釋氏要覽 1.92

1.92

僧史略云。唐末寺皆立受依止闍梨一員。今朝取秉律員。位最高者號宗主。蓋道俗之間。有諍不分曲直。告具剖斷。令人息諍故也。

The Sengshilüe states: "At the end of the Tang dynasty, all monasteries established one post of ācārya for taking reliance. In our present dynasty, the person holding the vinaya whose rank is highest is designated the 'head of the school.' When disputes between clerics and laity cannot be settled as right or wrong, they submit reports for him to adjudicate and decide, in order to make people cease disputes."