佛說盂蘭盆經疏 2.61

2.61

具飯百味者，總標也。如人盛饌盤筵邀命賓客，唯云喫飯，故飯為總，統於百味。百者大數，非定一百。五果者，一核果，如棗杏桃李等。二膚果，如瓜梨柰椹等。三殼果，如胡桃石榴等。四糩果，如蘇荏等。五角果，如菱豆等。上皆舌所嘗也。汲灌盆器者，沐浴等所用，并下床敷臥具，皆身所覺也。香者，鼻所嗅也。油錠燭者，炤燎等用，眼所見也。亦可香油塗身，亦屬身攝，西域如此。盡世甘美者，亦屬舌也。上來於五欲境中唯闕聲也。盡世之言，詳其意趣有二種盡，謂富貴則盡世所有，有即須求；貧賤則盡力所及，及則須覓。即知不定少多之物，但在竭盡其心。亦類彼享於克誠、馨於明德也。著盆中者，譯經訛錯，如何床等可置盆中？應云「著盂蘭盆供會之中」也。供養二句者，正明行也。據經本意，但以可受用物供養大德之僧，不必雕鏤金玉、剪割繒綵、高聳欄架等也。故三藏云：「汝須物華四事、盆美八珍，歷十方而運想、澄一心而供養。」

"Prepare rice of a hundred delicacies" is a general heading. Just as when someone prepares a sumptuous banquet to invite guests, they merely say "to eat rice," so "rice" is the general term encompassing the hundred delicacies. "A hundred" is a large round number, not fixed at precisely one hundred. "The five fruits" are: first, stone fruits, such as dates, apricots, peaches, and plums; second, flesh fruits, such as melons, pears, crabapples, and mulberries; third, shell fruits, such as walnuts and pomegranates; fourth, seed fruits, such as perilla and sesame; fifth, pod fruits, such as water caltrops and beans. All of the above are tasted by the tongue. "Washbasins and vessels" are used for bathing and the like, and along with "beddings and mattresses" below, they are all felt by the body. "Incense" is smelled by the nose. "Oil, lamp-stands, and candles" are used for illumination and are seen by the eye. It may also be that fragrant oil is applied to the body, which would also fall under touch; such is the custom in the Western Regions. "All the sweetest delicacies of the world" also belongs to taste. In the five sensory objects discussed above, only sound is missing. As for the words "all the... of the world," examining their import reveals two ways of "all": the wealthy and noble must exhaust all that exists in the world, seeking it out if it exists; the poor and lowly must exhaust the reach of their own strength, seeking it out if it is within their power. Thus we know it does not depend on having few or many items, but lies solely in exhausting one's sincerity. This is also akin to [the ancient saying that] "the sacrifice lies in sincerity, the fragrance lies in illustrious virtue." "To place in the basin" is a translator's error; how could beds and the like be placed in a basin? It should say, "place in the midst of the Ullambana offering assembly." The two phrases on "offering" directly clarify the practice. According to the original intent of the sūtra, one simply offers usable goods to the venerable monks; there is no need for carved gold and jade, cut silks and ribbons, or towering racks and stands. Thus the Tripiṭaka Master says: "You should take the finest of things for the four requisites and the basin's delicacy of eight treasures, extend your contemplation through the ten directions, and make offerings with a purified, single mind."