止觀輔行傳弘決 2.59

English (machine translation) 2.59

Language: English

2.59.1

From "Furthermore, the four kinds" below is the analytical distinction. The opening text briefly classifies that their practices differ while their principle is identical, distinguishing "following one's own thought" against the [other] three. Why is this? It is because while the active hindrances they trigger differ, their contemplation of principle is not distinct. Question: Constantly sitting contemplates the three paths, and so forth; constantly walking contemplates the Buddha's thirty-two marks, and so forth; the Vaipulya contemplates the venerable form of the Mahāpratisarā, ritual implements, and so forth; the Lotus contemplates the six-tusked white elephant, and so forth; following one's own thought contemplates good, evil, indeterminate [phenomena], and so forth. Since the four contemplations are each distinct, how can they be called identical? Answer: These are all stated with reference to the specific activities engaged. If we consider the contemplation that can contemplate, it is none other than the single mind; the principle that is cognised is none other than the three truths. Therefore it can be said that "the contemplation of principle is identical." From "If only" below, it is clarified that one must rely on principle to achieve the practice of specific activities. From "Furthermore, if one does not grasp the intent of the contemplation of principle" below, it is clarified that one must use principle as the basis for specific activities. From "If the forms of specific activities" below, this is used to distinguish uninterruptedness and interruptedness with respect to the [other] three. As for "Method is restricted to the three" and so forth, this distinguishes the universality and particularity of principle and specific activities with respect to the [other] three. In this [fourth samādhi], relying on the sūtras, it is not without methods; moreover, all that is not subsumed by the [former] three samādhis belongs here. It is not that methods are unnecessary here; it is merely that this samādhi does not strictly require methods. Therefore, methods are restricted to the former three. From "Question" below, he distinguishes whether the four samādhis include exhortation or lack exhortation. The intent of the question is evident. As for the intent of the answer: although this samādhi encompasses all sūtras and all good deeds, because it permits cultivating calming and contemplation on evil, in order to guard dull roots who do not comprehend the textual purport, it straightforwardly explains the contemplation without explicitly exhorting practice. If evaluated according to the earlier text where [affliction] arises and is illuminated, this too is an exhortation to cultivate contemplation upon arising; yet one must not openly declare or clearly encourage it, and therefore, in comparison to the former [three], it is designated as lacking exhortation to cultivate. If evaluated according to various sūtras that can eradicate grave sins, because there are grave transgressions, exhortation to cultivate is all the more necessary. Hence the Sūtra on Invoking Avalokiteśvara states: "Washing away the excrement and filth, causing one to attain purity," and so forth. The other sūtras follow this model, and so it is not entirely absent. From "The Huai River" below, it clarifies the error in the master's own practice. In the regions north of the Huai and north of the Yellow River, people of erroneous emptiness falsely claimed Mahāyāna, entering evil without contemplation; hence this is illustrated by the metaphor of "catching a snake without a charm." "Charm" means restraint, because an incantational technique restrains creatures. Greed is like a snake, the method of contemplation is like a charm, contemplating desire with contemplation is like catching a snake, and lack of skill in the four phrases is like lacking a charm. As the Ariṭṭha Sūtra states: "The Buddha was at Anāthapiṇḍada's park. Ariṭṭha Gādhābādhipubba produced this evil view: 'I know that the World-Honoured One taught that engaging in sexual desire does not obstruct the Path.' The monks admonished him three times without his stopping, and came to inform the Buddha. The Buddha said: 'Call him here.' Once he arrived, the Buddha questioned him. He replied: 'It is so.' The Buddha called the monks and asked them, and all the monks said: 'The Buddha only said that desire is like fire, like a snake, like poison (and so forth).' The Buddha said: 'That is because he understands inversely. Just like a person wishing to catch a snake, walking along searching for a snake. In a quiet forest he sees an extremely large snake, and then grabs the snake by the waist. The snake turns its head around and bites his hands, feet, and other limbs. Because he was not skilled in the method of catching snakes, he only experiences extreme suffering. Inverse understanding of the meaning is also like this. If one wishes to be skilled in catching snakes, one holds an iron staff in hand, and upon seeing an extremely large snake, first presses down on the snake's head with the iron staff, and takes hold of its neck with one's hand. Although the snake twists its tail, it only wraps around the hands, feet, and other limbs, and cannot harm the person who caught the snake, because he is skilled in understanding the method of catching snakes.'" Now, entering evil without the method of contemplation is also like this: claiming that evil is non-obstructive, one is instead harmed by evil. If one enters the forest of the six sense-objects with the staff of wondrous contemplation, encounters the snake of greed, pins down the head of the four phases of mind, and seizes the neck with contemplation, one does not allow the virulent harm to culminate in bodily action and cause the loss of the pure, eternally abiding dharma-body. That Ariṭṭha lacked the staff of right contemplation and merely said that greed is non-obstructive. The meaning is nearly identical, and therefore this metaphor is borrowed. From "Now I shall" below, these are the characteristics of the former master catching a snake without a charm. As for that former master, of dull roots and heavy obstacles, his good cultivation failed; temporarily letting himself enter evil, he imagined something resembling contemplation of emptiness, and regarding this understanding of emptiness as profound realization, this was the error in his own practice. From "Not recognizing" below is the error of teaching others. Because wholesome [roots] did not arise in himself, he abandoned good to pursue evil, and solely took this understanding of emptiness from entering evil to teach others. When others also occasionally produced an understanding of emptiness, they immediately took it as proof, claiming that evil alone is real. From then on, even the understanding of emptiness was forgotten, and they only committed evil comprehensively. From "Blind without eyes" below is the error of disciples erroneously receiving it. Lacking the eye of doctrinal characteristics is called being blind; wholesome cultivation failing is called having dull roots; frequently arousing greed is having heavy afflictions. When such persons further hear their master's teaching instructing them purely to enter evil, they indulge desires and passions, comprehensively committing all kinds of evil. From "Consequently causing the common people" below clarifies the errors of oneself and others. Hu means to disparage and abandon. Because of the errors of oneself and others, the populace was disparaged and the kings perished. In present times, the lingering customs of Wu and Yue still remain: taking aloof rectitude to be the Hīnayāna, and taking promiscuous disorder to be unobstructedness. This still existed in the Sui dynasty, hence it is said that it has not yet changed. From "Records of the Grand Historian" below, he cites historical events to analogize the errors. First, he cites the Records of the Grand Historian to analogize the master's error of erroneous transmission. Zhou is the name of a state, with the surname of the Ji clan. The Annals of Emperors and Kings states: "The consort of Emperor Ku, Jiang Yuan, trod upon the footprint of a divine being and became pregnant. Thinking it inauspicious, she abandoned it in a narrow alley, but cattle and sheep did not trample it; she placed it upon cold ice, and birds covered it with their wings. Yuan regarded it as divine, retrieved it, and raised it. In childhood he was fond of agriculture, and when grown up, looked up to observe the Room constellation to gauge the farming seasons. Shun presented him to Yao to oversee agricultural governance as the agricultural minister; therefore he was called Lord Millet (Houji), and was granted the surname Ji." Beginning with Wu and ending with Nan, there were thirty-seven kings. The verse says: Wu, Cheng, Kang, Zhao, Mu, Gong, Yi, / Xiao, Yi, Li, Xuan, You, Xie, Ping, / Huan, Zhuang, Xi, Hui, Xiang, Qing, Kuang, / Ding, Jian, Ling, Jing, Dao, Jing, Yuan, / Zhen, Ai, Si, Zhe, Wei, An, Lie, / Xian, Shen, Nan: thirty-seven kings. / Xie did not rule for a full year; some say thirty-eight. The Zuo Commentary states: "Early on, when King Ping moved east, Xin You went to Yichuan, and seeing a person with disheveled hair making offerings in the wild, said: 'Before a hundred years pass, will this not belong to the Rong? Its rituals have perished first.'" When he speaks of the end of the Zhou, this only refers to the waning end, not to the very last. As for the Quanrong, they are precisely the Six Rong. Originally they were named Liuhun; at present, Liuhun County is established in that territory.

2.59.2

This means that from the times of Tang and Yu onward, there were the Quanrong, Xianyun, and Xunyu, who dwelt on the northern borders of the realm. They moved following their livestock and migrated in pursuit of water and grass. Without tilled fields, they had animal husbandry; each had their own territories without written records, having [only] verbal agreements. Children could ride sheep and draw bows to shoot birds; they practiced only archery, lacking rites and righteousness. From the sovereign down, all ate the meat of domestic animals, the young eating the fat and choice meat and the old eating the leavings, valuing the young and despising the old. When a father died, [the son] took his mother as wife; when an elder brother died, [the brother] took his sister-in-law as wife. From the Yin and Zhou onwards, their invasions and plundering of the Central Plains were continuous, like an unbroken thread. The ancestral temple and altars of the house of Zhou were nearly wiped out by their invasions; what was not wiped out was just like a thread. Later, the Western Earl attacked the Quanrong and pursued them to the north of the Luo River; they paid tribute from time to time, which was termed 'the wild domain.' From then on, the Quanrong did not arrive. Being bared to the shoulder was inherently an omen of the decline of the Zhou house; how could one emulate it? The degenerate times are like the end of the Zhou; evil teachers are like being bared to the shoulder; the correct teaching is like the knowledgeable; breaking the precepts is like losing the rites; the realm of desire is like the Quanrong; damaging correct contemplation is like invading the Central Plains; the direct cause being unbroken is like a single thread; and the gradual extinction of the conditions and the understanding is in principle like being gradually wiped out.
Next, from 'Moreover, Ruan Ji' down, this analogizes the fault of disciples falsely receiving [the teaching]. Therein, it first adduces the high officials emulating Ruan as an analogy. The 'Biographies' state: 'Ruan Ji, courtesy name Sizong, was a native of Weishi in Chenliu. His appearance was towering and eminent, his will and spirit broad and unrestrained; aloofly self-contained, he followed his natural disposition without restraint, and pleasure and anger were never manifest in his countenance. Sometimes he closed his doors to read books for days without emerging; sometimes he scaled mountains and overlooked waters, staying overnight and forgetting to return. Addicted to wine and skilled at whistling, he abruptly forgot his physical body; people of the time often called him a fool. In the age of Jin and Wei, there were still many famous scholars in the realm, but few could preserve themselves whole. Because he did not engage in worldly affairs, he made heavy drinking his normal state. When Emperor Wen assisted in governing, he was appointed Chancellor of Dongping; he went riding an ox and returned in ten days. Although filial by nature and will, he was not constrained by ritual teachings. When his mother died, he was playing weiqi with someone; his opponent asked to stop, but he insisted on staying to decide the wager. When the game ended, he drank two sheng of wine, let out a single loud wail, and vomited several sheng of blood. When Pei Kai went to offer condolences, [Ruan Ji] merely sat insolently drunk, staring straight ahead; when seeing men of ritual conventions, he looked at them with the whites of his eyes; because of this, men of ritual conventions hated him like an enemy. Sometimes he would lie down right beside a young married woman next door; or when someone else had a death and he was not related, he would go to mourn, driving [his carriage] without following roads, and turning back weeping only when the way was blocked. At clan gatherings, they no longer used cups, but sat in a circle around a basin and drank together.' How could one emulate such luxury and wildness?
As for 'This was an omen of the destruction of the Sima clan,' the dynastic name was Jin, and the surname was Sima. Li, son of Gaoyang, served as Minister of Summer; by the Zhou, the Minister of Summer was made Sima, and they took this as their surname. From [Emperors] Huai and Min down to Xiaowu, there were fifteen emperors. The fall of the Jin state in the time of Emperor Min was because the worthy and eminent did not practice military weapons and prized refinement, luxury, and wildness; later, the sons and grandsons of high officials emulated them, and consequently the five barbarian tribes invaded the country, whereupon [the court] took refuge east of the Yangtze River. Thus a children's ballad went: 'Five horses float across the river; one horse transforms into a dragon.' Because of this, Emperor Hui's third son, Rui, and others moved the capital to Jianye, designated as the Eastern Jin, and he was called Emperor Yuan. By the time of Emperor Xiaowu, there was still much wine and sensuality, and on this account the dynastic fortune collapsed. The collapse of the Jin dynastic fortune was due to the sons and grandsons of high officials mistakenly emulating Ruan Ji. At first, there was the hardship of [rulers] envying the worthy, so he avoided the world by feigning madness; later, there was no danger of jealousy towards talent, so why should one emulate his wildness? Furthermore, like Ruan Ji's nephew Xian, whose second son was Fu, serving as an adjutant during the time of Emperor Yuan: with disheveled hair he drank wine, not letting royal affairs cross his mind. He was constantly impeached by the Right Officer, but the Emperor tolerated him, later appointing him Chief Clerk of Yangzhou. The Emperor said to him: 'You are guarding the army headquarters; you ought to moderate your drinking.' He replied: 'Your Majesty did not consider your servant incompetent and entrusted him with the heavy responsibility of the military. The reason your servant dares not speak is that now that Your Majesty oversees and displays awe-inspiring authority, the transformational teachings are brilliant, the imperial favor reaches far, bandits and rebels have ceased their tracks, the baleful vapors have cleared, and the sun and moon are bright; how could the torchlight not be extinguished? One should properly fold one's hands, whistle and chant, to delight in these years.' Soon after, Su Jun caused a rebellion. This too was the fault of not training in military armor. Those who practice samādhi are also like this: only when facing difficulty and encountering obstacles does one cultivate contemplation amidst evil; when there is no difficulty, why must one abandon the good and follow the evil? Cultivating contemplation according to the teaching is like employing the civil and the military; entering evil without cause is like emulating wildness and indolence. Forgetting [caution] and conferring false teachings is like Ruan's drunken madness; disciples falsely receiving them is like the sons of high officials.
Next, from 'Yuwen' down, this clarifies Emperor Wu of the Zhou believing in prophecies, as an analogy for falsely receiving [the teaching]. His ancestor was the Flame Emperor Shennong, who was destroyed by the Yellow Emperor; his descendants avoided [the conflict] and dwelt in the northern wilderness, and the Xianbei honored them as masters. A later descendant was called Puhui, who found a seal while hunting; Puhui marveled at it and considered it a gift from Heaven. In their customs, heaven is called yu, hence they were called Yuwen. When he first ascended the throne, he also believed in the Buddhadharma; later, he believed in prophecy texts saying that one in black garments would be king, whereupon he venerated the Daoist tradition, personally receiving talismans and registers, wearing a dark cap and yellow coarse robes and always wearing them internally; in his mind he was suspicious of the Śākya tradition and wished to annihilate it completely, but was troubled that believers in Buddhism were many and did not dare act despotically. There was a Daoist, Zhang Bin, who deceitfully deceived the sovereign, secretly forwarding his strategy to covertly promote the Li tradition and expel the Śākyan lineage. Prophecies are like an evil teacher; Emperor Wu of the Zhou is like a disciple.
As for 'It was also due to the demonic deeds of Yuansong' and so on, Emperor Wu of the Zhou was already suspicious, and on top of this came Yuansong; therefore it says, 'It was also due to the demonic deeds of Yuansong.' Yuansong aided him, and the Emperor accepted his words; wishing to spy out faults and weigh the errors of Buddhism, he summoned the monks into the inner palace to practice the Path for seven nights, and the Emperor shared the arena with them; for seven nights there were no faults. He also ordered the Metropolitan Censor Zhen Luan to examine the two teachings of Buddhism and Daoism; Luan submitted the Xiaodao lun in three fascicles and thirty-six sections, using them to ridicule the thirty-six divisions. At that time there was also Dharma Master An, who was on intimate terms with the Emperor, and also composed the Erjiao lun in twelve sections, clarifying that the Daoist teaching was subsumed within the nine schools of thought and should not solely be a founder of a teaching, so there were only two teachings. Dharma Master Yuan wrote the Kangdi lun. Later, the Emperor toured the east, and Ren Daolin explained the Buddhadharma; also, because Wang Ming submitted a memorial, the Buddhadharma was clarified. That Yuansong was originally a native of Hedong; his distant ancestors were officials and settled in the river regions of Shu. At the end of the Liang, the capital was in Dongcheng, which was Xiao Cha of the Later Liang. Cha was destroyed and Kui was established; reaching the twelfth year of Tianbao, corresponding to the sixth year of Taijian of the Chen, which is the third year of Jiande of the Yuwen, the two teachings of Buddhism and Daoism were abolished. After seven years under the Yuwen, in the second year of Tianhe, [Yuan]song submitted a memorial saying: 'In the age of Tang and Yu there were no stupas yet the state was secure; in Qi and Liang there were monasteries yet their dynastic fortunes were extinguished. Only benefiting the people and profiting the state fulfills the Buddha's intention.'

2.59.3

"Now, the Buddha takes great compassion as his root, and would never bitterly enslave the common people to bow in reverence before mud and wood. I request that an encompassing, broad monastery be built to accommodate the myriad people of the four seas. I do not advise erecting monasteries of narrow views, merely to house the two vehicles and the five classics. As for an encompassing, broad monastery: making no distinction between clergy and laity, showing no preference for nobility or kinsmen, let the city walls and moats serve as the stūpas and temples. Thus Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou is the Tathāgata, the towns and settlements serve as the monks' quarters, married couples serve as the holy assembly, those of esteemed virtue are advanced to serve as the three directors, the aged of respected years are honoured as seniors, the benevolent and wise are chosen to serve as administrators, and those of brave strategy are sought out to serve as Dharma masters. In this way, across the six directions there will be no voices resentful of a king like Zhou of Shang, and in all eight quarters there will be songs praising the king of Zhou; flying and diving creatures will rest secure in their nests and dens, while creatures of water and land will be left to their long lives." In all, he presented fifteen points; after submitting this memorial, malicious sores broke out on his body and he died. Wei Yuansong was a demonic prodigy of the Dharma's destruction; what did he have to do with the meaning of [practising samādhi] according to one's own inclination? Yuansong is like the bad teacher, and Emperor Wu of Zhou is like the disciple. From "For what reason" downward, the error of mistaken trust is explained. Those who practise samādhi are also like this: first, internally they have no understanding through wisdom; second, they place trust in their root teacher; third, they greedily admire earlier masters. Therefore one must know that one must first regulate oneself by the teachings, and only then trust one's teacher; otherwise, one will entirely consider the practice of evil to be the right path. Once one has awakened and abandoned it, reaching the principle is not far off. As the Avadāna-sūtra says: "There was a donkey pulling a cart that travelled several hundred li a day. At a resting place, he met his elder brother. The elder brother said to the younger brother: 'Do not let this donkey meet other donkeys.' The younger brother said: 'When the good meet one another, they converse with flattery and sweet words; when creatures of the same kind encounter each other, none fails to rejoice.' The younger brother nevertheless let him meet another donkey; having met, they did not bray, nor did they eat, but merely sniffed each other. Afterwards, when the elder brother harnessed him, he simply lay down and would not go. The elder brother then became greatly enraged, cut off his tail, clipped his ears, and only when subjected to such suffering would he move. The donkey said to the master: 'You allowed me to meet an evil friend. I asked him: "Why are you so plump and well-fed?" He replied: "I carry earth for Lord Tao; whenever I reach a bad road, I just lie down and do not move. The master then shoulders the burden himself and leaves me by the roadside to eat. Eating fine grass, and returning to scattered fodder, that is why I am so fat." He asked me why I was thin, and I replied: "Pulling a cart, I travel several hundred li a day, and food and drink are hard to come by." Now, imitating him, I thought I would be let off, but instead I have been shorn and docked; I dare no longer lie down.' Pleading for his life, the owner took pity on him and let him go." People are also like this: trusting their evil teachers, they inevitably bring upon themselves evil retributions. In "For example, like Xishi" and so forth: "frown and groan" means groaning from the pain of sickness. "To bar" (du) means not going out the door, and also means to obstruct. "To dive deep" means to hide in the water. "To depart" means to go away. Zhuangzi says: "Xishi suffered from chest pain and frowned in her village. An ugly woman of her village saw her and found her beautiful, so she too returned home, clutching her chest, and frowned in her village. When the wealthy of her village saw her, they firmly shut their doors and would not go out. When the poor saw her, they took their wives and children and ran away." She knew the beauty of the frown, but did not know the reason why the frown was beautiful. "Those who dwell in burrows dive deep, while those that fly depart on high": these two phrases appear in the passage on Mao Qiang and Lady Li in Zhuangzi, which says: "Take a woman: men look upon her and fall in love, yet birds see her and fly high away, and fish see her and dive deep." The present text combines these two phrases with the passage on Xishi. His commentary on the Xishi passage says: "As for ritual propriety and righteousness, when applied in their appropriate time, they are Xishi. When their time has passed and they are not discarded, they become the neighbouring ugly woman. The ritual propriety, righteousness, and laws of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors are like the crab apple, pear, orange, and pomelo: their flavours are opposites, yet all are palatable to the mouth. Therefore, ritual propriety, righteousness, and laws must be applied in response to the times. If one now takes a monkey and clothes it in the robes of the Duke of Zhou, it will surely gnaw, bite, pull, and tear them until they are completely cast off." Viewing the ancients and modern people is just like the difference between a monkey and the Duke of Zhou. Practitioners of [samādhi] according to one's own inclination are also like this: they must adapt in response to the times and know what is suitable and what is unsuitable; how could one merely imitate entering evil without knowing the reason for entering evil? Here, Xishi is used as a metaphor for a person for whom it is suitable to enter evil to cultivate contemplation. Having sharp faculties and seizing the right time is like Xishi; having a nature with much greed and desire is like the heart ailment; cultivating skilfully amid desires is like the beautiful frown; becoming ever more clear and serene is like becoming even more beautiful. Having dull faculties and missing the right time is like the neighbouring woman; wisdom that is unskilful is like her original ugliness; mistakenly practising the entry into evil is like imitating the frown; only increasing evil and perversity is like her ugliness becoming ever more severe. Someone has matched the kings, great ministers, and so forth to the text's "the poor moving far away" and the like. The wording does not correspond, nor is it the order of the text. If we now attempt to match them, it will accord with the text's intention: practitioners of the Hinayana are like the poor; practitioners of the Mahayana are like the rich; people who cultivate phenomenal goods are like those who burrow; people who practise phenomenal concentration are like those who fly. These four kinds of people do not delight in evil views; having seen such evil, they urge themselves on all the more: Hinayana nirvāṇa is like moving far away; the secret treasury of the Mahayana is like barring the door; maintaining phenomenal precepts firmly is like diving deep; aspiring to the higher realms is like departing on high. The preceding text used an analogy for the faults of the root teacher; this text uses an analogy for the errors of the disciples. Interpreted in this way, it harmonises with the text. From "Those people" downward, it is a severe rebuke. Crazed with greed and desire, they chase after the thunder of evil. Ordinary worldlings lacking contemplation are like bluebottle flies; by exclusively entering into evil, they are stuck fast by the saliva of desire. "Lust" (shi) also means greedy desire. From "The fault of their teacher" downward, it explains the fault of the teacher who errs regarding capacities and is confused about the essential intent. This teacher does not understand the words on entering evil. Next, the Buddha's intent is cited to rebuke him, consisting of the doctrine, the metaphor, and the application. First, the doctrine is as in the text. From "For example" downward, a metaphor is given. When fever is extreme and the mouth is locked shut, it should be treated with rhubarb decoction; one must not begrudge the teeth and thereby cause loss of life. Arousing intense greed and desire is like the extreme fever; refusing to accept antidotes is like the mouth being locked shut; the method of [samādhi] according to one's own inclination is like the rhubarb decoction; cultivating contemplation amid evil is like chiselling open the teeth. Although entering into evil is base, it is done to preserve the wisdom-life; indulging in evil without contemplation is like the medicine failing to enter. From "The Buddha is also like" downward, this is the application, which generally matches the bestowal [of teaching] according to capacity. First, in explaining the capacity for evil, it says "like a swift horse" and so forth: having sharp faculties is like a swift horse; arousing evil is like an errant path; hearing the teaching is like the shadow of the whip; the cessation of desire is like the right path. The Saṃyuktāgama says: "The Buddha addressed the monks: 'There are four kinds of horses. The first is one that, upon merely seeing the shadow of the whip, becomes frightened and follows the driver's will. The second is one that, upon having its hair touched, can do the same as above. The third is one that is startled only after its flesh is touched. The fourth is one that awakens only after [the whip] pierces to the bone.'" The sūtra applies the metaphor by saying: "The first horse is like one who, upon hearing of the impermanence of another village, is immediately able to arouse revulsion. The next horse is like one who, upon hearing of the impermanence of his own village, is immediately able to arouse revulsion.

2.59.4

The third is like one who, upon hearing of the impermanence of his own relatives, is immediately able to arouse revulsion. The fourth is like one who is only able to arouse revulsion upon experiencing the pain of illness in his own body." In fascicle sixteen of the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra, in explaining the tamer [of humans], the four horses are also used as a metaphor for hearing of birth, old age, sickness, and death; thus we know that both sūtras use this metaphor to convey the meaning in the Tripiṭaka [teaching]. Now, borrowing this metaphor to correlate with the four teachings, the swift horse is the capacity of the perfect teaching, for greed and desire are themselves the path. If one takes the meaning aberrantly and recklessly engages in greed and desire, then one is not counted among these four at all. If one's capacity is shallow, then next one employs the distinctive teaching, down to the shared and Tripiṭaka teachings, like the remaining three horses; yet even within the capacity for the perfect teaching, one must still match the capacity in deciding whether good or evil is appropriate. From "If there are" downward, it refers to the capacity for good. From "The Buddha is fully possessed of both teachings" downward, this concludes with a rebuke. "Public" (gong) means not private. "Blatant" (zhuo) means clear. Openly resisting the Buddha, he misses the capacities of beings. From "Furthermore" downward, it adduces the right time to conclude his fault. The first passage raises the appropriateness of the time for practising calming and contemplation amid evil. Next, from "You now" downward, it cites metaphors and historical facts. Third, from "Destruction" downward, it concludes with his fault. If it were not a time of difficulty, evil should not be used; why does he use it exclusively? He cites sūtras to explain by analogy. Only when driven by unavoidable circumstances does one cultivate amid evil; you do not examine capacities and exclusively instruct people to use evil, just like all the non-Buddhists who exclusively use perverse permanence. Thus the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra says: "For example, the old physician exclusively used milk medicines," just as those non-Buddhists exclusively preach perverse permanence. "The visiting physician, the Tathāgata, first prohibited milk," just as impermanence is preached to refute perverse permanence; and once impermanence is established, true permanence is again used to refute impermanence. Although the two milks, new and old, share the same name of milk, their perverse and right meanings are distinct, and advancing and retreating are suited to the times, unlike the non-Buddhists who exclusively use perverse permanence and poison the wisdom-life of others. Here too it is like this: since its application is not appropriate, it damages the wisdom-life of others. From "Therefore the Āgama" downward, it cites events in the sūtras to verify the meaning of suiting the times and concluding his fault. Fascicle forty-six of the Ekottarikāgama says: "The Buddha was at Anāthapiṇḍada's park, and addressed the monks: 'If a cowherd is endowed with eleven factors, his herd of cattle will flourish.'" Summarised in verse, it says:

Linked texts (1)

止觀輔行傳弘決 — Classical Chinese