法苑珠林 85.33

85.33

In the Tang, there was Shi Kongzang of Huichang Temple in the capital. His family name was Wang. His ancestors were from Jinyang, and they now lived in Xinfeng County, Yongzhou. When his mother first conceived him, she naturally refrained from wine and meat, and did not taste pungent roots. Considering him comparable to Śāriputra, she secretly marvelled at it. After his birth, his spiritual insight showed itself day by day, and his temperament and purpose were lofty and far-reaching. Chanting the scriptures and treatises, he held in mind the salvation [of beings]. In intelligence and diligence he was peerless, chanting ten thousand words a day. When he grew up, he had memorized in total more than three hundred scrolls of scriptures and treatises. He compiled the essential Mahāyāna passages of various sūtras into more than ten scrolls, which circulated throughout the world. Daily he bowed once through the thousand Buddhas of the Bhadrakalpa. In spring and summer he practiced the Vaipulya [repentance], always sitting without lying down; his vigorous diligence was hard to surpass, not wasting an inch of time. On the twelfth day of the fifth month in the sixteenth year of Zhenguan, he passed away at Huichang [Temple], at the age of seventy-four. His body was deposited by the side of Longchi Temple, where his bones were gathered and a stupa erected. The bones of his cranium were open between the two ears; there were twin apertures at the crown, and the eye sockets joined in apertures, three on each side. His disciples, recalling him after his departure forever, erected a stele at Huichang Temple; Yu Zhining, Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs and Duke of the State of Yan, composed the inscription. There was also Shi Yiyu, who constantly recited the Lotus Sūtra more than a thousand times. At the beginning of the Zhenguan era, when he was nearing his end due to illness, he left instructions to his friend Huikuo, saying: 'Lately, although I have recited the scripture, my wish was to behold a spiritual verification. After my body dies, do not expose my corpse; bury it for ten years, and then please dig it up to see whether the organ of my tongue has rotted. If indeed it is not decayed, build a stupa for it to demonstrate the efficacy of the scripture.' Having finished speaking, he died. He was buried according to his instructions. In the eleventh year of Zhenguan, Huikuo and close friends went to the grave and opened it. The flesh of the body was entirely gone; only the tongue had not decayed. The men and women of the whole county all looked upon it with reverence. Enshrining the tongue in a casket, they erected a stupa and inscription for it on the southern bank of the Xinggu River north of Yanglu. Those who understood held it in reverence, gave rise to faith, and recited the sūtras. There was also Shi Hexhi of Shenan Village, south of the Fushui River in Fenggu Township, west of the capital. In his youth he cherished virtuous thoughts and constantly recited the Lotus Sūtra. At the time of his death, by sympathetic resonance there was an extraordinary fragrance, hovering densely throughout the whole village. Ten years after his burial, when his wife died, they opened the grave to bury them together; they saw that his tongue was fresh and bright, extraordinarily red. Moreover, the elder brother of Xiao, Vice Director and Duke of the State of Song, was the Chief Minister of the Court of the Imperial Treasury. His honor and rank were lofty and noble, and the national history records his biography in full. Gladly cherishing the work of the Way, he wasted not an inch of time, having recited the Lotus Sūtra from memory more than ten thousand times. The two brothers each produced a thousand sets of the Lotus Sūtra, having scholars transcribe them with purity and collation free of errors. Decorating them and enclosing them in caskets, they distributed them for circulation. They recorded a copy of the names of the persons who requested and received them, personally bowing in reverence once each day and night. The Duke of Song himself compiled a sūtra commentary in more than ten scrolls, extensively collecting from various masters over nearly half a lifetime, gathering their quintessence and blending it with his own reflections. When free from duties throughout the four seasons, he would ascend the seat and constantly lecture. Whenever he began expounding the title, he would always invite the celebrated and virtuous as well as court and regional dignitaries of the capital, attending the seats in person to fulfill the duties of host and guest. His elder brother, the Chief Minister, was fond of chanting and reciting. He personally collated the thousand sets of the Lotus Sūtra he had copied. Every day at morning audience, he would certainly have his attendants hold the scripture before him; whenever there was leisure amidst official duties, he would collate and read it himself, reciting it once a day as his constant practice. The spiritual auguries and signs are quite difficult to record; his lineage was exalted and lofty, and did not like having such matters transmitted. (These four verifications above are from the Tang Biographies of Eminent Monks.)