起信論疏筆削記 1.23

1.23

冲漠下，別約橫竪，以顯心之德相。冲謂深也，此明心之體性，竪窮三際而洞然無底。故經云：甚深法性，諸佛行處。又云：幽邃深遠等。漠謂沙漠，此顯心之德相，橫遍十方而曠然無邊。故經云：覺遍十方界，本性圓滿故。此乃窮三際而三際不遷，遍十方而十方無外。又冲謂剛柔得所，漠謂名目難及。以此心性雖體離相，而隨緣成事；雖隨緣起，而本性不變。此隨緣不變之體，不可以智知識識、名言名目，故云漠也。經云：不染而染，難可了知。染而不染，難可了知。

From 'profound and desert-like' downward, the virtuous marks of the mind are revealed specifically in terms of the horizontal and the vertical. 'Profound' (chong) means deep; this explains the essential nature of the mind, vertically exhausting the three periods of time and thoroughly bottomless. Therefore a sūtra says: 'The extremely deep dharmatā, the realm walked by all Buddhas.' It also says: 'Abyssal, profound, and far-reaching, etc.' 'Desert-like' (mo) refers to the sand desert; this reveals the virtuous marks of the mind, horizontally pervading the ten directions and vast without boundary. Therefore a sūtra says: 'Enlightenment pervades the realms of the ten directions, because the fundamental nature is complete.' This exhausts the three periods without the three periods altering, and pervades the ten directions without anything falling outside the ten directions. Furthermore, 'profound' means that firmness and softness find their proper measure; 'desert-like' means that names and designations can hardly reach it. Because although the essence of this mind-nature is free from marks, it accomplishes phenomena in accordance with conditions; although it arises in accordance with conditions, its fundamental nature does not change. This essence that follows conditions without changing cannot be known by wisdom-knowledge or named by names and words; therefore it is called 'desert-like'. A sūtra says: 'Undefiled yet defiled, difficult to comprehend fully; defiled yet undefiled, difficult to comprehend fully.'