金剛般若波羅蜜經略疏 1.24

1.24

The first passage, on the vast, broadly has six parts: 1. the opening sentence is general; 2. clarifying the scope of inclusion of dharmas in terms of the four modes of birth; 3. revealing the exhaustiveness of the realms in terms of having form and being formless; 4. resolving external doubts in terms of the presence and absence of perception; 5. from "neither having perception..." onward, eliminating the view of superior pride held by non-Buddhists, because non-Buddhists take neither-perception to be non-saṃsāra; 6. integrating their erroneous views and subsuming them into the sphere of right wisdom. That is, "all included among sentient beings in the realm of sentient beings" means those included among non-sentient-beings and semblance sentient beings. Question: Why say "semblance"? Answer: The sūtra says "one cannot use semblance to resemble," hence it is called semblance; thus semblance does not hinder non-existence. Question: If so, sentient beings are empty; what then is included? Answer: Simply because this is emptiness of emptiness, it is included within the conceptual differentiation of sentient beings, and therefore inclusion is distinguished; if inclusion were not manifested, the understanding would not be clear and pure.