出三藏記集 12.41

12.41

夫經藏浩汗記傳紛綸。所以道達群方開示後學。設教緣跡煥然備悉。訓俗事源欝爾咸在。然而講匠英德。銳精於玄義。新進晚習。專志於轉讀。遂令法門常務。月修而莫識其源。僧眾恒儀。日用而不知其始。不亦甚乎。余以率情業謝多聞。六時之隙頗存尋覽。於是檢閱事緣討其根本。遂綴翰墨以藉所好。庶辯始以驗末。明古以證今。至於經唄導師之集。龍花聖僧之會。菩薩稟戒之法。止惡興善之教。或制起帝皇。或功積黎庶。並八正基跡十力逵路。雖事寄形跡。而勳遍空界。宋齊之隆實弘斯法。大梁受命導冠百王。神教傍通慧化冥被。自幼屆老備觀三代。常願一乘寶訓與天地而彌新。四部盛業隨日月而長照是故記錄舊事以彰勝緣。條例叢雜。故謂之法苑區以類別凡為十卷。豈足簡夫淵識。蓋布之眷屬而已。

Now, the sūtra collections are vast, and the records and chronicles are multitudinous. They are that whereby the path is conveyed to all quarters and instructions are revealed to later students. The circumstances under which the teachings were established are fully and brightly illuminated; the origins of the affairs that guide the worldly are richly and completely preserved. However, the eminent and virtuous lecturing masters sharpen their minds exclusively on profound doctrines, while novices and late learners dedicate their wills solely to chanting and recitation. As a consequence, concerning the ordinary practices of the Dharma gate, people practice them month by month without recognizing their origin; and regarding the constant rituals of the saṅgha, people make daily use of them without knowing their beginning. Is this not deeply lamentable? Following my own disposition, my achievements fall far short of broad learning, yet in the intervals between the six periods of devotion, I have preserved a habit of inquiring and perusing. Thereupon, examining and perusing the circumstances of affairs to investigate their roots, I took up brush and ink to indulge what I delight in. I hoped to illuminate the beginning so as to verify the end, and to clarify the ancient so as to attest to the present. As for assemblies for scripture chanting and guides, gatherings of the Dragon-Flower sacred assembly, procedures for bodhisattvas receiving precepts, and teachings on halting evil and cultivating good—some originated with emperors and monarchs, while others accumulated merit among the common populace. All are the foundational traces of the Eightfold Noble Path and the broad thoroughfares of the Ten Powers. Although matters depend on outward forms, their merit spans empty space. The flourishing of the Song and the Qi truly propagated this Dharma; when the Great Liang received the mandate, its guidance surpassed a hundred kings: its spiritual teaching pervaded everywhere, and its wise transformation secretly exerted its influence. From my youth to my old age, I have witnessed three successive dynasties. I have constantly wished that the precious instructions of the One Vehicle would remain ever-new with Heaven and Earth, and that the glorious deeds of the four assemblies would shine perpetually alongside the sun and the moon. Therefore, I recorded ancient affairs to manifest these supreme conditions. Because its items are mixed and manifold, it is called the Garden of Dharma (Fayuan); divided into categories, it forms ten fascicles in all. How could it be adequate to present to those of profound discernment? It is merely to be shared among my fellow companions.