辯正論 4

English (machine translation) 4

Language: English

4.1

Composed by Śramaṇa Shi Falin of the Tang

4.2

Veneration of the Buddha through Ten Dynasties, Part Two

The Great Tang: Emperor Gaozu, the Martial Supreme Emperor.
The Great Tang: The Present Reigning Emperor.
Wei: Prince of Bohai, Grand Chancellor.
Wei: Prince Yilie of Guangyang, Palace Attendant, Grand Protection, Minister over the Masses.
Prince Zhongwu of Guangyang.
Wei: Prince of Guangyang, Minister over the Masses.
Prince Wenxian of Guangyang.
Wei: Prince Gao, Chancellor of State.
Prince of Runan.
Wei: Prince of Yidu.
Wei: Prince Mu of Shangdang.
Wei: Prince Zhi of Changshan.
Wei: Prince Wei of Huaiyang.
Prince Xun of Hedong.
Wei: Prince Pi of Dongyang.
Prince Ta of Huainan.
Wei: Prince Han of Qin.
Wei: Prince Xiang of Beihai, Minister over the Masses.
Prince Yong of Gaoyang, Shepherd of the Masses.
Wei: Prince Xie of Pengcheng.
Wei: Prince Wenruo of Jinan.
Wei: Prince Yanming of Anfeng.
Prince Xi of Zhongshan.
Wei: Prince Song of Langye.
Wei: Prince Jia of Guangyang, Prefect of the Masters of Writing.
Wei: Prince Qian of Chenliu.
Wei: Prince Xianwu of Qi.
Wei: Prince of Qi, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, In Charge of Domestic and External Military Affairs.
Prince Chan of Julu.
Wei: Prince Shao of Pengcheng, Manager of the Affairs of the Masters of Writing.
Prince Liang of Qiaojun.
Wei: Prince Yi of Jiangxia.
Prince Rong of Lintao.
Wei: Feng Xi, Grand Preceptor, Grand Minister of War, Regional Inspector of Luozhou.
Wei: Hu Guozhen, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, Regional Inspector of Youzhou, Minister over the Masses.
Wei: Zu Ying (courtesy name Yuanzhen), Minister over the Masses.
Wei: Li Wuwei, Minister of Works.
Wei: Li Shi, Prince of Changning, Grand Tutor.
Wei: Dou Lue, Duke of Jianchang, Junior Protection.
Wei: Gao Weicao, Minister of Works.
Wei: Gao Longzhi, Minister over the Masses.
Wei: Yuan Cha, Palace Attendant, Prefect of the Masters of Writing.
Wei: Murong Shaozong, Right Vice Director of the Masters of Writing, Grand Mobile Field Administrator.
Wei: Xing Luan, Minister of Personnel.
Wei: Lu Zheng, General of the Agile Cavalry, Equal in Dignity to the Three Authorities, Regional Inspector of Hengzhou.
Wei: Zheng Qiong, Marquis Gong, Minister of Ceremonial.
Wei: Han Zhongxiang, Regional Inspector of Yongzhou.
Wei: Cui Ling, Gentleman of the Yellow Gate.
Wei: Lu Lingshou, Regional Inspector of Youzhou.
Wei: Zhao Yuanze, Commandery Governor of Peijun.
Wei: Li Jiang, Duke of Wuyi, Intendant of Henan.
Wei: Lu Zai, Mentor to the Crown Prince, Palace Assistant Censor.
Wei: Xu Botao, Minister of the Guards.
Wei: Wen Zisheng, Cavalier Attendant-in-Ordinary.
Wei: Houmochen Yin, General of Pacifying Remoteness.
Qi: Prince Que of Changshan, Grand Chancellor, In Charge of Internal and External Military Affairs.
Qi: Prince Changgong of Lanling, Defender-in-Chief.
Qi: Prince Yan of Langye, Minister over the Masses.
Qi: Prince Zhan of Changguang, Manager of the Affairs of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Prince of Guangping, Grand Area Commander, Master of Writing.
Qi: Prince Dan of Qinghe, Grand Minister of War.
Qi: Prince Xiaoyan of Guangning, Left Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Tang Yong, Prince of Jinchang, Duke of Chang'an, Palace Attendant, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, Prefect of the Masters of Writing, Manager of Documents, Commander-in-Chief of Military Affairs of Zhaozhou, General of the Agile Cavalry, Specially Advanced and Equal in Dignity to the Three Authorities, General of the Army of the Protector, Regional Inspector of Zhaozhou, overseeing Area Commander of Six Provinces and Grand Rectifier.
Qi: Hulü Mingyue, Prince of Xianyang, Right Chancellor.
Qi: Duan Xiaoxian, Prince of Pingyuan, Left Chancellor.
Qi: He Shikai, Prince of Huainan, Manager of the Affairs of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Prince Gao Yue of Qinghe, Minister of Ceremonial.
Qi: Kudi Qianqiu, Prince of Zhangwu, Grand Preceptor.
Qi: Prince Gao Yangui of Qin, Palace Attendant.
Qi: Yuan Luo, Palace Attendant, Prefect of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Gao Zhao, Prefect of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Peng Le, Defender-in-Chief.
Qi: Pan Xiang, Minister over the Masses.
Qi: Sima Ziru, Minister of Works.
Qi: Yang Zunyan, Grand Master of Splendid Happiness, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Wei Mu, Junior Tutor, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Cui Qian, Grand Master of Splendid Happiness, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Cui Jishu, Right Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Yan Zijing, Left Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Zhao Yanshen, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Hulü Xiaoqing, Palace Attendant.
Qi: Husi Wenruo, Palace Attendant.
Qi: Xu Zhicai, Palace Attendant.
Qi: Gao Zhengde, Palace Attendant.
Qi: Wang Yuanjing, Minister of the Seven Armies.
Qi: Cui Ang, Minister of Ceremonial.
Qi: Liu Ti, Cavalier Attendant-in-Ordinary.
Qi: Du Bi, Minister of the Guards.
Qi: Xing Zicai, Palace Minister of Writing.
Qi: Zu Xiaozheng, Director of the Palace Library.
Qi: Feng Xiaoyan, Left Assistant to the Masters of Writing.
Qi: Fan Ru, Marquis of Ankang, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, General Who Pacifies the South, Regional Inspector of Renzhou, Grand Master of Splendid Happiness with Gold Seal and Purple Ribbon.
Zhou: Prince of Wei, Pillar of State, Area Commander-in-Chief of Xiangzhou.
Zhou: Prince of Zhao, Pillar of State, Area Commander-in-Chief of Yizhou.
Zhou: Prince of Qi, Pillar of State, Regional Inspector of Yongzhou.
Zhou: Yuwen Hu, Duke of the State of Jin, Grand Preceptor, Grand Minister of State, Grand General Pillar of State.
Zhou: Dulu Ning, Duke of the State of Chu, Pillar of State, Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Zhou: Dou Chi, Duke of the State of Deng, Grand Tutor, Grand General Pillar of State, Grand Master of Rites.
Zhou: Duan Zhi, Duke of Anfeng, Palace Attendant, Pillar of State, Minister for the Palace Buildings, Martial Guard General, Champion General, Grand Master of Splendid Happiness.
Zhou: Dou Gong, Duke of the State of Zan, Pillar of State, Shepherd of Yongzhou, In Charge of Military Affairs of Nanyan and Eight Provinces, Area Commander-in-Chief of Yanzhou.
Zhou: Yuwen Gui, Duke of Anding, Grand General, Regional Inspector of Youzhou.
Zhou: Tuoba Sheng, Duke Zhuang of Yunning, Prince of Langye Commandery, Specially Advanced and Equal in Dignity to the Three Authorities, Crown Prince's Companion.
Zhou: Yuwen Shan, Duke of Hedong, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, Commander-in-Chief of Shanzhou, Secretary of the Mobile Administration, Cavalier Regular Attendant.
Zhou: Yuan Ang, Duke of Yanghua, Specially Advanced and Equal in Dignity to the Three Authorities.
Zhou: Yang Zuan, Duke Dong of Longxi, Grand General Pillar of State.
Zhou: Yang Cao, Regional Inspector of Tongzhou, Superior Serviceman of the Right Guard, Cavalier Regular Attendant.
Zhou: Zheng Mu, Marquis Zhen, Minister of Works.
Zhou: Lu Jingren, Duke of Yanjun, Palace Attendant, Junior Tutor, Governor of Jingzhao Commandery, Secretary of the Mobile Administration, Minister for the Palace Buildings.
Zhou: Yuchi An, Duke Wu of Wu, Grand Protection, Grand General Pillar of State.
Zhou: Liu Qingzhi, Duke of Changshan, Grand General, Director of the Southern Barbarians.
Zhou: Xi Gu, Duke of Andao, Regional Inspector of Northern Jingzhou.
Zhou: Ruogan Feng, Duke of the State of Xu, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, Grand General Pillar of State, Grand Area Commander, Regional Inspector of Tongzhou.
Zhou: Houmochen Xiu, Duke of Qinghe, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, Grand Tutor, Grand General Pillar of State.
Zhou: Yuchi Jiong, Duke of the State of Shu, Grand Preceptor, Pillar of State.
Zhou: Shi Xiong, Duke of Anzheng, Specially Advanced and Equal in Dignity to the Three Authorities.
Zhou: Qiu Hongbin, Duke of Anhua, Specially Advanced, General Who Pacifies the North, Regional Inspector of Renzhou.
Zhou: Cai Ge, Palace Gentleman of the Superior Area Commander of Yizhou, Regional Inspector of Xinzhou.
Zhou: Wang Jing, Specially Advanced, General Who Awes Far-off Lands.
Zhou: He Jixiong, Grand General.
Zhou: Ermian Yong, Grand General.
Zhou: Poduoluo Ji, Grand Master of Metal.
Zhou: Yilüqin Zhongqing, Duke of Honghe, Military Marshal.
Sui: Prince Jun of Qin.
Sui: Prince Xiu of Shu.
Sui: Prince Liang of Han.
Sui: Li Mu, Duke of the State of Shen, Grand Preceptor, Senior Pillar of State.
Sui: Zhangsun Lan, Duke of the State of Xue, Grand Protection, Senior Pillar of State.
Sui: Yang Xiong, Prince of Guan, Senior Pillar of State, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, Area Commander-in-Chief of Huainan, Regional Inspector of Shouzhou.
Sui: Dou Yi, Duke Sushen of Shenwu, Grand Minister of War, Senior Pillar of State.
Sui: Yu Qingze, Duke of the State of Lu, Senior Pillar of State, Right Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Sui: Gao Jiong, Duke of the State of Qi, Senior Pillar of State, Left Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Sui: Dou Kang, Duke of the State of Chen, Senior Pillar of State, Grand General of the Right Guard.
Sui: Houmochen Rui, Duke of the State of Liang, Senior Pillar of State, Martial Guard General.
Sui: Yuan Xiaoju, Duke of Xunyang, Senior Pillar of State, In Charge of Military Affairs of Seventeen Provinces Including Luo and Yu, Regional Inspector of Luozhou.
Sui: Yang Ji, Duke of Shangming, Senior Pillar of State, Area Commander-in-Chief of Jingzhou.
Sui: Yang Su, Duke of the State of Yue, Senior Pillar of State, Left Vice Director of the Masters of Writing.
Sui: Su Wei, Duke of the State of Pi, Senior Pillar of State, Right Vice Director of the Masters of Writing, Grand Master of Remonstrance.
Sui: Dou Qing, Senior Pillar of State, Commander-in-Chief of Military Affairs of Hedong, Commandery Governor of Hedong.
Sui: Liu Song, Duke of Nankang, Pillar of State, General of the Right Guard.
Sui: Cui Feng, General of the Agile Cavalry, Equal in Dignity to the Three Authorities, Regional Inspector of Fenzhou.
Sui: Yang Pixie, Prince Heming, Senior Pillar of State.
Sui: Duan Wenzhen, Duke of Longgang, Minister of War, Senior Grand General.
Sui: Wang Shao, Marquis of Jinan, Gentleman of the Editorial Service.
Sui: Heruo Yi, Duke of Hailing, Senior Pillar of State, Area Commander-in-Chief of Four Provinces Including Hao and Ling.
Sui: Dugu Luo, Duke of the State of Zhao, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, Grand General, In Charge of Military Affairs of Liangzhou, Regional Inspector of Liangzhou.
Sui: Liang Rui, Duke Xiang of Jiangguo, Senior Pillar of State, Area Commander-in-Chief of Six Provinces Including Liang and Yi.
Sui: Li Chong, Duke Zhuang of Guangzong, Senior Pillar of State.
Sui: Yuwen Qing, Senior Pillar of State, Grand General of the Left Martial Guard, Commissioner Bearing Credentials, Regional Inspector of Liangzhou.
Sui: Wei Shiwen, Duke of Weixing, Senior Grand General, Area Commander-in-Chief of Yingzhou.
Sui: Wei Shikang, Duke of Shangyong, Senior Pillar of State, Minister of Personnel.
Sui: Xue Yan, Marquis of Xiangyuan, Commandery Governor of Guanghan.

4.4

The Great Tang: Emperor Gaozu, the Martial Supreme Emperor.

4.5

He inherited the mantle of Yao and dwelt in Jin; he matched King Wu in laying the foundations of Zhou. Rising like clouds and soaring like a dragon, he took charge of the destined era to bring order to the world. Fulfilling the role of uniting and rectifying to inaugurate fortune, he was joyfully elevated as leader of nine assemblies. Setting forth from the asterism Shen, he successfully established order in the imperial capital. The model for consoling the people had already been promulgated, and the code of simplified laws was forthwith proclaimed. The five stars gathered in the constellation Well, and transforming virtue spread across the four quarters. The terrestrial knot was straightened, and the celestial cord was drawn taut again. From east and west, distant regions were pacified and nearby lands were brought to order. When his righteous banner was first raised and passed through Huayin, he offered sacrifice toward the numinous altar to seek manifold blessings. That place is a thoroughfare for myriad states to pay homage, a juncture where the six directions converge. It is well suited for gazing reverently upon holy images and abiding in meditation and chanting. Thereupon, to the right of the divine shrine, he solemnly erected a saṅghārāma and constructed Lingxian Monastery, with a stele text composed by the Crown Prince’s Mentor Li Baiyao. Refined patterns and colorful embroidery reflected one another; gold and jade-blue shone together, catching the radiance of morning and evening, gleaming with the luster of a rainbow. The exquisite flower terraces directly faced Lotus Peak, while the painted towers loftily overlooked the shell-inlaid towers. Furthermore, he crafted statues, copied scriptures, and fully cultivated blessedness. In the capital, he built Huichang Monastery, Shengye Monastery, Cibei Monastery, Zhengguo Convent, and Jixian Convent. He also donated his former residence to become Xingsheng Convent, and in Bingzhou he built Yixing Monastery. All their halls were magnificent and grand, their images adorned and resplendent. Paired brackets depicted the constellations, and doubled lintels were painted with the moon. High windows dispersed the mist, and open doors welcomed the breezes; the groves of wisdom and forests of meditation lacked for nothing. In the first year of the Wude era (618), on the thoroughfare south of the Vermilion Bird Gate, he universally established a place of enlightenment and hosted a great unrestricted assembly (pañcavārṣika). Daoist masters in profusion came holding their tablets to attend; freely and gracefully, fields of merit gathered amidst rising clouds of incense. When the hymns of pacing the void were first intoned, they almost halted the drifting clouds; when the pure Sanskrit chants slowly echoed, they could detain passing birds. Exquisite, fragrant offerings, prepared according to the five pure foods, were borne aloft; radiant and famed blossoms, fair as those from the three divine mountains, were respectfully presented. Thereupon, carriages and horses pressed together, and men and women crowded shoulder to shoulder, like crowds gathering at Mount Xian or contending at the Spring Purification feast. Even if the sun's radiance manifested in Emperor Ming's dream, it only passed down the omen of the white horse; even if a bodhisattva was said to be born into the world, it was merely heard of in the era of Chiwu. Compared with today, they must truly feel ashamed! Furthermore, on behalf of the Grand Ancestor, Emperor Yuan, and Empress Dowager Yuanzhen, he crafted three life-sized sandalwood statues, their marks exceptionally wondrous, their adornment exceedingly rare; they were enshrined and venerated at Cibei Monastery. In the second month of the first year of the Wude era, just as the fair spring cast its bright rays and the spirits of the earth offered blessings, the two forces of heaven and earth harmonized and the myriad creatures completely prospered. In keeping with the auspicious gathering of manifold blessings, he dispensed renewed royal grace. He commanded sixty-nine śramaṇas and sixty-nine Daoist masters to practice the Way for seven days in the Taiji Palace. On the day the assembly concluded, he hosted a feast for a thousand monks. Because the two teachings of Śākya and Laozi were promoted together, Falin hoped that their spiritual efficacy would join with the sun, moon, and stars, and that the imperial destiny would endure as long as heaven and earth; thus, he composed this humble hymn and offered it up in praise:

4.6

Remotely contemplating distant antiquity, / far off I hear of the primordial sovereigns. / Following their times they instituted instructions; / employing wisdom, they handed down their fragrance. / Praying for grace, they gazed in sacrificial rites; / requiting virtue, they offered the autumn and winter feasts. / They only exalted minor offerings; / how could they have heard of the Great Way? / Not yet having propagated the three teachings, / they merely chanted the nine chapters [of the hymns]. / Responding to the appointed time and putting disorder to flight, / lo, there is our sacred Tang! / Brightly discerning cause and effect, / [the Emperor] holds his robes in reverence at the Wenchang Palace. / His transforming influence equals the Ten Epithets; / his benevolence runs deeper than that of a hundred kings. / The pitch-pipes accord with the mid-spring month; / the season ascends to the Shao-yang. / Below, he takes pity on the crawling masses; / above, he responds to the azure heavens. / Thus arranged within the Golden Gates, / he thereupon opened a ritual precinct. / The solar palace shines brightly; / the terrace of stars blazes with light. / In the void suspend the shadows of pearls; / flames stir around the radiant wheels. / Clouds part over jade graphs; / smoke disperses from exquisite incense. / Offerings seem to fly down from above; / chants carry the ringing cries of phoenixes. / The qilin manifests auspicious omens; / sweet dew displays good fortune. / His merits extend as far as the kalpas; / his virtue endures as long as heaven. / His grace moistens all who exist; / his bounty reaches boundlessly. / His lifespan equals the Primordial Origin; / his embodiment is like the vajra. / May the grand foundation last forever and ever, / bestowing blessings abundant and vast!

4.7

The reigning Emperor of our Great Tang received the breath of the Great Change and the Great Beginning, and was endowed with the numinous power of the Heavenly Sovereign and the Heavenly Thearch. From the secluded chamber began the foundation of Gaoyang; at the ruins of Yao was built the enterprise of Chonghua. Red light flowed through the doors, and purple vapors shot into the heavens. He possessed the physical marks of the dragon's visage and phoenix's breast, the omens of the solar horn and lunar crescent, the wonder of river-like eyes and sea-like mouth, and the marvel of breadth above and sharpness below. With sagely and penetrating insight he knew the future and stored away the past; he explored the subtle and reached the profound, exhausting the divine and fully realizing human nature. Bestowed by heaven, his nature was spontaneous; when he was still like a concealed dragon, his virtue already encompassed all under heaven. During the closing years of the Sui dynasty, the realm fell into disunion: fire scorched Mount Kunlun, and water billowed across the vast ocean. Wang Shichong acted insolently in Gong and Luo; Dou Jiande hesitated in Ji and Ding. Tang Bi and Xue Ju swarmed like ants in the Three Qin regions, while Liu Heita and Liang Shidu strutted like birds of prey across the Six Commanderies. All harbored the intent to hunt the deer, each setting up spurious titles. Gathering shiftless scoundrels and leading ragtag mobs, they unleashed the brute force of cattle and sheep and set out from mountains of mere water and grass. West of the River, dragons and snakes perished together; in the Central Plains, jade and stone were both consumed. Consequently, beneath heaven and upon the earth, all vied in sighing for a saviour; throughout the capital and the royal domains, people gave rise to the lament of destitute weavers. Our Emperor, being the son of the sovereign, received the mandate of Heavenly Strategy. Bearing the gravity of deep responsibility, he rescued them from the peril of treading on thin ice; with deep nightly vigilance, he rushed to relieve the agony of hanging upside down. Fully executing the nine punitive campaigns and commanding the six royal armies, he was covered above by the banners of sun and moon, and deployed below the battle formations of heaven and earth. Drums shook the wilderness, and their vigor moved the gates of heaven; horns echoed through the mountains, and their majesty startled the terrestrial doors. Thereupon, girding himself with shooting stars, he penetrated far; riding rushing thunderbolts, he charged in the vanguard. None failed to crumble like tiles and melt like ice, yielding like grass before the wind. In triumphant songs of victory, none could contest his merit. Since the nine eras of the Heavenly Sovereign and after fifty-two battles—through a total of one hundred and twenty-five generations, one thousand three hundred and fifty-nine ages, and ten million one hundred and twenty-two thousand one hundred and twenty-seven years—among all who held the battleaxe to face the foe and waved the flags to vow their hosts, purging baleful vapors, cutting down baneful comets, saving the drowning from overflowing currents, and rescuing people from the disaster of prairie fires, unifying the world and clearing the heavenly paths, none has ever matched our Emperor's conduct of warfare. Gaozu concentrated his spirit and nurtured his sagacity, letting his thoughts roam beyond the mists and clouds, entering the profound and ascending the unseen, treading high beyond the realm of devas and humans. Formerly, when the myriad regions were drowned in dark misery and the hundred deities suffered neglect of their offerings, he yielded the lofty style of Yingyang to rescue the drowning populace across the land. The black-haired people were blessed with his virtue of recreation, and all creatures were indebted to his grace of complete ordering. He did not set his mind on the imperial carriage, but looked down in concern for the common folk. The intention to cast off the empire like an old sandal never faded from his heart; the resolve to lay down the burden was manifested at each daybreak. Glad that the ancestral sacrifices could be entrusted, and rejoicing that the clan’s ancestral blessing had a master, he chose an auspicious time and selected the day, passing the great jewel of the empire to the Crown Prince. Since gloriously receiving the regency as heir apparent in the Spring Palace, his virtue reached internal and external realms, and his benevolence covered the seen and unseen. Soon his doubled brilliance shone forth, illuminating the universe; assisting martial power and magnifying benevolence, his glory overflowed amid wind and clouds. Faithfully following the three excellences, he brought rectitude to the myriad realms. When the gates of heaven were reopened and the precious calendar was renewed, he looked down upon China and made great vows of adornment; consoling the black-haired people, he widely promoted benefits. Opening the sun of the four immeasurables, he universally illumined with the clouds of Yao; raising the wind of the six perfections, he caused the rains of Shun to flow everywhere. The precious vessel, having sunk, rose again; the cloud of compassion, having rolled up, unfolded anew. The immortal terraces flourished alongside the Dharma parks; the jade mirror revolved in unison with the golden wheel. His grace reached the peak of existence (bhavāgra); his Dao extended beyond all bounds. Auspicious omens and fortunate signs were foretold in advance; his broad benevolence, virtue, and filial piety are fully chronicled in later histories. Constantly taking the opening of the hunting net to heart, and keeping the knotted-cord governance in mind, he wished to empty the prisons forever and permanently extinguish the beacon fires, so that the bustling multitude of living beings might together attain benevolence and longevity, and the vast expanse of the whole land might jointly venerate Tathatā. In the first year of the Zhenguan reign era, in the first month (Jiazhong), he raised high the victory banner; at the time of the third month (Guxi), he threw wide the halls of wisdom. The monks and nuns of the capital all practiced the path for seven days in their respective monasteries; whatever was needed for vegetarian feasts and offerings was provided by the officials according to regulation. On the day the fast concluded, they assembled together at Daxingshan Monastery. In the second year of Zhenguan, an edict was issued saying: 'The spirit realm establishes teaching with loving-kindness and beneficence coming first; the mysterious transformation operates secretly, serving as the source that rears and nurtures all things. Having reverently received the great jewel of the throne, we cherish the common people; our mind of pity and sympathy grows whenever it encounters living beings. For this reason, we widely seek invisible blessings and secretly assist the luminous spirits. We hope that the nine accomplishments will be in order and the five blessings will respond accordingly. Recently, severe frost descended early, and the autumn crops did not ripen. Reflecting quietly on our own meager virtue, we never cease to feel ashamed and apprehensive. Now the hundred grains are flourishing and the myriad fruits are about to ripen; yet we still fear that untimely wind and rain will leave their nourishing growth with no support. We dare to rely on the all-seeing powers to confer abundant blessings. It is proper to pray on behalf of the myriad millions under heaven for their protective blessings. Let the monks, nuns, and Daoist masters in the monasteries and abbeys of the capital and of all prefectures throughout the empire recite scriptures and practice the path for seven days and seven nights. Every year, in the first month and the seventh month, let this be the regular standard.' The mysterious grace was close at hand; the sagely power provided unseen support. Gentle breezes and fertile rains arrived in due season and measure; fine sprouts and late grains covered the plains and fields. The state attained the wealth of nine years' provisions, and families were blessed with harvests of ten thousand baskets. The Emperor had long planted the five constants and from afar was endowed with the ten virtues; he inaugurated the hegemon-like enterprise of a rising king and responded to the joyous hearts of the myriad millions. However, because at the start of raising righteous troops he encountered the end of an age, he personally faced arrows and stones, repeatedly commanding the grand armies. Whether cutting down the seven heroes in the east or pacifying the eight rivers in the west, he unleashed divine troops to slaughter the wild boars, and rode his heavenly strategy to decapitate the great serpents. Having stirred such majestic wrath, he feared the lingering pain of resentful spirits. In the late spring of that year, he personally issued an imperial edict: 'Since raising righteous forces at the end of the Sui, our intention was to rescue the drowning; whether campaigning north or marching east, wherever we went, all were pacified and exterminated. Under the yellow battleaxe and at the tips of metal arrows, those slain and killed are beyond count; those slain by our own hand approach nearly one thousand. We privately reflect that the holy teaching of the Tathāgata profoundly values loving-kindness and benevolence, and in the rules of the precepts, killing is the heaviest offense. Long pondering this principle, our regret and fear only increase. We therefore command the officials that all monasteries in the capital hold vegetarian feasts and practice the path, exhausting their sincerity in repentance and worship for seven days and seven nights; all clothing and provisions are to be donated through dāna. We hope that through this, beings may be freed from the hardships of the three destinies, and the suffering of myriad kalpas may be broadly alleviated, extinguishing minds of enmity and obstruction, and turning them toward the path to bodhi.' In the first month of the third year, an imperial order was issued commanding the monks and nuns of the capital to practice the path and recite the Benevolent King Sūtra and the Great Cloud Sūtra in their respective monasteries on the fourteenth day of every month, making this a permanent rule. Furthermore, by imperial order, Tripiṭaka Master Prabhākaramitra and others were instructed to translate the Ratnatārā Sūtra at Daxingshan Monastery. Falin wrote the preface, which stated: 'The Ratnatārā Sūtra consists of over three thousand verses in the Sanskrit text. It was spoken by the Tathāgata when he first attained the path of awakening, converted Maudgalyāyana and Śāriputra, subdued the demon king, and protected the realm. Since the image teaching gradually spread eastward across many years, the texts of the three wheels and eight piṭakas, and the tenets of the four trees and five vehicles, displayed their divine radiance in the stone chambers and transmitted their Sanskrit resonances at the astrological towers. Yet though successive translations followed one another, many doubts and omissions remained. Our Emperor of the Great Tang is holy and divine, truly civil and martial; seizing the opportunity and controlling fortune, he rescued the drowning and saved them from fire. Restoring the style of the ancient sovereigns, he practiced the trust that goes without speaking. Removing excess and extremity, he subdued all within the eight bounds; doing nothing and practicing wuwei, he received the tribute of the myriad nations. The lands of the Lake of Sand and the Heaven Mountains have all been brought within the imperial frontiers; the realms of dragon courts and phoenix nests are all moistened by his moral teaching. His benevolence surpasses opening the hunting net; his governance follows the ancient knotted cords. His great virtue is magnanimous, outwardly keeping the eight rules; his reverent caution is meticulous, inwardly ordering the four deportments. Looking upon China, his loving-kindness overflows; lodging his trust in the sacred documents, he spreads his grand vows. Constantly considering all dharmas to be non-existent and matter and self to be both empty, he reflected that for the true essentials nothing surpasses the Śākya scriptures. There was the Tripiṭaka Master Prabhākaramitra of Central India—in the Tang language known as Guangzhi ('Light of Wisdom')—who vowed to transmit the transformation of the Dharma without fearing hardship or peril. Journeying far across the Pamir Mountains, he came to visit China, traveling a route of more than forty thousand li. In the cyclical year gengxu, the first year of Zhenguan, he reached the imperial capital. Once he had been granted an audience, he was bestowed fine brocade garments. An imperial edict ordered the officials to select nineteen men of grand virtue, who were well-versed in both the three teachings and all ten categories, to translate in dialogue with Tripiṭaka Master Prabhākaramitra at Daxingshan Monastery. The śramaṇa Huicheng and others verified the meaning; the śramaṇa Xuanmo and others translated the language; the śramaṇas Huiming, Falin, and others held the brushes, received the dictates, and meticulously reviewed them, verifying terms, determining meanings, and rendering the full sense into finished text. Beginning in the third month of the third year of Zhenguan and ending in the fourth month of the fourth year, the work comprised ten fascicles and thirteen chapters, using one hundred and thirty sheets of paper, totaling sixty-three thousand eight hundred and eighty-two characters.' In the middle of winter of that year, the abbot of Shengguang Monastery, Sengzhen, received an imperial order to enter the palace and escort an image to Shengguang Monastery for veneration. In the first month of the fourth year, forty-nine men of great virtue from various monasteries practiced the path to celebrate the image for three weeks of seven days. When the days were complete, a feast of one thousand monks was held, and the princes and dukes all came to offer incense. Falin also presented to the Emperor a eulogy on the embroidered image, which said: 'Remembering afar: When the eight trees hid their light and the two rivers veiled their traces, King Prasenajit, longing in veneration, cast wax to pour his full body; King Udayana, displaying sincere devotion, melted gold to portray his complete form. Later, as the cyan spirit traversed south and the white horse came east, the image teaching flourished and numinous statues arose everywhere. Thus, with majestic demeanor, an image emerged from a private well; bending the sacred body, it bestowed bright pearls. Its light was brilliant at the Zhang Bridge; its radiance shone over the Hu river. It showed the sun worn by the Han ruler; it inspired the brushwork of the Jin sovereign. Sometimes looking back and treading over myriad mountains, or strolling and roaming beside the Dream Marsh, auspicious omens and fine portents have arisen from the beginning, yet none has ever sewn threads to depict the true form or leaned on empty space to pattern the sacred image. Our Emperor of the Great Tang previously planted the four grand vows and was long endowed with the five virtues. His divine deeds surpass Xuan[yuan] and Hao[tian]; his perfect governance outshines Cheng and Kang. His benevolent merit reaches the high heavens, and his power equals the Great Dao. Auspicious clouds cast colorful radiance, and the golden mirror contains the luster of the seven luminaries; auspicious birds display good fortune, and the jade candle harmonizes the vapors of the four seasons. Chiefs with white hair and tattooed bodies all sue for orders at the royal court; chieftains with pierced chests and hanging ears together offer tribute at the palace gates. Moreover, he fixes his mind on the eightfold path and devotes his intentions to the five vehicles; broadly exercising dāna, he diligently cultivates pure karma. Lamenting that the Sugata has long vanished into darkness, impossible to pursue, he ordered the Inner Palace to model the transmitted image, respectfully producing an embroidered image of Śākyamuni on a single hanging scroll, along with bodhisattvas, holy monks, vajra-wielders, and lions. Exhibiting divine elegance and exhausting all spiritual transformations, the six kinds of text were interwoven and the five colors displayed one another. Painting the full moon with paired needles, slender willows were entrusted to pristine hands. More exquisite than the brocades of Shu and more splendid than the silks of Yan, its billowing textures hold the glow of sevenfold brilliance, and its spreading patterns array the colors of nine splendors. The solar disk spits radiance, veiled by the silk of Zhou guests; the lotus eyes focus their luster, set forth by the threads of Qin maidens. The hundred-li pearl of Lord Yang yields in shame to these hundred blessings; the thousand-gold jade of Ziyu feels humbled before those thousand wheels. Its multicolored parasol seems on the verge of springing forth; its fluttering cloud-robes appear about to fly down. How could this be merely thought stretched to the limits of winding intestines? Truly, its craftsmanship exhausts the dark and subtle! Now in this year of gengyin, in the month of Taicu, at the season when the three origins commence and the time when the four beginnings unite in harmony, the imperial silk decree was sent down to the monastery of Shengguang, establishing a feast to celebrate the image, where forty-nine monks practiced the path for three weeks of seven days. The red grain of Da Qin provided meals for the storehouse of fragrance; the golden balm of King Mu of Zhou was presented as offerings to the King of Brahmā. The fields of merit of the four immeasurables are fully complete life after life; the virtuous retributions of the six causes are adorned age after age. May the precious calendar long endure even when the kalpa stone is ground to dust, and may the imperial foundation remain ever firm even when the mustard-seed city is emptied! Unable to bear my joyful celebration, I venture to present this eulogy.'

4.8

Magnificent is the High Sovereign; / Heaven-ordained is our Lord! / Divine and holy, / truly martial and truly civil. / Approaching him is like [approaching] the sun; / looking up to him is like [looking up to] the clouds. / Auspicious portents shine brilliantly; / splendid vapor wafts in abundance. / Shining across the realm, / he sets the constant norms in order. / Embodying the Dao, he makes dedication of merit (pariṇāmanā), / and solemnly establishes fields of merit. / Needlework patterns the red fruits; / fine threads weave the blue lotuses. / Patterns contain radiant brocade; / their colors rival glowing twilight clouds. / Flowers seem to bloom from afar; / canopies appear suspended in empty space. / Metal-mirrors emerge from the earth, / excelling those ascending to the heavens. / In the year of Tigé, / in the season of Qingyang (spring), / respectfully obeying the splendid decree, / we thus venerate the place of the Way. / Ten categories assemble like stars; / the Eight Seats unfold like clouds. / The wind swirls with elegant Sanskrit chants; / the halls are filled with famous incense. / The great foundation and flourishing enterprise / shall endure forever without end!

4.9

In his leisure from imperial governance, the Sovereign would always stroll and rest in the groves of the arts, examining the plans from Confucius' wall and opening the teachings of the Stone Classics. He took past events under the hundred kings as a model and investigated the ultimate tenets of the three teachings. Yet he considered that their words had not yet touched upon the emptiness of emptiness, and their affairs ultimately remained sunk in existence of existence. Deliberating on the true essentials of spiritual nature that can steady the mind and deliver worldly folk, none surpassed the teaching of the Śākya clan. Mindful of the Dharma medicine, he intended to circulate it broadly. At that time, there was the Tripiṭaka Master from Central India (Tianzhu), originally of the kṣatriya royal lineage, a kṣatriya named Prabhākaramitra, which in Chinese means 'Luminous Good Friend'. Having heard from afar that the Tang empire was broadly propagating the Mahāyāna, he crossed the Onion Ranges to travel to this sagely era. In the month of Dalu (twelfth month) of the first year of Zhenguan, he personally brought Sanskrit texts and arrived at the capital. Formerly, when the governance of Gaozong flourished, Fu Yan entered his dreams; now, as our Emperor's Dao flourishes, the Star of Virtue appears in the wilds. The Tripiṭaka Master had a penetrating and keen discernment, and an expansive and profound character. Regarding the texts compiled by the five hundred arhats and the principles explained in the eighty thousand sūtras—ever since Dharmaratna went to the Han and Sengui traveled to Wu, translations succeeded one another, yet whenever there were points not yet understood, the Master thoroughly traced their origins and ends and investigated their differences and similarities. Even with the internal sectarian positions and external heterodox tenets, there was nothing he did not internalize in his mind or explain with total clarity. As for the debates in the Chenghua hall and the exposition of doctrines in the Sucheng hall, he was particularly favored with royal pleasure and recorded in the Emperor's heart. In the first month of spring of that year, an imperial decree commanded the Tripiṭaka Master Prabhākara and others to proceed to Shengguang Monastery to translate the two treatises: the Prajñāpradīpa-śāstra and the Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra. Supreme Pillar of State, Left Pushe of the Department of State Affairs, and Duke of Liang State, Fang Xuanling, Cavalier Attendant-in-Ordinary, Left Mentor of the Heir Apparent, and Supervisor of the Household Du Zhenglun, and others, under imperial decree, selected nineteen eminent masters. Right Guanglu Daifu and Chief Minister of the Court of the National Granaries, Baron of Lanling Xiao Jing served as imperial commissioner to oversee the various offices in supplying abundant provisions of the four requisites. I, Falin, also took part as the scribe, and thus composed the preface, which reads: 'The Prajñāpradīpa-śāstra contains over six thousand gāthās in the Sanskrit text. It was composed by the great being of noble lineage in Magadha, Bodhisattva Bhāviveka, which in Chinese means "Discriminating Brightness". To begin with, the myriad things are not existent; the single mind is like an illusion. Because the mind is like an illusion, though active it is constantly tranquil; because things are non-existent, though arising they are without birth. Therefore, the sage speaks of the mind that is like an illusion and inspects things that are non-existent. When one realizes that things are not things, then each and every thing is empty of intrinsic nature; when one knows that the mind has no mind, then each and every mind is tranquil in substance. A person of penetrating insight attains their ultimate convergence and forgets the vehicle through which they were conveyed. Thereupon, conceptual proliferations (prapañca) of discrimination are naturally eliminated without needing to be dispelled; the gate of contemplation of non-attainment is entered without requiring practice. Vast and boundless, it neither exists nor departs, neither abides nor relies on anything. In the seven hundred years after the Buddha's passing into nirvāṇa, there was an ordained bodhisattva named Nāgārjuna. Having profoundly reached the true aspect of reality and attained the tolerance of non-arising phenomena, in order to repay the Buddha's benevolence, he expounded the Madhyamaka-śāstra. The Fu fazang [zhuan] states: "That man, in the Semblance Dharma, lit the torch of the true Dharma and broke down the banner of wrong views." The records of foreign lands say: "The sun of wisdom has already set; this man now shines anew. The world has long slept in darkness; this man awakens them to consciousness." There are five masters who commented on the Madhyamaka-śāstra, and Bodhisattva Discriminating Brightness is one of them. This bodhisattva had broad learning, held dhāraṇīs, had deep wisdom, and firm resolve. By the power of his original vow, he does not abandon sentient beings, and abides in the Asura Palace awaiting to see Maitreya. Since the era of the Sage is distant and various treatises are contentious, collectors of herbs on the Snow Mountains gather mostly poisonous weeds, and seekers of pearls in deep waters scramble for rubble and tiles. Truly fearing that failure to exhaust a single principle would conversely increase wrong views, or that leaving a single word incomplete would mistakenly give rise to divergent doctrines, he compiled and commented on Nāgārjuna's verse text to create this Prajñāpradīpa-śāstra. In this treatise, he rebukes internal and external tenets and praises the ultimate and conventional truths; he exhausts the principle of non-arising and investigates the source of the true aspect of reality. Illumination that is nowhere not tranquil is designated "prajñā"; attachments that are nowhere not destroyed are likened to a "bright lamp". It is indeed the core of the Vaipulya teachings and the field of practice of the Buddhas! Ah, future scholars may then cease their journeys through a hundred cities, and remain forever free from the errors of the five losses.' The treatise consists of twenty-seven chapters in fifteen fascicles. When an internal Buddhist proponent establishes a doctrine, his name is indicated; if unnamed, it is universally designated 'our own school'. When an external non-Buddhist proponent establishes a doctrine, his name is also indicated; if unnamed, it is universally designated 'an outsider'. Prior to the 'Chapter on Bondage and Liberation', Huize served as the scribe; after the 'Chapter on the Examination of Karma', Falin served as the scribe. Thereupon, beginning in the summer of the fourth year and concluding in the winter of the sixth year, the collation was completed and the copying was finished. The officials in charge carefully read it and then memorialized it to the throne. An imperial decree ordered the officials to make ten copies each and distribute them to the various monasteries to be circulated at will. Following the wheel-turning king's transformation of the world through the ten virtues, slaughtering trades were abolished in all markets throughout the realm, and the populace was universally prohibited from butchering and killing. In the Jiangnan region, weirs were erected to catch fish, which was done everywhere in more than thirty prefectures; they had to break the dams before catching them. What was taken was like a single branch of the Deng forest, yet those that died needlessly exceeded hundreds of millions as numerous as the sands of the Ganges. Furthermore, the Emperor issued a decree of loving-kindness, abolishing them all. Moreover, the years were abundant, the seasons harmonious, and the land was blessed with bountiful harvests. Three thousand monks and nuns were also ordained and distributed among the various prefectures. Subsequently, his virtue moved the heavens above and resonated with the ultimate sages: the seven perils were all eradicated, and the seven blessings all arrived. His benevolence reached beyond the nine frontiers, and his majestic awe extended outside the eight extremities. In the first month of winter of that year, the Xiongnu king Xieli and others led their ministers and children, bringing along their tribes, carrying infants and competing to hasten forward, arriving one after another. Gazing from afar at the palace gates, they arrived bringing their entire state; they sought an audience at the Heavenly Gates to plead for life and went to the foreign hostel to partake of harmony. Without troubling the armies of Wei and Huo, the enemy dens exhausted themselves; without needing the forces of Xuanyuan, the runaways were swept away like a mat. South of the Han there was no worry of barbarian hordes, and north of the passes the plundering of the fierce Hu was halted. The regions of the Horse Banks and the Dragon Mound were steeped in the Tang style; the shores of Jiaohu and Qinghai all became sagely soil. How peaceful! How peaceful! Together we rejoice in this day. Non-action and peace: together we celebrate in this hour. His achievement in governing heaven and establishing the supreme pole uniquely surpasses ancient times; his work in venerating the Buddha and exalting the good surpasses all past sages. The Emperor had previously experienced battlefields where naked blades opposed one another. When he ascended the throne, deep feelings arose in his heart; thus he issued an edict that monasteries be erected at all battlefields, with the authorities providing supplies to ensure complete provision. Ten sites were established within the realm, all solemn, orderly, and magnificent. Formerly, to escape the summer heat, he personally visited the Southern Mountains, divined this spiritual dwelling, and opened this magnificent structure. As for its terrain: it is girdled by the vast expanse of the Qin River and borders the verdant peaks of the Long mountains. To the east one observes the waves where the sun bathes; to the west one overlooks the inlet where the moon is suspended. Like phoenixes standing on curious rocks, jagged peaks bore into the sky; like coiling dragons on treacherous cliffs, vaulted heights pierce the Milky Way. Not only do cliffside pines brush against the sun, but mountain bamboo also sweeps across the clouds. It was truly the place where the Four Whiteheads cultivated their virtue, and the stronghold for the Three Qin. For the sake of Emperor Taiwu, it was renounced to become a monastery. Since it added beneficial omens, it was named Longtian (Dragon Field). He also presented six dry-lacquer life-size statues of Emperor Taiwu and the reigning Emperor for eternal enshrinement and offerings. Provisions for the assembly are supplied by the authorities, saving the labor of buying land without waiting for the spreading of gold. Fragrance carried on the wind and gentle breeze fills the entire courtyard in abundance; the auspicious and soft grass hangs gracefully over the steps. Furthermore, for Empress Dowager Mu, he built Cide Monastery at Qingshan Palace. Decorated with kiṃśuka jewels and Jāmbūnada gold, varied alaṃkāra adorned every part with utmost splendor. Although knowing that what was created was rare, he still felt that his filial devotion was not yet fully expressed. In the midsummer of the sixth year, within Zhen'an Ward west of the Taicheng Palace, he further built Hongfu Monastery for Empress Dowager Mu. Examining this superb location, flanked by market and court, he ordered master builders to lay the foundations and erect the structures. No sooner had the silver placard been moved than this golden garden arose. Dharma companions rubbed shoulders, and court notables stretched their necks to gaze. The site features high ramparts backing onto the outer walls, spreading across a hundred zhi in graceful curves; multi-tiered battlements link corners, soaring through nine tiers across wide expanses. Thereupon, broad jewel-precincts were opened, fully equipped with magnificent structures. Observing the stars and measuring the sun's shadow, they set up gnomic markers and leveled plumblines. Jade slippers shed brilliance, and golden door-rings shone with color. Long corridors provided shelter, and upturned eaves touched the clouds. Floating pillars and embroidered bracket-sets were painted above with cloud vapors; flying verandas and carved balustrades were encircled below by rainbows. Shadowed pagodas stood majestically facing each other, and scripture terraces rose grandly side by side. Exhausting the rules of cinnabar and malachite painting, and draining the wondrous varieties of multicolored patterns, it was sublime as if made by celestial beings, taxing the minds of spirits and ghosts. Golden dew-catching basins rivaled the Jade Tree of the Ganquan Palace; jeweled wind chimes harmonized with the breeze, resembling the jasper groves of the Pure Land of Sukhāvatī. Sparse bells chimed clearly through the night, and pure Sanskrit chanting rose in the morning. Their cadences matched Fish Mountain, their sounds resonated with dragon and wood. It is a dwelling where spiritual wonders reside, and the foundation upon which samādhi and wisdom rely. Definitive meaning and the calming of the mind are found right here.

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辯正論 — Classical Chinese