維摩經略疏 6.55

6.55

"My thought [was that it was Śakra] ... down to ... 'cultivate the firm Dharma'" is, third, explaining that the māra came and, not being recognized, [the bodhisattva] preached the Dharma for him. Regarding the words "Welcome": since he did not know it was the māra and thought it was Śakra coming in search of the good Dharma, he praised him with "Welcome." Kauśika was originally a human family name, taken from the family name as his personal name. "Although your fortune should be [rich and joyful]": his merit brings the retribution of being a heavenly king, rich and joyful; he must not indulge himself in negligence and fail to cultivate. Regarding "You should contemplate the impermanence of the five desires to seek the root of goodness": in the Hinayāna, only impermanence is taken as the transmundane root of goodness. The Dàzhìdù lùn explains that the heavenly king is mostly attached to the five desires; the Buddha preached for him the fifteen kinds of contemplations, such as impermanence, and having shattered his desire, then had him transmit the teaching. Since Jagatīṃdhara thought he was the heavenly king, he urged him to contemplate impermanence and leave desires. Regarding "in body, life, and wealth, cultivate the firm Dharma": of the three firm things, there are five [interpretations]. First, the three firm things of the mundane world: not relying on canes through charity yields a firm future body; releasing life and stopping killing yields a firm future life; giving with a straightforward mind yields firm future wealth. Therefore, he told the heavenly lord to contemplate impermanence; the heavenly retribution does not last long, so he must plant firm karma for the future. Second, cultivating the three firm things according to the Śrāvaka sūtras: by contemplating impermanence, one attains the fivefold dharmakāya, the uncontaminated life of wisdom, and the seven noble treasures, which nothing can destroy; hence they are called "firm." When a bodhisattva does not begrudge body or life and has no stinginess for the sake of sentient beings and the Buddhadharma, his flowering retribution is the three firm things of the mundane world, and only after achieving the fruit of buddhahood does he attain the [true] three firm things, largely the same as the śrāvakas. Third, in the Shared Teaching: one contemplates that the three firm things are unarisen and unceasing, and afflictions, birth and death, devaputra-māras, and non-Buddhists cannot destroy them. Fourth, in the Distinct Teaching: ascending to the stages, one is freed from birth and death within and beyond the triple realm, and the dharmakāya manifests, which is called the firmness of the body; the prajñā life of wisdom is never cut off, which is the firmness of life; the Dharma wealth of myriad goods cannot be plundered, which is the firmness of wealth. Fifth, in the Perfect Teaching: relinquishing body, life, and wealth is coextensive with the final limit of birth and death; freed from old age, sickness, and death, one attains indestructible permanence; all phenomena tend toward body, life, and wealth, which are also the three firm things of the three virtues. Jagatīṃdhara mistakenly preached the Dharma for the heavenly king; of the five kinds of three firm things, it is unknown which he preached.