English
English version Incense was burned. He passed away in the lotus position, at the age of seventy-two, with forty-two years of monastic life. Bao Shijie praised: 'The survival, prosperity, misfortune, and auspiciousness of the world, even the studies of apocryphal prophecies and numerology can predict their beginnings. It is not surprising that the Master foresaw his time. However, the golden platform, the jeweled tree, the heavenly music, and the exotic fragrance, these are manifestations of the directly perceived realm during the Qingtai era (Qingtai era of the Later Tang Dynasty). If one has not realized the Pure Land of Mind-Only and perfected the merit of reciting the Buddha's name, how could one be reborn so freely? Alas! The Master constantly used the Pure Land path to gather people, this is indeed verified.' After the Master passed away, he was cremated (Sanskrit, meaning to burn). The relics (Sanskrit, meaning remains) covered his entire body, arranged like fish scales. On the sixth day of the first month of the ninth year of the Kaibao era (976 AD), a pagoda was built and he was buried at the Shuting of Mount Daci, and this event was recorded. Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty personally inscribed the name, calling it Shuning Chan Monastery. Gong Yuchun said: 'The biography of Master Shou's cremation records that his relics were arranged like fish scales, with many details. When his Dharma successor (Buddhist term, referring to the person who inherits the Dharma) Abbot He took out the remains from the dirt and showed them to me, there were only a dozen or so. Could it be that because there were few relics, one would doubt the accuracy of the record? One should know that what is important in a person is the mind, not the object. Abbot He, more than six hundred years after Master Shou's passing, once wanted to promote and glorify his deeds. Even a blade of grass in a single thought can be regarded as the whole body, even a petal of incense in a single thought can create a seven-storied pagoda (Buddhist term, referring to a pagoda). Why is it necessary to create novelty and mix falsehood to fabricate stories? Some say that the World Honored One (Buddhist term, referring to Shakyamuni Buddha) also had no choice but to emit light and shake the earth, which was for those who are attached to external appearances. If that is the case, why should Abbot He doubt?' After the Master entered Nirvana (Sanskrit, meaning passing away), a monk came from Fuzhou and prostrated before the Master's pagoda for many years. Someone asked him the reason, and the monk said: 'I fell ill and entered the underworld, and saw a painting of a monk enshrined in the hall. King Yama (Buddhist and Taoist mythological figure, the god who governs hell) personally prostrated before it every day.' So he asked the chief clerk (an official in the underworld), 'Who is this person?' The chief clerk said: 'This is Chan Master Shou of Yongming Monastery in Hangzhou. All those who die must be judged by us before they can be reborn, but this Chan Master directly ascended to the highest grade of rebirth in the Western Pure Land. King Yama respects his virtue, so he has his image painted and venerated.' Tang Yusheng said: 'The monk's story of King Yama venerating the image is a dream talk and a ghost talk. Why bother to investigate its truth or falsehood?' --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese
第世人多不信佛。而未始不畏阎老。傥闻是语已。亦以阎老之礼礼之。而因知有佛。则地狱一言。未必非接引西方之宝筏矣。虽然彼斥鷃群羊之驯服。岂亦有畏心哉。人实愧焉。 师身后为善继禅师。尝刺血书华严经于姑苏半塘寺。顷有听经之雉。一日集堂中。逾时不动。众惊视之。已瞑目敛翮立化。遂为筑塔寺中。 陈继儒曰。雉儿塔今在王百谷半偈庵中。余至半塘寿圣教寺后。落落长松而已。此塔宜还本处。以标灵迹。昔庐州有坐化猫。峡中有坐化胡孙。李公择家有坐化蛇。韦皋有鹦鹉舍利。无为军永宁县有雀栖于庭。累日不去。取视之。已立化矣。至于僧爽听经之鸡。生公点头之石(历历载在古册。无足怪者。何疑于雉儿塔乎。良由师说法洞入雉儿腹中。有情无情总归一心法界。若于此处致疑。便成异类。姑与之日。待雉儿重活。与汝究竟此段大事)。 宋学士濂。未出母胎。母梦异僧手写华严。来谓母曰。吾乃永明延寿。愿假一室。以终此卷。母梦觉已。学士即生。因名曰寿。后更名濂。六岁日记二千余言。九岁能诗。入青萝山尽阅郑氏所著书数万卷。其文章如武库一开。千珍万宝。光采烂然。有集八十三卷。始见太祖。即劝不嗜杀人。授太子诸王春秋．尚书．大学衍义。每对 太祖语汉 现代汉语译本： 世人大多不相信佛法，但没有不畏惧阎王的。如果偶然听到有关佛法的言语，也会以敬畏阎王的态度来对待它，因此而知道有佛的存在，那么地狱的说法，未必不是接引人们前往西方的珍贵法船了。虽然那些轻视佛法的人，如同斥责麻雀和羊群的驯服，难道他们就没有畏惧之心吗？人实在应该感到惭愧。 善继禅师圆寂后，转世为善继禅师。他曾经在姑苏（今江苏苏州）半塘寺刺血书写《华严经》。当时有只野鸡来听经，有一天聚集在佛堂中，很长时间都不动。众人惊奇地看着它，发现它已经闭上眼睛，收拢翅膀，站立着圆寂了。于是人们在寺中为它建造了一座塔。 陈继儒说：‘雉儿塔现在在王百谷的半偈庵中。’我到半塘寿圣教寺后，只看到了稀疏的长松而已。这座塔应该归还到原来的地方，用来标明灵异的遗迹。过去庐州有坐化的猫，峡中有坐化的猢狲（猴子），李公择家有坐化的蛇，韦皋有鹦鹉的舍利。无为军永宁县有雀鸟栖息在庭院中，连续几天都不离开，人们取来观看，发现它已经站立着圆寂了。至于僧爽听经的鸡，生公（竺道生）点头的石头（这些都历历记载在古籍中，没有什么可奇怪的。为什么怀疑雉儿塔呢？这是因为禅师说法深入到野鸡的腹中，有情众生和无情之物都归于一心法界。如果在这里产生怀疑，就变成了异类。姑且与它约定，等待野鸡重新活过来，与你究竟这段大事）。 宋濂学士，未出母胎时，他的母亲梦见一位奇异的僧人手写《华严经》，来对她说：‘我是永明延寿（指永明延寿禅师），希望借用一间屋子，来完成这部经卷。’母亲醒来后，宋濂就出生了，因此取名为寿，后来改名为濂。他六岁时每天能记住两千多字，九岁能写诗。进入青萝山，阅读了郑氏所著的数万卷书籍。他的文章如同打开了武库，千珍万宝，光彩夺目。著有文集八十三卷。最初见到明太祖（朱元璋，1368-1398在位）时，就劝谏他不要嗜杀，教授太子和诸王《春秋》、《尚书》、《大学衍义》。每次对明太祖讲述汉
English
English version: Most people do not believe in Buddhism, but there is no one who does not fear Yama (the King of Hell). If they happen to hear words about Buddhism, they will treat it with the same reverence they have for Yama, and thus come to know that the Buddha exists. In that case, the concept of hell may not be a precious raft for guiding people to the Western Pure Land. Although those who scorn Buddhism, like those who rebuke the tameness of sparrows and sheep, do they not have any fear in their hearts? People should truly feel ashamed. After Zen Master Shanjì (善继) passed away, he was reborn as Zen Master Shanjì. He once transcribed the *Avatamsaka Sutra* (华严经) in blood at Bantang Temple in Gusu (present-day Suzhou, Jiangsu). At that time, a pheasant came to listen to the sutra. One day, it gathered in the Buddha hall and remained motionless for a long time. The people were surprised to see it and discovered that it had already closed its eyes, folded its wings, and passed away standing up. So people built a pagoda for it in the temple. Chen Jiru said: 'The Pheasant Pagoda is now in Wang Baigu's Ban Ge Hermitage.' When I went to Bantang Shoushengjiao Temple, I only saw sparse tall pines. This pagoda should be returned to its original place to mark the miraculous remains. In the past, there was a cat in Luzhou that passed away in meditation, a macaque in the gorge that passed away in meditation, a snake in Li Gongze's house that passed away in meditation, and Wei Gao had a parrot's *sarira* (舍利, relics). In Yongning County, Wuwei Army, there was a sparrow that perched in the courtyard and did not leave for several days. People took it to look at it and found that it had already passed away standing up. As for the chicken that listened to the sutra with Monk Shuang, and the stone that nodded with Master Shengong (竺道生) (these are all recorded in ancient books and are not surprising. Why doubt the Pheasant Pagoda? This is because the Zen master's teachings penetrated deep into the pheasant's belly, and sentient beings and inanimate objects all return to the One Mind Dharma Realm. If you doubt this, you become a different kind. Let's make an agreement with it and wait for the pheasant to come back to life and discuss this important matter with you).' Scholar Song Lian, before he was born, his mother dreamed of a strange monk hand-copying the *Avatamsaka Sutra* (华严经), who came to her and said, 'I am Yongming Yanshou (永明延寿, referring to Zen Master Yongming Yanshou), and I wish to borrow a room to complete this sutra.' After the mother woke up, Song Lian was born, so he was named Shou, and later renamed Lian. At the age of six, he could memorize more than two thousand words a day, and at the age of nine, he could write poetry. He entered Qingluo Mountain and read tens of thousands of volumes of books written by the Zheng family. His articles were like opening an armory, with thousands of treasures, dazzling and brilliant. He had a collection of eighty-three volumes. When he first met Emperor Taizu of Ming (朱元璋, reigned 1368-1398), he advised him not to be fond of killing and taught the crown prince and princes the *Spring and Autumn Annals*, the *Book of Documents*, and the *Great Learning Extended Meaning*. Every time he spoke to Emperor Taizu about the Han --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese
武．梁武好仙好佛之失。 太祖称之为贤。为君子。为纯臣。天下既定。凡郊庙．山川祠祀。诸大政大令。皆所裁定。海外诸国朝贡。必问安否。为人笃伦理。行事俯仰无愧。真昭代之真儒也。 学士得法千岩长禅师。撰塔铭三十余篇。堪续传灯。其护教编记则宗镜之末光也。又发明正一清微大洞甘水仙派。及阐龙虎大丹不遗余力。赞扬张．吴二天师皆有传。虽梓童玄武。并纪灵迹。论者谓深得华严之旨。云。好骑白牛。夔江坐脱。后顷。有见之终南山者云。冲举之日。距今仅百年耳。 陶𠁗龄曰。愚谓禅师脱颖娑婆。栖神安养藏轮。诸传记凿凿可徴也。何犹然决䇿名场。而游心仙籍。为厌彼极乐。复为人间之劳乎。登上品者为有退转乎。为师中无实证乎。云栖大师曰。师之行道。普贤亲授以妙莲。师之既化。𦦨魔躬瞻乎宝相。实证之果无疑。似退之益硕大。使果极释迦。不妨百界之分身。记获弥陀。正好大慈之填。愿劝。 太祖以不嗜杀人。佐千岩而弘传法印。所谓至人无己。妙应斯圆。知一镜虚明。而万象毕现者。差得师之宗本欤。 大壑曰。永明大师。不思议人也。以不思议人示不思议行。惟后世刻画其迹。譬之纷列群器。囿彼太虚。宁能尽其量哉。宜乎大藏诸传所载。修证因果。互 现代汉语译本 武帝（梁武帝，502年-549年）喜爱神仙和佛，这是他的失误。明太祖（朱元璋，1368年-1398年）称千岩元长禅师为贤人、君子、纯臣。天下平定后，凡是郊庙、山川的祭祀，以及各项重大政策法令，都由他裁定。海外各国来朝贡，他必定询问当地百姓是否安好。他为人注重伦理，所作所为光明磊落，无愧于心，真是一位清明时代的真儒士。 千岩元长禅师的弟子们撰写了三十多篇塔铭，可以续写《传灯录》。他护持佛教的编著，是《宗镜录》的余辉。他又阐发了正一、清微、大洞、甘水等仙派，并且不遗余力地阐扬龙虎大丹。他赞扬张天师（张道陵）和吴天师（吴猛），都有传记流传于世。即使是梓潼神（文昌帝君）和玄武神（真武大帝），他也都记载了他们的灵迹。评论者认为他深刻领悟了《华严经》的旨意。据说，他喜欢骑着白牛，在夔江坐化。后来，有人在终南山见到他，说他飞升的日子，距离现在仅仅一百年而已。 陶𠁗龄说：‘我认为禅师脱离娑婆世界，将神识安住在安养藏轮，各种传记都凿凿可考。为什么还要在科举考场上决胜，又将心思放在仙道典籍上呢？难道是厌倦了极乐世界，又来人间受苦吗？难道登上上品莲台的人还会退转吗？难道是禅师没有得到真正的证悟吗？’云栖大师（莲池大师，1532年-1615年）说：‘禅师的行道，普贤菩萨亲自传授妙莲；禅师圆寂后，𦦨魔（佛教护法神）亲自瞻仰他的宝相。他得到真正的证悟是毫无疑问的。看似退转，实际上是更加宏大。即使证悟到释迦牟尼佛的果位，不妨在百界化身；记载获得阿弥陀佛的果位，正好可以填满大慈大愿。’我劝勉大家要发愿。 明太祖因为不嗜杀人，所以辅佐千岩元长禅师来弘扬传法印。这就是所谓的至人无我，妙用自然圆满。了解一镜虚明，而万象毕现的道理，大概就掌握了禅师的宗本吧。 大壑禅师说：‘永明延寿大师（904年-975年）是不可思议的人。以不可思议的人，示现不可思议的行迹。后世的人刻画他的事迹，就像把各种器物排列在太空中，怎么能穷尽他的度量呢？所以大藏经和各种传记所记载的，关于他的修证因果，互相...