妙法蓮華經玄贊 2.106

2.106

Eulogy: The three thousand great thousandfold [world-system] ruled by Śākyamuni is called a buddha-field; this shook everywhere, so it is said that the entire buddha-field shook everywhere; this is the place of shaking. Because the verses below say, "Yet this world shook in six ways," we know that it was only Śākyamuni's realm that shook, not the realms of the ten directions. Or, this shaking everywhere is the same as the illumination of the light; otherwise, why would the emission of light be broad while the shaking of the realm is narrow? The text below relies on what is near to manifest the conversion of this realm, relinquishing the provisional to proceed to the real. If one follows the first explanation, only this realm shook, clarifying the relinquishing of the provisional to proceed to the real. "To shake" (zhen) means to move and to rise up. As for the six kinds of shaking, there are three [explanations]. The Dīrgha-āgama explains: First, shaking at six times, that is, entering the womb, emerging from the womb, leaving home, attaining the Way, turning the wheel of the Dharma, and entering nirvāṇa. The shaking at this time is the time of turning the wheel of the Dharma. Second, shaking in six directions; the eighth scroll of the Mahāprajñāpāramitā-sūtra explains: rising in the east and sinking in the west, rising in the west and sinking in the east, rising in the south and sinking in the north, rising in the north and sinking in the south, rising in the center and sinking at the edges, and rising at the edges and sinking in the center. The present case may be this. Third, shaking with six aspects; the Mahāprajñāpāramitā explains them as shaking, surging, trembling, clashing, roaring, and crackling. Swaying and instability is shaking; forming ridges and hollows like fish scales is surging, or emerging and submerging in the six directions is called surging; having a faint sound is trembling. Ancient [masters] said that rising high from below is "rising" (qi); modern [scholars] say that having striking and colliding is "clashing" (ji); rumbling and bursting into sound is "roaring" (hou). Ancient [masters] said that causing awakening to arise is "awakening" (jue); modern [scholars] say that making an astonishing sound is "crackling" (bao). Each of these has three [degrees], called the eighteen aspects of shaking. The Prajñāpāramitā-sūtra says: "Namely shaking, equally shaking, and exceedingly equally shaking, up to crackling, equally crackling, and exceedingly equally crackling." A mere small movement is called shaking; moving uniformly throughout various places is called equally shaking; an immense and pervasive toppling movement is called exceedingly equally shaking; the rest should be understood accordingly. Here, by presenting the general term, it is only called the six kinds of shaking, which is merely the single [miracle of] shaking among the eighteen transformations. The Viśeṣacinti-brahma-paripṛcchā-sūtra explains seven causes [for it]: first, to terrify the māras; second, to prevent the gathered assembly at that time from giving rise to distracted minds; third, to cause the indolent to awaken themselves; fourth, to cause them to be mindful of the marks of phenomena; fifth, to cause them to contemplate the place of preaching; sixth, to cause those who are perfected to attain liberation; seventh, to cause them to ask about the correct meaning in accordance with it. Here too it may be like this; hence the marks of shaking are displayed.