大乘義章 17.25

17.25

次明須陀受生多少。於中曲有四門分別：一明須陀受身多少、二明潤惑品數多少、三明煩惱潤生多少、四明斷惑損生多少。初言受生身多少者，須陀有四，其第一人，現修進得阿羅漢果，則於現身入般涅槃。其第二人，現修進得阿那含果，上界受身，或受一生或二三四，乃至極多或受十五或受十六。言十五者，有樂定人，四禪遍生有十一身，初禪二處，上三禪地各有三處，合為十一；加四空處，故有十五。言十六者，有樂慧人，四禪遍生有十一身，加五淨居，故有十六。此等差別，廣如後釋。其第三人，現身修得斯陀含果，欲界受身，於人天中多受二生，少受一生。其第四人，於現在世唯證初果，欲界受身，或受一生或二三四，乃至極多受七生，往來十四生死，此之十四於人天中往來受之，不得類併。何故如是？以其覺苦厭離心故。此須陀洹，曾以觀苦，覺苦心盛，人中受生則覺人苦，求生天中；天中受生復覺天過，求生人中，為是不併。問曰：於彼十四生中，何處先生？是義不定。人中得道，捨人身已先住天中；天中得道，捨天身已先生人中。故《雜心》云「人中超昇，人間滿七；天亦如是。」問曰：何故極唯七返，不增不減？業力持故，不減七返；道力制故，不過七返。又復業力勢極如此，如七藥樹、七步毒蛇、七日之藥、七世事等。問曰：此人過七返已，唯得涅槃？有生上者？經論不同。依如《毘曇》及《成實論》，一切聖人欲界地中曾經生者，厭苦情深，悉不上生，欲界身中定得涅槃。依《阿育王傳》經所說，有上生者。彼經宣說「有一經生病須陀洹，優波麴多，化生五淨。」明得上生。化之因緣，備如經說。須陀差別，義有四階。此四人中，初一名為現般須陀，中二名為現進須陀，後一名為受生須陀。次第二門約就欲界受生須陀明其潤生煩惱品數。潤生煩惱，麁分為三，細分為九，中分為五。麁分三者，謂上中下。此義不定，就過論之，麁惑過重說之為上，細惑過微說以為下，非麁非細說名為中。若據功力，麁惑浮淺，障道力微，說以為下；細惑根深，障道力強，說之為上；中惑異前，說名為中。故經宜說「無明住地其力最上。」今此且依初義分之，麁惑為上、細名為下、兩楹說中。細分九者，麁中三品，所謂上上、上中、上下。中惑亦三，所謂中上、中中、中下。細惑亦三，所謂下上、下中、下下。中分分五者，謂為下、中、上、上中、上上。於中初二名為上上，次二上中，次二名上，次二名中，後一名下。此五與彼五階熏禪、五階分善其義相似。問曰：分九便足，何勞說五？今為約此明潤多少，故須辨之。

Next, to explain the number of rebirths taken by a srotāpanna. Herein, there are four detailed sub-sections of analysis: first, explaining the number of physical bodies received by a srotāpanna; second, explaining the number of grades of afflictions that moisten rebirth; third, explaining the amount of rebirths moistened by afflictions; fourth, explaining the reduction of rebirths through the severing of afflictions. First, concerning the number of rebirths and bodies received: there are four kinds of srotāpannas. The first kind cultivates advancement in the present [life] and attains the fruit of an arhat, thereby entering parinirvāṇa in the present body. The second kind cultivates advancement in the present [life] and attains the fruit of an anāgāmin, taking rebirth in the higher realms, receiving either one rebirth, or two, three, or four, up to at most fifteen or sixteen. In speaking of fifteen: for those who delight in samādhi, being born everywhere in the four dhyānas entails eleven bodies—two places in the first dhyāna, and three places in each of the upper three dhyāna stages, totaling eleven; adding the four immaterial places, there are therefore fifteen. In speaking of sixteen: for those who delight in prajñā, being born everywhere in the four dhyānas entails eleven bodies, and adding the five pure abodes, there are therefore sixteen. These distinctions will be extensively explained below. The third kind cultivates and attains the fruit of a sakṛdāgāmin in the present body, taking rebirth in the desire realm, receiving mostly two rebirths and minimally one rebirth among humans and devas. The fourth kind realizes only the first fruit in the present lifetime, taking rebirth in the desire realm, receiving either one rebirth, or two, three, or four, up to at most seven rebirths, transmigrating through fourteen births and deaths; these fourteen are transmigrated and taken among humans and devas, and cannot occur in succession [in the same realm]. Why is this so? Because of their awareness of suffering and their aspiration for renunciation. This srotāpanna, having previously contemplated suffering, has an intense awareness of suffering: when taking birth among humans, they perceive human suffering and seek rebirth among devas; when taking birth among devas, they again perceive the faults of devas and seek rebirth among humans; for this reason, they do not occur in succession [in the same realm]. Question: Among those fourteen rebirths, where are they born first? This meaning is not fixed. If one attains the path among humans, upon relinquishing the human body one first abides among devas; if one attains the path among devas, upon relinquishing the deva body one is first born among humans. Thus the Saṃyuktābhidharmahṛdaya states: "If one transcends while among humans, the human [rebirths] reach seven; it is likewise for devas." Question: Why are there at most only seven returns, neither more nor less? Because the power of karma sustains it, it does not decrease below seven returns; because the power of the path restrains it, it does not exceed seven returns. Furthermore, the capacity of karmic power reaches its limit in this way, just like the seven medicinal trees, the seven-step poisonous snake, the seven-day medicine, the affairs of seven lifetimes, and so forth. Question: Once this person has exceeded seven returns, do they only attain nirvāṇa, or are there any who are born in the higher [realms]? Sūtras and treatises differ. According to the Abhidharma and the Tattvasiddhi-śāstra, all noble beings who have previously taken birth in the desire realm stage have a deep revulsion toward suffering, and none are born in the higher [realms]; within a desire-realm body, they definitely attain nirvāṇa. According to what is expounded in the Aśokarājasūtra, there are those who are born in the higher [realms]. That sūtra expounds: "There was a sick srotāpanna who had undergone rebirth, whom Upagupta caused to be miraculously reborn in the five pure [abodes]." This clarifies that one may attain birth in the higher [realms]. The conditions of this transformation are fully as the sūtra explains. The distinctions of srotāpannas meaningfully comprise four levels. Among these four persons, the first is named the srotāpanna who attains nirvāṇa in the present [life]; the middle two are named srotāpannas who advance in the present [life]; the last one is named the srotāpanna who takes rebirth. Next, the second sub-section clarifies the number of grades of afflictions that moisten rebirth with reference to the srotāpanna who takes rebirth in the desire realm. Afflictions that moisten rebirth are coarsely divided into three, subtly divided into nine, and intermediately divided into five. As for coarsely dividing into three, they are called superior, middling, and inferior. This meaning is not fixed: discussing them in terms of their faults, coarse afflictions have heavy faults and are called superior, subtle afflictions have minute faults and are called inferior, and those neither coarse nor subtle are named middling. If based on efficacious power, coarse afflictions are superficial and shallow, and their power to obstruct the path is weak, so they are called inferior; subtle afflictions are deeply rooted, and their power to obstruct the path is strong, so they are called superior; middling afflictions differ from the former two and are named middling. Thus a sūtra expounds: "The ground of abiding ignorance has the supreme power." Now here, we tentatively divide them according to the first meaning: coarse afflictions are superior, subtle ones are named inferior, and the middle between the two pillars is called middling. As for subtly dividing into nine: there are three grades within the coarse, namely superior-superior, superior-middling, and superior-inferior. Middling afflictions also have three, namely middling-superior, middling-middling, and middling-inferior. Subtle afflictions also have three, namely inferior-superior, inferior-middling, and inferior-inferior. As for intermediately dividing into five: they are called inferior, middling, superior, superior-middling, and superior-superior. Therein, the first two are named superior-superior, the next two superior-middling, the next two are named superior, the next two are named middling, and the last one is named inferior. These five are similar in meaning to those five levels of perfuming dhyāna and five levels of cultivating wholesome [dharmas]. Question: Dividing into nine is already sufficient, so why labor to explain five? It is now in order to clarify the amount of moistening based on this that it must be distinguished.