三論玄義 1.6

1.6

Second, assessing the persons. Question: The Buddha is called the Greatly Awakened One, and Laozi is called the Heavenly Worthy; as persons they are both supreme sages, and their dharmas are equally wondrous and ultimate. If you insist on maintaining differences, would that not block the profound gate of non-duality and harm the deep repository of attaining oneness? (This is Daoist masters establishing doctrines using texts like the Three Caverns and Lingbao scriptures.) Answer: While Siddhārtha resided in the palace, he was to succeed as a gold-wheel-turning sage emperor; when the Muni left secular life, he became the Dharma King of the three realms. Laozi was a scribe of the Zhou court, and his pure emptiness is merely a branch of the nine schools. If you wish to make the persons one and the teachings identical, how does this differ from claiming that an earthen mound is of equal height to Mount Sumeru, or that the light of a firefly or candle shines equally with the sun and moon? Question: Those who resemble others possess the five emotions; those who differ from others possess spiritual illumination. His trace was that of a scribe, but his origin was truly the Heavenly Worthy. Speaking according to reality, they are aligned in a single unity. Answer: The Book of Han also clearly classifies categories, ranking Boyang among the worthy; He Yan and Wang Bi stated that Laozi did not yet reach the level of sage. Even if Confucius was the youth Māṇava and Laozi was Kāśyapa, though their sagely traces were both of sages, sagely traces are not identical. If one perfectly responds to the ten directions and achieves Buddhahood through the eight phases, the person is called the Greatly Awakened One, and the dharma is named world-transcending; its minor benefit brings the blessings and goodness of humans and devas, and its great benefit produces the worthy and noble ones of the three vehicles: such a kind belongs to the superior traces. As for Confucius being called the Uncrowned King and speaking of existence being named Confucianism, and Laozi occupying the post of scribe and speaking of non-being being named the Dao: discerning their benefits, no one attained sagehood; clarifying their advantages, they stopped merely at the mundane. Such kinds belong to the secondary traces.