法華文句記 6.30

6.30

「三皇」者，伏羲、神農、黃帝。「五帝」者，少昊、顓頊、高辛、唐、虞。彼唯剎利等二，且借此以類彼。「黃」者中也，「帝」者德象天地，此土諸姓誰不承之，一往且以非其中途，偏僻別得者為其本裔。「裔」者衣末也，有本可承故也。有云：苗裔者，草之初生曰苗，即得姓之始也。承嗣不雜，如苗初裔後也。「左貂右插」者，「貂」者，《說文》云：「似鼠。」徐廣《車服注》云：「即侍中冠，左貂右蟬，如蟬之清高飲露不食。」又云：「右插者，簪也。」「左輔右弼」，丞相也。「鹽梅阿衡」者，釋丞相也。如殷高宗聘傳說，具如《止觀》第七記。「阿」倚也，倚寄也。「衡」平也。「銅陵」等者，如鄧通，漢文帝夢墮井為通所接，乃召通至。占者云：不免餓死。帝乃令人於蜀銅山鑄錢供之，豈餓死耶？後哀帝登位，被告私鑄，因在囹圄餓死也。有人云：秖是文帝時為他所嫉，後遂餓死。一往且借初富為言，如《晉書》云：「石崇有金谷，在洛陽東爾。」「延」進也，亦導也。謂威以肅物不厲而成，嚴潔如霜。「隆」高也。高而且重不令而行。智則坐計帷帳折衝萬里，猶如武庫何器而無？用之則行，捨之則藏。「白珪」者，纖上玉也。《說文》云：「瑞玉也。上圓下方。」《白虎通》云：「玉之潔者也。」「式」瞻仰也。「一人」者，《孝經》云：「天子也。」出世長者，十文具足。「佛從」下姓也，「功成」下位也，「法財」下富也，「十力」下威也，「一心」下智也，「早成」下耆也，「三業」下行也，「具佛」下禮也，「十方」下敬也，「七種」下歸也。若以果望因，應云圓教自等覺來，以其實因發心畢竟二不別故，故此十德皆從極果；若從當分，果分權實，則權三實一十德名同，名下之體當教辯異，故使實際三諦不同，乃至所歸多少亦別，所以長者名通今須從別，以別冠通即跨節也。

“Three Sovereigns” refers to Fuxi, Shennong, and the Yellow Emperor. “Five Emperors” refers to Shaohao, Zhuanxu, Gaoxin, Tang [Yao], and Yu [Shun]. There [in India] there are only the two [castes] of kṣatriyas and so forth; here we merely borrow these [Chinese sovereigns] to serve as analogues. “Huang” (yellow) means the centre; “Di” (emperor) means virtue patterned after Heaven and Earth. Among the various surnames of this land, who does not inherit from them? For the time being, those who did not derive their origin from a diverted or remote lineage are taken as their true descendants. “Descendant” (yi) means the hem of a garment, indicating that there is an origin to inherit. Some say: “seedling and descendant” (miaoyi)—the first sprouting of grass is called seedling (miao), which is the beginning of receiving a surname; succession without confusion is like the seedling first and the hem later. As for “sable on the left and hairpin on the right”: as for “sable,” the Shuowen says, “It resembles a rodent.” Xu Guang’s Commentary on Chariots and Robes says, “It refers to the cap of an attendant palace officer: a sable on the left and a cicada on the right, like the cicada that is lofty and pure, drinking dew without eating.” It also says, “Hairpin on the right refers to a hair-clasp.” “Left assistant and right aide” means the prime minister. “Salt, plum, and A-heng” explains the prime minister, like Gaozong of Yin employing Yue, as fully described in the seventh fascicle of the Notes on the Great Calming and Contemplation. “A” means to lean on or rely upon; “heng” means level or balanced. In “copper hills” and so forth: like Deng Tong, when Emperor Wen of Han dreamed he fell into a well and was caught by Tong, he summoned Tong. A diviner said, “He cannot avoid starving to death.” The Emperor then ordered people to let him mint coins from the copper mountains of Shu to supply him—how could he starve to death? Later, when Emperor Ai ascended the throne, he was accused of private minting, and consequently starved to death in prison. Some say: he was simply envied by others during Emperor Wen’s time and subsequently starved to death. For the time being, his initial wealth is borrowed as a figure of speech, just as the Book of Jin says, “Shi Chong owned the Golden Valley, which was simply east of Luoyang.” “Yan” (延) means to advance, and also to guide; it means that with majesty one brings order to things, achieving results without severity, stern and pure like frost. “Long” (隆) means lofty; being lofty and weighty, deeds are carried out without issuing commands. In wisdom, one devises strategies within the tent to resolve conflicts ten thousand li away, like an armoury containing every kind of weapon: employed when called upon, concealed when set aside. “White jade tablet” (baigui) is a jade refined at the top. The Shuowen says, “An auspicious jade, rounded on top and square at the bottom.” The Comprehensive Discussions in the White Tiger Hall says, “The purest of jades.” “Shi” (式) means to gaze upon with reverence. “The One Man” means the Son of Heaven, as stated in the Classic of Filial Piety. The world-transcending elder is fully endowed with ten descriptions: from “The Buddha from…” down is his lineage; from “merit accomplished…” down is his rank; from “dharma-wealth…” down is his wealth; from “ten powers…” down is his majesty; from “single mind…” down is his wisdom; from “early accomplishment…” down is his seniority; from “three karmas…” down is his practice; from “endowed with the Buddha’s…” down is his propriety; from “ten directions…” down is his reverence; from “seven kinds…” down is his refuge. If viewing the cause from the fruit, one should say that the perfect teaching originates from equal awakening; because its true cause, from initial aspiration to ultimate conclusion, are not two and not distinct, these ten virtues all derive from the ultimate fruit. If viewed from their respective positions, the fruit divides into provisional and real: then the provisional three and the real one share the same names for the ten virtues, but the entities under the names are distinguished according to the teachings, causing the ultimate reality and the three truths to differ, up to the number of refuges also being distinct. Therefore, the elder’s name is general, but now must follow the specific; capping the general with the specific constitutes leaping over the stages.