北山錄 4.2.6

4.2.6

translated the Daśabhāṇavāra-vinaya into sixty fascicles, and passed away at Shijian Temple in Shouchun, known at the time as the 'Blue-Eyed Vinaya Master'.) Under the Wei dynasty, Tanshi's feet were white, and he was called at that time the 'White-Footed Araṇya' (Tanshi's feet did not touch the ground when walking. 'Araṇya' means a monk, in the sense of being free from dispute and quiescent). When [Puṇya]yaśas was in Kashgar, he was Kumārajīva's teacher. Later, coming to Guzang, he heard that Kumārajīva's precepts had been compromised by the Qin [court], and said, 'Kumārajīva is like fine silk floss—how could he be cast into a thorn thicket?' (Yao Xing once said to Kumārajīva, 'The Master's brilliant insight surpasses all; none in the realm equals you. Once your life comes to an end, how can we let the lineage of the Dharma lack successors?' He then forced him to accept ten courtesans. From that time on, Kumārajīva did not reside in the monastic quarters but lived separately in official residences. Whenever he lectured, he always began with the parable: 'It is like a lotus growing out of foul mud: only pluck the lotus; do not take the foul mud.') Kumārajīva addressed the Qin ruler: 'If one wishes to propagate the unsurpassable Dharma teachings, the phrasing, meaning, and principles should be made fully thorough and comprehensive. Although I can recite its words, I have not mastered its inner principles. Only [Puṇya]yaśas thoroughly comprehends the scriptures and teachings. He is now in Guzang; I pray you summon him by imperial decree. Let every single word be deliberated thrice before putting brush to paper, so that the subtle words do not fall into obscurity and may win trust for a thousand years.' Yao Xing then invited [Puṇya]yaśas. [Puṇya]yaśas smiled and said, 'Now that the luminous decree has descended, I ought to travel swiftly; but the dānapati treats men of talent so generously that, should I find myself in a situation like Kumārajīva's, I would not dare obey.' Xing admired his cautious discernment and issued another reassuring edict, whereupon he came. Alas! When Jin killed Dou Du, Confucius would not cross the Yellow River (Confucius was travelling from Wei to Jin and reached the River; upon hearing that Zhao Jianzi had killed Dou Mingdu and Shunhua, he stood overlooking the River and sighed, 'How magnificent are the waters! How vast! That I, Qiu, do not cross this river is surely my fate!' Zigong asked the reason. Dou Du and Shunhua were worthy grandees of Jin and Zhao whom Jianzi had relied upon before attaining his ambition. Now that Jianzi had killed them, Confucius said that if one rips open the womb or burns the forest, the qilin will not appear; if one overturns the nest and breaks the eggs, the phoenix will not soar; and so on. Thereupon he turned his carriage around and did not cross). When Qin ensnared Kumārajīva, [Puṇya]yaśas declined to enter the state. Was it not that harming one worthy prevents many worthies from arriving ('ji' means to arrive), and trifling with one virtue causes all virtues to depart? At the beginning of the Hongshi era, when Kumārajīva translated the Three Treatises (the Madhyamakaśāstra, the Śataśāstra, and the Dvādaśamukhaśāstra), those who valued the Gate of Emptiness converged like spokes at a hub. Later, when he translated the Tattvasiddhi-śāstra, those skilled in the characteristics of dharmas gathered like clouds. At the time, it was considered that nothing surpassed this treatise in exhaustively illuminating technical categories. Kumārajīva first directed Sengrui to lecture upon and propagate it, saying to him, 'In this disputed treatise, there are seven places refuting the Abhidharma school, but their phrasing is somewhat veiled. If you can understand them without asking, you may be called a brilliant talent.' Sengrui disclosed the hidden and subtle points, indeed without consulting Kumārajīva. Kumārajīva sighed, 'In translating and transmitting the scriptures and treatises, to have met you leaves me with no regrets!' (Sengrui was a man of Changle in Wei Commandery. He took Master Sengxian as his teacher. Modest and inwardly keen, he assisted Kumārajīva in translating scriptures, observed monastic comportment well, and broadly propagated the Dharma of the scriptures. He constantly dedicated this merit with the aspiration to be born in Sukhāvatī, never sitting with his back to the west. Facing death, he bathed, burned incense, joined his palms facing west, and solemnly passed away). Some say that among Kumārajīva's disciples, the 'Four Sages'—[Dao]sheng, [Seng]zhao, [Dao]rong, and [Seng]rui—were the foremost; and in scrutinizing difficult points, [Hui]guan and [Seng]zhao were first. Others speak of the 'Ten Philosophers', adding Daoheng and Daobiao (Daosheng, Sengzhao, Daorong, Sengrui, Tanying, Huiyan, and Huiguan; in the original biographies, two names are missing. As for 'Dao Ping', there was Dao Ping of the Southern Qi, but he was not under Kumārajīva's gate. There was also Sengche, who was very brilliant; perhaps it is a scribal error). Even ranking below the eight, Daoheng and Daobiao still possessed the talent to assist and illuminate (Daoheng was a man of Jingzhao who left home at the age of nine. The hermit Zhang Zhong praised him: 'This young boy has an extraordinary countenance; in the secular realm, he would have the merit to aid the government, and in the religious realm, he has the virtue to shine forth.' He served his stepmother with great filial piety, was broadly versed in the scriptures, and assisted Kumārajīva in translating scriptures. Daobiao likewise had refined talent and capacity; both rendered assistant service); they were qualified to serve as ministers to a king. Yao Xing, intent on their statecraft, attempted to force the two worthies into ministerial positions with gold-and-purple seals and court rank. Although pressured by hegemonic might, in the end they would not become his ministers. Thus we know that worthies and men of insight each have their own inclinations and gains: those pursuing carriages and honor look upon sleeping on coarse mats and feeding on acorns as the way of beasts (comparing them to birds and beasts with whom one cannot flock together); while those who relish the Void and Profound look upon embroidered robes and fattened meat as fetters and stocks (like sacrificial victims entering the ancestral temple). Yi Yin and Lü Wang sought to become ministers to men (Yi Yin was minister to Tang; Lü Wang was Jiang Taigong, minister to King Wu); Bian Sui and Wu Guang both declined rulership (they were offered the throne by Yao through abdication but did not accept it). Do their likes and dislikes not directly contradict each other, and do their views of glory and decline not differ? Men like Daoheng and Daobiao could still look upon their bodily forms as temporary inns—how then would they care for titles and honors? For this reason, meeting with auspicious fortunes and severing love for lord and kin, sailing the Five Lakes was not difficult for them (Fan Li parted from King Goujian of Yue and rowed a small boat across the Five Lakes; the king cast gold images to summon him back, but he never returned); treading the great ocean was not too distant (Lu Lian said that he would rather drown in the great ocean than serve an unprincipled lord). What could that petty Qin offer to draw them? Even if in the times of Tang and Yu they were matched with the Yuankai (the Eight Yuan and Eight Kai were worthy ministers of Yao; to be matched means to equal in age and status), or at the beginning of the Yin and Zhou dynasties they kept pace with Yi Yin, they would still fear falling short—how much more so in this era, how could ranks and emoluments be considered weighty? (This era refers to the usurping Qin dynasty). In the past, Zhi Dun and Huiyuan, who achieved renown, were frequently burdened by such pressures (being coerced by kings and ministers); yet they shook them off like light dust and snapped them asunder like rotten cords (rotten cords mean decaying ropes), not finding them difficult. Therefore, Chao Fu and Xu You could have served an August Sovereign, but no imperial power could summon them forth; Boyi and Shuqi could have served an Emperor, but no kingly power could summon them forth; the Four Whiteheads could have served a King, but no hegemonic power could summon them forth (one who tranquillizes the people following the model is called an August Sovereign, referring to the sovereigns of Yan and Hao; one whose virtue resembles Heaven and Earth is called an Emperor, referring to Yao and Shun; one toward whom benevolence and righteousness gravitate is called a King, referring to Xia, Yin, and Zhou; Qin and Han are called Hegemons). Residing outside the mundane world, how can it not be difficult to be raised up by that within the mundane world? Emperor Wen of Song once expounded on Master Daosheng's doctrine of sudden enlightenment, and the assembly of monks raised objections. The Emperor tapped the table with his sambar-tail fly-whisk and said, 'If only the deceased could be revived, how could he be subdued by you gentlemen?' (Zhu Daosheng was a man of Julu, precociously intelligent from youth, discerning and wise as a spirit.