大方廣佛華嚴經隨疏演義鈔 89.8

89.8

Regarding the commentary's "Six: the syllable la": in that [translation] it is the syllable ļa, stating, "When pronouncing the syllable ļa, one enters the door of the undefiled prajñāpāramitā, awakening to the fact that all phenomena transcend the world, because the cause and conditions of the branch of craving never become manifest." Explanation: The present commentary merely cites the explanation of the meaning and does not cite the sūtra again. That [text] is identical to the present sūtra, except that here the distinct name is below, whereas in that text the distinct name is above. However, based on the Five Syllables and that translation of the Forty-Two Syllables, among the first twelve syllables, only the fifth contains the phrase "cannot be apprehended"; the remaining eleven syllables take non-arising, purity, and being also without non-existence, etc., as the marks of prajñā. The remaining thirty syllables all contain the phrase "cannot be apprehended." The phrase "cannot be apprehended" is precisely the mark of prajñā. Its non-arising and so forth are also marks of prajñā. Thus, having non-arising, it has no further need for the phrase "cannot be apprehended." If among the syllables there were no "cannot be apprehended" or "non-arising," etc., they would merely be the phenomena that are relied upon. Just as previously the syllable ca had no conditioned formations—if there were no "non-existence," one would only be speaking of ca. Ca is precisely formations; hence it would merely be what is relied upon. Just as "form is emptiness" is the mark of prajñā, if one merely says "form," it is merely that which is emptied. The other syllables follow this pattern. It is also like the fifteenth syllable, ka, below, which says, "an agent cannot be apprehended"; if there were no "cannot be apprehended," it would merely be the agent, for ka is agent. The rest should all be modeled on this. For the syllables below, the text also mostly has three parts: first, citing the syllable; next, citing that explanation; and finally, reconciling it with the sūtra text. As for the text citing the syllables, the subcommentary below will not divide them into headings; the latter two will both be divided. But if the sūtra is easy, it may also lack a reconciliation with the sūtra, merely citing the meaning. Here, both are present: first citing that explanation, and afterwards, from "transcending the world" below, reconciling and interpreting the present sūtra, as is clear. However, the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā, Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā-āloka, and others mostly have the syllable la. The Dazhidulun says: "Hearing the syllable la, one immediately knows that all phenomena are free from the marks of light and heavy, because here la means 'light'." The intention is to clarify that having affliction is heavy, while severing it is light. Now, since it cannot be apprehended, there is also no light; that is, the exhaustion of non-exhaustion.