第十二回 · 出榜招僧 Summoning the Monks; Fu Yi's Objection — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

出榜招僧 Summoning the Monks; Fu Yi's Objection

工gōng完wán回huí奏zòu，太tài宗zōng甚shèn喜xǐ。卻què又yòu聚jù集jí多duō官guān，出chū榜bǎng招zhāo僧sēng，修xiū建jiàn水shuǐ陸lù大dà會huì，超chāo度dù冥míng府fǔ孤gū魂hún。榜bǎng行xíng天tiān下xià，著zhuó各gè處chù官guān員yuán推tuī選xuǎn有yǒu道dào的de高gāo僧sēng，上shàng長cháng安ān做zuò會huì。那nǎ消xiāo個gè月yuè之zhī期qī，天tiān下xià多duō僧sēng俱jù到dào。唐táng王wáng傳chuán旨zhǐ，著zhuó太tài史shǐ丞chéng傅fù奕yì選xuǎn舉jǔ高gāo僧sēng，修xiū建jiàn佛fó事shì。傅fù奕yì聞wén旨zhǐ，即jí上shàng疏shū止zhǐ浮fú圖tú，以yǐ言yán無wú佛fó。工gōng完wán回huí奏zòu，太tài宗zōng甚shèn喜xǐ。却què又yòu聚jù集jí多duō官guān，出chū榜bǎng招zhāo僧sēng，修xiū建jiàn水shuǐ陆lù大dà会huì，超chāo度dù冥míng府fǔ孤gū魂hún。榜bǎng行xíng天tiān下xià，著zhuó各gè处chù官guān员yuán推tuī选xuǎn有yǒu道dào的de高gāo僧sēng，上shàng长cháng安ān做zuò会huì。那nǎ消xiāo个gè月yuè之zhī期qī，天tiān下xià多duō僧sēng俱jù到dào。唐táng王wáng传chuán旨zhǐ，著zhuó太tài史shǐ丞chéng傅fù奕yì选xuǎn举jǔ高gāo僧sēng，修xiū建jiàn佛fó事shì。傅fù奕yì闻wén旨zhǐ，即jí上shàng疏shū止zhǐ浮fú图tú，以yǐ言yán无wú佛fó。

逐句解 Line by line

工gōng完wán回huí奏zòu，太tài宗zōng甚shèn喜xǐ。工gōng完wán回huí奏zòu，太tài宗zōng甚shèn喜xǐ。

When the work was completed and reported back, Taizong was greatly pleased.

The 'work' is the building of the Xiangguo Temple from the preceding passage. 甚 in 甚喜 is the intensifier shèn, 'very.'

卻què又yòu聚jù集jí多duō官guān，出chū榜bǎng招zhāo僧sēng，修xiū建jiàn水shuǐ陸lù大dà會huì，超chāo度dù冥míng府fǔ孤gū魂hún。却què又yòu聚jù集jí多duō官guān，出chū榜bǎng招zhāo僧sēng，修xiū建jiàn水shuǐ陆lù大dà会huì，超chāo度dù冥míng府fǔ孤gū魂hún。

He then assembled his many officials once more, issued a proclamation to summon monks, and set about holding a Grand Mass of Land and Water to deliver the orphaned souls of the underworld.

The 水陸大會 (Grand Mass of Land and Water, Shuǐlù dàhuì) is a great Buddhist rite of universal deliverance for the dead, and the central religious occasion of the chapter. 超度 (chāo dù) is 'to ferry over, to deliver' departed souls; 孤魂 are the 'orphaned souls' with no one to make offerings for them.

榜bǎng行xíng天tiān下xià，著zhuó各gè處chù官guān員yuán推tuī選xuǎn有yǒu道dào的de高gāo僧sēng，上shàng長cháng安ān做zuò會huì。榜bǎng行xíng天tiān下xià，著zhuó各gè处chù官guān员yuán推tuī选xuǎn有yǒu道dào的de高gāo僧sēng，上shàng长cháng安ān做zuò会huì。

The proclamation went forth throughout the realm, charging officials everywhere to select eminent monks of the Way and send them up to Chang'an to hold the assembly.

著 in 著各處官員 is the causative zhuó ('to charge, to order'); 長 in 長安 is cháng.

那nǎ消xiāo個gè月yuè之zhī期qī，天tiān下xià多duō僧sēng俱jù到dào。那nǎ消xiāo个gè月yuè之zhī期qī，天tiān下xià多duō僧sēng俱jù到dào。

In less than a month's time, monks from all over the empire had arrived.

那消個月之期 is a vernacular idiom, 'it took not even a month'; 那 here is the rhetorical interrogative nǎ ('how would it require'), and 消 means 'to need, to take [time].'

唐táng王wáng傳chuán旨zhǐ，著zhuó太tài史shǐ丞chéng傅fù奕yì選xuǎn舉jǔ高gāo僧sēng，修xiū建jiàn佛fó事shì。唐táng王wáng传chuán旨zhǐ，著zhuó太tài史shǐ丞chéng傅fù奕yì选xuǎn举jǔ高gāo僧sēng，修xiū建jiàn佛fó事shì。

The Tang king issued a command charging Fu Yi, Assistant Grand Astrologer, to choose out the eminent monks and set the Buddhist services in train.

太史丞傅奕 — Fu Yi, Assistant Director of the Astrological Bureau — is drawn from history: the Tang official Fu Yi (555–639) was a famous opponent of Buddhism who repeatedly memorialized against it. 著 in 著太史丞 is again the causative zhuó.

傅fù奕yì聞wén旨zhǐ，即jí上shàng疏shū止zhǐ浮fú圖tú，以yǐ言yán無wú佛fó。傅fù奕yì闻wén旨zhǐ，即jí上shàng疏shū止zhǐ浮fú图tú，以yǐ言yán无wú佛fó。

When Fu Yi received the command, he at once submitted a memorial to halt the Buddhist rites, arguing that there is no Buddha.

浮圖 (fú tú, from Sanskrit buddha/stūpa) stands here for Buddhism itself. The irony is pointed: the very official charged with organizing the Buddhist rite instead petitions to abolish it.

總評 Commentary

The chapter's central rite is set in motion, and at once meets opposition. The Grand Mass of Land and Water — a great ceremony to deliver the underworld's forsaken souls — is the occasion toward which the whole first half of the chapter has been building, the natural sequel to Taizong's own return from the dead. But the storyteller stages a doctrinal obstacle first: the official deputed to select the officiating monks, the historical anti-Buddhist Fu Yi, instead submits a memorial denying the Buddha altogether. The move lets the novel air the strongest Confucian case against Buddhism in order to answer it, and to dramatize imperial patronage of the Dharma as a considered choice rather than a mere reflex.