集沙門不應拜俗等事 4.9

4.9

Now, filial support is that by which one serves parents; hair and skin are the beginning of establishing filial piety. Reverence and loyalty are that by which one serves superiors; kneeling and prostrating express the demeanor of respectful homage. This indeed reaches up to fathom celestial constancy and looks down to exhaust human propriety. As for the extinction of thusness, words and deeds are both exhausted; mysterious, subtle, indistinct, and silent, it is dark and difficult to fathom. Your Majesty magnifies the correct Way and opens the marvelous gate; raising those followers of the Dharma, You receive this hidden protection. However, their teachings are not the governance of the mundane realm; their appearance is the demeanor of transcending worldly bounds. Their robes differ from national garments, and their bodies lack head ornaments; how could they join the official class in bowing down, or mingle with those wearing hairpins and fillets in long kneeling? In our humble view, inheriting the Dharma and honoring the worthy allows them not to compromise their principles at court; modifying their form and cutting themselves off allows them to have no humbling etiquette at home. Furthermore, by being like the sort of Chao Fu and Xu You, they add to the flourishing of Yao and Shun. As for the charge of entrustment, following precedent is best. Having received the clear decree, we dare to submit a candid deliberation. Respectfully submitted.