集沙門不應拜俗等事 2

English (machine translation) 2

Language: English

2.1

Compiled by Śramaṇa Shi Yancong of Hongfu Temple

2.2

Precedents Section, Part 1 (Second Half)

2.3

Treatise:
'Treatise on Why Śramaṇas Do Not Revere Kings' by Master Yuan of Mount Lu under the Jin, One Piece (with Preface)

2.4

Edict:
Edict by Huan Xuan of the Illegitimate Chu Permitting Śramaṇas Not to Pay Homage, One Piece

2.5

Memorial:
Memorials by Attendant Gentleman Bian Sizhi and Others Asserting That Śramaṇas Ought to Revere, Four Pieces (with Three Replies by Huan Chu)

Events:
One item on Helian Bobo of the Xia ordering śramaṇas to pay homage.
One item on Emperor Xiaowu of the Song suppressing śramaṇas from paying homage.
One item on Emperor Wu of the Qi discussing śramaṇas matching courtesy [with rulers].
One item on Emperor Yang of the Sui issuing an edict ordering śramaṇas to pay homage (with a reply by the śramaṇa Mingshan of Daxingshan Temple).

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Treatises:
One treatise, the Treatise on the Field of Merit (with preface), by the śramaṇa Shi Yancong of the Scripture Translation Hall on the Banks of the Luo.

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One treatise, Treatise on Śramaṇas Not Revering Rulers (with preface), by Shi Huiyuan of Mount Lu in the Jin.

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Formerly, during the Xiankang era, General Yu doubted whether śramaṇas should match courtesy with the [ruler of] ten thousand chariots. Coming down to the Yuanxing era, Grand Commandant Huan likewise shared this opinion. At that time, very many court officials and eminent worthies replied. Although their words did not enlighten the era, each had their merits. All expressed what they cherished, yet principle remained locked in sentiment. Consequently, the supreme robes of the Way were dishonored in the dust of the world, and upright minds were bent to human affairs. How lamentable! This was indeed the reason for mutual loss, the misfortune of a thousand ages. Deeply fearing that the Great Dharma would sink into oblivion, and moved by the past so as not to forget it, I have therefore composed five essays to thoroughly state my intent. How could this be said to be a deep gorge awaiting the morning dew? It is merely to express boundlessness, and also to hope that gentlemen of later times who venerate and respect the Buddha's teachings may examine and peruse it.

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1. Remaining at Home

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In examining the essential points clarified by the Buddha's teachings, the difference lies between renunciation and remaining [in the world]. Among those who have left home, there are broadly four classes. Their propagation of the Dharma and benefit to beings equal the merit of emperors and kings, and their transformation combines with the way of governance. As for moving the mundane and awakening the age, there is no generation that lacks them. However, they act or withdraw according to circumstance; hence their decline or flourish is merely concealment or manifestation. Among these that can be discussed, allow me to speak briefly. Those who revere the Dharma while remaining at home are subjects who comply with transformation. Their feelings have not departed from convention, and their traces are identical with those within the realm. Thus they have the love of natural kinship and the propriety of serving their sovereign. Propriety and reverence have their source, and taking this as the basis, the teaching is formed; tracing back that on which it is based, its merit stems from the past. For this reason, based on affection toward kin, love is taught, causing the people to know that there is natural grace; based on strictness, respect is taught, causing the people to know that there is natural gravity. The coming of these two is truly due to hidden response. Since the response does not lie in the present, one ought to trace its root. Therefore, retributive punishment for offenses is used as penalty to make them cautious after being fearful; heavenly palaces are used as noble rewards to make them act after being pleased. These all clarify the teaching based on retributive effects, reaching through compliance without altering what is natural. Why is this? Cherishing the person and preserving life take being fettered by attachment as an entanglement. The root is deep and the cause lies in the self; inverted views are not yet forgotten. They are just about to take emotions and desires as their parks and groves, sights and sounds as their spectacles; immersed in worldly pleasures, they cannot exert themselves to stand out. Therefore, the restriction of the teaching takes this as its boundary, and does not clarify what lies beyond it. When what lies beyond is not yet clarified, then they are largely the same as those who comply with transformation. Hence they cannot receive the [ruler's] virtue while neglecting his rites, nor partake of his benevolence while abandoning respect for him. Therefore, those who delight in the tradition of Śākya always first serve their parents and revere their sovereign; those who change their worldly ways and cast aside their hairpins must await orders and act in compliance. If sovereign or parents have doubts, they withdraw to pursue their aspiration and await mutual awakening. This is how the Buddha's teaching values the sustenance of life and assists the royal transformation in the way of governance. The purport of the disputants' arguments seemingly shares some common ground. Therefore, I establish the division between internal and external to clarify their devotion to the three [father, ruler, and teacher], briefly recounting the scripture's meaning to convey what I harbor in mind.

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2. Renunciation

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Those who have left home are guests beyond the realm, whose traces are severed from things. As for their teaching, they understand that suffering and burden stem from having a physical form; thus they do not preserve the physical form to quell suffering. They know that successive rebirths stem from receiving transformation; thus they do not comply with transformation to seek the Ultimate. In seeking the Ultimate, they do not rely on complying with transformation; not complying with transformation, they do not value the resources that promote worldly progress. In quelling suffering, they do not rely on preserving the physical form; not preserving the physical form, they do not prize the benefits of enriching life. This is where principle departs from physical form, and the Way is contrary to worldly convention. Such persons make their vows when first casting aside the hairpin, and their resolve is manifested in changing their garments. Therefore, all who are in renunciation withdraw from the world to pursue their aspiration, and change worldly customs to attain their Way. Changing worldly customs, their garments and insignia cannot share the etiquette of mundane scriptures; withdrawing from the world, they must hold their conduct aloof. Because this is so, they are able to rescue the drowning worldly people from the sinking current, and pull up the mysterious root across manifold kalpas. They reach far through the ford of the Three Vehicles, and broadly open the path of devas and humans. If a single person perfects his virtue, then the Way will permeate the six relations and its benevolence will flow across the realm under heaven. Although he does not occupy the station of kings and lords, he already accords with the imperial ultimate and provides peace to the living people. Therefore, inwardly he departs from the gravity of natural kinship without violating filial piety; outwardly he lacks the courtesy of serving the sovereign without losing reverence. Looking at it from this perspective, we know that surpassing the surface of transformation to seek the Ultimate means the principle is profound and the significance is earnest; illuminating supreme peace to discuss humaneness means the merit is secondary and the benevolence is shallow. If this is so, even if someone faces the dark mountains and turns back his steps, he would still be ashamed to hear of their manner; how much more so to share filial piety and reverence with those people who comply with transformation and those worthies who merely occupy sinecures?

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3. Seeking the Ultimate Does Not Rely on Complying with Transformation

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Question: In examining the intention of Laozi, Heaven and Earth are great because they attain Oneness; kings and lords are honored because they embody compliance. Attaining Oneness, they are the root of the ten thousand transformations; embodying compliance, they have the merit of smooth movement. If so, clarifying the Ultimate must lie in embodying the pinnacle; seeking the pinnacle must rely on complying with transformation. Therefore, the worthies of the past considered this a fine doctrine, which the manifold discourses could not dispute. If the manifold discourses find no flaw in this meaning, why do you say that one does not comply with transformation? Answer: All those within the realm together receive life from the Great Transformation. Although the myriad sorts are varied and the refined and coarse are differently ordered, speaking of them comprehensively, there are only the animate and the inanimate. Being animate, they have sentiment toward transformation; being inanimate, they lack sentiment toward transformation. If they lack sentiment toward transformation, then when transformation ends, life is exhausted; since their life does not stem from sentiment, when the physical form decays, transformation ceases. Being animate toward transformation, they are stirred by things and move; moving necessarily through sentiment, their life never ends. If their life never ends, then their transformation becomes ever broader and physical forms ever accumulate; their sentiments become ever more obstructed and their entanglements ever deeper. How can the suffering of this be fully spoken? Therefore, the scriptures state: 'Nirvāṇa is unchanging, taking the exhaustion of transformation as its dwelling; the three realms flow and turn, taking retributive suffering as their arena.' When transformation is exhausted, causes and conditions cease forever; when flowing and turning, one endures suffering without end. How do we know this is so? Life takes the physical form as its fetters, yet life arises from transformation. Transformation is stirred by sentiment; thus the spirit is blocked from its source, and wisdom is darkened in its illumination. Once rigidly confined, what one preserves is merely the self, and what one undergoes is merely movement. Thereupon the spiritual reins lose control, and the paths of rebirth open wider day by day. Following greedy craving into the long stream, how could it be endured only once? Therefore, those who return to the root and seek the Ultimate do not let life burden their spirit; those who transcend the worldly enclosure do not let sentiment burden their life. If one does not let sentiment burden one's life, life can be extinguished; if one does not let life burden one's spirit, the spirit can become quiescent. The spirit being quiescent and the realm of objects severed, it is called nirvāṇa. How could the name of nirvāṇa be an empty appellation? Let us investigate and verify it. Although Heaven and Earth are great in constantly giving life, they cannot cause the living not to transform; although kings and lords have the merit of preserving life, they cannot cause the preserved to be free from suffering. Therefore, the previous treatise said: 'They understand that suffering and burden stem from having a physical form; thus they do not preserve the physical form to quell suffering. They know that successive rebirths stem from receiving transformation; thus they do not comply with transformation to seek the Ultimate.' The meaning lies here; the meaning lies here. This is why śramaṇas match courtesy with [the ruler of] ten thousand chariots and hold their pursuit aloof, not accepting ranks from kings and lords yet receiving their benefits.

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4. Embodying the Pinnacle Does Not Combine Dual Manifestations

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Question: In reviewing past histories, from the ancient sovereigns onward, those who occupied the throne and resided as the supreme authority never differed in their original root. The root cannot be two; therefore, the canons across a hundred generations are all unified in their lineage. This is what is meant by 'Only Heaven is great, and only Yao took it as his pattern.' If so, it was not that their wisdom failed to illuminate, but naturally there was nothing beyond to illuminate; it was not that their illumination failed to exhaust, but naturally there was no principle to exhaust. Inferring from this, beyond seeing and hearing, all is empty with nowhere to lodge. Since principle has nowhere to lodge, the Ultimate can be understood. Now, the various śramaṇas do not understand the meaning beyond the text, but are deluded by the words beyond the teaching. Their error is indeed complete! If there were clearly evident proof, this would be something rarely heard of in the world.

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Answer: The profound Ultimate is vast and distant; the spiritual path is subtle and minute. It can be sought through principle, but is difficult to investigate through external affairs. Once it touches upon teachings, it takes adaptation to the times as its measure. Although the instruments for responding to the world differ in ten thousand grades of excellence and inferiority, as for adapting flexibly according to function and response, it accesses the people's minds to accommodate their capacity. When their capacity is reached, it stops where their wisdom does not know, and does not open what lies beyond it. If this is so, it is not that the one who embodies the pinnacle cannot combine them, but that combining them, they cannot be administered simultaneously. Therefore, when the ancients spoke of the Great Way, it took five alterations before forms and names could be raised, and nine alterations before rewards and punishments could be mentioned. These were merely gradations within the realm, yet they still could not be established all at once; how much less what lies beyond it! Let us further infer and broaden this to extend the analogy. What lies beyond the six directions is preserved but not discussed, not because it cannot be discussed, but because discussing it might lead to divergence. What lies within the six directions is discussed but not differentiated, not because it cannot be differentiated, but because differentiating it might lead to doubt. The Spring and Autumn Annals records the affairs of the world and the aspirations of the former kings; it differentiates but does not debate, not because it cannot be debated, but because debating it leads to confusion and disorder. These three all take where their physical body, ears, and eyes cannot reach as the hinge, and do not open what lies beyond seeing and hearing. If one seeks the intention of the sages through this, then the ways of the internal and external can be united and understood. I have always considered that the Dharma of the Way and the Teaching of Names, the Tathāgata and Yao and Confucius, although their manifestations differ, they secretly influence each other; their renunciation and worldly engagement are indeed different, but their ultimate destination is identical. If examined and analyzed in detail, their orientation can be seen. In principle, there are those who first unite and later diverge, and those who first diverge and later unite. Those who first unite and later diverge are the Buddhas and Tathāgatas. Those who first diverge and later unite are the monarchs of successive dynasties and rulers who have not yet embodied the pinnacle; they belong to this stream. How do we know this? The scriptures say: 'The Buddha possesses natural, divine, and marvelous dharmas; he transforms beings with expedient means, broadly following wherever he enters. He may become a spiritual immortal or a wheel-turning sage king; he may become a minister, state preceptor, or Daoist priest.' Such types appear in various transformations, and kings and gentlemen do not know who he is. This is what is meant by uniting and later diverging. Or there are those who initially establish a great undertaking, but their merit and transformation are not yet complete; their traces are uneven, and thus what they receive differs. Some look forward to efficacy after their death; some display visible responses in their own lifetime. The sage kings who took them as teachers and thereby accomplished their teachings are also innumerable. Although the citations are boundless, their paths will surely converge at the end. This is what is meant by diverging and later uniting. If they diverge and later unite, then those who intend to tread the broad path must not confine themselves to a single measure. If they unite and later diverge, then the ultimate goal of Śākya and that of Yao and Confucius are not different; this can be known for certain. Therefore, seeking their union from their divergence, one knows that the convergence of principle is surely identical; seeking their divergence from their union, one realizes that embodying the pinnacle has many methods. It is only because those who see physical forms cannot combine them that they are bewildered by the many paths and alarmed by their differences. Viewing it from this: the way of Heaven and Earth exhausts its merit in moving transformation; the virtue of emperors and kings reaches its limit of principle in compliant governance. If contrasted with the singularly peerless teaching and the unchanging Ultimate, they certainly cannot be spoken of in the same breath regarding excellence and inferiority; this is already clear.

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5. The Spirit Does Not Perish

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Question: The treatise's main purport holds that the exhaustion of transformation is the ultimate extremity, and therefore one who reaches the extremity must go against transformation to seek the origin; seeking the origin does not come from following transformation. On this basis, it adduces the monarchs of successive generations, making them identical with the teachings of Buddhism, and having those who embody the utmost extremity occupy rule by expedient means. This is what your elegant treatise relies on, being convinced of the Great Pervasion. Yet seeking its actuality, in terms of principle it is not so. Why is this? The endowment of qi reaches its limit within a single lifetime; when life is exhausted, it dissolves into nothingness. Although the spirit is a subtle thing, it is still merely the transformation of yin and yang. Having transformed to become life, it transforms again to become death; having gathered to become the beginning, it disperses again to become the end. Inferring from this, we firmly know that spirit and form transform together, originally having no different lineage. Fine and coarse are of a single qi, and from start to finish share the same dwelling. When the dwelling is intact, the qi gathers and there is sentience; when the dwelling is destroyed, the qi disperses and consciousness is extinguished. When it disperses, it returns what it received to the Great Origin; when it is extinguished, it reverts again to no-thing. Coming and going, beginning and end, all are exhausted in the natural order of fate. Who could make it otherwise? If the root is wholly identical, how could the qi be different? When destiny concurs, they transform together. Thus, the spirit dwelling in the form is like fire being in wood: their arising must be together, and its destruction must be extinction. When the form separates, the spirit disperses and has nothing to lodge in; when the wood rots, the fire is silenced and has nothing to rely upon. This is indeed the principle of things. Even if the distinction between sameness and difference is dim and difficult to clarify, the doctrine of being and non-being must reside in gathering and dispersing. Gathering and dispersing are general names for the transformation of qi, the arising and ceasing of myriad transformations. Therefore Zhuangzi said: 'The life of man is a gathering of qi; when it gathers there is life, and when it disperses there is death. Since life is [viewed by] them as mere suffering, what do I have to worry about?' Those of antiquity who spoke well of the Way must have grasped this. How could it be otherwise? The ultimate principle reaches its limit within a single lifetime; once life is exhausted, there is no further transformation—its meaning can be investigated.

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Answer: What is this spirit? It is the utmost refinement becoming sentient. Being the utmost refinement, it cannot be figured by hexagrams or emblems; thus the sage spoke of it as a 'subtle thing'. Even one of supreme wisdom cannot determine its bodily shape or exhaust its profound purport; yet those who discourse upon it raise doubts based on ordinary consciousness, often colluding in self-confusion. Their slander is already profound! To speak of it is to speak of the unspeakable. Now, in the midst of the unspeakable, let us again vaguely sketch it together. As for the spirit, its rounded response has no master, and its subtle extremity has no name; it moves when stimulated by things, and acts by relying on fated numbers. It is stimulated by things, yet is not a thing; therefore, when things transform, it is not extinguished. It relies on fated numbers, yet is not a number; therefore, when numbers are exhausted, it does not end. Where there is emotion, it can be stimulated by things; where there is consciousness, it can be sought through numbers. Numbers have fine and coarse, so their natures differ; wisdom has bright and dark, so its illumination is not identical. Inferring from this, we know that transformation proceeds through emotion, and the spirit is transmitted through transformation. Emotion is the mother of transformation; the spirit is the root of emotion. Emotion has the way of meeting things; the spirit has the efficacy of unseen transition. It is only that the awakened return to the origin, while those confused about principle chase after things. Those of antiquity who discussed the Way also did not agree entirely; let us cite them to clarify this. Zhuangzi voiced the dark sound in 'The Great Ancestral Teacher', saying: 'The Great Clump burdens me with life, and rests me with death'; and he also considered life to be a manacle, and death to be returning to the true. This is what is meant by knowing life to be a great affliction, and taking birthlessness as returning to the origin. Wenzi cited the words of the Yellow Emperor, saying: 'The form has wear and tear, but the spirit does not transform; riding transformation with the untransforming, its changes are inexhaustible.' Zhuangzi also said: 'Merely taking on the form of man, one still rejoices; yet if a human form transforms ten thousand times without beginning or end, [what joy could compare]?' This is what is meant by knowing that life does not end in a single transformation, whereas those who chase after things do not return. Although the treatises of these two masters did not exhaust the actuality, they nevertheless touched upon the lineage and had heard of it. The interlocutor does not seek the teaching that 'at the moment of life there is death', but is confused by gathering and dispersing within a single transformation; he does not consider that the spiritual path has the sentience of a subtle thing, but claims that fine and coarse are exhausted together. Is this not lamentable? The analogy of fire and wood originally came from the sacred scriptures; but its lineage having been lost, its profound inspiration cannot be sought, and the subtle words have sunk into ordinary teaching, causing interlocutors to use them to formulate doubt. Supposing there had been no master who awakened to the lineage in our time, then none would know the illumination of earlier enlightened ones, and the subtlety of unseen transmission would go unheard through the ages. Why is this? Emotion and numbers stimulate one another, and their transformation has no beginning; causal conditions are secretly woven together, unseen and silently transcribing one another. Unless one possesses penetrating insight, who could perceive its changes? Let me verify it with reality for the interlocutor: the transmission of fire across firewood is like the transmission of the spirit across forms; fire transmitting to different firewood is like the spirit transmitting to different forms. The earlier firewood is not the later firewood, from which we know the marvel of the art of exhausting fingers; the earlier form is not the later form, from which we awaken to the depth of the stimulus of emotion and numbers. The confused see the form rot within a single lifetime, and immediately consider the spirit and emotion to be lost together, just as observing fire exhausted in a single piece of wood, they say that at the final moment all is extinguished. This is merely following the discourses on nourishing life superficially, not seeking far into its categories. Coming to your treatise, supposing that form and spirit transform together, both originating from heaven, and that the foolish and the wise in giving life equally receive their endowment—may I ask, did they receive it from the form, or did they receive it from the spirit? If they received it from the form, then all things that have form would transform into spirit. If they received it from the spirit, that would be transmitting spirit with spirit; then Danzhu would be equal in sagacity to Emperor Yao, and Chonghua would be identical in sentience to Gusou. Could that be so? Could that be so? If it cannot be so, then we firmly know that the weaving of unseen conditions was established in the past, and the division between bright and dark was fixed at the inception of form. Even though the Spiritual Potter is good at revolving, he still cannot change what is natural to one's nature—how much less can those subordinate to this! Tested by principle, the subtle words have evidence; verified by events, there is no doubt about the Great Pervasion.

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When the treatise was completed, later there were guests living in retirement who, strolling under the bright moon on a night excursion, gathered together in the Dharma hall. They inquired, saying: 'Having respectfully investigated your elegant treatise, its grand destination is visible, and practically nothing remains to be heard. One day, testing and re-examining it, that which has not been fully articulated is only a few points. In our view, the moral standards of the śramaṇas are exceptional institutions that alter worldly custom, and the titular vessels of the Daoists; applied to sovereigns and parents, it is indeed fitting that they be sparing in physical respect. What is now doubted is that they have only just begun an enterprise that is difficult to accomplish, and remotely look to attain efficacy beyond transformation; their hidden benefit has no visible effect in the present, and their future recompense is mysterious and not yet realized. Yet they cause princes and dukes to make offerings and faithful gentlemen to bend their bodies. Are they not sitting and receiving such virtue, falling into the liability of premature calculation, and vainly receiving such grace—matching the reproach of eating without working?' The host, after a long pause, answered: 'Let me take an analogy from nearby for you worthy gentlemen. Suppose there is a person here who, upholding the sovereign's command, reaches far to the customs of distant lands that require nine interpreters. May I ask: should the king provide him with provisions and bestow upon him carriages and robes?' They answered: 'Indeed.' The host said: 'The analogy can be pursued. What is called a śramaṇa? It refers to one who can dispel the dark ignorance of worldly custom, and open the mysterious path beyond transformation. He is about to proceed with all under Heaven through the way of mutual forgetting, causing those who aspire to the heights to drink of his lingering style, and those who rinse in the stream to taste his remaining dew. If so, although the great enterprise is not yet completed, looking at the tracks of his transcendent steps, that to which he has awakened is already vast! Moreover, the kāṣāya is not courtly attire, and the alms bowl is not a vessel for royal chambers. Śramaṇas are people beyond the dust, and should not pay reverence to kings. Thus the merit of their pervasive transmission and the benefit of maintaining their existence have not yet repaid the aspiration of their initial vows—how much less could they repay the labor of the three actions? Furthermore, though such a person's physical form relies on sustenance, his feelings harbor no worldly attachments; he views the offerings of the four necessities as if gnats were passing before him. How could the favor of moistening with foam be worth mentioning?' The guests thereupon first awakened to the fact that the unseen path takes opening the way as its efficacy, and that stilling the mind takes ultimate purity as the Way. Delighted and comforted in mind, chanting and conversing, they retired.

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Huan Chu's Edict Granting that Śramaṇas Need Not Pay Homage (One Item)

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Huan Chu received the letter and treatise from Master Yuan of Mount Lu. On the third day of the twelfth month of the second year of Taiheng, he issued an edict halting the matter of śramaṇas paying reverence. The edict stated: 'The Chancellery: The Buddha's Dharma is vast and grandiose, which we cannot fully comprehend. Inferring their earnest sincerity, we would rather grant them their reverence. Now the matter rests with ourself; if it is indeed not understood, we should rather follow their omission. Let no one cause them to perform homage anymore. Make this known to all.'

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Four Memorials by Palace Attendant Bian Sizhi and Others Maintaining that Śramaṇas Should Pay Reverence (Together with Three Replies from Huan Chu)

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First Memorial: Palace Attendant, your subject Sizhi, and Gentleman Attendant at the Yellow Gates, your subject Yuan Kezhi, and others say: The imperial edict is as above. The spiritual path is dark and obscure; the sacred edict is profound and distant. What Your Majesty magnifies is great, extending even to the men of the Way who revere the Buddha. Within the lands of the realm, there is none who is not a king's subject; yet, relying on the Dharma robes of conversion, they directly match courtesy with the Lord of Ten Thousand Chariots. Our foolish minds are ill at ease with this. How could the ritual of bowing and rising detract from their Way? The great cardinal relations between high and low should not be entirely discarded. If you permit them to be outside the Teaching of Names and omit their rituals of bowing and paying reverence, we request that you decisively refuse audiences to them and memorialize this for the record. Respectfully submitted.

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Huan Xuan's First Reply: 'Why should this be? It is best to uphold the edict.'

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Second Memorial: Palace Attendant, your subject Sizhi, and others submit this memorial: We have repeatedly received your enlightened edict, elevating the utmost of empty yielding and treading the path of humble brilliance. In our foolish minds, filled with longing, we privately still feel ill at ease. Although methods of government differ, in principle they ultimately reach the same end. Revering parents and following teachings do not contradict Laozi. In speaking of the 'four great things', their supremacy is one. Although that which the śramaṇas mount is different, their tracks do not transcend the world; how can they fail to be identical with the subjects of Heaven? Your Majesty truly desires to magnify them from above; yet the rituals of low and high are the canonical standards for governing. We foolishly deem it fitting to stoop to accord with the minds of the multitude to serve as an enduring model for the future. We request that it be as in the previous memorial. Respectfully submitted.

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Huan Xuan's Second Reply: 'Leaving it so that it comes from themselves is also loving the nine schools of thought equally, allowing each to fulfill their own path.'

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Third Memorial: Palace Attendant and Libationer, your subject Sizhi, says: We have repeatedly received the edict as above. Your Majesty has attained the perfection of ultimate emptiness, allowing all things to blow of themselves, letting the nine schools of thought each pursue their excellence, and letting the manifest and the obscure both exhaust their attainments. Spiritual moisture flows in secret, leaving no thought that is not cherished. It is that by which the myriad realms rely on communication, and by which Heaven and man commune with ease. Your subject has heard that the Buddha's teaching takes spiritual wisdom as its root and penetrating the Way as its efficacy; anything below this is merely the function of gathering the coarse. The spiritual principle is far-reaching; seeking it in what is above form, reverently bowing and rising in prostration does not detract from upholding the precepts. If practicing the Way does not lose respectfulness, and the king's law ensures equal reverence throughout the realm, then the standards of the Way will both flourish and both inside and outside will attain their proper place. Your subject previously accepted an outside appointment, and my hearing was dull and limited; thus I did not know that last spring there had already been an enlightened discussion. Recently, while on duty, I received the edict, and directly followed my foolish sentiments without fear of appropriateness; returning here, I only then saw this matter. It has repeatedly passed beneath the divine brush; its central purport is far-reaching, and its analysis of principle is subtle and profound, not something my dull incompetence could praise or evaluate. The rites of the śramaṇas were already practiced in the previous dynasty; now that the Great Light has arisen and the transformative Dao has no outside, the great cardinal principles for administering the state cannot be deficient. We request that, as previously memorialized, instructions be given to external authorities to put this into effect. Respectfully submitted.

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Huan Xuan's Third Reply: 'There are naturally those who promote both the inner and outer together; why must one rely on the principles of the previous dynasty? You gentlemen's petty begrudging of this is, moreover, not a praise of their Way.'

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Fourth Memorial: Palace Attendant and Libationer, your subject Sizhi, says: We have repeatedly received the edict, stating: 'There are naturally those who promote both the inner and outer together.' The sacred intention is profound and pervasive; your Way crowns the hundred kings. Reading it prostrate, looking up with sighs of admiration, it is beyond what our foolish shallowness can grasp. Revering the sovereign and respecting the law are the duties of subjects; therefore we earnestly and repeatedly maintained what we guarded. The enlightened edict is transcendent and far-reaching, its grand strategy surpassing ordinary balance. Your subject was blind, narrow, and uncomprehending; looking back, I am filled with shame and apprehension. I shall immediately uphold the edict, transmit it to external authorities to announce, direct, and comply with. Respectfully submitted. Submitted on the twenty-fourth day of the twelfth month of the first year of YCircle / Yongsji.

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Matter of Emperor Xiaowu of Song Restraining Śramaṇas to Perform Bowing (One Item)

2.34

Under Emperor Xiaowu of the Song, in the ninth month of the sixth year of Daming, the officials in charge submitted a memorial, stating: "Your subjects have heard that profound contemplation and aloof composure do not seek loftiness for its own sake, nor are prostrations and bendings of the body intended merely to show respect and reverence. They are meant to extend and maintain the four cardinal bonds, and establish order throughout the eight realms. Thus, although Confucianism and Legalism have parted streams, and the School of Names and Mohism have branched into separate tenets, when it comes to honoring parents and revering superiors, there is never any deviation from their source. Only the teaching of the Buddha originated from the Dragon Mound; running counter to the classic texts and carrying forward traditions, its instructions are remote and its affairs recondite. Refining life and polishing consciousness are commonly considered difficult by ordinary folk. Its central tenets are distant, and its subtle words have been obscured and cut off. Being bound to the literal letter and blind to the Way, [its adherents] have become all the more rampant in recent times. They have consequently overstepped canonical standards, behaving haughtily toward the honored and their kin. They lose the subtle traces of adapting to circumstances, and are ignorant of the profound meaning of inheriting moral transformation. Now the Buddha's teaching takes humility and restraint as its discipline, and loyalty and devoutness as its way. The monk Never-Disparaging bowed to everyone he met; the śramaṇa Maudgalyāyana paid homage whenever he encountered an elder. How could one bend the knee to the four assemblies yet omit homage to one's two parents, or prostrate to seniors in monastic age while keeping a rigid posture before the lord of ten thousand chariots? Thus in the Xiankang era the debate was first raised, and in the Yuanxing era it was again expounded, but the matter was bent to partial factions and the proper Way was compromised by residual divisions. Now the vast source has thoroughly cleansed away defilements, and the myriad streams look up to it as a mirror; the myriad immortals present their treasures, and the hundred spirits stand in awe at their posts. Yet within the metropolitan domain there dwell commoners who do not act as subjects, and among the court mats there are entertained guests who claim equal etiquette. We fear this is not the way to unify moral customs and clearly demonstrate illustrious norms. We, your subjects, having conferred together, consider that when śramaṇas are granted an audience, they must completely fulfill the rites. Their reverent demeanor should adhere to the established court regulations. Then the court's decorum will be in order, and compliance with the proper norms will be fully achieved." The Emperor followed this.

2.35

Shi Yancong states: The 'Biographies of Emperor Xiaowu' records: 'During the two or three years after the Emperor ascended the throne, he gave free rein to his desires; he rejected admonitions enough to ruin his virtue, causing the realm to lose hope. He possessed the talent and intelligence of Shizu (Emperor Wen), but lacked the thoughtful discipline to restrain himself with ritual standards. If he had possessed the frugality of Emperor Wu and pursued the clemency of Taizu, then how would Emperors Wen and Jing of the Han even be worth mentioning?' From the sixth year of Daming to the first year of Jingming, for a total of four years, he ordered [monks] to bow to the ruler of the state, yet the saṃgha ultimately never practiced it. Is it not because defying heavenly norms naturally rendered the imperial decrees completely futile?

2.36

One Account on Helian Bobo of the Xia Ordering Śramaṇas to Bow

2.37

During the Yuanxi reign of Emperor Gong of the Jin, Helian Bobo occupied Xia Prefecture. He plundered the territories of the two Qin dynasties and carried out the cruelties of the five punishments. He then called himself "Fo-fo" (Buddha-Buddha), claiming that he was already a Buddha among men and fit to receive the homage of monks. He then had a Buddhist image painted and draped over his back, ordering the śramaṇas: "Bowing to this image is bowing to me." Later, he was struck dead by thunder. After he was buried, thunder struck again, exposing his corpse, upon which were inscribed the words "Without the Way." Soon afterward, [his state] was swallowed up by Northern Dai, and he became the laughingstock of the whole world.

2.38

One Account on Emperor Wu of the Qi Debating the Equal Etiquette of Śramaṇas

2.39

During the Daming era, Emperor Wu of the Qi decreed that the monk Faxian of Upper Dinglin Temple and the monk Xuanchang of Changgan Temple screen and select the monks and nuns in Sanwu. At that time, both monks Chang and Xian had practiced the disciplinary rules from their youth and did not compete in worldly matters. Whenever they conversed with Emperor Wu, they always called themselves by their names and did not sit. Later, the monk Zhong of Zhongxing [Temple] had an audience with the Emperor in the Qianhe Hall. The Emperor asked: "Is Zhong well?" Zhong replied: "This poor daoren has recently suffered from qi illness." The Emperor was displeased by this. He then asked Wang Jian, the Minister of the Department of State Affairs: "When the śramaṇas of the northern regions converse with kings, what do they call themselves? And do they sit in the main hall?" Jian replied: "During the Han and Wei, the Buddha-Dharma was not yet widely flourishing, and no records or transmissions are seen. Ever since the illegitimate northern states grew somewhat prosperous, [monks there] have all called themselves 'poor daoren' and have also been granted seats. It was also like this at the beginning of the Jin. In the middle period, there were Yu Bing, Huan Xuan, and others who wished to make śramaṇas pay full homage, but the court debates were so contentious that the matter was abandoned each time. During the middle of the Song dynasty, they were also somewhat ordered to offer homage, but before long it was completely abandoned. From then until now, most have been granted seats and have called themselves 'poor daoren.'" The Emperor said: "Monks Chang and Xian had religious accomplishments such as theirs, yet they still called themselves by their names; how much more so should the rest? Making formal bows is too excessive, but calling oneself by name carries no objection." From that time on, śramaṇas all called themselves by their names before emperors and kings; this began with Chang and Xian.

2.40

One Account on Emperor Yang of the Sui Ordering Śramaṇas to Bow (together with the reply by Śramaṇa Mingzhan of Xingshan Temple)

2.41

During the Daye era, Emperor Yang of the Sui reformed previous policies and ordered śramaṇas to bow to the Emperor, officials, and chiefs, promulgating it among the miscellaneous statutes. In the fifth year, when the Emperor conducted an imperial audience at the southern suburb, displaying civil and military regalia on a grand scale and arranging ranks for all officials, the two assemblies of Buddhists and Daoists stood upright as before. An imperial decree was issued: "The regulations have been in effect for a long time; why do you not bow?" Hearing this, the Daoist masters and mistresses of Huang-Lao promptly offered homage, while only the monks and nuns remained dignified and unmoved. At that time, Śramaṇa Mingzhan of Xingshan Temple answered the Emperor: "We monks rely on the Buddha's precepts; we must not perform homage to laypeople." The Emperor said: "In the time of Emperor Wu of the Song, why did monks offer homage?" Zhan said: "Emperor Wu of the Song was狂妄 (mad and perverse); if one did not bow, there was severe execution. Your Majesty possesses the Way; if we do not bow, we have no fear of public execution." The Emperor ordered them to be interrogated, and the monks and nuns thereupon dispersed. The next morning, Zhan went to the palace gates to consult with the officials again, looking for someone willing to risk death to reply to the imperial decree and apologize. The palace secretariat reported the offense of not bowing the day before. The Emperor remained calm and did not pursue the matter; instead, he held a vegetarian feast for all the monks and nuns in the capital, giving each person money and silk. Later, when the Emperor visited the western suburb, he looked back and said to Su Wei: "I thought there were no real monks in the capital, but yesterday at the southern suburb, there was indeed someone after all." The matter of bowing was consequently dropped.

2.42

A Treatise on the Field of Merit by Śramaṇa Shi Yancong of the Translation Bureau by the Banks of the Luo (with preface)

2.43

In the past, during the Eastern Jin, Grand Defender Huan Xuan debated ordering śramaṇas to pay homage to the ruler. The Dharma Master of Mount Lu, possessing eminent renown and vast virtue, grieved that the banner of wisdom was about to be bent and worried that the treasure of precepts was going to sink. He thereupon composed the *Treatise on Śramaṇas Not Paying Homage to Kings*, in which he argued against the propriety of offering homage; at that time, the matter was consequently laid to rest. However, because his woven phrases were subtle and his cited examples profound and remote, later students who open and read them find it difficult to discern the meaning of the text. Taking advantage of some leisure time, I have ventured to expound it once more, changing the title to the *Treatise on the Field of Merit*.

2.44

Suddenly an esteemed guest arrived from afar, remotely echoing Huan's side and restating the former arguments. The host held right mindfulness for a long time, then raised his voice and answered: "You, guest, seem not to have heard the essentials of the field of merit. I shall now discuss it for you. What is meant by the 'field of merit'? It refers to the Three Jewels. Having perfected marvelous wisdom and attained complete enlightenment in the Way—this is the Buddha. The profound principle being quiescent and recondite, the correct teaching being pure and sincere—this is the Dharma. Upholding truth through monastic precepts, transcending the world in decorum—this is the Saṃgha. They are all guides for the four types of beings, and ferries across the six realms of existence, rising higher than gods and humans, weighing heavier than metal and stone. To compare them to precious gems is but an inferior analogy. The Buddha is marked as supreme as the Lord of Dharma; the Dharma takes the Buddha as its teacher and foundation; the Saṃgha, as his disciples, exalts this Buddha-Dharma. It may be said that the revered and the humble share the same rank, and root and branch share a common gate. Spoken as phenomena, there are three types; discussed as essence, they are of one identical substance. Abiding for fifty years, expounding eighty thousand scriptures, the ultimate end of all that was taught lies solely in this utmost culmination. Sinking his voice and extinguishing his form, the era of the Twin Trees came to an end; carving sandalwood and inscribing leaves, the model of a single transformation was left behind. Noble and sage beings arose between times, receiving teachings in mutual succession; living in harmony as a community, the maintenance [of the Dharma] was entrusted to them. The golden man illuminated the Han palace, and the Semblance Dharma reached the shores of the Luo; all revere the primordial awakened one and collectively inherit the former standards. Aspiring beyond the realm, they arouse their intention; renouncing the mundane world, they establish virtue. Official glory cannot stir their minds, and relatives cannot entangle their retribution. Their robes are cut from cast-off colors, and their hair is shaven in disfigured appearance. They do not wear caps to establish their decorum; how could they bind belts to make ornaments? Even the sovereigns of the upper heavens constantly offer them homage; surely the kings of the lower earth ought to pay them reverence. Both scriptures and monastic codes agree on this; this Dharma is not divergent. Whether in ancient times or the present, this Way is unhindered. When we consider the gravity of emperors and kings, second only to the greatness of gods and spirits, the eight directions admire their virtue, and the four seas submit to their benevolence; yet monks and nuns performing court obeisance is something unheard of. If you harbor a different purpose, pray present your refined view."

2.45

The guest said: "The *Book of Changes* states: 'The great virtue of heaven and earth is called life; the great treasure of the sage is called position.' Laozi states: 'Within the realm there are four greats, and the king occupies one of them.' I submit that there is no territory that is not the king's land, and in establishing states, there are none who are not the king's subjects, bound to the ruler. Modeling himself on Heaven and taking Earth as his law, he shelters and carries the myriad people; matching spring and comparing to summer, he brings to growth the myriad things. He shines upon them with the light of the sun and moon, and moistens them with the vapor of clouds and rain. The six directions all revere him like the sea, and the common people together look up to him like the polar star. The Rong and Yi barbarians change their demeanor, and horses and oxen turn their heads. Even snakes were grateful to the Marquis of Sui, and fish were moved by the Emperor of the Han. How can [monks], having been excused from the registered households and having taken refuge in this Dharma gate, forget the broad benevolence of deliverance and neglect the immense beneficence of provisions, esteeming themselves as exalted and great while abruptly discarding humility and respect? Comparing them to birds and beasts, what difference would there be? If indeed one can attain supernatural powers and achieve the noble fruits, with one's Way covering the realm, the principle would naturally go without saying. But today, you vainly engage in tonsure while further increasing the three poisons; you make empty changes to clothing while remaining tainted by the six dusts. You do not cultivate precepts or forbearance, nor do you attain concentration or wisdom. Violating the clear teachings, you are no different from the ordinary and worldly. How could you rely on the mere labor of chanting and reciting to claim equal etiquette with the lord of ten thousand chariots, or make use of an external difference in appearance to lack respect for the One Man? Formerly, monks touched the feet of laymen, and Bodhisattvas bowed to arrogant multitudes. These texts clearly demonstrate their purport; how can you say it is otherwise? If you say that the expedient path is difficult to follow and the Buddha-nature alone is to be revered, how much more so does the *Book of the Ruler* state: 'Without a spirit descending, Boyang (Laozi) opened the model of ten thousand ages, and Zhongni (Confucius) unfolded the norms for a hundred kings.' When it comes to imperial audiences, one must follow the court regulations; yet there are still śramaṇas who dare to commit insults and slights. If this can be tolerated, what cannot be endured? Corrupt customs are difficult to reform, and evil currents easily endure. If one does not meet an enlightened sovereign, who could correct them? To suddenly cause extraordinary alterations will mostly incur the criticism of lacking faith. My sincere words are well-founded; I hope you will deign to examine them in detail."

First 45 of 53 passages. Read on

Linked texts (1)

集沙門不應拜俗等事 — Classical Chinese