量處輕重儀 1.6

1.6

The preface states: Formerly, when I was in the imperial capital, I traveled widely among the lecture halls. Toward profound texts and hidden meanings, I vigorously and devotedly sought the abstruse, and tasted much of pure exposition. I considered light and heavy property to be essential, yet when applying it to affairs and meeting circumstances, most people followed their own subjective inclinations. Searching widely for clear evidence, no scriptural authority could be relied upon. Vinaya Master Shou, whom I had previously taken as my authority, possessed unique insight and transcendent illumination, outshining antiquity and eclipsing the present; his commentaries accumulated like mountains, and students surged like clouds. He brought together the splendor of the five Vinayas and broadly revealed what lay beyond diverse views; yet when applied to practical matters, it was vast and difficult to demarcate. Students could only gaze at the cliff and search for a path, unable to penetrate what they revered.