顯密圓通成佛心要集 1.5

1.5

Now, the ocean of the Tathāgata's teachings of a lifetime, though vast in phrasing and words, and deep and profound in doctrinal intent, is comprehensively exhausted without remainder by the exoteric and the esoteric: the exoteric refers to the sūtras, vinayas, and treatises of the various vehicles; the esoteric refers to the dhāraṇīs of the various divisions. From the time Kāśyapa Mātanga entered the Han, the Tripiṭaka gradually spread across China; when Śubhakarasiṃha came to the Tang, the five esoteric divisions flourished greatly in the land of Xia. The nine schools together revered it, and the seven assemblies conformed to it alike; regarding the Dharma, there were no words of right and wrong, and people distinguished the path of cultivation and realization. But with the passage of many years, mistaken views have grown ever more prevalent: some practice the exoteric teaching and slightingly slander the lineage of the esoteric division; some concentrate on esoteric words and remain willfully blind to the purport of the exoteric teaching; some labor over technical terms and rarely know the gate of entering the Way; some study syllables and sounds and seldom recognize the standard of the vidyādhara. This has caused profound contemplation and practice to turn into mere terms and words, and the esoteric, divine lineage to revert to sheer rhyme and meter. Now, without estimating my own meager talent, I rely equally upon the two lineages of the exoteric and the esoteric, summarily taking the essentials for attaining Buddhahood as the core, hoping that in the future all may attain perfect interpenetration. Therefore, relying on doctrine and principle, I briefly open four gates: first, the essentials of the exoteric teaching; second, the essentials of the esoteric teaching; third, the joint clarification of the exoteric and esoteric; fourth, celebrating this encounter and expressing my reflections. (In the four sections below, in order to avoid prolixity, I either implicitly employ the sacred teachings or cite the meaning of sūtra passages, as readers should know.)