釋禪波羅蜜次第法門 6.84

6.84

Answer: Because the Brahmā heaven is venerated by sentient beings, and all have heard of and recognize it. When the Buddha was in the country of India, there were continually many brahmins, and according to the custom of the brahmins, whatever merit they had, they completely vowed to be born in the Brahmā heaven. If they heard that practicing benevolence leads to rebirth in the Brahmā heaven, upon hearing it many would have faith in the teaching and practice the dharma of benevolence; for this reason, he stated that practicing benevolence brings rebirth in the Brahmā heaven. Furthermore, all heavens where sexual desire has been severed are called Brahmā; mentioning Brahmā thus subsumes the four dhyānas and the four formless absorptions, just as among the moral precepts of the five precepts, mentioning only the single [precept of] not speaking falsely subsumes the [other] three items. Furthermore, if one cultivates the four immeasurables within the four dhyānas, one will receive rebirth accordingly in that dhyāna. Since one is born according to the dhyāna, and because the merit of the immeasurable mind is vast, the retribution must also have distinctions; how could one be born in that heaven without the distinction between sovereign and subjects? Furthermore, as the Buddha stated in the Benevolent Kings Sūtra regarding the eighteen Brahmā [heavens], there must also be distinctions between kings and subjects. It is also said that within the fourth dhyāna there is a King of Great Quiescence. Yet the reason the Buddha in the Tripiṭaka only stated that the first dhyāna has a Great Brahmā King is that within the first dhyāna there are the minds of vitarka and vicāra. Although there is the dharma of speech, making it convenient to preside over the sentient beings of the lower stages, the higher stages lack this, and therefore they were not separately pointed out.