辯正論 3.31

3.31

Zhaoming's Way accorded with innate knowledge; Jin'an's virtue shone with natural endowments. They roamed in the gardens of rites and music, and galloped across the fields of benevolence and righteousness. Their reputation on the banks of the Luo has had no peer since antiquity; the writings of the Bend of the Yellow River could not reach them. Xia Kai would feel ashamed before them, and Ji Song would be full of shame if compared to them. The eight brother princes and the ten outstanding branches all exhausted the learning of the hundred schools and united the texts of the nine lineages. Their dazzling spirit surpassed the wind and clouds, and their fine phrasing outshone the sun and moon. They held the wonderful Dharma in high esteem and revered the gate of merit. When the Chenghua Palace opened at dawn and the Sucheng Palace unlocked in the morning, renowned monks formed retinues, and learned Ru scholars gathered together; uttering and receiving words and principles, they evaluated inner and outer texts. They could make eminent men of virtue yield in debate, and past sages plead illness. There was no need to carry scriptures into alleys, nor any reliance on goat carts approaching the gates.