法苑珠林 42.73

42.73

The Jin Minister of Works, He Chong of Lujiang, courtesy name Cidao, had faith in the Dharma from his youth, and his cultivation of mind was exceedingly refined. In the fasting hall he constantly placed an empty seat, with exquisite mats and curtains laced with pearls and jewels, set up for years in hopes of invoking divine anomalies. Later, at a great assembly of monastics and laypeople of grand proportions, there was a monk among the seating rows whose appearance and clothes were coarse and filthy, and whose bearing was low and vulgar. Stepping out from the assembly, he went straight up to the seat, sitting in folded-arm silence without uttering a word. The entire hall was shocked and bewildered, assuming he was errant and perverse. Chong was also displeased, his resentment showing on his face. When the midday meal was distributed, this monk ate upon the elevated seat. Having finished eating, he took his bowl and exited the hall. Looking back, he said to Chong: "Why trouble yourself with diligence?" Thereupon he threw his bowl into the air and ascended into the void, departing. Chong, monastics, and laypeople ran swiftly to look: his radiant demeanor was magnificent, vanishing only at the limits of sight. Filled with shared remorse, they prostrated in repentance for days on end.