阿彌陀經要解 1.164

1.164

經云：「三界唯心，萬法唯識。」古人云：念自性彌陀生唯心淨土。合而觀之，則是心作佛、是心是佛，心外無佛、佛外無心之義明矣！後人不達，捨西方極樂而別言唯心淨土，捨萬德慈尊而別言自性彌陀，不幾心外有佛、佛外有心耶！吾蕅益師深悟心性無外之體，故若宗若教若性若相一以貫之，既著《梵網合註》、《佛頂玄文》、《唯識心要》、《大乘止觀釋要》等書闡明權實妙理，復為正知拈此《彌陀要解》，一展讀時便覺信願持名人可自操其券，誠所謂直捷痛快言簡意周者也。蓋末世弘法大士各有專門，鮮克兼通性相，惟蕅師先從心源薦徹，所以性相宗教無不游刃而解，了知心佛眾生三無差別，百界千如心具心造，舉凡淨土依正無非自心所變相分，故於四土橫竪之致如指諸掌，然此特法海一滴耳！若欲盡蕅師涯底，當遍覽《合註》、《玄文》、《心要》等大部著述，又進求於未舉筆前，庶不認指而迷月矣。古吳淨業弟子正知識。

A sūtra states: 'The three realms are mind-only; all dharmas are consciousness-only.' The ancients said: 'Recollecting the self-nature Amitābha, one is reborn in the mind-only Pure Land.' Viewing them together, then 'this mind creates the Buddha, this mind is the Buddha'; the meaning that there is no Buddha outside the mind and no mind outside the Buddha is clear! Later people, failing to understand, abandon the Western Sukhāvatī and speak separately of a 'mind-only Pure Land,' or abandon the Compassionate Honoured One endowed with myriad virtues and speak separately of a 'self-nature Amitābha.' Is this not nearly saying that there is a Buddha outside the mind, or a mind outside the Buddha? My master Ouyi deeply awakened to the essence of the nature of the mind which has no exterior; hence whether Chan or doctrinal schools, whether the nature or characteristics of phenomena, he unified them with a single thread. Having already authored such works as the Fanwang hezhu (Combined Commentary on the Brahmā Net), the Foding xuanwen (Profound Text on the Uṣṇīṣa), the Weishi xinyao (Essentials of the Mind of Consciousness-Only), and the Dacheng zhiguan shiyao (Explanation of the Essentials of Great Vehicle Calm and Insight) to elucidate the wondrous principle of provisional and ultimate, he further presented this Essential Explanation of the Amitābha Sūtra for the sake of right knowledge. As soon as one unrolls and reads it, one feels that by faith and aspiration, holding firmly to the name, anyone can hold the guarantee in their own hands. It is truly what may be called straightforward and invigorating, concise in words yet comprehensive in meaning! In general, in this final age the great masters who propagate the Dharma each have their own specialty, and rarely can they master both nature and characteristics. Only Master Ouyi first had a thorough breakthrough from the source of the mind; therefore, whether nature, characteristics, Chan, or doctrinal teachings, all were resolved with ease. He fully realized that mind, Buddha, and sentient beings—the three have no distinction; that the hundred realms and thousand suchnesses are inherently possessed and created by the mind; and that all the circumstantial and direct retributions of the Pure Land are nothing other than the objectified aspects transformed by one's own mind. Thus, his understanding of the horizontal and vertical aspects of the four lands is as plain as looking at his own palm. Yet this is merely a single drop in the ocean of Dharma! If one wishes to plumb the depths of Master Ouyi, one should read widely his major writings such as the Hezhu, Xuanwen, and Xinyao, and further advance to seek before he ever took up the brush; then one might avoid mistaking the finger for the moon. Composed by Zhengzhishi, a disciple of pure karma from Ancient Wu.