金剛經纂要刊定記 1.50

1.50

Regarding 'now making them realize', and so forth: the Buddha taught this Dharma intending to make sentient beings realize the four noble truths. These have two pairs of cause and effect: that is, accumulation is the worldly cause and suffering is the worldly effect; the path is the supramundane cause and cessation is the supramundane effect. Suffering refers to the three sufferings and the eight sufferings. The three sufferings are: the suffering of suffering, the suffering of change, and the suffering of conditioned existence. The eight sufferings are: birth, aging, illness, death, not getting what one seeks, the flourishing of the five aggregates, separation from what is loved, and encountering what is hated. Accumulation refers to karma and defilement, as explained under 'pursuing delusions'. Cessation refers to the two kinds of nirvāṇa, with remainder and without remainder, which can be seen by consulting the sūtras. The path refers to the eightfold noble path, namely: right view, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. 'Truth' means true and actual. As with worldly suffering and accumulation, their pressing and gathering are factual and non-erroneous, hence termed 'true', not that non-arising and non-ceasing are called 'true'. That is, stating that suffering is definitely suffering, accumulation is definitely accumulation, and so forth; for this reason, all four are [truths]. Hence the Sūtra of the Buddha's Bequeathed Teaching says: 'The sun may become cold and the moon may become hot, but the suffering truth taught by the Buddha is real; suffering cannot become joy.' This is an example of the Buddha turning the Dharma-wheel of the four truths three times in the Deer Park for the five monks. Regarding the three turnings: First, the turning of demonstrating the characteristics. 'Demonstrating' means pointing out and showing the characteristics of suffering, practice, and so forth, to make them realize and understand, saying: 'This is suffering, this is accumulation,' and so forth. Second, the turning of exhorting practice. 'Exhorting' means admonishing and encouraging to make them cultivate and sever, saying: 'This is suffering, you should know it; this is accumulation, you should sever it,' and so forth. Third, the turning of bearing witness. 'Bearing witness' means citing what he himself has done to make them faithfully accept, saying: 'This is suffering, I have already known it; this is accumulation, I have already severed it,' and so forth. The intended meaning is: 'I have already known, already severed, already cultivated, and already verified; you who learn from me should know, should sever, should cultivate, and should verify.' Having spoken thus, a class of persons of lesser capacities had their understanding awakened according to his words, grew weary of the suffering of birth-and-death and joyfully sought nirvāṇa, aroused their minds to advance in practice, undertook the seven skillful stages such as the fivefold mental pacification, severed the coarse conceptual delusions under the four truths in the three realms, attained verification of the first fruit, and proceeded gradually to sever the fine innate delusions in the three realms, verifying the remaining three fruits and attaining arhatship. This brought the worldly causes to perish and effects to be destroyed, and caused supramundane causes to arise and effects to be verified. The Lotus Sūtra says: 'For those who seek to be śrāvakas, he taught the Dharma corresponding to the four truths,' delivering them from birth, aging, illness, and death to ultimate nirvāṇa. Therefore the commentary says: 'He first taught the dependent origination of arising and ceasing to make them realize suffering, accumulation, cessation, and the path.'