天樂鳴空集序
Preface to "Heavenly Music Resounding in the Sky"
予讀《易．傳》至「天地閉，賢人隱」，未嘗不掩卷長歎息也。自金神現夢、正法東傳，大善知識乘時利見者不可悉數；降自宋、元則冒竊名位者多，而得正知見者寡，故雲棲大師每歎：「支那國裡覓一須陀洹人不可得。」予竊謂求果人於眾所知識則誠不易，苟求之於隱跡韜光或亦不無，恨未能遍歷寰區訪之。邇來禪門僣濫，不忍見聞，無論果證絕響，雖路頭端正者亦不易得，每每中夜痛哭流涕，故獨於袁石公之《西方合論》深生隨喜，謂之空谷足音。
When I read the Book of Changes and came to the passage, "When Heaven and Earth are closed, the wise man hides," I could not help but close the book and sigh deeply. Since the golden deity appeared in a dream and the true Dharma spread eastward, countless great and virtuous teachers have emerged in their time. However, from the Song and Yuan dynasties onward, many have falsely claimed titles and positions, while few have attained true insight. Thus, Master Yunqi often lamented, "In the land of China, it is impossible to find even one Stream-enterer." I privately believe that seeking enlightened individuals among the well-known is indeed difficult, but if one searches among those who live in obscurity, perhaps they are not entirely absent. It is a regret that I cannot travel everywhere to seek them out. In recent times, the Zen school has become chaotic and excessive, making it unbearable to witness. Not only is genuine realization rare, but even those who follow the correct path are hard to find. Often, I weep bitterly in the middle of the night. That is why I deeply rejoice in Yuan Shigong's *Western Harmony Treatise*, considering it a rare and precious voice in a silent valley.
客冬，偶檇李王止菴居士以鮑性泉所著《天樂鳴空集》見示。性泉，山陰人，鬻楮於檇李，不過一市賈耳。初禮紫柏大師，師勗以背讀《楞嚴》、《法華》，遂乞名筆，書細楷方冊，鏤板流通。嗣復肆志於《華嚴合論》、《大乘止觀》、《傳燈》、《宗鏡》諸錄，併與湛然禪師往還，後乃皈依雲棲大師，坐脫超登蓮土。噫！其人可謂甚希有矣。
Last winter, I happened to meet the layman Wang Zhi'an from Zuili, who showed me the *Tianyue Mingkong Collection* compiled by Bao Xingquan. Xingquan, a native of Shanyin, made his living selling paper in Zuili—merely a common merchant. He first paid respects to Master Zibo, who encouraged him to recite the *Śūraṅgama Sūtra* and the *Lotus Sūtra* from memory. He then sought skilled calligraphers to transcribe these texts in fine small script, carved them onto printing blocks, and circulated them widely. Later, he devoted himself to studying the *Huayan He Lun*, *Mahāyāna Śamatha-vipaśyanā*, the *Transmission of the Lamp*, and the *Mirror of the Source*, among other records, and also corresponded with Chan Master Zhanran. Eventually, he took refuge under Master Yunqi, passed away in seated meditation, and was reborn in the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Ah! Such a person is truly rare indeed.
是集為陶石梁居士閱本，付於老友錢永明手，永明臨化以授止菴，時逾十年，隨身往還，塗將萬里，屢謀剞劂於張菊存、汪爾陶、徐節之、高念祖諸道友，而緣尚有待。予得展閱原稿，其立論大約以行解合一為宗，以悟後修行為正，蓋深得《合論》之旨，兼悟《宗鏡》之門，堪與末世狂禪為頂門針，無怪乎狂禪惡其害己，反謗為別一路頭耳。
This collection was originally the reading copy of lay practitioner Tao Shiliang. He entrusted it to his old friend Qian Yongming. As Yongming approached his passing, he passed it on to Zhian. Over ten years, it traveled with him, covering nearly ten thousand miles. He repeatedly sought to have it published with fellow practitioners Zhang Jucun, Wang Ertao, Xu Jiezhi, and Gao Nianzu, but the conditions were not yet ripe.
I had the opportunity to examine the original manuscript. Its main argument generally holds that practice and understanding are one, and that cultivation after awakening is the true path. It deeply grasps the essence of the *Combined Treatise* and also comprehends the gateway of the *Mirror of the School*. It serves as a crucial corrective for the reckless Chan of the latter age—no wonder those reckless practitioners resented it for exposing their faults and slandered it as a different path altogether.
嗟乎！洙泗不得中行思狂狷，乃最惡鄉愿；不得見聖人、君子，思善人有恒，乃最惡亡為有、虛為盈。余即不得與性泉周旋，而讀其遺書，殊深潛德不耀之思、昔友今亡之歎，爰標揭其尤粹精者，併繫之數語，想見性泉之泉無時無日不活潑當前，或者是書兆足以行耶？
Alas! When the teachings of Confucius could not find those who walked the middle path, they turned to the passionate and the principled, for they most despised the hypocrites of the village. When one cannot meet sages or noble persons, they long for good people of steadfast virtue, for they most detest those who pretend to possess what they lack, or feign fullness where there is emptiness.
Since I can no longer engage with Xingquan in conversation, I read his remaining writings, deeply moved by the thought of his hidden virtue that never sought fame, and sighing over the loss of a friend from the past. Therefore, I have selected the most refined and essential parts of his work, adding a few words of my own. Perhaps, in this way, Xingquan’s ever-flowing, lively spirit may still be felt here and now—and maybe this book will be a sign that his teachings will endure.
癸巳春仲，佛日蕅益道人智旭書於營泉丈室。
Written in the spring of the Guisi year, by the Buddhist monk Ouyi Daoren Zhi Xuan, at the Yingquan Meditation Hall.