出三藏記集 13.20

13.20

Śrīmitra was a man from the Western Regions. People of the time called him "High Seat". Tradition says that he was the son of a king and due to inherit the realm, but he yielded the kingdom to his younger brother, covertly following the model of Taibo. Afterward, his mind awakening through heavenly inspiration, he eventually became a śramaṇa. Mitra's natural endowment was lofty and luminous, his character outstanding and exalted; merely facing him, one felt he naturally transcended ordinary worldly beings. He first arrived in this land during the Yongjia era and stayed at Jianchu Monastery. Chancellor Wang Dao marveled at him upon first meeting him, considering him one of his own kind. From this, his reputation became illustrious. Grand Defender Yu Yuanbing, Guanglu [dapu] Zhou Boren, Grand Chang谢 Youyu, and Tingwei Huan Maolun were all celebrated scholars of the age; seeing him, they repeatedly praised him all day long, opening their hearts to form bonds of fellowship. They would visit Mitra, and Mitra would undo his sash and recline, their converse attaining spiritual accord. At that time, Bian Wangzhi, Prefect of the Masters of Writing, also formed a close friendship with Mitra; Bian would straighten his lapels, adjust his countenance, and sit upright facing him. The noble gentlemen thereupon sighed in admiration that his spirit was brisk and unrestrained, always adapting suitably to each person. Tingwei Huan once wished to compose a character sketch for Mitra, but for a long time could not find the words. Someone said, "Śrīmitra may be described as 'eminent and luminous'." Thereupon Huan sighed in boundless praise, considering this the pinnacle of epithets. General-in-Chief Wang Chuchong was then in the southern regions; hearing that Wang, Zhou, and the other noble gentlemen held Mitra in high esteem, he suspected they were lacking in discernment. Yet upon seeing him, he came hastening forward in delight, fully won over at their first meeting. When Zhou Yi became Vice Director of the Left overseeing the civil appointments, he stopped by to see Mitra just before taking up his post. Patting his back, he sighed: "If only in an era of great peace all such worthy individuals could be selected, one would truly have no regrets." Shortly afterward, Yi met with disaster. Mitra went to visit his orphans. Facing them, he performed a Hu chanting in three verses; the Brahmic sounds soared above the clouds. He recited several thousand words of dhāraṇī with a high and melodious voice, his expression unchanged. Afterward, he brushed away tears and wept, his composure remaining as before. His handling of sorrow and joy, decline and prosperity, was always of this sort. Wang Dao once said to Mitra: "In foreign lands, there is surely only you alone!" Mitra smiled and replied: "If I were like you gentlemen today, how could I be here?" The people of the time considered this an apt remark. By nature Mitra was lofty and laconic, and did not learn the Jin language. When the noble gentlemen conversed with him, Mitra did so through an interpreter. Yet he grasped the meaning through spiritual intuition, completely apprehending it before words were even spoken; none failed to marvel at his innate transcendence and extraordinary insight. Mitra was skilled in maintaining spells, which proved efficacious wherever applied. Previously, the east of the Yangtze River had no dhāraṇī practices; Mitra introduced and translated the spells of the Peacock King and other divine incantations. He also instructed his disciple Mili in chanting high-pitched Brahmic hymns, the echoes of which have been passed down to the present day. He was over eighty years old when he died during the Xiankang era. When the gentlemen heard of it, they grieved deeply and shed tears. Duke Huan of Xuanwu often said that in his youth he had seen High Seat, praising his spirit as profound and prominent, unequaled in his generation. Such was the admiration he received from the celebrated scholars.