大方廣佛華嚴經疏 1.37

1.37

第二古今違順，曲分為二：先敘此方、後明西域。今初。諸釋雖眾，略敘數家，勒為五門：一立一音教，謂如來一代之教不離一音。然有二師：一後魏菩提流支云：「如來一音，同時報萬，大小並陳。」二姚秦羅什法師云：「佛一圓音，平等無二，無思普應，機聞自殊，非謂言音本陳大小。故《維摩經》云『佛以一音演說法，眾生各各隨所解。』」上之二師，初則佛音具異、後則異自在機，各得圓音一義，然並為教本不分之意耳。第二立二種教，自有四家：一西秦曇牟讖三藏，立半滿教，即聲聞藏為半字教、菩薩藏為滿字教。隋遠法師亦同此立。斯則文據《涅槃》，蓋是對小顯大，通相之意，未於大中顯有權實亦含半滿。二隋遠法師，立漸頓二教，謂約漸悟機、大由小起，所設具有三乘，故名為漸；若約頓機，直往於大、不由於小、名之為頓。此雖約機說有漸頓，而所說法不出半滿。三唐初印法師，亦立二教：一屈曲教，謂釋迦經，以逐機性隨計破著故，如《涅槃》等；二平道教，謂舍那經，以逐法性自在說故，如《華嚴經》。又此二教略有四異：一主異，謂釋迦化身與盧舍那十身異故；二處異，謂娑婆界木樹草座與華藏界中寶樹寶座等異故；三眾異，謂為聲聞及菩薩說與唯菩薩及極位同說異故；四說異，謂局處之說與該通十方之說異故。此約化儀以判。然《華嚴》雖有隨諸眾生各別調伏，皆是稱性善巧一時頓演；《涅槃》等雖說一極，或對權顯實、或會異歸同，一切如來或說不說，故云屈曲。約釋迦為主則未顯十身，十身為主必具釋迦。娑婆之處未融華藏，華藏之處必融娑婆。略云四異，異實有多，誠如所判，但以屈曲之內未顯法之權實耳。四齊朝隱士劉虬，亦立漸頓二教，謂《華嚴經》名為頓教；餘皆名漸，始自鹿苑、終於雙林，從小之大故。然此經，如日初出先照高山，即是頓義。慈龍降雨以證漸義，於理可然。漸約五時，次下當辯。第三立三種教，亦有三家：一南中諸師同立三教，謂於前漸頓加不定教，由漸中先小後大，而《央掘經》六年之內即說，為遮此難故立不定，謂別有一經雖非頓攝，而明佛性常住，即《勝鬘》、《金光明》等，是為偏方不定教也。漸中開合，諸師不同。或但分為二，即是半滿；或分為三，即武丘山岌法師，謂十二年前見有得道，名有相教；十二年後齊至《法華》見空得道，名無相教；最後雙照一切眾生佛性、闡提作佛，名常住教。此與唐三藏三時之教大同，至敘西域中說。真諦三藏，依《金光明》立轉、照、持三輪之教，亦大同此而時節小異。謂七年前說四諦，名轉法輪；七年後說《般若》，具轉照二輪，以空照有故；三十年後具轉照持，以雙照空有持前二故。或分為四，即宋朝岌法師，謂於前三時無相之後、常住之前，指《法華經》為同歸教，以會三歸一、萬善悉向菩提故。或開為五，然有二家：一道場慧觀等，於無相之後、同歸之前，指《淨名》、《思益》等為抑揚教。二者即前劉公，不開抑揚，而有教之初取《提胃經》為人天教。上來諸師皆於漸中約時開異，若不加不定之教，則招難尤多，以初有大故；雖加不定，猶有妨難。略顯五時之妨，餘可例知。初明十二年前為有相者，自違《成論》。《成論》云「我今正明三藏中實義，實義即空。」又《阿含》中云「無是老死」，即法空也；「無誰老死」，即生空也。又《智論》云「三藏中明法空為大空，摩訶衍中明十方空為大空。」皆顯小乘已有二空。若云第二時說空者，十二年後方制廣戒，豈唯說空？又《智論》云「從得道夜乃至涅槃常說般若。」豈前不說空？若云第二時中未顯常住者，實相般若豈無常耶？涅槃亦說「佛性亦名般若」，是知實相般若即是正因佛性，觀照即為了因。又《般若》離四句，何曾存空？《般若》不壞四句，豈無妙有？是知小大各有四門，而但言初有次空者，各得一門之意耳。若云第三時中但名抑揚亦非常者，《淨名》云「佛身無為，不墮諸數。觀身實相，觀佛亦然」，豈無常耶？《般若》亦云「二乘智慧猶如螢光，菩薩一日學智如日之照」，豈非抑揚？若云第四時中但顯同歸亦未明常者，〈壽量品〉云「常住不滅」，又〈方便品〉云「世間相常住」等，豈無常耶？五以涅槃為常住者，當教可爾。而涅槃之時亦有小乘之見，如《阿含》中說如來涅槃之相故。若以人天為初者，提胃雖說戒善。得道。皆通三乘。故彼經云。提胃得不起法忍，又違《密跡經》中第二七日說三乘故。然上五時等，皆以約時剋定，則有所乖；揀去不定，從多分說，亦有理在。二後魏光統律師，承習佛陀三藏，亦立三教，謂漸、頓、圓。初為根未熟者，先說無常、後方說常，先空、後不空等，如是漸次，故名為漸。二為根熟之輩，於一法門具足演說常無常、空不空等，一切具說，更無由漸，故名為頓。三為於上達分階佛境之者，說於如來無礙解脫究竟果德圓滿祕密自在法門，故名為圓。此亦約化儀，說有前後耳。意明今時堪受頓者，必昔曾受化故。云根熟、上達之言，義兼地前。分階佛境，即謂地上。於理亦通。三隋末唐初吉藏法師，依《法華》第五立三種法輪：一「始見我身、聞我所說，即皆信受入如來慧」，即根本法輪；二「除先修習學小乘者」，即枝末法輪；三「我今亦令得聞是經入於佛慧」，即攝末歸本法輪。此判全約化儀，據法但有大小。然《法華》為於一類開顯本末，若將定判一代聖教，收義不盡，以法華之前亦有大故，豈《般若》等皆為枝末？又《無量義》云「佛一切時說大小故。」

Second, concerning the conflict and conformity between ancients and moderns, it is subdivided into two: first, narrating [the views of] this region [China], and afterwards clarifying [those of] the Western Regions [India]. First, the former. Although the various explanations are numerous, we briefly narrate several masters, organizing them into five categories: First, the establishment of the teaching of a single sound, which means that the Tathāgata's lifelong teaching does not depart from a single sound. However, there are two masters [of this view]: First, Bodhiruci of the Later Wei said, "With a single sound, the Tathāgata simultaneously responds to the myriad [beings], setting forth the Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna together." Second, Dharma Master Kumārajīva of the Yao Qin said, "The Buddha's single complete sound is equal and without duality; responding universally without deliberate thought, the faculties hear it differently of themselves; it does not mean that the words and sounds originally set forth the great and the small. Therefore the Vimalakīrti Sūtra states, 'The Buddha preaches the Dharma with a single sound, / and sentient beings each understand according to their capacity.'" Between the two masters above, the former holds that the Buddha's sound itself contains distinctions, while the latter holds that the distinctions reside in the capacities of beings. Each attained one aspect of the complete sound, yet both share the intention that the teaching originally has no divisions.

Second, the establishment of two teachings, which itself has four masters: First, Tripiṭaka Master Dharmakṣema of the Northern Liang established the half-letter and full-letter teachings, that is, the Śrāvaka Piṭaka is the half-letter teaching, and the Bodhisattva Piṭaka is the full-letter teaching. Dharma Master Huiyuan of the Sui also concurred in establishing this. This is textually based on the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra, being an expression of a general meaning in contrasting the Hīnayāna to reveal the Mahāyāna, without yet revealing expedient and ultimate within the Mahāyāna or that it also subsumes the half and the full. Second, Dharma Master Huiyuan of the Sui established the two teachings of gradual and sudden, meaning that with respect to capacities of gradual awakening, where the great arises from the small, what is established fully possesses the three vehicles, and thus it is named gradual; if with respect to sudden capacities, going directly to the great without passing through the small, it is named sudden. Although this speaks of gradual and sudden with respect to capacity, the Dharma expounded does not go beyond the half and the full. Third, Dharma Master Yinjie of the early Tang also established two teachings: 1. The roundabout teaching, referring to the sūtras of Śākyamuni, because they follow the dispositions of capacities and break attachments according to their preconceptions, like the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra and others; 2. The level-path teaching, referring to the sūtras of Rocana, because they are expounded with sovereignty according with dharmatā, like the Avataṃsaka Sūtra. Furthermore, these two teachings briefly have four differences: (1) difference in lord, meaning the transformation body of Śākyamuni differs from the ten bodies of Rocana; (2) difference in place, meaning the wood trees and grass seat of the Sahā world differ from the precious trees and precious seats in the Padmagarbha world; (3) difference in audience, meaning expounding for śrāvakas and bodhisattvas differs from expounding exclusively for bodhisattvas and those of the ultimate stages together; (4) difference in exposition, meaning localized exposition differs from exposition pervasive through the ten directions. This is classified according to the manner of conversion. However, although the Avataṃsaka includes distinct subjugations according with various sentient beings, these are all skillful expedients matching the nature, simultaneously and suddenly expounded; although the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra and others speak of the single ultimate, they either contrast the expedient to reveal the real, or unite differences into identity, which all Tathāgatas either expound or do not expound, and thus it is called roundabout. Taking Śākyamuni as lord does not yet reveal the ten bodies; taking the ten bodies as lord necessarily includes Śākyamuni. The location of Sahā does not blend with Padmagarbha, but the location of Padmagarbha necessarily blends with Sahā. Briefly stating four differences, the differences are truly many, and it is genuinely as classified, yet within the roundabout it does not reveal the expedient and real of the Dharma. Fourth, the hermit Liu Qiu of the Qi dynasty also established the two teachings of gradual and sudden, meaning that the Avataṃsaka Sūtra is called the sudden teaching, while all the rest are called gradual, beginning from the Deer Park and ending at the Twin Trees, because they progress from the small to the great. Now, this sūtra is like the sun newly rising, first illuminating the high mountains, which is the meaning of sudden; the compassionate dragon bringing down rain testifies to the meaning of gradual: in principle this is plausible. The gradual is classified into five periods, which will be analyzed immediately below.

Third, the establishment of three teachings, which also has three masters: First, the various masters of the southern region together established three teachings, meaning that to the previous gradual and sudden they added the indeterminate teaching. Because within the gradual, the small comes first and the great comes later, yet the Aṅgulimālīya Sūtra was spoken within the first six years; to ward off this difficulty they established the indeterminate, meaning that there are distinct sūtras which, although not subsumed under the sudden, clarify that the Buddha-nature is eternally abiding, such as the Śrīmālādevī and Suvarṇaprabhāsa sūtras, which are the regional indeterminate teachings. The divisions and combinations within the gradual differed among the various masters. Some only divided it into two, which is the half and full. Some divided it into three, namely Dharma Master Jifa of Mount Wuqiu, who held that before twelve years, seeing the attainment of the path through existence is called the teaching of characteristics; after twelve years up to the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka, seeing the attainment of the path through emptiness is called the teaching of signlessness; and finally, illuminating both the Buddha-nature of all sentient beings and icchantikas attaining Buddhahood is called the teaching of eternal abiding. This largely agrees with the Tripiṭaka Master of the Tang's [Xuanzang] teaching of the three periods, as will be explained in narrating the Western Regions. Tripiṭaka Master Paramārtha, relying on the Suvarṇaprabhāsa, established the teachings of the three wheels of turning, illuminating, and holding, which also largely agrees with this, with minor differences in the time periods: he said that before seven years, expounding the four truths is called turning the wheel of the Dharma; after seven years, expounding Prajñā possesses the two wheels of turning and illuminating, because it illuminates existence through emptiness; after thirty years, it fully possesses turning, illuminating, and holding, because it illuminates both emptiness and existence and holds the previous two. Some divided it into four, namely Dharma Master Ji of the Song dynasty, who held that after the signless of the previous three periods and before the eternally abiding, he pointed to the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra as the teaching of identical return, because it unites the three and returns to the one, and myriad goods all head towards bodhi. Some opened it into five, of which there are two masters: 1. Daochang Huiguan and others pointed to the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa, Viśeṣacintābrahmaparipṛcchā, and others as the teaching of reprimand and praise, between the signless and identical return. 2. The aforementioned Liu [Qiu], who did not open the reprimand and praise, but at the beginning of the teaching of existence took the Tiwei Boli Jing as the teaching of humans and devas. All the masters above opened differences according to time within the gradual; if one does not add the indeterminate teaching, it incurs especially many objections, because the Mahāyāna exists at the very beginning; even if adding the indeterminate, there are still impediments and objections. To briefly show the impediments of the five periods, the rest can be known by analogy: First, clarifying that before twelve years is the teaching of characteristics contradicts the Tattvasiddhi-śāstra itself. The Tattvasiddhi states: 'I now rightly clarify the real meaning in the Tripiṭaka; the real meaning is emptiness.' Moreover, the Āgamas state, 'There is no this old age and death,' which is the emptiness of dharmas; 'There is no who of old age and death,' which is the emptiness of persons. Furthermore, the Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa states: 'In the Tripiṭaka, clarifying the emptiness of dharmas is the great emptiness; in the Mahāyāna, clarifying the emptiness of the ten directions is the great emptiness.' All show that Hīnayāna already has the two emptinesses. If one says that in the second period emptiness is expounded, the broad precepts were only formulated after twelve years; how could it be that only emptiness was expounded? Furthermore, the Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa states: 'From the night of attaining the path up to nirvāṇa, Prajñā was constantly expounded.' How could emptiness not have been expounded earlier? If one says that in the second period eternal abiding was not yet revealed, could the Prajñā of the true mark be impermanent? The Mahāparinirvāṇa also states, 'Buddha-nature is also named Prajñā'; thus we know that the Prajñā of the true mark is none other than the Buddha-nature as direct cause, and contemplative illumination is the revealing cause. Furthermore, Prajñā is free from the four propositions; when did it ever preserve emptiness? Prajñā does not destroy the four propositions; how could it lack wondrous existence? Thus we know that Hīnayāna and Mahāyāna each have four gates, and merely calling the first existence and the next emptiness captures only the intention of a single gate each. If one says that the third period is only named reprimand and praise and is also not the eternal, the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa states: 'The Buddha's body is unconditioned, not falling into any numbers. Contemplating the real mark of the body, contemplating the Buddha is also like this'—how could this not be eternal? The Prajñāpāramitā also states: 'The wisdom of the two vehicles is like the light of a firefly, while a bodhisattva learning wisdom for a single day is like the illumination of the sun'—how is this not reprimand and praise? If one says that the fourth period only reveals identical return and does not yet clarify the eternal, the 'Lifespan' chapter states 'eternally abiding and unperishing,' and furthermore the 'Skillful Means' chapter states 'the worldly marks are eternally abiding' and so forth—how could this not be eternal? Fifth, taking the Mahāparinirvāṇa as eternally abiding is acceptable for that teaching, yet at the time of the Mahāparinirvāṇa there was also the perspective of the Hīnayāna, as shown in the Āgamas' account of the marks of the Tathāgata's nirvāṇa. If one takes the human and deva as the beginning, although the Tiwei speaks of precepts and virtues, the attainment of the path pervades the three vehicles; hence that sūtra states that Tiwei attained the forbearance of non-arising of dharmas; moreover, it contradicts the Guhyakādhipatinirdeśa-sūtra's exposition of the three vehicles on the second seventh day. However, in all the above five periods, if strictly determined according to time, there will be discrepancies; but if one excludes the indeterminate and speaks according to the majority, there is also principle in it. Second, Vinaya Master Guangtong [Huiguang] of the Later Wei, carrying on the teaching of Tripiṭaka Master Buddhabhadra, also established three teachings, namely gradual, sudden, and complete: 1. For those whose faculties are not yet mature, first expounding impermanence and only afterwards expounding permanence, first emptiness and afterwards non-emptiness, and so on; thus proceeding by degrees, it is named gradual. 2. For those whose faculties are mature, completely expounding permanence and impermanence, emptiness and non-emptiness, expounding all completely in a single dharma-gate without any gradual progression, and thus it is named sudden. 3. For those who have reached the upper levels and partially attained the Buddha-stage, expounding the complete, secret, and sovereign dharma-gate of the Tathāgata's unobstructed liberation and ultimate fruition virtues, and thus it is named complete. This is also classified according to the manner of conversion, speaking of an earlier and later. The intention clarifies that those in the present time who are capable of receiving the sudden must have received conversion in the past. The words 'faculties mature' and 'reached the upper levels' implicitly encompass the stages prior to the bhūmis; 'partially attained the Buddha-stage' refers to the bhūmis. In principle, this also makes sense. Third, Dharma Master Jizang of the late Sui and early Tang, relying on the fifth [scroll] of the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka, established three Dharma wheels: 1. 'When they first saw my body and heard what I expounded, they all believed, accepted, and entered the Tathāgata's wisdom,' which is the fundamental Dharma wheel; 2. 'Excepting those who previously practiced and studied the small vehicle,' which is the branch Dharma wheel; 3. 'I now also cause them to hear this sūtra and enter the Buddha's wisdom,' which is the Dharma wheel that subsumes the branches into the root. This classification is entirely based on the manner of conversion; according to the Dharma, there is only great and small. However, the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka opened and revealed the root and branches for one group of beings; if one takes it to definitively classify the lifelong sacred teaching, it does not fully encompass the meaning, because prior to the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka the Mahāyāna also existed; how could the Prajñā and others all be branch teachings? Moreover, the Anantanirdeśa-sūtra states: 'The Buddha at all times expounds the great and the small.'