Thursday, March 26, 2015
Pre-order is ready for the Buddhist canon volume: Spreading Buddha's Word in East Asia
“Bringing together leading specialists in the Chinese Buddhist canon, Spreading Buddha’s Word in East Asia makes a major contribution to our understanding of both the textual and the social history of one of the most impressive textual projects in the history of the world.”
—John Kieschnick, Stanford University
FORTHCOMING
Spreading Buddha’s Word in East Asia: The Formation and Transformation of the Chinese Buddhist Canon
Edited by Jiang Wu and Lucille Chia
A monumental work in the history of religion, the history of the book, the study of politics, and bibliographical research, this volume follows the making of the Chinese Buddhist canon from the fourth century to the digital era. Approaching the subject from a historical perspective, the book ties the religious, social, and textual practices of canon formation to the development of East Asian Buddhist culture and opens up the study of Chinese Buddhist texts to readers interested in the evolution of Chinese writing in general and the Confucian and Daoist traditions in particular.
The collection undertakes extensive readings of major scriptural catalogs from the early manuscript era as well as major printed editions, including the Kaibao Canon, Qisha Canon, Goryeo Canon, and Taisho Canon. Contributors add fascinating depth to such understudied issues as the historical process of compilation, textual manipulation, physical production and management, sponsorship, the dissemination of various editions, cultic activities surrounding the canon, and the canon’s reception in different East Asian societies. The Chinese Buddhist canon is one of the most enduring textual traditions in East Asian religion and culture, and through this exhaustive, multifaceted effort, an essential body of work becomes part of a new, versatile narrative of East Asian Buddhism that has farreaching implications for world history.
COLUM B I A UNIVERSITY PR E S S
$75.00/£52.00 cloth · 978-0-231-17160-1
DECEMBER 2015 432 pages · 30 b&w photographs
The Sheng Yen Series in Chinese Buddhist Studies
Spreading Buddha’s Word in East Asia
The Formation and Transformation of the Chinese Buddhist Canon
Edited by Jiang Wu and Lucille Chia
JIANG WU is an associate professor in the Department of East Asian Studies at the University of Arizona. His research interests include Chinese Buddhism, especially Chan/Zen Buddhism and the Chinese Buddhist canon, Sino-Japanese Buddhist exchanges, and the application of GIS tools in the
study of Chinese culture and religion.
LUCILLE CHIA is professor of history at the University of California at Riverside. Her research interests include Chinese book culture, most recently the history of Buddhist publishing
in imperial China. She is the author of Printing for Profit: The Commercial Publishers of Jianyang, Song-Ming (960-1644) and coeditor of Knowledge and Text Production in an Age of Print: China, 900–1400.
PRE-ORDER ONLINE CUP.COLUMBIA.EDU
Customers in the United Kingdom, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and South Africa, please contact our UK distributor WILEY via email: customer@wiley.com.
Friday, March 20, 2015
The Obaku Tetsugen Canon is the first Chinese Tripitaka in the West
I am writing a paper for the Third International Conference on the Chinese Buddhist canon.  The title of my paper is "Finding the First Chinese Tripitaka in Europe: The 1872 Iwakura Mission in Britain and the Mystery of the Obaku Tetsugen Canon in the Indian Office Library." The discovery I made is that the Obaku Tetsugen Canon 黄檗/鐵眼大藏經 is actually the first Chinese Tripitaka which was brought to the West and it was sent by Iwakura Tomomi 岩倉具視(1825-1883) in 1875.
The story is like this: The Obaku edition was carved by Tetsugen based on the main section of the Jiaxing canon 嘉興藏 which is a reprint of the Northern Ming Canon 明北藏. Tetsugen received this Jiaxing edition from the Chinese monk Yinyuan Longqi 隱元隆琦(1592-1673), the founder of the Japanese Obaku Zen tradition. It was the most popular edition during the Edo period.
In the mid-nineteenth century, because of the discovery of Sanskrit and Tibetan Buddhist texts, European scholarship on Buddhism was greatly advanced. Therefore, there was a need to find the Chinese Tripitaka as well. In 1872, the Iwakura mission arrived in Britain. Samuel Beal (1825-1889), a professor of Chinese and a chaplain at University College, through his personal connection, made a request to Iwakura about sending a Chinese canon to England. Iwakura kept his word after he returned to Japan and the whole set of the canon arrived at the Indian Office Library in 1875.
Samuel Beal made a English catalog of the received books in 1876 and Max Müller's (1823-1900) Japanese student Nanjō Bunyū 南條文雄 (1849-1927) translated its entire catalog into English in 1883. However, Nanjō didn't mark in the title page that this canon is actually the Tetsugen canon carved in Japan. It still reads as the Chinese Tripitaka of the Great Ming Dynasty.
The story is like this: The Obaku edition was carved by Tetsugen based on the main section of the Jiaxing canon 嘉興藏 which is a reprint of the Northern Ming Canon 明北藏. Tetsugen received this Jiaxing edition from the Chinese monk Yinyuan Longqi 隱元隆琦(1592-1673), the founder of the Japanese Obaku Zen tradition. It was the most popular edition during the Edo period.
In the mid-nineteenth century, because of the discovery of Sanskrit and Tibetan Buddhist texts, European scholarship on Buddhism was greatly advanced. Therefore, there was a need to find the Chinese Tripitaka as well. In 1872, the Iwakura mission arrived in Britain. Samuel Beal (1825-1889), a professor of Chinese and a chaplain at University College, through his personal connection, made a request to Iwakura about sending a Chinese canon to England. Iwakura kept his word after he returned to Japan and the whole set of the canon arrived at the Indian Office Library in 1875.
Samuel Beal made a English catalog of the received books in 1876 and Max Müller's (1823-1900) Japanese student Nanjō Bunyū 南條文雄 (1849-1927) translated its entire catalog into English in 1883. However, Nanjō didn't mark in the title page that this canon is actually the Tetsugen canon carved in Japan. It still reads as the Chinese Tripitaka of the Great Ming Dynasty.
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Ven. Shengyan (Sheng Yen) 聖嚴 visited Huangbo Monastery in 2002
I was surprised to learn that Ven. Master Sheng Yen 聖嚴 not only wrote an essay on Yinyuan but also visited Yinyuan's temple in Fuqing in 2002, just a year after I visited there in 2001. He wrote a travelogue for this visit which I pasted below. He met the abbot Beisheng 悲昇 who received me as well. Ven. Beisheng has a disciple called Mingkong 明空, who accompanied me during my stay. I thanked all of them in the preface to my first book Enlightenment in Dispute: The Reinvention of Chan Buddhism in Seventeenth-century China (Oxford, 2008).
| Yinyuan Memorial Hall at Huangbo Monastery (Chinese Manpukuji). Shot by Jiang Wu, 2001. | 
五百菩薩走江湖 聖嚴法師著
二八、福清市黃檗山的萬福寺
| [日期:2010-07-23] | 作者:聖嚴法師著 | 
  二八、福清市黃檗山的萬福寺
  
十月十三日,星期日。晴。
  
昨晚抵達福州的長樂機場時,福建省佛教協會祕書長本性法師,
  
當天上午,我們留在福州的福清飯店休息,
  
現任方丈是三十四歲的悲昇法師,他原藉山東,一九九○
  
  十月十三日,星期日。晴。
昨晚抵達福州的長樂機場時,福建省佛教協會祕書長本性法師,
當天上午,我們留在福州的福清飯店休息,
現任方丈是三十四歲的悲昇法師,他原藉山東,一九九○
  ▲萬福寺的大雄寶殿。
  
當天他帶著監院道昌法師和該寺的僧俗男女四眾,
  
隨後我也對我們的團員開示說︰黃檗希運是臨濟義玄的師父,
  
隨後我們也參觀了大殿後面的藏經樓、法堂、觀音殿、禪堂,
  
目前全球共有三處黃檗山萬福寺。
  
那麼究竟什麼是黃檗樹呢?悲昇法師帶我到後山院中的山崁上,
  
  當天他帶著監院道昌法師和該寺的僧俗男女四眾,
隨後我也對我們的團員開示說︰黃檗希運是臨濟義玄的師父,
隨後我們也參觀了大殿後面的藏經樓、法堂、觀音殿、禪堂,
目前全球共有三處黃檗山萬福寺。
那麼究竟什麼是黃檗樹呢?悲昇法師帶我到後山院中的山崁上,
  ▲黃檗樹就是香椿樹。
  
首次在文獻記載中看到萬福寺的名字,根據資料,
  
希運禪師出家後,覓師訪道曾先後到天台山、長安,
  
不過在唐武宗會昌二年(八四二年)的法難期間,河南節度史裴休,
  
希運禪師的禪風對後來中國禪宗的影響非常深遠。他的弟子群中,
  
而日本的那一座道場,是因為隱元禪師不忘出身的根本,
  
這也正是我要回到大陸去做佛教古蹟巡禮的出發點之一。
  
由於日本黃檗宗曾經前來參拜祖庭,便特別在福清的黃檗山境內,
  
另外我們還看到了七塊碑文: 日本黃檗宗訪問古黃檗祖山記;隱元禪師紀念碑;隱元禪師頌德碑;
  
我們中國人實在應該覺得慚愧,歷代祖師所建的道場,
  
黃檗山的範圍實在很大,我參觀了庭院,拜了祖塔,
  
  首次在文獻記載中看到萬福寺的名字,根據資料,
希運禪師出家後,覓師訪道曾先後到天台山、長安,
不過在唐武宗會昌二年(八四二年)的法難期間,河南節度史裴休,
希運禪師的禪風對後來中國禪宗的影響非常深遠。他的弟子群中,
而日本的那一座道場,是因為隱元禪師不忘出身的根本,
這也正是我要回到大陸去做佛教古蹟巡禮的出發點之一。
由於日本黃檗宗曾經前來參拜祖庭,便特別在福清的黃檗山境內,
另外我們還看到了七塊碑文: 日本黃檗宗訪問古黃檗祖山記;隱元禪師紀念碑;隱元禪師頌德碑;
我們中國人實在應該覺得慚愧,歷代祖師所建的道場,
黃檗山的範圍實在很大,我參觀了庭院,拜了祖塔,
  ▲隱元紀念堂內供奉的隱元禪師像。
  
  
  ▲於黃檗亭前,與黃檗女眾學院師生合影。
  
現任福清黃檗山住持悲昇法師,年紀雖輕,卻非常有心,
  
拜讀示函,如飲醍醐,無任歡喜。
  
法師譽滿寰宇,望重宗門,愚忝居黃檗法席,然所學所知,
  
讀了他的信,我感到非常慚愧,也覺得非常欣慰。慚愧的是,
現任福清黃檗山住持悲昇法師,年紀雖輕,卻非常有心,
拜讀示函,如飲醍醐,無任歡喜。
法師譽滿寰宇,望重宗門,愚忝居黃檗法席,然所學所知,
讀了他的信,我感到非常慚愧,也覺得非常欣慰。慚愧的是,
Thursday, March 5, 2015
Attention art historians: Who painted this portrait of Yinyuan?
Here is the million dollar question.
I came across an interesting portrait of Yinyuan in an auction page. It was painted in the year Xinmao 辛卯 (either 1651 or 1711). The style is so different from the portraits by the Kita family and looks more like the literati painting style. One source said that it was painted by another Chinese monk Donggao Xinyue 东皋心越, for whom van Gulik 高羅佩 published a book in 1944. ( See 明末义僧东皋禅师集刊.) But Xinyue died in 1696 and in 1651 he was only 13 as Tanaka Chisei 田中智誠 osho pointed out. Tanaka osho also confirms that Xinyue did paint Yinyuan's portrait in 1680 but it was a copy from a previous painting.
If this was indeed painted in 1651 before Yinyuan left China in 1654, this is going to be a significant discovery.
Anyone can tell me more about this painting? Here is the link and the images. http://bbs.artron.net/thread-
http://bbs.sssc.cn/viewthread.php?page=1&tid=2356588
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Ven. Shengyan (Sheng-yen) 聖嚴 and Master Yinyuan
I first came cross Ven. Shengyan's essay on Yinyuan when I read the journal Obaku bunka 黃檗文華, issue 123, 2002-3. He wrote the article to commemorate the opening of Bunkaden 文華殿 archive. In this essay, Ven. Shengyan 聖嚴 summarized Yinyuan's teaching as "The myriads of distinctions are empty with one sweep" 萬別千差一掃空, a verse Yinyuan wrote for the retired Gomizunoo 后水尾 Emperor. I liked it and used it in my book to characterize Yinyuan's teaching of enlightenment. (Leaving for the Rising Sun, p. 143.) Prof. Yang Kuei-hsiang sent me the full version recently and I also found it from the online version of Fagu quanji 法鼓全集. I published it here again to commemorate these two great teachers.
萬別千差一掃空──管窺黃檗隱元禪師
天下有三座黃檗山,一座在江西洪州,一座在福建福州,一座在日本京都的宇治,而最古的一寺,即在福州。我於二○○二年十月十三日,到福州的黃檗山參訪先賢遺蹟,看到殿堂寮室煥然一新,尤其在隱元禪師紀念園中,殿閣庭苑及碑亭建築,令我神往不已,因為那是現代日本黃檗山諸賢,對於祖庭的奉獻。
我是臨濟子孫,當然也是黃檗子孫,唯以生逢亂世,少小出家,即遷居海外,未嘗有緣及早拜謁法脈源頭,年逾古稀,始得來到黃檗山禮拜祖師行道遺址,感慨自身業深障重之餘,尚有不虛此行之慰。
今年(二○○三年)九月,接獲京都黃檗山萬福寺文華殿之知藏田中智誠先生來函,囑我為其文華殿開館三十年、創設三十三周年,撰稿紀念,提供《黃檗文華》第百二十三號刊載。我雖對於日本黃檗山,所知不多,趁此因緣,對於隱元隆琦禪師(西元一五九二年至一六七三年)及其門下,作一管窺,聊資回報田中先生的雅意,亦對明末歸化日本之高僧,表示崇高的敬意。
正由於隱元禪師在六十三歲時歸化了日本,中國禪宗史中便甚少見到有關他的資料。以致我雖研究明末佛教,卻未能對隱元禪師著墨,若以隱元禪師的年代計算,又正是我所研究的範疇,例如我的博士論文,是寫明末的藕益智旭大師(西元一五九五年至一六五三年),乃為隱元禪師同一時代之人,隱元禪師親近過的密雲圓悟(西元一五六六年至一六四二年)以及為其印可的費隱通容(西元一五九二年至一六六○年)兩位禪師,也曾是我研究的對象,遺憾的很,我竟未曾寫過與隱元禪師相關的文章。
中國佛教之傳入日本,大乘八宗,無一遺漏,其中多係日本僧侶到中國求法之貢獻,唯自唐朝以下,唐僧東渡者,亦大有人在,例如唐代著名者,有道明、道榮、道璿、鑑真等二十七人,而以鑑真之東征,最為史家所樂道,因其對於日本律宗開創,影響極其深遠。鑑真律師(西元六九六年至七六七年)之後,宋僧東渡而有影響力的,乃為蘭溪道隆、兀菴普寧、無學祖元、大休正念等十一人;元僧東渡之有史可徵者,有一山一寧、西澗士曇、石梁仁恭、靈山道隱、清拙正澄、明極楚俊、東陵永璵等十三人;明初東渡僧侶,則有天龍寺的龍室道淵、建長寺的喜江以及靜山,尚有奉明代朝廷之命,派赴日本擔任交流工作者,則為仲猷祖闡、無逸克勤、道彝天倫、一庵一如等人。
到了明末清初,由於明室衰亡,滿清入關主政,基於民族意識以及兵亂不止,明末儒者如朱舜水等流亡日本,大量明末遺民,亦浮海赴日,著陸之處,即為明清時期日本對華交通的特別要港長崎,明人赴日,皆於長崎登陸,亦集中留置於長崎,明末僧侶亦隨著移民潮來到長崎,故有建立佛寺之必要,先建興福寺、次建福濟寺、後建崇福寺,合稱為長崎三大寺,基本而言,此三寺的建築,乃由中國的船主捐獻,亦從中國福建聘請僧侶前往住持。此後,廣州旅日華僑亦於長崎建寺,名為聖福寺,其開基住持鐵心和尚,祖籍亦為福建人士,直至隱元隆琦禪師,於京都宇治開創黃檗山,建立黃檗宗,寺名為「萬福寺」,乃為紀念福建的黃檗山萬福寺,是為飲水思源,以上五寺寺名,皆繫有一個「福」字,想必亦為出於飲水思源。
依據資料顯示,自清朝順治年間至康熙之末的七十年間,東渡日本的高僧,多達六十餘人,隱元隆琦,即是其中的大龍象,他是日本承應三年(西元一六五四年,即明末永曆八年,亦是清朝順治十一年)七月十五日抵達日本長崎,在這略前的順治八年(西元一六五一年),已有福建的道者超元禪師,到了長崎的崇福寺。及隱元東渡,則為日本佛教史上的一大盛事。也可以說,歷來東渡的華僧之中,對於日本佛教有大貢獻者,雖然很多,而能在日本自創一宗,並獲得後水尾上皇封為國師,也贏得德川幕府大將軍家綱撥地建寺,又受到皇女光子法內親王崇敬的人,在鑑真律師以降,能集如此榮寵於一身者,恐不作第三人想了。尤其隱元東渡之時,已是黃檗山的住持,德高望重,弟子眾多。亦似鑑真第五次東渡成功之時,伴同的弟子有道俗十四人,隨同隱元東渡的弟子有大眉性善、獨湛性瑩、南源性派、獨吼性獅、慧林性機等。
隱元東渡的緣由,表面上是因長崎崇福寺的住持逸然性融遣弟子自強及古石等,來福建的黃檗山邀請前往日本弘揚禪法,一說是依敕命及王命而到日本的。依據《長崎古今集覽》也說,將軍家綱之時,依足利家之慣例,欲建禪剎,並呼請中國道德之僧,隱元便是應聘的一人。
隱元自身是明末臨濟宗的中興法將,他的門下弟子,亦多傑出之士,帶到日本的二十人,十人返回中國,十人留駐日本,嗣後又有木菴性𤦆於西元一六五五年抵長崎福濟寺,即非一如於西元一六五七年東渡住崇福寺,高泉性潡於西元一六六一年到宇治黃檗山,襄助隱元,掌理衣鉢。這三位性字輩的弟子,對於日本黃檗宗的攝化之功甚偉。其中的木菴性𤦆,是日本黃檗山的第二代住持,深得將軍家綱的優遇厚賜,在他手上,黃檗山完成了極有規模的各種殿宇建築,並蒙靈元天皇敕賜紫衣,並在江戶白金,開山興建紫雲山瑞聖寺,在法嗣五十餘人之中,鐵牛道機、慧極道明、潮音道海,並稱為門下三傑。至於高泉性潡,乃是一位奇才,不唯精於寺院行政工作,禪修工夫及文學修養,均屬上乘,後水尾法皇曾向隱元請法,亦敕高泉製〈十牛頌〉,法皇八十聖誕日,高泉提唱,並撰《扶桑禪林僧寶傳》進奉,法皇御覽之後,而云「仰願禪師與朕同壽」,爾後優詔不絕;並且得到皇子一乘院真敬親王皈依嗣法,皇女光子法內親王亦請為之皈依授法號,尚有近衛基熙、基家父子的皈依,大名之建寺供養,在他以世壽六十三歲圓寂之後,靈元上皇敕謚「大圓廣慧國師。」此乃明末第二位中國的歸化禪僧,能在距隱元之後二十年間,亦受另一位上皇敕謚國師號的人。這二位歸化的國師,看來似乎一樣的尊榮,唯其若無隱元禪師在日本的艱辛開路,高泉禪師恐亦不易得到如此高的世榮。
回過頭來,再看隱元禪師東渡之後的艱辛經歷是什麼?他在日本得到的助緣是哪些人士?首先,隱元面臨的日本禪佛教界,是妙心寺派的臨濟禪僧。歡迎他的是妙心寺派的禪僧,評擊他的也是妙心寺派的禪僧。先說迎接隱元並把隱元留在日本,使他的晚年能在日本主流社會,得與原有的臨濟、曹洞二大宗派,分庭抗禮,創立第三禪派黃檗宗的人士,原來都屬於臨濟宗妙心寺派。第一位是妙心寺仙壽院的禿翁妙周,因他於西元一六五二年頃,在京都書肆的一束書物中,見到《隱元錄》二卷,讀之稱奇,因以之示於龍安寺(亦妙心寺派)的龍溪宗潛,見之亦奇,二人便暗暗崇敬隱元禪師,此時距隱元東渡,尚早二年。當隱元抵達長崎,卻巧妙心寺的另一禪僧竺印,也行腳到長崎,便希望盡快把隱元接到京都,正巧禿翁妙周的法兄虛欞了廓,也從廣島至長崎,親炙隱元的法儀,並向禿翁報導。就這樣,龍溪、禿翁、竺印三人,便計畫著把隱元迎請到妙心寺。由於諸方相傳隱元禪師到了日本,便為當時日本的禪宗界,興起了一大股刺激的風潮,仰慕而求參謁者,相當的多。例如大坂大仙寺湛月致虛欞的書信,對於隱元禪師行化日本,稱為「是何幸哉,當于叢林衰替之秋,適遇祖師之西來者,如冷灰之復燃矣,孰不隨喜焉邪。」
由於竺印及龍溪二人之奔走,而將隱元迎至京都,並與將軍及後水尾上皇等日本最高統治階層結了法緣;在隱元禪師未於京都建立黃檗山之前,遇到不少挫折阻礙,所以屢次表示返回中國之意願,均被竺印及龍溪等人勸請挽留下來。諸多不遂順事,乃出諸於明末中國禪林規制行儀,與入宋諸師所學,已有若干不同,所以隱元禪師帶到日本的規約制度,包括飲食次數、敲打法器、唱念南無阿彌陀佛等,均與日本禪宗所行者殊異。另有一部出於妙心寺派的著作《禪林執弊集》二卷,共有三十七項,竟有十七項是針對龍溪、隱元及其黃檗宗的非難。以此可知,隱元禪師東渡日本,既受到妙心寺派許多禪僧的歡迎,也為妙心寺派的禪風帶來考驗,受到歡迎的是仰慕隱元禪師的禪法,受到抗拒的是明末清初中國禪林的行事方式。
如何是隱元禪師的禪法?在他尚未東渡之前,名為《隱元錄》的開示錄,已於日本的書肆流傳,後世相傳的則見於《普照國師廣錄》、《黃檗開山普照國師隱元和尚傳》、《普照國師年譜》等書。寬文三年(西元一六六三年),日本黃檗山開堂之後,後水尾法皇,委託龍溪,向隱元徵求法語,隱元即上〈法要〉一章,現存於《普照國師年譜》,內容如下:
單傳直指之道,別無言說,唯要放下自己身心及一切塵勞。直下返照本來面目,覷破無位真人之時,不被外物所蒙,如鏡對鏡,了了分明,原無一物染污,亦無點塵留礙;圓陀陀、活潑潑、赤灑灑、轉轆轆,名不須名,識焉豈識?直得自徹自悟自了後已也。既已徹悟了然之時,生死去來自由自在,處富貴不為富貴牢籠,處人天不為人天留礙。必謂萬象之主,而成四生之父,以天下為一家,以萬類為一子,繼往開來,駢臻民福,聖種彌隆萬代,法門砥柱千秋。
這一篇法要,共有四個段落:(一)禪法的體驗,首在放下身心及一切塵勞。(二)禪法的工夫,在於返照未出娘胎前的本來面目,原來無物無塵、非名非識。(三)禪悟之後,即得生死自在,不為人天富貴所滯礙。(四)徹悟之人,便可以成佛,便能如上皇那樣,既有聖種隆傳萬代,亦為法門千秋作砥柱了。乃將佛法與皇業,用禪法來一以貫之了,因此而博得後水尾上皇的尊崇,於同年六月二十九日,以納於五重黃金塔內的佛舍利五粒,以及黃金若干相賜,敕建舍利殿。
又於寬文十三年(西元一六七三年)二月三日,後水尾法皇向隱元禪師請法的書問奏對,可見其機鋒峻厲:
後水尾法皇曰:「朕老矣!無日不思道範,但未得一會為歉耳,……朕嘗閱人天眼目臨濟四料揀等,建立宗旨,差別因緣,後來知識下語作頌。朕屢召問都下諸山之僧,未免多涉於機解,若如是則何處見宗旨?據朕見處,了無一法與人,臨濟亦無開口處。雖然,既有料揀不用,則違臨濟之旨,用則不免葛藤,未審如何判斷?」
隱元老和尚奏答云:「萬別千差一掃空。」
法皇聞奏,大悅,乃曰:「朕早知老和尚只有一句,今果然。」
隱元老和尚聞後,呵呵大笑云:「老僧被法皇看破。」
真是一則快問快答的公案。緣於當時日本都下諸山之僧,多被知解葛藤所困,涉及機鋒往還,便落入義解說理的槽臼,所以後水尾法皇不能滿意,一般利智上根禪士,例如禿翁、龍溪、竺印、虛欞等妙心寺派下諸禪僧,一旦接觸到隱元語錄,便生傾慕之心了。
後水尾法皇對於隱元禪師,雖未會面,隱元的奏答,確甚稱旨。故於一六七四年隱元禪師圓寂後的二年,也就是延寶四年八月七日,由於皇女林丘寺開山普明院光子元瑤法內親王之奏請,後水尾法皇親用御筆,將隱元禪師奏對的一句法語「萬別千差一掃空」七個字書寫了,下賜黃檗開山堂。至於為何以「未得一會為歉」?依據後宇多天皇的遺敕,禁止外國僧晉見參謁。可知不是不想會見,乃因不便會見。然而當後水尾法皇聞悉隱元禪師重病不起,即以三句話悼慰:「師者國之寶也,倘世壽可續,朕願以身代之。」上皇為期隱元禪師這樣的國寶,長壽住世,竟「願以身代之」,這絕對不是一般客套的悼慰話了,上皇對於一位歸化的禪僧,如此真情相待,實在難得可貴。
接著亦由已經出家為尼的皇女林丘寺宮光子法內親王,提出奏請,後水尾法皇便對隱元禪師授給「大光普照國師」之謚號。敕文云:
朕聞臨濟之道,遍行天下,至天童雙徑,光輝益盛。唯我日域,久乏宗匠,幸黃檗隱元琦和尚,受請東來,重立綱宗,闡揚濟道,大光於國,功不可磨,朕屢沾法乳,簡在朕心,故
特賜大光普照國師之號,以旌厥德,欽哉,故諭。
寬文十三年四月三日
敕文中一則慨歎「唯我日域,久乏宗匠」,再則稱頌隱元禪師東來日本,「重立綱宗」,闡揚臨濟祖道,「大光於國。」此係指出日本禪宗此際已無大匠,故藉隱元東渡而重振臨濟宗風。以此可知,隱元禪師對於日本禪佛教的振興,厥功甚偉。縱然受到來自妙心寺保守派的許多抨擊,說他不識禮法,說他濫收徒眾,連馬伕船腳為了糊口,也到寺內剃度,數百惡比丘,都成了會眾。又說黃檗宗所用的口語,非倭音、非唐音、亦非明音,乃是用的韃靼音等等。可是,隱元禪師東來,已為日本的禪佛教界,注入了新鮮的源頭活水。
回顧中國佛教,經過宋明理學的撻伐以及元朝蒙古人的異族統治,漢傳佛教諸宗,到了明初,已是奄奄一息,命如懸絲。迄於明末,相當日本江戶幕府時代的初期,中國佛教出了不少大善知識,臨濟派下名德群出,曹洞一脈也極興隆,隱元隆琦禪師,便是出現在那一個時代的臨濟宗傳人,由於當時的中國,像隱元禪師這樣的名匠極多,他東渡日本,找到一塊發揮所長的新天地,可能要比他留在中國的意義更大。
當我研讀我的先師東初老和尚遺著《中日佛教交通史》的過程中,發現一項有趣的事實,那便是日僧留學中國者,不論入唐、入宋、入元、入明,遊歷參學之後,即返回日本;華僧東渡者,往往便在日本留下,成為歸化僧,甚至像唐之鑑真,明之隱元,成了日本佛教的拓荒者及中興者,而被日本朝野尊稱為人間國寶。因為他們東渡是為弘化。反觀我聖嚴自己,一九七○年代,東渡日本,是為留學,完成博士學位之後,便離開了日本,這好像也是理所當然的事了。
這篇文章,到此必須擱筆,因為我不是研究日本黃檗宗的學者,引用的資料,主要出於上述先師的遺著以及辻善之助著的《日本佛教史》第九卷,將之提供《黃檗文華》刊載,殊覺汗顏。尤其是用現代口語的中文撰寫,對於日本讀者極度不便,我要為此致歉。以我這個中國禪僧,寫一篇中文來紀念文華殿開館,算是聊表一份敬意;更貼切地說,我是寫給中文讀者們看的,是讓中文讀者們約略知道一些日本黃檗宗的開創事積,以資緬懷明末東渡的先賢古德。
(二○○三年十一月十五日法鼓山僧釋聖嚴撰於東初禪寺)
http://ddc.shengyen.org/pc.htm
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Sunday, March 1, 2015
Bill Porter's (Red Pine) Translation of Yinyuan's Poems
|  | 
| Bill Porter at University of Arizona Poetry Center, Sept. 23, 2013. Photo taken by Jiang Wu | 
Yinyuan is a very prolific poet. He wrote more than 5,000 poems in his life time. In my book, I translated a few. But translating poems is the least I want to do as a scholar because I lack the sensitivity of a good poem and my use of English vocabulary is clumsy. I asked my friend Bill Porter (比尔波特) to look at my translations. Bill has been translating Chan poems for decades under the name Red Pine. He re-translated all poems. Eventually, I adopted all his translations in my book. Here are the differences in one of Yinyuan's poems on Mount Fuji.
Bill Porter translation
Us both with white hair and me old besides
facing each other we think the same thought
I would say something deep but have nothing to say
I’m relying on you to keep this going forever
My translation
White head and an old man with white head,
Two of us face each other with the same thought.
I want to talk philosophy but have nothing to say,
Relying on you, my teaching propagates forever. (IGZS 8: 3746) 
Chinese original 
其二
白頭以及白頭翁,兩兩相看心事同。
我欲玄談無可說,借君一脈永流通。
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