大般涅槃經集解 48.16

48.16

Sengliang comments: The seventh is the outflow of mindfulness. At the time when the three feelings arise, they are not yet afflictions; after perceiving suffering and pleasure, one further generates wrong mindfulness, and only upon reflecting on suffering and pleasure do afflictions arise. Therefore, mindfulness is the cause of outflows. When the noble ones perceive suffering and pleasure, they do not give rise to wrong mindfulness; therefore, they do not give rise to the outflow of arising. Regarding 'creating various sufferings for mind and body,' because of the characteristics of a false body and mind, there is no suffering they do not experience; this clarifies the fault of viewing the body. Baoliang comments: Below, the seventh clarifies the outflow of mindfulness. Outflows arising through the conditions of wrong mindfulness are called the outflow of mindfulness. In terms of the path of antidotes, it is called the outflow of practice. As for why it says 'the suffering and distress of body and mind give rise to various evils': the term 'suffering and distress' originally denotes karmic retribution. Yet ordinary beings are foolish and do not comprehend what past karma has incurred; hence, they lament and cry out as if it were unwarranted, claiming that the suffering cannot be borne. Being internally narrow and inverted, not abiding by the true principle, they generate even heavier conditions amid mild suffering. If they recognized the nature and substance of cause and effect, and the actions done in previous lives, settling their minds in this way, how could outflows arise? It is precisely because beings have no understanding in these two paths, and moreover falsely give rise to notions of pleasure within saṃsāra, clinging to them as real, that wrong mindfulness arises in confusion; therefore, they produce various evils. If one is a noble one, abiding with the mind in the Way, one dwells in suffering all day without perceiving it as suffering, and dwells in pleasure without taking it as pleasure; therefore, outflows do not arise. Now the bodhisattva perceives the fault and thus cultivates the emptiness of nominal designations and phenomena, severing the root of suffering. Therefore, the following section makes five stages of analogies based on eight matters: if one settles the mind according to the noble words, all outflows will surely cease forever and nirvāṇa can be expected; if not, saṃsāra will continue perpetually. The eight matters are from 'observing the four great elements' down to 'ascending the great mountain.' The five stages are: first, attaining the emptiness of nominal designations; second, attaining the emptiness of real phenomena; third, clarifying that the two emptinesses accomplish the subsequent eight true non-outflows, fully severing the afflictions of seeing the truths and attaining the fruit of srotāpanna; fourth, from attaining the first fruit, advancing further to completely sever the fetters of reflection in the three realms, reaching the fruit of arhat; fifth, from completely severing the delusions outside the three realms down to attaining mahānirvāṇa.