集神州三寶感通錄 2.44

2.44

40. During the Wude reign-period of the Tang, in Ciwuchuan to the southwest of Fangzhou, there were Hao Bian and Hao Ji, who had always possessed faith and reverence. Seeing a herd of deer constantly on the mountain, which returned whenever chased away, they found it extraordinary and together dug at the place where the deer stayed. They obtained a stone image about fourteen feet high and moved it out into the valley; it is currently preserved in the village. After the image emerged, the herd of deer consequently dispersed. The elders handed down a tradition saying that forty statues were hidden in the time of Kāśyapa Buddha; although two have now appeared, the rest remain concealed in the mountains. Its shape is like gold, similar to the iron-ore image east of Yuhua, and cannot be sculpted or chiseled.