三彌勒經疏 1.73

1.73

Question: If there are many deaths and rebirths in that heaven, how is it "one life remaining"? Answer: In the Qin it was said: "The Sarvāstivādins speak of five hundred bodhisattvas, and the Saṃmatīya school speaks of one thousand bodhisattvas. Although there are many deaths and rebirths in the Tuṣita heaven, in Jambudvīpa each has only one life; hence it is called 'one life', not referring to one life in heaven. That is, the five hundred bodhisattvas are sequentially born among humans, having only one place of life, with no remaining births." The Mahāyāna gives three explanations. One says: the heavenly body is called "one life," and that human life is called the "final body." As the seventh fascicle of the *Mahāprajñāpāramitā Sūtra* states: "The bodhisattva bound to one life in the Tuṣita heaven." Another says: the human body is called "one life," because by receiving one more human birth he becomes a Buddha. Hence the *Saṃdhinirmocanasūtra* states: "Avalokiteśvara and Mañjuśrī are called 'bound to one life'." Another says: the multiple human and heavenly bodies combined are called "one life," just as with the limit of seven rebirths. Now the first explanation is superior, because "one life" and "final body" are well explained by it.

However, the sacred teachings are not uniform: some sacred scriptures designate the heavenly body as the "final body," as the seventh fascicle of the *Buddhabhūmyupadeśa* states: "the final-body bodhisattva in the Tuṣita heaven"; some designate only the heavenly body as "one life" and call it the "final body," as the first fascicle of the *Bodhisambhāraśāstra* states: "The bodhisattva bound to one life enters the Tuṣita heaven; the bodhisattva in his final birth abides in Tuṣita"; some designate only the human body as the "final body," as the forty-eighth fascicle of the *Yogācārabhūmiśāstra* states: "The final body refers to bodhisattvas who in this life can manifest perfect awakening"; and some designate only the human body as both the "final [body]" and "one life," as stated in the fortieth fascicle of the *Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa*. Since these various teachings have multiple perspectives, each discusses one aspect and they do not contradict one another.