法華文句記 6.30

6.30

“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.