新華嚴經論 18.2

18.2

Second, concerning the section-by-section explanation according to the text: As in the previous forty passages of text that weigh and measure the merit of first generating the thought [of awakening], in the very first passage Śakra requests [instruction], as can be known from the text. In the second passage, it adduces the ten kinds of vast and difficult-to-know dharmas in first generating the thought, as can be known from the text. In the third passage, it directly adduces the vastness of making offerings. In the fourth passage, it directly explains that comparing what others offer is beyond measure, such as a kalā fraction; this is an analogy of comparing much with little, where [the former] cannot equal [the latter]. It is like splitting a hair on a person's body into a hundred parts: the merit accomplished by the previous person does not equal even the merit of a fraction of one hundredth part of a single hair of a bodhisattva who has first generated the thought. Furthermore, when it says 'an upaniṣad fraction', it means approximating and categorizing by a slight resemblance. Boundless roots of goodness cannot be compared and contrasted with what is bounded. The rest is self-evident from the text. In the fifth passage, where it says 'teaching the cultivation of the ten courses of wholesome action', these are three of the body, four of speech, and three of mind; these are the goodness leading to rebirth in the heavens of the desire realm, while higher than this are the four dhyānas, which are karmic actions of the form realm. The first dhyāna eliminates grief; the second dhyāna eliminates suffering; the third dhyāna eliminates joy; the fourth dhyāna is purely peaceful and serene. When it says 'teaching abiding in the four immeasurable minds', these are benevolence, compassion, joy, and equanimity within the conditioned realm. When it says 'teaching abiding in the four formless absorptions', these are the absorptions of the formless realm. The above are wholesome karmic actions within the three realms. When it says 'teaching abiding in the fruit of the srotāpanna', this refers to initially severing the afflictions of view, relinquishing the nature of ordinary beings, and first obtaining the noble nature, thereby entering the stream of noble practice; hence it is named 'stream-enterer'. When it says 'teaching abiding in the fruit of the sakṛdāgāmin', this translates as 'once-returner'; that is to say, although this noble one has severed six grades of delusion of the desire realm, because there remain three grades unsevered, this noble one is caused to be born once more in the desire realm; hence it is named the fruit of the once-returner. When it says 'teaching abiding in the fruit of the anāgāmin', this translates as 'non-returner'; that is to say, having severed all nine grades of delusion of the desire realm, from this point one is born into the form realm and no longer returns to take rebirth in the desire realm; hence it is named 'non-returner'. Among these ten fetters, because doubt on the path of seeing is not yet clearly understood, one does not enter the fruit of an arhat. As for the afflictions of the ten fetters: first, identity view; second, extreme view; third, adherence to views; fourth, adherence to precepts and vows; fifth, wrong view—the preceding five are sharp fetters. The following five are dull fetters, severed upon seeing the truths: sixth, greed; seventh, anger; eighth, ignorance; ninth, conceit; tenth, doubt. These five dull fetters can bewilder the matters of continuous practice. Among these ten fetters, the preceding five sharp fetters are subdued and do not arise after the srotāpanna sees the truths, while the subsequent five dull fetters become attenuated. The sakṛdāgāmin severs six kinds of delusion of the desire realm, not the greed of the formless realm, and anger, ignorance, and conceit become subtle and attenuated; their active manifestations do not arise, though their seeds are not absent. In the recompense of the upper two realms there is for the moment no anger, and through cultivating absorption it is subdued so that its active manifestation does not arise. The two fruits of the srotāpanna and the sakṛdāgāmin possess weariness and revulsion, not allowing [afflictions] to grow, constantly seeking the mind that transcends the world, and by this means they do not become seeds for sinking down in the three realms. The anāgāmin causes them to cease permanently through weariness and revulsion; there is only doubt on the path of seeing remaining, and because the path of seeing is not distinct and clear, one cannot abruptly transcend the karmic fruitions of the three realms. The arhat has no doubt regarding the path of seeing, and thus the karmic fruitions of the three realms are exhausted simultaneously. Viewed from the standpoint of the preceding three fruits, even if one severs nine kinds of affliction, so long as doubt alone remains, this cannot be named the severing of afflictions. Because the avidyā regarding the seeing of the truths is not yet illuminated, it is collectively named subduing through revulsion, and cannot be named severing. Furthermore, arhats and pratyekabuddhas merely delight in transcending the world; pure land bodhisattvas and emptiness-contemplation bodhisattvas merely delight in transcending the world and practicing the six pāramitās, which is entirely the suppressing of actively manifested avidyā, and cannot be named the permanent severing of afflictions. Because they merely suppress avidyā through the contemplation of emptiness, they do not comprehend that avidyā has from the very beginning been the Buddha of Immovable Wisdom. Because they do not comprehend the fundamental, they suppress it with emptiness to prevent it from arising; up to the ten grounds, they only attain mind-made bodies and so forth, and this is not named generating a body through the Tathāgata's sarvākārajñatā. This is because they engage in contemplations such as the ten tathatās and sever the ten kinds of coarseness, yet do not comprehend that avidyā is originally the Tathāgata's fundamental wisdom and that its great function is constantly quiescent. In the One Vehicle teaching of the Buddha-fruit, one generates the mind by relying on the Buddha-fruit: at the initial generation of the thought, one penetrates that fundamental avidyā is the fundamental non-discriminating wisdom, perfecting the Dharma gate of the great function of discriminating wisdom. Above the initial mind, one completely fulfills the gate of the vehicle traversed in common by all Buddhas; this is named riding the vehicle of omniscience. If one's wisdom, compassion, vows, and practices do not resemble the Buddha by even the slightest fraction, the mind of faith is also not accomplished—how much less could one abide where the Buddha abides or be born in the house of the Tathāgata's sarvākārajñatā? Being born as a true child of the Buddha, one is endowed with all Buddha-activities, because wisdom is not different, vows and practices are equal and great compassion is not different, boundless realms are not different, and the distinction between past and future kalpas is not different from a single thought. It should be thus: one can see this by illuminating it with concentration and wisdom. This is named generating the mind by relying on the Buddha and bodhisattvas as proper kalyāṇamitras and relying on fundamental wisdom. As the text below states, a bodhisattva who has just generated the mind is able to manifest bodies and achieve Buddhahood throughout the ten directions, because at the initial generation of the thought, one mounts the Tathāgata's inconceivable vehicle of omniscience, obtains the Buddha's seed wisdom, and is born into the house of the Tathāgata's dharmadhātu. Mounting the momentum of a portion of the Buddha's wisdom and great compassion, one is immediately able to manifest bodies and achieve Buddhahood in this manner. As the verse below states: 'Among the ten powers of the Buddha, / Though the bodhisattva has not yet realized them, there is also no doubt. / Within a single pore, the bodhisattva / Universally manifests immeasurable lands of the ten directions.' In this way, it collectively explains the virtues of a bodhisattva who has first generated the thought: because of obtaining a portion of the Tathāgata's wisdom, their momentum is like this. It is like the eldest son of a wheel-turning king, who provisionally governs the affairs of the kingdom and also attains mastery, resembling the father king in a fraction. In the manner of the earth shaking and offerings arising, it clarifies the authority and power of the Dharma, and also clarifies the joy in the Dharma and joy of heart of the great assembly. The earth shaking clarifies that the essence of mind and object are non-dual, because objects manifest from the mind. As for Buddhas numbering like the dust motes of ten thousand Buddha lands passing through each of the ten directions, all named Dharmamati, coming and appearing before them, this is to clarify harmony with the wisdom of the Buddhas of the ten directions. 'Dust motes of ten thousand Buddha lands' clarifies the measure of advancing in cultivation to open up the dharmas of delusion and awakening: ten for the ten faiths, a hundred for the ten abodes, and a thousand for the ten practices; all are names that clarify advancing to see the truths and comprehending the dharmas of delusion and awakening. As below, where bodhisattvas numbering like the dust motes of ten thousand Buddha lands generate the thought and receive the prediction of achieving Buddhahood after passing through a thousand ineffable kalpas, all sharing the same designation 'Pure Mind', this also clarifies that through penetrating such Dharma gates measured by a thousand ineffable kalpas, all is entirely pure; hence the Buddha is designated 'Pure Mind'. It is not that there actually exist long and distant kalpas as seen by [deluded] sentiment. It collectively clarifies the names of the dharmas according with delusion and awakening at the corresponding stage; it does not preserve the doctrine of a measure of kalpas as seen by false sentiment. From here down to the end of the chapter, it is complete in the text itself, and praised according to the text. Of the two hundred and forty-two lines of verse below, one hundred and sixty-eight lines collectively praise the Buddha-fruit and the Dharma gates of the six stages such as faith. The remaining seventy-four lines below praise the vastness and incomparability of the merit of generating the mind weighed and measured within this chapter, as clearly set forth in the text and praised according to the text. Four lines make one verse; know it by following this rule. Weighing and measuring the merit of first generating the thought in this way: even if one were to use a boundless realm equal to empty space to offer all pleasurable requisites to boundless sentient beings, causing them all to obtain the superior joy of humans and devas, and also teaching them to obtain the four fruits of śramaṇas, pratyekabuddhas, and the world-transcending bodhi of the three vehicles—although such a realm of empty space and the beings delivered are equal, because one has not yet caused the transformed beings to achieve Buddhahood, they cannot be compared. In this teaching, one who first generates the thought mounts the Tathāgata's great wisdom, equalling what the Buddha practices, to universally transform sentient beings so that all achieve Buddhahood, and therefore generates the bodhicitta. For this reason, the realms adduced are unequal in breadth, and whether the transformed beings achieve Buddhahood or not is unequal; therefore they cannot be compared. Hence, the text below in this chapter states: 'The bodhisattva who has first generated the thought does not attain the slightest thing in the three periods of time, namely, whether it be Buddhas or the dharmas of Buddhas, whether it be bodhisattvas or the dharmas of bodhisattvas, whether it be pratyekabuddhas or the dharmas of pratyekabuddhas, whether it be śrāvakas or the dharmas of śrāvakas,' up to the extensive explanation in the sūtra; it is merely that solely seeking omniscience, with a mind unattached to any of the dharmadhātus, one generates the bodhicitta. Briefly explaining bodhi, its dharmas are four: first, śrāvaka bodhi; second, pratyekabuddha bodhi; third, provisional teaching bodhi; fourth, One Vehicle bodhisattva Buddha-fruit bodhi. The preceding three are all world-transcending bodhi, while Buddha-fruit bodhi is the dharmakāya's great wisdom, great compassion, true and conventional myriad practices, and dharmadhātu-perfected bodhi, because it has neither exiting nor entering. Although the bodhi of the three vehicles contemplates the four truths and the twelve links of dependent origination, they still do not know the actual substance of the four truths and twelve links. Not only is it unknown to the two vehicles, but bodhisattvas of the three kinds of mind-made body whose stage ascends to the ten grounds are still unable to know it completely; only the One Vehicle bodhisattva knows it by means of wisdom, which is fully explained when reaching the Chapter on the Ten Grounds. Stating it briefly and generally for now: in the three vehicles, those who contemplate suffering, accumulation, cessation, the path, and the twelve links of dependent origination, as well as the bodhisattvas who practice the six pāramitās, are weary of suffering and delight in the real, merely seeking transcendence of the world; only the bodhisattvas of great compassion speak of retaining afflictions to moisten rebirth. The One Vehicle bodhisattva contemplates the four truths and the twelve links of dependent origination with wisdom: avidyā is itself wisdom, the truth of suffering is itself the noble truth, and within saṃsāra and nirvāṇa there is no nature of binding or untying. Therefore, this sūtra names them the noble truth of suffering and the noble truth of accumulation. The ten noble truths and twelve links of dependent origination like this are entirely the conditions of the self-nature of the dharmadhātu that are unconstrained, unbound, and unreleased; they are not named avidyā, and they are not named the truth of suffering. Thus contemplating the myriad dharmas as being like this is named the dependent origination of the dharmadhātu of the One Vehicle, wherein wisdom and compassion are self-mastering and accord with their nature in dependent arising. There are none among all eyes, ears, noses, tongues, and bodies that are not Dharma gates of the mastery of the dependent origination of the dharmadhātu. The powers of knowledge, vision, and supernatural penetration of all Buddhas exist because of this; one merely reveals them through the contemplation of dhyāna and the pāramitās. Therefore, practitioners should cultivate thus and awaken and enter thus. The verse text below has four lines per verse; it is complete in the text itself, and there is no need for further explanation. Let persons of wisdom praise it following the text, causing the assembly to generate the mind.