華嚴經探玄記 7.24

7.24

Fourth is the Banner of Night-Light, so named because it manifests the light of wisdom in the night of birth and death. Its ten verses are divided into three parts: first, one verse praises the vastness of the Buddha's function, because it is seen everywhere in the ten directions; next, seven verses explain the profundity of the Buddha's function, because it arises by interpenetrating principle; last, two verses conclude both profundity and vastness, because they have no margin or bottom. Within the profundity of function: first, one verse shows that because essence is one without oneness, it manifests as many; second, it explains that without duality, duality manifests adornments; third, it explains that oneness and duality are both interpenetrated and the virtues are inexhaustible—space exemplifies essence, while an illusion exemplifies function; the first half praises this Buddha, and the second half analogizes other Buddhas; fourth, relying on essence, function is arisen; fifth, the marks of function are effortless—as the Mahāyānasaṃgraha says: "Just as the cintāmaṇi and the heavenly drum accomplish their own affairs without thinking, / So too, without conceptual discrimination, manifold buddha-works are accomplished"; sixth, it explains the unimpededness of essence and function—namely, that essence immediately becomes function without losing essence, hence it is said not to destroy the dharmatā; and function is immediately constant essence without discarding function, hence it is said not to cling to the dharmadhātu; therefore, because of not clinging to principle, the constant function is not discarded, and because of not destroying nature, there is no function that is not tranquil; seventh, the two interpenetrate with sovereignty—the first half of the verse concerns essence being beyond duality, meaning that manifestation and non-manifestation are both unobtainable; the second half concerns conditions manifesting both manifestation and non-manifestation; furthermore, the upper two lines indicate the theme, and the lower two lines explain it in sequence, as can be understood. Furthermore, this explanation of arising manifestations in reliance on the real is explicated via two gates: first, the gate of unfolding meanings; second, the gate of fusion and unity. In the first gate, the real and the responsive each have two meanings. Within the real: first, the meaning of unchangingness—meaning that although it manifests transformations, it is always tranquil, which the first line reveals; second, the meaning of according with conditions—meaning that by not maintaining its own nature, there is nothing it does not responsively manifest, hence it says "nor is it non-manifestation." Within the second, manifestation: first, the meaning of having no essence, which is emptiness—meaning that gathering conditions it lacks self-nature, hence it says "all dharmas have no transformation"; second, the meaning of illusory existence proceeding from conditions, hence it says "manifesting there is transformation." In the second, fusion and unity, there are also two meanings: first, distinct integration; second, thorough interpenetration. In the first: because within the real according with conditions is identical to unchangingness, it is therefore both real and not real, neither real nor not real, and is named the real dharmakāya. Within manifestation, because the emptiness of essence is identical to illusory existence, it is therefore both manifestation and not manifestation, neither manifestation nor not manifestation, and is named the Buddha's nirmāṇakāya. In the second, thorough interpenetration: because the real is unchanging, it reveals that the essence of manifestation is empty—this is the real not being absent and manifestation not being existent, taking the dharmakāya as not lacking manifesting functions, because the meaning of emptiness is present within manifestation. Furthermore, because the real accords with conditions, it reveals that manifestation is an illusory existence—this is manifestation not being absent and the real not being existent, taking the nirmāṇakāya as not lacking real principle, because the meaning of according with conditions is present within the real. Furthermore, because illusory existence according with conditions is not different from the empty essence of the unchanging, manifested transformations, though multifarious, have never not been tranquil, and the real nature, though tranquil, has never not manifested transformations; the real and the manifest melt and fuse into a single unimpeded, pure dharmadhātu, which can be seen upon reflection. In the final two verses that conclude both: the first concludes the above profundity of essence without bottom and vastness without margin; the second concludes the above function—the upper half reveals profundity, and the lower half displays vastness.