自序
Author's Preface
《華嚴經》云：「若有眾生曾一念信入毘盧法界者，縱以惡業墮阿鼻獄，毘盧放光，光觸其身，應念命殞，即生兜率陀天，受無量樂。正樂之頃，忽有天鼓自空而鳴，告曰：『此樂虛妄，不久壞滅，慎勿貪著，當念無常。又，諸業報不從東方來、不從南、西、北方、四維上下來，但從顛倒生，以因緣有。』諸天聞已，頓悟諸法無生，即證十地果位。」
The *Avatamsaka Sutra* says: "If any being has ever, even for a single moment, believed in and entered the realm of Vairocana Buddha, then even if they fall into the Avici Hell due to evil karma, Vairocana will emit light. When that light touches their body, their life in hell will instantly end, and they will be reborn in the Tushita Heaven, enjoying boundless bliss. In the midst of that bliss, suddenly a heavenly drum will sound from the sky, proclaiming: 'This bliss is empty and illusory; it will soon decay and vanish. Do not cling to it—remember impermanence. Moreover, all karmic retribution does not come from the east, south, west, or north, nor from the four intermediate directions, above, or below. It arises solely from delusion and exists due to causes and conditions.' Upon hearing this, the heavenly beings instantly realize the unborn nature of all phenomena and attain the fruit of the Ten Grounds."
蓋毘盧之光熾然常放，無間歇、無分別，而地獄眾生未必盡出。其出者，乃往昔曾與毘盧有緣，一念信入法界者耳。若無緣種，雖有常光，正如生盲曝杲日之下。由是觀之，則此光不屬毘盧，當在我也。設若在我，則地獄之中何不齊成解脫？是知此光不住毘盧、不住於我，非我、非渠，了無處所。我即毘盧、毘盧即我，是為不可思議，故得應念脫苦，超昇兜率。
The light of Vairocana blazes forth constantly, without interruption or distinction. Yet, not all beings in hell are liberated by it. Those who are freed are those who, in the past, have formed a connection with Vairocana and, in a single moment of faith, entered the Dharma realm. If there is no seed of connection, even though the light shines eternally, it is like a blind person standing beneath the bright sun—they cannot see it.
From this perspective, the light does not belong solely to Vairocana; it also depends on me. But if it depends on me, why are not all beings in hell liberated at once? Thus, we realize that this light does not reside in Vairocana, nor does it reside in me. It is neither mine nor his—it has no fixed location. I am Vairocana, and Vairocana is me. This is inconceivable, and it is through this understanding that suffering is transcended in an instant, leading to rebirth in the Tushita Heaven.
若謂此光有住、有著，即地獄漫漫，何由出哉？即離地獄，復耽天樂，樂久生迷，無常忽至，衰相現前，復沉苦海，勢所必然。乃聞天鼓如是激揚「業體本空，罪性無主」，即獲無生，頓超十地。而此天鼓亦無所從，但有音聲，了無形質，雖無形質，常自空鳴，是故號之為無依智印法門。妙矣哉，無依智印也。
If one thinks this light has a fixed abode or an object to grasp, then the hells stretch endlessly—how could one ever escape them? Even if one leaves the hells, they may again become attached to celestial pleasures. Long enjoyment leads to confusion, and when impermanence suddenly arrives, signs of decline appear, and one sinks back into the sea of suffering—this is bound to happen. But when one hears the celestial drum proclaiming so stirringly, "The nature of karma is fundamentally empty; guilt has no master," one immediately attains the unborn and suddenly transcends the ten stages. And yet, this celestial drum has no origin; it is only sound, utterly without form or substance. Though without form or substance, it constantly resounds from emptiness. Therefore, it is called the Dharma Gate of the Unsupported Wisdom Seal. How wondrous is the Unsupported Wisdom Seal!
吾越有山，名曰鵝鼻，又號大巖，古寶掌千歲和尚嘗居於此。登其巔者，每聞空中樂聲嘹喨，皆謂天帝作樂，故其鄉號為天樂。
In my homeland, there is a mountain called Goose-Nose, also known as Great Rock. In ancient times, the thousand-year-old monk Bao Zhang once lived there. Those who climbed its peak often heard clear, melodious music in the air, and they all believed it was the music of the Heavenly Emperor. Thus, the region came to be known as Heavenly Music.
噫！天樂即天鼓也，天鼓即無依智印法門，即毘盧法界之光。此光不離日用現前，日用而見此光，由此光而入無依智印法門，則天鼓轟轟、天樂鏗鏗，不舍晝夜，遍界全聞。若將耳聽，何異聾盲？予復撾之，欲警昏蒙。雖形言跡，出處無從，若欲覓者，捕影捉風，以故假號天鼓居士，而名此集為「天樂鳴空」。
Ah! The Heavenly Music is the Heavenly Drum, and the Heavenly Drum is the Dharma Gate of Unattached Wisdom Seal—the light of Vairocana’s Dharma Realm. This light is never apart from our daily activities; in our daily lives, we encounter this light, and through this light, we enter the Dharma Gate of Unattached Wisdom Seal. Then the Heavenly Drum rumbles, the Heavenly Music resounds, ceaseless day and night, heard throughout the entire realm. If one tries to listen with the ear, how is that different from being deaf and blind? I strike it again to awaken the dull and confused. Though expressed in words and traces, its source cannot be found. If you seek it, you grasp at shadows and chase the wind. Therefore, I take the name Heavenly Drum Layman, and call this collection “Heavenly Music Echoing in the Void.”
時萬曆庚戌，上元前二日，春，天鼓居士鮑宗肇自序於無礙閣中。
In the spring of the year Gengxu during the Wanli era, two days before the Lantern Festival, Layman Tiangu, Bao Zongzhao, wrote this preface in the Wu'ai Pavilion.