維摩義記 4.51

4.51

自下正宗。於中有三：一、重辨前事，令菴羅薗舊眾同知；二、「或有佛土以佛光明作佛事」下，淨眾心器；三、「爾時眾香世界菩薩來者」已下，以法正教。初中有二：一、問舍利所見維摩神異之事，令此眾知；二、「阿難白」下，辨前所取香積之飯，令此眾知。前中初言「眾坐已定」，彰問時也。下正問之，二問兩答。「佛語舍利汝見大士之所為乎」，問其見不。良以舍利前與文殊共往，維摩所現舍利具見，故今問之。「唯然已見」，舍利隨答。「汝意云何」，問其勝劣。「我覩其為不可思」等，舍利辨答。不可思議，總歎顯勝。「非意所圖非度所測」，別歎顯勝。非意所圖，明其不可以識識也。心意識等，眼目之別。圖謂圖量，凡夫心識不能圖量，是故名為非意所圖。非度所測，明其不可以智知也。聖以智慧測度不及，是故名為非度所測。自下第二辨前香飯令此眾知。文別有四：一、阿難怪問，如來為辨。二、舍利弗自說身香。阿難審問，舍利具答。第三、阿難問維摩詰飯消久如，維摩為辨。四、阿難讚歎，如來述成。初中阿難先問起發。「今所聞香自昔未有，是為何香」。下佛為辨。「是彼菩薩毛孔之香」。第二段中，初先舍利自說身香，阿難次問此所從來，舍利後辨。「長者維摩從眾香國取佛餘飯，於舍食者一切毛孔皆香若此，故我身香。」第三段中有兩問答。初阿難問「香住久如」，維摩次答「至此飯消」。阿難重問「久如當消」，維摩下答。於中，初約行德以答，後約斷德。前約行中，初就凡論。「此飯勢力至于七日後乃消」，凡夫感薄，故唯七日。次就聲聞。「未入正位食此飯者，得入正位然後乃消」，謂見道已上。「入正位食此飯者，得心解脫然後乃消」，謂無學果。下就大說。「若未發意食此飯者，發意乃消」，種姓已上，亦可是其初地已上。「發意食者得無生忍」，謂七地已上。「得無生忍至一生補處然後消」者，謂第十地。十地學窮度一生已便得菩提，是故名為一生補處。上來約行明消久近。下就斷絕，先喻、後合。「譬如有藥名上味」等，立喻顯食。「此飯如是滅一切煩惱然後乃消」，辨食同喻。

From here begins the main part. Therein, there are three sections: 1. Reiterating the previous events, causing the old assembly in the Āmrapālī grove to know them together; 2. From "There are buddha lands where the buddha's radiant light performs the buddha-work" downward, purifying the mental vessels of the assembly; 3. From "At that time, the bodhisattvas who had come from the Sarvagandhasugandhā world" downward, giving proper instruction through the Dharma. Within the first section, there are two parts: 1. Inquiring of Śāriputra about the supernatural wonders of Vimalakīrti that he witnessed, causing this assembly to know them; 2. From "Ānanda addressed [the Buddha]" downward, explaining the fragrant rice of Sugandhakūṭa fetched earlier, causing this assembly to know of it. In the former, the initial phrase "When the assembly had taken their seats" indicates the time of the inquiry. Below, he directly inquires of him, with two questions and two answers. "The Buddha said to Śāriputra, 'Did you see what this Great Being did?'" asks whether he saw it or not. Because Śāriputra previously went together with Mañjuśrī, Śāriputra had fully seen what Vimalakīrti manifested, hence he is now asked about it. "Indeed, I have seen it," Śāriputra answers accordingly. "What is your thought?" asks about its excellence or inferiority. "I beheld his actions as inconceivable..." and so forth is Śāriputra's explanatory reply. "Inconceivable" is a general praise revealing its supremacy. "Inconceivable to thought, unmeasurable by calculation" is a specific praise revealing its supremacy. "Inconceivable to thought" explains that it cannot be known by conceptual consciousness. Mind, thought, and consciousness are different perspectives. "Thought" means mental picturing and measuring; the ordinary person's mind and consciousness cannot mentally measure it, hence it is called "inconceivable to thought." "Unmeasurable by calculation" explains that it cannot be known by wisdom. The wisdom of the sages falls short of measuring it, hence it is called "unmeasurable by calculation." From here, the second part explains the previous fragrant rice to make this assembly know of it. The text has four distinct parts: 1. Ānanda wonders and asks, and the Tathāgata explains for him; 2. Śāriputra speaks of his own body's fragrance; Ānanda investigates and asks, and Śāriputra answers in detail; 3. Ānanda asks Vimalakīrti how long it takes for the food to be digested, and Vimalakīrti explains for him; 4. Ānanda praises it, and the Tathāgata confirms it. In the first part, Ānanda first asks in order to initiate [the dialogue]: "The fragrance smelled now has never existed from ancient times; what fragrance is this?" Below, the Buddha explains for him: "It is the fragrance from the pores of those bodhisattvas." In the second part, Śāriputra first speaks of his body's fragrance, Ānanda next asks where it comes from, and Śāriputra afterwards explains: "The elder Vimalakīrti fetched the leftover food of the Buddha from the Sarvagandhasugandhā realm; for those who ate it in his house, all their pores are fragrant like this, hence my body is fragrant." In the third part, there are two questions and answers. First, Ānanda asks, "How long does the fragrance remain?" Vimalakīrti answers next, "Until this food is digested." Ānanda asks again, "How long until it is digested?" Vimalakīrti answers below. Therein, he first answers in terms of the virtue of practice, and afterwards in terms of the virtue of severance. Regarding practice, he first discusses ordinary persons: "The power of this food is digested only after seven days." Ordinary persons' karmic capacity is slight, so it lasts only seven days. Next, regarding śrāvakas: "For those who have not entered the correct determination and eat this food, it is digested only after they have entered the correct determination" refers to the path of seeing and above. "For those who have entered the correct determination and eat this food, it is digested only after they attain liberation of mind" refers to the fruit of the arhat. Below, speaking in terms of the Great [Vehicle]: "If those who have not yet aroused the aspiration eat this food, it is digested only when they have aroused the aspiration" refers to the lineage and above, or it may be the first bhūmi and above. "For those who eat it having aroused the aspiration, they attain the endurance of the non-arising of dharmas" refers to the seventh bhūmi and above. "Attaining the endurance of the non-arising of dharmas, it is digested only when reaching one more birth to succession [to Buddhahood]" refers to the tenth bhūmi. In the tenth bhūmi, learning reaches its culmination; having crossed over this one life, one immediately attains bodhi, and is therefore called "one more birth to succession." The above explains the duration of digestion in terms of practice. Below, in terms of severance, there is first an analogy, followed by the application. "For example, there is a medicine called 'Supreme Flavor'..." and so forth establishes the analogy to manifest the food. "This food is likewise: it is digested only after extinguishing all defilements" explains that the food corresponds to the analogy.