法苑珠林 18.29

18.29

唐幽州沙門釋智苑。精練有學識。隋大業中。發心造石一切經藏以備法滅。既而於幽州西山鑿巖為石室。即磨四璧而以寫經。又取方石別更磨寫藏諸室內。每一室滿即以石塞門。融鐵錮之。時隋煬帝幸涿郡。內史侍郎蕭瑀皇后弟也。性篤信佛法以其事白后。后施絹千匹及餘錢物以助成之。瑀施絹五百匹。朝野聞之爭共捨施。故苑得遂功。苑甞以役匠既多道俗奔湊。欲於巖前造木佛堂并食堂寢室。而念木瓦難辦。恐繁費經物。故未能起作。一夜瀑雨雷震山。明旦既晴。乃見山下有大木松柏數千萬。為水所漂流積道次。山東少材木松柏尤希。道俗驚駭不知來處。推尋蹤迹遠自西。山崩崖倒漂送來此。於是遠近歎服。自非福力孰感神助。苑乃使匠擇取其木。餘皆分與邑里。邑里喜愧而助造堂宇。頃之畢成。如其志焉。苑所造石經已滿七室。以貞觀十三年卒。弟子猶繼其功。殿中丞相李玄獎大理丞采宣明等。皆為臨說云。臨至十九年從駕幽州。親問鄉人皆同不虛（右三驗出冥報記）。

During the Tang, the śramaṇa Shi Zhiyuan of Youzhou was refined, practiced, and learned. In the Daye era of the Sui, he resolved to carve a complete canon of stone scriptures in preparation for the disappearance of the Dharma. Thereupon, in the Western Hills of Youzhou, he quarried the cliffs into stone chambers; he then polished the four walls and wrote the scriptures on them. He also took square stones, polished and inscribed them separately, and stored them within the chambers. Whenever a chamber was full, he blocked the door with stone and sealed it with molten iron. At that time, Emperor Yang of the Sui visited Zhuo Commandery. Xiao Yu, Vice Director of the Palace Secretariat, was the Empress's younger brother; naturally a devout believer in the Buddhadharma, he reported the matter to the Empress. The Empress donated a thousand bolts of silk and other money and goods to help bring it to completion. Xiao Yu donated five hundred bolts of silk. When the court and the public heard of it, they vied to contribute donations, so Yuan was able to accomplish his work. Yuan once considered that because the laborers were numerous and clergy and laity flocked together, he wished to build a wooden Buddha hall along with a refectory and sleeping quarters in front of the cliff, but he reflected that wood and tiles were hard to obtain, and he feared incurring excessive expense to the scriptures' funds, so he had not yet been able to undertake the construction. One night there was torrential rain, and thunder shook the mountain. The next morning when it cleared, they saw at the foot of the mountain several tens of millions of large timber pine and cypress trees, washed down by the water and piled beside the road. East of the mountains timber was scarce, and pine and cypress were especially rare; clergy and laity were astonished, not knowing where they had come from. Tracing the trail, [they found] they had come from far to the west: the mountain had collapsed, the cliff fallen, and the current had washed them here. Thereupon people near and far were moved to admiration, [knowing that] were it not for the power of his merit, who could have moved divine assistance? Yuan then had the carpenters select and take the timber, and the remainder was all distributed to the townships and villages. The villagers, delighted and ashamed, helped build the halls and buildings. Before long they were completed, just as he had wished. The stone scriptures carved by Yuan already filled seven chambers. He died in the thirteenth year of the Zhenguan era. His disciples continued his work. Li Xuanjiang, Assistant Director of the Palace Buildings, and Cai Xuanming, Assistant in the Court of Judicial Review, both described it to [Tang] Lin. When Lin accompanied the imperial retinue to Youzhou in the nineteenth year, he personally questioned the locals, and all agreed it was not false. (The above three verifications are from the Mingbao Ji.)