新華嚴經論 1.7

1.7

Regarding the first, the Hīnayāna vinaya taking sentimental existence as its tradition: This is because the Tathāgata, initially addressing the places where ordinary beings create karma, stated that this should be done and this should not be done, expounding the wholesome and the unwholesome. Setting up teachings in this manner is not yet the truly existent. Such teachings of existence merely take the false notions of ordinary sentiment to horizontally restrain various evils, checking them through teaching so as to cause them to be born in human and heavenly realms. Therefore, the preface to the vinaya says: 'If one wishes to be born in the heavens / or to be born among humans, / one should always guard the feet of precepts / and not let them be damaged.' The conditioned actions of sentient beings are false and unreal; not having attained the dharmakāya and the wisdom-body, this is not the tradition of true existence, but provisionally the tradition of sentimental existence. Among the Hīnayāna, it is the teaching of rules and upholding. Upholding precepts as in the Avataṃsaka Sūtra is not like this. The sūtra says: 'Is the body the brahmacarya? Are the bodily actions, the four deportments, and even the Buddha, Dharma, and Saṅgha, the ten assemblies, the seven obstructions, the preceptor, the karmadāna, the platform master, and so on, the brahmacarya? When one thoroughly examines and seeks the practitioner of brahmacarya in this way, they are entirely unattainable.' Therefore, it is called pure brahmacarya, as expounded in the 'Chapter on Brahmacarya': 'A practitioner of such purity is called one who upholds the Buddha-nature precepts, because they attain the Buddha's dharmakāya. Even at the moment of first generating the mind, one immediately attains true awakening; because one upholds the Buddha-nature precepts, one is equal in essence with the Buddha, principle and phenomena are equal, blending into the true dharmadhātu. Upholding precepts in this way, one does not see one's own body as able to uphold precepts, nor does one see another's body as having broken precepts; it is not the practice of ordinary beings, nor the practice of worthies and nobles; one does not see one's own body generating the bodhimind, nor does one see all buddhas attaining complete, true awakening. If there is good or evil, or if there is the slightest dharma to be attained, it is not called pure practice.' One should know that this nature precept is precisely the dharmakāya; the dharmakāya is the wisdom of the Tathāgata; and the wisdom of the Tathāgata is true awakening. Therefore, it is not like the Hīnayāna, which involves grasping and rejection.