大毘盧遮那成佛經疏 15.7

15.7

既加持地，次須用綖而定漫荼羅位。綖者，梵音名為蘇（去）呾纜，是連持眾德令其不散，故名綖也。線有四種，謂白、黃、赤、黑。念此念，謂應念持也。更加一種，謂虛空色也。虛空能含一切色像，即是具一切色。若但依空色，即是淺青之色，如草木葉色也。白是信義；黃是精進；赤是念；黑是定，定色同於涅槃色也。慧者即是大空，大空具一切相而無有相，故為一切色也。凡合線時，若一一依法者，當別造漫荼羅，安置寶瓶香花塗香燈等及諸飲食，作種種供養（更問方法），然後令童女合之。當先為受八戒，著新淨衣，香水澡浴，使內外清淨，坐於壇中而合之。合線之法，先預作細絲令極均調，大小緩急皆令得所，又不得中間斷續連接之也。又合時以帛掩口也。每一色絲來去襵牒使成九絲，然後合為一縷。其絲但有一頭而屈襵之，中間不得接。一縷一色，凡五色合為一繩也。若合繩，緩急麁細不調，又不盡心作之，明則生障法，損師亦損弟子，或令其發狂亂等，不可不慎也。私謂童女是三昧也，由三昧極均等調停，得成五力五根，由此根力即能連持眾行也（更問）。虛空中等持者，此有二種。若是深行阿闍梨欲作壇時，既淨菩提心地竟，於瑜伽中為度弟子故，正觀胎藏大漫荼羅加持之位，一切分位宛然明白了也。如空中等持，等是普遍也，持謂應如是作也，作謂知次也，先定空也，尊位均等也。第二以線置漫荼羅地，如對目前，然為度人順世諦故，以方位加於壇地，然後於上用五色線像等而定方位也。若是深行阿闍梨者，亦須先用此線而定方位。定方位竟，當一一用心而布置之，亦令所有方位如對目前。或可用紙筆抄之，臨時案用，不得臨事疑誤也。此云空中等者，即是如上所說，先共弟子對立，引其線而定方位，且勿令著地。先於空中對引，各令當心，如其次第令得周匝。若未有具法弟子未堪共造壇者，亦可置橛於弟子處而作也。既如是定竟，即運心布定位次，然後得絣繩畫一一。若是瑜伽阿闍梨者，亦於此中而作方位，見諸佛菩薩天神等宛然位定，方順世間法亦絣線案位，案其形色而表出之，當知此為最上之位也。一切諸佛智者，諸佛子歎菩薩具智慧也。一切諸佛子諸智者，蓮華悅意勝，吉祥世稱，謂世所歎以為吉祥也者。此次答座位表像也。如世人以蓮華為吉祥清淨能悅可眾心，今祕藏中亦以大悲胎藏妙法蓮華為最深祕吉祥，一切加持法門之身坐此華臺也。然世間蓮亦有無量差降，所謂大小開合、色相淺深各各不同，如是心地花臺亦有權實開合等異也，故云智者當知也。若是佛，謂當作八葉芬陀利，白蓮花也，其花令開敷四布。若是菩薩，亦作此花坐而令花半敷，勿令極開也（其花或白或黃，或作寶蓮華皆得，但赤色者是世間花，在下也）。若緣覺聲聞，當坐於花臺之上，或坐俱勿頭花葉上，淺識博以為一邊之智也。此是青蓮花也。此但是青色之蓮，然更別有青蓮花，坐芰荷青蓮葉也，從蓮花所生葉也，種非此類也。若淨居諸天乃至初禪梵天等，世間立號為梵等，皆坐赤蓮花中。念謂憶持不妄也。其色純赤，世稱為坐王也。若欲界天及地居等，各隨其位而用表之。如帝釋像即畫須彌山王，山神坐山上，水神坐水上，樹神坐樹上，城神坐城上，如是甚多可以意得耳。以下諸天分地為坐，謂欲界天等或坐草或乾葉等也。念謂思念也。復次三藏說：「西方蓮花有多種，一者鉢頭摩（復有二種，一者赤色，即此間蓮華也；二者白色，今此間有白蓮是也，非芬陀利）、優鉢羅（亦有赤白二色。又有不赤不白者，形似泥盧鉢羅花也）、俱勿頭（有赤及青二種。又云俱勿頭是蓮花青色者）、泥盧鉢羅（此華從牛糞種生，極香，是文殊所執者。目如青蓮，亦是此也。更有蘇健他迦花，亦相似而小花）、分荼利迦（花可有百葉，葉葉相承圓整可愛，最外葉極白，漸向內色漸微黃，乃至最在內者與萼色相近也。此花極香也。昔琉璃王害釋女時，大迦葉於阿耨達池取此花，裹八功德水灑之，諸女身心得安樂，命終生天。因是投花於池遂成種，至今猶有之。花大可愛，徑一尺餘，尤可愛也。此《法花》所引申者是。是漫荼羅八葉者也）。」

Having consecrated the ground with adhiṣṭhāna, one must next use cords to determine the positions in the maṇḍala. As for "cords", the Sanskrit name is sūtra, which means to link and maintain manifold virtues so that they do not disperse; hence it is called "cord". There are four kinds of thread: white, yellow, red, and black. "Mindfully recollecting this" means that one should hold them with mindful recollection. One more kind is added: the colour of space. Space can contain all forms and appearances; that is, it is endowed with all colours. If one relies solely on the colour of space, it is a pale blue-green colour, like the colour of the leaves of grasses and trees. White signifies faith; yellow is vigor; red is mindfulness; black is concentration, the colour of concentration being identical with the colour of nirvāṇa. Wisdom is great emptiness: great emptiness is endowed with all characteristics yet has no characteristic; therefore it is all colours. Whenever twisting the cords together, if one does so completely in accordance with the method, one should erect a separate maṇḍala, arrange treasure vases, incense, flowers, ointment, lamps, etc., as well as various foods and drinks, and make diverse offerings (further inquire about the method). Then have a maiden twist them. One should first administer the eight precepts to her, have her wear fresh, clean clothes, and bathe with fragrant water so that inside and out she is pure and clean, and have her sit in the center of the altar to twist them. As for the method of twisting the cords: beforehand make fine threads extremely uniform and balanced, keeping their size, looseness, and tightness properly proportioned, and do not break or splice them in the middle. Furthermore, when twisting, cover the mouth with a piece of silk cloth. For each colour of thread, fold it back and forth to make nine strands, and then twist them into a single strand. The thread should have only one beginning end and be bent and folded, without any splicing in the middle. One strand of each colour; all five colours are twisted together to make one cord. If in twisting the cord, the slackness, tightness, coarseness, or fineness are not balanced, and one does not apply one's whole mind to making it, it will create obstacles when applied to mantras, harming both the master and the disciple, or causing them to become mad and disordered; one cannot fail to be cautious. Personally, I hold that the maiden represents samādhi. Because samādhi is extremely even and balanced, the five powers and the five faculties are perfected; through these faculties and powers, one can link and maintain the manifold practices (further inquire). "Equally held in the sky": there are two kinds of this. If it is an ācārya of profound practice who wishes to construct the altar, having purified the ground of bodhicitta, in yoga for the sake of delivering the disciple, he contemplates the adhiṣṭhāna positions of the Garbha Great Maṇḍala with correct attention, so that all the divisions and positions are vividly clear. Like being "equally held in the sky": "equal" means pervasive; "held" means it should be made like this; "made" means knowing the sequence, first establishing the space, with the positions of the revered ones being equal. Second, placing the cords on the ground of the maṇḍala, as if directly before one's eyes; however, for the sake of delivering people and conforming to worldly truth, one applies the cardinal directions to the altar ground, and then above it uses the five-coloured cords and outlines to determine the directional positions. If it is an ācārya of profound practice, he must also first use these cords to determine the directional positions. Having determined the directional positions, he should carefully deploy his mind to arrange them one by one, also causing all the directional positions to appear as if directly before his eyes. Or he may copy them down with paper and brush to refer to and apply at the time, so that when encountering the task, he does not doubt or make an error. What is called "equally in the sky" means, as explained above, first facing the disciple, pulling the cords to determine the directional positions, not yet letting them touch the ground. First draw them taut facing each other in the air, each holding them at heart level, making them go around in sequence. If there is no fully qualified disciple capable of building the altar together, one may also plant a peg in the disciple's place to do it. Having determined them like this, one then uses the mind to arrange and determine the positions and ranks, and then snaps the cord to draw each one. If he is a yoga ācārya, he also establishes the directional positions within this [contemplation], seeing all the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, devas, spirits, and so forth vividly fixed in their places; only then, conforming to worldly conventions, does he snap the cords according to the positions, representing them according to their forms and colours. One should know that this is the supreme position. "All Buddhas and wise ones": the Buddha-sons praise the bodhisattvas as possessing wisdom. "All Buddha-sons and wise ones, the lotus delights the mind and is supreme, praised by the world as auspicious"—meaning what the world praises as auspicious. This next answers regarding the symbols of the seats. Just as worldly people regard the lotus as auspicious, pure, and capable of delighting people's hearts, now in the secret repository, the wondrous Dharma lotus of the Great Compassion Garbha is also the most deeply secret and auspicious, and the bodies of all adhiṣṭhāna Dharma-gateways sit upon this flower terrace. Yet worldly lotuses also have immeasurable gradations, namely differences in size, opening and closing, and variations in colour and hue; likewise, the flower terrace of the mind-ground also has distinctions of provisional and real, open and closed, etc. Hence it says, "The wise should know this." If it is a Buddha, one should make an eight-petaled puṇḍarīka, a white lotus flower, causing its petals to open and spread in the four directions. If it is a bodhisattva, one also makes this flower seat, but has the flower half-opened, not letting it fully open (the flower may be white or yellow, or made as a jewelled lotus, any of which is permissible; but the red one is a worldly flower and is placed below). If it is a pratyekabuddha or śrāvaka, they should sit upon a flower terrace, or sit upon the petals of a kumuda flower, representing partial wisdom of shallow discernment and broadness. This is the blue lotus. This is merely a lotus of blue colour; yet there is also a distinct blue lotus, sitting upon the blue lotus leaves of the water lily (jīva/padma), leaves born from the lotus flower, whose species is not of this kind. If it is the devas of Śuddhāvāsa up to the Brahma devas of the first dhyāna, who are conventionally designated in the world as Brahma and so forth, they all sit within red lotus flowers. "Mindful" means recollecting without forgetting. Its colour is pure red, which the world calls the king among seats. If it is the devas of the desire realm, earth-dwelling spirits, etc., one uses symbols according to their respective ranks. For example, for the image of Śakra Devendra, paint Mount Sumeru, the mountain spirit sits on a mountain, the water spirit sits on water, the tree spirit sits on a tree, the city spirit sits on a city; there are very many such cases, which can be understood by analogy. For the lower devas, allocate the ground as their seat; that is, the devas of the desire realm, etc., sit either on grass or on dry leaves, etc. "Mindful" means reflecting with thought. Furthermore, the Tripiṭaka Master said: "In the Western regions there are many kinds of lotus. The first is padma (there are two kinds: one is red, which is the lotus flower of this country; the second is white, which is the white lotus now present in this country, not the puṇḍarīka). The [second is] utpala (also having two colours, red and white; there are also those that are neither red nor white, whose shape resembles the nīlotpala flower). The [third is] kumuda (having two kinds, red and blue; it is also said that kumuda is the blue-coloured lotus). The [fourth is] nīlotpala (this flower grows from cow dung seeds and is extremely fragrant; it is what Mañjuśrī holds. His eyes being like blue lotuses also refers to this. There is also the sugandhika flower, which is similar but with smaller flowers). The [fifth is] puṇḍarīka (the flower may have a hundred petals, petal overlapping petal, round, neat, and lovely; the outermost petals are extremely white, and toward the inside the colour becomes gradually faintly yellow, until the innermost ones are close in colour to the calyx. This flower is extremely fragrant. Formerly, when King Virūḍhaka harmed the Śākya maidens, Mahākāśyapa took this flower from Lake Anavatapta, wrapped it with water of eightfold virtues, and sprinkled them; the bodies and minds of the maidens attained peace and comfort, and when their lives ended they were born in heaven. Because he cast the flower into the lake, it subsequently became a seed, which still exists today. The flower is large and lovely, more than a foot in diameter, and especially lovely. This is the one cited in the Lotus Sūtra. It is the eight-petaled one of the maṇḍala)."