止觀輔行傳弘決 7.52

7.52

First, regarding confession and repentance: the opening text explains the terms. 'Disclose' (chenlu): chen means to set forth or to acknowledge at the head. 'Repentance' (hui) means to submit. The Commentary on the Suvarṇaprabhāsa-sūtra, in explaining the chapter on confession and repentance, broadly explains the terms, saying: 'Confession (kṣama) refers to white dharmas, and repentance refers to black dharmas; white dharmas must be honored, and black dharmas must be cast away. Further, confession means altering the past, and repentance means cultivating the future. Further, confession means baring and laying forth, and repentance means cutting off continuation.' 'Five limbs [to the ground]' is as explained before. Furthermore, the present text merely sets forth the meaning of confession; the words of the confession are fully given in the Lotus Samādhi, or one may broadly set them forth at will according to one's own power of wisdom. / Next, regarding entreaty: broadly, there are two intentions—first, entreating [the Buddhas] to remain in the world; second, entreating [them] to turn the wheel of the Dharma. As for '[citing] the Dazhidulun, etc.': fascicle 15 of the Dazhidulun explains this in full. / Question: By the dharma of the Buddhas, the Dharma ought naturally to be preached; why is entreaty needed? Furthermore, if the Buddhas were visibly present before us, entreating the Buddhas would be reasonable; but now they are not seen, so how can they be entreated? / Answer: Although the Buddhas will surely preach without waiting to be entreated, the person who entreats gains merit, so why should one not entreat? Just as when a great king has abundant delicious food, if someone requests it, they will surely receive grace and fortune because [the king] takes note of their mind; therefore there is benefit. It is like cultivating a mind of loving-kindness to bring joy to sentient beings: though there are no sentient beings who [immediately] obtain joy, the one who contemplates obtains merit; entreating the Buddhas is also like this. Furthermore, by the Buddha-dharma, [Buddhas] wait for a request before preaching. Moreover, though sentient beings do not see the Buddhas face-to-face, how could the Buddhas ever fail to see their minds and hear their entreaty? Even supposing the Buddhas neither heard nor saw it, entreating would still yield merit—how much more so when they hear and see, could it be without benefit? Further, to refute the non-Buddhists who make such a claim as: 'The principle of the Path is constantly fixed; what need is there for many words?'—to prevent their slander, [the Buddhas] must wait for an entreaty. Further, non-Buddhists say: 'The Buddhas should not greedily crave lifespan to remain in the world.' To prevent this slander, one must therefore entreat. Further, if one does not entreat, it might be thought that the Buddha has affectionate attachment; to make known [his] non-attachment, he must wait for an entreaty. Further, the non-Buddhists are entirely without entreating for preaching, so now one must entreat. / Next, the passage from 'That is, turning [...] down to remaining in the world' is entirely the text of the treatise. Because of these various intentions, the two entreaties are necessary. If [referring to] when the Buddha first attained [awakening], he first turned the four noble truths; now, seeking the perfect, he is entreated universally. / 'As for lifespan [...] being able to remain,' etc., clarifies what the entreaty refers to. As for what is called entreaty: what is it that one entreats? It means entreating the Buddha's great compassion, not entreating the aggregate of form. If great compassion does not cease, the body will long remain; hence lifespan and karma are cited as an analogy for entreating [him] to remain. The recompensed life is like the Buddha; our mind is like karma. Further, the recompensed life is like the physical body; karma is like the mind of great compassion. Our mind entreats the Buddha unceasingly, wishing that the Buddha's great compassion remain in the world. Transformations are also like this: intentional supernatural powers follow what is anticipated by the mind; while the anticipated mind has not ceased, transformations do not end. Our mind is like the mind, and the Buddha's body is like the transformation: while our mind does not cease, we wish that the Buddha does not pass into extinction. Further, the Buddha's body is like the transformation, and great compassion is like the mind: wishing that great compassion does not cease, then the physical body does not perish. Now our entreaty of the Buddha is like a great torch: to destroy ignorance, our mind does not cease, wishing that the Buddha does not pass into extinction. / Next, regarding rejoicing: when the Buddha turns the wheel of the Dharma, sentient beings obtain the benefits of the three periods of time. 'I assist in their rejoicing' means rejoicing in the preceding entreaty. In the past seeds were planted; hearing again in the present, they obtain the benefit of ripening. If seeds were never planted, in the present seeds are formed, and in the future they will indeed benefit. Thus the benefits of the three periods of time all depend on the wheel of the Dharma; therefore I rejoice in sentient beings obtaining benefit. / Fascicle 61 of the Dazhidulun says: 'Rejoicing is of two kinds: first, worldly; second, world-transcending. If a person has no world-transcending roots of goodness, I now rejoice in sentient beings' worldly merit.' Therefore, rejoicing extends across both the contaminated and the uncontaminated; both are named merit. Further, meritorious virtue is the foundation of bodhisattva mahāsattvas; it can fulfill bodhi and is praised by the noble ones. It is where the wise walk and what the unwise stay far from; by the cause and condition of this merit, one can attain [the status of] a wheel-turning king, the gods, and even the knowledge of all modes. Knowing such things, one obtains right views; therefore, seeing merit, joy arises. Furthermore, I ought to bestow good upon sentient beings, and they cultivate merit on their own; therefore I rejoice. Furthermore, sentient beings have goodness similar to mine and are my companions; therefore I rejoice. Furthermore, a bodhisattva mahāsattva generates joy toward all those in the ten directions and three periods of time—Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and the two vehicles—who cultivate merit; hence it is named rejoicing. If one lacks meritorious virtue, one is no different from beasts, merely sharing in eating, drinking, sexual desire, and strife. A person who cultivates merit is revered by sentient beings, just as the cool full moon in a time of heat; therefore one rejoices. Fascicle 32 of the Dazhidulun says: 'Like buying and selling incense,' etc. / Question: Why is the mind of rejoicing superior to that of the two vehicles? / Answer: Because one dedicates the good of rejoicing to sentient beings. / 'Contemplating sentient beings [...] right, conditional, and complete,' etc., is like the chapter on Sadāparibhūta in the Lotus Sūtra. Bodhisattva Sadāparibhūta saw that all sentient beings are replete with the three causes and will all become Buddhas; therefore he dared not slight them. This is merely revering their right cause. Within the right cause, the three causes are complete; how much more so when from beginningless time having once heard a single phrase is the seed of the complete cause, and snapping the fingers or joining the palms is the seed of the conditional cause. Therefore, whenever this bodhisattva saw sentient beings, he always conferred prophecies upon them, even practicing the conduct of not slighting with his body, and so on. / As for 'poisoned drum': fascicle 9 of the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra says: 'Suppose a person takes fresh poison to smear upon a great drum, and strikes it in a great assembly so that it sounds. Even without the wish to hear it, if there are any who hear it, whether near or far, all die—except for only one person who does not die an untimely death, namely the icchantika.' Hearing it and immediately being able to shatter the affliction of ignorance is called dying near. Hearing it without immediate benefit, making it a cause for future lives, is called dying far. The various teachings, the various flavors, and the elapsed periods of time are used to discuss nearness and farness. The Four Stations of Mindfulness says: 'If there are those who hear it, near or far they do not die—that is, merely shattering [delusions of] view, thought, and dust-and-sand.' / 'The Lotus rejoices in the Dharma,' etc.: in the chapter on rejoicing, one rises from the Dharma-seat, goes elsewhere to preach to others, and others having heard it in turn rejoice and transmit the teaching, so proceeding successively up to the fiftieth person; evaluating the hearing of the Dharma and generating rejoicing—hence it is called rejoicing in the Dharma. / 'The Dapin rejoices in the person': the sūtra says: 'If a śrāvaka is able to arouse the aspiration [for awakening], I also rejoice.' The śrāvaka is a person; rejoicing in that person is called rejoicing in the person. A person must have the Dharma, and the Dharma must rely on the person; hence they are mentioned interchangeably. / Dedication means sharing the merit of rejoicing with sentient beings and directing it toward bodhi. Bodhi is as in the text. / 'Bestowing upon sentient beings': however, the merit of cultivating the cause cannot be shared; when the fruit is attained, one then bestows this merit upon sentient beings. Therefore the bodhisattva obtains the four worldly requisites to benefit sentient beings. Further, by merit one purifies one's own body and speech; people see them with joy and believe and accept what is preached. Now obtaining the ten goods and up to the knowledge of all modes, and even relics being able to lead all sentient beings to attain the Path—therefore the retribution of the fruit is shared with sentient beings. Here the fruit is spoken of within the cause, hence it is said to be shared. If one were to say that the causal merit is shared with others, all roots of goodness cultivated from the initial arousing of the aspiration would be given to sentient beings, so what would serve as the cause for attaining the Path later on? Since the substance of wholesome dharmas cannot be given to others, now one directly bestows fearlessness and harmlessness upon sentient beings, reaching bodhi by means of non-attainment. Hence Vimalakīrti says: 'The mind of dedication is the bodhisattva's pure land; dedication brings great benefit,' and so on. Therefore in the Lotus Sūtra, when the Brahmā gods bestow palaces, they all make the vow, saying: 'May this merit,' and so on. / 'Like turning a sound into a horn,' etc.: fascicle 32 of the Dazhidulun says: 'Dedication is like presenting a small object to a king, or like turning a sound into a horn.' / Question: Bodhisattvas' merit surpasses that of the two vehicles—what is extraordinary about it? / Answer: Here we do not compare by merit, but merely compare by the mind of rejoicing and dedication. It is like a master craftsman directing: he receives double the price. The one wielding the axe exerts double the labor, but his value is not worth mentioning. The śrāvaka's personal practice is like the one wielding the axe; the bodhisattva's teaching others and practicing dedication is like the master craftsman. / The Dazhidulun asks: 'Why are the two vehicles called self-taming, self-purifying, and self-crossing, but not dedicating? Answer: Precepts are self-taming, dhyāna is self-purifying, and wisdom is self-crossing; the two vehicles exclusively cultivate these three for themselves.' / 'Not grasping,' etc., explains the four [statements] above on severing the three realms, etc.—that is, not grasping suffering, not contemplating the origin, not seeing cessation, and not obtaining the path. Among these four, not discriminating worldly and world-transcending causes, fruits, and marks is called non-discrimination; such is called right dedication. The true mark has nothing to be grasped, and likewise has no discrimination. / 'The one who dedicates [...] false thoughts and so forth do not arise': the Dazhidulun says: 'The bodhisattva's mind is empty of dāna-pāramitā up to the knowledge of all modes; all are empty, single in mark and without mark, as the Buddha preached.' Dedicating in this way is like an arrow shot at someone, never failing to hit, because of seeing the unconditioned/markless and neither seeing nor obtaining all dharmas. 'The one who' [can dedicate] means the mind of dedication; 'that which' [is dedicated to] means sentient beings and the Buddha-fruit. Investigating with a single mind, such subject, object, and all dharmas are all unobtainable. When subject and object are both extinguished, all such dharmas dedicated return to the real without exception, hence they are unobtainable. / 'Without past, present, or future,' etc.: investigating through the three periods of time, this subject and object arise and cease without abiding. Further, arousing the aspiration is the past, dedication is the present, and the destination of dedication is the future. Further, within what is dedicated, the ultimate fruit is the future, and sentient beings are the present. Further, sentient beings also have future and present: these sentient beings are called the present, and the shared merit to be attained is called the future. Thus the three periods of time are ultimately unobtainable. / 'As known by the Buddhas of the three periods of time,' etc.: only the single true mark is what the Buddha knows, sees, and permits. Therein, what can know is the knowledge of all modes, what can see is the Buddha-eye, and what can permit is the original vast vows and all practices. / 'This is called true,' etc.: only when conforming to what the Buddha knows is it called true. It is not dedicated to provisional fruits; provisional fruits are false and deceptive, which specifically refutes the fruits anticipated by the Tripiṭaka and shared teachings. As for 'supreme': this does not mean the top of high, middle, and low; it directly refers to the perfect teaching as supreme. Because it is supreme, it is complete; this refutes the distinctive teaching. / 'Then one does not slander the Buddha,' etc.: hypothesizing the Buddha-fruit as existent, or even as neither existent nor non-existent, is in all cases slandering the Buddha. Why? The Buddha-fruit is neither existent nor even neither existent nor non-existent. Because it is not suffering, it has no faults; because it is not the origin, it has no attachments; because it has the path, it has no poison; because it has cessation, it has no failure. This deduces dedication based on the uncreated four noble truths. Speaking of having no suffering or origin and only having path and cessation is spoken provisionally in terms of phenomena; in principle, suffering and origin are originally path and cessation. / 'How only,' etc.: the former three refer to confession, entreaty, and rejoicing; the latter one refers to making vows. Both before and after follow the intention of the present dedication. Relying on the uncreated truths without viewing the truths is called the true fivefold repentance, which can initiate the true stages; hence the Vibhāṣā is cited to verify the perfect intention. Thus we know that the fivefold repentance all relies on the uncreated, only then causing confession to see that the nature of sin is originally empty, entreaty to know that the Dharma-body is eternally abiding, rejoicing to comprehend that merit is equal to suchness, and making vows to realize the equality of subject and object. / Next, explaining the making of vows: first, explaining the terms, 'like promising people goods,' etc.: a juan is a contract, and also a pact. The Shuowen says: 'A contract document was split at the edge with a knife, hence called a pact (qi); thus the character derives from knife.' 'To master' (yu) means to attend, and to govern. All dharmas are attended by vows, with vows as their master. / 'Also named [...] holding things': within the four vast vows, sentient beings and afflictions are evil, and Dharma gates and the Buddha-way are good. Warding off evil is warding and holding; holding goodness is dhāraṇī (total retention). Practices are like unbaked clay, and vows are like fire. Unbaked clay refers to pottery not yet fired. Being capable of benefiting others is called holding things. / 'The four vast vows are general vows,' etc.: all vows are completely subsumed by the four vast vows, hence they are called general. / Regarding 'Dharmākara,' etc.: both the Guan jing and the Karuṇāpuṇḍarīka state: 'Amida's causal name was Dharmākara; before Lokeśvararāja Tathāgata, hearing of 210 billion Buddha-lands, he made vows.' Further, the Guan jing says: 'Bhikṣu Dharmākara, wishing to embrace all Buddha-lands, made forty-eight vows. Having made these vows, the earth quaked in six ways, and he was prophesied by the Buddha.' The Da Amituo jing says: 'When he was a bodhisattva, he made twenty-four vows, saying: "If I do not obtain these vows, I will never become a Buddha."' The numbers of vows differ because the lineages are different and their views distinct; there is no need to harmonize them. In the Karuṇāpuṇḍarīka there are no specific vows, merely saying that for the sake of taking a Buddha-land he made the four vast vows. Thus we know that whenever any bodhisattva sees a Buddha, they invariably make both general vows and specific vows. Hence fascicle 8 of the Dazhidulun asks: 'When a bodhisattva cultivates practices, he naturally obtains a pure retribution; why is it necessary to make vows? Answer: If merit lacks vows, it is like an ox without a driver: it reaches nowhere. As the Buddha preached, a person ignorant of the Dharma hears of celestial pleasures and immediately becomes attached. Question: If one has no vows, does one not obtain retribution? Answer: Although one obtains it, it is not as good as having vows. With vows, even with little merit one attains a great fruit.' / As for 'Huayan': the fourteenth fascicle of the new translation sets forth specific vows regarding diverse matters. Further, as in the Brahmā Net, ten great vows and thirteen vows are made, and so on. The text of vows in the 'Noble Practices' of the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra is largely the same. Further, the fourteenth fascicle, 'Brahmā Practices,' says: 'When bestowing food, cause all sentient beings to obtain the food of great wisdom, the food of Dharma-joy, and the food of prajñā. When bestowing drink, cause all sentient beings to head for the river of nirvāṇa, drink the water of eight flavors, and obtain the taste of ambrosia.' Following this pattern, as well as the Huayan and so on, making vows according to the situation and according to one's intellectual capacity—why must it be strictly as written? If there is an established text, one fortunately relies on what the Buddha preached. Such passages are all specific vows. Now within the fivefold repentance, the meaning combines both general and specific; thus we know that the fivefold repentance is not suitable for minor practitioners. / As in the Maitreyaparipṛcchā: 'The Buddha told Ānanda: "In the past Maitreya did not cultivate ascetic practices, but merely cultivated the peaceful path of skillful means, accumulating supreme, right and complete awakening." Ānanda said: "What is called skillful means?" The Buddha said: "When Maitreya formerly practiced the bodhisattva path, he merely diligently cultivated the fivefold repentance six times day and night, and attained bodhi."' The repentance text in that sūtra has twenty-three lines, without separately listing the formulas for the fivefold repentance, merely entreating the Buddhas repeatedly and speaking confession repeatedly, and the remaining three are also like this. As it says: 'Whatever sins there are, I confess them all; whatever merits there are, I rejoice in them all; I now entreat all Buddhas, wishing to accomplish unsurpassed wisdom.' Following this model, they need not necessarily be recited separately; but practitioners whose intellectual power is weak find it difficult to maintain focused mindfulness, and so must follow a single standard. Although the fourfold repentance of the Vibhāṣā is the standard monastic ritual, one must also be skilled in its intention to mobilize contemplation. This is fully explained in Nanshan's commentary on the correct ritual practices. / From 'Causing in the place of practice,' etc., summarizes the intention of repentance: all are for shattering sins. Formerly one committed great evils, with all three karmas being heavy; therefore now when confessing, one employs all three karmas, arousing great vigor, only then shattering great evils. / 'Entreaty shatters the sin of slandering the Dharma': one should also first say that confession shatters the transgressions of prohibition and nature regarding the three karmas; the text is elliptical, but the meaning is complete. In the subsequent text, formerly hearing the teachings one gave rise to slander; now entreating the Buddha to preach so that all may hear, one can thereby overturn the sin of slandering the Dharma. / 'Rejoicing shatters the sin of jealousy': formerly facing objects one generated jealousy; now rejoicing in everything, one thereby overturns and shatters the former mind of jealousy. / 'Dedication shatters the sin of [seeking] worldly existences': formerly the merit one performed merely conformed to birth-and-death, serving as the cause for various existences, unable to exempt oneself—how could it enable others to be freed from the causes of existence? Now endowed with the two dedications, exempting oneself and exempting others, dedication therefore accords with the gate of nirvāṇa; hence it is said to 'accord with emptiness and marklessness,' etc. One should also further state: making vows shatters the sin of mistaken vows, which guides the preceding four to reach their destination.