大般涅槃經集解 46.82

46.82

案道生曰：答常無常問也。有為相續而常，故云生亦常也。僧亮曰：答初二句也。有為之稱也，論其生滅有為之法從而起，生也；相續故，住也；變故，異也；滅故，壞也。四相一時。現在法起是有應常，以起時有住；以生續滅為住無常，故生無常也。僧宗曰：非一向常，亦非一向無常。以常無常故，得生法耳。生生相續，故言常也。寶亮曰：法外無別生相，但當生分其位不改，亦得言常；以住來隔故，便名無常也。四相當分位，義皆然也。

Daosheng says: This answers the question on permanence and impermanence. Conditioned phenomena are permanent through continuity; hence he says birth is also permanent. Sengliang says: This answers the first two propositions. As for the appellation of 'conditioned': when discussing their arising and perishing, the conditioned dharma arises from it—this is birth; because of continuity, it abides; because of changing, it differs; because of perishing, it decays. The four characteristics are simultaneous. A present dharma arising is existent and should be permanent, for at the time of arising there is abiding; yet because birth succeeds perishing, abiding is impermanent, and therefore birth is impermanent. Sengzong says: It is not entirely permanent, nor is it entirely impermanent. It is by being both permanent and impermanent that dharmas can be born. Birth succeeds birth in continuity, hence it is called permanent. Baoliang says: Outside the dharma there is no separate characteristic of birth; it is just that at the moment of birth its position does not alter, so it can also be called permanent; because abiding intervenes, it is then named impermanent. The four characteristics in their respective moments are all like this.