請觀音經疏 1.32

1.32

Second, the actual proclamation of the dhāraṇī comprises two parts: first, the actual proclamation of the dhāraṇī; second, explaining its power and function. In the first part, proclaiming the dhāraṇī by stating that one 'relies on the Buddha's power' means relying on the power of the Great Awakening of Tathatā. Further invoking the Three Jewels has the same meaning as before. Regarding 'all terrors,' this again has two parts: first, a general explanation of the dhāraṇī's power and function; second, a specific explanation. Now, as for 'all terrors': first, going through the ten kinds of practitioners, each has their respective terrors. Second, as for 'transforming into vicious ghosts, tigers, and wolves': by analogy with the Golden Light [Sūtra], from the first bhūmi up to the tenth bhūmi, there are always perils of tigers, wolves, and lions. Here, the ten practitioners do not encounter literal tigers and wolves, but tigers and wolves are explained in terms of the phenomena of affliction. The specific explanation begins with 'breaking the vows of a practitioner of pure conduct.' As for 'ten evil karmas': the ten evils are natural moral prohibitions, where committing them is an offense whether one has formally taken the precepts or not, unlike the other restrictive disciplinary precepts. For example, regarding a monk's precept against [damaging] grasses and trees, one who has taken it incurs an offense upon violating it, whereas one who has not taken it does not incur an offense upon violating it. Here, taking the grave natural offenses, the power of the dhāraṇī can purify them; the light ones are extinguished accordingly. 'Even if' (she) has two meanings: first, hypothetical 'even if'; second, merely inclusive 'even if.' The principle of inherent purity originally lacks evil karma; the evil karmas that arise now are all empty and unreal. When reality arrives to dismantle what is unreal, all are made pure; hence it says 'even if.' This explains the eradication of the empty and deceptive provisional. As for merely inclusive: if there is even a single phenomenon subsumed under the category of karma, regardless of whether it is grave or light, this dhāraṇī can dispel it and make it pure. The Great Chapter [Prajñāpāramitā-sūtra] says: 'Even if there were a phenomenon surpassing nirvāṇa, it too would be like an illusion or an apparition.' This distinctly states nonexistence, just as a nineteenth realm is ultimately unattainable. Here, stating hypothetical 'even if' does not preclude having floating, unreal pleasures, which is at once the same as and different from the word 'even if' in the Great Chapter (and so on). As for 'seeing the Buddha manifest before oneself': the buddhānusmṛti-samādhi serves as the seed. When a person in hell contemplates the Buddha, what is manifested and seen varies in form and substance; continuing up to what is seen among humans, and by the bodhisattvas of the two vehicles, the shared [teaching], the distinctive [teaching], and so on, what each sees differs. In general, explaining the seeing of the Buddha as differing according to the ten practitioners, the contemplative methods of samādhi are also distinct (and so on).