出三藏記集 12.16

12.16

蓋聞。世諦善論法海所總。嚴錺文辭初位是攝。自大化東漸㳂世詠歌。魏來雜製間出群集。至於才中含章思入精理。固法門之羽纛。梵聲之金石也。齊竟陵文宣王世子故撫軍巴陵王。稟璿華於崐峯。敏明璣於珠海。慧發𧤪辰識表綺歲。孝友停至機頴朗徹故幼無弱弄夙有老成。甫在志學固已總括墳典矣。雅好辭賦。允登高之才。藉意隷書。均臨池之敏。業盈竹素慮滿風月。是時齊方有德文宣翼讚康衢。既熙慧教傍遠世子。以枝葉之慶蕃守淅河。下車風舉升席治立。含靜臺以御己。垂蘭蕙以振俗。郡富名山巖多靈寺。故勝業愈高清心彌往。每遊踐必訓思若淵泉。信足以揄揚至道炳發玄極。觀其擒賦經聲述頌繡像千佛願文捨身弘誓。四城九相之詩。釋迦十聖之讚。並英華自凝新聲間出。故僕射范雲篤賞文會雅相嗟重。以為後進之佳才也。至隆昌之時。始兆無妄。永元之末。運屬道消。葛藟失庇磐石傾翦。虎兕出柙宗室致猜。而樂天知命夷憂味道。在艱不虧其貞。處約無改其節。鏡因果而靡晦。洞真俗而如曉。專精於大覺之門。懍烈於經典之奧。於是下帷墐戶注解百論。拔出幽旨妙盡纖典。乃躬算縑素手寫方等。所書大經凡有十部。鋒刃勁削風趣妍靡。論其思理所徹業藝所貫。有踰萁裘之能。克副青藍之敏矣。夫深宮寡識著自格言。梁肉多驕聞之前記。而能拔類獨立超然高舉。豈非內鑄堅芳之性。外瑩過庭之風哉。以法而說。譬金龍之嗣信相。由俗而議。邁允恭之紹陳思。可謂開士宿因旃檀眷屬。無忝堂構克勝負荷者也。余昔緣法事亟覿清徽。及律集稽川屢延供禮。惜乎早世文製未廣。今撰錄法詠以繼文宣。內集。使千祀之外知蘭菊之無絕焉。

I have heard that the good treatises of conventional truth are gathered into the sea of the Dharma, and the adornment of literary expression is subsumed within the initial ranks [of cultivation]. Ever since the Great Transformation flowed eastward, people of successive ages have chanted and sung it; from the Wei dynasty onward, miscellaneous compositions have emerged among various collections. When talent embodies elegance and thought penetrates subtle principles, they are truly the feather banners of the Dharma gate and the bells and chimes of Fan chant. The late Prince of Baling, Army-Pacifying General and heir apparent to Prince Wenxuan of Jingling of Qi, received jade blossoms from the peaks of Kunlun and was gifted with bright pearls from the jewel ocean. His wisdom shone from the days of babbling, and his understanding was evident in the years of silk embroidery. His filial devotion and fraternal love were perfected, his capacity and brilliance clear and thorough; hence in childhood he engaged in no weak games, and from early on possessed mature wisdom. Just as he set his will upon learning, he had already encompassed the ancient classics. He was exceptionally fond of poetic verses and rhapsodies, fully displaying the talent of 'scaling heights'; he applied his mind to clerical script, matching the mastery of 'approaching the pond.' His accomplishments filled bamboo and silk, and his reflections brimmed with the wind and the moon. At that time, Qi was in its virtuous prime, and Prince Wenxuan assisted along the broad highway. After the teachings of wisdom were made brilliant, the heir apparent was sent afar as an imperial branch to garrison the Xi River. Stepping down from his carriage, the wind of his virtue arose; ascending his seat, good order was established. He resided in the Hanqing Tower to discipline himself, and diffused orchids and thoroughworts to inspire the common folk. The commandery abounded in famed mountains, and its cliffs were rich with spiritual temples; thus his superior cultivation grew loftier, and his pure mind ventured ever further. Whenever he traveled and climbed, his instructive reflections were like a deep spring, truly sufficient to extol the ultimate Way and make manifest the profound summit. Observing his compositions of rhapsodies on sūtra chanting, his verses narrating embroidered images, his vow texts on the thousand Buddhas, his great vows of self-sacrifice, his poems on the four city gates and the nine cemetery contemplations, and his eulogies for Śākyamuni and the ten holy disciples—all of these were composed of crystallized natural brilliance, with novel tones emerging. Thus Vice Director of the Left Fan Yun deeply admired his literary gatherings, constantly praising and honoring him as a fine talent among the younger generation. Coming to the Longchang era, the omens of misfortune first showed; at the end of Yongyuan, fortunes fell into decline. The clinging creepers lost their shelter, and the great boulder was toppled and cleft. Tigers and wild rhinos escaped their cages, and suspicion fell upon the imperial clan. Yet he was happy with Heaven and knew his destiny, keeping calm in grief and savoring the Way. In adversity he did not compromise his integrity; in straitened circumstances he did not alter his virtue. Reflecting upon cause and effect, he was never blinded; penetrating both the ultimate and conventional truths, he was clear as the dawn. He concentrated his devotion on the gate of the Great Awakening, and was austere and fervent in the depths of the scriptures. Thereupon he lowered his curtain and plastered his door to write a commentary on the *Śata-śāstra*, bringing forth its hidden principles and fully exhausting its subtle scripture. He personally prepared silk and paper, writing the Mahāyāna scriptures by hand. The great sūtras he transcribed numbered ten works in all; his brushwork was vigorous and sharp, and its style graceful and delicate. As for the penetration of his thought and the breadth of his literary arts, he surpassed the talent of continuing the family lineage, fully matching the brilliance of indigo outshining blue. Now, ignorance within the deep palace is a well-known maxim; arrogance among those fed on fine meats is recorded in past chronicles. Yet he was able to stand apart from his peers, rising lofty and transcendent. Was this not because inwardly he was forged with a steadfast and fragrant nature, and outwardly he was refined by the demeanor of passing through the courtyard? Speaking in terms of the Dharma, he was like Golden Dragon succeeding Subāhu; deliberating from the worldly standpoint, he surpassed the dutiful Gong in carrying on the legacy of the Prince of Chensi. He may truly be called a great being of past causes, a sandalwood kinsman, who brought no shame to the ancestral edifice and proved fully capable of shouldering the burden. In the past, through Dharma matters, I frequently beheld his pure presence; and when I gathered the vinaya in Kuaiji, he repeatedly invited me for offerings and courtesies. Alas that he died young, and his writings were not widely circulated! Now I have compiled and recorded his Dharma verses to follow the inner collection of Prince Wenxuan, so that beyond a thousand generations, people will know that the orchids and chrysanthemums have not withered.