中國中古佛教瑞像信仰的考察──以劉薩河傳說與信仰為線索

Auspicious Image of Buddhism in Medieval China-- The Case of the Cult and Legend of Liu Sahe

劉薩河（約345－435）是活動於4世紀中葉至5世紀上半葉的僧人。南朝梁釋慧皎（497－554）作《高僧傳》，記載劉薩河以禮拜江南的阿育王塔著稱。初唐釋道宣（596－667）的《續高僧傳》與《集神州三寶感通錄》中，則出現他在故鄉慈州傳法，還有在涼州番禾郡預言佛像出現的故事。這些豐富且多樣的記載，配合敦煌考古發現的相關資料，使得劉薩河成為認識中古佛教信仰的重要案例。對此，本文重新梳理傳世文獻，試圖以劉薩河的相關傳說與信仰為核心，觀察他如何串聯起數個佛教信仰的內涵。在南朝的志怪作品《冥祥記》，以及佛教史傳《高僧傳》中，可以看到劉薩河傳說，反映出觀世音與阿育王塔信仰在南朝流行的情景；唐代的文獻則可見在今日山西省與甘肅省等地，劉薩河成為在故鄉弘法，並預言佛像出現的神異僧。本文認為，雖然劉薩河的傳說都圍繞著具有感通力量的「瑞像」，但在不同地域與時代中，瑞像也呈現出中古佛教信仰不同層次的內涵。

Liu Sahe 劉薩河 is an important case study to understand medieval Buddhist beliefs. Liu was a monk active from the middle of the fourth century to the first half of the fifth century. In the Southern dynasties' records, Liu was famous for worshipping the Asoka stupa in Jiangnan. This essay examines how the cult and legend of Liu strung together the content of several Buddhist faiths. The spread of Avalokiteśvara and Asoka stupa beliefs during the Southern dynasties is reflected in Liu's story. However, in Tang dynasty records, Liu Sahe became a spirit-monk who preached Buddhism in his native Cizhou 慈州 and forecasted the appearance of a Buddhist statue in what is today's Shanxi and Gansu province. This essay argues that the legends of Liu were based around ruixiang 瑞像 (auspicious images), which possessed a power gantong 感通 (transmission), these images display the contrasting content of medieval Buddhism in different eras and regions.