新華嚴經論 20.5

20.5

At the end of the eleventh chapter, there are thirteen and a half lines of sūtra text, which are briefly divided into two sections: First, the six and a half lines from "At that time, the World-Honoured One" down to "expounded the Dharma for the assembly" explain the section on the Tathāgata occupying the seat to expound the Dharma for the assembly. Second, the seven lines of text from "ineffable assemblies of bodhisattvas" onwards explain the section where bodhisattvas of the ten directions assemble and occupy their seats, the wondrous adornments within the palace surpassing all the heavens, and all the Tuṣita heavens of the ten directions being completely identical in this cloud-like gathering and adornment. The essence of the seat has already been explained previously. Sitting cross-legged upon the lion seat has two meanings: first, worldly deportment; second, realising the mutual interpenetration of principle and phenomena within these ten dedications of merit. As for the essence of the Tathāgata's seat, it takes the inconceivable wisdom of the dharmadhātu's pratītyasamutpāda without any dwelling or support, together with great kindness and great compassion, as the essence of the seat. Because the nature of this unsupported wisdom is intrinsically all-pervasive and equal to empty space, without going or coming it manifests physical forms, with bodies equal in number to sentient beings; according to the differences of their capacities and following what is appropriate to tame and transform them, it liberates them without any purposeful contrivance. This is what the sūtra means when it says, "The dharmakāya is pure, and its wondrous functions are unimpeded." As for "dwelling in all-knowledge together in the same realm as the Buddhas of the three periods of time": because the essence of wisdom has no interior, exterior, centre, or periphery, the realm in which all Buddhas jointly dwell is also like this. As for "entering together with all Buddhas into a single nature": it is because the nature of naturelessness has neither going out nor entering in, and all Buddhas are identical in this. As for "the Buddha-eye being clearly illumined": it awakens to all phenomena as neither existent nor non-existent, and is able through wisdom to know all phenomena everywhere. As for "possessing great awe-inspiring virtue, roaming universally throughout the dharmadhātu without ever resting": through the principle and wisdom of non-action and non-reliance, it breaks all attachments so that they are utterly extinguished—this is called "awe-inspiring virtue". Because wisdom has no outside or inside and its nature is pervasive like empty space, responding to receptivity and manifesting forms without coming or going—this is called "roaming"; that there is no mundane that is not real—this is called the "dharmadhātu". In a single thought the feelings regarding the three periods of time, past and present, are exhausted, teaching and transforming sentient beings without beginning or end—this is called "without ever resting", which explains that time does not move. As for "possessing great supernormal powers": great wisdom is unsupported and formless, its nature without arising or ceasing—this is called "supernormal" (shen). Because there is nothing wisdom does not penetrate, it is called "power" (tong). As for "wherever there are those who can be transformed, being able to go universally": this explains that wisdom has no going, coming, centre, periphery, exterior, or interior; responding to receptivity, sentient beings of the ten directions all see it, yet each differently—this is called "going universally". As for "adorning his body with the unimpeded adornments of all Buddhas": these unimpeded adornments have two meanings: first, the adornment of the four unimpeded knowledges; second, the adornment of the two types of blessings of the Buddha's circumstantial and primary fruitions, which are all the major marks and secondary signs. The Tathāgata's body is the primary fruition, and the land of the Lotus Treasury World is the circumstantial fruition. Wisdom naturally through good karma adorns its own body and realm, because by the nature of phenomena wisdom intrinsically possesses boundless meritorious virtues, such as the ninety-seven marks of a great person. Merely because [sentient beings] are covered by ignorance, it benefits them with kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity. That which is obtained as circumstantial fruition through retribution is none other than the merits of the light of the secondary signs. For instance, in the major marks of the Buddha as a great person, there are infinite secondary signs, numerous as the dust motes of ten Lotus Treasury Worlds; the sūtra temporarily raises one kind of secondary sign's merit called the Sovereign of Completeness, and all its benefits are fully explained in the sūtra. Furthermore, just like the essence of unsupported wisdom which has no grasping at self, other, internal, or external, all the primary and circumstantial adornments of bodies and lands, and all realms, mutually contain and enter one another, just like the reflections in hundreds of thousands of clear mirrors mutually containing and entering one another, layer upon layer without end, layer upon layer without end. The mutual entry of the multitude of realms of bodies and lands is inexhaustible, just like the jewel net where Indra dwells: the retinues of all the devas inside the jewels mutually enter each other layer upon layer in multitude of images, body and realm without obstruction; the body emits lands, and the lands emit clouds of bodies, together performing Buddha-work. In this single sovereignty, all phenomena are universally so. In the realm of wisdom, one does not speak of sentient or insentient phenomena. When the sūtra says, "Well knowing the proper time, he expounded the Dharma for the assembly", this refers to clearly discerning whether their capacities are ripe or unripe, transforming and liberating them according to what is appropriate.