華嚴一乘教義分齊章 2.55

2.55

Question: "All bodhisattvas from the eighth stage upward permanently subdue afflictive obscurations so that they do not become active, because the fruition of taintless gnosis constantly continues—just like an arhat. Since they have no active afflictions, how could they still receive a fragmentary body?"
Answer: "If one is an ordinary person, they moisten karma with active afflictions to receive rebirth. The noble ones are not like this; they merely retain affliction seeds and use them to receive rebirth. Therefore the Abhidharmasamuccayavyākhyā states: 'All noble ones tie rebirth in succession through the force of anuśaya.' Furthermore, the Liang translation of the Mahāyānasaṃgraha states: 'Because they are different from ordinary people, they permanently subdue manifest mental activity; because they are different from the two vehicles, they retain those seeds.' The explanation is: The rebirth received by noble ones is not through the moistening of manifest [afflictions], yet they retain the seeds—how could they not receive a fragmentary body? If one claims that those from the eighth stage upward take on a transformation body conditioned by cognitive obscurations, then the retained affliction seeds would be useless. Why would they not permanently destroy all affliction seeds at the very beginning of this eighth stage? Since that is not the case, how could this be so? If spoken in terms of a śrāvaka who has turned toward bodhi and already severed afflictions, that person may indeed receive a transformation body through cognitive obscurations, extending across the various stages."