北山錄 9.2.7

9.2.7

見小暗大而不知其所務。 從物如流而不知其所執。 此庸人也。 士人者。 心有所定。 計有所守。 雖不能盡道術之本。 必有率也（率述也。 循也）雖不遍百善之美。 必有處也。 是故智不務多。 必審其所知。 言不務多。 必審其所謂。 行不務多。 必審其所由。 智既知之。 言既道之。 行既由之。 則若性命形骸之不可易也。 富貴不足以益。 貧賤不足以損。 此士人也。 君子人者。 言必忠信而心不妄（無詐妄之情也）仁義在身而色無伐（無自矜也）思慮通明而辭不專。 篤行信道而自強不息。 油然若將可越而終不可及者。 此君子也（油然不進之貌也。 越過也。 君子雖能為可貴可信用而不能使必貴己信己用己也。 是以恥不信不恥不見信恥不能不恥不見用也。 不誘於譽不怨誹率道而行也）賢人者。 德不踰閑（閑法也）行中規繩。 言足法於天下而不傷於身。 道足化於百姓而不傷於本（言滿天下無口過。 行滿天下無怨惡也）富則天下無苑財（長短經云苑財苑積也。 今有依怨天下無怨惡也。 謂以義得也）施則天下不病貧（病患也）此賢人也。 聖人者。 德合天地。 變通無方。 窮萬事之始終。 協庶品之自然。 敷其大道而遂成情性。 明並日月。 化行若神。 下民不知其德。 覩者不識其隣（百姓日用而不知也）此聖人也。 公曰。 善哉非子之賢則寡人不聞此言也。 今揆茲五儀之人。 為五儀之僧。 誠則皆不乖其本矣。 若使裁其尊卑勵其情操去此取彼。 易庸人為士君子。 易士君子為賢聖。 則天下之僧皆高僧也。 故斵石刻木範金之像。 石則石矣。 木則木矣。 金則金矣。 非變化則不能革其本態也。 而人有生而知之。 有學而知之。 但有知則不難乎遷（遷庸為智。 遷凡為聖）其所難在乎不知矣。 世或以槃特不學不謂無道（平生唯誦半偈而得聖果。 偈云。 守口攝意身莫犯。 如是行者得度也）善星多聞不謂立一德（善星比丘本釋族。 聰明詐作薄俱羅鬼驚佛。 而生入地獄也）彼乃不達槃特聖人也。 善星庸人也。 槃特不學而生知。 善星雖學而不知也。 若使槃特無生知則不聖。 善星有學知則遷善矣。 夫生而知之千載無一。 學而知之遍於天下。 若以千載之一而廢乎天下者。 非聖人之志也。 況學以資生知。 若金之有礪（礪磨石也。 金性雖利更假磨之也）舟之有檝（檝棹類也。 尚書云。 若濟川用汝為舟檝也）惟利與速物莫能加之。 昔仲尼云。 君子不可不學。 子路曰。 南山有竹。 不柔自直。 斬而用射。 達於犀革。 以此言之。 何學之為。 孔子曰。 括而羽之。 鏃而勵之。 其入豈不益深乎（因鏃羽而彌深）子路再拜曰。 故木以繩直。 土自水平。 王用人器。 未有不學而能自致奇功知道者也。 凡人之不學。 其猶牆面（無所見也）人而博學。 不出戶而知天下。 始吾聞之。 心存之躬甞之。 於所不學實若蔽目。 於所遠知誠不由足。 故有生之域（域涯也）貴乎有學既學矣。 貴乎知既知矣。 則慕大覺之曠照。 成遍知之有日。 故日就月將猶患失之。 佛陀慷慨。 仲舒下幃。 恨光陰之不再也（董仲舒下幃三年讀書。 不窺園圃。 佛陀如上注）昔黃霸（漢相也）與夏侯勝同下獄。 霸欲從勝受經。 勝辭以罪當死。 霸曰。 朝聞道夕死可矣。 勝賢其言。 遂受之再更。 而講讀不怠也（漢昭帝將議立武帝廟為世宗。 勝奏武帝奢侈殺戮不宜立廟。 遂坐謗毀先帝。 與黃霸同縶。 霸乃求從學。 會赦俱免也）常啼求法於法勇（般若經常啼菩薩也）以骨骸致香花。 兼俟乎宮門。 凡七載。 異有所聞也。 於予之眇志。 實學知之。 不足教知。 其困兢兢勤勤慚曠此生（已下北山自敘）嘗撰釋氏年志。 編年序事務成林藪（年志三十卷。 又撰法華玄箋十卷。

[Confucius said:] "To see the small and be blind to the great, not knowing what one should apply oneself to; to follow along with external things like a rushing current, not knowing what to hold fast to—this is an ordinary man. As for a scholar-gentleman (shi): his mind has a settled aim, and his plans have principles he holds fast to. Although he cannot fully exhaust the root of the arts of the Way, he must have that which he follows (following and pursuing); although he does not encompass all hundred forms of goodness, he must have a firm footing. For this reason, in wisdom he does not strive for mere quantity, but must carefully examine what he knows; in speech he does not strive for mere quantity, but must carefully examine what he says; in action he does not strive for mere quantity, but must carefully examine the path he treads. Once his wisdom has understood it, his words have spoken it, and his actions have traversed it, it is as unalterable as his own nature, life, and bodily form. Wealth and noble status are not enough to augment him; poverty and lowliness are not enough to diminish him. This is a scholar-gentleman. As for a noble person (junzi): his words are necessarily loyal and trustworthy, and his mind is free of falsehood (having no deceitful or false feelings); benevolence and righteousness are embodied in his person, yet in his demeanor there is no boastfulness (having no self-pride); his reflections are penetrating and luminous, yet his expressions are never dogmatic. Earnest in conduct and faithful to the Way, he strives ceaselessly to strengthen himself; with an easy self-possession (the appearance of effortless ease), he seems within reach of being surpassed, yet ultimately cannot be equaled—this is a noble person. (A noble person, though able to make himself worthy of honor, trust, and employment, cannot force others to honor, trust, or employ him. For this reason, he is ashamed of being untrustworthy, not of being mistrusted; he is ashamed of incompetence, not of not being employed. He is not seduced by praise nor resentful of slander, but walks in accordance with the Way.) As for a worthy person (xianren): his virtue does not overstep the bounds (the norms); his actions conform to the carpenter's compass and line. His words are sufficient to serve as a model for the entire world without bringing harm upon his own person; his Way is sufficient to transform the common people without bringing harm to its root. (When his words fill the world, there is no slip of the tongue; when his actions fill the world, there is neither resentment nor malice.) If he is wealthy, there is no hoarded wealth under heaven (the Changduan jing says: 'accumulated wealth'; here it means that under heaven there is no resentment, meaning it is gained through righteousness); when he bestows charity, the world does not suffer from poverty (illness and distress)—this is a worthy person. As for a sage (shengren): his virtue joins with Heaven and Earth; his adaptability is boundless. He exhausts the beginnings and endings of the myriad affairs; he harmonizes with the natural spontaneity of all things. He unfolds the Great Way and thereby brings forth nature and disposition; his brilliance rivals the sun and moon, and his transforming work operates like spirits. The common people below are unaware of his virtue, and those who behold him do not perceive where he abides (the common people use it daily without knowing it)—this is a sage." The Duke said: "Excellent! Were it not for your worthiness, I would never have heard these words." Now, measuring these five kinds of people to constitute five kinds of monks, they indeed do not depart from their fundamental nature. If we cause their ranks to be regulated, encourage their moral character, reject the lower and choose the higher, transforming ordinary men into scholar-gentlemen, and scholar-gentlemen into worthies and sages, then all the monks under heaven would be eminent monks! Therefore, when one carves stone, sculpts wood, or casts an image in bronze: stone remains stone, wood remains wood, bronze remains bronze; without transformation, their original nature cannot be altered. Yet among human beings, some are born with knowledge, while others acquire knowledge through learning. Provided one possesses knowledge, it is not difficult to advance (moving from ordinary to wise, moving from commoner to sage); the difficulty lies only in not knowing. In the world, some point to Pantha's lack of study as evidence that he did not lack the Way (throughout his life he recited only half a stanza, yet attained the holy fruit; the stanza said: "Guard the mouth, rein in the mind, commit no offense with the body; a practitioner like this attains deliverance"), and say that Śunakṣatra's extensive learning did not establish a single virtue (the monk Śunakṣatra was originally of the Śākya clan; clever as he was, he falsely disguised himself as a bakkula ghost to frighten the Buddha, and fell into hell alive). They simply fail to realize that Pantha was a sage, while Śunakṣatra was an ordinary man. Pantha did not study because he was born with knowledge; Śunakṣatra, though he studied, did not truly know. If Pantha had lacked innate knowledge, he would not have been a sage; if Śunakṣatra had possessed knowledge acquired through learning, he would have advanced toward the good. Now, those born with knowledge appear once in a thousand years, while those who attain knowledge through learning are found everywhere under heaven. To discard all under heaven on account of the one in a thousand years is not the intention of the sages. Moreover, learning serves to assist innate knowledge, just as metal needs a whetstone (a grinding stone; though the nature of metal is sharp, it further relies on grinding), and a boat needs oars (a class of paddle; the Classic of Documents says: "If crossing a river, use you as a boat and oars"). When sharpness is combined with speed, nothing can surpass it. In antiquity, Zhongni said: "A noble person cannot fail to study." Zilu said: "On the Southern Mountain there is bamboo; without being bent, it is naturally straight. If cut and used as an arrow, it can penetrate rhinoceros hide. Judging from this, what need is there for study?" Confucius said: "If you notch it, feather it, and sharpen its point with a whetstone, will it not penetrate even deeper?" (Because the point and feathers make it go deeper.) Zilu bowed twice and said: "Indeed! Just as wood is made straight by the ink-line and earth is leveled by water, so the ruler employs men of talent; never has there been one who without study was able to achieve extraordinary merit on his own and understand the Way." When an ordinary person does not study, he is like one facing a wall (seeing nothing); when a person learns broadly, without stepping out the door he knows all under heaven. When I first heard this, I kept it in mind and tested it myself: regarding what I had not studied, it was truly as if my eyes were veiled; regarding what I knew from afar, it was genuinely not due to my feet having traveled there. Therefore, in the realm of living beings (realm means limit), value lies in learning; once one has learned, value lies in knowing. Once one knows, one yearns for the vast illumination of the Great Awakened One, and the achievement of universal omniscience draws nearer by the day. Therefore, advancing day by day and progressing month by month, one still fears falling short. The Buddha was impassioned; [Dong] Zhongshu lowered his curtain—both lamented that time does not return (Dong Zhongshu lowered his curtain to read for three years without casting a glance at the garden; the Buddha was as noted above). In antiquity, Huang Ba (a Han prime minister) and Xiahou Sheng were imprisoned together. Huang Ba wished to receive the classics from Xiahou Sheng, but Sheng declined on the grounds that their crimes warranted death. Huang Ba said: "If one hears the Way in the morning, one may die in the evening without regret." Xiahou Sheng deemed his words worthy, and thereupon taught him through two prison-guard shifts, lecturing and reading without wearying. (When Emperor Zhao of Han discussed establishing a temple for Emperor Wu with the temple name Shizong, Sheng memorialized that Emperor Wu was extravagant and murderous, and should not have a temple established; he was thus convicted of slandering the late emperor and imprisoned together with Huang Ba. Ba then asked to study under him; upon an imperial amnesty, both were spared.) Sadāprarudita sought the Dharma from Dharmodgata (Bodhisattva Sadāprarudita in the Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra); he offered his bones to obtain incense and flowers, and also waited at the palace gate for seven full years before he had the opportunity to hear something extraordinary. With my own humble aspirations, I have genuinely acquired knowledge through learning, yet I lack the capacity to teach and instruct others. Pained by this, I have been fearful, diligent, and ashamed of wasting this life. (From here on, Beishan gives his own account.) I once compiled the Chronological Records of the Śākya Clan, arranging the years and organizing the events to form a vast forest of materials (the Chronological Records in thirty fascicles; I also composed the Arcane Subcommentary to the Lotus Sūtra in ten fascicles,