淨名玄論 2.27

2.27

The sūtra says: "[He] opened and closed the gates to all evil destinies, yet was born into the six paths to manifest his body." Now, the dharmakāya is without birth, yet there is nowhere it is not born. Because it is without birth, the gates to the various destinies are closed; because there is nowhere it is not born, it is born into the five destinies. Being born into the five destinies entails five kinds of birth: first, birth to alleviate suffering; second, birth according with species; third, superior birth; fourth, sovereign birth; fifth, the final birth. "Birth to alleviate suffering" means that a bodhisattva, through the power of sovereignty and the power of vows, takes birth in the triple world, wherever they are born, in order to alleviate the suffering of beings; this is called "birth to alleviate suffering." "Birth according with species" means that a bodhisattva, through the power of vows and the power of sovereignty, is born together with beings, teaching them to abandon evil and transforming them so that they abide in good; this is called "birth according with species." "Superior birth" means that a bodhisattva, by means of their own merit and wholesome karma, receives various superior retributions among humans and gods—namely, lifespan, bodily appearance, and strength are all uniquely superior; hence it is called "superior birth." "Sovereign birth" refers to the retribution of being a king from the first bhūmi upward through the tenth bhūmi; this is called "sovereign birth." "Final birth" means that a bodhisattva, having exhausted the stages of learning, takes birth in a kṣatriya or brāhmaṇa household, attains the unexcelled path, and performs all the Buddha's deeds; this is called the "final birth." Question: Among the five births, which birth subsumes Vimalakīrti? Answer: Speaking in terms of the root, he has long since achieved all-inclusive awakening and his position is in the dharmakāya; hence he is not subsumed under the five births. Discussing it in terms of the traces, adapting his transformations without fixed direction and adjusting his depth according to beings, he possesses all five births. Speaking in terms of stages, these five births pervade all the bhūmis; regarding their levels, the first three births are prior to the bhūmis, while the latter two births are from the Stage of Joy upward. Since Vimalakīrti has already attained the forbearance of the non-arising of dharmas, he belongs to the latter two births. However, of the latter two births, receiving the retribution of the ten kinds of kings is called sovereign birth; the final body becoming a Buddha is called the last birth. Vimalakīrti's trace occupies the retribution of an elder, not the retribution of the ten kinds of kings; nor does it take the body of a Buddha, which differs from the final birth. Speaking in terms of the actual facts, it is called superior birth. The teaching of the five births is explained in detail in the Bodhisattvabhūmi.