大般涅槃經義記 8.339

8.339

下次解釋雜親近涅槃，句別有十：前四自為，「壞疑為修」是一句也，「修為見性」是兩句也，「見性為得阿耨菩提」是三句也，「為得涅槃」是四句也。下六為他，「為斷眾生一切生死」斷其苦果，「一切煩惱」斷其惑因，「一切有」者為斷眾生二十五有，「一切界」者斷其三界，「一切諦」者斷苦集諦。初一為斷，貫此諸句。此五為生斷離有為。「斷生至諦為得常」等，為令眾生證入無為，前問、次答，有疑難解者自下重復問答顯之。有三問答顯前涅槃。初師子吼執麁同細，「若不生滅是涅槃者，四相中生亦不生滅，以何義故不名涅槃」。生相云何不生不滅？彼已起竟更不重生，故名不生。生相非滅，故言不滅。下佛為釋。先述其言，「不生不滅而有始終」釋非涅槃。

Next, miscellaneous closeness to nirvāṇa is explained, comprising ten distinct clauses: The first four are for oneself: "Destroying doubts is for cultivating the Path" is one clause; "Cultivating the Path is for seeing the nature" is the second clause; "Seeing the nature is for attaining anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi" is the third clause; "For attaining nirvāṇa" is the fourth clause. The latter six are for others: "For severing all birth-and-death of sentient beings" severs their suffering fruit; "All afflictions" severs the cause of their delusion; "All realms of existence" means severing sentient beings' twenty-five states of existence; "All realms" means severing their three realms; "All truths" means severing the truths of suffering and its origin. The first "for severing" runs through all these clauses. These five are for sentient beings to sever and leave the conditioned. "Severing birth up to the truths is for attaining the permanent..." and so forth is for causing sentient beings to realize and enter the unconditioned. Above was the question and next the answer; for what is doubtful and difficult to understand, it is further revealed through questions and answers below. There are three questions and answers revealing the aforementioned nirvāṇa. First, Siṃhanāda grasps the coarse as identical to the subtle: "If what is neither born nor extinguished is nirvāṇa, arising among the four characteristics is also neither born nor extinguished; on what grounds is it not called nirvāṇa?" How is the characteristic of arising neither born nor extinguished? That which has already arisen does not arise again, hence it is called unborn; the characteristic of arising is not extinction, hence it is said to be unextinguished. Below, the Buddha explains this for him. First he restates his words; "neither born nor extinguished yet having a beginning and an end" explains why it is not nirvāṇa.