三彌勒經疏 1.8

1.8

Question: Are these three sūtras subsumed under the [Mahā]yāna or are they Hīnayāna teachings? Answer: There are three explanations. One says: these three sūtras all derive from the Āgamas, and therefore are all subsumed under the Hīnayāna. Were it not so, it would contradict such statements as '[Maitreya] possesses the body of an ordinary person and has not severed the outflows.' Another says: The Ascent Sūtra is subsumed under the Mahāyāna, because the sūtra says: 'Within the circular halo of his body there is the śūraṅgamasamādhi.' The remaining two sūtras are both subsumed under the Hīnayāna, because the Descent Sūtra derives from the Ekottarika-āgama, and the Attainment of Buddhahood Sūtra derives from the Dīrgha-āgama; their text and meaning are shallow and one attains lesser fruits. Another says: neither of the preceding explanations is fully reasoned, for all three sūtras have differences between the Great and the Small. That is to say, in the Ascent Sūtra it is first spoken for Bhadrapāla, Mañjuśrī, and others, and it is also stated that [Maitreya] always preaches non-retrograde practices in the six periods of the day, and that fifty billion devas and humans do not retrogress from unexcelled enlightenment. Upāli was situated in a lower status and his understanding was limited; he posed this question about possessing the body of an ordinary person and so forth based on his own knowledge. The Descent Sūtra explains virtues such as permanence and explains meanings such as permanence, in accord with the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra. Furthermore, the Ekottarika-āgama was translated by Dharmanandin in the Jianyuan era of the Former Qin, whereas the Descent Sūtra was translated by Kumārajīva in the Hongshi era of the Later Qin, so it cannot possibly derive from the Ekottarika-āgama. Moreover, the Great Attainment of Buddhahood Sūtra states: 'Teaching the Dharma at the three assemblies, all attain the fruits of the two vehicles and generate the mind of unexcelled complete enlightenment'; thus the assembly of bodhisattvas was merely omitted from the list. Therefore, one should know that all three sūtras are undeniably Mahāyāna principles.