涅槃玄義發源機要 2

English (machine translation) 2

Language: English

2.3 — 4 parts

2.1

Composed by the Śramaṇa Shi Zhiyuan of Qiantang in the Song

From the phrase "The text says" onward, this refers to the text of the chapter "The Tathāgata Nature." The "twenty-five states of existence" are the detailed analysis of the six destinies: namely, the four continents, the four destinies, the Heaven of Non-conception, the Anāgāmin Heaven, the six heavens of the desire realm, the Brahmā Heaven, the four dhyāna heavens, and the four formless heavens. Because birth and death do not cease in these twenty-five states of existence, they are collectively called "existence." "I speak of the true self; is it not also the Buddha-nature?"—this is Kāśyapa's question. "He answered" refers to the Buddha's answer: "All sentient beings possess the Buddha-nature; this is the meaning of the self." From the phrase "speaking upon waking" onward: The *Wenxuan* says, "When I speak upon waking, none responds to me." The commentary states, "It means speaking while lying down." Following the sūtra it should be written as 寱 (phonetic *niu-shi*), which means talking in one's sleep. The chapter "The Tathāgata Nature" says: "For example, there were two men who were close friends; one was a prince, and the other was poor and lowly. Seeing that the prince had a fine sword, [the poor man] gave rise to covetous attachment in his heart. Later, the prince took this sword and fled to another country. Afterwards, the poor man lodged at another's house, and in his sleep he babbled, 'Sword! Sword!' A bystander heard it and seized him, bringing him to the king's presence." And so on, until: "The Bodhisattva is also like this: appearing in the world, he expounds the marks of the true self. Having expounded them, he departs, just like the prince who took the sword and fled the country. Ordinary people say that all things have a self, like that poor man lodging in another's house, talking in his sleep, 'Sword! Sword!'" From "Furthermore, poplar" onward: In the "Conduct of an Infant," to stop a small child from crying, yellow leaves of a poplar tree are taken for gold, and so on; taking wooden figures and wooden horses are all for the sake of stopping crying. This metaphor illustrates the thirty-two heavens falsely taking things to be permanence, bliss, self, and purity. The commentary below says: "Leaves symbolize false permanence; gold symbolizes false purity. Men symbolize false self; horses symbolize false bliss." "The six destinies taking the settling of the body and delight, etc.": just as in the cold hells, a warm interval is taken as delight; the remaining destinies may be known accordingly. "Looking toward the Buddha, it is still shared": because it has not yet completely and definitively separated from the birth and death of change. "Neither shared nor separate": this completes the four propositions, and therefore belongs to the double negation. If summarized and clarified, there are only shared and separate: the nine realms are shared, and the Buddha realm is separate; therefore the preceding sentence clarifies the Bodhisattva while saying that looking toward the Buddha, it is still shared. 𤚲 (phonetic *gu-hou*) means to milk a cow. "According to the place to which it flows," etc.: the chapter "The Tathāgata Nature" says, "For example, in the Snow Mountains there is a single-flavored medicinal herb called 'delightful flavor.' For the sake of this herb, a wheel-turning king constructed wooden tubes in various places to catch this medicine. Its flavor was genuine and authentic. After the king passed away, this medicine later became sour, salty, sweet, bitter, pungent, or bland. Although it is thus a single flavor, according to the place to which it flows it has various differences; the true flavor of this medicine remains in the mountain like the full moon." And so on, until: "The secret treasury is also like this: on account of afflictions, various flavors emerge, namely the five destinies and the four castes." The detailed explanation is as in the *Subcommentary*. "Vomiting out this illness": "pour out" means to vomit. From "The text says" onward, it cites the chapter "Ājñāta-Kauṇḍinya." The three kinds of illness are greed, anger, and delusion. The three kinds of medicine are impurity, a mind of loving-kindness, and causes and conditions. Phenomena and principle do not blend, so medicine and illness are mutually absent. "The king again fell ill" refers to the metaphor of the guest physician in the chapter "Lamentation." The king falling ill means that small capacities cling to impermanence as an illness. "Both medicine and illness": because it remedies heterodox permanence, it is called medicine; because it obstructs true permanence, it is called illness. "These are the superior three cultivations": namely, permanence, bliss, and self. The old letter *i* arranged vertically and horizontally symbolizes the inferior three cultivations of impermanence, suffering, and non-self. From "Furthermore, the new" onward: previously, in contrast to the two extremes, the threefold teaching, practice, and principle of the Middle Way all received the name of double negation. Now, contrasting teaching and practice with principle, the teaching and practice of the perfect *i* can remedy the two extremes, and thus receive the name of medicine. The perfect principle is extinguished and obliterated, and therefore belongs to the double negation; hence it speaks of the true dharma, true nature, and so on. "Only possessing permanence and purity," etc.: this is framed according to giving half and taking away half; thus two are granted and two are taken away. If completely taken away, all four virtues are absent, as stated in the commentary below. "It is the habitual tendencies": this means that the distinctions of the Three Jewels are the mind of ignorance. Ignorance is habitual tendencies; the *Vimalakīrti* says, "When residual habits are not exhausted, the flowers cling to one's body." These are unconditioned conditioning habits, not habits within the three realms. "Vertically transcending the nine realms": this refers to one's own practice breaking through the nine to manifest the Buddha realm, which is called vertically transcending; however, it only breaks through the nine realms of phenomena, not the nine realms of nature. "Horizontally gathering all": it horizontally pervades each of those nine realms. "Permanence because of having neither boundary nor bottom": because it horizontally gathers, it has no boundary; because it vertically transcends, it has no bottom. Because he penetrates the boundless and bottomless, he is called a great man. Being a great man himself, he also tames great men; thus it says he can transform and deliver all. Because self and other blend and encompass, it is inconceivable. From "Severing suffering" onward, bliss is also explained in four lines: the first two pertain to severance, and the latter two pertain to wisdom. Among the first two, the former clarifies the function of severance; hence it says "it is bliss because of severing suffering and bliss," which means severing the suffering of birth and death and the bliss of nirvāṇa, thereby attaining the great bliss of the Middle Way. The latter line clarifies the substance of severance; hence it says "it is bliss because of great quiescence," which means that the Middle Way eternally stills the two extremes, and is thus called great quiescence. Among the latter two pertaining to wisdom, the first line clarifies the function of wisdom; hence it says "it is bliss because of knowing all," which means the Middle Way doubly illuminates the two extremes, called knowing all. The latter line clarifies the substance of wisdom; hence it says "it is bliss because the body is permanent," which means knowing clearly and permanently. "Purity of karma" is the general heading. From "Purity of body" onward, all three karmas are pure; using body to encompass speech, it only says "purity of body." Namely, form and mind are non-dual, and both are empty, provisional, and middle; hence both are called pure. From "Therefore" onward is the general conclusion. However, in this text, permanence and bliss each have four lines, self has only one line, and purity has three lines; each follows the convenience of language without any other explanation. "By analogy with the preceding, one should take the principle," etc., refers to the preceding text where the true dharma and true nature are neither medicine nor illness. "Mutually revealing," etc.: previously, negation was clarified with respect to principle; now negation is clarified solely with respect to phenomena. Using the former to analogize the latter, and the latter to analogize the former, it is therefore called mutually revealing. The analysis from the hells on up refers to what was said in "shared and separate": that the six destinies take settling the body and suiting one's nature as peace and bliss. From the non-Buddhists on up refers to what was said in "medicine and illness": that after the elder died, the herds of cattle were plundered. From the two vehicles on up refers to what was said in "great and small": the small is the two vehicles. The "four siddhāntas": this term comes from the *Mahāprajñāpāramitā-upadeśa*. *Xi* (siddha) is a Chinese word, and *tan* (dāna) is a Sanskrit word. *Xi* means universal, and *tan* means giving. Because the four dharmas—delighting, generating good, destroying evil, and entering the principle—are universally bestowed upon sentient beings, it is called *siddhānta*. Moreover, Dharma Master Ying says: "Siddhaṃ is translated here as accomplishment. What the treatise calls *siddhānta* is also *siddhaṃ*." According to this, both characters are Sanskrit sounds; therefore, scholars of other traditions sometimes say that Tiantai was not proficient in Chinese and Sanskrit. Yet since ancient times it was also said that both characters are Sanskrit words; how could it be known only in the Tang dynasty? Therefore the *Profound Meaning of the Vimalakīrti Sūtra* says: "*Siddhānta* is a foreign word." Various dharma masters explained it differently: some said it is untranslated because foreign words contain multiple meanings, just as the word *sūtra* contains five meanings and is not definitively translated in this land. Among those with translations, some translate it as 'doctrine,' marking the truth with an ink line, accomplishment, and culmination. Such different translations are not singular, and it is difficult to determine definitively. Nanyue said: This is like *mahā-nirvāṇa*, which is a juxtaposition of both Hu and Han words. Nanyue had personal realization and would not have used it mistakenly, so Tiantai Zhizhe relied on it to interpret the meaning. Furthermore, as with the name of Nāgārjuna, ancient translators all said that both characters were Chinese words, meaning that the dragon produced his dharmakāya and the tree produced his physical body. When it came to the Tang dynasty, it was then said that *nāga* is Chinese and *arjuna* is Sanskrit, in Sanskrit *nāgārjuna*, translated here as Longmeng (Dragon-Valiant). One should know that since Longmeng had the circumstance of his parents praying to a tree, and it also sounded similar to *arjuna*, this led to differing explanations, by analogy with *siddhānta*. Explaining *xi* as 'universal,' even if taken as Sanskrit, should not be erroneous. Just as translating it as 'culmination' also carries the meaning of 'universal.' "Revealing the former ultimate truth": the former teachings of humans and devas and the Hinayana teaching each pointed to the nirvāṇa of their respective teachings as the ultimate truth. Citing mutual absence as proof: this refers to the thirty-fifth fascicle saying, "Where there are cattle, there are no horses; where there are horses, there are no cattle," which is called mutual absence. "Paramārtha-nirvāṇa" is also the same as the first school, taking nirvāṇa as conventional truth. For them, because nirvāṇa is realized through cultivation, it belongs to conventional truth. It cites the *Zhao Treatise* to prove that conventional truth is without name and without mark. Sengzhao has four treatises: first, *On the Immutability of Things*; second, *On the Emptiness of the Unreal*; third, *On Prajñā without Knowing*; fourth, *On the Namelessness of Nirvāṇa*. Here it cites the text of the *Immutability of Things*. "Rivers to the point of not flowing": although earlier and later waves continue one after another, they do not reach each other; their natures each abide, so although pouring forth, they do not flow. "The sun and moon to the point of not revolving": the sun and moon travel across the heavens day and night without stopping, yet also because they each abide, they cannot revolve. From "How could there be" onward, it concludes by revealing that nirvāṇa is without name and without mark. This means that things like rivers, as well as nirvāṇa, are all conventional truth. "Still being the two provisionals of continuity and relativity": because of merging with the real and because ignorance is already exhausted, it does not exist through causal completion; yet because it possesses two provisionals—the provisional of continuing in relation to the real, and the provisional of the mutual relativity of delusion and awakening—it is conventional truth, and therefore has a name. Clinging to the real having a name means that the conventional originally has no name, but establishes names based on the real. Just as the sages at the beginning of the kalpa looked up to the true principle and looked down to establish conventional designations: because the true principle can provide thoroughfare, it was named 'path'; because the true principle is unmoving, it was named 'mountain.' "That which is traversed is non-existent": because what is traversed by the four gates is identically the one biased real, merely preserving the neighbor-to-space particle is called the gate of existence, and analyzing and breaking the neighbor-to-space particle is called the gate of emptiness. Both-and and neither-nor can be known according to the meaning. From "Pointing to Santu" onward, it cites an analogy to conclude and refute. The Three Paths (Santu) are the names of mountains: Mount Taihang, Huanyuan, and the Xiao-Mian mountains. The *Zuo Zhuan* says: "Santu and the Four Sacred Mountains are the perilous places of the Nine Provinces." Some write it as "desolate path" (huangtu), which is an erroneous alteration by later people. When they use the small capacity to explain the great object, it is just like pointing to the perils and obstacles of the Santu Mountains as the level ease of the Place of Jewels. Fish eyes symbolize the small; bright pearls symbolize the great; the import can be known. From "Asking about the ancients" onward, it praises and poses a question. There are three praises and one question: first, praising the excellence of the lineage's Path; second, from "Zhao wrote" onward, praising the lofty literary quality of his writings; third, from "People of the world" onward, praising that he is universally acknowledged past and present. From "What is the meaning" onward is the one question: although possessing these three excellences, when the meaning and purport he explains are compared with our school, which is superior and which is inferior? Therefore it asks, "What is the meaning?" "Commissioned by the age": the letter of Li Ling in the *Wenxuan* says, "All believe in talents commissioned by the age, embracing the abilities of generals and ministers." The commentary says: "Commission means fame; it means his fame spread throughout the era." *Mencius* says: "Every five hundred years a true king must arise, and during that time there must be those renowned in their age." The commentary says: "Renowned in their age refers to talents second only to sages, who can give name to things as they arise and rectify an entire generation, born between sages." "Ascending the hall and entering the inner chamber": those shallow in the Way ascend the hall, while those deep in the Way enter the inner chamber. The *Analects* says: "The Master said: You has ascended the hall, but has not yet entered the inner chamber." "Only Zhao alone": under Master Kumārajīva there were ten philosophers, eight prodigies, and four sages, and Sengzhao was among all of them. Daosheng, Sengzhao, Sengrong, and Sengrui were the four sages; adding Tanying, Daoyan, Huiping, and Daozhao made the eight prodigies; together with Sengchang and Fayao, they were named the ten philosophers. The *Biographies of Eminent Monks* says: "In penetrating understanding, Daosheng and Sengrong were foremost; in subtle disputation, Daozhao and Sengzhao were first." Liu Yimin read the treatises authored by Sengzhao and sighed, "I did not expect that among the monastic robes there would again be a He Pingshu!" From "Vast and magnificent" onward, it means his literary phrasing was overflowing, filling people's ears. The *Analects* says: "When Zhi, the music master, began, and in the finale of the 'Guanju,' how magnificent was the sound that filled the ears!" "Unable to put the scroll down": *shi* means to let go. In the answer, first he humbles himself, generally pointing to the sun and moon in one's bosom as a metaphor for his brilliant penetration. From "Since not" onward, he reproaches himself: since he did not personally receive instruction from Master Zhao, it is difficult for him to perceive the profound import of his dharma gate. From "Drilling and looking up" onward: although not personally receiving it, since the surviving texts exist, by examining their purport, it should also be knowable. "Drilling and looking up": Yan Yuan praised Confucius, saying: "The more I drill into it, the harder it becomes; the more I look up to it, the higher it seems." "Looking through a pipe": the *Zhuangzi* says, "Looking at the sky through a pipe, pointing at the earth with an awl."

2.3.1

Second, from "His treatise" downward, it evaluates the text of the treatise according to the four propositions. That treatise has in total nine refutations and ten expositions, making nineteen sections in all. What is now criticized consists of its subtle words and essential expressions excerpted from the above memorial of the ruler of the Qin, as well as the first [section], "Opening the Tenet," and the second, "Examining the Substance." None of them exceeds the four propositions, and hence they are cited in an intermingled fashion without forming a sequential order. Now, first, the text will be indicated and correlated, and next, its meaning will be elucidated. Within the initial proposition of existence, the first part is from the text of "Opening the Tenet." From "If there were no" downward, it is from the memorial. Within the subsequent proposition of non-existence, the first two sentences are from the text of "Opening the Tenet," which reads fully: "I have once ventured to state: As for the Way of nirvāṇa, it is serene, empty, and vast," and so forth. The single sentence below "How could there be" is from the text of the memorial, which reads fully: "Since it is called nirvāṇa, how could there further be any room for names within it?" Within the proposition of both [existence and non-existence], the sentence "Only in indistinctness and obscurity is there an essence within it" is language from the memorial; the remainder is language from "Opening the Tenet." The proposition of neither [existence nor non-existence] is entirely from the text of "Opening the Tenet." From "Yet wishing" downward, it reads fully: "This is indeed a realm of imperceptibility, a domain of the profoundest mystery; yet to wish to use existence and non-existence as labels to demarcate its territory and speak of its spiritual path—is this not exceedingly remote?" Next, in explaining the meaning: from "emerging and dwelling" to "provisional designation," abiding in the world with remainder is called "emerging," and entering extinction without remainder is called "dwelling"; these are both manifestations of birth and death shown in response to capacities. Since they have no real substance, they are both provisional designations. From "If there were no" downward, these were originally the words of the ruler of the Qin, criticizing the various masters who, in interpreting the ultimate truth, all held that it was vast, empty, and quiescent, without any sage. Therefore, Sengzhao adduced it: if the ultimate truth were vastly empty without a sage, who would know the ultimate truth? Since there is one who knows, this verifies that there is a sage. Hence that text says: "It is truly as the enlightened decree states." From "If there were no" downward, Master Sengzhao expands upon and clarifies the intention of the ruler of the Qin. The sage forgets conceptualizations, and in motion and stillness accords with the Way; hence it says "traveling with it." Regarding "this is the proposition of existence": since there exists a person capable of knowing and capable of traveling, how could this not be the proposition of existence? Regarding "this is the proposition of non-existence": since there is neither form nor name, nor is it known by a mind that conceives of existence, how could this not be the proposition of non-existence? Therefore, "it cannot be grasped as existing": this is "also non-existent." "It cannot be grasped as non-existing": this is "also existing." Huang means existing; hu means non-existing. Yao means secluded; ming means dark. That is to say, existence and non-existence are unfixed, secluded, dark, and difficult to fathom; hence it is called "indistinct and obscure." Although it is said to be difficult to fathom, there is a numinous luminosity and awareness whose marvel thoroughly endures; hence it says "there is an essence." Indistinct and obscure is "also non-existent"; having an essence is "also existing." Because the five aggregates are eternally extinguished, it is "also non-existent"; because the subtle spirit is inexhaustible, it is "also existing." Regarding "existence and non-existence are terminated within": being vacuous and unchanging, it cannot be deemed existent, and therefore existence is terminated; its supreme efficacy ever endures, and therefore non-existence is terminated. From "Designations" downward: since the substance of nirvāṇa terminates existence and non-existence internally, designations are obliterated externally. From "Seeing and hearing" downward, it explains the two sentences above. Because designations are externally terminated, it is beyond the reach of seeing and hearing in the two realms; because existence and non-existence are internally terminated, it cannot be fathomed by the formless [realm] and the four immaterial [attainments]. Labels refers to names. Territory refers to the principle-substance. Regarding "is this not exceedingly remote?": if one clings to existence or non-existence, one is very far from the Way. From "However, its" downward, it determines the treatise's intention according to the four teachings. Regarding "The text says" and so forth: "Opening the Tenet" states, "Extinction and salvation refers to great affliction being eternally extinguished and transcending the four currents." Not involving what is outside the realms means merely crossing the four currents of desire, existence, views, and ignorance within the realms. Not extinguishing the affliction of nirvāṇa means it merely takes the body of the aggregates to be the great affliction. From "Distinguishing differences" downward: since that treatise belongs to the Mahāyāna and yet is neither the separate nor the perfect [teaching], now, tracing the text of "Distinguishing Differences," one knows that it belongs to the shared teaching. "Distinguishing Differences" is the ninth chapter. Regarding "the unconditioned is one": it says, "Because they equally emerge from birth and death, they are identically termed the unconditioned." From "This is because" downward: it says, "The various paths of the three vehicles all have distinctions by reason of the unconditioned. This threefoldness is threefold in relation to the unconditioned; it is not that the unconditioned has three." From "The Tathāgata" downward: it says, "The Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā states: 'Does nirvāṇa have distinctions?' Answer: 'There are no distinctions. It is only that the Tathāgata has completely exhausted defilements and residual habituations, whereas the voice-hearers have not yet exhausted residual habituations.' I request to use a proximate metaphor to illustrate this remote purport: like a person cutting timber, removing a foot leaves no foot, and removing an inch leaves no inch; length and shortness lie in the feet and inches, not in the absence." The present master cites this, perhaps with some wording altered. Some editions have "voice-hearers have exhausted defilements but not residual habituations," which adds the character "exhausted" below "defilements." Regarding "lies in the feet and inches, not in the absence": feet and inches illustrates the shallowness or depth of the three vehicles; absence illustrates the oneness of the principle of nirvāṇa. From "Although both" downward: the other shore is nirvāṇa; the rising and falling is the three vehicles. By means of the ineffable path refers to the shared prajñā of the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā. Regarding "strikingly apparent" (xian, phonetic shi-xian): the Shangshu states, "Just now gathering and manifesting the artisans." Kong Anguo says, "Jiu means gathering; xian means manifesting." From "Now, the shared" downward, it criticizes Sengzhao's four faults, in the sequence of the text. Regarding "stooping to pull up the branches and twigs": Sengzhao says, "Looking upward to climb the mysterious root, stooping to pull up those lost in weakness." The first line is seeking above, and the second line is transforming below. Principle is the root of the Way, hence called the "mysterious root." An infant losing its hometown is called "lost in weakness." Skillful means and virtues being slight is called an "infant." Inherent suchness is called the "hometown." Now determining his intention, it therefore says "it is indeed" and so forth. Regarding "This obliterates sorrow and joy" and so forth: a person of the shared [teaching] thoroughly realizes that illusory transformations are identical with emptiness; therefore, sorrow, joy, and so forth are all completely obliterated. Equating light and darkness means that wisdom is light and delusion is darkness. Regarding "not engaging in the great or small": the commentary below explains, "This is an infant of the separate teaching, meaning that not committing the five heinous crimes is called not engaging in the great, and not giving rise to the mind of the two vehicles is called not engaging in the small. Here, making it an infant of the shared teaching does not let the letter harm the meaning: because of realizing identity with emptiness, greatness and smallness are eliminated. Metaphorizing it as an infant, following the intention of the chapter below, is merely harmonizing one's light to benefit beings, enabling sentient beings to see. The bodhisattva conforming to their initial learning is called 'infantile conduct'; this is manifesting conformity with humans and devas. All those prior to the stages of abiding in the three teachings as well as the perfect [teaching] are called infants. Now, evaluating the Zhaolun, it is merely an infant of the shared teaching." It is illustrated by the three animals crossing the river: because the three vehicles all realize nirvāṇa yet their wisdom has depth and shallowness—as the text is recorded in the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā and the twenty-first fascicle of the present sūtra—then the voice-hearer is like the hare, the pratyekabuddha is like the horse, and the bodhisattva is like the elephant. The metaphor of ash and severance is recorded in the Dazhidulun: "The voice-hearer severs the primary afflictions like burning wood into charcoal."

2.3.2

[For] pratyekabuddhas, the residual habituations are affected, like burning charcoal to ash. For bodhisattvas, both are completely exhausted, like having neither charcoal nor ash.' That its tenet lies in other sūtras means that it embodies the phenomena according to the shared teaching, not the present perfect and sudden [teaching]. Below, 'all' means that the bodhisattvas of the lower three teachings and the arhats of the tripiṭaka and shared [teachings] all shatter their partial doubts and together become perfect Buddhas. Below, 'the Buddha opening' means: since opening the shared teaching makes it identical to the perfect, why further establish a shared meaning? 'The deaf and blind' refers to those whose capacities were unripe in the Lotus Sūtra and had not yet been liberated, who were rebuked as deaf and blind; attaining awakening at present, they are all perceptive. 聵 (fanqie: wu + guai) means deaf. To rebuke the old and reveal the new means: the old is the inferior three cultivations, while the new is the superior three cultivations. Below, 'waves stir' uses the parable of losing the pearl in the spring pond from the 'Lamentation Chapter'. Broken tiles and gravel symbolize the lesser principle; the circular moon, which is the pearl, symbolizes the perfect principle; detailed explanations are as in the Commentary and Notes. When Zhao explained the perfectly integrated nirvāṇa of the present sūtra using the principle realized by the three vehicles of the past teachings, how was it different from seizing gravel for a pearl? 'Main rope' is the great rope at the top of a net; therefore, when the main rope is in order, the meshes are straight; when the main rope is missing, the meshes collapse. The great meaning of nirvāṇa is compared to the main rope; the nine refutations and ten expositions are like its meshes. When the meaning of nirvāṇa is ruined, what do the refutations and expositions rely on? Hence it is said: 'Where can they lodge?' Below, 'grasping the Buddha' refers to the skillful means of the past teachings, which the Buddha in the Lotus Sūtra and the Nirvāṇa Sūtra had already rebuked as provisional; hence it is said that they are 'discarded'. As for the ten expositions: that [work] has nineteen sections in total, and is named 'nine refutations and ten expositions'. 'Refutations' are interrogative objections. 'Expositions' are answering explanations: namely, 1. Opening the Tenet, 2. Examining the Substance, 3. Determining the Position of Substance, 4. Inquiring into Origin, 5. Transcending the Objective Sphere, 6. Searching for the Profound, 7. The Wondrous Existing, 8. Objections to Differences, 9. Discerning Differences, 10. Reproaching Divergence, 11. Reconciling Divergence, 12. Interrogating Gradualness, 13. Clarifying Gradualness, 14. Ridiculing Movement, 15. Movement and Quiescence, 16. Exhausting the Source, 17. Penetrating the Ancient, 18. Investigating Attainment, and 19. Profound Attainment. Among them, 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, and 19 are expositions; the remaining nine are refutations. 'Ultimately not the three virtues' means that the discourse of the ten expositions only clarifies the nirvāṇa of the past teachings, and is ultimately not the perfectly permanent three virtues. Below, 'now it is said' is where our master properly clarifies the meaning of 'nirvāṇa is nameless'. Please examine the text and investigate the import: comparing it to Master Zhao, even the vast distance between road and Milky Way or the sheer disparity between a mountain and the tip of a hair cannot serve as a comparison. Superiority and inferiority are clearly distinct, like [looking at] one's palm; it is not merely subjective bias. First, he cites the three virtues to explain nirvāṇa; next, he separates from the nine realms to explain namelessness. The six destinies together with the three vehicles of the three teachings combine to form the nine realms. 'From what is separated,' etc., means: what is separated is the nine realms; that which can separate is the Buddha-realm. It is because it lacks the names of the nirvāṇa of the nine realms that it is called nameless, whereas it possesses the names of the three virtues of the Buddha-realm. Hence we know that for the four characters 'nirvāṇa is nameless' (nie pan wu ming), the first two reveal that which can separate, and the latter two clarify that which is separated; being framed in terms of the relativity of the subject and object [of separation], it pertains to the gate of existence. 'Identity of all names with namelessness' means: the very names of the nine realms are themselves the namelessness of the Buddha-realm; hence it is said to be 'precisely nirvāṇa'. This is framed in terms of absolute transcendence, so it pertains to the gate of emptiness. 'Nirvāṇa is not four' means: the three and the one interpenetrate; how could the four characteristics remain? One must know that the four gates are simply the three contemplations: being identical to emptiness, names are precisely nameless; being identical to the conventional, it does not depart from the names of the nine realms; being identical to the middle, double illumination is the affirmation of both, and double negation is the denial of both. One should understand that the ten realms, the single mind, and the three contemplations completely integrate and encompass the import of 'nirvāṇa is nameless', not departing from one's own heart-mind, clearly present before one's eyes. Why rely on the nine refutations and ten expositions to speak in such a roundabout manner? Hence it is named 'objectless' because it does not take either of the two extremes as an object. Below, 'now also' means: lacking the names of the six destinies, it does not take sentient beings as an object; lacking the names of the four noble [realms], it does not take phenomena as an object; possessing the name of the secret treasury, it takes the Tathāgata as an object. 'How much more so the lower stages,' etc., means: if even the Buddha-eye and Buddha-ear do not see or hear, how could the remaining four eyes and four ears be able to see or hear? Question: Do the Buddha-eye and Buddha-ear truly neither see nor hear? Answer: Seeing is devoid of the characteristic of seeing; hearing is devoid of the characteristic of hearing; hence it is said 'neither see nor hear'. 'Great compassion and skillful means' refers to establishing provisional names in accordance with the capacities of the four modes of siddhānta. Stirring a tree and raising a fan symbolize names and characteristics; the moon symbolizes the true principle. Below, 'the text says' refers to the text of the twenty-first [fascicle]. Tilavāyī: the commentary says it is a quail, having two names for one sound. Below, 'Treatise on Great [Wisdom]' refers to the text in the forty-sixth [fascicle] of the treatise. 'Further establishing the five aggregates,' etc., means: unpacking mind forms the five aggregates; unpacking matter forms the twelve sense-bases; unpacking both mind and matter forms the eighteen dhātus; therefore, these three categories do not exceed matter and mind, [just as various timbers do not exceed] maple and nanmu. Below, 'or again' refers to various names listed throughout the sūtra text. That which cannot be swept away by the four floods of desire, existence, views, and ignorance is named an 'islet' (zhōu-zhǔ). The Erya says: 'A habitable place in the water is called an islet (zhōu); a small islet is called a zhǔ.' That which can shelter from the evil wind and rain of afflictions is named an 'abode'. Because the perfect dharma all-inclusively embraces, it is the 'perfect practice'; just like consuming milk-gruel leaves no further need, being the utmost supreme, it is compared to ghee. Because it can prop up the icchantika's perfect faith, it is compared to a 'staff'. Hence the thirty-fourth [fascicle of the] sūtra says: 'This sūtra can serve as a staff for an icchantika, just as a frail person can stand up by leaning on it.' Because it illuminates the breaking of precepts like a bright mirror, the sūtra says: 'This sūtra is precisely a bright mirror for beings who break the precepts.' Just as an earthly mirror reflects various visible forms, it is called a 'bright mirror for breaking precepts'. Certain editions add a character under the word 'for' (wéi), which is incorrect. Below, 'inconceivable' explains the meaning of the metaphor of empty space. Being identical to emptiness and the middle, it is ungraspable like empty space. Pervading all, it is unobstructed like empty space. Below, 'Great Treatise' says: the provisional designations of sentient beings and the actual phenomena of the five aggregates are both designations in the causal stage. Since they extend to the ultimate fruit, by analogy we know that the designation of the fruit of nirvāṇa also extends to the causal stage; hence we know that all ten realms are spoken of as peaceful and joyful. Below, 'names are neither within,' etc., means: not being within is non-emptiness; not being without is non-existence; the intermediate is the affirmation of both; always self-identical is the negation of both. 'This character does not abide' means that the four natures are ungraspable, which is called emptiness of nature. 'Nor does it not abide' means that this emptiness is also empty, which is called emptiness of characteristics. 'Nirvāṇa is also thus' means: Buddhas and bodhisattvas are the persons who abide; nirvāṇa is the dharma that is abided in; since the person is already twofold empty, how could the dharma not be likewise? Person and dharma are non-dual, their essential nature has no difference. 'Seeking them combined is also ungraspable' means that even being endowed with the three virtues is not nirvāṇa. This clarifies that the three virtues, whether endowed [together] or each [apart], are devoid of fixed characteristics; therefore, seeking them separately or seeking them combined are both ungraspable—only then is it named nirvāṇa.

2.3.3

From "Therefore the Great Treatise" downward, verses from the *Mahāprajñāpāramitā-śāstra* in praise of prajñā are cited to prove seeing and not seeing, seeking separately and seeking together, being both bound and both liberated, thus demonstrating that the statement that nirvanic reality does not abide [in either] means liberation through not seeing. In "If a person..." and so on, giving rise to views regarding dharmas is called being bound by seeing, while being bewildered about dharma-marks is called being bound by not seeing. Giving rise to views in accordance with dharmas is called obtaining liberation through seeing, and the mark of absence of seeing in [such] views is called liberation through not seeing. The dharmakāya and liberation are each analogized to prajñā to form the four phrases; hence it says "is also like this." From "For example" downward: the essence of an illusion is originally empty, so it cannot be seen, yet it has color and form, so it is seen. Seeing what cannot be seen allegorizes liberation through seeing; not seeing what can be seen allegorizes liberation through not seeing. "Merely using conventional names to guide sentient beings" means provisionally establishing the names of the secret treasury and the three virtues to make sentient beings awaken to the principle beneath the names and realize that names are not [ultimate] names—which is the great compassion of shaking the tree and raising the fan. From "For example, an empty fist" downward, the successive matching with the four siddhāntas can be understood. Delighting them with the new letter *i* means that when the great capacity is stirred with joy, this is the benefit of rejoicing. Leading them forward means evoking the great good. Breaking it means shattering the former lesser evil. Awakening them means awakening them to the fact that the small is identical with the great. If there is nothing, then there is no severance: if one conceptualizes nothingness, how could severance ever be achieved? "It is not even the meaning of the Small Vehicle": because the two vehicles of the shared teaching, right in the midst of existence, penetrate emptiness and realize nirvāṇa. The great fragrant elephant and so on are from the text of the "Chapter on Grieving and Lamenting." Halter and bridle: the leather straps binding a horse's head are called a halter. The *Shiming* says, "A halter means examination." It is used to examine, hold, and rein in. In "a tiny stir of thought": *jie* (tiny) means subtle and faint. The "Xici" of the *Book of Changes* states: "Regret and remorse lie in the stir of a tiny thought." In "Since [thoughts] are not severed..." and so on: the mind is the root of speech. Yangzi's *Fayan* says, "Words are the voice of the mind; writing is the drawing of the mind." "This is the cultivation of the path where language is cut off" refers to the expedient path of the internal worldlings of the Small Vehicle. The clear arising of patience regarding suffering refers to the first among the sixteen minds of the path of seeing: patience with the dharma of suffering and knowledge of the dharma of suffering. Briefly mentioning the path of seeing implicitly includes the path of cultivation, because both paths are true realizations. In "at the time of death in conventional truth": the shattering of views and desires is called death in conventional truth. From "Pointing to this" downward: citing the inferior to contrast with the superior. If the inferiority of the Tripiṭaka can already sever the persons and dharmas of the six realms, how much more so the superiority of the Mahāyāna of the other three teachings! From "However, upon entering" downward: about to clarify the meaning of the shared [teaching], the Tripiṭaka is first criticized. In "Because ultimate and conventional are different": because in the Tripiṭaka, phenomena and principle are separated, when entering contemplation one unites with the ultimate, which is severance, but when leaving contemplation one enters the conventional, which is non-severance. Unlike the practitioner of the shared [teaching] for whom phenomena and principle are mutually identical, so that whether entering or leaving contemplation there is complete accord with severance. From "If one can" downward: directly clarifying the meaning of the shared [teaching]. The first two phrases are the words of the *Zhao lun*, because what the *Zhao lun* expounds belongs solely to the shared [teaching]. In "Is it far?": it means it is not far. The first phrase clarifies dharma: conventionality is directly the ultimate, so the Path is not far. The next phrase clarifies persons: worldlings are directly sages, so the sage is not remote. In "Neither severed nor unsevered": all are like illusory transformations, hence there are no dual marks. The expedient path is the stage of nature. In "Empty wisdom accords": from the stage of seeing upward, all are called accord. From "Vimalakīrti" downward: this is the text where the heavenly maiden admonishes Śāriputra. In "Ignorance has not been vomited out": below, in the "Chapter on Grieving and Lamenting," the [practitioners of the] two vehicles say to the Buddha: "In the past, intoxicated by desires and forms, we revolved in birth and death like a drunkard lying in filth. The Tathāgata should now bestow upon us the medicine of the Dharma to make us vomit out the bad wine of afflictions. If I have not yet awakened, how can I be abandoned?" In "spinning the sun and moon": it also says, "Like that drunkard who sees the sun and moon above, which do not actually spin, and imagines them spinning; sentient beings are also like this: covered by afflictions and ignorance, they give rise to inversions, conceptualizing non-self as self and even conceptualizing suffering as pleasure, just like that drunkard imagining spinning where there is no spinning." In "Like a malaria patient": it also says, "Like a malaria patient meeting a good doctor and having his suffering relieved: I am also like this. Though meeting the Tathāgata, the fever of improper livelihood has not yet been cured, and I have not attained supreme, secure, eternal bliss." From "Contrasted with the realms" downward: a concluding indication of the sūtra's intent. Although the shared delusions within the realm are eliminated, the distinct delusions beyond the realm remain entirely; hence it says residual habits are not exhausted, ignorance has not been vomited out, and so on. In "Practicing with the mind of great nirvāṇa": using the understanding of the exclusive Middle, one cultivates the five practices in gradual sequence, completely traversing the ten distinct virtues. The five practices pertain to cultivation and the ten virtues pertain to realization, but they also mutually apply to both cultivation and realization. Here, speaking provisionally in terms of the teaching path prior to the bhūmis, both pertain to cultivation; this means exclusively seeking the true realization of great parinirvāṇa at the first bhūmi while cultivating the practices prior to the bhūmis. In "No longer having a mind within the realm" and so on: the mind within the realm is the wisdom analyzing and embodying [emptiness]; the teachings within the realm are the Tripiṭaka and shared teachings. "Such expedients" are the thirty minds of the separate teaching. In "Yet not yet united with the Middle": partial realization at the first bhūmi is considered uniting with the Middle. In "What was previously unattained" and so on: previously, at the worldly stage, one could not realize the wisdom of the Middle; now, hearing of the wisdom of the Middle, one does not sever ignorance. In "Now severing ignorance and cultivating with stages like steps on a ladder" and so on: looking back at causes from the perspective of the fruit, this is criticized as sequential steps like ascending a ladder, leaving extremes to seek the Middle like a meandering river. The tenth fascicle of the sūtra says: "All rivers inevitably have bends." In "The arousal of the mind cannot pervade the dharma realm": having faith in the inherently existing nature, it is only aroused upon [reaching] the fruit; hence, sequentially extinguishing the nine [realms] to reveal the Buddha-realm, failing to penetrate that the nine are directly the Buddha, is called non-pervasive. In "Not the supreme expedient": the thirty minds of the separate [teaching] are not the expedients of the harmonious, consummate resemblance [stage]. In "Above the expedient there is a further expedient": above the expedients of the separate teaching, there are also the expedients of the internal worldling of the perfect teaching. From "If the perfect" downward: comprehensive clarification of perfect severance. In the text, principle, practice, and teaching are all severed. First, clarifying severance of principle. In "all minds are the dharma realm": all minds are the minds of the nine realms; realizing that the deluded minds of the nine realms are directly the true principle of the three truths, it is called the dharma realm. In "There is no other dharma realm": as when contemplating the hell mind, the principle of the three truths is fully endowed and the three thousand [realms] are completely subsumed without remainder; apart from this mind there is no other dharma. When contemplating any mind arising in the nine realms, it universally subsumes them in the same way; hence it is called the single, unique dharma realm. From "Also like" downward: clarifying practice. From "Also like" downward: clarifying teaching. The continent of Aparagodānīya allegorizes the teaching. Pointing directly to phenomena as principle is like entering straight into the sea. The tenth fascicle of the sūtra says: "In this great trichiliocosm, there is a continent named Godānīya; on that continent there is a river, straight and without bends, named Śvabhra, which enters the western sea like a straight cord."

2.3.4

"From "Severing expedients" downward: directly explaining expedients. First, severing the partial to reveal the perfect. In some editions, there is an extra character "severing" under "severing expedients," which is an error. From "As the sūtra says" downward: general establishment based on the sūtra. From "Tripiṭaka" downward: distinct indication according to the teachings. "All nets of doubt" are the partial doubts of the three teachings. In "Rather give rise to a net of doubt": *ning* (rather) is an expression of preference. Because doubt is the ford to understanding, if one does not give rise to a doubtful mind, how could understanding arise? Hence the "Kāśyapa Chapter" says: "If a person gives rise to a doubtful mind regarding this, they can shatter afflictions like Mount Sumeru." Therefore, we know that those who cling to the small as definitive have no way to enter the perfect. In "in the expedient path": this refers to the contemplation-practice and resemblance [stages]. From "This is the perfect" downward: concludes into the four gates. In "The gate of both existence and non-existence": one being three is both existence; three being one is both non-existence. Inconceivable means neither three nor one, so it belongs to the gate of double negation. From "If it is said" downward: the opening, displaying, awakening, and entering of the true path refers to the forty stages of true causes. The golden probe allegorizes the nirvāṇa teaching. The cataract on the eye allegorizes ignorance. The three fingers allegorize the three truths. In "This is called ultimate severance": contrasted with the preceding expedients, the partial revelation of the true causes is comprehensively called ultimate; it does not explicitly designate sublime enlightenment. In "Yet not a single word": words are transformed from the mind; words are directly the mind. Because the mind is empty, words are empty; hence throughout the entire dharma realm, not a single one can be apprehended. The mind filling [all] is analogized similarly: the mind has no fixed characteristics and arises according to conditions; following defiled conditions it gives rise to the minds of the nine realms, while following pure conditions it gives rise to the mind of the Buddha realm. Although defiled and pure differ, they are only the one mind; because mind-nature is obliterated, there is not a single thought. From "However, the sūtras" downward: citing various sūtras to corroborate. In "Moreover, the bodhisattvas speaking of speech" and so on: the thirty-two bodhisattvas each spoke of the dharma gate of non-duality, which is speaking of the teaching that explains principle; hence it is called "speaking of speech." Vimalakīrti held his tongue, directly revealing the principle of severance. Mañjuśrī praised Vimalakīrti, saying: "Quiescent without words, this is truly entering non-duality." This is using words to explain the principle beyond words: neither severed nor unsevered. Like the four gates of the separate [teaching], it is neither the severance of the Tripiṭaka and shared teachings nor the non-severance of the six realms. The former fire-wood refers to a firebrand. Grass allegorizes what is severed; wood allegorizes that which severs. Next, from "General conclusion" downward: showing that the preceding five layers all establish their meaning based on the sūtra, not in vain; hence citing the sūtra to reveal the gates and subsume the five meanings. This is apparent in the text. "Same name" means the general name. In "The four are gates": nirvāṇa is the principle entered; the four statements are the gates that can enter it. From "Like Indra" downward: Indra allegorizes principle, and the thousand names allegorize the gates. In "Nirvāṇa is a name" and so on: it is also because people designate names by fixing essences and establish titles to manifest virtues. In "Cannot be made empty again": the meaning is that nirvāṇa is subtle existence. In "Endowed with the two designations of continuity and relativity": as explained before. In "This is the meaning of being identical with the ultimate": because it is identical with the ultimate, it is not completely the same as conventional truth. In "Yet not united with the ultimate": because it is not united with the ultimate, it is not completely the same as the ultimate truth. Therefore, it differs from the positions established by the three previous masters.

First 6 of 14 passages. Read on

Linked texts (1)

涅槃玄義發源機要 — Classical Chinese