集神州三寶感通錄 2.33

2.33

29. In the early Tianjian era, Emperor Wu, founder of the Liang, established Guangzhai Temple at his former residence and made an eighteen-foot golden image. The blueprint was completed without a hair's breadth of discrepancy. When about to cast it, they suspected there was not enough copper. Just as they were about to petition the throne, an envoy suddenly arrived leading fifteen carts of copper, saying: 'An imperial decree ordered this sent to the temple.' They immediately melted and cast it, and it was completed in a single smelting, surpassing everything in the entire realm. Only, they noticed it was tall and large; upon measuring it, it was twenty-two feet tall. They memorialized the circumstances to the throne: the cast image was completed without altering the original design, and the additional copper sent had also been completely used up, yet upon remeasuring, it had increased by four feet. The edict said: 'At the outset, no copper was sent; how could this have happened? Is it not that the true likeness's sympathetic resonance uniquely manifests the miraculous? Let this be engraved upon the lotus pedestal as a numinous record.' A full description was thus inscribed beneath its feet, which remains there today. Emperor Wu of the Liang built the Da'aijing Temple on Mount Zhong for his father; the large image in the central hall also possessed miraculous marks, so it is not set forth again here, but is fully detailed in a separate record. Under the Liang, many Buddhist images manifested miracles. The large stone image in Shan County was originally made in the early Song by King Aśoka. Initially, Dhyāna Master Tan'guang came from the north, touring the mountains and rivers in search of a secluded dwelling. Seeing the grandeur and beauty of this mountain, he built a small thatched hut on the peak. In midair, he heard heavenly music saying: 'This is a Buddha-land; why should there suddenly be a vegetable garden?' Guang heard this and moved south to Tiantai. Later, [people] undertook the making of a Buddha image, but after accumulating years, it could never be completed. When Prince Jian'an of the Liang fell ill, he received a dream saying that if he could complete the stone image of Shan County, his illness could be cured. He then invited Vinaya Master Sengyou. When Sengyou arrived at the mountain site, he examined the design and proportions, disliking that the previous work was too shallow and crude. Before his thoughts were settled, the mountain suddenly collapsed at night, and inside it a Buddha appeared; from the neck down, it was still inside the stone. They then chiseled away the superficial stone until reaching the original body, whereupon they stopped. Once it was entirely cleared, the marks were fully complete. Thus, the true likeness had originally been inside the stone, and by relying on craftsmen to clear it away, it was able to appear. Liu Xie, Gentleman of the Heir Apparent's Household under the Liang, composed a stele inscription, which is fully preserved at the image's site.