一切經音義 1.3

1.3

慧琳法師。俗姓裴氏。疎勒國人也。夙蘊儒術。弱冠歸於釋氏。師不空三藏。至於經論。尤精字學。建中末乃著經音義一百卷。約六十萬言。始於大般若經。終於小乘記傳。國初有沙門玄應及太原郭處士。竝著音釋。例多漏略。有西明寺玄暢上人。克紹前烈晦明不倦。志奪秋霜之淨。心涵止水之鑒。乃尋其遺逸。蘊而藏諸。焚之以栴檀。飾之以綺繡。光前絕後。駭目驚心。福祉生焉。弘利博矣。齊之不敏欲窺藏經。乃詢於暢公蒙示音義。齊之以為。文字之有音義。猶迷方而得路。慧燈而破闇。潛雖伏矣。默而識之。於是審其聲。而辯其音。有喉腭齗齒脣吻等。有宮商角徵羽等音。曉之以重輕。別之以清濁。而四聲遞發五音迭用。其間雙聲疊韻循環反覆。互為首尾參差勿失。而義理昭然。得其音則義通。義通則理圓。理圓則文無滯。文無滯則千經萬論如指諸掌而已矣。朝凡暮聖豈假終日。所以不離文字而得解脫。無師之智肇自心源拆。疑滯之胸襟。燭昏蒙於倏忽。真詮俗諦。於此區分梵語唐言自茲明白。又音雖南北。義無差別。秦人去聲似上。吳人上聲似去。其間失於輕剽傷於重濁。罕分魚魯之謬。多傳豕亥之誤。至如四十二字母及十二字音。從毘盧遮那佛心生。則鳥跡蟲文之所不逮。然源流有異音義無殊。披沙揀金從理證性。性得而言可遣。言可遣而文字亦忘。同歸一真如則筌蹄弃矣。上座明秀寺主契元都維那玄測。皆精慤真乘護持聖典。文華璀璨經論弘贍。或道情深遠獨得玄珠。或律行清高孤標戒月。上以愜聖賢之意。下以旌勤懇之心。因命匪才敬而為序（時開成五年九月十日）。

Dharma Master Huilin, whose secular surname was Pei, was a native of Kashgar. From an early age he was steeped in Confucian arts, and at his coming of age he took refuge in Buddhism. He studied under Tripiṭaka Master Amoghavajra. In regard to the scriptures and treatises, he was especially proficient in lexicography. At the close of the Jianzhong reign-period he authored the Sounds and Meanings of the Canon in one hundred fascicles, comprising roughly six hundred thousand words. It begins with the Mahāprajñāpāramitā-sūtra and concludes with the records and biographies of the Hīnayāna. Early in the dynasty, the śramaṇa Xuanying and the retired scholar Guo of Taiyuan both composed glosses of pronunciation and meaning, but as a rule these were largely fraught with omissions and abridgments. There was the Venerable Xuanchang of Ximing Monastery, who ably continued the glorious path of his predecessors, unflagging by day and night. His aspiration surpassed the purity of autumn frost, and his mind embraced the clarity of still water. He thus sought out what had been lost or left behind, collecting and storing it away. He perfumed it with sandalwood and adorned it with fine brocade. It outshone the past and had no equal in subsequent times, startling the eyes and stirring the heart. Blessings sprang therefrom, and its benefits were vast. I, Qizhi, being unlearned yet wishing to examine the canon, inquired of Master Chang, who graciously showed me the Sounds and Meanings. I consider that having sounds and meanings for Chinese characters is like finding one's path when having lost the way, or like a lamp of wisdom shattering the darkness. Though latent and hidden, they can be silently recognized. Thereupon one scrutinizes the phonetic quality and distinguishes the sounds: there are the throat, the palate, the gums, the teeth, the lips, the mouth, and so on; there are the tones of gong, shang, jue, zhi, yu, and others. One clarifies them by heavy and light, distinguishes them by clear and turbid. The four tones are successively brought forth, and the five notes are alternately employed. Within them, alliteration and rhyming binomes circulate and revert, mutually serving as beginning and end, alternating without error, so that the meaning is made luminous and manifest. If one grasps the pronunciation, the meaning is understood; if the meaning is understood, the principle becomes complete; if the principle is complete, the text presents no obstruction; and if the text presents no obstruction, the thousands of scriptures and myriads of treatises become as plain as pointing to one's palm. Reaching sainthood by evening from being an ordinary person in the morning—does it even require a whole day? Hence it is without abandoning characters that one attains liberation. The teacherless wisdom originates from the source of the mind, splitting open the breast of doubt and stagnation, illuminating darkness and ignorance in an instant. The ultimate truth and conventional truth are hereby demarcated; Sanskrit and the Tang language are from this made clear. Moreover, though pronunciation differs between north and south, the meaning bears no distinction. The Qin people's departing tone resembles the rising tone, while the Wu people's rising tone resembles the departing tone. In between, there are lapses into light flippancy and injuries caused by heavy turbidity. Seldom are the confusions between yu and lu separated; frequently are the errors between shi and hai transmitted. As for the forty-two mātṛkā and the twelve syllabic vowels, they arose from the mind of Vairocana Buddha; bird tracks and insect scripts fall far short of them. However, though the sources and streams differ, the sounds and meanings are not distinct. Sifting sand to pick out gold, one realizes one's nature through principle. Once nature is attained, words can be set aside; when words can be set aside, characters too are forgotten. When all alike return to the one tathatā, the fish trap and rabbit snare are abandoned. The Sthavira Mingsxiu, the Abbot Qiyuan, and the Karmadāna Xuance are all devoted to the true vehicle and maintain the sacred scriptures. Their literary brilliance is dazzling, and their learning in scriptures and treatises is extensive. Some possess a deep and far-reaching spiritual sentiment, uniquely obtaining the mysterious pearl; others maintain a pure and lofty practice of discipline, standing out singularly like the moon of precepts. Above, they satisfy the will of the sages and worthies; below, they make manifest their diligent and earnest devotion. They consequently charged this unworthy one to respectfully compose this preface. (On the tenth day of the ninth month of the fifth year of Kaicheng).