維摩義記 3.50

3.50

自下第六明無所轉。初先舍利問以起發，「汝德如是應當自在，女身弊惡，今有何以不轉女身？」「天女」下答，明其無轉。於中有三：第一、天女明己無轉，令其生信。二、「譬如」下，寄喻反問，令其生解。三、「即時天女以神通」下，變女在彼令其證知。初中「我從十二年來」，彰其分齊。居其室來求女不得，故云十二。「求女人相了不可得，當何轉」者，正明無轉。男女之相就陰身說，觀陰體空，故求不得。求既不得，知何所轉？第二段中，初先就喻反問舍利。「譬如幻師化作幻女，若有人問何以不轉，為正問不？」幻師即是天女真身，化作幻女天女應身，問人即是舍利弗是。次舍利弗以理正答。「不也」總答。「幻無定相當何所轉」，釋以辨答。「天女」下，即取其所答類顯諸法，彰問不應。「一切諸法亦復如是無有定相」，汎舉諸法類同前幻。「云何乃」下，彰問不應。第三段中，文別有二：一、就舍利變男為女，令知無轉。二、「即時天女還攝神」下，就舍利弗變女為男，令知無在。前中五句：一、「天女以力變舍利弗令如天女，天自化身如舍利弗」，此即八地，能以自身作眾生身、以眾生身作自身矣。二、天女問，「何以不轉」。三、舍利答。「以天女像」，身為女也。「而答言」下，口言答也。「不知何轉」，明無所轉。女即無女，故無所轉；而變為女，明非無轉。無轉非有，而變非無。第四、天女約其所答彰顯一切。「舍利若能轉此女身則一切女亦當能轉」，約前舍利不知何轉，明一切女悉皆無轉。反以言之，舍利若能於無女處能轉女身，一切女人實亦無女，於無女處亦應能轉。舍利不能於無女處轉於女身，一切人於無女處亦不能轉。云何使我轉於女身？「如舍利弗非女現女，一切女人亦如是」下，約前舍利而變為女，明一切女悉皆有轉。如者是其指斥之辭。如舍利弗非女現女，牒前舍利而變為女。一切女人亦如是等，類顯餘也。類之云何？如舍利弗體實非女而現女身，一切女人亦復如是，體實非女，隨其業幻變以為女。良以非女變為女故，雖現女身而實非女。我亦如是，雖現女身而非是女，更何須轉？五、「是故」已下，引說證成。是一切女非女為女，雖現女人而非女，故佛說諸法非男非女。

From here on, the sixth section clarifies that there is no transformation. First, Śāriputra opens by asking: 'Since your virtues are like this, you should be sovereign; a female body is vile and evil, so why now do you not transform your female body?' Next, the goddess answers, clarifying that there is no transformation. Within this there are three parts: First, the goddess clarifies that she has no transformation, so as to give rise to faith in him. Second, from 'For example' onward, she relies on a metaphor to ask him in return, so as to give rise to understanding in him. Third, from 'At that time the goddess, through supernatural powers' onward, she transforms the woman into him so that he may realize and know it. In the first part, 'For twelve years' indicates the limit of time. Ever since she came to dwell in this room, she has sought female [characteristics] without finding them; hence she says 'twelve'. 'Seeking female marks, I have entirely failed to find them; what should I transform?' directly clarifies non-transformation. The characteristics of male and female are spoken of in relation to the skandha-body; contemplating that the substance of the skandhas is empty, they cannot be found. Since they cannot be found, what is there to be transformed? In the second part, she first asks Śāriputra in return using a metaphor. 'For example, if an illusionist created an illusory woman, and someone asked why she does not transform, would that be a proper question?' The illusionist is the goddess's true body; creating an illusory woman is the goddess's response body; the person asking is Śāriputra. Next, Śāriputra answers correctly in accordance with principle. 'No' is the overall answer. 'An illusion has no fixed characteristics; what should it transform?' explains and differentiates the answer. Next, 'the goddess' takes what he answered to analogously reveal all dharmas, showing that the question was improper. 'All dharmas are also like this, without fixed characteristics' broadly adduces all dharmas to be analogous to the previous illusion. From 'Why then' onward, she shows that the question was improper. In the third part, the text has two distinct parts: First, transforming Śāriputra from male to female, making him know non-transformation. Second, from 'At that time the goddess withdrew her supernatural powers' onward, transforming Śāriputra from female back to male, making him know non-abiding. In the former part there are five phrases: First, 'The goddess through power transformed Śāriputra so that he was like the goddess, and the goddess transformed her own body to be like Śāriputra'; this is the eighth bhūmi, where one can make one's own body into sentient beings' bodies and make sentient beings' bodies into one's own body. Second, the goddess asks: 'Why do you not transform?' Third, Śāriputra answers. 'With the likeness of the goddess' means his body was female. From 'and answered, saying' onward means he answered in speech. 'I do not know what to transform' clarifies that there is nothing to transform. A woman is immediately non-woman, hence there is nothing to transform; yet being transformed into a woman clarifies that it is not that there is no transformation. Non-transformation is not existence, yet transformation is not non-existence. Fourth, the goddess uses what he answered to manifest all things: 'If Śāriputra can transform this female body, then all women should also be able to transform'; relying on Śāriputra's earlier statement that he did not know what to transform, she clarifies that all women are entirely without transformation. Stating it in reverse: if Śāriputra, where there is no woman, could transform a female body, all women are also in reality non-women, and where there is no woman, they should also be able to transform. Since Śāriputra cannot transform a female body where there is no woman, all people where there is no woman also cannot transform. Why do you have me transform a female body? From 'Just as Śāriputra is not a woman yet appears as a woman, all women are also like this' onward, she relies on Śāriputra's earlier transformation into a woman to clarify that all women entirely undergo transformation. 'Just as' is a phrase of pointing out. 'Just as Śāriputra is not a woman yet appears as a woman' takes up the earlier Śāriputra's being transformed into a woman. 'All women are also like this' and so forth analogously reveals the rest. How are they analogous? Just as Śāriputra is in essence not a woman yet appears in a female body, all women are also like this: in essence they are not women, but following their karma-illusion they are transformed into women. Because they are not women yet transformed into women, although they appear in female bodies, they are in reality not women. I am also like this: although I appear in a female body, I am not a woman; why should I need to transform? Fifth, from 'Therefore' onward, she cites the teaching to substantiate it. Because these women are all non-women made into women, and although appearing as women are not women, the Buddha said that all dharmas are neither male nor female.