道明还魂记【英】

The Revival of Dao Ming After His Death

定义

唐代小说。述襄州开元寺道明，于大历十三年（778）二月八日生魂为冥司勾摄，经对勘讯问知为误追，理当放还。以此得见地藏。道明苏息后，遂图写地藏真容，流传于世。

It is a novel from the Tang Dynasty, found in the Dunhuang manuscripts. It tells the story of a monk named Dao Ming in Kaiyuan Temple of Xiangzhou Prefecture. He dies on the eighth day of the second lunar month in the thirteenth year of the Dali Reign (AD 778), and his soul is escorted to the underworld court. In the court interrogation, it is found that Dao Ming’s life has been mistakenly terminated and his soul has been wrongly taken, which means he can be returned back to life. Dao Ming is then brought to meet Ksitigarbha, the bodhisattva of hell beings, to have his life revived. After his revival, Dao Ming manages to draw a painting of Ksitigarbha so that his true image could be preserved for prosperity.