大般涅槃經集解 31.22

31.22

Sengliang comments: From here below, the truth of the path is clarified. First, contemplating the path is indeed the mark of departure. It does not rely on suffering and accumulation; it relies on the eight noble [paths]. 'Discerning all phenomena' means that the eightfold path is also a truth. The truth of the path is contemplating the path. Cessation is the fruit, so it contemplates only aśaikṣa; the path is the cause, so it comprehensively contemplates the ground of trainees (śaikṣa). From permanence and impermanence down to purity, it contemplates cause and fruit. Impermanence is the cause; permanence is the fruit. Below, cause and fruit are contemplated separately. Dravya carries the meaning of the true and real master. Guhyā is clothing, and also carries the meaning of adornment. Sengzong says: First, it clarifies the broad meaning, concurrently clarifying the practice of contemplation; afterward, it clarifies the reconciling integration. What is called 'permanence and impermanence' raises the object illuminated by the path to clarify the essence of contemplation. The permanent is the fruit of buddhahood; the impermanent is everything from the vajra[-like samādhi] downward, which belongs to the category of sentient beings. The vajra[-like samādhi] is something within encumbrances, while the fruit of buddhahood is not something within encumbrances. Dravya borrows reliance on the master of the truth and the truth itself to explain the correct meaning. The Buddha abides as the supreme ancestral essence and ultimate pinnacle; he is the dravya.