大宋僧史略 3.33

3.33

Formerly, during the Han, Wei, and Jin dynasties, the names and titles of śramaṇas were adopted or rejected in various ways. Thus there were titles such as Dharmarakṣa being called the Dunhuang Bodhisattva, Zhu Foshuo being called the Indian Bodhisattva, and Lokakṣema being called the Yuezhi Bodhisattva; the illegitimate states heard nothing of such talk. Later, Emperor Taiwu of the Northern Zhou proscribed both the Buddhist and Daoist teachings. In the third year of the Jiande era, an imperial decree ordered the selection of those with renowned virtue in Buddhism and Daoism to establish separately the Abbey of Penetrating the Dao (Tongdao Guan), changing their appearance and clothing to become Academicians (xueshi). The Emperor bestowed an ivory tablet upon the Younger Dao'an to rank him among the court officials, but he did not accept it. Soon Emperor Wu passed away and Emperor Xuan (Tianyuan) ascended the throne. Intending gradually to revive Buddhism, he could not immediately abolish the regulations of the previous emperor. In the first year of the Daxiang era, an imperial decree stated: 'Emperor Taiwu, disliking turbidity and filth, abolished them and did not restore them. We now select two hundred and twenty senior monks of learned practice; without shaving their hair or altering their appearance, they shall practice the Way on behalf of the state at the Zhihu Monasteries in the Eastern and Western Capitals, their needs provided by the public treasury.' At that time there was an eminent monk named Zhizang, of the Xun clan. In the second year of the Jiande era, he hid away on Zige Peak in the Zhongnan Mountains; during the reign of Emperor Xuan he came forth for an audience, and an imperial decree ordered him to grow his hair long, become a Bodhisattva Monk, and serve as abbot of Zhihu Monastery. In the second year of the Daxiang era, when Emperor Wen of the Sui served as Prime Minister, Zang visited him and was consequently able to shave his hair. Furthermore, Shi Yancong was unwilling to become an Academician of the Tongdao Abbey because Bodhisattva Monks had to wear flower crowns, necklace-adorned clothing, and resemble the form of a bodhisattva; eminent monks hated assuming such an appearance, as it was not the Buddha's institution. When the personnel of the Tongdao Abbey were first established, one hundred and twenty positions were created, selecting disciples of the Śākya and Li lineages who possessed contemporary fame and conduct to wear robes, caps, tablets, and shoes as Academicians of the Tongdao Abbey (at that time, monks and Daoists were mixed together, mostly forcing monks who broke the precepts to enter the Dao). There was a former śramaṇa named Fan Pukuang, who had a protruding belly and liked to joke; the Emperor esteemed him considerably and compelled him to enter the Tongdao [Abbey]. Whenever he withdrew, he would shave his hair and keep his beard. The Emperor questioned him, and he replied: 'Your servant is learning from Your Majesty. Although the two teachings have been abolished, the Tongdao still remains. A beard is a worldly ornament, so I retain it; hair is not of worldly teachings, so I remove it.' The Emperor said: 'In worldly life people keep hair; if a cap is added, how can you say it is not the teaching?' Kuang said: 'Can a gentleman without hair be said to have no teaching? If your servant wishes to add a cap to it, what harm is there?' From then on, he always shaved his hair clean and wore a cap with ribbons. When people asked him about it, he replied: 'I suffer from the heat.' Also, Linggan was initially selected to enter the Bodhisattva Monks, and only afterward shaved his hair. When one investigates this: their minds roved in Buddhist principles and their practices were devoted to suffering and emptiness; when one's realization of sagehood is deep and one ascends the stages (bhūmi) and beyond, one no longer requires the outward appearance of a śramaṇa. The decline and prosperity of the Buddha-Dharma depend on the enactments of monarchs and ministers; when encountering their coercion, what else could be done? Let all students observe this and ponder the matter.