維摩經義疏 5.3.4

5.3.4

既知善之可生、惡之可滅，將兩捨以求宗，故逆尋其本也。 「答曰：身為本」。 由五陰身，起善不善，故為善不善本。 「又問：身孰為本？ 答曰：欲貪為本」。 由前世貪愛，是故受身。 雖具藉眾結，問業潤生，愛為其主，故偏說欲貪。 「又問：欲貪孰為本？ 答曰：虛妄分別為本」。 法無定相，由虛妄分別，謂是善是惡。 美惡既形，欲貪便生。 「又問：虛妄分別孰為本？ 答曰：顛倒想為本」。 法本非有，倒想為有。 既以為有，然後明其美惡，此則惑心內轉為倒，然後妄分別外事也。 「又問：顛倒想孰為本？ 答曰：無住為本」。 非有謂有，名為顛倒，故非有謂有本。 非有即是無住。 「又問：無住孰為本？ 答曰：無住則無本」。 非有謂有，故非有為有本。 而非有是無所有，是故無本。 問：有由於無，無為有本。 無由能有，何故無本？ 答：有無相由，得之為本。 但今示有，有差別，故有本； 無，無異相，故無無有本。 問：由非有非無故有有無，此則無益有本。 何無本？ 答：今文既稱無住，則絕四句、妄百非，言斷慮窮，即是諸法實體，為一切法本。 而此實相，更無有本。 問：既絕四句，何故稱無住耶？ 答：不知何以目之，強名無住。 對有法有本，亦強名無本。 以理言之，不可說無與不無，亦不可言其本與無本。 「文殊師利！ 從無住本立一切法」。 由無住故想倒，想倒故分別，分別故貪欲，貪欲故有身。 既已有身則善惡並陳，善惡既陳則萬法斯起。 若了達其本，則眾末可除。 「時維摩詰室有一天女」。 此第二章，天女與身子次論眾生。 此章來意有五：一者自上已來正明眾行，今辨行成故有無方妙用，即天女是也。 二者成上觀眾生空，故爾天形談無男女法。 三者從〈方便品〉至於前章，唯顯淨名神通智慧之正宗，今次顯八未曾有室之依果也。 四欲助淨名讚揚大道、貶柱聲聞，令時眾棄小崇大故色。 五者上來顯淨名自身住不思議，今欲顯其眷屬住不思議。 就文為三：初現身散華，發起論端； 二正與身子交言論義； 三論義既竟，拂天女迹。 什公云「天女是居士宅神。 隨有宅必有神，宅有精麁、神有優劣。 今八未曾有室，故以法身菩薩為神。 而名為天者，外國貴重神，故名為天也。 」「見諸大人、聞所說法，便現其身，即以天華散諸菩薩、大弟子上」。 然至人隱顯有由，上為室空故隱、今為論道故顯，行藏必利物也。 散華二義：一為重法敬人，敬申供養； 二惠發起論端，故散天華。 淨名以空為善巧、天女以有為妙用，故一則虛空、一則散華，一則為男、一則為女。 原夫人天男女者，豈人天之所能哉？ 良以非人非天、能天能人耳。 空有亦然。 「華至諸菩薩即皆墮落，至大弟子便著不去。 一切弟子神力去華，不能令去」。 然由心有染無染，是故外華有著與無著。 聲聞既不能去於內染，何由能遣於外華？ 今欲表大小優降，故華現墮不墮。 「爾時天女問舍利弗：何故去華？ 答曰：是華不如法，是以去之」。 此第二交言論議。 前身業雨華，則以華為問； 神力遣之不墮，以意業為通，即是一番論議。 前身及意之屈申也，今正口業交言。 文為七意：一寄華論如法不如法、二論經久近、三論證得、四論志求、五論男女、六論沒生、七論菩提。 此初章也。 華香著身，非沙門法。 是以去之。 又解：華法散身應墮，而今不墮，非華法也。 「天曰：勿謂此華為不如法。 所以者何？ 是華無所分別，仁者自生分別想耳。 若於佛法出家，有所分別為不如法； 若無分別是則如法。 觀諸菩薩華不著者，以斷一切分別想故」。 華本無心故無所分別，既無所分別則未曾是如法不如法。 仁者有心，故自分別想耳。 若息分別想者，則會法實相，名如法。 「譬如人畏時，非人得其便。

Having understood that good can be produced and evil can be extinguished, he wishes to abandon both in order to seek the fundamental source, and therefore traces back to its root. "He replied: 'The body is the root.'" Because of the body of the five aggregates, good and non-good arise; therefore, it is the root of good and non-good. "He asked again: 'What is the root of the body?' He replied: 'Desire and craving are the root.'" Because of craving and clinging in previous lives, one consequently receives a body. Although all the entanglements are fully relied upon, when asking about karma moistening rebirth, craving is the principal; therefore, he specifically names desire and craving. "He asked again: 'What is the root of desire and craving?' He replied: 'False discrimination is the root.'" Phenomena have no fixed characteristics; due to false discrimination, one considers them good or bad. Once beauty and ugliness take form, desire and craving then arise. "He asked again: 'What is the root of false discrimination?' He replied: 'Inverted thought is the root.'" Phenomena are fundamentally non-existent, but inverted thought takes them to be existent. Once taking them to be existent, one then discerns their beauty and ugliness. Thus, the deluded mind internally turns into inversion, and subsequently falsely discriminates external matters. "He asked again: 'What is the root of inverted thought?' He replied: 'Non-abiding is the root.'" Considering non-existence to be existence is called inverted; hence, non-existence is the root of considering it existent. Non-existence is precisely non-abiding. "He asked again: 'What is the root of non-abiding?' He replied: 'Non-abiding has no root.'" Considering non-existence to be existence, non-existence is therefore the root of existence. Yet non-existence is having no existence whatsoever; therefore, it has no root. Question: Existence arises from non-existence, so non-existence is the root of existence. Non-existence is able to give rise to existence, so why does it have no root? Answer: Existence and non-existence depend upon one another; through this relation they become roots. But now, pointing out existence, existence has distinctions, so it has a root; non-existence has no differing characteristics, so non-existence has no root of existence. Question: Because of neither-existence-nor-non-existence, existence and non-existence exist; this then would be an effective root for existence. Why is there no root? Answer: Since the present text speaks of "non-abiding", it cuts off the four propositions and banishes the hundred negations; words are severed and thoughts exhausted, which is precisely the true reality of all phenomena, serving as the root of all phenomena. And this true reality has no further root. Question: Since it transcends the four propositions, why call it "non-abiding"? Answer: Not knowing how to designate it, it is forcedly named "non-abiding". In contrast to existent phenomena having a root, it is also forcedly named "having no root". Speaking from the principle, one cannot say it is non-existent or not non-existent, nor can one say it has a root or has no root. "'Mañjuśrī! From the root of non-abiding, all phenomena are established.'" Because of non-abiding, thoughts are inverted; because thoughts are inverted, there is discrimination; because of discrimination, there is desire and craving; because of desire and craving, there is the body. Once there is a body, good and evil are both displayed; when good and evil are displayed, the myriad phenomena thus arise. If one thoroughly comprehends their root, then all the branches can be eliminated. "At that time, in Vimalakīrti's room, there was a devī." This is the second section, where the Devī and Śāriputra next debate regarding sentient beings. The purpose of this section's arrival has five points: First, up to this point, the text primarily clarified the various practices; now it reveals that because practice is perfected, there are unfathomable, wonderful functions, which is the Devī. Second, to substantiate the previous observation of sentient beings as empty, she therefore manifests in a divine form to discuss the phenomenon of neither male nor female. Third, from the "Chapter on Upāya" up to the previous section, the text only manifested the primary principle of Jingming's spiritual powers and wisdom; now it next manifests the circumstantial reward of the room possessing the eight unprecedented qualities. Fourth, it is intended to assist Jingming in praising the Great Path and humbling the śrāvakas, causing the assembly at that time to abandon the small and venerate the great. Fifth, previously it manifested that Jingming himself abides in the inconceivable; now it wishes to manifest that his retinue abides in the inconceivable. As for the text, it has three parts: first, she manifests her body and scatters flowers, initiating the debate; second, she directly exchanges words and debates principles with Śāriputra; third, after the debate is finished, the traces of the Devī are wiped away. Master Shí says: "The Devī is the spirit of the householder's dwelling. Wherever there is a dwelling, there is necessarily a spirit; dwellings may be refined or coarse, and spirits superior or inferior. Now, this is a room possessing the eight unprecedented qualities, so a dharmakāya bodhisattva serves as the spirit. As for being named a 'deva' (female: devī), foreign countries hold spirits in high esteem and therefore call them devas." "Seeing the great beings and hearing the Dharma preached, she then manifested her body, and immediately scattered heavenly flowers over the bodhisattvas and great disciples." Now, for the perfected person, concealment and manifestation have their reasons; previously, she remained concealed because the room was empty, while now she manifests to discuss the Path; acting or remaining hidden invariably benefits living beings. Scattering flowers has two meanings: first, out of reverence for the Dharma and respect for persons, reverently offering gifts; second, to cleverly initiate the debate, she therefore scatters heavenly flowers. Jingming takes emptiness as skill-in-means, while the Devī takes existence as wonderful function; therefore, one empties the room while the other scatters flowers, one is a man while the other is a woman. When examining the nature of gods, humans, males, and females, how could they be merely what gods and humans can be? It is truly because, being neither human nor god, she can be god and can be human. Emptiness and existence are also like this. "When the flowers reached the bodhisattvas, they immediately fell off; when they reached the great disciples, they stuck to them and would not go. All the disciples used their spiritual powers to remove the flowers, but could not make them go." Now, depending on whether the mind has defilement or is free from defilement, external flowers therefore stick or do not stick. Since the śrāvakas cannot remove their internal defilement, how could they dispel external flowers? Now, wishing to express the superiority and inferiority of the Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna, the flowers visibly fall or do not fall. "At that time, the Devī asked Śāriputra: 'Why do you remove the flowers?' He replied: 'These flowers are not in accord with the Dharma; therefore I remove them.'" This is the second part: directly exchanging words in debate. Previously, with bodily karma she rained flowers, and thus made an inquiry by means of flowers; when he used spiritual powers to dispel them but they did not fall, this served as an exchange by means of mental karma—that is one round of debate. The former was the flexing and extending of body and mind; now is the direct verbal engagement. The text has seven themes: first, taking flowers to discuss what is in accord with the Dharma and what is not in accord with the Dharma; second, discussing length of time; third, discussing realization and attainment; fourth, discussing aspiration and pursuit; fifth, discussing male and female; sixth, discussing dying and being reborn; seventh, discussing bodhi. This is the first section. For flowers and fragrance to cling to the body is not the dharma of a recluse (śramaṇa). Therefore, he removes them. Another explanation: The proper behavior of flowers scattered on the body is that they should fall, but now they do not fall; this is not the proper behavior of flowers. "The Devī said: 'Do not say that these flowers are not in accord with the Dharma. Why is that? These flowers are without discrimination; you, virtuous sir, yourself produce discriminating thoughts. If one who has gone forth into the Buddha-Dharma has discrimination, that is not in accord with the Dharma; if one is without discrimination, that is in accord with the Dharma. Look at the bodhisattvas to whom the flowers do not cling: it is because they have cut off all discriminating thoughts.'" Flowers fundamentally have no mind, and therefore have no discrimination; since they have no discrimination, they have never been in accord with the Dharma or not in accord with the Dharma. You, virtuous sir, possess a mind, and therefore produce discriminating thoughts yourself. If one ceases discriminating thoughts, one accords with the true reality of phenomena, which is called being in accord with the Dharma. "'Just as when a person is afraid, non-humans take advantage of him;'