新華嚴經論 35.28

35.28

Second, explaining ascending and advancing. In the seventh Abode of Non-retrogression of the preceding stage, the sixteen lines of sūtra text from 'Like all bodhisattvas entering the ocean of wisdom...' down to 'took leave and departed' are roughly divided into five topics: first, attributing virtues to the one ahead; second, indicating the spiritual friend's residence; third, mentioning the grove and park where the spiritual friend resides; fourth, giving the name of the spiritual friend; fifth, explaining Sudhana mindfully recollecting the bhikṣu Sāgaradhvaja's teachings, longing with fond attachment, taking leave and departing. The meaning of traveling south has already been explained. The dwelling place is named Ocean Tide: this shows that the spiritual friend abides in the ocean of birth and death to broadly liberate sentient beings, guiding and transforming them as appropriate without missing the time, just as the ocean tide does not miss its time; thus the dwelling place symbolizes the practice. The park is named Universal Adornment: this takes all oceans of birth and death as the park, and the ocean of myriad practices as the grove. By practicing this ocean of practices of endless and boundless great compassion to adorn and purify the ocean of sentient beings in the ten directions and cause them to become the ocean of buddhas, the park is named Universal Adornment. In the park there is an upāsikā named Āśā (Xiushe), translated here as Fulfilling Vows (Man Yuan), because she fulfills her own original vows to transform sentient beings everywhere. 'Upāsikā' symbolizes compassionate practice. This is the model of the great compassionate practice of the seventh ground, the Far-Reaching Ground (Dūraṅgamā), among the ten grounds. Emulating it from here until one reaches that ground where cultivation ripens, it is symbolized by a spirit, signifying sovereign spiritual function. The previous stage was the supramundane, untainted approach of great compassion, symbolized by a bhikṣu; this stage is the compassion that enters the secular world, living in defilement without being tainted, dwelling in truth while conforming to the secular, symbolized by an upāsikā, gradually attaining sovereign power and function. The rest is detailed in the text itself.