大乘法苑義林章 2.46

English (machine translation) 2.46

Language: English

2.46.1

The third gate is the gate of mutual subsumption and questions-and-answers, which has two parts: first, mutual subsumption among the various teachings; second, differentiation through questions and answers. Regarding mutual subsumption among the various teachings: in the thirteenth fascicle of the Nirvāṇa Sūtra, Bodhisattva Kāśyapa said to the Buddha: "Formerly, the Buddha was once on the bank of the Gaṅgā in the Śīsavā Grove. At that time, the Tathāgata picked up tree leaves and asked the monks how many they were, up to saying that the dharmas he had not yet spoken were like the leaves in the grove. Kāśyapa challenged him, saying: 'If the immeasurable dharmas understood by the Tathāgata enter into the four truths, then they have already been spoken; if they do not enter, there should be five truths.' The Buddha praised Kāśyapa: 'Such dharmas are all subsumed within the four noble truths.' Kāśyapa further said: 'If they are within the four truths, why did the Tathāgata proclaim that they have not been spoken?' The Buddha said: 'Good son! Although they enter into them, they are still not called spoken. Why is this? Good son! Knowing the noble truths involves two kinds of wisdom: the first is intermediate, and the second is superior. The intermediate is the wisdom of śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas; the superior is the wisdom of the buddhas and bodhisattvas. Good son! Knowing that the aggregates are suffering is called intermediate wisdom. Discerning that the aggregates have immeasurable aspects that are all various sufferings, which is not what the two vehicles know, is called superior wisdom. In that sūtra I never spoke of this. The āyatanas, dhātus, and rūpa, vedanā, saṃjñā, saṃskāra, and vijñāna are the truth of suffering; and for origination, cessation, and the path as well, both intermediate wisdom and superior wisdom are spoken of. Good son! Knowing the worldly truth is called intermediate wisdom, because it knows the general aspect. Discerning that the worldly truth is immeasurable and boundless, which is not what the one vehicle knows, is called superior wisdom, because it knows the specific aspects. Knowing that all conditioned phenomena are impermanent, and so forth, is the intermediate wisdom of paramārtha, because it generally knows the three Dharma seals. Knowing that paramārtha is immeasurable, boundless, and incalculable, which is not what the two vehicles know, is called superior wisdom.'" The ancient masters interpreted this as referring to the immeasurable and boundless myriad virtues, [numerous as] the sands of the Gaṅgā. The above passage of the sūtra is occasioned by Kāśyapa's question on the reason for the two truths, and in his reply the World-Honoured One reveals that each and every dharma has superior and intermediate wisdom in order to clarify the distinction between the two truths. A truth is what is real; ordinary persons do not understand it, and only the noble ones realize it. Ordinary persons' wisdom cognizes it as an object yet cannot realize it, and thus is called inferior wisdom. Because of contrast with that wisdom, it is merely said that the two truths are established based on the two wisdoms, intermediate and superior. Speaking according to reality, dharmas have superior and inferior [aspects], and wisdom has shallow and deep [levels]; yet only two truths are established. Here, by contrast with the stage of ordinary persons, wisdom is spoken of as intermediate and superior, while the realization of reality is only twofold. If spoken of in terms of general aspects, the two vehicles are inferior when contrasted with the superior, and thus are subsumed under the inferior and superior. According to the superiority or inferiority of their faculties and the power of their wisdom, as appropriate, the following sūtra passage will make this clear. Mañjuśrī said: "Is there a worldly truth within the paramārtha? Is there a paramārtha within the worldly truth? If there is, then it is a single truth. If there is not, would that not make the Buddha's words false?" "Good son! The worldly truth is none other than the paramārtha-satya." This clarifies the meaning of the non-separation of the two truths. "World-Honoured One! If that is so, then there are not two truths." The Buddha said: "Good son! There are skillful means that, in accord with sentient beings, speak of the existence of two truths. Good son! If according to linguistic expression, then there are two kinds: the first is worldly dharmas, and the second is transworldly dharmas. Good son! That which is known by transworldly persons is called paramārtha-satya. That which is known by worldly persons is called worldly truth." This clarifies that, based on persons, wisdom has shallow and deep [levels], revealing the distinction between the two truths. "Good son! When the five aggregates combine, they are called 'so-and-so'; ordinary sentient beings follow that designation—this is called the worldly truth. Understanding that within the aggregates there is no name of 'so-and-so', and that apart from the aggregates there is also no name of 'so-and-so', transworldly persons are able to know them according to their nature and characteristics—this is called paramārtha-satya. Furthermore, good son! There may be a dharma that has a name and has reality, or there may be a dharma that has a name but lacks reality. Good son! That which has a name but lacks reality is the worldly truth. That which has a name and has reality is paramārtha-satya. Good son! Such as the self, sentient being, lifespan, knower and seer, nourished one, puruṣa, experiencer, agent, mirage in the heat, city of gandharvas, tortoise hair, hare horns, circle of a whirling firebrand, the aggregates, dhātus, and āyatanas—these are called the worldly truth. Suffering, origination, cessation, and the path are called paramārtha-satya. Good son! Worldly dharmas are of five kinds: the first is the world of names; the second is the world of phrases; the third is the world of binding; the fourth is the world of conventions; and the fifth is the world of attachment. Good son! What is the world of names? Men, women, pots, clothes, carts, and houses—such things as these are called the world of names. What is the world of phrases? A four-line verse—such verses as these are called the world of phrases. What is the world of binding? Rolling together, tying, binding, and joining palms—these are called the world of binding. What is the world of conventions? Striking the bell to gather the Saṅgha, beating the martial drum to inspect the troops, and blowing the conch to know the time—these are called the world of conventions. What is the world of attachment? Seeing from afar a person wearing dyed robes and generating the conceptual attachment, saying, 'This is a śramaṇa, not a brāhmaṇa'; seeing someone with a sacred cord tied across their body and generating the thought, saying, 'This is a brāhmaṇa, not a śramaṇa'—this is called the world of attachment. Good son! These are called the five kinds of worldly dharmas. Good son! If there are sentient beings who, with regard to these five kinds of worldly dharmas, have minds without error and know them as they truly are, this is called paramārtha-satya. Furthermore, good son! Burning, cutting, dying, and disintegrating are called the worldly truth. Non-burning, non-cutting, non-dying, and non-disintegrating are called paramārtha-satya. Furthermore, good son! The characteristics of the eight sufferings are called the worldly truth. No birth, no aging, no illness, no death, no separation from what is loved, no association with what is hated, no not-getting what is sought, and no five grasping aggregates—these are called paramārtha-satya. Furthermore, good son! Just as a single man has many capabilities: when he runs, he is called a runner; or when he harvests, he is called a harvester; when he prepares food, he is called a cook; when he works with wood, he is called a carpenter; and when he smiths gold and silver, he is called a goldsmith or silversmith. Just as this single man has many names, dharmas are also like this: in reality they are one, yet have many names. What is born based on the union of father and mother is called the worldly truth; what is born of the union of the twelve links of dependent origination is called paramārtha-satya." The ancient masters explained: from "the union of the five aggregates" onward, the subsequent seven rounds distinguish the characteristics of dharmas themselves. Broadly divided within them, there are two: first, the Mahāyāna; second, the Hīnayāna.

2.46.2

Dividing in detail, there are four: First, the school that establishes intrinsic nature (立性宗), which is the shallow explanation within the Hīnayāna that all phenomena each possess an essential nature—the Sarvāstivādins and so forth. Second, the school that refutes intrinsic nature (破性宗), which is the profound explanation within the Hīnayāna that phenomena are provisionally existent and without intrinsic nature—the *Tattvasiddhi-śāstra* and so forth. Third, the school that refutes marks (破相宗), which is the shallow refutation within the Mahāyāna of the conditioned marks of phenomena, proclaiming that all phenomena are ultimately empty and tranquil—treatises such as the *Mūlamadhyamakakārikā* and the *Śata-śāstra*. Fourth, the school that reveals reality (顯實宗), which is the profound explanation within the Mahāyāna that all phenomena grasped by deluded sentiment are ultimately non-existent, while the true dharmadhātu is eternal and indestructible—the *Nirvāṇa-sūtra* and so forth. Within these four, each has two truths. Among the seven pairs above, the first three are the two truths distinguished within the school that establishes intrinsic nature; the next two are the two truths distinguished within the school that refutes intrinsic nature; the next one is the two truths distinguished within the school that refutes marks; and the last one is the two truths distinguished within the school that reveals reality. Now in this text, because the profound encompasses the shallow, they are fully discussed. Regarding the first school, according to the *Vibhāṣā* and others, seven pairs are fully set forth, which cannot be cited at length. First, distinguishing between sentiment and principle: the self, sentient beings, and so forth grasped by deluded sentiment are taken as conventional truth; the principle of non-self is the supreme truth. Second, distinguishing between the provisional and the real: provisional existents such as vases, garments, carts, houses, armies, and forests are called conventional truth; real existents such as the aggregates, realms, and bases are the supreme truth. Thus the *Saṃyuktābhidharmahṛdaya* states: 'When a phenomenon is analyzed, and upon discarding its name, [it is no longer identified as such], it is said [to be conventional]. When upon analysis nothing is discarded, that is said to be the supreme [truth].' Third, distinguishing between facts and principle: facts such as the aggregates, realms, and bases are called conventional truth; their principle regarding the characteristics of phenomena with respect to the sixteen aspects of the noble truths is the supreme truth. Fourth, distinguishing between bondage and liberation: suffering and origination are conventional; cessation and the path are supreme. Fifth, distinguishing between the inferior and the superior: suffering, origination, and the path, not being the highest within principle, are together called conventional truth; the truth of cessation is refined and superior, so it is said to be supreme. Sixth, distinguishing between emptiness and existence: among the sixteen aspects of those four truths, excluding emptiness and non-self, all are called conventional truth; emptiness and non-self are refined and subtle within principle, so they are said to be supreme. Seventh, distinguishing between practice and teaching: teaching is called conventional truth; practice is called supreme. Thus the *Saṃyuktābhidharmahṛdaya* states: 'The sūtras, vinaya, and abhidharma are called the conventional true Dharma. The thirty-seven factors of awakening are called the supreme truth.' Here we merely indicate the first three gates, leaving the rest unelaborated. First, dividing into two based on sentiment and principle: when the five aggregates assemble, they are designated as 'so-and-so'; ordinary persons follow that designation and reckon there to be a self and a person—this is called conventional truth. The noble ones understand that within the aggregates there is no 'so-and-so', nor is there one apart from the aggregates—this is called the supreme truth. Second, dividing into two according to the provisional and the real: first divide into two classes of phenomena. Those having names and having reality are real phenomena: seeking the phenomena according to their names regarding the aggregates, realms, and bases, their substance can be found, hence they are said to 'have reality'. Those having names but lacking reality are provisional phenomena: vases, garments, carts, houses, and armies—regarding all such things, their names are provisionally established, but upon investigation no substance exists, hence they are said to 'lack reality'. Below, distinguishing them according to the truths: the provisional is the conventional truth; the real is the supreme truth. Third, dividing into two according to facts and principle: facts are conventional truth; principle is supreme. Facts include both provisional and real: the self, sentient beings, and up to a rabbit's horn or a whirling firebrand are provisional facts; the aggregates, realms, and bases are real facts; all of these are together called conventional truth. The principle of the characteristics of the phenomena of suffering, origination, cessation, and the path is the supreme truth. Next, below, distinguishing the two truths within the school that refutes intrinsic nature, wherein there are two gates: the former gate distinguishes the two truths according to the emptiness and existence of provisional phenomena; the latter gate distinguishes the two truths according to the emptiness and existence of real phenomena. In the former gate, conventional truth is explained first. There are five worldly phenomena; subsequently having an mind free of inversion regarding these five phenomena is called the supreme: knowing their intrinsic nature to be empty and not taking it to be a real nature is called non-inversion. In the latter gate, if burning, cutting, and so forth are called conventional truth, then all phenomena of the five aggregates are together called conventional truth. That there is no burning, cutting, and so forth being called the supreme means that the emptiness of the intrinsic nature of all phenomena is called the supreme truth. Next, below, distinguishing the two truths within the school that refutes marks: the marks of the eight sufferings are taken as conventional truth; the absence of the marks of the eight sufferings is the supreme truth. Question: What is the difference between the two truths distinguished by this school and the preceding one? The ancient explanation states: The former school stated that provisional existence through dependent arising is the conventional truth; this school proclaims that existence as delusive marks is the conventional truth. The former school proclaimed that the emptiness of intrinsic nature is the supreme truth; this school proclaims that the emptiness of marks is the supreme truth. There is merely this difference. Next, distinguishing the two truths within the fourth school that reveals reality: dependent arising of phenomenal marks is taken as conventional truth; dependent arising of the dharmatā is called the supreme truth. First an analogy, then the application. What is the mark of the analogy? Just as one single person has many divisions according to function: when running, he is called a runner; when harvesting, he is called a harvester. Likewise, what is spoken of from the side of being born of parents is called conventional truth; from the side of being produced by causes and conditions, it is called supreme. The ancient explanation states: That which is produced by causes and conditions has altogether six levels: 1. Produced by the causes and conditions of facts, as explained in the *Abhidharma*. 2. Produced by the causes and conditions of dharmas: solely the categories of phenomena that are suffering, impermanent, arising, and ceasing. 3. Produced by provisional causes and conditions, as explained in the *Tattvasiddhi*. 4. Produced by causes and conditions of delusive marks, like an illusion or apparition. 5. Produced by causes and conditions of delusive conceptualization, like what is seen in a dream. 6. Produced by causes and conditions of reality: namely, the twelve links of dependent arising of Buddha-nature, like water rising as waves. The first five produced by conditions are all conventional truth; now taking the sixth, it is called supreme. Although the above explanation is refined, the present explanation is slightly different. The two truths here exclusively reveal the two truths within the school that reveals reality, without speaking of the Hīnayāna or the two truths of the school that refutes marks, because the revelation of reality itself refutes marks. The various Hīnayāna tenets differ across the twenty schools; how could the Buddha have spoken in advance of the two truths of the two Hīnayāna schools present in the Great Tang? Because of this, one should say: Among the latter seven pairs, the first pair raises facts to explain the former establishment of the two truths based on persons. The sūtra states: 'Ordinary persons follow their designations, which is called conventional truth; supramundane persons are able to know them according to their nature and marks, which is called supreme truth.' Therefore we know this merely re-manifests the former meaning, allowing one to know that the two truths are also established in mutual dependence based on persons. The following six pairs are established relative to each other based on the superiority or inferiority of dharmas. Although they do not make clear-cut distinctions, inferred by principle they are precisely the four levels here. The second pair above, stating that having names without reality is conventional, is precisely the first conventional truth here; what the *Xianyang* and other treatises explain regarding the self, sentient beings, and so forth precisely accords with this.

2.46.3

Those that have both name and reality are termed the ultimate truth, which corresponds to the four kinds of paramārtha spoken of in the treatises, because all have both name and substance. This shows that the 'self', 'sentient beings', and so forth are exclusively conventional and not real, being the most inferior; while all the rest surpass these and can serve as the ultimate truth. Alternatively, taking only the three categories (aggregates, realms, and entrances) as having both name and reality in contrast to the self, sentient beings, and so forth to be the ultimate truth also does not contradict principle, since their characteristics can be known. In the third iteration, where [it is said that] the self, sentient beings, and so forth, up to the aggregates, realms, and entrances, are the conventional truth, and the four truths are the ultimate truth: here both types, contrasted with the principle of the four truths, are together called conventional. The self and so on, up to a whirling firebrand, which have only names without substance or function, are reiterated as the conventional truth to show that they are not called conventional merely in comparison to the phenomena of the three categories, but are called conventional also in comparison to the four truths and so forth. By extension, other conventional [designations] may all be compared in like manner. The aggregates, realms, entrances, and so forth possess both name and substance. In the preceding second iteration, taking the former class which has names but lacks substance and function to contrast with the aggregates, realms, and entrances, the phenomena of the aggregates, realms, and entrances were termed the true truth, which is subsumed under the first paramārtha among the four truths. To demonstrate that this is not exclusively the ultimate truth, the three categories are again contrasted with the four truths: since facts are inferior to principle, they are conventional. This is precisely the second conventional [truth] in the treatises, and the four truths are precisely the second ultimate truth. In the fourth iteration, where the five kinds of worldly phenomena are called conventional, and knowing the conventional to be such is called true: this shows that the first conventional [truth] is not limited to the self and so forth—which have only a name without substance or function—for phenomena that lack substantial reality yet possess function are also of the first conventional [truth]. As the Xianyang and other treatises state that houses, armies, forests, and so on are also of the first conventional [truth], because lacking substantial reality, they belong to the same class as the self and are the most inferior. Knowing without inversion that there are only the aggregates and so forth, and that there are entirely no real phenomena such as names, phrases, and so forth, is the ultimate truth. Because none of the four kinds of ultimate truth contain the five worldly phenomena spoken of, or because within the three categories these five do not truly exist. This iteration might appear out of sequence. Since the aggregates, realms, and entrances have already been said to extend to the true, there might be a fear that these phenomena which have function but lack substance would also extend to the true truth. To show that this is not so and to resolve that doubt, it is only now explained that among the five kinds of the worldly: the first two are the expressing [factors], the next two are the expressed, and the last one is the designating mark. This shows that whether subjective concepts or objective facts, both expressing and expressed factors are nominally posited and not real; thus they are distinguished, with no other meaning. In the fifth iteration, where [phenomena] subject to burning, cutting, and so forth are called conventional truth, etc.: this pair reveals that the two kinds of selflessness are designated conventional. Heterodox non-Buddhists and ordinary beings cling to a self as permanent and single; the Buddha taught that it is nonexistent, because the five aggregates and so on can be burned, cut, and so forth. They lack the characteristic of being that real, single, permanent self; hence burning, cutting, and so on are the two kinds of selflessness. The subsequent iteration contrasts this selflessness with the principle of the truth of suffering and so forth, speaking of it as the true truth, which is the third true [truth]. Now contrasting it with the one true tathatā, because tathatā is not revealed relying on the expressive gate of things that can be burned, cut, and so on, it is the paramārtha of paramārtha. The two kinds of selflessness and so forth, which reveal reality by relying on expressions, are called conventional, being subsumed under the fourth conventional truth of the paramārtha level. Were it not so, what principle would these words express? For the World-Honoured One does not speak meaningless words. The one true tathatā is precisely the fourth paramārtha of paramārtha. In the sixth iteration, where the characteristics of the eight sufferings and so forth are called conventional, etc.: previously, the four truths contrasted with the aggregates and so forth were called true; now, contrasted with the phenomena that lack the characteristics of the eight sufferings, such as the two kinds of selflessness, they become conventional. The third [is] the realization of the conventional, subsuming the eight sufferings, which is precisely the principle of the truth of suffering; one suffering is singled out to stand for the other three truths. This iteration should properly be explained in the fifth iteration, and the previous fifth iteration should be the sixth; but for ease of phrasing their order is not fixed. In the seventh iteration, the dharmas and parables spoken collectively elucidate that the substance of the two truths has no differentiation; rather, in accordance with the wisdom of the person, as well as the fourfold two truths of emptiness and existence, fact and principle, shallow and deep, and expression and purport among phenomena, their mutual comparison of superior and inferior forms the true and the conventional. Worldly people only know that what is born of father and mother is called conventional; those who have transcended the world know that what is born of causes and conditions is called the ultimate truth: this distinguishes the two truths according to the wisdom of the person. That which is born of father and mother is a nominal, coarse, and shallow fact, termed conventional; that which is born of causes and conditions is a real, subtle, and profound phenomenon, termed ultimate: this distinguishes the two truths according to the phenomena. These collectively elucidate the differences in phenomena and parables of the two truths, with no separate category. Examining the meaning of the sūtra closely, although there are seven layers, deduced by their significance they are no different from the treatises. The sūtras are the root meaning, expounded in reliance on the characteristics of phenomena; the treatises are the branch lineages, receiving the Buddha’s words to establish principle. How could they contradict one another like spears and shields, as if fabricated merely out of personal fancy? Therefore we know that the teachings of the sūtras and treatises are without difference; it is only that commentators distinguish them differently. Reconciling the sūtras in this manner should also be appropriate. How is this known? In contrast to that which is without burning, cutting, and so forth, it is subsumed under the one true tathatā, the paramārtha of paramārtha. The Nirvāṇa [Sūtra] also states: 'Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva Mahāsattva addressed the Buddha, saying: "World-Honoured One! What is the meaning of the so-called real truth?" The Buddha said: "Good son! That which is called the real truth is named the true Dharma. Good son! If a dharma is not true, it is not named the real truth. Good son! The real truth is devoid of inversion; that which is devoid of inversion is then named the real truth. Good son! The real truth is devoid of falsity; that which has falsity is not named the real truth. Good son! The real truth is named the Great Vehicle; that which is not the Great Vehicle is not named the real truth. Good son! The real truth is spoken by the Buddha, not spoken by Māra; that which is not spoken by the Buddha is not named the real truth. Good son! The real truth is the pure Single Path, without duality. Good son! Having permanence, having bliss, having self, and having purity—this is precisely the meaning of the real truth."' This intention means that the tathatā devoid of burning, cutting, and so forth is the truth, which is exclusively ultimate and not subsumed under conventional truth, being the most supreme. 'Mañjuśrī addressed the Buddha, saying: "World-Honoured One! If reality is taken as the real truth, this real dharma is none other than the Tathāgata, space, and the Buddha-nature. If that is so, the Tathāgata, space, and the Buddha-nature are without difference." The Buddha told Mañjuśrī: "There is suffering, there is truth, there is reality; there is origination, there is truth, there is reality; there is cessation, there is truth, there is reality; there is the path, there is truth, there is reality. Good son! The Tathāgata is neither suffering nor truth, but is reality; space is neither suffering nor truth, but is reality; the Buddha-nature is neither suffering nor truth, but is reality. Mañjuśrī! What is called suffering has the characteristic of impermanence and the characteristic of being abandonable; this is the real truth. The nature of the Tathāgata is neither suffering nor impermanent, nor has it the characteristic of being abandonable; therefore it is reality. Space and the Buddha-nature are also like this."'

2.46.4

"' The meaning of this sūtra passage is: the one reality of tathatā, when within defilement, is called Buddha-nature; when in the fruition, it is called the Tathāgata. The emptiness-suchness of dharmatā is also revealed through emptiness; hence it is called space. Because it is non-established, it is not subsumed under the four truths. This sūtra is precisely [a teaching that] sets aside verbal explanations to speak of the essential purport, the one real dharmadhātu. Suffering, origination, cessation, and path are the facts of the four truths; truth refers to the four principles; in reality they are the four suchnesses. Therefore, this tathatā is neither suffering nor truth, but is only subsumed under reality. Furthermore, as cited earlier, the Yogācārabhūmi and the Xianyang [shengjiao lun] state that there are two truths. They only state that the conventional has four [levels], identical with these four. They only state that the ultimate is one—namely, the non-established. It is only the fourth ultimate; because the preceding three [ultimates] are not distinct from the latter three conventional [levels], they are not mentioned. Furthermore, having distinctions is called 'established,' hence they speak of four conventional [levels]. Being without distinctions is called 'non-established,' hence there is only one ultimate. In the ninth fascicle of the Cheng weishi lun, all four ultimates are fully present, because they are extensively and completely revealed. It shows that the ultimate, like the conventional, also has distinctions. The one truth of the Śrīmālā[devī-sūtra] is subsumed under the fourth ultimate. The two truths of the Benevolent Kings [Sūtra] are each subsumed under their respective designations. The Madhyāntavibhāga-śāstra, the Xianyang, and the eighth [fascicle] of the Weishi lun state that each of these two truths has three kinds. The three conventional truths are: first, nominal conventionality; second, operational conventionality; third, explicit conventionality; as should be known, they correspond in order to the three natures. The three ultimate truths are: first, the ultimate of meaning, namely tathatā; second, the ultimate of attainment, namely nirvāṇa; third, the ultimate of practice, namely the noble path. This nominal conventionality is subsumed under the first conventional [truth], because it has only nominal designations and entirely lacks substance. This operational conventionality is subsumed under the second and third conventional truths, because it consists of conditioned facts. What manifests on the mind resembling the phenomena and principles of the four truths—since principle is not separate from fact—is therefore subsumed under the other-dependent, and subsumed under the second and third conventional truths. Explicit conventionality is subsumed under the fourth conventional truth, because it is made explicit based on the two gates of emptiness. By analogy of meaning, it should enter into the four ultimate truths, as can be easily known. The ultimate of meaning is subsumed under the fourth ultimate. This ultimate of attainment is subsumed under the third ultimate, because it is revealed by verification and distinguished in terms of attainment. This ultimate of practice is subsumed under the second ultimate, because the principle of untainted true cognition is slightly superior. If considered according to its facts, it is subsumed under the first ultimate; entering into the four conventional [truths] as appropriate can be easily known. If one speaks of the four truths—suffering, origination, cessation, and path—as the ultimate of attainment, they are subsumed under the third conventional and the second ultimate, as the treatise itself states. The forty-sixth fascicle of the Yogācārabhūmi states: 'What is the provisional establishment of truths? It is of immeasurable kinds. Either one truth is established—namely, the non-deceptive truth, subsumed under the fourth ultimate.' Or two truths are established: first, the conventional truth; second, the ultimate truth. In the Benevolent Kings Prajñā[-sūtra], King Prasenajit addressed [the Buddha], saying: 'World-Honoured One! Is there an ultimate truth within the conventional truth, or not? If there is, truth should not be one; if there is not, cognition should not be two.' This is the same as the Yogācārabhūmi. In order of designation, they are subsumed under the two truths. Or three truths are established: first, the truth of marks; second, the truth of speech; third, the truth of function; because there are distinctions in the signified and the signifier, substance and function, separation and combination. The truth of marks applies to both the ultimate and conventional; speech and function belong to the first three conventional [truths], and are subsumed only under the latter two of the non-ultimate. Or four truths are established: first, suffering; second, origination; third, cessation; fourth, path; as has already been stated before. The two categories of defilement and purification each have [causes and effects], because cause and effect are distinct. Or five truths are established: first, the truth of cause; second, the truth of fruit; third, the truth of cognition; fourth, the truth of object; fifth, the truth of superiority. The first four are established; the last one is non-established. Within the established, the cognizing mind and the cognized object are distinct. The first truths of cause and fruit are subsumed under the third conventional truth and the second ultimate. Object applies to both ultimate and conventional; cognition is subsumed only under the second and third conventional truths, and the first and second ultimates. The fifth, the truth of superiority, is subsumed under the fourth conventional truth and the third and fourth ultimate truths. Or the first four correspond in order to origination, suffering, path, and cessation, while the latter one is tathatā. Or six truths are established: first, the truth of truth; second, the truth of delusion; third, the truth to be fully known; fourth, the truth to be forever abandoned; fifth, the truth to be realized; sixth, the truth to be cultivated. The two categories of the ultimate and conventional are distinct, because the causes and effects of defilement and purification are each different. The truth of truth applies to the four ultimates, because their meanings and principles are all superior. The truth of delusion applies to the four conventional truths, because their meanings and principles are all inferior. Or, the truth of truth is principle, which is not the first two conventional truths, but is the latter three ultimates. The truth of delusion is like an illusion, subsumed under the first two conventional truths and the first ultimate. The latter four are in order precisely the four truths, subsumed under the third conventional truth and the second ultimate. Or seven truths are established: first, the truth of gratification; second, the truth of danger; third, the truth of escape; fourth, the truth of dharmatā; fifth, the truth of resolve; sixth, the truth of the noble; seventh, the truth of the non-noble. Origination, suffering, path, and cessation are in order the first four, because the kinds of mental resolution and reflection, and what is known by noble ones and ordinary beings, are distinct. The first four truths are subsumed under the third conventional truth and the second ultimate. Mental resolution and reflection are subsumed under the fourth conventional truth and the third ultimate, because they are based on verbal expression and the mental aspects of the two kinds of selflessness. All four ultimates and four conventional [truths] are noble truths, because the noble ones know the distinction between existence and non-existence, facts and principles. Ordinary beings cling firmly to the first conventional truth and falsely proclaim it to be real; thus it is not the two noble truths. When noble ones know it to be non-existent, it can be subsumed under the first conventional truth. Elsewhere, seven truths are also established: gratification, danger, escape, to be known, to be abandoned, to be realized, and to be cultivated—single and double contemplations contemplating the four truths. In the second contemplation, since the truth of the path is excluded, it is also subsumed under the third conventional truth and the second ultimate. Or eight truths are established: first, the truth of the nature of the suffering of conditioned existence; second, the truth of the nature of the suffering of change; third, the truth of the nature of the suffering of suffering; fourth, the truth of saṃsāra; fifth, the truth of cessation; sixth, the truth of defilement; seventh, the truth of purification; eighth, the truth of correct preparation; because they are based on the three kinds of suffering, birth-and-death, nirvāṇa, tainted and untainted factors, and the distinction of noble causes. The first four and the sixth are subsumed under the second and third conventional truths and the first and second ultimate truths. The fifth and seventh are subsumed under the third conventional truth and the second ultimate truth, because they are pure causes and effects; or they are subsumed under the fourth conventional truth and the third and fourth ultimate truths. The eighth, the truth of correct preparation, is subsumed under the third and fourth conventional truths and the second and third ultimate truths. The Śrīmālā-sūtra also speaks of eight truths: conditioned and unconditioned, each having four kinds; because it teaches shallow and profound principles to inferior and superior capacities, and their types are distinct. The conditioned four truths of the śrāvakas definitely belong to the third conventional truth and are subsumed under the second ultimate. The unconditioned four truths, the four truths of the bodhisattvas, belong to the third conventional truth and are subsumed under the second ultimate. Or they are subsumed under the fourth conventional truth and the third ultimate, because they reveal the essential purport based on verbal expression and are non-established.

2.46.5

Or nine truths are spoken of: first, the truth of impermanence; second, the truth of suffering; third, the truth of emptiness; fourth, the truth of selflessness; fifth, the truth of craving for existence; sixth, the truth of craving for non-existence; seventh, the truth of the means for abandoning them; eighth, the truth of nirvāṇa with residue; ninth, the truth of nirvāṇa without residue. They are divided and established based on the four objects of suffering, the future states of eternalism and annihilationism, the two kinds of craving as origination, one path, and two cessations. These are the four truths, and are precisely subsumed under the third conventional and second ultimate. Or ten truths are spoken of: first, the truth of the suffering of affliction; second, the truth of the suffering of the lack of wealth and position; third, the truth of the suffering of disharmony among the elements; fourth, the truth of the suffering of the ruin of the beloved; fifth, the truth of the suffering of coarse heaviness; sixth, the truth of karma; seventh, the truth of afflictions; eighth, the truth of hearing the correct Dharma and proper attention; ninth, the truth of right view; tenth, the truth of the fruit of right view. The first five are tainted fruits; the next two are causes of vipāka; the next two are the supramundane path; the last one is unconditioned cessation. Among the five of the truth of suffering, the first one subsumes four sufferings, namely the sufferings of birth, old age, death, and meeting with the disliked. The second is precisely the suffering of not getting what one seeks. The third is the suffering of illness. The fourth is the suffering of separation from the beloved. The fifth briefly subsumes all sufferings of the five clinging aggregates. Because the eight sufferings, two originations, two paths, and one cessation are distinct, they are subsumed under the third conventional truth and the second ultimate. Here, the mutual subsumption of the marks of the truths has been briefly correlated; both broad and fine doctrinal approaches should be explained separately. The verse says: / 'Non-deceptive, true, marks, suffering, / Truth of cause and craving, operational, / Impermanence, and affliction: / Each begins the increasing counts up to ten truths.'

Linked texts (1)

大乘法苑義林章 — Classical Chinese