北山錄 10.2.8

10.2.8

An edict stated: "The Buddha-dharma is vast and great, revered collectively throughout a thousand ages. How could it be suppressed, hidden, cast aside, and not practiced? From this day forward, all from princes and dukes down to the common populace should cultivate and serve it, and know our intention." Thereupon, a monastery was established in each of the two capitals, while throughout the remaining prefectures and commanderies it was not yet generally permitted. On the eighth day of the fourth month, an imperial edict stated: "The rise of Buddhism has spanned many eras. When discussing its ultimate principle, it is truly difficult to comprehend of oneself. It is merely that the world has gradually become frivolous and unstable, failing to abide by the Buddha-dharma, which caused the pure Dharma to turn into turbidity and defilement. Emperor Gaozu Wu abolished it and did not maintain it precisely for this reason. Now, our sentiment abides in the ultimate Way, wishing to propagate the good Dharma. We shall select those of practiced conduct to reverently follow this principle, allowing them to keep their bodily appearance and attire unchanged while their virtuous practice remains, respectfully establishing a bodhimaṇḍa with the wish to practice the good Dharma. All from princes and dukes down should be fully informed of this." On the twentieth day, an edict ordered the selection of one hundred and twenty senior, experienced śramaṇas of fine virtue, chastity, integrity, and profound, extensive learning, who were not to cut their hair or alter their appearance, to practice the Way for the state at Zhihu Monastery, with their provisions supplied by the state treasury. The śramaṇa Ren Daolin served through two generations—Gaozu and Tianyuan. His remonstrances and memorials were decorous, and the emperor admired his eloquence. He repeatedly turned the imperial regard, and the Great Dharma was carried forward and restored; this man indeed had great power in it. (Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou abolished the two teachings in the second year of Jiande, which corresponds to the fifth year of Dajian of Emperor Xuan of the Chen, the fourth year of Wuping of the Latter Ruler of the Northern Qi, and the guisi year, the twelfth year of Dading of Emperor Ming of the Later Liang.) When Emperor Wen of the Sui was still a hidden dragon, there was a spiritual nun, Zhixian, who said: "The Buddha-dharma is about to perish, and all spiritual luminaries have now departed to the west. My son will become the compassionate father of all under Heaven (namely Emperor Wen of the Sui), re-establishing the Buddha-dharma, and all spiritual luminaries will return here." Emperor Jing was tender and young; using the Duke of Sui to assist the government, he wished to have the śramaṇas restored to their former status, but was not yet able to do so. When the Zhou mandate was changed, (Emperor Jing of the Zhou was named Yan, the eldest son of Emperor Xuan. Upon ascending the throne, he changed the reign title to Dading and appointed the Duke of Sui, Yang Jian, as prime minister, restoring the two teachings of Buddhism and Daoism. After reigning for one year, he abdicated to the Sui and resided in a separate palace, being honored as the Duke of Jie with a fief of ten thousand households, everything according to Zhou regulations. He died in the first year of Kaihuang at the age of nine,) he then ordered them to shave their heads. Figures such as Tanyan, Lingyu, and Huiyuan were all rightly suited to their role. At the beginning of our dynasty, Gaozu asked his ministers: "Fu Yi constantly says that Buddhism is useless. We wish to follow his proposal; what do you lords think?" Pei Ji, Duke of Wei, stepped forward and said: "Your servant has heard that Duke Huan of Qi drank wine and made merry with Guan Zhong, Bao Shu, Ning Qi, and others. Duke Huan said to Bao Shu: 'Offer a toast for us.' Bao Shu raised the wine and toasted: 'May my lord not forget his exile in Ju! (When Gongsun Wuzhi of Qi rebelled, Xiaobai fled to Ju. The people of Qi killed Wuzhi. Later, Bao Shu assisted Xiaobai to enter and take the throne; this was Duke Huan.) May Guan Zhong not forget being bound in Lu! (During the disorder in Qi, Guan Zhong and Prince Jiu fled to Lu, and the state accepted them. Xiaobai arrived first, and in the ensuing battle Lu was defeated; Lu then killed Prince Jiu and bound Guan Zhong alive, until Bao Shu freed him at the border.) May Ning Qi not forget feeding his ox!' (Ning Qi was a cart-driver who was feeding his ox beneath a cart; seeing Duke Huan, he tapped the ox's horns and sang, whereupon Duke Huan employed him.) Duke Huan stepped away from his seat and thanked him: 'If we and our few ministers never forget the master's words, then the altars of soil and grain of Qi will not fall into ruin.' This means one should constantly remember the past. Formerly, when Your Majesty first raised the righteous army, your aspirations relied on the Three Jewels; you said that when firmly set upon the throne of nine-and-five, you vowed to open the gate of the mysterious. Now Your Majesty has brought benevolence to the six directions and possesses wealth within the four seas; yet you wish to adopt the rash impetuosity of [Fu] Yi (Fu Yi) and abolish the Buddhas and the saṅgha. This would undermine Your Majesty's former faith and make manifest Your Majesty's present error. The common people will be disappointed, (yuanyuan means the multitude of common people,) and in principle it is unacceptable." From this we know that the worthy of civil and martial realms are surely sent by Heaven; they are not only ministers of the altars of soil and grain, but truly ministers of the Dharma King as well. Having served as defenders of the royal house, they also serve as a screen and shield for the sacred teaching. As for those who govern the people: their conduct is manifest in a single village, their wisdom serves in a single office; they establish a standard of virtue through their reputation and become models for the simple folk to look up to. What knowledge do those folk possess? If you promote the upright and place them above the crooked, those people will consider that to be upright. If you promote the crooked and place them above the upright, those folk will also consider that to be upright. Having no special discernment of their own, they entrust their transformation to those above; how could [rulers] not scrutinize their actions, be cautious in their speech, and clarify their trustworthiness? The Classic of Rites says: "Yao and Shun led all under Heaven with benevolence, and the people followed them; Jie and Zhou led all under Heaven with cruelty, and the people followed them." It also says: "Those below in serving those above do not follow what they command, but follow what they transform them by. When those above have a fondness for something, those below will surely take it to extremes." Now, the mouths of the multitude chatter garrulously, (die is pronounced die, meaning artful words,) ailing from lack of faith; yet my heart is gloomy and doubly indignant at what they do believe. Why is this? Belief has three kinds: there is the wise, the foolish, and the partisan. The wise choose their objects, and people delight in their discernment, just as Shun raised Gaoyao and Tang raised Yiyin—the benevolent arrived, and the unbenevolent kept their distance. The foolish and the partisan cause harm and decay! The foolish cannot distinguish between cattle and horses; regarding what they believe, it is like washing a monkey and putting a cap on it, (anciently, Xiang Yu slaughtered Xianyang and burned the palaces; the fire did not go out for three months, and he returned to Xiapi. A gentleman of Qin said: "Xiang Ji's actions are just like washing a monkey and putting a cap on it,") or admiring a depicted dragon while fearing a real one, (Lord Ye ate vegetables in Ye; his surname was Shen, personal name Zhiliang, style Zigao. He loved dragons and painted them on doors, windows, and screens; Heaven caused a real dragon to appear, and seeing it, he died of fright and palpitation,) mistaking a madman for Zidu, (Zidu was a handsome man; kuang means a wild youth, qie is a grammatical particle. The Book of Songs says: "Instead of seeing Zidu, I see a mad youth." This poem satirizes Zheng's lack of worthiness,) or regarding Mahādeva as an arhat. (Mahādeva was a monk of the Tukhāra country who committed the five heinous sins; Aśoka made offerings to him, taking him for an arhat.) This is the good fortune of petty men, and the misfortune of gentlemen. (To be employed when one should not be is called good fortune; to be worthy of employment but not obtain