大乘起信論裂網疏 5.49

5.49

"Relying on the indeterminate group" explains the stage relied upon. From "deeply having faith in karma and its fruits" up to "cultivating all practices" explains the practices cultivated. From "having passed ten thousand kalpas" onward explains attaining the fulfillment of faith and being competent to generate the mind [for bodhi]. From "having already generated the mind" onward explains the benefits of generating the mind. As for the "indeterminate group," generally speaking there are three types of sentient beings: First, the wrongly determined group, meaning those who have not planted supramundane roots of goodness and do not believe in the supramundane true Dharma. Second, the rightly determined group, meaning those from generating the mind onward who never regress. Third, the indeterminate group, meaning those who have already planted supramundane roots of goodness and believe in the supramundane Dharma, yet have no definite inclination toward any among the teachings of the three vehicles. If, within the Hinayāna teachings, one realizes [the stage of] srotāpanna, one is immediately called "entering the rightly determined group"; here, within the Mahāyāna teaching, this meaning is not adopted. "By the power of the roots of goodness through perfuming by the Dharma" means both the innately existent and the newly perfumed kinds of internal-cause perfuming of the essence, as well as both the differentiated and the equal kinds of external-condition perfuming of the function. "Deeply having faith in karma and its fruits" comprehensively explains that upon which the roots of goodness rely. "Practicing the path of the ten good deeds" is the power of mundane roots of goodness. "Wearying of the suffering of birth and death" is the power of supramundane roots of goodness. "Seeking unsurpassed awakening" is the power of the supreme supramundane roots of goodness. Among these three roots of goodness, the former does not encompass the latter, but the latter necessarily encompasses the former; one must possess all three roots of goodness to attain the fulfillment of faith. Taking these three roots of goodness as the superior cause, and again encountering Buddhas and bodhisattvas as the superior condition, serving, making offerings, and cultivating all practices—cause and condition being complete—this is truly the practice cultivated by the initial mind of the Mahāyāna. "Passing ten thousand kalpas" means that from the first, the mind of faith; second, the mind of mindfulness; third, the mind of vigor; fourth, the mind of wisdom; fifth, the mind of concentration; sixth, the non-regressing mind; seventh, the mind protecting the Dharma; eighth, the mind of dedication; ninth, the mind of precepts; to tenth, the mind of vows, one completely cultivates and fulfills the ten minds; therefore it says "ten thousand kalpas." Grouping these all-practices cultivated previously as the cause, and further relying on the teaching power of Buddhas and bodhisattvas as a condition, or relying on great compassion that pities the suffering of sentient beings as a condition, or taking the preservation and long dwelling of the true Dharma as a condition, one is then able to roundly generate the three minds. "Entering the rightly determined group" means being in accord with the principle of the dharmakāya. "Ultimately never regressing" means not falling into the stages of ordinary beings or the two vehicles. "Dwelling in the Buddha-gotra" means that upon the initial generation of the mind, one immediately achieves correct awakening. "Accordant with the superior cause" means that taking the unarisen and unceasing as the fundamental cause for cultivation is precisely the correct cause by which all Tathāgatas attain the Way.