觀心論疏 2.40

2.40

Answer: The Nirvāṇa Sūtra says, 'Arbitrarily reckoning [samsara as] permanent, blissful, and so forth is like an insect eating wood that by chance forms letters: that insect does not know whether it is a letter or not.' The sūtra uses this explanation to rebuke them; here we may borrow that to explain this. Now, when the Buddha first attained awakening at the quiet and extinct site of enlightenment, he wished immediately to apply this great Dharma to them. But sentient beings lacked the capacity and could not receive the great conversion. Therefore, in the 'Chapter on Faith and Understanding', [the disciples] express their realization, saying: The elder, upon his lion seat, saw his son and recognized him at once, and immediately dispatched a bystander to quickly pursue him and bring him back; at that time, the poor son cried out in grievance and shouted loudly, 'I have done no wrong to you, why am I being seized?' If I were to preach it forcefully, sentient beings would destroy the Dharma and fall into evil destinies; therefore [the Buddha] said, 'I would rather not teach the Dharma, but quickly enter into nirvāṇa.' This is completely raw, like milk. He then contemplated the power of expedients practiced by past buddhas: 'I now shall also do likewise, using expedients to cross over sentient beings.' Thereupon he went to Vārāṇasī to preach for the five monks, preaching the teaching of arising and ceasing to sever the delusions of the four abodes; hence it says, 'He again dispatched two men to pursue and bring him back.' For twenty years they removed the dung of views and inclinations, which was passing from the ordinary into the noble: transforming milk into curds. Next, he preached the vaipulya [teachings], carrying the expedients of the three teachings to preach the perfect teaching for taming and subduing. Thus the Vimalakīrti uses both the perfect and distinct teachings to reprimand the ten great disciples; using the perfect to castigate the biased, and practicing the progressive practices of bodhisattvas, gradually causing them to be tamed and subdued. Why? Formerly, when the great [teaching] was spoken to them, they would destroy the Dharma without believing, making it impossible to preach to them; now, having already attained the noble path of the two vehicles, when they hear the great [teaching] spoken, they grieve at their own ruined seeds, and thus their voices shake the great chiliocosm as they praise the bodhisattvas' wondrous Dharma as inconceivable. Although they have not yet attained awakening, they do not give rise to slander; hence it says, 'After this, their minds gained mutual trust, and entering and exiting without difficulty.' Yet his dwelling was still in a thatched hut, and his inferior mind could not yet be renounced. This is transforming curds into raw butter, which is preaching the vaipulya teaching after the Tripiṭaka. Next, he preached the prajñā [teachings], carrying the two expedients of the shared and distinct [teachings] to preach the perfect [teaching] for taming and subduing, preaching prajñā for the bodhisattvas. Therefore, the 'Chapter on Faith and Understanding' says, 'The elder knew that his son had gradually become broad-minded and relaxed, and commanded him to manage and understand the family estate.' Therefore, the verses say, 'The Buddha commanded us to preach the pāramitās for the bodhisattvas, yet we had no intention of seeking even a single meal for ourselves.' This is transforming raw butter into clarified butter; this is preaching the prajñā teaching after the vaipulya. Next, after prajñā, he preached the perfect teaching of the Lotus [Sūtra]. The sūtra says, 'Honestly setting aside expedients, I preach only the unsurpassed Path.' This is speaking of the present perfect contemplation: contemplating the mind in a single thought-moment as being itself the Middle Way, the Tathāgata's treasure store, permanence, bliss, self, and purity, the vision and knowledge of the Buddha. Hence it says, 'It is for the sake of the one great causal occasion that [buddhas] appear in the world.' Śāriputra asked, 'What is meant by the one great causal occasion?' The Buddha said, 'It is to cause sentient beings to open the vision and knowledge of the Buddha; showing it, causing them to awaken to it, and causing them to enter it are likewise.' Therefore, in the 'Chapter on Faith and Understanding', it says: 'The elder knew that when the time of his death approached, he gathered together his relatives and said, "I am his father, and you are my son; all my wealth and possessions are entirely entrusted to you."' That is preaching the perfect teaching of the Lotus [Sūtra] after prajñā. Thus we know that the previous three teachings were all expedients to tame and subdue them for the present wondrous contemplation of the perfect teaching, making them capable of receiving the present wondrous contemplation. Thus we know that the perfect contemplation is subtle and wondrous—how could it be compared to the previous three teachings? Therefore, the sūtra praises it, saying, 'At the time of first giving rise to the mind [for bodhi], one immediately sits at the site of enlightenment'; and also says, 'At the time of first giving rise to the mind [for bodhi], one has already surpassed the Muni.' Just as a prince at birth is already above the hundred officials, so one who first gives rise to the perfect mind is above the three teachings. The sūtra weighs the merits of the fiftieth person as still immeasurable, not to mention the person who first rejoices in accord—who is none other than the practitioner of the present perfect contemplation. For this reason, borrowing the teachings of the five flavors reveals the characteristics of the contemplation of the present perfect teaching. Now, as for the Path of the perfect contemplation, embodying the three paths of samsara as the three virtues of nirvāṇa has already been explained as above. That is, the three paths are themselves the dharma realm; what is there in the dharma realm to be destroyed? Therefore, the verse says: 'Asking: contemplating the spontaneously arising mind, / How is this the perfect teaching? / Not destroying the dharma realm, / Abiding in the three virtues of nirvāṇa.' It refers to this. The practices are many, yet four are spoken of.