肇論新疏 3.55

3.55

This cites three events in all: the first two clarify no-preaching, and the latter one additionally clarifies no-listening, inversely corroborating the preceding 'those who speak of it lose its truth.' Magadha is the name of a country. The Saddharmapuṇḍarīka says: 'For three weeks after the Tathāgata attained Buddhahood, he did not preach the Dharma.' The seventh fascicle of the Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa says: 'For fifty-seven days after the Buddha attained the Way, he did not speak,' and so forth. In meaning, this is called 'shutting his door.' The matter in the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa is readily known. Regarding 'Śakra and Brahmā, and so on': in the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā, from the 'Lord of the Devas Chapter' onward, Subhūti, relying on the metaphor of an illusion, extensively preaches the principle that profound prajñā has no preaching and no listening. Arriving at the 'Scattering Flowers Chapter', Śakra Devānām Indra and the Four Heavenly Kings in the trichiliocosm and so on magically produce divine flowers and scatter them over the Buddha and the great assembly. The meaning is: because preaching and listening are empty, Subhūti preached without preaching to reveal the dharmatā. The devas understood emptiness and listened without listening; to make an offering to the profound Dharma, they scattered flowers.