仁王護國般若經疏 4.13

4.13

Question: Are there truly no sentient beings outside the realms? Answer: The sacred teachings differ, with diverging accounts of existence and nonexistence. This sūtra says that outside the realms there are no sentient beings, while other sūtras say there are. The Lotus Sūtra says: "Achieving buddhahood in other lands, three hundred yojanas away, provisionally establishing a conjured city." The Vimalakīrti Sūtra says: "In the upper regions, across as many buddha-lands as forty-two Ganges sands, there is a buddha named Fragrance Accumulated (Gandhahastin)." If outside the realms there were no persons, how could there possibly be so many buddha-lands further in the upper regions within the three realms? Therefore we know that they also exist.