大方廣佛華嚴經疏 50.37

50.37

Second, adducing the benefits to encourage practice, within which there are three parts: first, briefly indicating and explaining; second, from "Disciples of the Buddha, suppose there is" onward, broadly explaining the reason; third, from "Disciples of the Buddha, [...] accomplishing such merits" onward, generally concluding and establishing the benefit. Within the broad explanation there are two parts: first, revealing through the negative; second, explaining through the positive. Now for the first: if one does not rely on this teaching, even if cultivating for many kalpas, it is still not genuine, so how could one swiftly attain bodhi? The phrasing "suppose there is" here seems to be a hypothetical assumption. Looking at Maitreya praising Sudhana, saying that other bodhisattvas can only fulfill the bodhisattva vows and practices after hundreds of thousands of koṭis of nayutas of kalpas, whereas Sudhana in a single lifetime can purify Buddha-lands and so forth—this, then, adduces the provisional to reveal the real, and is not a hypothetical assumption. If there really are such people without faith, in what stage do they dwell? The text has no definite judgment, but by meaning it should correspond to the three ranks of worthies, because those who enter realization as sages must have faith in the perfect [teaching]. If taken according to the path of teaching, even through three asaṃkhyeya kalpas one has not yet entered the abstruse. The reason ordinary people can suddenly have faith is that their past causes of hearing and perfuming formed a distinct seed. If now they do not believe again, how will they hear it in the future? Second, from "If one gets to hear" onward is the positive explanation, in which there are two parts: first, explaining the benefit of hearing with faith and being born into the family; second, from "Disciples of the Buddha, [...] having heard this Dharma, is then able to" onward, the benefit of faith and hearing accomplishing practice. Now for the first: first, explaining hearing with faith; second, from "should know" onward, establishing the benefit. Being born into the Tathāgata's family is the general, and the remaining phrases are specific. Among the specifics: 1. Taking the sphere of thusness as the family—the Asvabhāva-śāstra says: "'Born into the Tathāgata's family' means the Buddha's dharmadhātu; because one realizes and converges with this, it is called being born into the family." 2. Taking the Dharma of practice as the family, because one possesses the family rules. 3. Taking the conventional sphere as the family—Vasubandhu explains: "Because by this one can cause the lineage of the Buddhas not to be severed." 4. Far removed from non-family. 5. Taking the Buddha's practice as the family—the first fascicle of the Daśabhūmika-vibhāṣā says: "Now this bodhisattva practices the Tathāgata's path, continuing without interruption," as broadly explained there. 6. Taking the bodhisattva's dharmatā as the family, which is also the Buddha-nature, and is also identical to the Tathāgata's single sphere of thusness. 7. Purifying the future Buddha family. 8. Abiding in the fundamental Buddha family. 9. Generally explaining the family of the non-obstruction of cause and fruit, noumenon and phenomena. The first six are the families of one's own level; the latter three are the families of superior progress. Previously, because the first abode sees the nature of mind, it was called being born into the family; the fourth stage, lodging in world-transcendence, is born into the family of the factors of awakening; the eighth stage, being effortless, is born into the family of the forbearance of non-arising of dharmas. Now this encompasses all three, and additionally reveals that the ordinary person's mind of understanding is also called being born into the family, because cause and fruit are unobstructed.