中觀論疏 6.3

6.3

The preceding seven chapters form one cycle that briefly refutes person and phenomena to clarify the Mahāyāna contemplative practice; the ten chapters below repeatedly refute person and phenomena to clarify the Mahāyāna contemplative practice. The brief refutation was spoken for those of sharp faculties; the repeated refutation was spoken for those of dull faculties. Question: How do we know that the preceding was a brief refutation and the present is a repeated refutation? Answer: By taking the two passages before and after as evidence, we know there are expositions in two cycles. The final two verses of the "Examination of the Three Characteristics" contain three pairs: one verse washes away all entities of the conditioned and unconditioned; one verse refutes all names of the conditioned and unconditioned. Since both names and entities are non-existent, person and phenomena are completely empty; hence this is one cycle. The next verse clarifies that phenomena have nothing from which they originate, refuting from the gate of direct exposition of phenomena; one verse adduces an analogy, refuting through the gate of metaphorical comparison. Phenomena and analogy being complete, the one cycle is finalized. The next verse concludes the reason why the refutation establishes the absence of the three characteristics; one verse clarifies the reason why the sūtras speak of the existence of the three characteristics. Since the treatise both explains the treatise and harmonizes with the sūtras, this is the completion of one cycle. As for the evidence from the subsequent text, the prose preface states: "Heretofore, each chapter has refuted all phenomena without exception; but because your mind of attachment is deep, I shall now explain them again." Since there are the words "explain them again", we know it must be a refutation in another cycle. As for the reason to refute action and agent: from beginningless time all sentient beings have believed that good, evil, and indeterminate [natures] exist, and that a person performs good, evil, and indeterminate karma. Now, examining that there are no three persons performing three karmas, one awakens to the unarisen, ultimate emptiness and attains liberation. This meaning applies generally throughout each chapter. The ten chapters comprise two parts: the first four chapters primarily refute the person and secondarily refute phenomena; the subsequent six chapters primarily refute phenomena and secondarily refute the person. The reason for this is, first, in accordance with the sequence of the gates of contemplation. Because the non-arising of the person is easy to attain, it primarily refutes the person first; because the non-arising of phenomena is difficult to attain, it refutes phenomena afterward. Second, this cycle is for people of dull faculties; hence it refutes the person first and refutes phenomena afterward. Furthermore, the two cycles mutually manifest each other: the previous cycle primarily refuted phenomena and secondarily refuted the person. Inner students of sharp faculties mostly know there is no person, but few know there are no phenomena. Moreover, inner students mostly posit phenomena and rarely posit a person; among the eighteen schools, only the Vātsīputrīya posit a person. Furthermore, the previous cycle went from the fundamental to the derivative; therefore it refuted phenomena first, as phenomena are the root of the person; the subsequent cycle goes from the derivative to the fundamental, as the person is the branch of phenomena. This is the text's mutual manifestation. Furthermore, the previous cycle was based on the sequence of the gates of teaching, mostly going from deep to shallow; the subsequent gate is based on the sequence of the gates of practice, going from shallow to deep. That four chapters refute the person and six chapters refute phenomena is because the person is easy and phenomena are difficult. "Examination of Action and Agent" refutes the functioning of person and phenomena; "Examination of the Prior Entity" refutes the entity of person and phenomena; "Examination of Fire and Fuel" adduces an analogy to jointly refute entity and functioning; "Examination of the Prior Limit" penetrates to the source of person and phenomena. Thus the four chapters primarily refute the person and secondarily refute phenomena. Furthermore, the first chapter broadly refutes both the identical and separate selves, but refuting the identical is primary—as Śreṇika posited the agent as identical with the aggregates; the next chapter primarily refutes positing a self separate from the aggregates. The "Examination of Fire and Fuel" broadly refutes both identical and separate, and also the five propositions of identity and difference. "Examination of the Prior Limit" resolves doubts: an outsider doubts, "If these three chapters have no person and no phenomena, why does the Anamatagga-sūtra speak of their existence?" Hence it is called resolving doubts. Question: Why is action and agent refuted right after the three characteristics? Answer: Above, the conditioned and unconditioned were refuted as entirely empty. The outsider says: the three characteristics are conditioned; conditioned means arising and acting, so action and agent are adduced to prove the existence of the three characteristics. This is its secondary meaning. As for the primary meaning: from the "Examination of Causes and Conditions" to the "Examination of the Five Aggregates", the existence of phenomena is refuted, clarifying the gate of liberation of emptiness. From the "Examination of the Six Elements" to the "Examination of the Three Characteristics", seeking all characteristics they cannot be found; this is called the gate of liberation of signlessness. From this chapter to the very end of the treatise, seeking an agent it cannot be found; this clarifies the gate of liberation of wishlessness. Therefore, following the end of the "Examination of the Three Characteristics", action and agent are refuted. The outsider says: If the "Examination of the Three Characteristics" clarifies that the conditioned and unconditioned are all empty, how can current actions, operations, and conduct all be empty? The outsider believes that sentient beings of the six destinies are agents; body, speech, and mind are the methods of action employed; giving rise to the three karmas of sin, merit, and the immovable is called performing karma; and obtaining the suffering and pleasure of the six destinies is called karmic retribution. Persons of the three vehicles are agents; body, speech, and mind are the methods employed; giving rise to the karma of the three vehicles is performing karma; and obtaining the fruit of the three vehicles is karmic retribution. One presently observes that the nine realms are like this; how can you say they are ultimately empty? Furthermore, as for the sequence of the three emptinesses: previously, having finished explaining the gate of emptiness, the treatise master praised emptiness and explained the gate of signlessness to clarify not grasping at the characteristic of emptiness. Now, explaining wishlessness directly clarifies that when a bodhisattva gives rise to a thought or moves a mental state, that itself is performing karma; positing that there is a contemplation of emptiness and signlessness, the bodhisattva is the agent, and performing this contemplation to attain the Buddha path is the karmic retribution. Therefore this single gate can penetrate from the lowest to the utmost: the utmost refers to prior to the Dharma Cloud [bhūmi]; the lowest refers to refuting the world's actions, operations, and conduct as all unfindable. The twenty-seven chapters derive their titles in four ways: first, receiving a name from phenomena, such as the chapters on the sense faculties and aggregates; second, taking an appellation from a person, such as the "Examination of the Prior Entity" and so forth; third, establishing a name from an analogy, such as the "Examination of Fire and Fuel"; fourth, combining person and phenomena under a single designation, such as the "Examination of Action and Agent". Question: Between action and agent, and defilement and the defiled, what difference is there? Answer: Defilement and the defiled is solely the mental ground and clarifies only what is unwholesome; action and agent extends across the three karmas and across the three natures. Furthermore, defilement and the defiled is solely the gate of afflictions, whereas action and agent clarifies the gate of karma. Furthermore, defilement and the defiled cites sūtras to establish its thesis; action and agent cites concrete affairs to establish its thesis, meaning the presently observed matters of actions, operations, and conduct. Question: What is the difference between refuting action and agent now, and the agent among the sixteen views? Answer: The sixteen views merely refute non-Buddhist doctrines; what is here broadly refutes worldly, non-Buddhist, Hīnayāna, and Mahāyāna views—wherever there is the slightest action produced with a mind of grasping, all are included in this gate to be refuted. Question: Why refute all activity? Answer: The Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā-prajñāpāramitā Sūtra states: "A bodhisattva has coarse and subtle karmas: seeing body, speech, and mind is called coarse karma; not apprehending body, speech, and mind is called subtle karma." A bodhisattva is free from coarse karma; now, desiring to delineate the bodhisattva's pure karma, all grasping activity and conduct are refuted. Second, the Nirvāṇa Sūtra states: "Jīvaka said to King Ajātaśatru: 'Great King, if you hear the Buddha teach no action and no experiencer, your grave sin will immediately be purified.'" "No action" means there is no person who acts and no phenomenon that acts. "No experiencer" means there is no person who experiences and no phenomenon that experiences. Furthermore, the sūtra briefly indicated this and those of sharp faculties immediately understood; but because sins in the final age are grave, the treatise master broadly refutes them. Therefore, this chapter first clarifies no action and no agent, and later distinguishes no experiencing and no experiencer; this is precisely the pure repentance practice of the various Vaipulya sūtras. Bodhisattvas of the four reliances pity the sin-committing sentient beings of the final age, and therefore elucidate the great Vaipulya repentance of the Buddhas of the ten directions.