法苑珠林 100.397

100.397

Inheriting the lineage of Yao, he dwelt in Jin; matching the martial virtue, he laid the foundation of Zhou. Rising like clouds and soaring like a dragon, he took charge of this auspicious age. Uniting under a single sovereign to initiate the dynastic fortune, he was joyfully elevated through the ninefold assembly. Originating from Shenxu, he subdued and settled the imperial capital. The regulations for civilizing the people were promulgated, and the governance of simplified laws was put into effect. The five planets aligned, and his transformation spread to the four quarters. The axis of the earth returned to rectitude, and the cords of heaven were strung anew. From east to west, the distant were pacified and the near were solemn. When the righteous banners were first raised, passing through Huayin, he offered sacrifices to the numinous altar to seek abundant blessings. To the right of the shrine, he constructed a saṃghārāma called Lingxian, exquisitely matching divine creation. Gold and azure reflected each other; jade-like splendours shone forth together. One gazed out completely upon precipitous peaks, overlooking jeweled gates at an angle. The flowered terraces rose lofty and dense, closely facing the Lotus Peaks. Images were modeled and scriptures copied, cultivating all auspicious blessings. Furthermore, within the capital he built Huichang, Shengye, Cibei, Zhengguo, and Xixian nunneries; he also relinquished his former residence to become Xingsheng Temple, and built Yixing Temple in Bingzhou. Their halls and buildings were magnificent and radiant, and the images were carved and splendid. In the first year of the Wude era, upon the thoroughfare south of the Zhuque Gate, he established a universal place of enlightenment and held an unrestricted assembly. The bustling throng of companions of the Dharma was as if Vulture Peak had newly opened; the illustrious distinguished guests were as if the Śāla Grove had just assembled. Carriages and horses crowded together; men and women thronged in carriages, vying to take shelter under the branches of meditation as if competing for the spring purification banquet. Moreover, on behalf of Emperor Taizu Yuan and Empress Yuanzhen, he fashioned three life-sized sandalwood images, depicting the divine deportment of the sovereign and copying the numinous marks of the thirty-two signs. In carved ornamentation, they were scarcely inferior to King Udayana's; in the brilliance of gilded gold, they were truly not ashamed before King Prasenajit's. Furthermore, in the second month of that year, he commanded forty-nine śramaṇas to enter the palace to practice the Way, causing the heavenly palace's Brahma-discourses to resonate once more within the Purple Forbidden Palace, and the royal realm's subtle canons to lift their sounds again beneath the Yellow Canopy. Thereafter, his veneration and faith remained unflagging throughout his reign.