集沙門不應拜俗等事 5.10

5.10

I venture to consider: The Daoist teaching is open and void, while the gate of the Śākya is secret and quiescent. As for illuminating benevolence to rescue living beings and revering righteousness in their hearts, when looking upon the Confucian tradition, in principle they should not differ. (Critique: What Confucian teaching illuminates does not exceed the worldly realm; what the Śākya school expounds towers far above what is seen and heard. Therefore, Prince Pi of Dongyang of the Wei dynasty said: 'The Buddha-Dharma is profound and vast, not something those of the Ru or Mo schools can understand.' Now you say they do not differ; how full of error!)

As for those of long-standing virtue and advanced age whose Vinaya discipline is without flaw, who dwell in forests and withdraw to valleys, holding their pursuit aloft—cohorts such as these may be accorded reverence. But as for young novices seeking learning whose cultivation has earned no renown, who turn their backs on the Real and mingle with the secular, their mental conduct full of transgressions—for these to not bow, it is hard for this principle to be accepted. (Critique: What does it mean to be called a śramaṇa? It means continuing the Dharma, emulating the worthy, enlightening the ignorant, and initiating transformation. His demeanor differs from the attire of court officials, and his teachings are distinct from the rules of ancestral temples and courts. In seeking the fundamental truth, he holds his body upright; who can divide this based on virtue and enterprise? To rectify worldly customs, he stands as an equal in etiquette; how could he allow himself to be partitioned by worldly status?)

Now, at home or in the state, serving the sovereign or serving parents, how could the ceremony of not bowing be used as a moral instruction? (Critique: True indeed! Those who serve the sovereign and parents should certainly not fail to bow. But the śramaṇa does not serve kings or princes, and has turned his back on natural family affections; to take bowing as an instruction seems ill-considered.)

We request that they be ordered to bow, handing down a statute for posterity. Respectfully deliberated.