觀心論疏 1.6

1.6

偈云：「大師將涅槃，慈父有遺囑，四念處修道，當依木叉往。」此一偈明釋迦慈父令四眾依四念處修道，依木叉戒而住。故《釋論》明如來臨涅槃時，阿難請問佛云：「如來滅後，諸比丘依何道行？依何而住？」佛答云：「令依四念處修道，依木叉戒而住。」問：「諸佛入道法門無量，云何唯令依念處、木叉二法而住耶？」答：「二法雖略，而理含攝一切法門皆盡，故偏勸也。」今略辨二行多含之相者，何耶？四念處是慧性，為目；木叉戒為足。經云：「目足具故，能到清涼池。」又念處慧是解，木叉之戒為行；又念處是智慧莊嚴，木叉之戒是福德莊嚴；又念處是般若度，行是五度；又念處是觀照軌，行是資成軌，由是二軌，能顯真性之軌。又慧是圓淨涅槃，行是方便淨涅槃，由是二涅槃，能顯性淨涅槃。又慧是了因，行是緣因，由是二因，能顯正因。又慧是般若德，行是解脫德，由是二德，能顯法身，成三德也。又念處是觀照般若，行是方便般若，由是二般若，能顯實相般若。又念處是圓淨解脫，行是方便解脫，由是二解脫，能顯性淨解脫。是則念處之慧、木叉之戒略具十義，故偏勸耳。但凡夫謂身為淨、言受是樂、執心是常、計法為我，由斯四倒而起貪愛，貪愛無明而有諸行乃至老死，苦集浩然，八萬四千煩惱火燒於五陰舍宅。故《法華》云「四面俱時欻然火起」，即譬四倒也。若小乘觀人，即觀身不淨破於淨倒，觀受是苦破於樂倒，觀心無常破於常倒，觀法無我破於我倒。是則由前迷心顛倒，謂身是常、樂、我、淨，故起貪愛諸煩惱。今既觀知身是不淨，乃至苦、無我，則不起貪愛，無明、行、識乃至老死滅。是則生死河傾、涅槃河滿，即是競共推排、爭出火宅，到無畏處。為是因緣，勸為小行之人，令依念處修道耳。次明大乘念處者，經云「煩惱即菩提，生死即涅槃。」然菩提、涅槃之道寂寥無相，非淨非穢、非苦非樂、非常非無常、非我非無我等也。而今既言生死之身即是菩提涅槃之身，即是真如法界實相之體。故經云：「不壞於身而隨一相。」又云：「觀身實相，觀佛亦然。」一切眾生即涅槃相，不復更滅，斯則非枯非榮，在雙樹之聞，恬惔寂於二死苦矣。但眾生抱慧，而常夜遊，寧識身中佛之知見？醉無明酒，豈覺衣中之寶？故勸令依修大乘念處：觀身非淨非穢，觀受非苦非樂，觀心非常非無常，觀法非我非無我。是則非枯非榮，歸於大寂涅槃，住於如來三德——涅槃祕密之藏。經云：「安置諸子祕密藏中，我亦不久安住是中。」為是因緣，令依四念處修道耳。

The verse says: "As the Great Master was approaching nirvāṇa, / The Compassionate Father gave his final bequest: / 'In the four smṛtyupasthānas cultivate the Path; / You should dwell relying on the prātimokṣa.'" This one verse explains that the Compassionate Father Śākyamuni instructed the four assemblies to rely on the four smṛtyupasthānas to cultivate the Path, and to abide by the prātimokṣa precepts. Therefore, the Dazhidulun explains that when the Tathāgata was approaching nirvāṇa, Ānanda asked the Buddha: "After the Tathāgata's parinirvāṇa, on what path should the monks practice? On what should they rely to dwell?" The Buddha answered: "Instruct them to cultivate the Path relying on the four smṛtyupasthānas, and to dwell relying on the prātimokṣa precepts." Question: "The Dharma gates by which the Buddhas enter the Path are immeasurable; why did he instruct them to dwell relying only on the two dharmas of the smṛtyupasthānas and the prātimokṣa?" Answer: "Although the two dharmas are brief, their principle encompasses all Dharma gates without remainder; therefore, he specifically exhorted them [to practice them]." Now, in briefly discerning the characteristics of what these two practices comprehensively contain, what are they? The four smṛtyupasthānas are of the nature of wisdom, serving as the eyes; the prātimokṣa precepts serve as the feet. The sūtra says: "Because one possesses both eyes and feet, one can reach the cool pond." Furthermore, the wisdom of the smṛtyupasthānas is understanding, while the precepts of the prātimokṣa are practice; furthermore, the smṛtyupasthānas are the adornment of wisdom, while the precepts of the prātimokṣa are the adornment of merit; furthermore, the smṛtyupasthānas are the perfection of prajñā, while practice is the other five perfections; furthermore, the smṛtyupasthānas are the track of contemplation and illumination, while practice is the track of supporting conditions—by these two tracks, the track of true nature can be revealed. Furthermore, wisdom is completely pure nirvāṇa, while practice is expediently pure nirvāṇa—by these two nirvāṇas, intrinsically pure nirvāṇa can be revealed. Furthermore, wisdom is the elucidating cause, while practice is the conditional cause—by these two causes, the direct cause can be revealed. Furthermore, wisdom is the virtue of prajñā, while practice is the virtue of mokṣa—by these two virtues, the dharmakāya can be revealed, completing the three virtues. Furthermore, the smṛtyupasthānas are contemplative prajñā, while practice is expedient prajñā—by these two prajñās, the prajñā of the true mark can be revealed. Furthermore, the smṛtyupasthānas are completely pure mokṣa, while practice is expedient mokṣa—by these two mokṣas, intrinsically pure mokṣa can be revealed. Thus, the wisdom of the smṛtyupasthānas and the precepts of the prātimokṣa briefly possess ten meanings; hence he specifically exhorted them. But ordinary beings regard the body as pure, pronounce feeling to be bliss, cling to the mind as permanent, and reckon phenomena to be a self. Arising from these four inversions, greed and craving emerge; with greed, craving, and ignorance, there arise the formations down to old age and death. Suffering and accumulation are vast and boundless; the fires of the eighty-four thousand defilements burn the house of the five skandhas. Thus the Lotus Sūtra says: "On all four sides, fires suddenly arose all at once"—this is an analogy for the four inversions. If a practitioner of the Small Vehicle contemplates, they contemplate the body as impure to break the inversion of purity, contemplate feeling as suffering to break the inversion of bliss, contemplate the mind as impermanent to break the inversion of permanence, and contemplate phenomena as non-self to break the inversion of self. Thus, through the previous confused and inverted mind, which regarded the body as permanent, blissful, self, and pure, greed, craving, and various defilements arose. Now, having contemplated and known that the body is impure, down to being suffering and non-self, one does not give rise to greed and craving, and ignorance, formations, consciousness, down to old age and death are extinguished. Thus the river of birth and death is drained, the river of nirvāṇa is filled, and this is to vie and jostle with one another, striving to escape the burning house and reach the place of fearlessness. For this reason, he exhorted people of lesser practice to rely on the smṛtyupasthānas to cultivate the Path. Next, in clarifying the smṛtyupasthānas of the Great Vehicle: the sūtra says, "Defilements are themselves bodhi; birth and death are themselves nirvāṇa." Now, the Path of bodhi and nirvāṇa is serene and markless: neither pure nor defiled, neither suffering nor bliss, neither permanent nor impermanent, neither self nor non-self. Yet now it is said that the body of birth and death is itself the body of bodhi and nirvāṇa, which is itself the essence of the true mark of the dharmadhātu of suchness. Thus the sūtra says: "Without destroying the body, one accords with the single mark." It also says: "Contemplating the true mark of the body, one contemplates the Buddha likewise." All sentient beings are themselves the mark of nirvāṇa, not being extinguished again; this is neither withered nor flourishing, heard beneath the twin trees, calmly tranquil regarding the suffering of the two kinds of death. Yet sentient beings, though harboring wisdom, wander constantly in the night—how could they recognize the Buddha's vision and knowledge within their bodies? Drunk on the wine of ignorance, how could they perceive the jewel within their robes? Therefore, he exhorted them to cultivate the smṛtyupasthānas of the Great Vehicle: contemplating the body as neither pure nor defiled, contemplating feeling as neither suffering nor bliss, contemplating the mind as neither permanent nor impermanent, and contemplating phenomena as neither self nor non-self. This is neither withered nor flourishing, returning to great quiescent nirvāṇa and abiding in the Tathāgata's three virtues—the secret storehouse of nirvāṇa. The sūtra says: "I establish all my sons in the secret storehouse, and I too shall before long abide peacefully in it." For this reason, he instructed them to rely on the four smṛtyupasthānas to cultivate the Path.