起信論疏筆削記 1.1

1.1

The production of this text was originally based on Shibi. Shibi was exceedingly compassionate, yet he was overly diffuse in his phrases and sentences: whenever he set forth an interpretation, he would first formulate a question, next adduce the commentary's reply, and only then elaborate with an explanation. Although he did not forget the substance of the fundamental matrices, there were instances of excessive redundancy and great insufficiency. When lecturers used it, it had not reached smooth fluency. Now, drawing upon his text, I have noted down and preserved what is essential and appropriate, and pruned away what is prolix and diffuse, while further adding and amending so as to achieve the middle ground, so that later students will not fruitlessly labor their minds and their cognitive illumination will be without obscurity. Thus it is said: 'What should be noted down, note down; what should be pruned away, prune away.' For this reason, it is entitled 'Annotations and Emendations' (Bixiao).