大宋僧史略 3.57

3.57

In accordance with the petition from Fan'an, Master Huitong Wu'ai and Rectifier of the Saṃgha of Lin'an Prefecture, and others, forwarded with instructions by the Department of Ministries regarding the matter of regulating and bringing into conformity the standing ranks of Buddhist monks and Daoist priests during the offering of incense on national memorial days: It was subsequently sent to the Ministry of Rites for investigation and appraisal, to be reported to the Department of State Affairs for examination and consolidation. Previously, a memorandum was received, forwarded with instructions, from Fadao, Master Baojue Yuantong Faji, specially bestowed, transmitter of the Western Dharma and abbot of the Donglin Taiping Xinglong Chan Monastery on Mount Lu in Jiangzhou, and others, to investigate and bring together the facts and principles of the aforementioned matter, which was subsequently forwarded with instructions to the Ministry of Rites for investigation and appraisal, to be reported to the Department of State Affairs. This ministry thereupon examined and consolidated the following provisions and the petition received from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, which stated: 'We have now examined in detail the Sengshi lüe, which states: "Whenever there is a court assembly, the monks come first and the Daoists after; they stand side by side in the palace courtyard, the monks on the east and the Daoists on the west, interspersed with the subordinate officials." Furthermore, the Taichang yinge li records as precedent for the proclamation of pardons at the Xuande Gate that the Daoists are on the left and the monks on the right. For both preceding matters there are documentary bases; as they are explicitly recorded, they ought to be complied with. As for the standing of monks and Daoists whenever there is an offering of incense on national memorial days, we have examined the Jiayou bianchi and the articles of the Shaoxing xinshu, both of which record "monks, Daoists, Buddhist monasteries, Daoist abbeys," establishing the text in that order. Now, regarding the monk Fadao's raising the question of the standing positions for the offering of incense, this court has now investigated and appraised it, wishing to draw an analogy with the regulations of the Jiayou and Shaoxing eras, placing the monks on the left; yet it should properly depend on the directives of the Imperial Court.' Reporting to the ministry: This ministry has now consulted the Jiayou bianchi, which uniformly records 'monks and Daoists.' That which was universally practiced in the Zhenghe era only referred to 'Daoists and monks,' and contained a specific provision that the precedence of Daoist priests is above that of monks. Because the present Shaoxing xinshu has reverted to the old law, establishing the text with 'monks and Daoists,' and has deleted the specific provision that the precedence of Daoist priests is above that of monks so that it is no longer implemented, this ministry has now investigated and appraised the matter, wishing to implement it in accordance with the findings investigated and appraised by the Court of Imperial Sacrifices; yet it should properly depend on the directives of the Imperial Court. Already on the fourth day of the fourth month of this year, attaching the original petition and one fascicle of the Sengshi lüe, a full report was submitted to the Department of Ministries, but no directive had yet been received. Now, another petition from the monk Fan'an and others has been forwarded with instructions to regulate and bring into conformity the aforementioned matter, which was fully reported to the Department of Ministries. After this was submitted, an imperial directive was received, instructing on the fourteenth day of the eleventh month that it be sent to the Ministry of Rites to be implemented in accordance with the regulations. An official warrant had to be issued: The Sengshi lüe states: 'Now, in the Great Song, whenever there is a court assembly, the monks come first and the Daoists after; they stand side by side in the palace courtyard, the monks on the east and the Daoists on the west, interspersed with the subordinate officials. If there is a sacrifice to Heaven in the suburbs, the Daoists are on the left and the monks on the right; its origin is not known.' The Taichang yinge li states that in the sixth year of Qiande, the precedent for the proclamation of pardons at the Xuande Gate was that the Daoists were on the left and the monks on the right. In the articles of the Jiayou bianchi, 'monks, Daoists, Buddhist monasteries, Daoist abbeys' are uniformly recorded, establishing the text in that order. In the universally practiced articles of the Zhenghe era, 'Daoists, monks, Daoist abbeys, Buddhist monasteries' were uniformly recorded, establishing the text in that order, and there was a specific provision that the precedence of all Daoist priests was above that of monks, and that of female Daoists was above that of nuns. In the universally practiced articles of the Shaoxing era, 'monks, Daoists, Buddhist monasteries, Daoist abbeys' are uniformly recorded, establishing the text in that order; the preceding provision placing the precedence of Daoist priests above that of monks and so forth has already been deleted and is not implemented. [We] on the right dispatch the personal attendant officer Zheng Yan to inform Fan'an, Fadao, and others. Each monk having acknowledged this, an imperial directive was received with instructions to amend it in accordance with the regulations, placing the monks on the left; and warrants were sent to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, Lin'an Prefecture, and Jiangzhou. They shall still draw up a written acknowledgment to be submitted in succession without delay. On the twenty-first day of the eleventh month of the third year of Shaoxing: The subordinate Fadao humbly states: Having previously presented a memorandum jointly with Fan'an, Rectifier of the Saṃgha of Lin'an Prefecture, and others, to discuss and request that, in accordance with the laws of the ancestral emperors, the standing ranks of monks and Daoists for the offering of incense on national memorial days be amended; having humbly received the notification of the Bureau of Sacrifices of the Ministry of Rites stating that an imperial directive had been issued instructing that it be amended according to the regulations, placing the monks on the left, to be notified and implemented; and that warrants have already been dispatched to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, Jiangzhou, and Lin'an Prefecture: Fadao humbly observes that the departments and ministries have cited and confirmed the imperial regulations before and after, as well as the fact that the earlier provision in the Zhenghe laws placing Daoist priests above monks and female Daoists above nuns has already been deleted and is not implemented. Among them is an item in the Taichang yinge li regarding the precedent for the proclamation of pardons at the Xuande Gate in the sixth year of Qiande, where the Daoists were on the left and the monks on the right. Fadao reverently examines the above-mentioned sacrificial rites and laws and, comparing them with the imperial regulations before and after, finds them to be correct and identical to the Da Song Sengshi lüe: 'Whenever there is a court assembly, the monks come first and the Daoists after; they stand side by side in the palace courtyard, the monks on the east and the Daoists on the west. If there is a sacrifice to Heaven in the suburbs, the Daoists are on the left and the monks on the right.' This is because, traditionally, upon the completion of the suburban sacrifices, when the imperial carriage returned from the suburbs, the emperor immediately presided at the Xuande Gate; the standing ranks for the proclamation of pardons constituted a single event. At all other times, when ranks were formed, the monks were on the left. The intention in the Sengshi lüe already encompassed this. I humbly request that an order be issued to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices for their information. As for all other prefectures and counties, I request that warrants be dispatched to the Fiscal Commissions of each circuit to circulate universally throughout the realm, so that wherever incense is offered on national memorial days, the administrative standards may become uniform, the matter may be accomplished, and the rationale may be sound; and the monks and Daoists of the realm may abide by their stations and cultivate their practices, ever blessing the fortune of the restoration and revival. (Presented on the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month of the guichou year; circulated universally throughout the realm on the twenty-eighth day of that month.) The Bureau of Sacrifices of the Ministry of Rites at the provisional capital: In the winter of the thirteenth year of Shaoxing, on account of the formation of ranks at the Jingling Palace, a departmental warrant was issued for you to make an announcement. The Daoist priest Liu Ruoqian and others, keepers of registers in Lin'an Prefecture, submitted a petition to the Department of State Affairs on the fifth day of the tenth month of the thirteenth year of Shaoxing, requesting that the precedence of Daoist priests be above that of monks. On the twelfth day of that month, while proceeding to the Jingling Palace to enshrine the sacred effigies of the ancestral emperors, the Daoists arbitrarily contested and seized precedence, taking their rank on the east, falsely claiming that they had received a separate directive from the Imperial Court. At that time, the former Chief Rectifier Shanda, Master Pucheng Zhenjing Huiji, the Rectifier of the Saṃgha Jieyue, and others, thereupon set forth a full statement. On the twenty-first day of that month, an imperial directive was issued instructing that, in accordance with the previously established old laws of the ancestral emperors, the Jiayou bianchi, and the Shaoxing xinshu, the monks are to be on the left; and this was transmitted to the Bureau of Sacrifices of the Ministry of Rites at the provisional capital. In accordance with the petition forwarded with instructions from the Department of Ministries to this ministry: In accordance with the petition forwarded with instructions from the Department of Ministries from Liu Ruoqian, Chief Daoist Rectifier of Lin'an Prefecture, and others, regarding the matter of the standing ranks and precedence of monks and Daoists for the present proclamation of pardons, an instruction was later added on the fifteenth day of the tenth month sending it to the Ministry of Rites, with a five-day limit to examine it in detail and report to the Department of State Affairs. This ministry thereupon transmitted it to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices to examine it in detail. Now, according to the report and examination of that court: In accordance with the directive of the petition approved by the Department of Ministries on the fourteenth day of the eleventh month of the third year of Shaoxing, it was forwarded by the Department of Ministries to the Ministry of Rites: 'Humbly following the petition forwarded with instructions by the Department of Ministries from Fan'an, Master Huitong Wu'ai and Rectifier of the Saṃgha of Lin'an Prefecture, and others, regarding the matter of regulating and bringing into conformity the standing ranks of monks and Daoists for the offering of incense on national memorial days: It was subsequently forwarded with instructions to the Ministry of Rites for investigation and appraisal, to be reported to the Department of State Affairs for examination and consolidation. Previously, a memorandum was received, forwarded with instructions from the Department of Ministries, from Fadao, Master Baojue Yuantong Faji, specially bestowed, transmitter of the Western Dharma and abbot of the Donglin Taiping Xinglong Chan Monastery on Mount Lu in Jiangzhou, and others, to regulate and bring into conformity the facts and principles of the aforementioned matter, which was subsequently forwarded with instructions to the Ministry of Rites for investigation and appraisal, to be reported to the Department of State Affairs. This ministry thereupon examined and consolidated the following items: The Sengshi lüe states: "Now, in the Great Song, whenever there is a court assembly, the monks come first and the Daoists after; they stand side by side in the palace courtyard, the monks on the east and the Daoists on the west, interspersed with the subordinate officials. If there is a sacrifice to Heaven in the suburbs, the Daoists are on the left and the monks on the right; its origin is not known." The Taichang yinge li states that in the first year of Qiande, the precedent for the proclamation of pardons at the Xuande Gate was that the Daoists were on the left and the monks on the right. In the articles of the Jiayou bianchi, "monks, Daoists, Buddhist monasteries, Daoist abbeys" are uniformly recorded, establishing the text in that order. In the universally practiced articles of the Zhenghe era, "Daoists, monks, Daoist abbeys, Buddhist monasteries" were uniformly recorded, establishing the text in that order, and there was a specific provision that the precedence of all Daoist priests was above that of monks, and that of female Daoists was above that of nuns. In the universally practiced articles of the Shaoxing era, "monks, Daoists, Buddhist monasteries, Daoist abbeys" are uniformly recorded, establishing the text in that order; the preceding provision placing the precedence of Daoist priests above that of monks and female Daoists above that of nuns has been investigated, deleted, and is not implemented. And having obtained the petition from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, which stated: "We have now examined in detail the Sengshi lüe, which states: 'Whenever there is a court assembly, the monks come first and the Daoists after; they stand side by side in the palace courtyard, the monks on the east and the Daoists on the west, interspersed with the subordinate officials.' Furthermore, the Taichang yinge li records as precedent for the proclamation of pardons at the Xuande Gate that the Daoists are on the left and the monks on the right. For both preceding matters there are documentary bases; as they are explicitly recorded, they ought to be complied with. Apart from that, as for the standing of monks and Daoists whenever there is an offering of incense on national memorial days, we have examined the Jiayou bianchi and the articles of the Shaoxing xinshu, both of which record 'monks, Daoists, Buddhist monasteries, Daoist abbeys,' establishing the text in that order. Now, regarding Fadao's raising the question of the standing ranks for the offering of incense, this court has now investigated and appraised it, wishing to draw an analogy with the Jiayou bianchi and the Shaoxing articles, placing the monks on the left; yet it should properly depend on the directives of the Imperial Court." Reporting to the ministry: Now, consulting the Jiayou bianchi, it uniformly records "monks and Daoists." That which was universally practiced in the Zhenghe era referred to "Daoists and monks," and contained a specific provision that the precedence of Daoist priests was above that of monks. Because the present Shaoxing xinshu has reverted to the old law, establishing the text with "monks and Daoists," and has deleted the specific provision placing the precedence of Daoist priests above that of monks so that it is not implemented, this ministry now investigates and appraises the matter, wishing to implement it in accordance with the findings investigated and appraised by the Court of Imperial Sacrifices; yet it should properly depend on the directives of the Imperial Court. Already on the fourth day of the fourth month of this year, attaching the former petition and one fascicle of the Sengshi lüe, a full report was submitted to the Department of Ministries, but no directive had yet been received. Now, another petition from the monk Fan'an and others has been forwarded with instructions to regulate and bring into conformity the facts and principles of the aforementioned matter. Now investigating and appraising, we wish to implement it in accordance with the findings already investigated and appraised by this ministry; yet it should properly depend on the directives of the Imperial Court, to be reported to the Department of State Affairs.' Later, an instruction was added on the fourteenth day sending it to the Ministry of Rites to be implemented in accordance with the regulations. This court now considers: The statement presented by Liu Ruoqian, Chief Daoist Rectifier of Lin'an Prefecture, and others, regarding the standing positions of monks and Daoists, ought to be implemented in accordance with the directive of the petition approved above. As for the standing ranks for the proclamation of pardons, they ought to follow the precedent for the proclamation of pardons at the Xuande Gate in the Taichang yinge li, with the Daoists on the left and the monks on the right; yet it should properly depend on the directives of the Imperial Court. We humbly request that the departments and ministries further bestow a detailed directive for implementation.' Reporting to the ministry: This ministry now considers that it wishes to implement in accordance with the facts and principles reported by the Court of Imperial Sacrifices; yet it should properly depend on the directives of the Imperial Court, reporting to the Department of Ministries. Later, an instruction was added on the twenty-first day of the tenth month sending it to the Ministry of Rites to be implemented in accordance with the examined facts and principles. A directive had to be issued: [We] on the right dispatch the agent Zheng Yan; he is directed to notify the Daoist Rectifier Liu Ruoqian and others to examine and acknowledge this, and to obtain their written acknowledgment to be submitted in succession. On the [blank] day of the tenth month of the thirteenth year of Shaoxing. Furthermore, warrants were sent to the military prefecture and transmitted to the Office of the Saṃgha, confirming that except for the proclamation of pardons at the Xuande Gate, at all other times when ranks are formed, the monks are uniformly on the left.