妙法蓮華經玄贊 9.161

9.161

The commentary says: Below is the instruction. There are two parts: first, replying to what was asked regarding the four peaceful practices as the cause; later, at the end of the chapter among the verses, there are twenty-one and a half verses, which take the occasion to generally reveal the marks of the peaceful result, beginning from 'One who reads this sūtra will always be free from worry and distress' downward. The initial reply has three parts: first, stating the reply; second, elucidating the reply; third, concluding the reply. As for the subsequent manifestation of the peaceful result, it follows the preceding one and a half verses, beginning from 'After my nirvāṇa' downward. This is the first text. As for the 'four dharmas', the four passages below each consist of prose and verse, each forming one practice: 1. the correct practice of the body; 2. the correct practice of speech; 3. the mental practice of benefiting oneself by abandoning all evils; 4. the practice of the mind cultivating all goods to benefit others. Through these four practices, all practices are completely encompassed. Due to straightforwardness, there is no evil that is not abandoned, and the practice of benefiting oneself is fulfilled; due to compassion, there is no good that does not arise, and the practice of benefiting others is fulfilled. The sūtra speaks from the standpoint of prominence regarding the third as straightforwardness and the fourth as compassion, but in fact both pervade [all four]. According to the sūtra text below, the fact that the initial bodily practice also clarifies mental practice means that at the time of instructing in the practice, the mind securely abides in the gates of emptiness and existence; because abiding in these two gates serves as the root that brings forth the remaining practices, it is not that the initial practice also simply pertains to the mind. The initial practice only clarifies bodily practice of abandoning evil and cultivating good; therefore, within all four practices, both emptiness and existence should be spoken of. It is only because the practices of emptiness and existence are spoken of in the first practice that by analogy the other three practices should all possess them; thus abiding in the two kinds—emptiness and existence—is the general engagement of body and mind in cultivating the four practices. These four are called 'dharmas' because 'dharma' means that which holds to a standard. The Dharma is that upon which one relies, while the three karmas are that which relies upon it; both of these are the practices to be practiced. 'Peaceful' (ān) means securely placed; 'abiding' (zhù) means relying upon. When one capable of practicing places the three karmas securely and relies upon the four practices, it is called 'securely abiding in four dharmas'. Alternatively, 'dharma' has the sense of cause: it requires that all bodhisattvas first contemplate that the three items of persons and phenomena are empty in their essence, so that they can subsequently keep the body free from improper, evil deportment, bring speech into accord with the rules of correctness and goodness, extinguish thoughts of deceit and fraud, and give rise to minds of compassion and the like, thereby ending their own sores and blemishes and remaining free from others' ridicule and slander, so that the great teaching may be propagated without end and the benefits to many living beings may not fall away. This is the overarching idea here. Furthermore, in the earlier "Dharma Master Chapter", 'entering the Tathāgata's room' is precisely this fourth mind of great compassion. 'Wearing the Tathāgata's robe of gentle forbearance and sitting on the Tathāgata's seat of the emptiness of dharmas' is this first pervasive practice. Extinguishing false thoughts at the gate of emptiness and giving rise to the true mind in the storehouse of existence enables one to harmonize body and speech to bring benefit and relief, and to attune mind and thought to make the Path complete. This is the reason for it.