大般涅槃經集解 53.6

53.6

案僧亮曰：信三寶者，知歸處也。然歸必須行，以施為行始，次說施也。行即是乘，乘有實假，次說二諦。以一乘是第一、二乘是世諦，下釋云速得解脫者，小乘是遲，今說為速，於小者是速，若不說小則永處生死。說則離故，故名速也。聖人性者，不壞信也。寶亮曰：夫信有三品，從外凡夫訖聞慧中人，悉通名為信。信乃萬階，要居不定位故，來為下品；若信首五根立，至世第一法，名曰中品信；受得真無生解，去至九地，通為上品信。然此中所明，信取於中品。何以故？因此信立，資之入空，登見諦道。自此以前，下品之信非不遠藉，但未是堅固。位既未定，所以不錄。若遠途而相承，理故忘言。然入佛法海，要須信為首。此心亦立，佛法中寶自然次生。是故今者先標歸三寶為初，表信立之始也。雖復信有三寶，若不信有行六度之因，其行亦不成，是以經文廣列所信之事。然此中列信境，出二種第一義諦。先信於二諦者，信生死是妄有，即體無性，此據《大品》以來開空有二門，後更稱信。第一義諦者，信神明妙體真如之第一。故知今教所明真者，非昔教之性空。若此信一立，便識生死虛妄，依如來藏有脩道斷癡、除因滅果，顯出法性之涅槃也。

Sengliang comments: Having faith in the Three Jewels means knowing the place of refuge. However, taking refuge inevitably requires practice: taking giving as the beginning of practice, giving is explained next. Practice is itself the vehicle; vehicles have the real and the provisional, so next the two truths are explained. Since the One Vehicle is the ultimate truth and the two vehicles are worldly truth, the text below explains that one quickly attains liberation: the small vehicle is slow, but now it is said to be quick; relative to the lesser it is quick, for if one did not speak of the lesser vehicle, beings would eternally remain in birth-and-death. Because preaching it enables them to leave, it is called 'quick'. The nature of the noble ones is indestructible faith. Baoliang says: Faith has three grades. From the external ordinary worldling up to those in the wisdom of hearing, all are generally termed 'faith'. Although faith has myriad stages, because one resides in an indeterminate rank, it counts as the lower grade. If the five faculties headed by faith are established up to the worldly supreme dharmas, it is called medium-grade faith. Receiving and attaining the true understanding of anutpāda and progressing up to the ninth bhūmi is generally termed upper-grade faith. However, what is clarified here takes faith at the medium grade. Why is this? Because this faith having been established, supported by it one enters emptiness and ascends to the path of seeing the truths. Before this, lower-grade faith is not without its distant contribution, but it is not yet firm. Since the stage is not yet determinate, it is not recorded here. If one relies on it from afar along the path, by principle one forgets words. However, in entering the ocean of the Buddhadharma, faith must necessarily come first. Once this mind is established, the treasures within the Buddhadharma naturally arise in succession. Therefore, now it first marks taking refuge in the Three Jewels as the beginning, showing the inception of the establishment of faith. Even though one has faith in the Three Jewels, if one does not believe there are causes that practice the six perfections, those practices will not be accomplished either; therefore, the sūtra text broadly lists the objects of faith. However, in setting forth the spheres of faith here, it presents two kinds of ultimate truth. First, having faith in the two truths means believing that birth-and-death is falsely existent, yet its essence is devoid of intrinsic nature; this relies on the opening of the two gates of emptiness and existence since the *Dapin* [Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra]. Later it goes on to speak of having faith in the ultimate truth: this is believing in the ultimate reality of the wondrous essence of spiritual illumination, which is true suchness. Thus we know that the truth clarified in the present teaching is not the emptiness of inherent nature of the former teachings. Once this faith is established, one recognizes that birth-and-death is illusory and unreal; and relying on the tathāgatagarbha, one cultivates the path to sever folly, eliminating the causes and destroying the results, thereby revealing the nirvāṇa of dharmatā.