法苑珠林 13

English (machine translation) 13

Language: English

13.1

Compiled by Śramaṇa Shi Daoshi of Ximing Temple

13.2

Section 6: Venerating the Buddha (Containing Seven Parts)

13.3

Part on Stating the Intention
Part on Mindfulness of the Buddha
Part on Contemplating the Buddha
Part on Amitābha
Part on Maitreya
Part on Samantabhadra
Part on Avalokiteśvara

Now, the Supreme One responds to sympathetic resonance, his compassion matching the capacities of living beings. His physical forms and radiance bestow virtue like the moisture of sweet dew; his lingering shadows and painted icons dispatch transformation in an era when the sun has sunk below the horizon. Thus, even for a brief separation in Trāyastriṃśa Heaven, a sacred image of carved sandalwood was produced; how much more so during the long obscurity of the decline—who could forget the aspirations of the past? For this reason, tracing the origin back to the Western realm, King Udayana initiated the beginning; when the teaching was transferred to the Eastern land, Emperor Ming of the Han inaugurated the start. Following this onward, master artisans walked in their footsteps, pursuing the Dharma-body to the utmost with rare treasures. In the adornments of gold, stone, pearls, and jade, or the forms rendered in clay, wood, embroidery, and painting, none failed to exert their skill through sincere devotion, thereby manifesting sublimity. Formerly, under the Jin dynasty, the saṃgha created works of peerless brilliance; under the Song and Qi, emperors created works renewed by the day. Many have not been recorded in inscriptions, and it is feared their origins may be lost. Now their preeminence is recorded here to serve as an enduring model and demonstrate their benefits.

13.6

Part 2: Mindfulness of the Buddha

13.7

Now, the Great Sage possesses marks of equality, and his disciples possess the virtue of praise. Thus the Buddhas of the ten directions together emerge from the defilement of mire, and the Sambodhis of the three bodies together sit upon lotus pedestals. Whichever mark one contemplates, benefits are attained: namely, beginning with renouncing the household life and culminating in the realization of supreme awakening; in the interval between, subduing Māra beneath the Bodhi tree and turning the Wheel of Dharma in the Deer Park. His major marks and minor signs are complete; his radiance is luminous and bright. The color of his body is pure, equivalent to molten gold. His facial features are upright and dignified, like the full moon. His teeth are like white jade and snow; his hair resembles glossy conch shells. His eyes are likened to blue lotuses; his eyebrows rival verdant willows. His eightfold voice is resonant; his myriad marks are dignified and serene. The five eyes see through all, and the six supernormal powers extend far and wide. His eloquence gushes like a suspended river, pouring continuously to meet each capacity. Completing the three dots of the letter 'I' to form the body, he is endowed with the fivefold Dharma-body as his essence. Incorporating the provisional and the real to deliver living beings, he accords with the true and the responsive to transform people. He stirs the vast wind of great compassion and sprinkles the torrential rain of the Dharma, watering the field of the body so that it sprouts the unsurpassed shoot, and causing the tree of the mind to flourish with leaves that never wither. Coming without the mark of coming, he is seen without the mark of being seen. For the sake of living beings, he responds and manifests according to conditions. Ten billion realms in the ten directions all aspire to attend upon him; three thousand great-thousand worlds together receive his personal care. Ever planting the puṇyakṣetra and broadly establishing offerings, they uproot the foundation of inverted views and eradicate the root of greed and anger; cultivating the cause of mindfulness of the Buddha, they realize the fruit of seeing the Buddha. Therefore, a verse in the Lotus Sūtra says:

13.8

"Even if someone with a distracted mind
Should enter a stūpa or temple,
And utter 'Namo Buddhāya' but once,
They have all realized the Buddha Way."

13.9

Furthermore, the Dṛṣṭānta-sūtra says: In the past, there was a king who killed his father and enthroned himself. There was an arhat who knew that this king would soon die, calculating that his remaining life did not exceed seven days, and that after his death he would inevitably fall into Avīci hell to suffer torment for a kalpa. This arhat went immediately to transform him, exhorting and instructing him to recite 'Namo Buddhāya' with a sincere mind without ceasing for seven days. Upon leaving, the arhat reminded him again: 'Be careful not to forget this.' The king clasped his hands and single-mindedly recited it day and night without interruption. At the end of the seventh day, he passed away, and his conscious spirit headed toward Avīci hell. Carried by his previous mindfulness of the Buddha, when he reached the gates of hell and realized it was hell, he immediately cried aloud, 'Namo Buddhāya!' The sinners in hell, hearing the sound of reciting the Buddha, all simultaneously recited 'Namo Buddhāya.' The fierce fires of hell were instantly extinguished, and all the sinners attained liberation and were reborn among humans. Later, the arhat preached the Dharma to them again, and they attained the fruit of srotāpanna. By this cause and condition, the merit obtained from reciting the name of the Buddha is immeasurable, boundless, and beyond metaphor.

13.10

Furthermore, the Guanfo Sanmei Jing says: In the past, when the Buddha was in the world, he preached the Guanfo Sanmei Jing for his royal father and the great assembly. The Buddha possesses the thirty-two major marks and eighty minor signs; his body is of true golden color and his radiance is immeasurable. At that time, among the assembly were five hundred Śākyan clan members who, owing to karmic obstructions, saw the Buddha’s physical body as resembling an ashen-faced, emaciated brāhmaṇa. Having seen this, they wailed, tore their hair, threw themselves upon the ground, and bled from their noses. The Buddha consoled them, saying: 'Do not wail; I shall explain it to you. In the past, there was a Buddha named Vipaśyin. After his parinirvāṇa, during the Semblance Dharma period, there was an elder named Riyuede (Sūryacandraguṇa) who had five hundred sons, all intelligent and wise, accomplished in all fields. Their father, the elder, faithfully revered the Three Jewels and frequently explained the meaning of the Buddha-dharma to his sons. The sons, however, held wrong views and had no faith at all. Later, the sons all fell gravely ill together. The father came before his sons, wept, joined his palms, and told them: "You hold wrong views and do not believe in the Buddha-dharma. Now the knife of impermanence is severing your bodies; whom can you rely upon? There is a Buddha, the World-Honoured One, named Vipaśyin; you may recite his name." The sons, having heard this, out of respect for their father’s words recited 'Namo Buddhāya.' He further taught them to recite the name of the Dharma and the name of the Saṃgha. Having recited them, they passed away. Because they recited the Buddha’s name, they were born in the Heaven of the Four Heavenly Kings. When their lifespans there ended, due to their previous wrong views, they fell back into hell. The rākṣasa hell wardens pierced and destroyed their eyes with hot iron forks. While undergoing this suffering, they remembered the causes and conditions of reciting the Buddha’s name taught by their father. Emerging from hell, they were born among humans, impoverished and lowly. Later, when the Buddha Śikhin appeared, they also encountered him, but only heard the Buddha’s name without seeing his form. Afterward, with the Buddhas Viśvabhū, Krakucchanda, Kanakamuni, and Kāśyapa, they likewise only heard their names without seeing their forms. Because they heard the names of these six Buddhas, they have now been born together with me in the Śākya clan. My body is dignified like Jāmbūnada gold, yet you see an ashen-faced, emaciated brāhmaṇa, all because of the wrong views of previous lives. You should now recite the names of the past Buddhas, recite your father’s name, and also recite my name and the name of Maitreya Buddha. Having recited them, make prostrations, throw your five limbs to the ground before the great assembly and the venerable saṃgha, and openly confess your sin of wrong views.' Having received the instruction, the men completed their repentance and saw the Buddha’s golden color like Mount Sumeru. Having seen it, they addressed the Buddha: 'We now see the Buddha’s thirty-two major marks, eighty minor signs, and immeasurable radiance.' Having spoken these words, they attained srotāpanna. They requested the Buddha for ordination and attained arhatship, being endowed with the three knowledges, six supernormal powers, and eight liberations. The Buddha told the bhikṣus: 'After my parinirvāṇa, if one recites my name and says "Namo to all Buddhas," the merit obtained is immeasurable and boundless.'

13.11

The Guanfo sanmei jing also states: "In the remote past, a Buddha appeared in the world named Śākyamuni. After his parinirvāṇa, there was a prince named Suvarṇadhvaja, who was arrogant, held wrong views, and did not believe in the Buddha's Dharma. There was a bhikṣu named Samādhirāja, who said to the prince, 'In this world there is a Buddha image adorned with manifold jewels and exceedingly lovely. You might enter the stūpa for a moment to view the Buddha's physical likeness.' The prince then followed him into the stūpa and saw the image's major marks and minor signs. He said to the bhikṣu, 'Even the Buddha's image is this dignified and magnificent; how much more so the Buddha's true body!' The bhikṣu told him, 'Now that you see the image, if you cannot prostrate, you should join your palms and say: Namo Buddhāya.' At that time, the prince joined his palms and said: 'Namo Buddhāya.' Having returned to his palace, because his mind remained fixed on the image within the stūpa, in the latter part of the night he dreamed of the Buddha's image. Upon waking, he was filled with joy, abandoned his wrong views, and took refuge in the Three Jewels. Due to the wholesome root of entering the stūpa once and chanting the Buddha's name, at the end of his life he was able to meet nine hundred billion nayutas of Buddhas. In the presence of those Buddhas, he attained the profound samādhi of recollecting the Buddha. Because he attained this samādhi, the Buddhas appeared before him and bestowed a prediction [of buddhahood] upon him. From that time onward, he passed through one million asaṃkhyeya kalpas without falling into the evil realms, culminating in his attainment today of the profound Śūraṅgama Samādhi. The prince of that time is now the bodhisattva Dhanapāla. By this circumstance, the wise should learn to recollect the Buddha in this manner."

13.12

Section 3: Contemplating the Buddha

13.13

I have heard that the Dharma King's power of Dharma delivers beings without limit; his great loving-kindness and great compassion resound as high as Bhavāgra. Adapting to capacities, he showers rain everywhere like dense, gathered clouds; contemplating all categories equally, he shines bright like a clear mirror. Thus, when his golden countenance manifested its traces, the fixed stars hid their radiance; when the beloved moon spread its beams, the morning sun obscured its light. No sooner did his eight tones issue forth than the Nirgranthas fell into disarray; no sooner were his seven eloquences proclaimed than the banners of Pūrṇa collapsed. Thus we know that his divine authority is dignified and profound, and the benefit [he confers] is vastly deep. Rejoicing in accordance with what is seen and heard is indeed rare to encounter. I exhort all practitioners to constantly contemplate the Buddha: keep in mind his wondrous form as if directly before your eyes; envision his radiant bearing as though only inches away. Although the Dharmakāya is non-dual, according to capacity three [vehicles] are expounded; in matching faculties with vast guidance, there are manifold approaches. Now I shall first record the scriptures, and afterwards recount miraculous proofs. What remains unfinished is fully detailed in the extensive texts.

13.14

The Guanfo sanmei jing also states: "In the remote past, immeasurable ages ago, a Buddha appeared in the world named Ratnatejas-agrarāja. At that time, there was a bhikṣu who went with nine disciples to a Buddha stūpa to pay homage to a Buddha image. They saw a jeweled image, majestic, prominent, and lovely to behold. Having prostrated, they gazed attentively at it and spoke verses of praise. Afterwards, when their lives ended, they were all reborn in the eastern Buddha-land of Ratnatejas-agrarāja. Sitting cross-legged inside a great lotus flower, they were suddenly born by transformation. From that time onward, they constantly met Buddhas, purely cultivated the noble conduct in the presence of those Buddhas, and attained the ocean-like samādhi of recollecting the Buddha. Having attained the samādhi, the Buddhas bestowed predictions upon them, and they each attained buddhahood in the ten directions. The Buddha Bhadraśrī of the east was that master; his nine disciples became the Buddhas of the nine directions: namely, in the south-east, the Buddha Aśokaśrī; in the south, the Buddha Candanaśrī; in the south-west, the Buddha Ratnaprada; in the west, the Buddha Amitaprabha; in the north-west, the Buddha Kusumaprabha; in the north, the Buddha Lakṣaṇaśrī; in the north-east, the Buddha Triyānacarya; in the nadir, the Buddha Prabhāśrī; in the zenith, the Buddha Vipulagaṇaśrī. These ten Buddhas, through the past cause of paying homage at a stūpa, viewing an image, and praising it with a single verse, have now each attained buddhahood in the ten directions."

13.15

The Guanfo sanmei jing also states: "In the remote past, a Buddha appeared in the world named Śūnyarāja. After he entered nirvāṇa, there were four bhikṣus who studied the Buddha's true Dharma as fellow companions. Afflictions covered their minds, so that they could not firmly uphold the treasury of the Buddha's Dharma, and having committed many unwholesome deeds, they were due to fall into the evil realms. A voice in the sky addressed the bhikṣus, saying: 'Although the Tathāgata Śūnyarāja has entered nirvāṇa, for what you have violated you think there is no deliverance. You may now enter the stūpa and view the image; it is no different from when the Buddha was in the world.' Having heard the voice from the sky, they entered the stūpa and viewed the ūrṇā mark between the eyebrows of the image. They immediately thought: 'When the Tathāgata was in the world, how was his radiant physical body any different from this? May the Buddha's great human marks eliminate my sins!' Having spoken these words, like Mount Tai collapsing, they threw their five limbs to the ground and repented their various sins. Through the cause of entering the Buddha stūpa, viewing the ūrṇā mark of the image, and repenting, for eighty billion asaṃkhyeya kalpas thereafter they did not fall into the evil realms, and in life after life they constantly saw the Buddhas of the ten directions. In the presence of those Buddhas, they received and upheld the profound samādhi of recollecting the Buddha. Having attained the samādhi, predictions were bestowed upon them face to face by the Buddhas of the ten directions, and now all have attained buddhahood. In the east there is a realm named Abhirati, whose Buddha is named Akṣobhya: he was the first bhikṣu. In the south there is a realm named Ratnagarbha, whose Buddha is named Ratnaketu: he was the second bhikṣu. In the west there is a realm named Sukhāvatī, whose Buddha is named Amitāyus: he was the third bhikṣu. In the north there is a realm named Padmavyūha, whose Buddha is named Sugandhasvara: he was the fourth bhikṣu. By this circumstance, practitioners should frequently contemplate the Buddha in this manner."

13.16

The Kāśyapa-sūtra also states: "In the remote past, asaṃkhyeya kalpas ago, a Buddha appeared in the world named Prabhāsa. After he entered nirvāṇa, there was a bodhisattva named Mahāvīrya, aged sixteen years, of brāhmaṇa stock, peerlessly handsome. There was a bhikṣu who painted an image of the Buddha on white fine cloth and gave it to Mahāvīrya. Seeing the image, Mahāvīrya felt great joy and said: 'The likeness of the Tathāgata is as wondrous as this; how much more so the Buddha's body! May I in the future also accomplish such a wondrous body!' Having spoken, he reflected: 'If I remain at home, this body cannot be attained.' He then petitioned his parents, begging to leave household life. His parents replied: 'We are now old and have only you as an only son. If you leave home, we shall die.' The son addressed his parents: 'If you do not permit me, from this day on I will neither drink nor eat, neither mount a couch or seat nor speak.' Having made this vow, he did not eat for one day, up to six days. His parents, acquaintances, and eighty-four thousand palace maidens wept together at the same time, prostrated before Mahāvīrya, and immediately permitted him to leave home. Having left home, he took the image and entered the mountains, gathered grass for a seat, and sat cross-legged before the painted image, single-mindedly and attentively contemplating: 'This painted image is not different from the Tathāgata. The Tathāgata's image possesses neither consciousness nor cognition; all dharmas are also like this, signless, free from signs, their essential nature empty and quiescent.' Having practiced this contemplation, after a day and a night he accomplished the five supernormal powers, was endowed with immeasurable qualities, and attained unobstructed eloquence. He attained the Universal Radiance Samādhi, being endowed with great light; with the purified divine eye he saw asaṃkhyeya Buddhas in the east, and with the purified divine ear he heard what the Buddhas taught and was able to receive it all. Fulfilling seven months, he took wisdom as his food, and all the devas scattered flowers in offering. Coming out of the mountains, he arrived at villages and towns to expound the Dharma for the people. Twenty thousand sentient beings resolved on bodhi, immeasurable asaṃkhyeyas of people dwelt in the merits of śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas, and his parents and relatives all dwelt in non-retrogression toward unexcelled bodhi. The Buddha told Kāśyapa: 'The Mahāvīrya of that time was my own person. Through this contemplation of the image, I have now attained buddhahood. If anyone can learn such a contemplation, in the future they will certainly attain the unexcelled path.'"

13.17

Circumstances of Sympathetic Resonance (briefly citing fifty-three proofs)

13.18

Ever since the Dharma shifted to the Eastern Han and the teaching gradually spread to Southern Wu, miraculous omens of Buddha images have filled the realm. The various records cite them differently, and their appearances and disappearances are distinct; yet as for auspicious traces, there is truly no divergence. Here I list them in order, but seldom divide them by dynasty. Why is this? Because an image might have been displayed in the Jin dynasty, yet its chronology was manifested in the Sui or Tang; or its transformation was lodged in people, while its traces followed concealment and emergence. Therefore, unable to arrange them strictly by rank, I compile them discriminatively according to circumstances (fifteen circumstances in this fascicle).

13.19

Circumstance of the painting of the Śākya image in Luoyang during the Eastern Han;
Circumstance of the golden image emerging from the earth in Jianye during the Southern Wu;
Circumstance of the stone image floating on the river in Wu Commandery during the Western Jin;
Circumstance of the auspicious golden images of the seven states on Mount Tai during the Western Jin;
Circumstance of the golden image emerging from the islet at Yangdu during the Eastern Jin;
Circumstance of the golden image traveling the mountains at Xiangyang during the Eastern Jin;
Circumstance of the golden image descending from afar at Jingzhou during the Eastern Jin;
Circumstance of the golden image emerging from the water at Wuxing during the Eastern Jin;
Circumstance of the fragrant auspiciousness of the wooden image at Kuaiji during the Eastern Jin;
Circumstance of the golden image transmitting the true likeness in Wu Commandery during the Eastern Jin;
Circumstance of the golden image emerging from the earth at the Dongye Gate during the Eastern Jin;
Circumstance of the golden image of Mañjuśrī at Mount Lu during the Eastern Jin;
Circumstance of the kāṣāya appearing on Stone Image Mountain in Liangzhou during the Northern Wei;
Circumstance of the sculpted image on the southern cliff by the King of Hexi during the Northern Liang;
Circumstance of the sixteen-foot stone image revealing signs under the Juqu of the Northern Liang.

13.20

According to Wang Yan's Mingxiang ji of the Southern Qi: Emperor Ming of the Han dreamed of a divine person, nearly twenty feet tall, his body yellow-gold in color, with sunlight adorning the back of his neck. He asked his ministers about it, and someone replied, 'In the West there is a deity whose title is Buddha. His form is like what Your Majesty dreamed; could it not be him?' Thereupon he dispatched envoys to India to copy and bring back scriptures and images to make them manifest in the Central Kingdom. From the Son of Heaven down to princes and marquises, all revered and served him. Hearing that when a person dies the spiritual consciousness does not perish, none were not awestruck and lost in thought. Initially, the envoy Cai Yin led the Western Region śramaṇa Kāśyapa Mātaṅga and others, who brought along an image of Śākya leaning, painted for King Udayana. The emperor prized it, as it was just like what he had seen in his dream. He then dispatched court painters to copy several versions of it to make offerings upon the Qingliang Terrace of the Southern Palace and the Gao Yang Gate at the Xianjie Longevity Tomb. Furthermore, on the walls of White Horse Temple, paintings were made of a thousand chariots and ten thousand cavalrymen circumambulating the stūpa three times, the likenesses of which are fully recorded in the various chronicles.

13.21

During the Wu period, a golden image was obtained from the flat ground of the rear park in Jianye. Investigating its original source, it was indeed made by King Aśoka at the beginning of the Zhou dynasty to safeguard the river province. How is this known? From the Qin, Han, and Wei dynasties, the Buddha's Dharma had not yet reached the south; how could an image have been buried in the ground? When Sun Hao obtained it, he had never believed in the Dharma and did not treat it with great respect. He placed it in the privy and had it hold the toilet spatulas. When the eighth day of the fourth month arrived, Hao said as if in jest: 'Today is the eighth day, the time to bathe the Buddha.' Thereupon he urinated upon its head. Soon after, his body became entirely swollen, with the groin area being particularly severe. Screaming in excruciating pain, it became unbearable to endure. The grand astrologer divined and said: 'This is caused by offending a great divine sage.' He then offered sacrifices to spiritual deities everywhere, but none had any effect. A palace singing-girl, who had always believed in the Buddha, said: 'The Buddha is a great deity. Your Majesty previously defiled him; should you not urgently pray to him now?' Hao believed her; bowing over his pillow, he took refuge and repented with utmost sincerity. After a short while, he was healed. He then dispatched a horse-drawn carriage to welcome the śramaṇa Seng Hui into the palace, where he washed the image with fragrant water, showing deep shame and heavy remorse. He broadly cultivated merit at Jianye Temple, and his hidden pain gradually healed.

13.22

In the first year of the Jianxing era under Emperor Min of the Western Jin, at the estuary of Hudu on the Song River in Wu County, Wu Commandery, fishermen gathered. Looking into the distance, they saw two persons floating on the water in the sea. The fishermen suspected that they were sea gods, invited shamans and priests, and prepared whole animals for sacrificial offerings to welcome them. The wind and waves grew even more violent, so in terror they returned. There was also Fei Lao, an adherent of the Way of the Five Pecks of Rice, who went forward and said, "These are my masters!" They went together again to receive them, but the wind and waves remained as before. Zhu Ying, a Buddhist layman from Wu County, heard of this and sighed, saying, "Could this be the descent of the Great Awakened One?" Thereupon, having purified himself by observing the fast, he went with the nun Bai of Dongling Temple and several other Buddhist believers to the estuary, prostrating to welcome them. The wind and waves then grew calm. Floating on the river, the two persons entered the cove with the tide. As they drew nearer, they became clearer, and it was discovered that they were stone statues. Intending to take them in their arms to receive them, the men's strength was not yet sufficient; yet when they tried lightly to lift them, the statues rose briskly, whereupon they were borne back to Tongxuan Temple. Examining the inscriptions on the backs of the statues, one was named Weishuo [Vipaśyin] and the other was named Jiaye [Kāśyapa]. No one could fathom from what imperial dynasty they dated, but the traces of the writing were distinct. They were seven feet high. An altar of the Dharma was arranged, and people wished to install the two statues. Although there were several tens of men, the statues could not be moved at all. After people made a prayer once again, the statues were easily lifted. The matter was reported to the imperial court, and nine out of ten commoners and gentry turned their hearts in devotion. The śramaṇa Shi Fakai came from the Western Regions and, citing the scriptures, declared: "In the east there are two stone statues and an Aśoka stupa; those who make offerings and pay reverent homage to them will eliminate the sins of accumulated kalpas."

13.23

Another biography also states that twelve śramaṇas from India escorted the statues to the commandery, and the statues floated upon the water neither sinking nor drifting away. When this circumstance was memorialized to the throne, an imperial edict permitted them to remain in Wu Commandery. (See the Biographies of Eminent Monks, the Record of Manifest Anomalies, and other works).

13.24

Master Lang's Temple in Jinyu Valley of Mount Tai in the Western Jin: In the past, the Central Plains met with disorder, and governance was lost in the Yongjia era. There was a śramaṇa named Shi Senglang; the mountain where he dwelt was perpetually shaded by clouds. The common people marveled at this auspicious sign, and his imposing renown reverberated far and wide, known throughout the world. At that time, there was no sole ruler, and local warlords vied for territory; yet the ancestral shrines and courts of the seven kingdoms respected and revered him to accumulate blessings. The various states competed to send gilt-bronze statues and present precious treasures. Lang served them reverently with utmost propriety, constantly reporting auspicious portents. Now he lives in a hall whose doors and windows are constantly open; birds and sparrows do not approach, and assorted impurities do not adhere to it. Those near and far marvel at it in praise. It is now nearly three hundred and fifty years since the founding of that temple.

13.25

During the Xianhe era of Emperor Cheng of the Eastern Jin, Gao Kui, the Governor of Danyang, was traveling to and from the marketplace and palaces. An unusual light consistently appeared at the inlet of Zhanghou Bridge. He then sent an officer to search for it, and they retrieved a gold statue. It was of ancient Western Regions manufacture, lacking both its halo and lotus pedestal. Kui got down from his carriage and loaded the statue onto it. When they reached the mouth of Changgan Lane, the oxen would proceed no further. Kui stopped the driver and let the oxen go where they wished; they went straight to Changgan Temple, where the statue was consequently installed. The people of the capital Yangdu gathered in excitement, and a great many were inspired to awaken to the faith. In the middle of the night, the statue suddenly emitted golden light. More than a year later, Zhang Sunshi, a fisherman from Linhai County, saw a bronze lotus pedestal on the sea, with red light floating around it. He hurried his boat over to retrieve it, and presented it to the imperial court. The emperor ordered that an attempt be made to set the statue's feet into it, and they joined together perfectly. A long time later, five monks from the Western Regions, shaking their tin staffs, came to Kui and said, "In the past, while traveling in India, we obtained a statue made by King Aśoka. When we reached Ye, we encountered turmoil and hid it by the riverbank. Once the royal roads were reopened, we searched for it but lost its whereabouts. Recently we were moved by a dream saying, 'I have gone out to Jiangdong; I was acquired by Gao Kui and am at King Aśoka Temple.' Therefore, we came from afar to seek you, wishing to pay homage once." Kui led them to the temple. When the five monks saw the statue, they wept and sobbed. For their sake, the statue emitted light that illuminated the inside of the hall and circled the statue's form. The monks said, "It originally possessed a circular halo, which is now in a distant place; it too shall soon arrive." The five monks then remained to make offerings. In the first year of Xianhe [under Emperor Ming of Jin, or later], Dong Zongzhi, a pearl diver in Hepu of Jiaozhou on the South Seas, constantly saw a light floating on the water from the seabed. Searching for it, he obtained the halo. Reporting the matter to the throne, Emperor Jianwen decreed that it be bestowed upon this statue. The socket apertures matched exactly, and the radiance and color were without difference. After more than forty years, the light and pedestal, which had manifested auspiciously in separate places to the east and west, finally came together. The lotus pedestal of this statue bore writing from the Western Regions, which most monks and laymen who came could not recognize. There was a tripiṭaka master named Guṇavarman, who said, "This is ancient Indic script. It was made by the fourth daughter of King Aśoka." At that time, the śramaṇa Huisui of Waguan Temple wished to make a mold and copy of it. The abbot of the temple, Sengshang, feared that it would damage the gold coloring, and said to Sui, "If you can make the Buddha emit light and turn its body facing west, it will be beyond my power [to refuse]." Sui prayed with utmost sincerity. When it reached midnight, an unusual sound was heard. Opening the hall, he saw the statue emitting great brilliance, having turned its seat to face west. Thereupon he was permitted to make a copy. Several tens of statues were reproduced and circulated everywhere. When it came to Emperor Wu of the Liang, he added seven musical deities and two bodhisattvas onto the halo. In the second year of the Yongding era of the Chen, Wang Lin stationed his troops at Jiangpu and was about to advance toward Jinling. Emperor Wu ordered his generals to sail upriver against the current. When the army set out, the body of the statue shook so that it could not keep steady. The matter was reported to the throne. The emperor investigated and found it to be true. Shortly thereafter, before blades even clashed, Lin's troops disbanded, and he fled north on a single horse. The upper reaches of the river were thus largely pacified; the statue's agitation had portended this. During the Tianjia era, military disturbances arose in the southeast. The emperor prayed before the statue that the villainous bandits would withdraw and disperse. No sooner had he finished speaking than light illuminated the steps and eaves. Before long, Dongyang and Minyue were both pacified. The śramaṇa Huixiao was a leader at Changgan; wherever his conversion reached, events changed as if moved by the wind. He then built a multi-storied pavilion, making its decorative designs exquisitely marvelous, allowing one to climb it and see as far as the eye could reach. At the beginning of the Zhide era, a square base was added. From the Jin to the Chen, among the monarchs and ministers of the five dynasties, none failed to return in reverence. During times of severe drought, they would invite the statue into the palace, having it ride in the emperor's carriage with an oiled covering above. Monks would perform rites to attune the rain; halfway along the road, torrential rains would pour down, always arriving at the expected time without fail. When the fortunes of the Chen were in decline, rumors and prophetic rhymes frequently circulated. In the second year of the Zhenming era, the face of the statue turned west of its own accord; although straightened, it returned to that position. When the circumstance was reported to the throne, the emperor invited it into the Taiji Palace, where he held a vegetarian feast and practiced the Way. The statue previously had a seven-jeweled crown adorned with pearls and jades, weighing about three dou, and a brocade cap was placed over it. At dawn, the jeweled crown was found hanging on the statue's hand, while the brocade cap was still on its head. When the emperor heard this, he burned incense and prayed, saying: "If the state is to meet with misfortune, take off the jeweled crown again to manifest the omen of disaster." He then placed the crown on the head again. At dawn, it had slipped off and was hanging just as on the previous day. The ruler and ministers lost their composure. When the Sui destroyed the Chen, the entire realm had their heads bared and hands tied before them, being relocated to the west, just as had been portended. When Emperor Gaozu of the Sui heard of this, he decreed that it be delivered to the imperial palace in the capital for offerings. The emperor stood in attendance in person. He issued an edict saying: "We are advanced in years and cannot bear to stand for long. Let the relevant officials make a seated statue identical in features and appearance." The original standing statue was sent to Xingshan Temple. When the statue first arrived, the hall was so large that the statue could not face south, so it was placed facing north. At dawn, it was found facing directly south. Although the assembly marveled at it, they moved it back facing north. At dawn, it faced south again as before. All of the assembly felt ashamed and apologized for their slight. At present, paintings and copies of it are flourishing.

13.26

On the eighth day of the fourth month in the third year of the Ningkang era of Emperor Xiaowu of the Eastern Jin, the śramaṇa Shi Dao'an of Tanxi Temple in Xiangyang, whose abundant virtue was illustrious and whose fame spread throughout the realm, cast an eighteen-foot gilt-bronze statue of Amitāyus Buddha at the vihāra west of the outer city wall. At the end of winter of the following year, the ornamentation was completed. Xi Huizhi, General of the Army of the Pacification of the Garrison and Regional Inspector of Yongzhou under the Jin, had newly arrived to govern the Xiang region and assisted in striking open the gate of blessings. That night, the statue went out and journeyed west to Mount Wanshan, leaving behind a single footprint with the imprint pattern sinking into the stone. The monks and laypeople of the district rushed there at once, marveling with sighs, and welcomed it back to its original place for offerings. Later, that evening, it went out and stood at the temple gate, which astonished the whole assembly. Huizhi then changed the name to Golden Statue Temple. In the third year of the Putong era of the Liang, on the eighth day of the fourth month, an imperial decree ordered that a gilt-bronze lotus pedestal be cast in the Jianxing Garden, five feet nine inches in height and nine feet eight inches in width. Once the adornment was completed, it was sent upstream against the current to support the statue's feet. A stele was erected to praise its virtue, with a text by Liu Xiaoyi and calligraphy by Xiao Ziyun, acclaimed as supreme under heaven. The stele exists today. Coming to the abolition of the Dharma by Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou, in the jiayin year, the third year of the Jiande era, Wang Bing, Duke of Taiyuan, was Regional Inspector of Xiangzhou. His deputy commander, Supreme Opening of the Government Changsun Zhe, lacked faith in the Dharma in his mind. Hearing of the statue's miraculous efficacy, he wished first to destroy and eliminate it. The men and women in the city and the defrocked monks and nuns, hearing that it was to be destroyed, filled the roads with lamentations and wailing. Seeing the sighing and regret of the monastics and laypeople, Zhe grew increasingly furious; he pressured and drove his attendants, ordering them to smash it quickly. First, he ordered one hundred men to tie a rope around its neck and pull it, but it did not move. Zhe thought they were not applying themselves diligently, and caned the supervisors one hundred times each. They pulled it again as before, and he added three hundred more men, but it remained motionless as before. Zhe's fury mounted even higher, and he added five hundred more; only then was it pulled down. The ground shook with a resounding roar, and all the people trembled with fear. Zhe alone leaped for joy. He immediately ordered it to be melted down and destroyed, shouting out his delight. He then galloped on horseback to inform the regional inspector, but after only about a hundred paces he suddenly fell from his horse. He lost his speech, stared straight ahead, and could not raise his four limbs. By nightfall, he died. Monastics and laypeople shouted with even greater joy. When Zhe was about to destroy the statue, an inscription under its armpit inside the hanging robe was revealed, which read: "In the nineteenth year of the Taiyuan era of the Jin, the year jiayin, on the first day of the month, the bhikṣu Dao'an made an eighteen-foot golden statue west of the outer city of Xiangyang. After three sexagenary cycles—one hundred and eighty years—this statue will be destroyed." When the months and years were later calculated, its rise and fall matched completely. It is truly known that Master Dao'an was a sage, and his inscription was certainly not in vain. The place where he originally dwelt is now called Qifa Temple, and the stone which the statue overturned has been quarried by people and still exists today.

13.27

Furthermore, during the collapse and division at the end of the Sui dynasty, regional frontiers held their strongholds firmly. Doulu Bao, the defense commander of Xiangyang, controlled a region under Wang Shichong. There was Dharma Master Xian of Qifa Temple, who was held in high regard by the gentry and commoners. He repeatedly admonished Lord Dou to submit to the Tang state, but Dou would not comply. Xian exchanged secret correspondence with both monastics and laypeople inside and outside the city, and troops from the capital were consequently dispatched to Xiangyang. Dou held out firmly; although troops arrived three times to besiege the city, it did not fall. Later, Dou discovered Xian's intentions and secretly had him murdered. Nearing death, Xian told his disciple Su Fulou: "Your father and I witnessed the destruction of Master Dao'an's golden statue. From that time forth, the surviving traces have not been continued. After I die, you may make a statue following it." In the fourth year of the Wude era, when the imperial army laid close siege, Dou surrendered; only then did he regret not following Xian's advice, lamenting the cruelty of having murdered him unjustly. This was a case where a man had rendered merit to the state yet no one vindicated him. When the city was pacified, Fulou adopted lay clothing. Master Xian's robes, supplies, and miscellaneous utensils were all gathered by Fulou. He then set his mind on making a statue, yet he did not know what model to use. At a single smelting, it was completed without any defect. When the statue was being cast, the sky was overcast with clouds, raining down flowers like plums throughout the temple. Fulou was naturally ingenious and had abundant wealth of his own; he also made a gilt-bronze statue of Maitreya in his home, over ten feet high. Later, he dreamed that Master Xian instructed him to make another Buddha statue, whereupon he made a large statue fifty-nine feet high at Fanyun Temple, the events of which are recorded elsewhere. In the past, at the beginning of the Sui, Prince Xiao of Qin, Yang Jun, once governed the Xiang region. Hearing that Master Dao'an's ancient statue had an extraordinary shape and style, he sent people to draw its likeness and made one at Yanxing Temple in Chang'an. On the night it was first cast, it also called forth heavenly music and raining flowers, presenting great miraculous omens. That statue is currently at Yanxing Temple.

13.28

In the Eastern Jin, in the sixth year of the Yonghe reign era of Emperor Mu, the year being dingwei—though checked against the extended calendar, it was in fact the third year—on the night of the eighth day of the second month, an image appeared north of the city wall of Jingzhou. It was seven feet five inches tall, and including its halo and pedestal, eleven feet tall. None could tell where it had come from. Earlier, in the fifth year of Yonghe, merchants from Guangzhou were finishing loading their cargo and lamented that the ship was too light. In the middle of the night, they felt that someone had rushed aboard the ship. Startled, they searched together, but saw nothing at all, yet the ship's load had naturally become so heavy that no more could be added. Though astonished at this anomaly, they could not fathom it. They sailed swiftly onward, always ahead of the other boats, and soon arrived at Zhugong. No sooner had they moored by the water than in the night they again felt someone disembarking from the ship. The ship's cargo became light once more. Only when the image appeared did they realise that this had been an omen. At that time, Grand Marshal Huan Wen was garrisoned as governor over the Western Shaanxi region. He paid homage and bowed in person, moving the whole prefecture. The monastic assemblies of the various temples vied to welcome and lead it away, but it clanged firmly and would not budge. The prefect of Changsha, Teng Jun (some say Teng She) of Jiangling, had in the second year of Yonghe given up his residence to make a temple, naming it after the commandery. Hearing that Master Dao'an was overseeing the Xiangchuan region, he requested a superintendent. Dao'an said to his disciple Tanyi, 'The gentry and commoners of the Jing and Chu regions are just beginning to believe in the Dharma. Who but you could bring this good deed to fruition? You should go.' Carrying his monk's staff, Tanyi journeyed south. He constructed it for a full year. Though the monastic halls were completed, the holy images were not yet installed. He would often sigh and say, 'The images of King Aśoka's temples spread according to conditions. If one's utmost sincerity is not lacking, why worry that one will not descend?' When he heard that the image had arrived at the city of Jingzhou, joy and emotion filled his breast, and he said, 'This image embodies my original vow. It will surely come to my Changsha [Temple]. It can indeed be expected by the heart, but cannot be brought by physical force.' The assembly all agreed, saying, 'If it is as you say, the proof will not be far off.' Tanyi burned incense, bowed, and made his entreaty, ordering three disciples to lift it. Lightly and swiftly it rose, and was thereupon installed in his temple. Clergy and laity rejoiced. In the Eastern Jin, in the second year of Xian'an under Emperor Jianwen, a lotus pedestal was first cast for it. In the Taiyuan reign era of Emperor Xiaowu of the Jin, Yin Zhongkan was regional inspector. In the middle of the night, the image walked out of the temple's west gate. A patrolman, thinking it was a man, questioned it, but received no answer; he struck it with a sword, which rang out sharply. Looking closely, it was indeed the image. The mark where the sword struck its chest was visible on the outside. There was a Dhyāna master from Kashmir named Saṃghananda, a man of wide learning and broad vision, who came from Shu to Jingzhou. Entering the temple to pay homage to the image, he sighed and choked with tears for a long time. Tanyi asked him the reason, and he replied, 'It was recently lost in India. How has it descended so far into this land?' Thereupon they checked the months and years, and they all matched. Looking at the Sanskrit inscription on the back of the image's halo, it read: 'Made by King Aśoka.' When they heard this inscription, their reverence and esteem doubled. This was the proof of Tanyi's thought evoking the response. When he was critically ill, the image's light suddenly vanished. Tanyi said, 'The Buddha shows this sign; my illness will surely not recover. The light has gone to other realms to perform Buddha-work again.' He passed away within ten days. Later, monks cast another halo imitating the original, which is the present one. In the time of Emperor Xiaowu of the Song, the image emitted a great light, and the Buddha-Dharma in the Jiangdong region flourished greatly for a time. At the end of the Taishi reign era of Emperor Ming of the Song, the image wept tears. Emperor Ming soon passed away, and his successor was wild and rebellious, whereupon the dynastic change from Song to Qi took place. Shen Youzhi, regional inspector of Jingzhou, at first did not believe in the Dharma and purged the monks and nuns. In Changsha Temple alone, there were over a thousand monks, and nearly several hundred were to be returned to lay life. The entire assembly was terrified, young and old weeping in sorrow. For their sake, sweat flowed from the image for five days without stopping. Hearing of this, Master Xuanchang, a venerable monk of the Shenlü Temple, came to inquire of the cause. Chang said, 'The Sage is not far; no sorrow fails to reach him. Past, future, and present Buddhas contemplate each other. Could it not be that the present Buddha is contemplating the Buddhas? Wishing to admonish the patron's unbelieving heart, there is this response.' He was asked, 'From which sutra does this come?' He replied, 'It comes from the Sukhāvatīvyūha.' Youzhi obtained the sutra and examined it with great delight, immediately halting the purge. In the second year of Yongyuan of the Qi, Xiao Yingzhou, General of the Guard, together with the founder of the Liang, joined with Xiao Baorong, Prince of Nankang and regional inspector of Jingzhou, to raise troops. At that time, the image walked outside the hall and was about to descend the steps. Two monks saw it and cried out in alarm, whereupon it turned back into the hall. In the third year, Yingzhou died suddenly, Baorong was also deposed, and the celebration accrued to Emperor Gaozu of the Liang. At the end of the Tianjian reign era of the Liang, the abbot Daoyue and a layman were clearing grass beside the pagoda. Opening the pagoda door, they saw the image circumambulating the shrine. Daoyue bowed in secret and did not let the matter leak out. When the hall was fully opened, the image was back on its seat. When the Prince of Poyang of the Liang was in Jingzhou, he repeatedly requested to bring it into the city to establish great merit. When he fell ill, he sent for it, but though they doubled the bearers, it could not be lifted; in a few days he passed away. When Emperor Gaozu was formerly in the Jing and Shaanxi region, his sincere devotion was long established. He repeatedly sent for it to be welcomed, but it could never be brought. In the third month of the fourth year of Zhongdatong, he sent the monk Jin of the Baima Temple and Shu-shu He Si from afar carrying incense and flowers for offerings, fully presenting his sincere plea. That night it emitted light, appearing to follow the envoys. The next morning, when they went to receive it, it was obstructed once more. Only after they paid repeated homage and prayed did it deign to follow them. The fourfold assembly, longing and admiring, escorted it to the river ferry. On the twenty-third day it reached Jinling, eighteen li from the capital. The Emperor came out in person to welcome it. All along the way, light shone continuously without interruption. Clergy and laity rejoiced, praising it as unprecedented. It stayed in the palace for three days, receiving wholehearted offerings (some say it stayed at the Zhongxing Temple), and an unobstructed grand feast was held for twenty-seven days. It entered Tongtai Temple through the Datong Gate. That night, the image emitted a great blaze of light. An imperial edict ordered a hall to be built northeast of the main hall of Tongtai Temple, with three bays and two side wings, and a seat with a seven-jeweled canopy was installed to house the auspicious image. Two gilt-bronze bodhisattva statues were also made. Mountains were built, ponds were excavated, rare trees and strange stones were placed, and flying bridges with balustrades flanked both flights of stairs of the hall. A pair of bronze cauldrons were also provided, each holding thirty hu, and on three sides were multi-storeyed pavilions, winding and exquisite. In the third month of the second year of Zhongdatong, the Emperor visited Tongtai Temple to hold an assembly and lecture on the scriptures. He visited various halls to pay homage. Only at dusk did he arrive at the Auspicious Image Hall. Just as the Emperor stepped onto the stairs, the image emitted a great light, illuminating the bamboos, trees, mountains, and water, all turning them golden, which did not cease until midnight. When Tongtai Temple was burned, the halls and chambers were all destroyed, and only the hall where the Buddha resided survived. In the second year of Taiqing, the image sweated profusely. In the eleventh month of that year, Hou Jing staged a rebellion. In the third year of Dabaocheng, the rebels were pacified, and the monks of Changsha Temple, Fajing and others, welcomed the image back to Jiangling to rest once again in its original temple. In the seventh year of Dading of the Later Liang, the image sweated again. In the second month of the following year, Emperor Xuan of the Western Liang passed away. In the third year of Tianbao, fire spread to Changsha Temple, and the entire temple was ablaze with smoke and flames on all sides. Wishing to rescue the auspicious image, there was no way to move it. Traditionally, a hundred men were always needed to lift it, but on that day six men were able to raise it. In the fifteenth year of Tianbao, Emperor Ming invited the image into the inner palace to perform repentance, receiving unseen response. In the twenty-third year, the Emperor passed away, and his successor Xiao Cong moved the image to the Renshou Palace, where it again sweated profusely. In the second year of Guangyun, the Liang state was extinguished. In the seventh year of Kaihuang, the monk Faqian and others of Changsha Temple welcomed it back to the temple again. In the fifteenth year of Kaihuang, Tian Zongxian, regional inspector of Qianzhou, came to the temple to pay homage, and the image immediately emitted light. The lord resolved to build a main north hall of thirteen bays, with east and west flanking halls of nine bays. Timber was transported from more than five thousand li upriver from Jingzhou; the timber was cut and transported to the river and released freely. The timber floated down to Jingzhou and moored itself naturally at the bank; even though wind and waves whipped it up, it never drifted far away. Workers were then engaged to construct it. The pillars were three feet in diameter, and the base stones below were eight feet wide. This too was unsurpassed through all antiquity. The main hall was paneled entirely with agarwood, within which thirteen jeweled canopies were placed, all adorned with gold and jewels, down to the rafters, purlins, and caisson ceilings, which were all interspersed with jeweled flowers. The east and west halls where the auspicious image resided were paneled with sandalwood, with jeweled canopies and flower-shaped torches inside, all fashioned of pure gold, reaching the peak of magnificence, the foremost under heaven. In the twelfth year of Daye, the auspicious image sweated repeatedly. In that year, the rebel Zhu Can sacked and plundered various prefectures, coming to the city of Jingzhou and encamping inside the main hall of the temple. Overlooking the north of the city from on high, the rebels mounted the hall and shot arrows into the city. The garrison commander was distressed by this and burned it at night with fire-arrows. The clergy and laity in the city grieved that the auspicious image was destroyed and lost. That night, without anyone noticing, the image crossed the city wall and entered, standing outside the gate of the Baoguang Temple. Seeing that the image had survived, the whole city rejoiced. When the rebels dispersed, they looked at the image's former site; it had not been burned at all, untouched by ashes or charcoal. The hall that was subsequently rebuilt was not equal to the previous one. In the fifth year of Fengming of the pseudo-Liang under Xiao Xian, the pseudo-Song King Yang Daosheng and others came to the temple to pay homage; the image sweated profusely, flowing like rain from its body and head, not ceasing all day. In the ninth month of that year, the soldiers and horses of the Great Tang descended from the Shu River. On the twentieth day of that month, the temple monk Fatong, seeing that the Tang destiny was about to unite the realm, wished for an omen and circumambulated the image practicing the Path. That night it emitted light that filled the hall. By the twenty-fifth day, the radiant luster gradually faded. On that day, the soldiers and horses of the Prince of Zhao Commandery entered the city. This was also a fortunate unification, so the flowing light served as an auspicious omen for it. As for months of drought, whenever the governors presented their utmost sincerity, there was none that did not receive a complete response. In the sixth month of the sixth year of Zhenguan, there was a great drought. The Area Commander, Duke of Ying State, Wu Shihuo, welcomed the image, established a vegetarian feast, and circumambulated the image practicing the Path for seven days. Officials high and low stood before the image, contemplating the Buddha single-mindedly. After a good while, clouds gathered on all sides and sweet rain poured down. That year saw an abundant harvest. The Area Commander then donated gold to regild the auspicious image, and carriages, banners, flowers, and all accoutrements of adornment were fully provided. It is now at the Changsha Temple in Jiangling. There is also a foreign bronze image about seven feet tall, which was ancient and strange and not much valued. Master Dao'an sent it when he was at Shicheng in Chang'an; he had a disciple find a śarīra in its topknot, which emitted light.

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法苑珠林 — 道世, Classical Chinese