大方廣佛華嚴經隨疏演義鈔 26.23

26.23

Regarding the commentary's "Under the fourth, the essence of the kṣetra, the various teachings differ..." and what follows: this identifies the essence according to the five teachings, and the explanation has two intentions. First, allocating them individually: the eight subtle atoms belong to the Small Vehicle; mind-only belongs to the initial teaching; dharmatā belongs to both the final and sudden teachings; or all dharmas belong to the perfect teaching. Second, universally explaining that the perfect teaching is endowed with all four meanings; the sudden teaching has only dharmatā; the Small Vehicle has only the eight subtle atoms; and the initial and final teachings both apply to the first three. If the three are separate from each other, those two are the initial teaching; if the three are unimpeded and nature and characteristics are completely interfused, that is the final teaching. Hence, as for the differences in identifying the essence in the Faxiang school: 1. The dharmatā land takes tathatā as its essence. 2. The land of actual retribution takes all virtues such as the powers and fearlessnesses, the untainted five aggregates, as its essential nature; if one subsumes characteristics into nature, it also takes tathatā as its essence. 3. The land of physical characteristics: subsuming the object into the mind, it takes subsequent cognition for self-benefit as its essence; hence the *Buddhabhūmi-śāstra* says, "The purest and most sovereign pure consciousness constitutes its characteristic." "Characteristic" here means the characteristic of its essence. If taken according to differences in characteristics, the four sense-objects constitute its essence. 4. The land of enjoyment for others: subsuming the object into the mind, it takes subsequent cognition for benefiting others as its essence. Subsuming characteristics into nature, it also takes tathatā as its essence. If taken according to differences in characteristics, it is also the four sense-objects. 5. The transformation land is identical in essence to the preceding land of enjoyment for others. From this we know that the initial teaching fully employs the three dharmas, whereas the perfect teaching interfuses characteristics with nature; because characteristics are unimpeded, it encompasses all dharmas, so that the unimpededness among phenomena constitutes its essence. Therefore, the commentary states, "Now all are fully possessed." Next, it cites the sūtras to completely encompass them, and finally fuses them into unimpededness.