止觀輔行傳弘決 6.11

6.11

「須菩提空智偏明」等者，雖得羅漢，何廢偏長。「石室觀空」者，佛在忉利一夏安居。佛以神力制諸人天，不知處所。夏受歲已，佛攝神足欲還閻浮。爾時須菩提於石室中住，自思惟言：佛忉利下，當至佛所禮佛耶？為不至耶？復自思惟：佛常說法，若人以智慧力觀佛法身，是名見佛中最。佛時已從忉利下閻浮提，四眾皆集，人天相見。座中有佛及轉輪王諸天大集，眾會莊嚴先未曾有。須菩提念：今此大眾雖復殊特，勢不久停，磨滅之法皆歸無常。因此無常觀之初門，悉知諸法空無有實，作是觀時即得道證。時一切眾皆欲先見如來禮拜供養。有蓮華色比丘尼，常為他人呼為婬女，欲除惡名便化為輪王、七寶千子，眾人見之皆悉避座。化王見佛還復本身，為比丘尼最先禮佛。佛告尼言：「非汝先禮我。唯須菩提最初禮我。所以者何？須菩提觀諸法空為見法身，得真供養，供養中最。非供養生身名供養也。」

Regarding "Subhūti's wisdom of emptiness was exceptionally brilliant" and so forth: although he had attained arhatship, how could this preclude an exceptional strength? Regarding "contemplating emptiness in the stone chamber": the Buddha spent one summer retreat in the Trāyastriṃśa heaven. With supernatural power, the Buddha restrained all humans and devas from knowing his whereabouts. When the summer retreat concluded, the Buddha withdrew his supernatural power and wished to return to Jambudvīpa. At that time Subhūti was dwelling in a stone chamber and reflected to himself: "When the Buddha descends from Trāyastriṃśa, should I go to the Buddha's place to pay homage to the Buddha, or should I not go?" He further reflected: "The Buddha always preaches the Dharma: if a person contemplates the Buddha's Dharma-body with the power of wisdom, this is called the supreme seeing of the Buddha." At that time the Buddha had already descended from Trāyastriṃśa to Jambudvīpa; the four assemblies all gathered, and humans and devas saw one another. In the assembly were the Buddha, wheel-turning kings, and a great gathering of devas; the adornment of the congregation was unprecedented. Subhūti thought: "Although this great assembly is extraordinary, its momentum will not endure long; all perishable phenomena return to impermanence." Relying on this initial gate of contemplating impermanence, he completely understood that all phenomena are empty and lack reality; while making this contemplation, he immediately attained the verification of the path. At that time the entire assembly wished to see the Tathāgata first to pay homage and make offerings. There was the nun Utpalavarṇā, whom others always called a courtesan; wishing to eliminate this bad reputation, she transformed herself into a wheel-turning king with seven treasures and a thousand sons; seeing him, the crowd all vacated their seats. When the transformed king saw the Buddha, she returned to her original form and was the very first to pay homage to the Buddha as a nun. The Buddha told the nun: "It was not you who first paid homage to me. Only Subhūti first paid homage to me. Why is this? Subhūti's contemplation of the emptiness of all phenomena was seeing the Dharma-body; he obtained the true offering, the foremost among offerings. It is not offering to the physical body that is called an offering."