twenty li north is Mount Qi, also named Ma'e. This mountain is identical to Mount Qi. These are all to the north of the great mountain; to the south are smaller mountains lined up east and west, with a large valley in between, separating the south and north. Therefore it is called Mount Qi ('forked mountain'), qi meaning divided. Over twenty li to the northwest is Fengquan ('Phoenix Spring'). The spring is on the south side of Mount Qi, extremely high and prominent; this is the very place where in the time of King Wen of the Zhou, a phoenix called on Mount Qi. Drinking this spring's water, it was therefore named Phoenix Spring. It also flew south to the north side of Zhongnan; hence south of the Wei below the mountains there is also a Phoenix Spring. It also flew southwest across the mountains to Hechi; this is what is now called Fengzhou, the ancient Hechi Commandery. One cannot exhaustively trace the beginning and end of the phoenix; let us discuss the origins of establishing the stūpa. Thus Emperor Gaozu of the Sui admired its ground and spring, and thereupon established a stūpa there. Overlooking the vast vista, it is truly open and remote. The temple's name has long been abandoned; the assembly of monks has passed away; people and things are utterly scarce, and the stūpa was about to collapse. I went to view it: brambles and brush filled the place. Although it lacked the reality of [the ruined palace in] 'Shuli', it stirred the deep sorrow of 'Shuli'. Today the stūpa on the plateau is colloquially called King Aśoka Temple. The township is called Liuquan, taking the ancient name of its northern mountain. Before the Zhou and Wei, the temple was named King Aśoka, with five hundred monks. When the Zhou suppressed the Dharma, of the corridors, eaves, and exterior terraces, only two halls alone survived. The Sui dynasty re-established it, naming it Chengshi Temple. In the fifth year of Daye, temples with fewer than fifty monks were abolished; this temple was consequently abolished and merged into Baochang Temple in the capital. The ancient site of its stūpa remained an estate of the temple. At the very beginning of the Tang's fortunes, in the second year of Yining, the monk Puxian of Baochang Temple lamented that the temple was abolished and submerged in weeds, and submitted a detailed memorial requesting [its restoration]. At that time, it specially received the attention of the Grand Chancellor, who had visited there in the past; reviewing the memorial with delight, he recounted the original cause, saying it could be named Famen Temple. From then until the second year of Wude, Xue Ju raised troops intending to campaign south, and Taizong led an army to attack him. Initially eighty monks were ordained, but had not yet taken up residence in a temple. The monk Huisu of Baochang Temple swept and cleaned Phoenix Spring; since the monks were not yet assigned, he memorialized requesting to reside at Famen. He was granted an imperial decree assenting to the request, and they all took up residence there. With the passage of many years, they have almost all passed away. The temple was located inside an isolated fortress. Inquiring into its origin, it was said: In the late years of Daye, bandits arose on all sides; the townships on the plateau had no way to keep themselves safe, so they built this fortress together to defend against foreign marauders. In early Tang, people lived together promiscuously and could not move out. Spreading fire burned it down, and everything was completely lost. Only the scorched and blackened remains of the two halls still survived. In the fifth year of Zhenguan, Zhang Liang, Prefect of Qizhou, who had always been devoted, came to the temple to worship. Seeing only ancient foundations without any covering above, he memorialized,

1.15

and an imperial edict was issued to dismantle the Wangyun Palace halls to cover the stūpa foundations.

1.16

An imperial decree granted permission. Thereupon a stūpa was constructed above, where the revered and dignified features were displayed. Elders have passed down the saying: "This stūpa is opened once every thirty years to be shown to the people so that they may give rise to goodness." When Zhang Liang heard this, he petitioned during the Zhenguan reign era to have it opened and unsealed, bringing out the śarīra to show to the people. Fearing that gathering a crowd would prevent them from daring to open the stūpa, an imperial decree granted full permission. Following this, they opened and excavated down more than ten feet and obtained two ancient stele inscriptions, both erected during the Zhou and Wei dynasties. Their texts were not worth reading, and thus are not recorded here. Their luminous forms radiated and shone, just like all the śarīra. Once the śarīra were brought out, they were shown openly to both monastics and laity; countless thousands of people viewed them together at the same time. There was a blind man whose eyes had been dark for many years; straining his eyes to look straight at it, his sight suddenly became clear and pure. Inside and outside the capital, crowds surged and hurried there together, gathering at the stūpa site by thousands each day. The śarīra rose high so that the multitudes saw it together. What was seen on the square bone differed among the viewers: some saw white light shining through like jade, some saw a green colour, and some could not see it at all, asking the crowd: "Where is the śarīra?" At that time, there was a man who, because he could not see it, felt deeply distressed and grieved, beating his breast and weeping. The crowd took pity on him and consoled him, asking: "This is from past deeds; strive to repent! What is the use of beating your breast?" When this man saw others burning their fingers to make offerings, he immediately wrapped his thumb in hemp and set fire to it, circumambulating the stūpa while running. As the fire blazed and his mind grew desperate, he came to the site of the śarīra; suddenly he was able to see it, and he leaped about and bounded for joy, oblivious to the pain in his finger. When the fire died out and his mind calmed, he could no longer see it again. In the ninth month of the fourth year of the Xianqing reign era, the monastics of the inner mountain Zhicong and Hongjing were summoned into the palace, and the conversation turned to the matter of the King Aśoka stūpa, which had stood for so long that it required broad protection. His Majesty said: "Is this not the King Aśoka of the boy offering earth? If there is one nearby, then it is one of the eighty-four thousand stūpas." Zhicong said: "Its reality is not yet clear. Elders have passed down the saying that its name is King Aśoka Temple, and such words ought not to be false. Furthermore, tradition says that it comes out once every thirty years; previously, in the early Zhenguan era, it had already appeared, bringing great sympathetic responses. Now the period is already complete, and we request to bring it out again." His Majesty said: "To be able to obtain the śarīra is truly a wholesome cause. You may first proceed to the stūpa site and practice the path for seven days; only when there is an auspicious sign in response to your prayers may it be opened." He immediately bestowed five thousand cash and fifty bolts of silk to cover the offerings. Zhicong set out from the capital at dawn on the fifth day of the tenth month with the attendant eunuch Wang Changxin and others, arriving only as night approached on the sixth day. Zhicong then entered the interior of the stūpa with concentrated dedication and earnest effort. After practicing the path for a long time, no light appeared. At the third watch on the tenth day, he placed charcoal on his arm and burned incense thereon, solemn and focused without any stray thoughts. Suddenly, he heard the sound of splitting under the image inside the stūpa. Tracing the sound to look, he saw an auspicious light overflowing and surging upward like mist. The feet of the three images inside the stūpa each emitted light—red, white, and green—which twined and rose upward, reaching the beams and brackets to form a canopy. Zhicong was overjoyed and was about to call the monks, when he saw the interior of the stūpa crowded with monastics standing with palms joined. He thought they were from the same monastery, but after a short while, the canopy of light gradually subsided and slowly descended; within three feet of the ground, the assembly of monks was no longer visible. Only then did he realize they were holy beings who had hidden themselves. He then summoned the imperial emissary to witness the auspicious signs together. Once they arrived at the stūpa site, the remaining light skimmed the ground and spread radiant brilliance all around, dazzling and abundant; hundreds of thousands of forms of light seemed to revolve, fading away completely only after a long while. At dawn, when they looked, they obtained one śarīra, considerably larger than a grain, its light fresh and pure. Searching more closely, they obtained another seven pieces. They placed them all in a basin of water; one piece rotated alone, circling the other śarīra, each emitting brilliant light that dazzled people's eyes. Zhicong and the others submitted a detailed report of the auspicious signs they had received. By imperial decree, the Attendant Wang Junde and others were sent with three thousand bolts of silk, ordering them to fashion a life-size King Aśoka image of Our likeness; the remainder was to be used to repair the old stūpa. Furthermore, since the image was in the stūpa, the Buddha's śarīra was to be brought out immediately to open the way for blessing and wisdom. Because the old timber was largely decayed, the monks replaced it entirely with cypress and laid dressed stone as the foundation; its ornamentation and magnificence were exceptionally splendid. Furthermore, an imperial decree appointed the monks Zhicong and Hongjing to the Honglu Temple and granted them residence at Huichang Temple. On the first day the stūpa was opened, more than twenty people chiseled downward together. When the śarīra was obtained, all the people saw it except for one man who could not see it. Distressed, that man tore out his hair, pleading earnestly with bitter wailing and loud cries, the sound terrifying humans and animals; reproaching himself in vain, in the end he still could not see it. Thereupon they placed the śarīra on his palm; although he felt its weight, he could not see it, just as before. Because of this, among all those who came to pay reverence, anyone who feared they might not see the bone did not dare look at its luminous sign. Some days before the imperial emissaries arrived, people of the Yunlong Ward east of the temple looked toward the temple stūpa and saw a reddish light shining all around near and far; some saw it like a rainbow shooting straight up to heaven; some saw light illuminating the temple town, crimson as if it were day. All this was reported in detail. The temple monks marveled and said: "The śarīra will soon be opened; this auspicious sign is no different from that of the Zhenguan era." The shape of the śarīra was like the first joint of the little finger, one inch and two tenths in length; its inner cavity was square, as were its outer ridges; flat below and round above, luminous and clean both inside and out. I inserted my little finger into the cavity and it fit snugly, whereupon I was able to carry it aloft to display it to the great assembly. As for the transformations of its luminous signs, they could not be measured by any regular standard. At that time, inside and outside the capital, monastics and laity stretched continuously across two hundred li, coming and going to congratulate each other, all praising the Buddha's virtue as the glory of an entire era. The monk Huiman of the great Cien Temple in the capital was practicing the path at the stūpa when he suddenly saw a pair of bright eyes beneath the caisson ceiling, exceptionally large; he summoned monastics and laity to look together, and it was the same for them as well. All lost their composure in fright and dared not look closely again. In the third month of spring in the fifth year of the Xianqing reign era, an imperial

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decree ordered the śarīra to be fetched to the Eastern Capital to be brought into the palace for offerings. At that time, Khotan also presented a Buddha uṣṇīṣa bone to the capital; those who saw it said it was about five inches high, four inches wide, and yellowish-purple in colour. It was to be brought to the emperor's traveling lodge in the Eastern Capital. At that time, seven monks from the capital were also summoned to go to the Eastern Capital and enter the palace to practice the path. An imperial decree ordered the śarīra and the uṣṇīṣa bone to be brought out and shown to the monks who were practicing the path, saying: "These are the Buddha's true body; the monks may carry them on their heads and make offerings to them." After one night, they were taken back into the palace. The Empress donated her bedclothes and curtains, valued at one thousand bolts of silk, to fashion a gold coffin and silver casket for the śarīra, having nine tiers intricately carved with exquisite artistry. In the second year of the Longshuo reign era, it was returned to its original stūpa. On the fifteenth day of the second month, obeying

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the imperial decree, the monks Zhicong and Hongjing, along with various monks from the capital, the monks of the stūpa temple, officials, and countless thousands of people, entombed the śarīra together in a stone chamber and sealed it. What happens thirty years hence is beyond my knowledge; if there are opening auspicious signs in the future, they may be continued and expanded upon.

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At Wangzhuang Village in Huayang Township, Qishan County, Qi Prefecture, there was a man named Tuo Xuansi. He was by nature coarse and unruly, lacking all faith. When his mother and elder brother heard that the śarīra had arrived from the Eastern Capital and was about to be entombed and sealed, Xuansi would not allow them to go. His mother and brother disregarded his words; they went to the site of the śarīra, paid reverence, and returned home. Xuansi said angrily: "What merit can there be in this? If the śarīra has merit, the Buddha image in our home must also have merit." He immediately took the image to burn it, [saying]: "What numinous efficacy does it have?" His mother and brother rushed to save it, but the lower half had already burned. At that very moment, Xuansi collapsed. When he later awoke, he said: "I suddenly came to a place resembling hell; large birds flew down to peck out my eyes and eat my flesh, and I fell into a great fire pit, suffering agonizing burns. When I stroked my face with my hand, my eyebrows and whiskers fell off; when I looked at heaven and earth, there was no brightness at all." His relatives watching by his side said: "You committed this sin yourself; no one can take your place." Xuansi's consciousness could not respond to others; he only said: "Fire is burning my heart!" and ran wildly to and fro. He also appeared as if being beaten, weeping in anguish and distress, and kept crying: "I repent! I repent!" running day and night without ever being able to stop. On the thirteenth day of the second month, his relatives brought him to the stūpa site. At that time, more than a hundred monks, including the Great Worthy Dharma Master Xingqian of the capital, were preaching the Dharma to the assembly. Palace Attendant Pei, several hundred bhikṣuṇīs, and five to six thousand laypeople all saw Xuansi cast his five limbs to the ground before the śarīra, weeping and lamenting to repent for his sin of disbelief, as well as repenting for violating nuns' pure conduct, beating and cursing monks, and stealing and eating monastic fruit. After he repented, his sleep and dreams gradually became peaceful, so it is said. As for that Buddha uṣṇīṣa bone, the state ransomed it with precious treasures, calculating the treasures at an estimated value of four thousand bolts of silk; they then paid for it in raw silk matching that amount. The uṣṇīṣa bone is said to remain inside the palace to this day.

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Six: The ancient foundation east of Guazhou city was a King Aśoka temple of the Northern Zhou dynasty. After the Dharma was proscribed, although the Sui dynasty revived the Dharma, it did not re-establish the temple. It is now a temple estate; the stūpa is sheltered by a hall, and corridors on the east and west are enclosed on all four sides by walls. At times it displays luminous signs, and it is deeply revered by scholars and commoners. Whenever monastics and laity gather for overnight fasts to cultivate blessings, their prayers—from officials and commoners, high and low—meet with sympathetic responses, and so on.

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Seven: The stūpa of the abandoned Dacheng Temple inside the city of Shazhou was an ancient temple of the Northern Zhou dynasty, where the stūpa foundation can still be seen. Tradition says that this was an original Aśoka stūpa; as soon as there are disasters, many people come to seek deliverance, and so on.

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Eight: The ancient capital stūpa of Luoyang is an ancient foundation one li west of the city and about one li south of the old Baima Temple. Popular tradition holds it to be a King Aśoka śarīra stūpa. It is suspected to be the one brought by Kāśyapa Mātaṅga; to subjugate heterodoxy and propagate the correct [teaching], a stūpa was erected as a sign to transmit the true [Dharma], and so on.

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Nine: The Guzang stūpa of Liangzhou. According to an examination of various records, all say that Guzang has an Aśoka stūpa. Guzang was formerly the name of a commandery, but is now a county subordinate to the prefecture. The Book of Han lists the four commanderies of Hexi as Zhangye, Guzang, Jiuquan, and Dunhuang. However, details of the stūpa remain unclear.

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Ten: The Shandan stūpa of Ganzhou is now the name of a county, one hundred and twenty li east of Ganzhou. The earthen mound beside the main road north of the Ruoshui River and east of the county seat is popularly said to be a King Aśoka stūpa. There is only an ancient foundation, which has been desolate and abandoned for a very long time; it is suspected to be the Guzang stūpa.

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Eleven: The great mound stūpa on the southern plateau of Mount Huoshan, north of Jinzhou. Monastics and laity far and near all say it is an Aśoka stūpa. I once traveled there; the terrain is elevated and dry, commanding an open and expansive view to the south. It is an ancient foundation, with distant and sparse villages.

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Twelve: The ancient stūpa east of Daizhou city is popularly called King Aśoka Temple. Examining Yanmen in the northern frontier, it was the land of the northern barbarians in Zhou times; thus the Classic of Poetry says: "In the north he drove out the Xianyun, as far as Taiyuan." However, in the northern frontier at Mayi, ancient cities and large burial mounds are frequently found; these did not belong to the northern barbarians. Clearly, it was originally Xia territory that was encroached upon by the barbarians, who thus reached Taiyuan.

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Thirteen: The stūpa of Fugan Temple in the suburbs of Yizhou is west of the city in the suburbs of the prefecture. It was originally named Big Rock. Tradition says that ghosts and spirits, obeying King Aśoka's command, took a large rock from the western mountains to serve as the stūpa's foundation, with the śarīra inside it; hence it was called Big Rock. When Prince Xiu of Shu under the Sui dynasty governed the Jingluo region, he heard about this and ordered people to dig and chisel down. It was entirely a single rock; tracing its fissures down to the water source, they could not find its bottom. A sudden storm of wind and rain arose, and someone chiseled off a fragment from the edge of the stone to bring it out; it turned out to be dark jade. When they asked merchants who recognized precious gems, they said it was genuine dark jade, rare in the world. In the early Sui dynasty, Vinaya Master Shen saw this ancient site and erected a nine-tiered wooden pagoda upon it; it still stands in Yizhou today. In years of drought or flood, officials praying for rain always do so at this stūpa; their prayers meet with responses and especially numinous signs, which is why it is also named Fugan (Blessing and Resonance). I once went there; it is truly as related. Recently, someone stole the bells and was about to climb down three tiers when a spirit raised the bracket set and shoved the thief's thigh inside. Trapped, the man screamed and shouted; the temple monks pried the bracket open before he could be freed.

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In the first year of Yonghui, there was a man named Wang Yanzi who was famous for plunder. At night he climbed onto the ringed spire to take the Boshan censer. As he was about to descend to the bottom tier, two pillars suddenly clamped him between them. Seeking to get out, he could not, and gradually fell into dire distress. He saw an Indian monk who said, "You should shout loudly, 'Thief!' Otherwise you will die." He at once shouted several times. The monks of the temple heard him and came to his rescue, whereupon he was finally able to be pulled out. At the beginning of the Zhenguan era, there was a great earthquake. This stūpa rocked back and forth and was on the verge of collapsing. At that time, countless people came from outside the city walls and suddenly saw four spirits, in size like the stūpa, each bracing their backs against the four sides of the stūpa; now leaning this way, now tilting that, in the end it was spared from collapsing. There was a man of extreme wealth and extravagance with many properties who saw that the previous dew basin had always been short and small, not matching the proportions of the stūpa. He thereupon donated three hundred ounces of gold and, together with various faithful believers, remade the dew basin. When it was completed and brought down, upon reaching the overturned basin, a fragrant vapor billowed forth like surging clouds, spreading fragrance through the city, which subsided only after ten days.

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Fourteenth: The Jinyuan stūpa in Yizhou is more than one hundred li southwest of the prefecture; today it is called Dengzhong Temple. Originally named Dashi (Great Stone), the general circumstances of its foundation were also the same as the previous one. When examining various ancient stūpas, their appearances are not identical; is this not because the spirits and deities in charge of those places had their own preferences? According to records, the three stūpas of Shu share the same stone, whereas the rest have no fixed standard. As for the Luoxian stūpa one hundred li north of Yizhou, it is located in Baoxing Temple outside the northern suburbs of the county seat. Originally named Dashi, the appearance of its foundation is the same as the previous one. At the beginning of the Sui, there was an Indian monk named Dharmakṣa who came from afar to the Eastern Xia to pay homage to the Aśoka stūpas. Having heard of the three stūpas of Shu, he also went to venerate them. When he arrived at the stūpa site of Dashi Temple in Luo County, after finishing his veneration, he wished to go to Chengdu and lodged at Liangnü Station. Just before dawn, he heard sounds of movement all around him. Kṣa said, "Who is there, frightening and disturbing me without cause?" A voice answered in midair, "There are twelve spirit kings who have come from your native country, offering protection wherever you go. Tomorrow you will see the Chengdu stūpa; today we wish to return west and are merely bidding the master farewell." Kṣa said, "Since you were able to escort me from afar, why not manifest your forms?" The spirits immediately manifested their forms. Kṣa was skilled at painting, so he depicted them one by one. Once he finished, their forms vanished. After arriving in Chengdu and paying homage to the Dashi stūpa, Vinaya Master Shen carved wooden images of the twelve spirits based on the sketches and decorated them beneath the stūpa. They are still present today, and so forth.

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Śramaṇa Daozhuo of Facheng Temple outside the suburbs of Yizhou was an eminent monk. At the beginning of the Daye era, the temple stūpa in Luo County had no one to repair it, having only its lower foundation. Daozhuo then led and transformed the fourfold assembly to build a wooden stūpa, fully adorning it. The stūpa was protected by a dragon living in a well at the southwest corner; from time to time auspicious signs appeared. Beside it were three ponds of unfathomable depth, inhabited by three dragons, where no one dared to peer. In the thirteenth year of Zhenguan, the three dragons had a great battle: thunderclaps struck, and water and fire flew back and forth. Only after a long time did it grow calm, and the stūpa remained just as before. People all picked up dragon hairs, about three feet long, yellowish-red and lovely.

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