金光明最勝王經疏 2.69

2.69

Commentary: Fourth, Ruciraketu's repeated request. That the Buddha's actual life is long, I have already briefly understood. For what reason did he manifest this brevity? Earlier they only answered that it is long, but did not explain the reason for the short life; therefore he now asks again. According to the eighty-first fascicle of the *Yogācārabhūmi*, it says: "Regarding resolving objections: whether by oneself or others, all objections should be resolved. One should know that these objections arise briefly from five aspects: 1. to make explicit an unexplicit meaning, as when saying 'what meaning does this text have?'; 2. due to verbal contradiction, saying 'why is what was said earlier different?'; 3. due to contradiction with reason, as when showing a meaning that contradicts the four kinds of reason; 4. due to indeterminate exposition, as when saying 'why is a single meaning explained through various different approaches?'; 5. due to that which is ultimately unreasonable and seen [in worldly experience], as when saying 'what entity and what material form does the internal self have, that you say it is permanent and eternal, and so forth?' In regard to these five objections, they should be resolved in accordance with their sequence. That is, for the objection of unexplicit meaning, one uses upāya to make it explicit; for the objection of verbal contradiction, one reveals the intended purport to harmonize and reconcile them; likewise, for the objection of indeterminate exposition and the objection of that which is ultimately non-evident, one should know it is also like this. For the objection of contradiction with reason, one may settle it by means of the 'black teaching'—this intention is implicit, and referring to the Hīnayāna it is called the black teaching; or based on reason, or to enhance the fruit, or to enhance the cause—this intention is either an adaptive turn or an upāya; in order to sever evil and cultivate good, the cause and effect spoken of may appear contradictory, but in reality they do not conflict." Although objections are fivefold, according to the *Yogācārabhūmi*'s explanation, each objection has five intents: 1. for lack of understanding, 2. for doubt, 3. for testing, 4. for slighting, 5. for benefit and joy. Among the five objections now, this is an objection of verbal contradiction: Śākyamuni stated it was short, while the four buddhas stated it was long. Because of this contradiction, he raises it as an objection. Among the five intents, he asks with the intent of benefiting.