觀無量壽佛經疏 4.16

4.16

Furthermore, if all practitioners can only rely on this sūtra and practice with deep faith, it will surely not mislead sentient beings. Why is this? Because the Buddha is a person whose great compassion is fulfilled, and because he speaks truthful words. Below the Buddha, wisdom and practice are not yet fulfilled; being on the stage of learning, because the two obstacles of active defilements and residual habit-energy have not yet been eliminated, their fruitional vows are not yet complete. Even if these ordinary people and sages estimate the meaning of the various Buddhas' teachings, they cannot be definitively certain; though they hold discussions, they must request the Buddha's verification for it to be settled. If it accords with the Buddha's intent, he gives his seal of approval, saying, 'Thus it is, thus it is.' If it does not accord with the Buddha's intent, he says, 'The meaning of what you have stated is not so.' What is not sealed by the Buddha is equivalent to unrecorded words of no profit and no benefit. What is sealed by the Buddha accords with the Buddha's correct teaching. Whatever the Buddha speaks is the correct teaching, correct meaning, correct practice, correct understanding, correct karma, and correct wisdom; whether more or less, one never questions bodhisattvas, humans, devas, or others to decide its right or wrong. What the Buddha states is the definitive teaching, whereas what bodhisattvas and others state is all called non-definitive teaching. One should know this. Therefore, at present, I reverently urge all persons with conditions for rebirth only to have deep faith in the Buddha's words and single-mindedly uphold them in practice, and not to place trust in the discordant teachings of bodhisattvas and others so as to generate doubt and obstruction, harbouring confusion and misleading themselves, and thereby forfeiting the great benefit of rebirth.