觀無量壽佛經疏 1.22

1.22

Eleventh, Mahāsthāmaprāpta. Within this there are three parts: First, explaining the formulation of the two names based on the spiritual power of his light. Next, from 'This bodhisattva's heavenly crown has five hundred jewels' onward, explaining the similarities and differences with Avalokiteśvara. Later, from 'Eradicating the offenses of immeasurable kalpas' onward, encouraging cultivation. The method of contemplation is omitted in brief, as it should not differ from the above, hence it is not explained again. As for why in contemplating the Buddha one first forms the image thought and later contemplates the dharmakāya, whereas for the bodhisattvas one directly explains the dharmakāya: it is simply because the Buddha's dharmakāya is supremely subtle and cannot be contemplated at one go; therefore, first forming the image thought makes it fluent, after which contemplating the dharmakāya is easy. As for the bodhisattvas, once contemplation of the Buddha is complete, next the two great beings are the adornment of his retinue; just as when a king arrives he has an entourage, where there is a Buddha there must be bodhisattvas.