法苑珠林 27.58

27.58

唐終南山悟真寺釋法誠。俗姓樊氏。雍州萬年縣人。幼小出家止藍田王孝寺。事沙門僧和為師。和亦鄉族所推敬奉比聖。嘗有人欲害。夜往其房。見門內猛火騰焰升帳。遂即追悔。和性潔無染。人惑弄之。密以羊骨水洗令飲。和素不知飲便嘔吐。其冥感潛識為若此也。誠奉佩訓勗每誦法華用為常式。法華三昧翹心奉行。澡沐中表溫恭朝夕。夢感普賢勸書大教。誠曰。大乘也所謂諸佛智慧般若大智。於即入淨行道。重䞋匠工令書八部般若。香臺寶軸莊嚴成就。又於寺南橫嶺造華嚴堂。陻山閴谷列棟開甍。前對重巒。右臨斜谷。吐納雲霧下瞰雷霆。實奇觀也。又竭其精志書寫受持。弘文學士張孝靜者。是張瓚父。時號銀鉤。罕有加勝。乃請至山令受戒潔齋。洗淨身口。口含香汁。身服新衣。然靜長途寫經紙別不盈五數。誠倍與直慕令精好。靜利其貨竭力寫之。終部以已誠每燒香供養在其案前。點墨之間心緣目覩略無遺漏。故其剋心鑽注。時感異鳥。形色希世。飛入堂中裴回鼓舞。下至經案復上香鑪。攝足住看自然馴狎。久之翔逝。來年經了將事興慶。鳥又飛來。如前馴擾。鳴唳哀亮。貞觀初年復畫千佛。鳥又飛來登上匠背。營齋供慶日次中時。怪其不來。誠顧山峯曰。鳥既不至吾不感矣。將不嫌諸穢行䞋施輕薄。致使無徵。言已歘然飛來。旋環鳴囀入香水中奮迅羽毛。浴已便逝。前後呈祥重疊難述。誠素善筆工鄉曲知聞。山巖惡路經偈妙辭。自寫令誦。皆誠筆也。又自寫法華正當露地。因事他行忘以收舉。忽屬洪雨滂注溝㵎。走往看之。案獨乾燥餘並流波。嘗却偃橫松遂落懸溜。未至下㵎不覺已登高岸。不損一毛信知經力。又青泥坊側有古佛龕。周氏瘞藏今猶未出。誠夜夢其處大有尊形。既寤往開恰獲龕像。年月積久並悉剝壞。就而修理。道俗稱善。斯並冥術之功。自誠開發。至貞觀十四年夏末日。忽感餘疾。自知即世。願生兜率。索水洗訖。又索修輿。傍自檢校不許榮厚。恰至月末。明相將現。無故語曰。欲來但入未假絃歌。顧侍人曰。吾聞諸行無常生滅不住。九品往生此言驗矣。今有童子相迎久在門外。吾今去世。爾等好住。佛有正戒無得有虧。後致憂悔也。言已出口光明照于楹內。又聞異香苾芬而至。但見端坐儼思。不覺其神已逝。時年七十有八。誠之誦業一夏法華斷五百遍。餘日讀誦兼而行之。猶獲兩遍。縱有人客要須與語者。非經度訖不共他言。略計十年之功一萬餘遍（右二驗出唐高僧傳）。

Monk Facheng of Wuzhen Temple on Mount Zhongnan under the Tang was of the secular surname Fan, a native of Wannian County in Yongzhou. Leaving home in his childhood, he resided at Wangxiao Temple in Lantian, serving the śramaṇa Senghe as his master. He was also revered by his fellow townsmen and compared to a sage. Once, someone wished to harm him and went to his room at night, only to see fierce flames rising within the door up to the canopy. The person thereupon repented. He's nature was clean and undefiled. Someone tried to deceive him by secretly washing sheep bones in water and having him drink it; He, not knowing this, drank it and immediately vomited. His unseen resonances and hidden perceptions were like this. Cheng respectfully bore his master's instructions in mind and always recited the Lotus Sūtra as his daily practice. Yearning in his heart, he practiced the Lotus Samādhi, bathing inside and out, warm and respectful morning and evening. In a dream, he was inspired by Samantabhadra, who exhorted him to transcribe the Great Teaching. Cheng said, 'The Mahāyāna refers to the wisdom of all Buddhas, the great wisdom of prajñā.' Thereupon he entered into pure practice, bestowing heavy donations upon craftsmen to have them transcribe the eight sections of Prajñā, completing them adorned with fragrant stands and jeweled rollers. Furthermore, on the ridge south of the temple, he built the Avataṃsaka Hall, cutting through mountains and quiet valleys, aligning beams and opening eaves. It faced layered peaks in front and overlooked the diagonal valley to the right, inhaling and exhaling clouds and mist, looking down upon thunder and lightning—truly a magnificent sight. He also exhausted his utmost devotion in copying, receiving, and upholding scriptures. Zhang Xiaojing, a Scholar of the Hongwen Academy, was the father of Zhang Zan. Known at the time as 'Silver Hook', few could surpass his calligraphy. Cheng invited him to the mountain, had him receive the precepts and keep a pure fast, cleansing his body and mouth, keeping fragrant juice in his mouth and wearing new robes upon his body. However, in his usual practice of copying scriptures, Jing did not exceed five sheets of paper a day. Cheng offered him double the remuneration, desiring perfection. Jing was attracted by the payment and exerted his utmost effort in transcribing it. Whenever a fascicle was completed, Cheng would always burn incense and make offerings before his desk; between the dips of ink, his mind contemplated and his eyes witnessed without the slightest omission. Due to his devoted concentration, he repeatedly moved strange birds: rare in form and color, they flew into the hall, circling and fluttering, landing on the scripture desk and rising to the incense burner, perching and watching, naturally tame and familiar. After a long while they took flight and vanished. The following year, when the scripture was completed and a celebration was about to be held, the birds flew in again, tame as before, crying plaintively and clearly. In the early years of Zhenguan, when he had a painting of the Thousand Buddhas made, the birds again flew in, landing on the chief craftsman's back. On the day of the vegetarian feast celebrating its completion, around midday, they wondered why the birds had not come. Cheng looked at the mountain peaks and said, 'Since the birds have not arrived, my sincere resonance must be lacking. Could it be that they dislike our impurities, or that our remuneration was meager, causing this absence of omen?' As soon as he finished speaking, the birds suddenly flew down, circling and chirping, diving into the perfumed water, fluffing their feathers, and taking flight once they had bathed. Such repeated auspicious omens were too numerous to recount. Cheng was naturally skilled in calligraphy, known among his native villagers. On mountain cliffs and perilous paths, he personally inscribed marvelous lines of scriptural gāthās for people to recite, all in his own hand. Once, when he had personally transcribed the Lotus Sūtra in the open air, he had to leave on business and forgot to put it away. Suddenly, torrential rain poured into the ravines and gullies. Running back to see, only his desk was completely dry while all else was flowing water. Once, when he stepped back on a fallen pine tree, he plunged into a sheer waterfall; before reaching the gully below, he found himself already standing on the high bank without harm to a single hair, which proved the power of the scripture. Moreover, beside the Qingni quarter, there was an ancient Buddha niche buried by the Zhou dynasty that had not yet been unearthed. Cheng dreamed at night that there were great honored images at that place. Upon waking, he went to excavate it and found the niche and images. Having accumulated many years, they were entirely peeled and damaged. He proceeded to repair them, for which both monastics and laity praised him. These were all accomplishments of unseen workings, initiated by Cheng. On the final day of summer in the fourteenth year of Zhenguan, he suddenly contracted an illness. Knowing his life was at an end, he vowed to be born in Tuṣita. He asked for water and washed, and then asked for a simple palanquin to be prepared, inspecting it himself and not permitting any luxury. Just at the end of the month, as the morning dawn was about to appear, he said without cause, 'If you wish to come, just enter; there is no need for music.' Looking at his attendants, he said, 'I have heard that all conditioned phenomena are impermanent, rising and ceasing without halt; the nine grades of rebirth—these words are verified! A boy has been waiting outside the door for a long time to welcome me. I am departing now; you all stay well. The Buddha has pure precepts; do not violate them and bring about sorrow and repentance later.' As the words left his mouth, a bright light illuminated the pillars, and an extraordinary, delicate fragrance wafted in. He was seen sitting upright in dignified contemplation, and without anyone noticing, his spirit had passed away. He was seventy-eight years old. In Cheng's practice of recitation, he completed five hundred readings of the Lotus Sūtra in a single summer retreat. On other days, he combined reading and walking, still accomplishing two recitations. Even if guests arrived and demanded to speak with him, he would not converse with others until he had completed his recitation. In a rough calculation of ten years' effort, he recited it more than ten thousand times. (The two miracles above are from the Tang Gaoseng zhuan.)