肇論疏 1.49

1.49

Third is dispelling delusions to clarify non-movement. "Grieved" is an expression of sorrow and lament. "Facing truth with their eyes yet failing to perceive it" also refers to the matter of non-movement. Principle is truly like this, hence it is called "truth", not necessarily referring to paramārtha-satya. "Failing to perceive" means not understanding. "Knowing that past things do not come, yet claiming present things can depart" recounts the deluded sentiment. "Since past things do not come, how could present things depart?" refutes the deluded conception. As for "Why so? Seek yesterday's thing in yesterday, and in yesterday it was never absent," seeking yesterday's thing in yesterday, then in yesterday it is not absent. "Look for yesterday's thing in today, and in today it has never been present," looking for yesterday's thing in today, then today it is not present. "In today it has never been present, to clarify that things do not come"—this is the meaning of the previous sentence, "it moves and is not still because it does not come." "In yesterday it was never absent, so we know that things do not go"—this is the meaning of the previous sentence, "it is still and does not move because it does not go." "Turning back to seek the present, the present also does not depart"—the previous two pairings directly clarified that the past does not come; now comparing the present to the past, it is also like this. "Thus past things naturally reside in the past and do not reach the past from the present"—this is "not going". "Present things naturally reside in the present and do not reach the present from the past"—this is "not coming". "Therefore Zhongni said: 'Hui, what I see is renewed; when our shoulders brush, it is no longer the old'"—the "Tian Zifang" chapter of the Outer Chapters of Zhuangzi states: "Confucius said to Yan Hui: 'All my life, with you, in the brush of a shoulder I have lost it; can this not be mourned?'" Guo Xiang's commentary states: "Change cannot be grasped and held; thus even though brushing shoulders and keeping close, one cannot make it halt." This expression is used here. "Seeing the renewed" means that the former person has already passed away, and a new person naturally arrives. "When shoulders brush, it is no longer the old" means that even keeping close as shoulders brush has already passed away, and is not the later old acquaintance. This explains it according to Guo's commentary. Now I say that Guo's commentary is not so. The present saying "in the brush of a shoulder I have lost it" means that in the brief moment of brushing shoulders one has already lost the former person, not that while brushing shoulders and clasping hands one cannot make them halt. It clearly shows that in the moment of brushing shoulders the former is already not the later—who could be said to move? Yet if the former is already not the later, that would be the sense of movement. But speaking of "non-movement", this clarifies that there is no single thing that abides fixedly and moves from this place toward that place; hence it is called "non-movement". As for "Thus, that things do not mutually come and go is evident," if the former person reached the later, and the later person reached the former, it could be called coming and going; since it is not so, there is no coming and going. As for "Since there is not the slightest sign of going and returning, what thing could move?", the character zhen (朕) has two pronunciations: first is chén jǐn fǎn, appearing in the Erya; second is chén rěn fǎn, appearing in Xu Shen's Commentary on the Huainanzi. In checking, the first sprouting sign of an affair is called zhen; here it is the latter pronunciation. Li Qi says: "Zhen means an omen." Zhuangzi says: "Embodying non-action fully and wandering where there are no signs." Guo's commentary states: "Trusting to things, there is naturally no trace. Zhen means a trace." Since there are no traces of going and returning, one therefore knows there is no movement. As for "This being so, the whirlwind fells mountains yet is constantly still" below, xuanlan (旋藍) is the name of the great wind at the beginning of the kalpa, also called suilan, which is merely a difference of light and heavy Sanskrit pronunciation. Some editions write "whirlwind" (旋嵐). Lan is the word for wind in this region; xuanlan is a whirlwind. Also, the commentary on the Damamūka / Xiuxing daodi jing (Yogācārabhūmi-sūtra) states: "The wind that raises clouds is named xuanlan." Leaning forward is fu (俯); leaning backward is yan (偃). Yan means to lie flat or fall. Yue means mountain. As for "rivers", some editions write "rivers and seas", but mentioning the sea is not as fitting as the river. Zhuangzi states: "Wild horses are dust." Guo's commentary states: "Wild horses are floating vapor." Floating vapor races and rushes, likened to wild horses tossing and floating. Gu (鼓) means to stir. As for "the sun and moon traverse the sky", some editions write "adorn the sky" (麗天). Speaking of "traversing" (歷), it is easily seen; the sun and moon cycle around, hence it says "traverse". As for "adorn" (麗), the Yijing states: "The sun and moon adhere to (麗) the sky; the hundred grains, grasses, and trees adhere to the earth." The Xiaoya states: "Li means to adhere to." The earlier wind is not the later wind, hence it fells mountains yet is constantly still; earlier water is not later water, hence it rushes competing yet does not flow; earlier vapor is not later vapor, hence it tosses and stirs yet does not move; the earlier sun is not the later sun, hence it traverses the sky yet does not revolve. The Huayan jing (Avataṃsaka-sūtra) states: "Like a great wind rising, / Stirring and blowing to generate motion, / Both do not know each other; / All phenomena are also like this. / Like swift water flowing, / The water flows without fixed halt, / Both do not know each other; / All phenomena are also like this." Master Sengzhao had not seen the Huayan jing, yet what he composed in his treatise aligned with it in dark concordance; had he not possessed marvelous awakening to the profound principle, how could he have reached this!