大般涅槃經義記 4.59

4.59

下勸學中，「若有習學能報佛恩」上順聖心，「真佛弟子」上順佛法。就明二乘見性之中，先明難見，「迦葉白佛：佛性微細，云何肉眼而能得見」下明二乘人依經得見。前中有四：第一迦葉明性難見，二乘不服，不能聽受、證會在心，故曰不服；二如來述可，汝嘆性深，二乘不服，不違我說；三迦葉請佛難見之相；四如來廣辨。於中有二：一舉菩薩見性不了以顯二乘不能得見；二「所有佛性如是深」下舉佛獨知，彰彼二乘不能得見。前中先明菩薩不了，「如是菩薩位階十」下以大況小，明小不見。就明菩薩見不了中，初明菩薩假佛少見，下因見傷嘆。前中先喻，喻有四句：一自不見性喻，十地菩薩各修十度，說為百人，因分所修未能見實故說為盲；二「為治目」下請佛求解喻，為治慧眼，請佛聽法名「造良醫」；三「是時」下佛為說法，喻諸佛良醫為說涅槃，破其闇障，開發慧眼，名為「金錍抉其眼膜」；四「以一指」下因說悟解喻，經初一說名一指示，中間重說名二指示，初聞未解如一指示，盲答未見；重聞方解如以二指、三指示之，乃言少見。

Below, in the exhortation to learn: 'if one practices and learns, one is able to repay the Buddha's kindness' aligns upwards with the sage's intention; 'a true disciple of the Buddha' aligns upwards with the Buddha-Dharma. Within explaining that the two vehicles see the nature, it first explains that it is difficult to see: from 'Kāśyapa said to the Buddha: "The buddha-nature is subtle and fine; how can the flesh eye be able to see it?"' onward, it explains that persons of the two vehicles come to see it by relying on the sūtra. In the former part there are four points: first, Kāśyapa clarifies that the nature is difficult to see, and that the two vehicles do not submit—not being able to hear, accept, and inwardly verify it, it is said that they do not submit; second, the Tathāgata agrees with him: you praise the depth of the nature, and that the two vehicles do not submit does not contradict what I have said; third, Kāśyapa asks the Buddha about the characteristics of its being difficult to see; fourth, the Tathāgata analyzes it extensively. Within this there are two parts: first, adducing the bodhisattvas' indistinct seeing of the nature to reveal that the two vehicles are unable to see it; second, from 'all buddha-nature is as profound as this' onward, adducing the Buddha's exclusive knowing to make clear that those of the two vehicles are unable to see it. In the former part, it first explains the bodhisattvas' indistinctness, and from 'bodhisattvas like this whose rank has reached the tenth' onward, it uses the great to illustrate the small, explaining that the small do not see. Within explaining that the bodhisattvas' seeing is indistinct: first, it explains that bodhisattvas depend on the Buddha to see a little, and below, upon seeing, they lament and praise. In the former part, there is first an analogy, and the analogy has four phrases: first, the analogy of not seeing the nature by oneself—the bodhisattvas of the ten grounds each cultivate the ten pāramitās, spoken of as 'a hundred people'; because what is cultivated at the causal stage is not yet able to see reality, they are spoken of as 'blind'; second, from 'in order to treat the eyes' onward, the analogy of asking the Buddha to seek understanding—in order to heal the wisdom eye, asking the Buddha and listening to the Dharma is called 'visiting a good physician'; third, from 'at that time' onward, the Buddha teaches the Dharma for them—analogous to the good physician of the buddhas teaching nirvāṇa for them, destroying their dark hindrances and opening up the wisdom eye, called 'scraping away the membrane of their eyes with a golden probe'; fourth, from 'with one finger' onward, the analogy of awakening and understanding through the teaching—the initial teaching of the sūtra is called 'pointing with one finger', and the repeated teaching in the middle is called 'pointing with two fingers'; hearing it initially without understanding is like 'pointing with one finger', where the blind answer that they do not see; only upon hearing it again do they understand, like showing them two or three fingers, whereupon they say they see a little.