法苑珠林 65.67

65.67

Wang Yi of the Jin, courtesy name Zhongde, was a native of Taiyuan. He held the office of General of Chariots and Cavalry; his family had faithfully revered the Dharma for generations. His father, Miao, was Administrator of Zhongshan in the time of Fu Jian, and was killed by the Dingling. Zhongde and his elder brother Yuande took their mother and fled south; scaling precipitous heights, they were starving, exhausted, and out of grain, with no other recourse than to turn their hearts to the Three Jewels. Suddenly they saw a boy leading a dark ox; seeing that Yi and the others were starving, he gave them each a meal, and then suddenly vanished. At that time, there was high water from accumulated rains; Yi looked ahead at the vast expanse, not knowing where was shallow enough to wade across. Shortly, a white wolf circled before them, crossed the water, and returned, as if guiding them; this occurred three times. Thereupon they followed the wolf and crossed the water, which barely reached their knees. Soon they reached dry land and returned south to the Jin court. Later, from being President of the Board of Civil Office, he became Regional Inspector of Xuzhou. He once wished to host a vegetarian feast; the previous night he swept and cleaned, arranged incense and flowers, and splendidly laid out sūtras and images. Suddenly he heard the sound of sūtra chanting from the Dharma hall, clear, melodious, and flowing. Yi hurried to look and saw five śramaṇas in front of the Buddha seat, their dignified appearance magnificent and uncommon, their spiritual bearing pre-eminent. Yi knew they were no ordinary monks, and his heart was filled with joy and respect. The śramaṇas turned and looked at him as if with familiarity; before any words were exchanged, they suddenly leapt up and flew away into the sky. Many of the relatives, guests, and subordinates saw this, and all rejoiced, their faith and awakening doubled. (The four verified accounts above are taken from the *Mingxiang ji*.)