No. 1119-A敘
No. 1119-A Preface
沙彌律儀者。明事之典也。雲棲要略者。顯理之書也。事即戒相威儀。理即無作戒心。事無理不明。理無事不顯。事理一如。戒心明矣。葢如來大慈。說是戒經。使出家者。無為無欲。清淨自守。但經律深奧。義廣難明。故大師乘願而來。刪繁取要。略而解之。以世間法。釋出世間法。以出世間法。顯世間法。其間少研罪相。多於勸持者。意謂沙彌初入道門。未便預聞篇聚也。吾本師見月老和尚。中興止作。觀其要略文理優暢。感發初機。故傳戒三十餘年。凡受戒者。必令深思熟讀。使其威儀庠序。知所施行。乃與登壇受具。是以此書盛行於世也。然大師以春秋之才。而解戒相。用禮記之法。而輯威儀。若非窮究經律。博通傳史者。則不能識其源委也。余數十年來。恒以為念。因此朝夕黽勉。遍搜內外諸書。析義消文。積成上下兩卷。名曰述義。謂述其要略之大義也。後之覽者。倘因跬步而登山。由初津而入海。即達如來境界。事理宛然。則知一切治世語言文字。皆與實相不相違背也。
The Novice Precepts are a text that clarifies the rules of conduct. The Essential Summary of Yunqi is a work that illuminates the principles behind them. The rules refer to the precepts and deportment; the principles refer to the unconditioned precept-mind. Without principles, the rules remain unclear; without rules, the principles cannot be made manifest. When rules and principles are unified, the precept-mind becomes clear.
It was out of great compassion that the Tathagata taught these precept scriptures, enabling those who have left home to live with non-striving and non-desire, maintaining pure self-discipline. However, the sutras and vinaya are profound and vast in meaning, difficult to comprehend fully. Therefore, the Great Master came by vow, simplifying the voluminous texts and extracting the essentials, providing a concise commentary. He used worldly means to explain the transcendent teachings and used the transcendent teachings to illuminate worldly matters. Within this work, he spent less time on the detailed categories of offenses and more on encouraging the observance of precepts. This was because novice monks, having just entered the path, were not yet ready to hear the full classifications of offenses.
My own teacher, the Elder Master Jianyue, revived the practice of precepts and their observance. Observing that the Essential Summary was elegant in style and smooth in reasoning, inspiring beginners, he spent over thirty years transmitting the precepts. All who received the precepts were required to contemplate deeply and recite it thoroughly, so that their deportment would be dignified and orderly, and they would know how to conduct themselves before ascending the platform to receive full ordination. This is why this book became so widely circulated.
The Great Master used the literary talent of a Spring and Autumn chronicler to explain the precept rules, and employed the methods of the Book of Rites to compile the deportment guidelines. Without a thorough study of the sutras and vinaya, and a broad knowledge of historical records, one could not grasp the origins and development of this work. For decades, I have constantly kept this in mind. Therefore, I have labored day and night, searching through various texts both sacred and secular, analyzing their meanings and clarifying their language. Over time, I accumulated two volumes, titled "Exposition of the Meaning" — meaning it expounds on the great significance of the Essential Summary.
Future readers, if they ascend the mountain step by step and enter the ocean from the shore, will reach the Tathagata's realm, where rules and principles are fully present. They will then understand that all worldly words and expressions are not in contradiction with ultimate reality.
旹康熈戊子年桂月吉旦毗陵佛菴玉道者題於西湖昭慶之法乳堂
Written in the auspicious month of August during the Kangxi reign year of Wuzi (1708), by the Buddhist practitioner Yudao of the Foyan Monastery in Piling, inscribed at the Falv Hall of Zhaoging Temple by the West Lake.