釋摩訶衍論 4.27

4.27

The treatise says: If one traces fundamental avidyā back into the past, it has no primal limit, and is thus called 'beginningless'; if one advances into the future, it will certainly have an interruption, and is thus called 'having an end.' As is stated in the Prajñāpāramitā: The pure wisdom of initial awakening has a beginning but no end; the avidyāvāsabhūmi has no beginning but has an end. As for the stage of incomparable arising, what are its characteristics according to the distinct meanings of the characters? The verse says: