辯偽錄 5.9

5.9

聖旨就大都大憫忠寺。焚燒道藏偽經。除道德經外。盡行燒毀。遂命拈香舉火謝恩畢。拈香云。佛心天子愍眾生。恐墮三塗邪見坑。箇裏了無偏黨處。就中朱紫要分明。所以道聖鑑無私天機莫測。既來頌德敢不酬恩。此香端為祝延大元世主當今皇帝聖躬萬歲萬歲萬萬歲。伏願金輪與法輪同轉。福越三祇。舜日共佛日齊明。壽延億劫。次舉火云。憶昔當年明帝時。曾憑烈焰辯妍媸。大元天子續洪範。顯正摧邪誰不知嗟乎道教陰蠧佛書。自古至今。造訛揑偽盜竊釋經言句。圖謀貝葉題名。謗毀如來贓誣先聖。醜辭惡語何可言哉。無蔕狂談實難遍舉。始自張陵杜撰。不遵老氏玄言。謬作醮書兼集靈寶。詐道從空而得妄言。太上親傳用三張鬼法以誑惑愚夫。設五運神符而魘姦匹婦。以此觀之。葛孝先徒搜要妙。陶弘景謾述浮辭。杜光庭白拈巧偷。劫賊無異。陸修靜外好裏弱。說客何殊。若非喫苦。不甘爭肯。說長道短。鮑靜被誅猶可。王浮招報非輕。傅奕姜斌不堪齒錄。張生集輩何足言論。寇謙之口舌瀾翻。損他利己。林靈素機謀諂詐。敗國亡家。毀人祖兮。定遭一時之辱。滅賢良兮。必招三世之殃。因果無差報應有準。嗚呼悲法琳不遇而遭貶。嗟道世雖再而難為。致令釋子傷心。幸得皇天開眼。恭惟我大元世主聖明皇帝陛下。闢邪歸正去偽存真。恐眾生永墮迷津。令萬姓咸登覺路。雪冤已竟感謝皇恩。粉骨碎身莫能酬報。遂以火炬打一圓相云。諸人者只如三洞靈文。還能證此火光三昧也無。若也於斯會得。家有北斗經枉教人口不安寧。其或未然。從此灰飛煙滅後。任伊到處覓天尊。急著眼看。

An imperial decree ordered that the apocryphal scriptures of the Daoist Canon be burned at Daminzhong Monastery in Dadu; with the exception of the Daodejing, all were to be destroyed by fire. Thereupon, [the monk] was commanded to offer incense, apply the torch, and express gratitude for the imperial favor. Offering incense, he said: 'The Son of Heaven with the heart of a Buddha pities living beings, / Fearing they might fall into the three wretched destinies and the pit of false views. / Herein there is no partiality or bias whatsoever; / Amidst this, the vermilion and purple must be clearly distinguished. Therefore it is said that the sage’s discernment is impartial, and the heavenly workings cannot be fathomed. Having come to praise his virtue, how dare I not repay his favor? This incense is offered solely to pray for the longevity of the Great Yuan’s ruler, our present Emperor: may his sacred person live ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand times ten thousand years! We humbly pray that the golden wheel and the wheel of the Dharma turn together, his blessings surpassing three asaṃkhyeyas; that the sun of Shun and the sun of the Buddha shine equally bright, his lifespan extending for a hundred million kalpas.' Next, raising the torch, he said: 'I recall back in the days of Emperor Ming, / How blazing flames were used to discern beauty from ugliness. / The Son of Heaven of the Great Yuan continues the Grand Norm; / Who does not know that he manifests the orthodox and destroys the heterodox? Alas, the Daoist religion has secretly undermined Buddhist scriptures from antiquity to the present, fabricating falsehoods and forging texts, stealing expressions and lines from Buddhist sūtras, plotting to put their names upon palm-leaf manuscripts, slandering the Tathāgata, and falsely accusing the former sages. How can their vile phrases and wicked words be described? Such baseless, wild talk is indeed difficult to recount fully. It began with Zhang Ling’s fabrications: not following the mysterious words of Laozi, he erroneously made manuals for sacrificial offerings and compiled the Lingbao scriptures, falsely claiming to have obtained them from the void and lying that Taishang personally transmitted them; he used the ghostly methods of the Three Zhangs to delude fools, and established talismans of the five movements to beguile and seduce common women. Viewed in this light, Ge Xiaoxian sought profundities in vain; Tao Hongjing merely recited superficial rhetoric; Du Guangting stole skillfully out in broad daylight, no different from a bandit; and Lu Xiujing was attractive on the outside but weak within, just like a persuasive rhetorician. If one did not suffer bitterness and refuse to yield, how could one bear to speak of their merits and faults? Bao Jing being executed was still light, but Wang Fu receiving retribution was not slight. Fu Yi and Jiang Bin are not worth recording; the likes of Zhang Shengji do not merit discussion. Kou Qianzhi’s tongue chattered incessantly, harming others to benefit himself; Lin Lingsu’s schemes were flattering and deceitful, ruining the state and destroying families. Slandering others’ ancestors surely brings a moment of disgrace; destroying the virtuous and good must incur retribution across three lives. Cause and effect do not err; retribution is exact. Alas, how sorrowful that Falin met with misfortune and was exiled; how lamentable that Daoshi, though appearing again, found it hard to endure! This caused the sons of the Śākya to grieve; fortunately, august Heaven opened its eyes. We respectfully reflect that our Great Yuan’s ruler, His Sacred and Brilliant Majesty the Emperor, eradicates the heterodox and returns to the orthodox, discarding the false and preserving the true, fearing that living beings might forever sink into the ford of delusion and enabling all the myriad people to ascend the path of awakening. The injustice has now been cleared; thanking the imperial grace, even crushing our bones and bodies could not repay it.' Thereupon, drawing a circle with the torch, he said: 'Everyone, take the spiritual writings of the Three Caverns: can they realize this fire-light samādhi or not? If you understand right here: "Having the Scripture of the Northern Dipper in the house only brings unease to the family." But if not: after this, once the ashes have flown and the smoke is extinguished, let them seek the Heavenly Worthy wherever they will! Open your eyes quickly and see!'