大方廣佛華嚴經搜玄分齊通智方軌 1.20

1.20

Sixth, the assembly hearing together: this is the text on the world of sentient beings, explaining the complete gathering of the great assembly. This is distinguished in two gates: first, explaining the different presence and absence across the assemblies; second, explaining according to the text. Presence and absence are divided into two: first, Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna; second, miscellaneous categories. Regarding Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna: the seven assemblies are all Mahāyāna, while the eighth includes Hīnayāna. The reason is: the former is to reveal the substance of the sudden teaching's Mahāyāna, while the eighth is to enter the dharmadhātu, widely gathering the Hīnayāna to cause them to enter the Mahāyāna, revealing the power of human capacity. Second, regarding miscellaneous categories: only the first and the last list the names of miscellaneous spirit kings, while the others abbreviate and do not list them. The reason is: the former is to symbolize looking up to and cultivating faith, like the marks of faith and understanding of ten thousand practices of a person corresponding to the dharmadhātu; the latter is to symbolize corresponding to the dharmadhātu, the mark of the fulfilled virtues of cultivation and entry of a person gathering the dharmadhātu. Question: If so, why does the Nirvāṇa-sūtra gather many categories of beings, while this sūtra has few? Answer: That [sūtra] speaks from afar looking toward maturity; this [sūtra] discusses in terms of the beginning and the immediate; therefore the reason can be known. Alternatively, it may be because the beginning takes the initial stages as its limit, and therefore does not extend to the low Hīnayāna; the rest is distinguished below.