[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Buddhist Literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha) › [Taishō Tripiṭaka (Chinese Buddhist canon)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho) › [北山錄](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113) › 9.2 # 北山錄 9.2 北山錄 9.2 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [9.2.1](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113.9.2.1) 器弘者以虛受為美。 心遠者以贍聞為優（禮云。 玉不琢不成器。 人不學不知道。 子云。 日知其所亡月無亡其能也。 溫故知新。 可以為師矣。 優勝也）。 故我大聖暨古先哲王嘉讚博能高稱上智。 使圓顱方趾賢愚於焉別矣（人而不學。 其猶正牆面而立。 虎豹之鞟猶犬羊之鞟也）薩婆多師（西天小乘宗也。 此云廣解師。 博通敏智。 導利法化者也）十二時中許一時學外。 故於其宗悉能區別內外典籍。 善解論義。 曇無德部（此云法鏡部。 即化他部分出也）俗藝呪術為防己害。 兼以閑邪開學不犯也（其宗立五藏。 一律。 二經。 三論。 四呪。 五菩薩藏也）華嚴經讚菩薩偈云。 雅思淵才文中王。 歌舞譚說眾所欣（第十四卷）智論顯結集羅漢德云。 讀誦三藏。 知內外經書。 外道十八種大書。 亦盡讀知（即毘伽羅吠陀論等）緬覿前風。 聖人皆不限所知。 捐其小善。 近崇文德。 遠成種智（熏習以成其種性）昔有羅漢。 不識赤鹽之義。 外黨諸俗。 深以為誚（舍衛城法預婆羅門。 常請僧食。 問其義。 能答者自與美食。 不能者令下人與麤惡食。 由是比丘皆不往其家。 因至佛所。 佛不遠有羅漢比丘。 法預乃問之。 何名赤鹽。 鹽有幾種。 比丘言。 我知汝是法預。 輕慢比丘。 今復惱我。 鹽止是鹽。 聞比丘語已。 心懷罔然。 來至佛所。 佛云。 此比丘未從師學。 故不能曉答鹽也。 有比丘名弗絺盧。 佛令往問鹽義。 比丘云。 鹽有二義。 一種味如大海水同一鹹味。 二性味者有黑鹽．赤鹽．辛頭鹽．拔遮鹽．毘攬鹽．迦遮鹽．私多鹽．毘迦鹽。 略語二種。 若生若煮。 是名鹽義。 法預聞之。 歡喜而退）蓋出朽宅則生死凡夫藐哉何及（藐遠也。 聖人出於朽故火宅。 在生死凡夫不能及也）語外事則解脫聖智或不如凡夫也（但以一行一智斷惑證聖。 於所知未遍。 或不及凡夫）故採棟桴於杞梓。 繳羽儀於鴻鵠。 畋文彩於虎豹。 則於物幾矣（幾近也。 棟桴與杞梓近。 羽儀與鴻鵠近。 文彩與虎豹近。 以類求之可也。 繳弋射箭也）索遍知於羅漢則否矣（四加行位。 尚如暗中放箭。 或中或否。 況小聖哉）昔王城野人不謂大聖智周萬物。 問以鄙賤芻牧之事。 大聖俯其事而申之。 牧族奇其聞踴躍而信。 因皆階乎道也（放牛難陀。 以佛生王宮出家成道。 必不曉放牧之事。 豈曰遍知。 遂往問佛。 佛謂說放牛經一卷。 皆四時所放安養之事。 其族歡喜出家。 皆獲道果也）故釋氏子內審諸己。 於進修之門。 可學而不學。 可知而不知。 結以不學無知之罪也。 西域所學。 總有五明（一聲明。 謂詮顯文字。 二醫方明。 謂醫術卜算。 三工巧明。 謂一切伎藝。 四因明。 謂宗因喻三揩定邪正。 五內明。 謂識達因果。 究暢真宗也）其攝拕苾馱。 此曰聲明。 則五明之一也。 以其廣記諸法聲教故也。 而彼俗典總曰毘何羯喇拏。 舊曰毘伽羅論也。 大數有五。 如此方之五經焉。 一曰悉曇章。 以成就吉祥為義。 被于創學之流也。 本以四十九字相承。 成一十八章。 總有一萬餘字。 合三百餘頌。 頌凡四句。 句以八字。 合三十二字。 傳是大自在天說（此文在西天相傳。 今不可盡知也）二蘇呾囉（即素呾覽。 此云契經即解聲教之經也）則是一切聲明之根本正經也。 略詮要議。 有一千頌。 是上古鴻儒波爾仙所撰。 其人為大自在天所護。 面有三目。 三馱覩。 有一千頌。 專顯字功。 如上經矣（亦如上經是聲明之根本）四三棄囉。 是荒梗義。 意比田隴之夫創開畎畝。 其有三章。 章各一千頌（有三篇也）廣顯聲韻。 合成字體（若此方之乎側四聲。 為學之先也）五苾栗底蘇呾囉。 即是蘇呾囉釋也（上之四件是正經。 > Those of vast capacity regard receptive openness as an excellence; those of far-reaching minds regard extensive learning as superior (The \*Liji\* says: "If jade is not cut, it cannot become a vessel; if a person does not study, they will not know the Way." The Master said: "Daily to know what one lacks, and monthly not to forget what one can do." "To review the old and know the new—one may thereby become a teacher." "Superior" means preeminent). Therefore our Great Sage and the wise kings of antiquity praised broad capabilities and highly lauded superior wisdom, so that those with round heads and square feet could thereby distinguish the worthy from the foolish (If a person does not study, it is like standing facing straight against a wall. The tanned hide of a tiger or leopard is like the tanned hide of a dog or sheep). The masters of the Sarvāstivāda (This is a Hīnayāna school of the Western Heavens. Here it is translated as "Masters of Extensive Explanation." Those who are broadly versed, sharp-witted, and guide and benefit teaching and transformation) allow one out of the twelve hours to study external works. Thus within their tradition they are fully able to distinguish between inner and outer scriptures and skillfully resolve doctrinal debates. In the Dharmaguptaka school (Here translated as the "Dharma Mirror School," which branched out from the school of converting others), secular arts and incantations, studied to prevent harm to oneself as well as to keep out depravity, are permitted without offense (That tradition establishes five pitakas: first, the Vinaya; second, the Sūtra; third, the Abhidharma; fourth, the Dhāraṇī; and fifth, the Bodhisattva-piṭaka). A verse in the \*Avataṃsaka-sūtra\* praising the bodhisattva says: "With elegant thought and profound talent, a king among men of letters, / singing, dancing, and eloquent speech, they are delight to all" (Fascicle 14). The \*Mahāprajñāpāramitōpadeśa\*, revealing the virtues of the arhats who assembled the canon, says: "They recited the three baskets and understood inner and outer scriptures; the eighteen great books of the non-Buddhists were also entirely read and known by them" (Namely the \*Vyākaraṇa\*, \*Veda\* treatises, and so forth). Remotely observing the customs of the ancients, the sages never limited what they knew; they did not dismiss small goods, but in the immediate present elevated literary virtue, and for the distant future achieved the wisdom of all species (Perfuming the mind through practice to accomplish their seed nature). In antiquity, there was an arhat who did not understand the meaning of red salt, and the non-Buddhists and worldly people ridiculed him deeply (In the city of Śrāvastī, the brahmin Dharmarūci always invited monks for meals. He would ask about doctrinal meanings: to those who could answer, he personally gave fine food; to those who could not, he ordered servants to give coarse, bad food. Because of this, the bhikṣus all stopped going to his house. Eventually he went to the Buddha's place. Not far from the Buddha there was an arhat bhikṣu; Dharmarūci asked him: "What is meant by red salt? How many kinds of salt are there?" The bhikṣu said: "I know you are Dharmarūci, who disparages and disdains bhikṣus; now you trouble me again. Salt is merely salt." Having heard the bhikṣu's words, his mind was perplexed, and he came before the Buddha. The Buddha said: "This bhikṣu has not studied under a master; therefore he cannot clearly explain and answer about salt." There was a bhikṣu named Vatsīputra; the Buddha had him go and ask the meaning of salt. The bhikṣu said: "Salt has two aspects. The first is its single flavor, like the great ocean water having the same salty taste. The second is the variety of its natures and tastes: there are black salt, red salt, saindhava salt, viḍa salt, romaka salt, kāca salt, sitā salt, and bika salt. To speak briefly of two kinds, there are the raw and the boiled. This is called the meaning of salt." Dharmarūci heard this, rejoiced, and withdrew). When it comes to leaving the burning house, how could ordinary beings in birth-and-death ever compare to them? (Far distant indeed. The sages have escaped the dilapidated burning house; those ordinary beings in birth-and-death cannot compare to them.) Yet when speaking of external affairs, the sagely wisdom of liberation may sometimes be inferior to ordinary beings (Merely through a single practice and a single wisdom they sever delusions and realize sageliness, but their knowledge is not yet all-encompassing, and may be inferior to ordinary beings). Therefore, gathering ridgepoles and rafters from the catalpa and cedar, securing plumes and down from wild swans, and hunting for colorful pelts among tigers and leopards—in these things one seeks what is near to their nature (Near means close. Ridgepoles and rafters are close to catalpa and cedar; plumes and down are close to wild swans; colorful pelts are close to tigers and leopards. It is permissible to seek them according to their category. To "secure" means shooting arrows with cords). But to seek omniscience in an arhat is not so (In the four stages of application, it is still like shooting arrows in the dark, sometimes hitting and sometimes missing; how much more so for the lesser sages!). In the past, a rustic in the Royal City did not believe that the Great Sage's wisdom encompassed all things, and questioned him on the base and lowly matters of herding cattle. The Great Sage condescended to explain these matters in detail; the herding clan marvelled at what they heard, leaped for joy with faith, and consequently all attained the Way (Nanda the cowherd thought that since the Buddha was born in a royal palace and left home to attain the Way, he certainly would not understand cattle herding, so how could he be called all-knowing? He then went to question the Buddha. The Buddha preached for him the one-fascicle \*Cowherd Sūtra\*, covering all matters of pasturing and nurturing through the four seasons. His clan rejoiced and left home, and all attained the fruit of the Way). Therefore, the disciples of the Śākya clan examine themselves internally: within the gate of advancing in cultivation, what can be studied yet is not studied, and what can be known yet is not known, constitutes the offense of unstudied ignorance. What is studied in the Western Heavens consists generally of the five sciences (First, grammar and linguistics, which elucidate characters and words. Second, medicine, which treats medical arts and divination. Third, the arts and crafts, which cover all skills and crafts. Fourth, logic and epistemology, which decisively settle the heterodox and orthodox through the proposition, reason, and example. Fifth, inner science, which recognizes and penetrates cause and effect, and thoroughly understands the true tradition). \*Śabda-vidyā\*, rendered here as the science of sound and linguistics, is one of the five sciences, because it broadly records the teachings of sounds and words of all phenomena. Their secular classics are collectively called \*Vyākaraṇa\*, formerly termed the \*Vigara Treatise\*. Generally there are five great divisions, like the Five Classics of this land. The first is called the \*Siddhaṃ\* chapter, taking the meaning of accomplishing auspiciousness, bestowed upon beginning students. It was originally transmitted through forty-nine characters, forming eighteen chapters, totaling over ten thousand characters and combining over three hundred verses. Each verse has four lines, and each line has eight characters, combining to thirty-two characters. It is transmitted as having been spoken by Maheśvara (This text is transmitted in the Western Heavens; today it cannot be fully known). The second is the \*Sūtra\* (which is \*sūtra\*, here called a canonical scripture, meaning the scripture that explains linguistic teachings), which is the fundamental authentic scripture of all linguistics. Summarizing essential principles, it contains one thousand verses, composed by the ancient great scholar Pāṇini. That man was protected by Maheśvara and had three eyes on his face. The third is the \*Dhātu\*, with one thousand verses, dedicated to clarifying the functions of verbal roots, just like the aforementioned scripture (It is also a fundamental text of linguistics, just like the aforementioned scripture). The fourth is \*Saṃkīrṇa\*, meaning uncultivated wasteland, compared in sense to a farmer of the fields first clearing furrows and ridges. It has three chapters, each with one thousand verses (Having three sections), broadly elucidating sounds and rhymes to compose character forms (Like the level, oblique, and four tones of this land, which are the beginning of study). The fifth is the \*Vṛtti-sūtra\*, which is the commentary on the \*Sūtra\* (The above four items are the authentic scriptures. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) ### [9.2.2](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113.9.2.2) 此下並解釋之者）上古造釋眾矣。 於中妙者有十八千頌。 演其經本（演上四經也）是闍耶昳底大學士所造。 其人當此國之初矣（武德貞觀間也）凡造西土不習此者。 於其所學徒然哉。 其有苾栗底蘇呾囉議釋二十四千頌。 是學士鉢顛杜攞所造。 斯乃重顯前經（解前正經也）又有呵利伐㨖論二十五千頌。 廣敘人事聲明諸家興廢（若今書史）即以其人為論目也。 凡此諸書在異域。 法俗通學。 始為有知矣（異域西國也）彼方論師。 前則龍猛．提婆．馬鳴（猛即龍樹也。 南印度梵志。 造智論十萬偈。 提婆者南印度人。 才超倫輩。 一國有大自在天金鑄高二丈。 以頗黎為目。 提婆鑿之。 夢神索眼。 以手出眼還之。 遂闕一目。 師龍猛出家。 為外道所殺。 馬鳴者師脇尊者。 本外道也。 為月氏王說法。 馬垂淚悲鳴。 又云。 生時諸馬盡鳴故名也）中則無著．天親（北印度人。 佛滅九百年間出世）僧賢．清辯（僧賢。 亦云眾賢。 清辯造掌珍論。 以芥子擊脩羅窟。 待彌勒出問義也）近則陳那．護法．法稱．戒賢．師子月．安慧．慧護．德光（戒賢。 唐三藏往西國猶見之也）靡不具茲內外之典也。 馬鳴大士撰蘇遠拏太子歌詞（太子好施捨男女等事）并本行詩（序佛成道等事。 并佛所行讚。 今在藏內也）龍樹以詩代書。 寄南天竺國婆多婆漢那。 彼方之人。 咸皆誦詠（若此方文選等也）以為華而典也。 其有摩呾哩制咤。 承佛先記。 廣興讚詠。 初造四百頌。 次造一百五十頌。 無著世親西土修詞者。 莫不鑽仰祖習為美焉（論語云。 鑽之彌堅。 仰之彌高也。 祖習師承也。 祖宗也。 習學也）其身毒以婆羅門為上。 不齒餘三姓（婆羅門。 本梵天苗裔。 德尊也。 剎帝利。 但貴爾故皆不及也）故有四圍陀書。 可十萬偈（一云阿由。 此云方命。 謂醫方等。 二云殊夜。 謂祭祀。 書也。 三婆麼。 謂禮儀十相音樂戰法諸事等也。 四阿達婆。 謂呪術等。 皆梵天所說也）咸悉口相傳授。 不書皮貝（七歲就師口誦學之。 學成為國之師也）彼國相承云。 有學聰明法。 一謂覆審生智（謂推求道理。 審覆義味也）二顯字母（從字生字。 從聲生聲也）安神旬月之內思若湧泉。 計無此法則無以誦群言如激箭也。 昔者佛陀耶舍求那跋摩則其人也。 初耶舍至于秦。 將事翻譯。 秦人試之。 授以差籍藥方及諸書。 於三日誦畢。 求那所誦凡百餘萬言。 諸來三藏罕有不至此者。 華夏自燧人氏仰觀斗極。 以定方名（伏犧□□民之純鈍。 但識其母。 不識其父。 只知蔽前。 不知蔽後。 飢則求食。 飽則棄餘。 太昊伏而化之。 故曰伏犧仰觀天文。 俯察地理。 以辨方物也）庖犧用之而畫八卦造書契。 至若三墳五典八索九丘。 皆古之遺書（三墳三皇之書。 五典五帝之書。 八索八卦之書。 九丘九州之志）如楚倚氏之所讀者也（楚靈王時。 左史倚相能讀三墳五典八索九丘也）洎仲尼。 刪詩定禮樂。 贊易道修春秋。 振崩壞之俗（周自幽厲之後。 東遷洛邑。 諸侯專征禮樂崩壞。 魯哀公十一年。 夫子自衛反魯。 十四年獲麟。 遂修春秋。 刪詩。 定禮。 正崩瓌之俗）故有六經焉（春秋。 禮記。 周易。 尚書。 毛詩。 樂章）故孔子曰。 溫柔敦厚詩教也（不學詩無以言）疏通知遠書教也（正王言之道）廣博易良樂教也（和民之情）潔淨精微易教也（窮理盡性）恭儉莊敬禮教也（安上治民）屬辭比事春秋教也（正褒貶之道事類相近也）左氏國語（左丘明以春秋事義未盡。 置國語以互見也）馬遷史記（司馬遷得罪囚蠶室因修史記。 以至漢武時凡一百三十卷）漢魏以後。 皆有書誌（班固前漢書一百二十卷。 司馬彪後漢書八十卷。 陳壽三國志等。 > \[All\] from here on are commentaries on them.) In high antiquity, many composed commentaries. Among them, the most excellent has eighteen thousand verses, which expounds their primary texts (it expounds the four treatises mentioned above). It was composed by the great scholar Jayāditya. That man was contemporary with the beginning of our dynasty (during the Wude and Zhenguan eras). All who travel to the Western lands without studying this find their study in vain. Then there is the commentary on the \*Vṛttisūtra\* in twenty-four thousand verses, composed by the scholar Patañjali. This further clarifies the earlier treatise (it explains the earlier root treatise). There is also the \*Haricarita\* treatise in twenty-five thousand verses, which broadly recounts human affairs and the rise and fall of the various schools of grammar (like our histories today), taking its author's name as the title of the treatise. All these books are in the foreign land; both monastics and laity study them thoroughly before they are considered knowledgeable (the foreign land is the Western countries). As for the treatise masters of that region, in the early period there were Nāgārjuna, Āryadeva, and Aśvaghoṣa (Nāgārjuna is Longshu; a South Indian brāhmaṇa, he composed the \*Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa\* in one hundred thousand verses. Āryadeva was a native of South India whose talents surpassed his peers. In a certain kingdom there was a golden statue of Maheśvara twenty feet high with crystal eyes; Āryadeva gouged them out, and in a dream the deity demanded his eye, so he gouged out his own eye with his hand and returned it, thus lacking one eye; he became a monk under Nāgārjuna and was killed by a non-Buddhist. Aśvaghoṣa had the Venerable Pārśva as his master; originally a non-Buddhist, he expounded the Dharma for the Yuezhi king, and the horses shed tears and neighed sorrowfully; another version says that when he was born, all the horses whinnied, hence his name). In the middle period, there were Asaṅga, Vasubandhu (natives of North India, who appeared nine hundred years after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa), Saṅghabhadra, and Bhāviveka (Saṅghabhadra is also called Zhongxian. Bhāviveka composed the \*Karatalaratna\*, and struck an asura cave with mustard seeds, awaiting the appearance of Maitreya to question him on the doctrine). In the recent period, there were Dignāga, Dharmapāla, Dharmakīrti, Śīlabhadra, Siṃhacandra, Sthiramati, Prajñāpāla, and Guṇaprabha (as for Śīlabhadra, the Tang Tripiṭaka master \[Xuanzang\] still met him when he went to the Western countries). None of them did not possess these inner and outer scriptures. The Great Being Aśvaghoṣa composed the song-lyrics on Prince Suvarṇa (the prince's fondness for giving away boys, girls, and so forth), along with the \*Buddhacarita\* poem (recounting the Buddha's attainment of awakening and other matters; together with the \*Buddhacarita-kāvya\*, it is now in the canon). Nāgārjuna sent a letter in the form of a poem to King Sātavāhana of South India. The people of that region all recite and chant it (like the \*Wen xuan\* in this land), regarding it as both ornate and classical. There was also Mātṛceṭa, who, receiving the Buddha's prior prediction, broadly composed praises and hymns, first composing the four hundred verses, and next composing the one hundred and fifty verses. Among those who practiced rhetoric in the Western lands, such as Asaṅga and Vasubandhu, none did not drill into, look up to, and follow their tradition as exemplary (the \*Analects\* says, 'The more I drill into it, the harder it becomes; the more I look up to it, the higher it seems.' Following the tradition means receiving it from masters; 'ancestor' means origin, and 'tradition' means study). In Shendu, they regard the brāhmaṇas as the highest and refuse to associate with the other three castes (the brāhmaṇas were originally descendants of Brahmā, their virtue held in honour; the kṣatriyas are merely noble, and hence none match them). Therefore they have the four Veda books, comprising about one hundred thousand verses (the first is called Āyurveda, here rendered 'Formulas for Life', referring to medicine and formulas; the second is called Yajurveda, referring to sacrifice and scriptures; the third is Sāmaveda, referring to rituals, the ten signs, music, martial arts, and such matters; the fourth is Atharvaveda, referring to incantations and such; all were spoken by Brahmā). They are entirely transmitted by mouth and not written on palm leaves or birch bark (at seven years old one attends a master to study by oral recitation; when one's study is complete, one becomes a master of the state). In that country, it is traditionally said that there are methods for acquiring intelligence: the first is called 'generating wisdom through careful review' (meaning to infer and seek principles, and carefully examine meanings and tastes); the second is 'revealing the alphabet' (from letters generate letters, from sounds generate sounds). Focusing the mind within a decade of days or a month, their thoughts gush forth like a spring; presumably, without these methods, they would have no way to recite numerous texts as swift as an arrow. Formerly, Buddhayaśas and Guṇavarman were such men. At first, when Yaśas arrived in Qin and was about to engage in translation, the people of Qin tested him, handing him registers of corvée labour, medical formulas, and various books; he finished reciting them all within three days. What Guṇa recited amounted to more than a million words. Among the Tripiṭaka masters who came, rare were those who did not attain this standard. In Huaxia, from the time of Suirenshi, who looked up to observe the Northern Dipper to fix the names of directions (Fuxi \[…\] the people were pure and dull; they only knew their mothers and did not know their fathers; they only knew how to cover their front and did not know how to cover their back; when hungry they sought food, when sated they cast aside the leftovers. Taihao subdued and transformed them, hence he was called Fuxi; he looked up to observe the heavenly patterns and looked down to examine the geography, so as to discern the regional products), Paoxi used this to draw the eight trigrams and create written tallies. As for the \*Three Graves\*, the \*Five Canons\*, the \*Eight Cords\*, and the \*Nine Hills\*, all are surviving books of antiquity (the \*Three Graves\* are the books of the Three Sovereigns; the \*Five Canons\* are the books of the Five Thearchs; the \*Eight Cords\* are the books of the eight trigrams; the \*Nine Hills\* are the gazetteers of the Nine Provinces), such as were read by Yixiang of Chu (in the time of King Ling of Chu, the scribe of the left, Yixiang, was able to read the \*Three Graves\*, the \*Five Canons\*, the \*Eight Cords\*, and the \*Nine Hills\*). Coming down to Zhongni, he edited the \*Odes\* and settled the rites and music, elucidated the Way of the \*Changes\* and compiled the \*Spring and Autumn Annals\*, revitalising decaying customs (from King You and King Li of the Zhou onward, the capital was moved east to Luoyi; the feudal lords led expeditions on their own authority, and the rites and music collapsed. In the eleventh year of Duke Ai of Lu, the Master returned to Lu from Wei; in the fourteenth year, a qilin was captured, whereupon he compiled the \*Spring and Autumn Annals\*, edited the \*Odes\*, settled the rites, and rectified the collapsing customs). Thus there are the Six Classics (the \*Spring and Autumn Annals\*, the \*Book of Rites\*, the \*Zhou Changes\*, the \*Book of Documents\*, the \*Mao Odes\*, and the \*Music\*). Therefore Confucius said: 'Gentle, kind, generous, and sincere is the teaching of the \*Odes\* (without studying the \*Odes\*, one has no means of speaking); broad-minded, discerning, far-sighted, and profound is the teaching of the \*Documents\* (rectifying the way of the king's words); broad, extensive, easy, and good is the teaching of the \*Music\* (harmonising the feelings of the people); pure, clean, refined, and subtle is the teaching of the \*Changes\* (fathoming principles and exhausting natures); respectful, frugal, dignified, and reverent is the teaching of the \*Rites\* (securing superiors and governing the people); choosing words and comparing events is the teaching of the \*Spring and Autumn Annals\*' (rectifying the way of praise and blame, and categorising similar affairs). \[Then there are\] Zuo's \*Discourses of the States\* (Zuo Qiuming, considering that the events and meanings of the \*Spring and Autumn Annals\* were incomplete, compiled the \*Discourses of the States\* to provide mutual reference), Sima Qian's \*Records of the Grand Historian\* (Sima Qian was punished and confined to the silkworm chamber, where he compiled the \*Records of the Grand Historian\*, reaching down to Emperor Wu of Han, in one hundred and thirty fascicles in all). From the Han and Wei onward, all have had histories and treatises (Ban Gu's \*History of the Former Han\* in one hundred and twenty fascicles; Sima Biao's \*History of the Later Han\* in eighty fascicles; Chen Shou's \*Records of the Three Kingdoms\*, and so forth). > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) ### [9.2.3](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113.9.2.3) 諸國書籍極多）兼乎百氏備于金馬石渠之目（皆漢藏書之府。 又近有經籍志吳氏西齊母氏東齊。 皆見其目）至若文章之始歌虞頌殷。 逮周德下衰詩人盛矣。 詩人之後。 騷宋變於風雅（騷屈原宋宋玉也。 皆六國時人也）賈馬楊班漸變乎騷（賈誼司馬相如楊雄班固也）逮安變乎賈馬（漢獻帝時）晉宋已降。 咸韶不接（咸韶堯舜之樂）齊梁之間。 花繪相擬（沈約劉勰任昉謝安等）此方六書（象形。 指事。 會意。 形聲。 轉注。 假借也）定文字之所出。 故窮大篆則於文字之不惑也。 彼方六釋（一持業。 二依主分出依士。 三相違。 四帶數分同依士。 五隣近。 六有財也）辯名題之因致。 故窮世語典語。 則於名題有得矣（一切真俗世諦名題。 皆以六釋攝之。 無不辯認宗旨者也）而康僧會．支道林．澄．什．安．遠。 什門四聖（生肇融睿）梁僧祐．周道安．隋彥琮．國初淨．宣．林．概（慧淨。 道宣法林。 明概）靡不洞閑本教。 該涉經史。 研綜詞翰。 咸事著述。 極夫匡紹者也（皆貞觀譯經之高僧）禮曰。 博聞強識而讓敦善行而不怠。 謂之君子僧也。 支遁注莊子逍遙篇。 希玄之賓高其致也。 慧淨撰英華集（詩集）麗藻之士美其鑒也。 由是表正人天。 折衝師律。 文場法苑。 何世曠能。 甞有客聽遠公實相義。 往復移時。 彌增疑昧。 遠引莊子義為連類。 惑者乃悟。 自後安公時聽遠不廢俗典。 宋元嘉年（文帝也）巳日（三月三也）車駕臨曲水。 命慧觀與朝士賦詩。 觀即座先獻。 周建德年。 陳周弘正來聘詢謀談士。 曇延首應之（周武帝時也）大駕親臨釋奠。 延當席抑揚。 陳人敷袵。 稽首拜聽（展衣襟作禮而聽也）因構詩四十首簡延。 延用其韻酬和。 如宿誦焉。 彼乃圖延形像歸于陳（周都長安。 陳都金陵）晨夕向北致禮。 以為曇延菩薩也。 夫世以容詞德行難以求備之仁也。 難語其闕真可謂堂堂乎難與並為仁矣（如子張之容子責詞顏回德行各有偏也）靈裕初出家。 師令誦經。 執卷矢曰。 我於三藏洎儒教。 必望通曉。 無或以渝其志（渝變也）由是學光時彥。 世號裕菩薩也。 梁武暮年。 詔捨道法（弘明集云。 梁武初崇道。 至天監二年捨道歸佛。 具有文也）兼鄙儒教。 彼或慮人深溺不返（聖人令習外典。 但使知之慮成耽惑溺於邪徑）或正失其極。 將亡之數也（若失其正則迷於理）夫有益於生民。 大聖未甞祛之（儒道之教。 皆益於人。 是以吾教不必除之）故經曰。 不壞俗諦而建立真諦。 彼二教仁智所行。 亦人天之報也（如清虛寡欲仁孝忠信。 皆人天之行者也）但報在人天。 為道之門階。 何必捨而鄙之也。 聖人不私己。 豈以己不欲而施天下乎（不可以己不欲而令天下皆黜之）今重名教。 彼猶無親疎。 重禮樂彼猶無君臣。 重律。 曆彼猶昧寒暑。 重刑法彼猶亂彛典（彝常也。 典法也）重廉讓彼猶規僭競。 重道德彼猶尚浮偽。 況加之使人後二教混沌若鳥獸（人若不習二教。 與鳥獸何別也）而欲訓之以無生乎（儒道尚昧。 何由示之真理）夫欲絢美玄黃先潔其素。 欲涉道德先履仁義。 故大聖遺法二千年。 而中華之人以先有孔老虛無仁智。 而後識精真之教。 迴向崇奉者。 門門如日教之矣（孝經曰。 非家至而日見之）四夷之人。 非二教所覃。 于今猶不能齋戒。 而況能神遊八解之理乎（八解脫觀名如內有觀外無色等也）故釋教籍二教以為前驅也（前導也）而老教云自然者蓋真如相似之名也。 言萬物自然者。 謂自然之道與萬物為一（萬物者有為事法也。 自然者無為真理也。 萬物事法與無為真理不即不離也）非萬物不由因緣（不言萬物不從因緣而生也）稱之曰自然也。 今說者未達（異執之徒也）乃毀內教因緣之義。 妄發揮自然之理。 > the books of the various states are exceedingly numerous), combined with the Hundred Schools and complete in the catalogues of the Golden Horse Gate and the Stone Canal (both were storehouses of books in the Han dynasty. Furthermore, recently there are the bibliographical treatises by the Wu clan of Western Qi and the Mu clan of Eastern Qi; all can be seen in their catalogues). As for the beginnings of literature, they sang of Yu and praised Yin; down to the decline of the virtue of Zhou, poets flourished. After the poets, the Chu Elegies and Song \[Yu\] brought variations to the Guofeng and Xiaoya (the Elegies are Qu Yuan, and Song is Song Yu; both were men of the Warring States period). Jia \[Yi\], \[Sima\] Ma, Yang \[Xiong\], and Ban \[Gu\] gradually brought variations to the Elegies (Jia Yi, Sima Xiangru, Yang Xiong, and Ban Gu). Down to the Jian'an period, there were variations upon Jia and Ma (during the reign of Emperor Xian of the Han). From the Jin and Song onwards, the music of Xianchi and Dashao was no longer joined (Xian and Shao are the music of Yao and Shun). Between the Qi and the Liang, florid ornamentation rivaled one another (Shen Yue, Liu Xie, Ren Fang, Xie An, and others). In this land, the six categories of scripts (pictographs, simple ideographs, compound ideographs, phono-semantic compounds, derivative cognates, and phonetic loan characters) determine the origins of written characters; thus, by thoroughly exploring the Great Seal script, one is free from confusion regarding characters. In that land \[India\], the six types of compound analysis (first, karmadhāraya; second, tatpuruṣa, from which karmadhāraya branches off; third, dvandva; fourth, dvigu, whose branch is identical with tatpuruṣa; fifth, avyayībhāva; sixth, bahuvrīhi) discriminate the rationale behind names and titles; thus, by thoroughly exploring worldly language and canonical language, one attains mastery over names and titles (all names and titles belonging to the ultimate and conventional truths are subsumed by the six types of compound analysis; none fails to distinguish and identify their essential tenets). Now, Kang Senghui, Zhi Daolin, \[Fotudeng\] Cheng, \[Kumāra\]jīva, \[Dao\]'an, and \[Hui\]yuan; the Four Sages of \[Kumāra\]jīva's gate (Daosheng, Sengzhao, Daoheng, and Sengrui); Sengyou of the Liang, Dao'an of the Zhou, Yancong of the Sui; and \[Hui\]jing, \[Dao\]xuan, \[Fa\]lin, and \[Ming\]gai of the beginning of our dynasty (Huijing, Daoxuan, Falin, and Minggai)—none failed to have a thorough command of our original teaching, to traverse the classics and histories, to scrutinize and integrate literary compositions, and all engaged in authorship, culminating in upholding and continuing the tradition (all were eminent monks who translated scriptures in the Zhenguan era). The \*Book of Rites\* states: 'One who is broadly learned and of strong memory yet yields, who is earnest in good conduct and untiring, is called a gentleman.' Such were the gentleman-monks. When Zhi Dun annotated the 'Free and Easy Wandering' chapter of \*Zhuangzi\*, those guests aspiring to the profound esteemed his purport. When Huijing compiled the \*Yinghua ji\* (a poetry collection), men of refined diction praised his discernment. From this, they served as models for gods and humans, stood as champions in monastic discipline, and in the arena of literature and the park of Dharma, in which generation was there ever a lack of such capability? Once, a guest listened to Master \[Hui\]yuan's exposition of the meaning of the true mark; they went back and forth for some time, yet the guest grew increasingly bewildered. Yuan then cited the meaning in \*Zhuangzi\* by way of comparison, and the confused person was thereupon awakened. From then on, Master \[Dao\]'an permitted Yuan from time to time not to abandon secular texts. In the Yuanjia era of the Song (during the reign of Emperor Wen), on the day of the Snake (the third day of the third month), the imperial carriage visited the Winding Waters and ordered Huiguan to compose poems with the court officials; Guan presented his first from his seat. In the Jiande era of the Zhou, Zhou Hongzheng of the Chen arrived on a diplomatic mission to consult and confer with debaters; Tanyan was the first to respond (during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Zhou). When His Majesty personally attended the sacrifice to the Duke of Zhou and Confucius, Yan displayed modulation and cadence from his seat; the man of Chen smoothed his lapels, bowed his head, and listened with reverence (he smoothed his robe's lapels, paid respects, and listened). Thereupon he composed forty poems and sent them to Yan; Yan harmonized with them using the same rhymes, as though he had memorized them of old. He then painted a portrait of Yan to take back to Chen (the Zhou capital was Chang'an, and the Chen capital was Jinling), and morning and evening turned north to pay homage, regarding him as Bodhisattva Tanyan. Now, in this world, it is difficult to find a benevolent person complete in appearance, rhetoric, and virtuous conduct. It is hard to speak of where they fall short; indeed one may say: 'So majestic! It is hard to practice benevolence along with him' (like the dignified appearance of Zizhang, the eloquence of Zigong, and the virtuous conduct of Yan Hui, each had their leanings). When Lingyu first renounced the world, his master bade him recite the scriptures; holding the scroll, he vowed, saying: 'Toward the Tripiṭaka as well as the Ruist teaching, I surely hope to become completely conversant; let there be nothing that alters my resolve' (to alter means to change). Because of this, his learning shone among the talents of the age, and the world called him Bodhisattva Yu. In his declining years, Emperor Wu of the Liang decreed the renunciation of Daoist teachings (the \*Hongming ji\* states that Emperor Wu of the Liang initially revered Daoism, and in the second year of Tianjian abandoned Daoism to take refuge in Buddhism; this is fully documented in texts), and also held the Ruist teachings in contempt. Perhaps he feared people would plunge too deeply into them and never return (the sages ordered the study of external texts only to make people know them, fearing that people would become indulgently infatuated and sink into deviant paths); or perhaps he truly deviated from the golden mean, an omen of impending downfall (if one deviates from what is correct, one becomes deluded about principle). Now, as for that which benefits the living populace, the Great Sage never once eradicated it (the teachings of Ruism and Daoism both benefit mankind; therefore our teaching does not necessarily eliminate them). Hence the sūtra says: 'Without destroying conventional truth, ultimate truth is established.' The benevolence and wisdom practiced in those two teachings also lead to retributions in the human and celestial realms (such as purity and vacuity, fewness of desires, benevolence, filial piety, loyalty, and trustworthiness, all are practices of humans and devas). Since their retribution is merely among humans and gods, serving as the gateway and steps to the Way, why must one cast them aside and despise them? The sage is not selfish with himself; how could he impose upon the world what he himself does not desire? (One cannot, because of what one personally does not desire, cause the entire world to banish them). Even now, with esteem placed on the moral teaching of names, people still disregard close and distant relations; with esteem placed on rites and music, they still lack \[reverence between\] lord and minister; with esteem placed on the pitch-pipes and calendar, they are still ignorant of cold and heat; with esteem placed on penal laws, they still disorder standard norms (standard means constant; norms mean laws); with esteem placed on integrity and yielding, they still plot usurpation and rivalry; with esteem placed on Dao and De, they still value vanity and falsehood. How much more so if one were to cause people to fall behind those two teachings, remaining in chaos like birds and beasts (if people do not study the two teachings, what difference is there between them and birds and beasts?), and yet wish to instruct them with the unproduced? (If Ruism and Daoism are still obscure to them, how can one reveal to them the ultimate principle?) Indeed, one who wishes to make the dark and yellow colors brilliant and beautiful must first cleanse the plain silk; one who wishes to enter Dao and De must first tread in benevolence and righteousness. Therefore, although the bequeathed Dharma of the Great Sage has lasted two thousand years, because the people of China already possessed the vacuity, nonbeing, benevolence, and wisdom of Kongzi and Laozi, they could subsequently recognize the refined and true teaching, and those who turn toward and revere it have been taught it day by day from door to door (the \*Classic of Filial Piety\* says: 'It is not going from house to house and seeing them daily'). The people of the four barbarian regions, untouched by the reach of the two teachings, even today are unable to observe the precepts and fasts; how much less could their spirits roam in the principle of the Eight Liberations? (The Eight Liberations are names of contemplations, such as having internal perception while contemplating external forms as absent). Therefore, the Buddhist teaching relies on the two teachings to serve as its vanguard (vanguard means forward guides). Moreover, when the Laoist teaching speaks of 'naturalness' (ziran), it is merely an analogous name for tathatā. To say that 'all things are natural' means that the Way of naturalness and the myriad things are one (the myriad things are conditioned, phenomenal dharmas; naturalness is the unconditioned, true principle; the phenomenal dharmas of the myriad things and the unconditioned true principle are neither identical nor separate), not that the myriad things do not arise from causes and conditions (it does not mean that the myriad things are not produced from causes and conditions) when calling it 'natural'. Nowadays, expositors fail to comprehend this (they are partisans of divergent attachments) and thus disparage the inner teaching's doctrine of causes and conditions, while arbitrarily expounding the principle of naturalness. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) ### [9.2.4](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113.9.2.4) 斯乃與西域外道同見（如自然外道云。 誰尖棘刺畫离獸。 誰掘河海與川源。 暴風卒起。 還自定萬法。 須知皆自然）豈謂迦葉之貳化歟（清淨法行經云。 老子是迦葉所化也）而洙泗之門以仁為至行非道德則必先於仁矣。 故雖由也可使治千乘之賦（諸侯之賦。 可使子路治之）赤也可使束帶立於朝（公西華可使為通使之官立朝與賓客言也）楚子文無三巳之色（楚令尹。 姓鬪。 名穀。 字烏兔。 三仕為令尹不喜。 三巳去職亦不慍。 舊令尹之政必告新令尹）陳文子棄十乘之馬。 求其仁稱（陳須無也。 時崔杼弑君。 文子棄四十匹馬而奔惡之也）仲尼之所不與（孔子皆曰。 不知其仁明仁道難也）彼仁也者。 通乎百行。 協于一德（專一之德）未有不由仁而廣大者。 在五天稱菩薩。 在九州稱仁人。 蓋人能慈慧。 慈慧能仁。 菩薩行仁之極行。 君子漸得其門者矣。 若使梁武不由二教。 安得為君子儒而至於大方乎（方道也。 若言梁武局執。 豈得稱君子儒而至於大道乎）今為論者必張孫吳之勢（孫武吳起並六國時良將。 各著兵書善戰陣。 今論義者與敵鏗鏘。 如孫吳之戰勢也）學戒者必敦顏柳之節（顏叔子孤居有少女。 夜風雨屋倒投之宿。 叔子拒之不已。 出屋令其入舍也。 柳下惠姓展名离。 食邑柳下諡惠。 寒夜婦不及國門。 柳下惠以衣覆之。 至明而去不犯男子不仁之行也）栖禪者必慕巢由之高（許由巢父皆堯時高士。 堯將禪位。 惡之而洗耳隱居不仕也）維持者必思齊魯之變（綱紀維持之者。 必須改更匡引。 如齊一變至於魯。 魯一變至於道也）故持外教以誘掖。 窺內法以激志。 亦惡有害焉（惡安也。 初以外教誘引。 後將內教訓導。 亦安有害也）夫登木者競其高。 鑿泉者競其深。 不有前懦。 誰為後勇。 但梁氏雖至信。 不審觀前往存亡。 式恒其事（式用也）驟欲遷物從道以窮物之性不虞東野畢之御而終於佚矣（顏回見東野畢車知其必敗。 以其馬未調良故也。 既御果輸敗而馬傷也）甞讀斷酒肉之文。 慈愈於佛。 輕身貸法。 事過帝王（三度捨身入寺。 與眾為奴。 臣下備錢百萬。 贖之眾僧。 默許方歸。 雖屈身為座亦未過此。 何必然也）且勅綾錦窠不得有鳥獸之形。 而嫌裁剪起殺傷之意（恐傷仁恕之道）斯雖得養虎之術。 而亦誨人殺心矣（周宣王之牧正梁鴦善養虎。 以不與之生物為其因殺而怒也。 不以全物與之。 為碎之而怒。 饑飽以時。 達其怒心不逆其意也。 不使之喜。 喜復必怒。 雖欲絕之殺心而翻生其殺念者也。 羅綺本無殺相。 今強興殺想。 此乃從無。 設有亦是教人殺心之義也）宗廟郊祀。 以麵為犧牲不為則不為何誣祖考耶。 而或有負之（以麵作肉。 則成誣誑。 不為又負祖考也）子由緇而乘。 不鑒妍蚩。 式顯誇傲。 題于縹墉素扆之上。 特不知是誘敵致寇也（今有自披緇至顯榮。 不辯善惡。 空恣傲倪。 而又兼以捐棄上教之事。 題粉壁素屏之上。 可謂自招於槃詰）昔周道安二教論。 隋彥琮通極論。 恣縱心目。 出沒玄奧。 假立賓主。 先設奇難。 後始通之。 將探賾異黨枳棘邪徑為法繚垣（先假立異宗。 詰難本教。 然後答之。 預備異宗所見也）而後世李仲卿等得之穿窬為盜。 隱其所通。 演其所難。 以製十異九迷等論。 誑彼所不知者（皆唐朝邪見之徒。 誑以淺學者。 不見安琮之論也）濟其毀詞。 豈非二士圖馴而反噬（皆由二子著論防微反遭竊器以相攻也）將安而貨危也。 但此論未已。 邪難未止。 夫先王以衡斗去盜。 而人以之于盜焉（置劍者比為殺賊。 今賊反得以用之）以兵戈止殺而人以之于殺焉。 故所防逾多。 所資逾遠。 噫難乎哉。 然守本教者。 朴則有餘。 兼異學者。 競則有餘。 非君子罔以謹其極矣（若守本宗。 > This is indeed identical to the views of the non-Buddhists of the Western Regions (as the svabhāvavāda non-Buddhists say: 'Who made thorns sharp and variegated beasts? Who dug rivers, oceans, and streams' sources? Sudden violent winds arise, yet they naturally settle of themselves. Know that all things are inherently spontaneous'). How could it be called a secondary transformation by Kāśyapa? (The Sutra of the Pure Practice of the Dharma says that Laozi was transformed by Kāśyapa.) Yet, at the gate of the Zhu and Si rivers, benevolence was regarded as the supreme practice; if not the Dao and Virtue, priority must certainly be given to benevolence. Thus, although You could be entrusted with managing the military levies of a state of a thousand chariots (Zi Lu could be made to manage the levies of the feudal lords), and Chi could be made to put on his sash and stand at court (Gongxi Hua could be appointed an envoy to stand at court and converse with guests), Chu's Ziwen showed no sign \[of emotion\] at thrice being dismissed (the Chief Minister of Chu, whose surname was Dou, given name Gu, and courtesy name Wutu; thrice he served as Chief Minister without joy, and thrice he was dismissed from office without anger, always reporting the old policies of the Chief Minister to the new Chief Minister), and Chen Wenzi abandoned ten teams of horses, seeking a reputation for benevolence (Chen Xuwu; when Cui Zhu assassinated the ruler, Wenzi abandoned forty horses and fled because he detested him)—Zhongni did not grant this to them (Confucius said in each case: 'I do not know whether he was benevolent,' clarifying the difficulty of the way of benevolence). That benevolence pervades the hundred actions and accords with the unified virtue (the dedicated single virtue); never has there been anything that did not become vast and great through benevolence. In the Five Indias it is called a bodhisattva; in the Nine Provinces it is called a benevolent person. For when humans are capable of compassion and wisdom, compassion and wisdom make them benevolent. The bodhisattva practices the ultimate degree of benevolence; the noble man gradually enters its gate. If Emperor Wu of Liang had not drawn upon both teachings, how could he have become a noble Ruist and arrived at the Great Method? (Method means the Dao. If one says Emperor Wu of Liang was narrow-minded and dogmatic, how could he be called a noble Ruist who reached the Great Dao?) Nowadays, disputants inevitably assume the aggressive stance of Sun and Wu (Sun Wu and Wu Qi were both fine generals of the Warring States period, each writing military texts and excelling in battle arrays; nowadays disputants clash with opponents like the battlefield tactics of Sun and Wu); those who study the precepts must foster the integrity of Yan and Liu (Yan Shuzi lived alone, and a young woman sought shelter with him on a night of wind and rain when her house collapsed; Shuzi continuously refused her, stepped outside, and let her enter the house. Liuxia Hui, surname Zhan, given name Qin, fief at Liuxia, posthumous title Hui; on a cold night a woman arrived too late for the city gates, and Liuxia Hui covered her with his robe until dawn without transgressing into a man's unbenevolent conduct); those who dwell in dhyāna inevitably admire the loftiness of Chao and You (Xu You and Chaofu were both lofty scholars of Yao's time; when Yao intended to abdicate the throne, they detested it, washed their ears, and lived in seclusion without serving as officials); those who sustain the order must reflect on the transformations of Qi and Lu (those who uphold the bonds and standards must revise and guide, just as Qi transformed to Lu, and Lu transformed to the Dao). Therefore, to take the external teachings to guide and encourage, and to look into the inner Dharma to stimulate determination—how could this be harmful? ('How' means 'in what way'. First using the external teachings to entice, then using the inner teachings to instruct—how could there be any harm?) Indeed, those who climb trees vie for height, and those who dig springs vie for depth. Without prior timidity, who would display subsequent courage? Yet, although the Liang ruler possessed utmost faith, he did not carefully observe the successes and failures of the past to standardize his undertakings ('standardize' means to employ). He abruptly wished to transform things according to the Dao to exhaust their natures, failing to foresee the fate of Dongye Bi's driving and in the end lapsing into indulgence (when Yan Hui saw Dongye Bi's chariot, he knew he would surely fail, because his horses were not well-trained; once he drove, he indeed suffered defeat and the horses were harmed). I once read his text on abstaining from wine and meat, in which his compassion surpassed that of the Buddha; he debased his own person to ransom the Dharma, going beyond what befits an emperor (three times he renounced his body into a monastery to be a servant to the assembly; his ministers provided hundreds of thousands of cash to ransom him from the saṅgha, and only after their tacit consent did he return; although bending one's body to be a seat does not surpass this, why must it be like this?). Furthermore, he decreed that the patterns on brocades and damasks could not depict the shapes of birds and beasts, lest the act of cutting them arouse thoughts of killing and harming (fearing to harm the way of benevolence and forbearance). Although this followed the art of rearing tigers, it actually taught people the intention to kill (the master of herds Liang Yang under King Xuan of Zhou was skilled at rearing tigers; he did not feed them living creatures because killing them would provoke anger, nor whole carcasses because tearing them apart would provoke anger; feeding them in a timely manner, he understood their angry impulses and did not go against their nature; he did not cause them joy, for joy would again turn to anger; though wishing to extinguish their intention to kill, it instead aroused their murderous thoughts. Silk brocade originally lacks the aspect of killing; now forcefully giving rise to the idea of killing creates something from nothing, and even so it amounts to teaching people the sense of a murderous intention). At the ancestral temples and suburban sacrifices, using flour for the sacrificial beasts—if one does not perform them, one does not, but why deceive the ancestors? Yet one might fail them (making meat out of flour constitutes deceit; not performing it fails the ancestors). From wearing the black robe to rising in rank, \[some\] fail to distinguish the beautiful from the ugly, openly display arrogance, and write it upon pale walls and plain screens, simply unaware that this invites enemies and incurs bandits (today there are those who, having donned the black robe, attain high honors, fail to distinguish good from evil, indulge in idle pride, and furthermore discard the higher teachings, inscribing their words on plastered walls and plain screens; this can be called inviting cross-examination upon oneself). In the past, Dao'an of the Zhou composed the \*Treatise on the Two Teachings\*, and Yancong of the Sui composed the \*Treatise on Penetrating the Ultimate\*; giving full rein to their mind and sight, moving in and out of the profound and abstruse, they posited host and guest, first setting forth extraordinary objections and only afterwards resolving them. They intended to probe the brambles and crooked paths of heterodox factions, serving as an enclosure for the Dharma (first setting up rival traditions to interrogate and object to their own teaching, and then answering them, preparing in advance against the views of rival schools). But later generations such as Li Zhongqing and others stole through walls like thieves, concealing their resolutions and elaborating their objections to compose treatises such as the \*Ten Heterodoxies\* and \*Nine Confusions\*, deceiving those who did not know (these were all people of wrong view in the Tang dynasty who deceived shallow students who had not seen the treatises of An and Cong), thus abetting their slanderous words. Is this not a case of the two scholars seeking to tame \[a beast\] only to be bitten by it? (This is because the treatises composed by the two masters to guard against subtleties were instead stolen as tools to attack them.) Intending to bring security, they instead bought danger. Yet this discussion has not ended, and perverse objections have not ceased. The former kings used steelyards and bushels to eliminate theft, but people used them for theft (the sword was fashioned to kill bandits, yet now bandits turn it to their own use); they used weapons and spears to stop killing, but people used them for killing. Therefore, the more things are guarded against, the further their exploitation spreads. Alas, how difficult it is! Thus, those who preserve their original teaching have an excess of simplicity, while those who combine deviant teachings have an excess of contention. None but a noble man can maintain vigilance to the utmost limit (if one preserves the original tradition...). > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) ### [9.2.5](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113.9.2.5) 可自質朴。 因習異宗。 遂多爭競。 若兼異宗外學而能謙謹者。 司謂君子僧也）故前哲云。 學之於身。 如餌如樂。 夫餌以醯醢鹽梅。 齊之使和。 濟其不及。 泄其所過。 而後享之。 五藏平矣（濟益也。 泄減也。 此乃齊侯與梁丘據晏遄臺。 晏子對齊侯之詞也。 左傳第二十四文小異也）樂以金石絲竹韻之使諧（金鍾也。 石磬。 絲琴瑟。 竹簫等。 匏笙竽也。 土塤也。 革鼓也。 木柷敔也。 謂之八音也）節其將遺。 剪其所淫（五聲之後。 不容彈矣。 則有繁手淫聲。 宜剪節之也）而後聽之。 五氣正矣（五行之氣）若專夫一味一音。 則於焉何取。 昔慧遠製沙門不敬論。 但欲自理。 而不毀儒道。 人到于今受其賜也。 周道安二教論。 忘功指過。 語發心鬪。 宇文氏窺之。 得卞莊子之刺虎也（昔卞莊子見二虎爭食而鬪將斬之。 家人諫請伺其鬪。 大者必傷。 小者必死。 後刺之可一舉雙獲也。 果如其言。 今道安與外宗相毀。 皆極其瑕礫。 周武得以窺之。 而用其謀也）然帝邕恃威（邕周武名也。 帝武成三年即位。 至建德二年廢佛道二教。 至大成元年崩。 毀滅自癸巳至戊戌）不信不甚於桓玄。 而桓則服周則拒（桓玄將令僧拜及沙除。 遠公上書而止。 又作不拜論）豈不以才識厚薄而可知也。 但時有不學者。 心智聾瞽。 恃其頑薄。 如豕如羊。 很戾朋從。 視於智藝。 狎而笑之。 以為著文字。 過比夫衡岱未云重也（其有傭昧淺識之徒。 如豕如羊。 翻以習文字者。 為山岳之過）先聖以為群羊僧。 不甚然乎（經律謂啞羊僧也）復有狂狷之夫。 棄乎本教。 聊覽墳素。 遊衍內侮。 若豕負塗。 潔則忌之（狂狷進趨不得中者也。 其有辭親慕道。 割愛為僧。 而不知勵己進修。 全棄教典。 專心外習。 吟詠風騷。 而於本教反生輕侮。 故我高德顧之忌如穢物。 所謂辜負先聖無利檀越。 沈墜三塗。 自貽伊咎也）如宋慧琳慧休之流也（二子皆江表詩僧。 於道德則無取者也）琳詞學迴拔。 為太祖所賞（太祖劉裕）每昇獨榻。 顏延之嫉其才。 嘆咜不平之曰。 此三台之座。 豈可使刑餘居之乎。 琳怠慢自賢。 其師道淵者有學行。 文帝頗器重。 甞詣傅亮宅。 琳先在座。 淵至不為禮。 淵色怒。 亮笞琳二十。 後著黑白論。 大較六度與五教並行。 信順與慈悲齊立。 其間自多傷毀。 何承天以為琳比丘捷生奇見也。 顏延之謂之居其門而伺其闕。 為法盜害。 何地可容。 後抵罪于交州。 鼓憤而卒。 然傅公之為罰君子哉。 不以己愛黨過而失刑。 實肅物之教也。 小人則不然。 與其臣而違君。 介其卑而侮尊。 且悅己之所利。 而忘於巨醜也。 慧休為文。 名冠上才。 嗜酒色無儀法（蜀僧可朋亦然。 死於逆旅。 而尸棄郊野）孝武以其污沙門行。 詔勒還俗補揚州文學從事患不得志。 終於句容令焉。 有僧明解者。 篇什琴書丹青以為絕藝。 視後學負笈謂之驢子。 顯慶年（唐高宗時）西明寺成。 詔靈潤令選有德者居之。 寮寀有薦解者。 潤公曰。 公等國器。 名臣出言不易宜求。 戒定慧學增長福田。 何容舉酒肉畫師以當洪寄。 解聞尤以為懟遇。 詔徵四科不問僧俗。 遂射策登第。 喜曰。 今得捨驢皮矣。 後筮仕無成寒餒沈疾將死。 覩異形十人執烈炬而迎之。 蓋不祥之兆也。 故小人之量有君子之藝。 未甞不顛覆敗辱。 實天貽之不祥矣。 其猶狂象燧尾（以束蘆繫象尾燒之。 令奔踐敵人。 謂之燧象也）怒雞介羽（季郈隣居雞鬪。 季氏以金介其翼。 郈氏以金為距二家。 因以相攻致亂也）祇益其害也。 故易曰。 負且乘致寇至（易解卦六三爻辭也。 言居非其位。 履非其正。 乘二負四以容其身。 寇之來也。 > \[...one can keep oneself plain and unadorned. If, by studying other traditions, they come to dispute and quarrel often; yet if they can study other traditions and external teachings while remaining modest and cautious, they may be called a gentleman-monk.\] Therefore, earlier sages said: "Learning to one's person is like food and like music." Now, food uses vinegar, meat sauce, salt, and plums to adjust its seasoning into harmony, supplementing what falls short and purging what is excessive; only after consuming it are the five viscera balanced. (Supplementing means adding to; purging means reducing. These are the words of Yanzi in response to the Marquis of Qi, when the Marquis and Liangqiuju were on the terrace of Yanchuan. It differs slightly from the text in Zuo zhuan, chapter 24.) Music uses metal, stone, silk, and bamboo to tune its pitch into harmony (metal is the bells; stone, the sounding stones; silk, the lute and zither; bamboo, the flutes, etc.; gourd is the sheng and yu; earth is the xun; hide is the drums; wood is the zhu and yu; these are called the eight tones), restraining what is about to lapse and curtailing what is wanton (after the five tones, wanton playing is not permitted; if there are excessive flourishes and licentious sounds, they should be pruned and moderated); only after listening to it are the five breaths aligned (the breaths of the Five Phases). If one exclusively clings to a single taste or a single tone, what can be gained from it? Formerly, Huiyuan wrote the Treatise on Śramaṇas Not Paying Homage \[to Kings\]: he merely sought to clarify his own principle without slandering Ruism or Daoism; to this day, people receive its benefits. In the Northern Zhou, Dao'an wrote the Treatise on the Two Teachings: forgetting their merits while pointing out their faults, his words arose from a contentious mind. When the Yuwen clan saw through it, they obtained Bian Zhuangzi’s method of stabbing the tigers. (Formerly, Bian Zhuangzi saw two tigers fighting over food and was about to slay them. A household servant admonished him, requesting that he wait for their fight: the larger would surely be wounded, and the smaller would surely die; stabbing them afterward, he could seize both at a single stroke. It turned out just as he had said. Now, when Dao'an and external traditions slandered one another, they both pushed their faults and flaws to the extreme. Emperor Wu of the Zhou was able to see through this and use their strategy.) Yet Emperor Yong relied on his might (Yong was the personal name of Emperor Wu of the Zhou. The emperor ascended the throne in the third year of Wucheng; in the second year of Jiande, he abolished both Buddhism and Daoism; in the first year of Dacheng, he died. The destruction lasted from the guisi year to the wuxu year). His lack of faith was no worse than that of Huan Xuan; yet Huan submitted while Zhou resisted. (Huan Xuan was going to order monks to pay homage and undergo defrocking; Master Yuan submitted a memorial to stop it, and also wrote the Treatise on Not Paying Homage.) Can this not be known through the depth or shallowness of their talent and insight? But in these times, there are unlearned individuals whose minds and wisdom are deaf and blind. Relying on their stubbornness and shallowness, like pigs and sheep, they band together in perversity; looking upon wisdom and the arts, they mock and laugh at them familiarly, considering that composing writings is an error heavier than Mount Heng or Mount Tai. (There are vulgar, ignorant, and shallow people, like pigs and sheep, who perversely consider those who study writing to be guilty of mountain-like faults.) Did the former sages not speak truly when they called them "a flock of sheep-monks"? (The sūtras and vinaya speak of "dumb-sheep monks.") Furthermore, there are wildly eccentric men who abandon their root teachings, casually browse through ancient classics, wander about leisurely, and despise what is within—like pigs bearing mire; when seeing purity, they abhor it. (The wildly eccentric are those who do not maintain moderation in their pursuits. There are those who leave their parents and admire the Way, cutting off attachments to become monks, yet do not know how to spur themselves to cultivate and advance; completely abandoning the scriptural teachings, they devote themselves exclusively to external learning, chanting odes and poetry, yet inversely harboring contempt for their root teachings. Therefore, our men of high virtue look upon them with aversion, as if toward filth. This is what is called failing the former sages, bringing no benefit to patrons, sinking into the three destinies, and bringing blame upon oneself.) Such are of the ilk of Huilin and Huixiu of the Song dynasty. (Both of these were poet-monks of the Jiangbiao region, who had nothing to recommend them in virtue.) Huilin's literary scholarship was outstanding, and he was appreciated by Taizu (Taizu was Liu Yu). Whenever he mounted a solitary couch, Yan Yanzhi was jealous of his talent, sighing indignantly and saying, "This seat of the Three Terraces—how can it be occupied by an amputee?" Huilin was arrogant and conceited. His master, Daoyuan, possessed learning and conduct, and Emperor Wen regarded him highly. Daoyuan once visited Fu Liang’s residence, where Huilin was already seated; when Daoyuan arrived, Huilin did not pay him respect. Daoyuan looked angry, and Liang had Huilin flogged twenty times. Later, he wrote the Treatise on Black and White, broadly arguing that the six pāramitās and the five teachings operate in parallel, and that faithful compliance stands equal with compassion; within it, there was much self-infliction and disparagement. He Chengtian considered that the monk Huilin had hastily produced singular views. Yan Yanzhi said of him, "Residing within their gate yet watching for their shortcomings, he is a thief and menace to the Dharma—what place can tolerate him?" Later, he was convicted of a crime and banished to Jiaozhou, where he died in seething anger. Yet Master Fu’s punishment was truly that of a gentleman! He did not compromise the law through personal affection or partisanship for a fault; it was truly an instruction to discipline all things. The petty man is not like this: taking the side of a minister, he defies his ruler; relying on his lowliness, he insults the noble; rejoicing in what profits himself, he forgets monstrous shame. When Huixiu composed literature, his fame was pre-eminent among the top talents; but he indulged in wine and sex and lacked deportment. (The Shu monk Kepeng was also like this: he died in an inn, and his corpse was cast out into the wilderness.) Emperor Xiaowu, deeming him to have defiled the conduct of a śramaṇa, decreed that he be forced to return to lay life and appointed him as Literary Attendant of Yangzhou; grieved that he could not fulfill his ambitions, he ended his days as the magistrate of Jurong. There was a monk named Mingjie, who considered poetry, the zither, calligraphy, and painting to be supreme arts; looking upon junior students carrying their book-hampers, he called them "donkeys." In the Xianqing reign period (under Tang Gaozong), when Ximing Monastery was completed, a decree ordered Lingrun to select those of virtue to reside there. Some officials recommended Jie; Master Run said: "Gentlemen, you are vessels of state; when eminent ministers speak, words are not given lightly. You ought to seek learning in the precepts, dhyāna, and wisdom to increase the field of merit; how can you recommend a wine-drinking, meat-eating painter to bear such a great responsibility?" When Jie heard this, he harbored even deeper resentment. When an imperial decree summoned talents in the four subjects without distinguishing between monks and laity, he took the examination and passed. He rejoiced, saying: "Today I finally shed my donkey hide!" Later, divining his fortune for an official career, he accomplished nothing; suffering from cold, hunger, and chronic illness, when about to die, he saw ten beings of bizarre appearance holding blazing torches to welcome him—an inauspicious omen indeed. Therefore, when the capacity of a petty man possesses the arts of a gentleman, it never fails to end in ruin, defeat, and disgrace; truly, Heaven sends down misfortune upon them. It is just like tying torches to the tails of mad elephants (attaching bundles of reeds to the tails of elephants and burning them to make them trample the enemy; this is called torch-elephants), or fitting armor onto the wings of angry fighting-cocks (Ji and Hou were neighbors whose cocks fought; the Ji clan put metal armor on their wings, and the Hou clan put metal spurs on theirs; the two families attacked one another over this, causing turmoil). It only increases their harm. Therefore, the Yijing says: "Bearing a burden yet riding in a carriage invites the arrival of bandits." (This is the line commentary for the six-three line of the Xie hexagram in the Yijing. It means residing where one should not reside, and acting without propriety, riding the second and carrying the fourth to accommodate oneself, which invites the coming of bandits.) > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) _First 5 of 9 passages. [Read on](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113.9.2)_ ## Translations (1) - [English (machine translation)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113~en-mt.9.2.1) — English, machine translation --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113.9.2](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2113.9.2) · Pramāṇa