念佛鏡 2.20

2.20

「若是一階，容可是一乘；既言三階，豈成一乘義？又准《法華經》云：『十方佛土中，唯有一乘法，無二亦無三，除佛方便說。』言無二者，若望菩薩，即無緣覺；言無三者，若望緣覺，即無聲聞。又言無二者，若望佛說，即一乘，無聲聞、緣覺。何以故？二乘極果大乘初地，所以言無二；言無三者，即無菩薩乘，為十地因果未極故，所以無三。准《法華經》中：『唯有一佛乘，息處故說二，今為汝說實，汝所得非滅，為佛一切智，當發大精進。』故知佛者，覺滿果圓，超諸地位，是最上乘，稱究竟位，是名一乘，實非餘乘之所及也。故大行和上當在之日，亦有數箇三階，捨三階法，歸依和上念佛。」

Answer: "If it were a single level, it might perhaps be the ekayāna; since they speak of three levels, how could that constitute the meaning of the ekayāna? Furthermore, according to the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka-sūtra: 'In the buddha lands of the ten directions, there is only the Dharma of the one vehicle; there are not two and not three, except when spoken by the Buddha as an upāya.' 'Not two' means: in relation to bodhisattvas, there are no pratyekabuddhas; 'not three' means: in relation to pratyekabuddhas, there are no śrāvakas. Furthermore, 'not two' means: in relation to the Buddha's teaching, there is only the one vehicle, with no śrāvakas or pratyekabuddhas. Why is this? The ultimate fruit of the two vehicles is the first ground of the Mahāyāna, which is why it says 'not two'; 'not three' means there is no bodhisattva vehicle, because the cause and fruit of the ten grounds are not yet ultimate, which is why there is 'not three.' According to the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka-sūtra: 'There is only the one buddha vehicle; for the sake of a resting place, two were spoken. Now I speak the truth to you: what you attained is not extinction; for the sake of the Buddha's omniscient wisdom, you should generate great vigor.' Thus we know that the Buddha is one whose awakening is fulfilled and whose fruit is complete, transcending all stages and grounds; this is the supreme vehicle, called the ultimate stage, and is named the ekayāna; truly it is beyond the reach of any other vehicle. Therefore, when Preceptor Daxing was alive, there were also several members of the Three Levels who abandoned the teachings of the Three Levels and took refuge in the Preceptor to practice buddhānusmṛti."