[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Buddhist Literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha) › [Taishō Tripiṭaka (Chinese Buddhist canon)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho) › [大乘義章](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1851) › 1.15 # 大乘義章 1.15 大乘義章 1.15 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [1.15](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1851.1.15) 第一釋名。言三藏者，謂修多羅、毘尼、毘曇。修多羅者，中國之言，此方釋者翻譯非一，或名法本、或復翻為真說語言、或名契經、或翻名綖。人家所以翻為經本，蓋依《仁王》、《百論》故爾。如《仁王》中，佛告大王：「經本、偈經乃至論義，一切皆如。」以彼經中名修多羅為經本故，人即執此用為翻名。又《百論》中名其經本為修妬路、或云經本，人復執此定為翻名。蓋乃隨義以名經體，非正翻名。何者本義？本義有四：一理教相對，教為理本，故名為本。二就教中經論相對，經為論本，故名為本。三就經中自有本末，本自三義：一總為別本、二初為後本、三略為廣本。是義云何？修多羅中義別有三：一總修多羅，絯攝十二，莫不皆成一修多羅。故《涅槃》云「始從如是終至奉行，如是一切名修多羅。」二別修多羅，就前總中開分十一，餘不收者還復攝在修多羅中，名之為別。三略修多羅，十二部中初略標舉一切，通名為修多羅，後廣解釋說為十二。如言色者，即是根本略修多羅部；謂十一種，青黃等色，是其廣釋修多羅部。如喻經中「譬如長者有一大宅」，即是喻說略修多羅，「其宅朽」等，是其廣釋，譬喻經攝。如是一切。此三種中，總修多羅望別十二，總為別本，故名為本。別修多羅望彼祇夜重誦之偈，及望譬喻、論議之經，初為後本，故名為本，望餘非本。略修多羅望廣十二，略為廣本，目之為本。四就論中自有本末。有二種：一略為廣本，如迦旃延所作之論，與《毘婆沙》廣論為本；二廣為略本，如《毘婆沙》與《阿毘曇》及《雜心論》以為本等。本義如是。彼《仁王》中所云本者，就經以說，總為別本，故名為本。初為後本、略為廣本亦名為本。彼《百論》中就論以說，略為廣本，故名為本。此等乃是隨義傍翻，非正翻名。人復所以翻為直說，依《成實論》故為此釋。彼文說言「修多羅者，直說語言。」人即執此以為翻名。蓋乃是其辨釋之辭，非正翻名。訶梨跋摩作論解釋十二部經，對彼祇夜、伽陀偈經，故指序言修多羅者直說語言，如似說言熱者是火，豈是翻名？何故偏對祇夜、伽陀？以此二種一向別故。人復所以翻名契經，依彼《增一阿含》序故，便作此釋。彼言「契經是第一藏，毘尼第二，毘曇第三。」明知契經是修多羅。又依《雜心．業品》之文，彼文說言「斷律儀者，如契經品。」乃其所指是〈修多羅品〉，人即執此以為翻名。斯乃隨義以名其經，非是翻名。以其聖教稱當人情、契合法相，從義立目名之為契。此既方言，何用私情種種圖度？若正相翻，名之為綖。何以得知？今此且以三門釋之：一准定方言、二以義解、三以文證。准方言者，外國之人正名世人縫衣之綖為修多羅，那得異翻？言義解者，諸法星蘿散周法界，所以次第顯理在世不墜不失，良以聖教貫穿故爾。貫法之能，如綖貫華，故名為綖。言文證者，如律中說「如種種華散置案上，風吹則落。何以故？無綖貫故。如是種種名、種種性、種種家出家，令佛法疾滅不久住。何以故？不以經教攝取法故。」故目聖教以之為綖。佛法如華，所被眾生三業如案，造過非如風。由過滅法，如華零落。若無言教記持彼法，法則隱滅。良以言教記持在世，人雖造過，法常不滅。以有此能，故說如綖。又《雜心》言「修多羅者，名曰結鬘，能貫諸法。」貫法猶是綖之義也。 > First, explaining the names. As for the "three piṭakas," they are the sūtra, the vinaya, and the abhidharma. Sūtra is a word of the Central Country (India); commentators here in this land have translated it in more than one way: some call it "the root of dharmas" (fāběn), some translate it as "speech of direct explanation" (zhēnshuō yǔyán), some call it "tallying scripture" (qìjīng), and some translate its name as "thread" (xiàn). The reason people have translated it as "the scripture root" is simply based on the \*Benevolent Kings Sūtra\* and the \*Śataśāstra\*. For instance, in the \*Benevolent Kings Sūtra\*, the Buddha told the Great King: "From scripture roots, verse scriptures, up to treatises, all are suchness." Because that sūtra names the sūtra "scripture root," people thereupon took hold of this and used it as a translation of the name. Again, in the \*Śataśāstra\*, it names its scripture root xiū-dù-lù (sūtra) or says "scripture root," and people also took hold of this and fixed it as the translation of the name. This is merely naming the corpus of scripture according to its meaning, not a correct translation of the name. What is the meaning of "root" (běn)? The meaning of "root" has four aspects: First, matching principle against teaching, the teaching is the root of the principle; hence it is called "root." Second, matching scriptures against treatises within the teaching, the scriptures are the root of the treatises; hence they are called "root." Third, within the scriptures themselves there are root and branch, and "root" itself has three meanings: 1. the general is the root of the particular; 2. the initial is the root of the subsequent; 3. the condensed is the root of the extensive. What is the meaning of this? Within sūtras there are three distinctions of meaning: 1. The general sūtra, which encompasses the twelve \[divisions\] so that none are not formed into one sūtra; thus the \*Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra\* says: "Beginning from 'Thus \[have I heard\]' down to 'practised \[it\],' everything like this is called a sūtra." 2. The particular sūtra: opening and dividing eleven \[divisions\] out of the aforementioned general, whatever is not included in the rest is gathered back into the sūtra \[division\], which is termed "particular." 3. The condensed sūtra: in the twelve divisions, everything is initially marked and raised in condensed form, all universally named sūtra; afterwards it is explained extensively and taught as twelve. For instance, when one speaks of "matter" (rūpa), this is the fundamental condensed sūtra division; saying "eleven kinds, blue, yellow, and other colours" is its extensive explanation as a sūtra division. As in the parabolic sūtra, "Suppose an elder had a great mansion," this is a condensed sūtra of parabolic teaching, while "the mansion was decayed," etc., is its extensive explanation, belonging to the avadāna scriptures. Everything is like this. Among these three kinds, when the general sūtra looks toward the particular twelve, the general is the root of the particular; hence it is called "root." When the particular sūtra looks toward those geyas (verses of repetition) and looks toward avadānas and upadeśas, the initial is the root of the subsequent; hence it is called "root," while looking toward the rest it is not the root. When the condensed sūtra looks toward the extensive twelve, the condensed is the root of the extensive; it is designated as "root." Fourth, within treatises themselves there are root and branch. There are two kinds: 1. The condensed is the root of the extensive, as the treatise composed by Kātyāyana is the root for the extensive \*Vibhāṣā\* treatise; 2. The extensive is the root of the condensed, as the \*Vibhāṣā\* serves as the root for the \*Abhidharmasaṃgīti\* and the \*Saṃyuktābhidharmahṛdaya\*. Such is the meaning of "root." That which is called "root" in the \*Benevolent Kings Sūtra\* is spoken with respect to scripture: the general is the root of the particular, hence called "root"; the initial is the root of the subsequent and the condensed is the root of the extensive, which are also called "root." In the \*Śataśāstra\*, it is spoken with respect to treatises: the condensed is the root of the extensive, hence called "root." These are merely supplementary renderings following the sense, not correct translations of the name. Further, as to why people have translated it as "direct speech," they made this interpretation relying on the \*Tattvasiddhi-śāstra\*. That text says: "A sūtra is speech of direct explanation." People thereupon took hold of this and considered it the translation of the name. That was merely its language of distinction and explanation, not a correct translation of the name. Harivarman composed his treatise to explain the twelve divisions of scripture; setting them against those geya and gāthā verse scriptures, he therefore pointed to the prose and said that sūtras are direct speech, just like saying "that which is hot is fire"—how could that be a translation of the name? Why set it exclusively against geya and gāthā? Because these two are wholly distinct \[verses\]. Further, as to why people translated the name as "tallying scripture" (qìjīng), they immediately made this interpretation relying on the preface to the \*Ekottarika-āgama\*. It says: "Tallying scriptures are the first piṭaka, vinaya the second, and abhidharma the third." From this one clearly knows that the tallying scripture is sūtra. Moreover, relying on the text of the "Chapter on Karma" in the \*Saṃyuktābhidharmahṛdaya\*, that text says: "Restraint from non-virtue is as \[taught in\] the chapter on tallying scriptures." That which it refers to is the "Chapter on Sūtra"; people immediately took hold of this and considered it the translation of the name. This is merely naming the scripture according to its meaning, not a translation of the name. Because the holy teaching corresponds to human feelings and tallies with the characteristics of phenomena, a designation was established from its meaning and called "tallying." Since this \[sūtra\] is a foreign word, why use private inclinations to make diverse conjectures? If translated correctly, its name is "thread" (xiàn). How is this known? Here we will now explain it by three approaches: 1. standardising by the foreign vernacular; 2. explaining by meaning; 3. demonstrating by textual evidence. Standardising by the foreign vernacular: foreigners precisely designate the thread used by ordinary people to sew clothes as "sūtra"; how could there be a different translation? As for explaining by meaning: the various dharmas are scattered through the dharmadhātu like an array of stars; that which manifests principle in sequential order in the world without falling away or being lost is truly because the holy teaching strings them together. Its capacity to string together dharmas is like a thread stringing flowers; hence it is called "thread." As for textual evidence: as stated in the Vinaya, "Just as various flowers scattered on a table will fall when the wind blows—why? Because there is no thread stringing them together—in the same way, when persons of various names, various clans, and various families leave home, they cause the Buddha's Dharma quickly to perish and not remain long—why? Because they do not gather together the dharmas with scriptural teachings." Therefore the holy teaching is designated as a thread. The Buddha's Dharma is like the flowers; the three types of karma of the sentient beings whom it covers are like the table; committing faults is like the wind. Because of faults the Dharma perishes, just as flowers fall away. If there were no verbal teachings to record and maintain those dharmas, the Dharma would disappear. It is truly because verbal teachings record and maintain it in the world that even though people commit faults, the Dharma constantly remains unextinguished. Possessing this capacity, it is therefore said to be like a thread. Again, the \*Saṃyuktābhidharmahṛdaya\* says: "Sūtra is named 'garland', able to string together all dharmas." Stringing together dharmas is precisely the meaning of a thread. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) - [Previous: 1.14](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1851.1.14) - [Next: 1.16](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1851.1.16) - [Up: 1](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1851.1) ## Translations (1) - [English (machine translation)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1851~en-mt.1.15) — English, machine translation --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1851.1.15](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.1851.1.15) · Pramāṇa