法苑珠林 38.39

38.39

初西晉會稽鄮縣塔寺。今在越州東三百七十里。鄮縣界。東去海四十里。在縣東南七十里。南去吳村二十五里。案前傳云。晉太康二年有并州離石人劉薩何者。生在田家弋獵為業。得病死蘇。見一胡僧語何曰。汝罪重應入地獄。吾憫汝無識且放。今洛下齊城丹陽會稽。並有古塔及浮江石像。悉阿育王所造。可勤求禮懺得免此苦。既醒之後。改革前習。出家學道。更名慧達。如言南行至會稽。海畔山澤處處求覓莫識基緒。達悲塞煩冤投造無地。忽於中夜聞土下鍾聲。即迁記其處剡木為剎。三日間忽有寶塔及舍利從地踊出。靈塔相狀青色似石而非石。高一尺四寸。方七寸。五層露盤似西域于闐所造。面開窓子。四周天金。中懸銅磬。每有鍾聲。疑此磬也。繞塔身上並是諸佛菩薩金剛聖僧雜類等像。狀極微細瞬目注睛。乃有百千像現。面目手足咸具備焉。斯可謂神功聖迹非人智所及也。今在大木塔內。於八王日輿巡邑里。見者莫不下拜念佛生善。齋戒終身。其舍利者在木塔底。其塔左側多有古迹。

First, the stūpa and monastery of Mou County in Kuaiji under the Western Jin. It is now three hundred and seventy li east of Yuezhou, within the boundaries of Mou County, forty li east to the sea, seventy li southeast of the county seat, and twenty-five li south to Wu Village. According to the earlier biography: In the second year of the Taikang era of the Jin, there was a man named Liu Sahe from Lishi in Bingzhou. Born into a farming family, he made hunting his occupation. He fell ill and died, but revived. He saw a Central Asian monk who said to Sahe, "Your sins are heavy and you should enter hell. I pity your lack of understanding and will release you for now. At present, in Luoxia, the city of Qi, Danyang, and Kuaiji, there are ancient stūpas and stone statues that floated down the river, all built by King Aśoka. You may diligently seek them out to worship and repent, and thereby escape this suffering." After he awakened, he reformed his previous habits, left home to study the Way, and changed his name to Huida. As told, he went south to Kuaiji, searching everywhere by the sea shores, mountains, and marshes, but could not recognise any trace or foundation. Huida, grief-stricken, distressed, and with nowhere to turn, suddenly in the middle of the night heard the sound of a bell beneath the earth. He immediately marked the place and pared wood to make a pillar. Within three days, a jewelled stūpa and relics suddenly welled up from the earth. The miraculous stūpa's appearance was greenish, resembling stone yet not stone, one foot four inches high and seven inches square, with five storeys of dew-basins, resembling those made in Khotan of the Western Regions. Its sides opened into windows, surrounded by heavenly gold, with a bronze chime suspended in the middle; whenever there was the sound of a bell, it was suspected to be this chime. Surrounding the body of the stūpa were all kinds of images of buddhas, bodhisattvas, vajra-guardians, holy monks, and miscellaneous figures, extremely minute in form; gazing with intent eyes, hundreds of thousands of images appeared, their faces, eyes, hands, and feet all fully complete. This may indeed be called divine work and holy trace, beyond the reach of human wisdom. It is now kept within a large wooden stūpa, and on the eight king days, it is carried in procession through the towns and villages. None who see it fail to bow down, recite the Buddha's name, give rise to goodness, and observe fasts and precepts for the rest of their lives. The relics are at the base of the wooden stūpa. To the left side of this stūpa are many ancient relics.