童真和尚語錄序
Preface to the Recorded Sayings of Monk Tongzhen
迦文之道，自菩提達磨來我東華，至臨濟為大振，徑山為再振。山十四傳及明啟禎間，而有聚雲吹萬老人，宗風丕顯，聲藉一時。吾蜀自宋元以來，未有能或之先也。老人高弟有三，首曰慶忠鐵壁禪師，如聖門之顏子。予童時即聞其名，錦江玉壘，上至王侯卿士，下及黎庶編氓，無不欽承折服。師出世三十餘載，均嗣法者，自朝宰士夫而外，親承入室僅十八人，童真和尚居第十焉。師乃吾郡相國江公之後，太守年伯海籌公之少子也，與予稱世好。師自髫時，穎異絕人，能目過成誦。予嘗下之先年伯，靡不以隆顯是望，而師淡如也。三十年來，鴈杳魚沉。辛酉之春，客有來京師者，以師語錄見示，予且駭之，始知師荷擔釋門，為一代知識，承徑山之後矣。嘗憶予與師窗下時，每談世外空宗之學，則津津然，而於政事文章，則藐焉頤佇。退而與家君言之，安知今日之舉，豈非疇昔之意也哉？信之出世丈夫，果富貴功名之所難單，威武貧賤之莫屈移，先儒之言，誠不誣矣。間讀傳燈，見崔欽因緣，謂出家乃大丈夫事，雖將相有所不能，予以為妄。今覲禪師，以高門華胄，如是體才，蚤能擺脫紅塵，秕糠富貴，上躋祖域，成一代之宗師，豈非大丈夫也哉？予也桎梏一官，碌碌塵勞，日月逝兮，去師遠矣。何時解此束縛，與師相聚於古松流泉間，一洗塵纓，是所願也。至語錄一道，予且未夢，安敢負水河濱，置糞佛頭？聊述師之始末，為同人輩一臻勸善云爾。
The Way of the Buddha, since Bodhidharma brought it to our Eastern Land, reached its great flourishing with Linji and was revitalized again at Jingshan. Through fourteen generations at the mountain, by the Ming dynasty's Chongzhen era, there emerged the Elder Chuanyun Chuiwan, whose lineage shone brightly and whose reputation resounded throughout the age. In our Shu region, since the Song and Yuan dynasties, none had surpassed him. The Elder had three outstanding disciples, foremost among them being Chan Master Qingzhong Tiebi, akin to Yan Hui among Confucius's disciples. From my childhood, I heard his name—from the nobles and ministers of the Jinjiang and Yulei regions down to the common people, all revered and submitted to him. The Master taught for over thirty years, and aside from court officials and scholars, only eighteen personally entered his chamber as successors. Among them, the Venerable Tongzhen ranked tenth. He was a descendant of Prime Minister Jiang of our prefecture, the youngest son of the Prefect and my elder, Haichou Gong, with whom our families shared a longstanding bond. From his youth, the Master displayed extraordinary brilliance, able to memorize texts at a glance. I once spoke with his late father, who held high hopes for his worldly success, yet the Master remained indifferent to such pursuits. For thirty years, he was like a wild goose lost in the clouds, a fish hidden in the depths. In the spring of the Xinyou year, a visitor came to the capital and showed me the Master's recorded sayings. I was astonished, only then realizing that he had taken up the burden of the Buddhist path, becoming a guiding light of his generation, carrying forward the legacy of Jingshan. I recall our days studying together by the window, how he would speak with fervor about the teachings of emptiness beyond the world, yet show little interest in affairs of governance or literary pursuits. Later, I mentioned this to my father—who could have known that his path today was already hinted at in those early conversations? Truly, a great being who leaves the world cannot be bound by wealth, fame, or power, nor swayed by poverty or hardship. The words of the ancient sages are indeed not false. I once read the *Transmission of the Lamp* and came across the story of Cui Qin, which says that leaving home is the work of a great person, something even generals and ministers cannot achieve. I thought it an exaggeration. But now, witnessing the Master—born of noble lineage, gifted with such talent, yet able early on to cast aside worldly dust, treat wealth as chaff, ascend to the ancestral realm, and become a master of his age—is this not the mark of a great person? As for me, bound by official duties, toiling in worldly dust, the days pass, and I grow distant from the Master. When will I cast off these shackles to meet him again among ancient pines and flowing streams, washing clean the dust of worldly cares? That is my deepest wish. As for the path revealed in his recorded sayings, I have not even dreamed of it—how could I dare to carry water to the river or place dung upon the Buddha's head? I merely recount the Master's story from beginning to end, hoping it may inspire fellow seekers toward goodness.
賜進士出身前翰林院太常寺少卿今奉 旨巡撫江西戶部左侍郎郡人劉如漢撰