注維摩詰經 2.218

2.218

什曰：聲聞法中諸羅漢無漏智慧，勝菩薩世俗智慧；大乘法中二事俱勝。今用聲聞法明大小，故先命弟子也。舍利弗於弟子中智慧第一，故先命之。知其不堪而命之者，欲令其顯維摩詰辯才殊勝，發起眾會也。復命餘人者，欲令各稱其美，明兼應辯慧無方也。此下宴坐，梵本云「攝身心」也。肇曰：至人懸心默通，不先形言、冥機潛應，故命問疾也。舍利弗，五百弟子之上智慧第一，故先勅也。如來知諸人不堪而猶命者，將顯淨名無窮之德，以生眾會怖仰之情耳。舍利，其母名。弗，秦言子。天竺多以母名名子。生曰：知其意者達其旨也。今日之使理歸文殊而命餘人者，託常遣使之儀，欲以假顯維摩詰德也。德以此顯者，遘既在昔，今必高推，推若有理則理可貴矣。苟己伏德而藉聞理為貴，至於論疾之際豈有不悟哉。夫遣使之體，要當自近及遠，是以先弟子、後菩薩也。舍利弗是親承之最，故首命之焉。

[Kumāra]jīva says: In the śrāvaka Dharma, the uncontaminated wisdom of the arhats surpasses the worldly wisdom of the bodhisattvas; in the Mahāyāna Dharma, [bodhisattvas] surpass them in both respects. Here, the śrāvaka Dharma is employed to clarify the great and the small, which is why the disciples are instructed first. Śāriputra is foremost in wisdom among the disciples, so he was instructed first. The reason [the Buddha] instructed him despite knowing he was not equal to the task is that he wished to make him reveal Vimalakīrti's extraordinary eloquence and to arouse the great assembly. He further instructed the others because he wished to have each praise his excellence, making clear that his multifaceted responsiveness, eloquence, and wisdom know no bounds. Below, regarding 'quiet sitting', the Sanskrit text says 'collecting body and mind'.

[Seng]zhao says: The ultimate person communicates silently with a mind held afar; without needing prior spoken words, he secretly responds to hidden triggers—hence he instructed him to inquire after the illness. Śāriputra is foremost in wisdom at the head of the five hundred disciples, so he was commanded first. The Tathāgata knew that none of them was equal to it, yet still commanded them, because he was going to reveal the inexhaustible virtue of the Pure Name in order to engender feelings of awe and reverence in the assembled multitude. 'Śāri' was his mother's name; 'putra' in the language of Qin means 'son'. In India, children are often named after their mothers.

[Dao]sheng says: Knowing his intent means understanding his purpose. Regarding today's mission, reason dictates that it belonged to Mañjuśrī, yet [the Buddha] commanded the others: by relying on the conventional protocol of sending an envoy, he wished to indirectly reveal Vimalakīrti's virtue. The reason his virtue was revealed through this is that their encounter had already occurred in the past, so today he was bound to hold him in high esteem; if such esteem accords with reason, then the principle is worthy of respect. If one has submitted to his virtue and relies on hearing the principle to regard it as noble, how could one fail to awaken when it comes time to discuss the illness? As for the manner of dispatching envoys, it must proceed from the near to the far; this is why he took the disciples first and the bodhisattvas later. Śāriputra was the foremost of those who personally attended [the Buddha], which is why he was commanded first.