貞元新定釋教目錄 7.28.4

7.28.4

母怒曰。設令得罪吾當代汝。跋摩他日煮油
誤澆其指。因謂母曰。代兒忍痛。母曰。痛在汝
身吾何能代。跋摩曰。眼前之苦尚不能代況
三塗耶。母乃悔悟終身斷殺。至年十八相士
見而謂曰。君年三十當撫臨大國南面稱尊。
若不樂世榮當獲聖果。至年二十出家受戒。
洞明九部博曉四含。誦經百餘萬言。深達
律品妙入禪要。時號曰三藏法師。至年三十
罽賓王薨絕無紹嗣。眾咸議曰。跋摩帝室之
胤。又才明德重。可請令還俗以紹國位。群臣
數百再三固請跋摩不納。乃辭師違眾林栖
谷飲。孤行山野遁迹人世。後到師子國觀風
弘教。識真之眾咸謂已得初果。儀形感物見
者發心。後至闍婆國。初未至一日。闍婆王母
夢見一道士飛舶入國。明旦果是跋摩來至。
王母敬以聖禮從受五戒。母因勸王曰。宿世
因緣得為母子。我已受戒而汝不信。恐後生
之因永絕今果。王迫以母勅即奉命受戒。染
習既久專精漸篤。頃之隣兵犯境。王謂跋摩
曰。外賊恃力欲見侵侮。若與鬪戰傷殺必多。
如其不拒危亡將至今唯歸命師尊不知何
計。跋摩曰。暴寇相攻宜須禦捍。但當起慈
悲心勿興害念耳。王自領兵擬之。旗鼓始交
賊便退散。王遇流矢傷脚。跋摩為呪水洗之
信宿平復。王恭信稍慇。乃欲出家修道。因告
群臣曰。吾欲躬栖法門卿等更擇明主。群臣
皆拜伏勸請曰。王若捨國則子民無依。且敵
國凶強恃險相對。如失恩覆則黔首奚處。大
王天慈寧不愍命。王不忍固違乃就群臣請
三願。若許者當留治國。一願凡所王境同奉
和上。二願盡所治內一切斷殺。三願所有儲
財賑給貧病。群臣歡喜僉然敬諾。於是一國
皆從受戒。王後為跋摩立精舍。躬自引村傷
王脚指。跋摩又為呪治有頃平復。道化之聲
播於遐邇。隣國聞風皆遣使要請。時楊都名
德沙門慧觀慧聰等。遠挹風猷思欲飡稟。以
元嘉元年九月。面啟文帝求迎請跋摩。帝即
勅交州刺史。令汎舶延致觀等。又遣沙門法
長道冲道俊等往彼祈請。并致書於跋摩及
闍婆王婆多伽等。必希顧臨宋境流行道教。
跋摩以聖化宜廣不憚遊方。先已隨商人竺
難提舶欲向一小國。會值便風遂至廣州。故
其遺文云。業行風所吹遂之於宋境。此之謂
也。文帝知跋摩已至南海。於是復勅州郡令
資發至都。路由始興經停歲許。始興有虎匝
山。山形聳峭峯嶺高絕。跋摩謂其髣髴耆闍
崛。乃改名靈鷲。於山寺之外別立禪室。去寺
數里磬音不聞。每至鳴椎跋摩已至。或致雨
不沾。或履泥不濕。時眾道俗莫不肅然增敬。
寺有寶月殿。跋摩於殿北壁。手自畫作羅云
像及定光儒童布髮之形像。成之後每夕放
光。久之乃歇。始興太守蔡茂之深加敬仰。後
茂之將死。跋摩躬自往視說法安慰。後家人
夢見。茂之在寺中與眾僧講法。實由跋摩化
導之力也。此山本多虎災。自跋摩居之晝行
夜往。或時值虎以杖按頭弄之而去。於是山
旅水賓去來無梗。感德歸化者十有七八焉。
跋摩嘗於別室入禪累日不出。寺僧遣沙彌
往候之。見一白師子緣柱而立亘空彌漫生
青蓮華。沙彌驚恐大呼往逐師子豁無所見。
其靈異無方類多如此。後文帝重勅觀等復
更敦請。乃汎舟下都以元嘉八年正月達于
建業。文帝引見勞問慇懃。因又言曰。弟子常
欲持齋不殺。迫以身徇物不獲從志。法師既
不遠萬里來化此國。將何以教之。跋摩曰。夫
道在心不在事。法由己非由人。且帝王與匹
夫所修各異匹夫身賤名劣言令不威。若不
剋己苦躬將何為用。帝王以四海為家萬民
為子。出一嘉言則士女咸悅。布一善政則人
神以和。刑不夭命役無勞力。則使風雨適時
寒暖應節。百穀滋繁桑麻欝茂。如此持齋
齋亦大矣。不殺亦眾矣。寧在闕半日之飡全
一禽之命然後方為弘濟耶。帝乃撫几歎曰。
夫俗人迷於遠理。沙門滯於近教。迷遠理者
至道虛說。滯近教者則拘攣篇章。至如跋摩

His mother said angrily, “Even if you incur sin, I will suffer it in your place.” On another day, while boiling oil, [Guṇa]varman accidentally spilled some on her finger, and thereupon said to his mother, “Endure the pain in my place.” His mother said, “The pain is in your own body; how could I bear it for you?” [Guṇa]varman said, “If you cannot even bear suffering that is right before your eyes, how much less could you bear the three evil destinies?” His mother then repented and had an awakening, and for the rest of her life abstained from killing. When he reached the age of eighteen, a physiognomist looked at him and said, “When you reach the age of thirty, you shall rule over a great kingdom, facing south as sovereign. If you take no pleasure in worldly glory, you will attain holy fruits.” When he reached the age of twenty, he left the household and received the precepts. He thoroughly understood the nine genres of scripture and was broadly versed in the four Āgamas. He recited more than a million words of sūtras, penetrated deeply into the vinaya divisions, and subtly entered into the essentials of meditation; at the time, people called him the Tripiṭaka Dharma Master. When he reached the age of thirty, the king of Kashmīr passed away without an heir. The populace all conferred, saying, “Varman is a scion of the imperial house, and furthermore his talents are brilliant and his virtue esteemed. We should invite him to return to lay life and succeed to the kingdom's throne.” Several hundred ministers repeatedly and firmly implored him, but Varman would not accept. He then took leave of his master, departed from the assembly, roosted in forests and drank from ravines, roaming alone through mountains and wilderness, hiding his traces from the mortal world. Later, he arrived in the Lion Country (Siṃhala), where he observed local customs and propagated the teaching. Those of the assembly who recognized the real all held that he had already attained the first fruit. His deportment moved all beings, and those who saw him brought forth the mind [of awakening]. Later he arrived in the country of Shepo (Java). The day before he arrived, the mother of the king of Shepo dreamt that she saw a Daoist practitioner flying on a ship into the kingdom. The next morning, it was indeed Varman who had arrived. The queen mother respectfully received him with holy rites and took the five precepts from him. The mother thereupon admonished the king, saying, “It is due to causes and conditions from past lives that we became mother and son. I have already received the precepts, yet you do not believe. I fear that the causes of future births will be severed forever from our present fruition.” Pressed by his mother's command, the king immediately obeyed and received the precepts. After prolonged practice, his single-minded dedication gradually deepened. Shortly thereafter, neighbouring troops invaded the borders. The king said to Varman, “The foreign bandits rely on their might and intend to encroach upon and mistreat us. If we do battle with them, injuries and killings will surely be numerous. If we do not resist them, danger and ruin will arrive immediately. Now I only take refuge in you, master; I do not know what plan to take.” Varman said, “When violent bandits attack, it is indeed proper to defend and resist. You need only arouse a mind of loving-kindness and compassion, and not give rise to harmful thoughts.” The king led the troops in person to confront them. As soon as the banners and drums engaged, the bandits scattered in retreat. The king was struck by a stray arrow, injuring his foot. Varman chanted incantations over water and washed it, and after two nights it was completely healed. The king’s reverence and faith became increasingly earnest, and he wished to leave the household to cultivate the Way. He thereupon announced to his ministers, “I wish to dwell personally within the Dharma gate; you gentlemen should choose another enlightened ruler.” The ministers all prostrated themselves, pleading with him: “If the King abandons the state, the common people will have nothing to rely upon. Furthermore, the hostile state is fierce and strong, relying on steep terrain to confront us. If we lose your compassionate protection, where will the black-haired people turn? With the Great King’s heavenly compassion, will you not pity our lives?” The king could not bear to firmly refuse them, and so he put three wishes to his ministers, stating that if they agreed, he would remain to govern the state: “First, I wish that all within the royal domain jointly venerate the upādhyāya. Second, I wish that within all my governance, killing be completely terminated. Third, I wish that all stored wealth be distributed to relieve the poor and the sick.” The ministers were joyful, and all respectfully agreed. Thereupon, the entire state took the precepts from him. Later, the king erected a monastery for Varman. While personally hauling timber, a log injured the king's toe. Varman again chanted incantations over it, and in a short while it was healed. The renown of his spiritual transformation spread near and far; hearing of his repute, neighbouring states all dispatched envoys to invite him. At that time, renowned and virtuous śramaṇas of the capital Yangdu, such as Huiguan and Huicong, having long admired his character from afar, wished to receive instruction from him. In the ninth month of the first year of the Yuanjia era, they personally petitioned Emperor Wen, requesting that Varman be invited. The Emperor immediately commanded the Regional Inspector of Jiaozhou to dispatch a ship to bring him, and Huiguan and the others also sent the śramaṇas Fachang, Daochong, Daojun, and others thither to entreat him, carrying letters to Varman and to King Po-duo-jia of Shepo, earnestly hoping that he would look favourably upon visiting the realm of the Song to propagate the Buddhist teachings. Since sacred transformation ought to be widespread, Varman did not shrink from travelling afar. He had already boarded the ship of the merchant Zhu Nandi intending to head to a small country; encountering a favourable wind, he happened to arrive in Guangzhou. Hence his post-mortem writings say: ‘Driven by the wind of karma and conduct, I ultimately came to the Song domain’—this refers to that. Emperor Wen learned that Varman had reached the Southern Seas, whereupon he again ordered the commanderies and prefectures to provide provisions to dispatch him to the capital. His route passed through Shixing, where he stayed for about a year. In Shixing there was Mount Huza; the mountain’s form was steep and craggy, its peaks loftily soaring. Varman regarded it as resembling Gṛdhrakūṭa, and so renamed it Vulture Peak (Lingjiu). Outside the mountain monastery, he established a separate meditation chamber, several li away from the monastery, where the sound of the stone chime could not be heard; yet whenever the wooden mallet was struck, Varman had already arrived. Sometimes when rain fell he did not get wet, or when walking through mud he was not soiled. At that time, the assembly of clergy and laity all became solemn and grew in reverence. In the monastery there was a Baoyue Hall. On the north wall of the hall, Varman personally painted images of Rāhula and the form of Dīpaṃkara and the young scholar spreading his hair; after the images were completed, they emitted light every night, ceasing only after a long time. Cai Maozhi, the Grand Administrator of Shixing, held him in deep reverence. Later, when Maozhi was about to die, Varman personally went to visit him, expounding the Dharma to comfort him. Later, his family dreamt that Maozhi was in the monastery expounding the Dharma with the monastic assembly; this was truly through the power of Varman's transformation and guidance. This mountain originally had many tiger perils. After Varman resided there, he walked about by day and night; sometimes, encountering a tiger, he pressed his staff upon its head, played with it, and went on his way. Thereupon, travellers in the mountains and on the waters came and went without obstruction. Those who were moved by his virtue and converted were seven or eight out of ten. Varman once entered meditation in a separate room and did not emerge for days on end. The monastery monks sent a novice to check on him; the novice saw a white lion standing leaning against a pillar, while blue lotus flowers grew filling the empty sky. The novice called out in great fright and went to chase the lion away, but in a sudden flash there was nothing to be seen. His limitless supernatural occurrences were mostly of this kind. Later, Emperor Wen again commanded Huiguan and the others to repeat their earnest invitation; Varman then sailed downstream to the capital, arriving in Jianye in the first month of the eighth year of the Yuanjia era. Emperor Wen granted him an audience and inquired after his welfare with solicitous warmth, and thereupon said, “I, your disciple, have always wished to observe the fasts and not kill, but pressed by my bodily duties to the world, I cannot attain my wish. Since the Dharma Master has not considered ten thousand li too far to come transform this land, how will you instruct me?” Varman said, “The Way lies in the mind, not in outer matters; the Dharma comes from oneself, not from others. Moreover, that which is cultivated by an emperor and by a common man are different. A common man’s status is humble and his fame lowly; his words and commands carry no majesty. If he does not discipline himself and subject his body to toil, by what means can he be of use? An emperor takes the four seas as his household and the ten thousand peoples as his children. If he utters a single fine word, men and women will all be pleased; if he spreads a single good policy, humans and spirits will be harmonized. When punishments do not cut short lives and corvée labours do not exhaust strength, then wind and rain will be timely and cold and heat will correspond to the seasons; the hundred grains will flourish abundantly and the mulberries and hemp will grow lush. Fulfilling the fast in this manner—such fasting is indeed grand! Not killing in this manner—those spared from death are also numerous! Would it really require skipping half a day's meal or sparing the life of a single fowl only then to be considered vast salvation?” The Emperor patted his armrest and sighed, saying, “Worldly people are deluded by distant principles, while śramaṇas are bogged down in literal teachings. Those deluded by distant principles make the ultimate Way into empty talk; those bogged down in literal teachings are bound by chapters and verses. As for someone like Varman—”