---
title: "宋高僧傳 · 唐梓州慧義寺清虛傳"
description: "宋高僧传由北宋赞宁等人奉敕编撰于太平兴国七年，是继唐高僧传后重要的佛教传记文献。全书三十卷收录南朝至宋初十宗共五百三十三位高僧事迹，分译经义解习禅明律护法感通遗身读诵兴福杂科十科。该书系统记载中古佛教传承脉络与宗派发展，史料翔实文体典雅，为研究中国佛教史社会史及文化史的核心典籍，与梁唐明高僧传并称四朝高僧传，在佛教文献学中具有承前启后的权威地位。"
url: "https://rushiwowen.co/en/r/cmd005h9b03val704at8t4maw"
---

### 唐梓州慧義寺清虛傳

> Biography of Qingxu from Huiyi Monastery in Zizhou, Tang Dynasty

釋清虛，姓唐氏，梓州人也。立性剛決，桀黠難防，忽迴心長誦《金剛般若》。三業偕齊，無有懈怠。甞於山林持諷，有七鹿馴擾，若傾聽焉，聲息而去。又隣居失火，連甍灰燼，唯虛之屋，飈焰飛過，略無焦灼。長安二年，獨遊藍田悟真寺上方北院，舊無井泉——人力不及——，遠取於㵎，挈缾荷甕，運致極勞。時《華嚴》大師法藏聞虛持經靈驗，乃請祈泉。即入彌勒閣內焚香，經聲達旦者三。忽心中似見三玉女在閣西北山腹，以刀子剜地，隨便有水。虛熟記其處，遂趨起掘之，果獲甘泉，用之不竭。四年，從少林寺坐夏。山頂有一佛室，甚寬敞，人無敢到者，云鬼神居宅焉。甞有律師恃其戒行，夜往念律，見一巨人以矛刺之，狼狽下山，逡巡氣絕。又，持《火頭金剛呪》僧，時所宗重，眾謂之曰：「君呪力無雙，能宿彼否？」曰：「斯焉足懼？」於是齎香火入坐持呪。俄而神出，以手擥足，投之㵎下，七日不語，精神昏倒。虛聞之曰：「下趣鬼物敢爾？」即往彼如常誦經。夜聞堂東有聲甚厲，即念《十一面觀音呪》。又聞堂中似有兩牛鬪，佛像皆振。呪既亡效，還持本經一契，帖然相次，影響皆絕。自此居者無患，神遂移去。神龍二年，準詔入內祈雨。經二七日雪降，中宗以為未濟時望，令就寺更祈請。即於佛殿內精禱，并煉一指。纔及一宵，雨周千里，指復如舊。纔遇大水，寺屋皆墊溺，其院無苦，若無澇沒。凡諸異驗，皆如此也。

> Monk Qingxu, whose lay surname was Tang, was a native of Zizhou. He was firm and resolute by nature, and had once been unruly and difficult to manage. Then, suddenly changing his heart, he began to chant the \*Diamond Sutra\* (Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra) continuously. He disciplined his body, speech, and mind equally, with no negligence. Once, while chanting in the mountains and forests, seven deer came and tamedly stayed nearby, as if listening carefully, then left when his voice stopped. Another time, a neighbor's house caught fire, and the adjoining buildings were burned to ashes. Qingxu's house alone was passed over by the flames, showing not even the slightest scorch mark. In the second year of the Chang'an era (702 CE), he traveled alone to the Upper North Cloister of Wuzhen Temple on Blue Field Mountain. There was no well or spring there—human effort could not provide one—so water had to be fetched from a faraway stream, carrying bottles and carrying jars, which was extremely laborious. At that time, the \*Avatamsaka\* Master Fazang, having heard that Qingxu’s chanting of the sutra was divinely effective, asked him to pray for a spring. Qingxu then entered the Maitreya Pavilion, burned incense, and chanted the sutra until dawn for three days straight. Suddenly, in his mind, he seemed to see three Jade Maidens inside the mountain slope northwest of the pavilion, digging the ground with knives. Water then flowed forth from that spot. Qingxu firmly remembered the location, hurried up, and dug there. He indeed obtained a sweet spring, which has never run dry since. In the fourth year (704 CE), he spent the summer retreat at Shaolin Temple. At the mountain peak, there was a Buddhist hall, very spacious, which no one dared to enter, as it was said to be haunted by spirits. A Vinaya master once, relying on his disciplined conduct, went there at night to recite the monastic rules. He saw a giant stab him with a spear. Stumbling down the mountain, he soon died of his injuries. Another monk who specialized in the \*Fire-Head Vajra Dharani\*, highly respected at the time, was challenged by others: "Your mantra power is unparalleled—can you stay overnight there?" He replied, "How could that be worth fearing?" So, he took incense and fire, entered, and sat reciting the mantra. Before long, a spirit appeared, grabbed him by the foot, and threw him down the ravine. He remained speechless for seven days, his spirit deeply confused and collapsed. When Qingxu heard this, he said, "Are such lowly ghost beings truly so arrogant?" He then went there and chanted the sutra as usual. That night, he heard a fierce sound from the east side of the hall. He then recited the \*Eleven-Faced Guanyin Dharani\*. Then, from within the hall, he heard something like two bulls fighting, and the Buddha statues all shook. Since the mantra proved ineffective, he returned to holding his original sutra text. Instantly, everything became quiet and orderly, and all sounds and shadows vanished completely. From then on, those who stayed there had no trouble, and the spirit moved away. In the second year of the Shenlong era (706 CE), following an imperial decree, he entered the palace to pray for rain. After fourteen days, snow fell. Emperor Zhongzong felt this did not yet fulfill the people's hopes, so he sent Qingxu back to the temple to pray again. Inside the Buddha hall, he prayed sincerely, even burning one of his fingers. In just one night, rain fell for a thousand li, and his finger healed as before. When a great flood struck, all the temple buildings were submerged, but Qingxu’s residence remained unharmed, as if untouched by the floodwaters. All these miraculous signs were just like this.