大般涅槃經集解 4.47

4.47

Daosheng says: Although one practices good and possesses wisdom, if one has not understood permanence, the sprout of Dharma has not yet arisen. Sengliang says: Dāna is the beginning of the myriad practices and the sprout of the dharmakāya. The records of Sengzong by Jingyi state: From here down to the end of answering the five difficulties, this is the second of five sections. Regarding 'raining down upon the field of your body,' other sūtras mostly take expounding the Dharma as rain; here it specifically clarifies that accepting an offering makes the shoots of dāna grow, just like that rain. The records of Sengzong by Falian state: 'Body' refers back to the aforementioned body and speech. 'Field' refers back to the aforementioned wisdom, which is mental karma. Baoliang says: Regarding 'eradicating poverty,' this clarifies that what is intended today has two purposes: first, granting the acceptance of the offering; second, granting the exposition of the Dharma. This is eradicating two kinds of poverty. Huilang relates Sengzong's view: Here there are three stages; this is the first, where the Buddha responds to his entreaty and agrees to accept his offering. If the Buddha agrees to accept it, the sprout of dāna has already arisen; it is not necessarily the case that the sprout of dāna arises only after the acceptance has taken place. Huilang says: Drawing out the acceptance of the offering by request to clarify permanence briefly has ten points. First: the Buddha serves as an external condition to generate two kinds of goodness: merit and wisdom. Wisdom is the understanding of permanence that is generated; merit is the generated semblance of dānapāramitā. The internal causes that can generate them are also of two kinds: the seed of merit, which is the mind of giving, and the seed of wisdom, which is the mind that inquires into cause and effect. Second: distinguishing that what can generate and what is generated share the same nature, namely the mind of giving and dānapāramitā, and the mind inquiring into cause and effect and the understanding of permanence; yet there is a distinction between the new and the old. How so? Inquiring wisdom is the old; obtaining the understanding of permanence from the Buddha is the new. Moreover, the seed of the mind of giving is the old; obtaining dānapāramitā from the Buddha is the new. Third: broadly distinguishing the two kinds of seeds. The Dharma determines that the mind does not exceed three kinds: wholesome, unwholesome, and indeterminate. These three kinds of mind all have two aspects: diffuse and inquiring. Inquiring with respect to the wholesome is the seed of wisdom; being diffuse is the seed of merit. Fourth: broadly explaining the meaning of merit and wisdom. Fifth: discussing how Cunda and the Buddha are mutually donors and recipients. Cunda uses a contaminated mind to transport contaminated wealth and bestows it upon an uncontaminated person; thus the donor is contaminated and the recipient is uncontaminated. The Buddha uses an uncontaminated mind to convey the uncontaminated Dharma and bestows it upon a contaminated person; thus the donor is uncontaminated and the recipient is contaminated. Sixth: selecting that although Cunda and the Buddha are mutually donors, they cannot mutually be fields of merit. A field has the function of generating and the utility of nourishing and growing; since the Buddha's merit is complete and full, how could he rely on the benefit of a field? Seventh: clarifying that the Buddha is the determinate recipient and Cunda is the determinate donor. Since both are determinate, as soon as the Buddha agrees to accept, the perfection of giving arises without waiting for the transport of wealth to reach the recipient's place. It is like when a person's property is in another land and he designates it from afar as a gift—it immediately belongs to the recipient. Eighth: distinguishing the stages of persons. How so? Cunda's outward trace is that of an ordinary external worldling; by hearing the Buddha explain permanence he gains understanding, achieves semblance-prajñā, obtains the semblance of the perfection of giving, and enters the stage of an inner ordinary person. By means of answering the five difficulties, he then ascends to the uncontaminated. Ninth: distinguishing between causal giving and conditioning giving, which refers to the Buddha explaining permanence. Causal giving refers to Cunda renouncing wealth. The cause is intimate while the condition is distant. How so? Material giving is intimate in terms of phenomena but distant in terms of principle; giving of Dharma is intimate in terms of principle but distant in terms of phenomena. Material giving sustains the body, which is why it is distant in principle; giving of Dharma sustains the spirit, which is why it is intimate in principle. Moreover, damaging oneself to renounce wealth is intimate with respect to phenomena, hence it is called cause; giving of Dharma causes no loss to oneself and is distant with respect to phenomena, hence it is called condition. Tenth: broadly explaining the meaning of the field of merit.