金光明經文句 2.16

2.16

From "At that time the four Buddhas" onward for three and a half chapters is the second part, the main discourse section. There are three different explanations in all. The first states: "[The Chapter on the Span of] Life" clarifies the eternal fruit as the principle; the eternal fruit tallies with the nature, and the nature is precisely the substance. The two meanings are distinctly evident and require no further confusion. Below, the "Chapter on Confession" extinguishes evil, the "Chapter on Praise" generates good, and the "Chapter on Emptiness" guides to consummation; these are precisely the sūtra's function. The second states: "[The Chapter on the Span of] Life" clarifies the principle; "Confession" and "Praise" clarify the function; and the "Chapter on Emptiness" clarifies the substance. This takes the nature functioned upon in the cause as the substance revealed upon the fruit; this is inconvenient in meaning, and therefore we do not adopt it. The third, Tripiṭaka [master Paramārtha], says: The main discourse has two sections; "[The Chapter on the Span of] Life" is the fruit section, and "The Three Bodies" is the causal section, each text having its own introduction. Ākāśagarbha's inquiry serves as the introduction to the causal section, which is merely an inquiry and is weak in its meaning as an introduction. Our master [Zhiyi] says: "The Three Bodies" accomplishes the meaning upon the fruit, not the causal meaning; therefore, we do not adopt it. What the first school says is good, and accords with our present intent. In both the new and old texts, the principle is clarified in three places in total: First, the four Buddhas brush aside doubts, clarifying that the lifespan of the responsive manifestation is not what thought and calculation can know. Since the traces are already so long and distant, the source is hard to fathom completely; people of superior faculties hear the traces and awaken to the source. If they have not yet awakened, the Prince clarifies that the legs of gnats and mosquitoes can be used to make city watchtowers, and rats climbing the ladder of rabbit horns can eat the moon and eliminate the asuras, clarifying that the Dharma-body has no relics: the Tathāgata's true body has no place for relics. People of middling faculties directly hear the rational source and awaken to the traces. If they have not yet awakened, Śākyamuni discusses the three bodies in a shared discourse, analyzing them extensively, so that both source and traces are understood. These are the three rounds of clarifying the principle and revealing the substance. The "Chapter on Confession" specifically addresses the extinction of evil, and generally also generates good; the "Chapter on Praise" specifically addresses the generation of good, and generally also extinguishes evil; the "Chapter on Emptiness" guides to consummation; these are all the function of the sūtra. In the present four-fascicle text, there is only one round of clarifying the principle. The text consists of four parts: first, the four Buddhas speak verses; second, Ruciraketu rejoices; third, those of immediate capacity attain the Path; fourth, the four Buddhas return to their origins. Speaking the verses also has two parts: first, the sūtra-compiler's narration; second, the four Buddhas' metaphorical explanation. Question: Did the four Buddhas speak the verses individually or together? Answer: Since the sūtra has no text [stipulating this], it cannot be definitively judged. Perhaps it was suitable to hear them speak together, with different mouths but the same voice; or perhaps it was suitable to hear them speak separately, each citing one metaphor. Seeing them was also like this: if one saw the four Buddhas possessing the same exalted and distinct body, with one body and one wisdom, this was the eternal body, because the assembly of disciples was one; if one saw that the Buddha-bodies of the four Buddhas were different, this was the responsive manifestation, because the assembly of disciples was diverse. The eight verses are divided into two intentions. The first states: The first four verses set up the metaphors; the next one verse joins the metaphors; the next two verses sever doubts; the next one verse concludes with an explanation. The second states: The first four verses are the basis of the metaphors; the latter four verses join and explain them. Both approaches may be used. The ancients said: The four verses merely metaphorize the length of his life, with no further meaning. This meaning is not correct. The teachings of the Buddhas are good in the beginning, middle, and end; their words are skillful and their meanings profound. Here it precisely severs doubts concerning the eternal principle; how could the essential point of a sūtra lack meaning? Let us temporarily explain the text according to three intentions: first, correlated with the four truths; second, correlated with the four applications of mindfulness; third, correlated with the four virtues. The principle of the four truths encompasses both cause and fruit; the four applications of mindfulness treat the cause; the four virtues treat the fruit. If one discusses the fruit of life, it should be correlated with the four virtues; since the fruit does not arise in isolation, the applications of mindfulness clarify the cause; since cause and fruit have an origin, they are correlated with the four truths. Above, the four Buddhas were correlated with the wisdom of the four truths; now what is spoken by the four Buddhas is correlated with the principle of the four truths. The old reading of the text on the four truths says: knowing suffering according to the mark of suffering, and knowing the accumulation according to the mark of accumulation. The "mark" is its concrete aspect; knowing merely according to the concrete aspect does not illuminate the principle. Now we clarify: knowing suffering according to [suchness] and the mark of suffering: suchness (ru) is its principle, and mark (xiang) is its concrete aspect; reaching truth through the concrete aspect, both concrete aspect and principle are penetrated. The remaining three truths are also like this. Explaining it in this way is convenient for the meaning of the principle of the four truths. Another interpretation is: knowing suffering is knowing the conventional; suchness is knowing the real; the mark is knowing the middle; the middle is the true mark; therefore, we now take the mark as the middle. Thus the three truths are completely present in a single phrase. Since knowing suffering is like this, accumulation, path, and cessation below are also like this (and so forth). Clearly understanding the four truths is the sphere for cultivating long life; therefore, we correlate the verses according to the four truths. "All the waters": this correlates with the truth of accumulation. The Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra says, "There is a whirlpool river that submerges sentient beings"; this is precisely its meaning. The substance of water moistens and gives birth, just as accumulation can nourish and grow. Surging and billowing vastness is found nowhere absent; accumulation is also like this, submerging both ordinary beings and sages, spanning inside and outside the realms. "All Mount Sumerus": this correlates with the truth of suffering. The Minor Prajñā[pāramitā] takes the body as Sumeru; this is precisely its meaning. The mass of the mountain is formed and stands solid upon the waters, just as the retribution of suffering accumulates, serving as the fruit for accumulation and binding form and mind inside and outside the realms. "The minute dust of the great earth": this correlates with the truth of the path. The Lotus Sūtra says, "The Dharma that he expounds all reaches the ground of all-knowledge"; this is precisely its meaning. The substance of the earth can contain and support both water and land ways, just as the common and distinctive paths reach this and the other shore. "The divisions and boundaries of empty space": this correlates with the truth of cessation. The Lotus Sūtra says, "Its constantly quiescent and extinguished mark ultimately returns to emptiness"; this is precisely its meaning. The substance of space is utterly pure; the five cataracts cannot defile it, and the three luminaries cannot purify it. It is like the truth of cessation, extinguishing into non-existence the twenty-five states of existence, as well as extinguishing into the nirvāṇa of the conjured city. The principle of the four truths pervading all places is the Dharma-body; the wisdom of the four truths knowing in accordance with the objective sphere is the reward body; giving rise to function from substance to conform in length or brevity is the responsive body. Ruciraketu merely saw the responsive [lifespan] as short, and did not see the responsive [lifespan] as long; since he had not even penetrated the responsive, how could he know the reward and Dharma [bodies]? The four Buddhas cited four metaphors to metaphorize the length of his responsive [life]: drops of water, pounds of mountains, dust of the earth, and the boundaries of space cannot even be thought of or calculated so as to find their edges; how much less can the wisdom that is darkly merged with Dharma—so profound, so unfathomable, truly without bottom or limit, so vast and great, how could it have bounds? Adducing the responsive traces to explain the reward and Dharma [bodies], he had a sudden and clear awakening; such was the skillfulness in severing doubts! Such was the marvel in explaining these verses; let practitioners ponder this, ponder this! Correlating the four verses with the four applications of mindfulness: The contemplation of the applications of mindfulness is fundamentally based on the truth of suffering, and should properly be discussed only with reference to the Mount Sumeru verse; here, however, they are correlated comprehensively. "All the waters" correlates with the application of mindfulness to feelings, because feelings can contain and receive, like the sea with its immense capacity. "Mount Sumeru" correlates with the application of mindfulness to the body, because form-marks and physical obstruction are similar in nature. "The great earth" correlates with the applications of mindfulness to perception and volitional formations, because perception grasps and formations act, just as the earth contains and carries. "The boundaries of space" correlates with the application of mindfulness to the mind, because the mind has only a name, just as space is devoid of marks. If one contemplates the four applications of mindfulness, it is the cause for cultivating long life; if one attains the Path through the applications of mindfulness, it is precisely the fruit of long life; therefore, we use the applications of mindfulness to correlate with the four verses. If one contemplates the four withered applications of mindfulness, one destroys the four inversions of ordinary beings; if one contemplates the four blooming applications of mindfulness, one destroys the four inversions of the two vehicles; if one contemplates the Middle Way applications of mindfulness, then being neither blooming nor withered, one attains parinirvāṇa in their midst and accomplishes the five kinds of liberation, namely the liberation of form up to the liberation of consciousness. Being liberated from the bonds of the five aggregates is called the five liberations; penetrating thoroughly the five aggregates as empty and non-existent is called the five wisdoms; darkly merging with the five aggregates so they manifest is called the five Dharma-bodies. Although differentiated into three, they are neither one nor different, neither vertical nor horizontal; this is called the secret storehouse, designated as the Great Nirvāṇa. The Benevolent Kings Sūtra calls them dharmatā-form and dharmatā-feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness. The dharmatā of the aggregates is precisely the Dharma-body; wisdom darkly merged with dharmatā is precisely the reward body. Neither Dharma nor reward [bodies] are either permanent or impermanent, yet they are able to give rise to function as permanent or impermanent: when the permanent is functioned, it is long; when the impermanent is functioned, it is short. Ruciraketu merely saw the impermanent and was unable to see the permanent; having not even penetrated the function, how much less could he understand the source? The four Buddhas cited metaphors to clarify that its function is eternal; the eternity of the traces is boundless and cannot be attained by thought and calculation, how much more so could the substance and principle ever be known by the mind? Ruciraketu's delusion was eliminated, clearing away as if clouds were rolling back; such was the skillfulness in severing doubts! Correlating the four verses with the four virtues: Water moistening and producing lush growth correlates with the virtue of permanence; a mountain being able to tower lofty correlates with the virtue of self; crushing the earth into dust correlates with the virtue of purity; space being free from painful feeling correlates with the virtue of bliss. The consummation of the four virtues is what is attained upon the fruit; the fruit darkly merges with principle: merging with neither permanence nor impermanence, it can give rise to the functions of permanence and impermanence; merging with neither self nor non-self, it gives rise to the functions of self and non-self; merging with neither purity nor impurity, it gives rise to the functions of purity and impurity; merging with neither bliss nor non-bliss, it gives rise to the functions of bliss and non-bliss. Ruciraketu merely saw impermanence and non-bliss, and did not see permanence and bliss; since he was still deluded about the responsive, how could he recognize the source? The four Buddhas cited the functions of the four virtues as not what can be known by thought and calculation; the substance and source, the reward and Dharma [bodies], were far beyond thought. Hearing this explained, Ruciraketu not only had his doubts removed and confusions severed, but his faith increased and understanding arose, so that he rejoiced and leapt with joy, grasping it in his heart (and so forth).