大方廣佛華嚴經隨疏演義鈔 90.41

90.41

Regarding the Commentary's phrase "Nineteen: one verse subsumes three kinds of virtues": according to the sūtra, these correspond to "reaching the limits of the dharmadhātu," "equaling the realm of space," and "exhausting the bounds of the future," matched with the names of the three virtues. The Commentary's text presents them fully, matching bhūtakoṭi with "exhausting the bounds of the future" in the sūtra. However, regarding the nineteenth virtue, Asabhāva says: "Above, it was spoken of as the characteristic of being free from middle and extremes; how then is it non-characteristic? Therefore it is next explained. 'Reaching the limits of the dharmadhātu' means that because this dharmadhātu is most pure, being free from all prapañca is the most pure characteristic of the dharmadhātu, which can give rise to niṣyanda activities of benefit; reaching the limits of this dharmadhātu, it has no end." Regarding the twentieth, inexhaustible virtue equaling the realm of space, Asabhāva says: "It means that the creating of benefit and joy above is entirely inexhaustible." This refers to inexhaustible self-benefit, so the Treatise says: "Just as space, undergoing kalpas of formation and destruction, is by nature constantly inexhaustible, so too are all the real virtues of the Tathāgata." As for "exhausting the bounds of the future" being called ultimate virtue, the Treatise says: "Just as the bounds of the future have no end, so too the Tathāgata's virtues of benefiting others are ultimately inexhaustible." Yet regarding the preceding two lines, Asaṅga merely speaks of inexhaustible virtue and so forth without discussing division or combination. Asabhāva divides them into two, and so merely says: "At the beginning of the twentieth, there is one genesis; the preceding [text] simply intends to take the latter two verses as a general conclusion, and therefore matches them with the three virtues." In truth, the latter two are precisely the inexhaustible virtues equaling the realm of space and exhausting the bounds of the future; hence the Commentary says, "It also distinctly reveals the inexhaustible virtues."