集沙門不應拜俗等事 5.25

5.25

The unyielding breaks while the yielding endures—this fanned the wondrous purports of the Mysterious Wind. Afflicting the body and sweetening humiliation—this promoted the subtle words of the Buddhist path. Therefore, they were able to open the source of being good at placing oneself below, and magnify the practice of Never Despising. (The matter is as critiqued in the deliberation of the Palace Library.) Thus, the Śrāvakas lowered their etiquette before the Vimalakīrti householder, (Critique: The sūtra says: "The householder Vimalakīrti manifested illness in Vaiśālī; though appearing to have a wife and children, he constantly practiced the pure brahma-conduct; though appearing to have dependents, he constantly took joy in remote seclusion." Although he was a layperson, he upheld the pure vinaya practices of a śramaṇa. Since he was equal to the monastic ranks, kneeling and bowing was indeed the standard decorum. Furthermore, he manifested past insight; when he attained the Dharma, how could they not bear reverence toward him? To cite this as a precedent is, we fear, inappropriate.) and the Archivist (Laozi) pledged his allegiance to the King of Zhou. These form the adornments of the black robes and establish the model for the yellow caps. From then on, their fundamental rules were lost; successive generations drowned in their true principle, and entrenched customs clung to their straying path. (Critique: Since Buddhism entered China, it has passed through generations of illustrious and sagely rulers; five times it faced submission through bowing, and three times it suffered expulsion and eradication. In all cases, because principle and facts could not be contravened, the old tracks were restored. Saying now that they "cling to confusion and drown in principle" seems rather absurd.) When the One Man acts, all things behold it. Uniting the cords of heaven and earth, drawing alongside the hundred kings, he turns the golden wheel across supreme territories and erects the Jade Capital within the mysterious realm. Consequently, he causes Daoist priests who have turned their backs on the true to pursue the distant style of the Archivist, and errant Buddhist śramaṇas to mend the discarded canons of the Śrāvakas. (Critique: What the Buddhist teachings clarify is that there are two kinds of people: first, Śrāvakas; second, Bodhisattvas. Bodhisattvas have no fixed form and adjust their decorum according to each category; Śrāvakas shave their hair, dye their robes, and uphold elevated detachment to form a rule. The disciplinary rules of the Śrāvaka assembly do not allow them to pay homage to laypeople. Following this in respectful practice, why call it "errant Buddhism"?) Furthermore, the sun sheds its brilliance, marking peerless light in Heaven; the Great Emperor claims supreme honor, governing the realm and reaching the pinnacle of the three domains. Moreover, although the discipline and models of the two teachings sever secular appearances, their practice is confined to renouncing home; they have not managed to flee the state. (Critique: The reason śramaṇas do not bow to laypeople is precisely because they have severed secular appearances, not because they flee the state. As for the likes of Yan Guang and Duan Ganmu, or the assembly of the Ying riverbank and Mount Shang: some sat squatting upon meeting or merely bowed with clasped hands, yet their arrival did not mean remaining; some washed their ears to decline glory, and when summoned, would not arrive. This too was simply aloof detachment; did they flee the state?)