維摩經略疏 8.88

8.88

「舍利弗言」下，二、身子約思議俗諦問，天還約不思議真諦答。初身子問言「今諸佛得菩提如恒河沙」者，此將通教俗諦八相為問，故云如恒河沙。所以然者，三藏不說有十方佛，雖有此意，義不彰顯。次天即答云「皆以世俗文字說有三世之佛」，非謂真諦而有三世。假名三世，而真菩提豈可世攝？天因答即反質身子「汝得羅漢道耶」。身子答「無所得故而得」，此如《大品》佛四句問善吉得道，善吉答不住四句而實得道，此是絕思議俗四句見真得道。天曰「諸佛菩薩亦復如是」，是絕不思議俗四句，見不思議真得道。所以然者，天意小乘思議得道尚以無得為得，何況大乘不思議得道而不絕四句無所得而得。語類相竝，其意天隔。

From "Śāriputra said" onward is the second part: Śāriputra asks in terms of the conceivable conventional truth, and the goddess again answers in terms of the inconceivable true truth. First, Śāriputra asks, saying, "Presently the buddhas attain bodhi in numbers like the sands of the Ganges." He takes the eight aspects of the conventional truth of the Shared Teaching to formulate his question, and thus says "like the sands of the Ganges." Why is this so? The Tripiṭaka Teaching does not speak of buddhas of the ten directions; although this idea is implicit, the meaning is not explicitly revealed. Next, the goddess replies, saying: "It is entirely through worldly conventions and words that the buddhas of the three periods of time are spoken of"; it is not meant that there are the three periods of time within the true truth. The three periods of time are designated conventionally, but how could true bodhi be subsumed under worldly time? Following her reply, the goddess then counters with a question to Śāriputra: "Have you attained the arhat's way?" Śāriputra replies: "Because there is nothing to be attained, I have attained it." This is like the Dàpǐn, where the Buddha asks Subhūti about attaining the Way using four propositions, and Subhūti replies that he does not abide in the four propositions and yet truly attains the Way; this is attaining the Way by severing the four propositions of the conceivable conventional [truth] and seeing the true. The goddess says, "So too it is with the buddhas and bodhisattvas"; this is attaining the Way by severing the four propositions of the inconceivable conventional [truth] and seeing the inconceivable true. Why is this so? The goddess's meaning is that if the Hīnayāna's conceivable attainment of the Way still takes non-attainment as attainment, how much more so must the Mahāyāna's inconceivable attainment of the Way sever the four propositions and attain by having nothing attained! The phrasings are parallel, but their meanings are worlds apart.