肇論 1.5

1.5

達留連講肆二十餘年，頗逢重席，末覩斯論。聊寄一序，託悟在中。同我賢余，請俟來哲。夫大分深義，厥號本無，故建言宗旨標乎實相。開空法道，莫逾真俗，所以次釋二諦，顯佛教門。但圓正之因無上般若，至極之果唯有涅槃，故末啟重玄，明眾聖之所宅。雖以性空擬本，無本可稱；語本絕言，非心行處。然則不遷當俗，俗則不生；不真為真，真但名說。若能放曠蕩然崇茲一道，清耳虛襟無言二諦，斯則淨照之功著，故般若無知。無名之德興，而涅槃不稱。余謂此說周圓罄佛淵海，浩博無涯窮法體相。雖復言約而義豐、文華而理詣，語勢連環，意實孤誕。敢是絕妙好辭，莫不竭茲洪論。所以童壽歎言：「解空第一，肇公其人。」斯言有由矣，彰在翰牘。但宗本蕭然，莫能致詰。《不遷》等四論，事開接引，問答析微，所以稱論。

Having lingered in lecture halls for over twenty years, I occasionally took the high seat, yet had not seen this treatise until recently. I now present a brief preface to entrust my comprehension within it. Those who agree with me are my worthy friends; for the rest, I await future wise ones. The profound meaning of the great division is named original non-being; thus, the established doctrine is marked by dharmatā. For opening the way of the Dharma of emptiness, nothing surpasses the two truths; therefore, the two truths are explained next to reveal the gateway of the Buddha's teaching. However, the cause of perfect correctness is the unsurpassed prajñā, and the culmination of the fruit is only nirvāṇa; therefore, at the end, the twofold mystery is opened to illuminate the dwelling place of all the sages. Although svabhāva-śūnyatā is used to intimate the root, there is no root that can be named; speaking of the root cuts off speech, for it is not a sphere of mental activity. Hence, immutability corresponds to the conventional, and the conventional is unarisen; the untrue is the true, and the true is merely a nominal designation. If one can be open and unrestrained, honouring this single path, with pure ears and an open heart, saying nothing of the two truths, then the efficacy of pure illumination becomes manifest, and thus prajñā is unknowing. The virtue of the nameless arises, and nirvāṇa is beyond naming. I maintain that this exposition is complete and fully exhausts the Buddha's profound ocean, vastly boundless, fathoming the essence and characteristics of phenomena. Although the words are concise, the meaning is rich; the text is ornate, yet the principles are profound. The momentum of the phrasing is interlinked, yet the meaning is truly solitary and lofty. Dare I say that of all exceedingly wondrous and fine words, none do not exhaust themselves in this grand treatise. Hence Kumārajīva sighed in praise: 'Foremost in understanding emptiness—Master Sengzhao is the man!' These words were not without foundation; they are evident in his letters. But "The Fundamental Doctrine" is aloof, and none can pose an objection to it; whereas the four treatises such as "The Immutability [of Things]" open up practical guidance, analysing subtleties through questions and answers, which is why they are called treatises.