No. 1497-A
No. 1497-A
水陸儀文。世傳起自梁武帝。昔白起以長平一坑。至四十萬。罪大惡極。久沈地獄。無繇出離。致夢於武帝。武帝與誌公諸師議拔救之䇿。知大藏有水陸儀文。禱之。則光明滿堂。繇此舉行。傳之後世。而今藏並無其文。金山寺之本。亦前後錯雜。不見始終頭緒。時僧行者。亦復隨意所作。各各稍殊。南都所繪上下堂像。隨畫師所傳。奉為定規。頗不的當。而啟建道場者。化募資費。累月累年。始克成就。陳設繁文。以致士女老幼。紛至沓來。如俗中看旗看春。交足摩肩。男女混亂。日以千計。而不免褺瀆聖賢。衝突鬼神。失多而過重。有禍而無功。多致道場不終其事而感惡報。甚可懼也。惟四明志磐法師所輯儀文。至精至密。至簡至易。精密而不傷於煩長。簡易而不病於缺漏。其本止存四明。諸方皆未之見也。予為訂正。重壽諸梓。以廣流通。雖然。亦不可易易舉數數舉也。易則必至於數。數則自生夫易。繇是疏於誠敬。多諸過愆。則求福而反禍矣。幸相與慎之。(竹窻三筆中錄出)
The Water and Land Ritual text is traditionally said to have originated with Emperor Wu of Liang. In the past, Bai Qi buried alive forty thousand people at Changping. His crimes were heinous, and he remained long sunk in hell with no way to escape. This caused him to appear to Emperor Wu in a dream. Emperor Wu consulted with Master Zhi and other eminent monks on how to rescue him. They learned that the Great Treasury contained the Water and Land Ritual text. When they prayed, the hall was filled with radiant light. Thus the ritual was performed and passed down to later generations. Yet the current canon contains no such text. The copy at Jinshan Temple is also jumbled front to back, with no clear beginning or end. Monks who perform the ritual also improvise as they please, each version somewhat different. The paintings of the upper and lower halls in the Southern Capital follow whatever the artists transmitted and are regarded as fixed standards, though they are not quite accurate. Furthermore, those who sponsor these ceremonies raise funds over months and years before they can complete them. The elaborate displays draw men and women, old and young, flocking in droves—like crowds at a festival or parade, shoulder to shoulder and foot to foot. Men and women mix indiscriminately, numbering in the thousands daily. This inevitably leads to disrespect toward sages and disturbances among spirits and ghosts. The losses outweigh the gains, and the faults are heavy. It brings calamity rather than merit, often causing the ceremony to fail midway and inviting evil retribution. This is truly dreadful. Only the ritual text compiled by Master Zhipan of Siming is most refined and precise, most simple and easy. It is precise yet not burdensomely lengthy, simple yet not lacking in completeness. His version exists only in Siming; nowhere else has seen it. I have corrected and amended it, and reprinted it on woodblocks to spread its circulation. Even so, it should not be held carelessly or too frequently. If it becomes easy, it will inevitably become frequent; if frequent, it will breed carelessness. Thus sincerity and reverence will wane, and many faults will arise—seeking blessings but instead courting disaster. Let us all take heed and be cautious.
(Excerpted from Zhuchuang Sanbi)