法苑珠林 55.48

55.48

The One Beyond the World replied: “Youyu came from the Western Rong, yet he assisted Duke Mu of Qin in establishing his hegemony. Jin Ridi was born among the Northern Di, yet he served Emperor Wu of the Han and eradicated peril. Since there are such cases among ministers, the same is surely true for teachers! Why must one accept only those of the same customs and reject those from foreign lands? A teacher is revered for the greatness of his Way, regardless of whether he belongs to here or there; the Dharma is supreme for the sublimity of its goodness, without reckoning whether it comes from far or near. How can one disdain the Way merely because it was born in a foreign realm, or discard the treasure merely because it emerged from a distant land?