廬山蓮宗寶鑑 4.2

4.2

佛由心造、道在人弘，弘道之要無先乎念佛，念佛則是正心，正心故能合道，道之宗極曰佛也。佛者覺也，一切眾生有此本覺之性，因一念有差所以不覺。裴相國云「終日圓覺而未嘗圓覺者，眾生也；具足圓覺而住持圓覺者，如來也。」是故薄伽梵成道摩竭陀，說有談空、觀根逗教，於諸法之外別開念佛一門，截眾苦之根源、入聖流之要路。故經云：從是西方過十萬億佛土，有世界名曰極樂，其土有佛號阿彌陀。國中無三毒八難、有七寶眾妙莊嚴，以法為身、群聖為友，苟能誠信發願歸心彼土者即得往生，出乎三界九有之表、證諸佛無上妙道。其言無所欺也。粵自大教東流，至佛圖澄而盛，由澄而得道安，安之門有遠公，戒珠義海、龍姿鳳章，於是教門綱紀從茲大備。師著念佛三昧詠親勸，于時晉賢慕師之德，爭趨正覺之場同究斯道，名動帝王、道尊一代，彌天推為高弟、羅什結為勝友，識量廣大獨出於古今矣。至夫抗言為道，為萬世宗師，垂裕於人天者，遠公也。隋有智者、魏有曇鸞、唐有善導，大振宗風。宋有坦公，疏詮甘露省常結社。慈覺勸修、壽禪師融萬善以同歸、元宗主撮諸經而成懺，廣施方便曲盡慈悲。故我祖師欲令大地眾生，見本性彌陀、達唯心淨土，普皆覺悟菩提之妙道，乃立「普覺妙道」四字為定名之宗觀。夫四字一鏡洞照無邊，同一體用。何以知其然？總而言之，喻如人之一身，而有頭目手足為其用也，未甞有一而可分也。自非願廣悲深，而孰能取信於天下後世哉？竊甞論之曰：等眾生界名曰普、智達斯理名曰覺、德用無邊名曰妙、千聖履踐名曰道。又普者即自心周遍十方之體也，覺者即自心智照不迷之用也，妙者即自心利物應機之行也，道者即自心通達中正之理也。恒沙諸佛所證者此道也，歷代祖師所得者此道也，十方生淨土者已學此道也，未來修行者當學此道也。又況諸佛菩薩示現世間作大導師，各有悲願不捨眾生，或為王臣將相、居士宰官，出俗在家逆行順化，莫不以斯道而覺斯民也。三界群靈無量劫來至於今日，往來六道如蟻璇磨無由出離。佛祖憫彼故設方便以誘導之，俾夫趣吾之所趣。吾之所趣者非六道非三乘，乃如來正覺之趣。得吾所趣之道者，亦以此道化乎未趣，趣此所趣。譬如一燈燃百千燈，續焰分輝騰今耀古。此念佛之宗正心之法，正夫群生歸夫正道者矣。彼彼相傳於無盡，故名無盡燈也。普覺妙道之說豈徒言哉。蓋謂人人皆可作佛，不以僧俗之間、不以利鈍之分，無彼此無高下，等一性而已。得之為悟、失之為迷，同一理而已。迷而為凡、悟而為聖，迷者事隔，理不隔也；失者自失，性不失也。是知修念佛三昧者，則是正其心也。此心正則性順理也，得性順理則六塵不能染、萬境不能移，動用於一虛之中、寂寥於萬化之域，不動本處而周遊十方，超乎極樂之地、升乎寂光之堂，居乎涅槃山頂、朝乎無上法王。普覺妙道正心之義其至矣乎。不知此義者，功何所施、智何所發？譬彼無目之人，昧於日月之光，履於重險之處，墮坑落塹可勝紀乎？噫！去聖時遙，人多謬解，雖其正道悉陷邪宗，庸昏之徒含識而已，致使群邪詭惑諸黨並熾，是非蜂起空有云云，夾截虛空互相排毀。有著於事相不肯捨者、有順於應緣不自覺者、有守枯木而言定者、有恃聰明而稱慧者、有奔走非道而言能者、有假於鬼神而言通者、有身心放曠而言無礙者、有口耳潛傳而言祕訣者、有執我宗普字覺字者、有言彼宗妙字道字者，是皆私偷此鏡入彼邪域，致為塵垢蔽蒙不明宗體，雖得此鏡之名而不得其用也。殊不知慈照立此四字深有意焉，昧者不知執之失度。況又有言在家為彌陀教、出家為釋迦教者，自尊為祖、執法為宗，存彼此之執心觸途成滯、局偏邪之劣解是己非他。使我曹為佛祖後裔，而不能破其執、遣其惑，則何以揭慧日於昏衢哉？痛心佛祖慧命懸危甚於割身肉也，念報佛祖深恩寢食不遑安處也，念諸方佛子錯路修行不啻倒懸也。雖未能盡古人之萬一，然此心不欺也。予嘗切切於是，謹按高僧傳記遍求前哲真踪，究其源、摘其實，理之所當、事之所存者，集而出焉，虧者補之、冗者削之、隱者明之、斷者引之，庶千載之下修淨業者，因言思道、飲水知源，識古聖之遺風、體先宗之標格，紹隆佛種、光闡徽猷，壽慧命於無窮、傳真燈而有永。前不云四字一鏡洞照無邊乎？體斯道者慎勿忽諸。

The Buddha is created from the mind; the Way relies on humans to propagate it. In propagating the Way, there is nothing more essential than buddhānusmṛti. Buddhānusmṛti is precisely rectifying the mind; because the mind is rectified, it can accord with the Way. The ultimate source of the Way is called the Buddha. “Buddha” means awakened: all sentient beings possess this nature of fundamental awakening; yet because of an error in a single thought, they are unawakened. Chancellor Pei said: “Those who all day long are fully awakened and yet have never been fully awakened are sentient beings; that which is fully endowed with complete awakening and abides in sustaining complete awakening is the Tathāgata.” Therefore, the Bhagavat attained the Way in Magadha, spoke of existence and discussed emptiness, observed capacities and dispensed teachings; beyond all methods, he separately opened the single gate of buddhānusmṛti, severing the root source of the multitude of sufferings and serving as the essential road to enter the stream of sages. Thus the sūtra says: Passing from here to the west over a hundred thousand kotis of Buddha-lands, there is a world named Sukhāvatī, and in that land is a Buddha named Amitābha. In that realm there are no three poisons and eight difficulties, but rather the myriad wondrous adornments of the seven jewels. Taking the Dharma as body and the host of sages as companions, if one can sincerely and faithfully make vows and take refuge in that land, one will immediately attain rebirth, transcend beyond the three realms and nine existences, and realize the unexcelled wondrous Way of all Buddhas. These words are not deceptive. Ever since the great teaching flowed eastward, it flourished through Fotudeng. From Deng, Dao'an was obtained, and within [Dao]'an's gate was Master Yuan: his precepts like jewels, his doctrine like an ocean, with the posture of a dragon and the brilliance of a phoenix; thereupon, the foundational order of the doctrinal gate was henceforth fully prepared. The master composed poems on the buddhānusmṛti-samādhi to personally encourage others; at that time, the worthy of the Jin admired the master’s virtue, vied to hasten to the place of right awakening to investigate this Way together. His fame stirred emperors and kings, and his Way was honored throughout the age: Dao'an of Vast Virtue praised him as his top disciple, and Kumārajīva joined with him as an eminent friend; the breadth of his knowledge and capacity singularly surpassed past and present. As for speaking out boldly for the sake of the Way, acting as a patriarchal master for ten thousand generations, and extending abundance to humans and devas—that was Master Yuan. In the Sui there was Zhiyi; in the Wei there was Tanluan; in the Tang there was Shandao—they greatly revitalized the school's style. In the Song there was Master Tan, who annotated the Ambrosia, and Xingchang, who formed the society. Cijue encouraged practice; Dhyāna Master [Yongming Yan]shou fused the ten thousand good deeds into a common return; Master Yuanzong condensed the various sūtras to compose the repentance [rituals]; they broadly provided expedients and thoroughly exhausted compassion. Therefore, our patriarch wished to cause the sentient beings of the great earth to see the Amitābha of their own nature, realize the Mind-only Pure Land, and universally awaken to the wondrous Way of bodhi; he thus established the four characters “Universal Awakening to the Wondrous Way” (Pujue Miaodao) as the contemplation of the definitive lineage. These four characters are a single mirror that thoroughly illuminates boundlessly, sharing a single essence and function. How do we know it is so? To sum it up, it is like a person's single body, having head, eyes, hands, and feet as its functions, which have never been a single entity that could be divided. Unless one’s vows are vast and compassion profound, who could win the trust of the world and later generations? I venture to discuss it thus: Equality across the realm of sentient beings is named “Universal” (pu); wisdom penetrating this principle is named “Awakening” (jue); virtuous function without bound is named “Wondrous” (miao); that which the thousand sages tread is named “Way” (dao). Moreover, “Universal” is the essence of one's own mind pervading the ten directions; “Awakening” is the function of one's own mind illuminating with wisdom and free from delusion; “Wondrous” is the practice of one's own mind benefiting beings according with their capacities; “Way” is the principle of one's own mind penetrating centrality and correctness. This Way is that which the Buddhas of the sands of the Ganges have verified; this Way is that which the ancestral masters through the ages have attained; those reborn in the Pure Land throughout the ten directions have already learned this Way; future practitioners should also learn this Way. Furthermore, all Buddhas and bodhisattvas manifest in the world as great guides, each having compassionate vows never to abandon sentient beings, appearing as kings, ministers, generals, chancellors, lay practitioners, and magistrates, leaving the world or remaining at home, operating contrary [to conventions] or according with transformation—there are none who do not awaken these people by means of this Way. The myriad spirits of the three realms, from limitless kalpas down to the present day, have come and gone in the six destinies like ants revolving upon a millstone, with no means of escape. The Buddhas and patriarchs, pitying them, established expedients to guide them, causing them to head toward that to which I head. That to which I head is neither the six destinies nor the three vehicles; it is the destination of the Tathāgata's right awakening. Those who have attained the Way to which I head also use this Way to transform those who have not yet reached it, bringing them to this destination. This is like a single lamp lighting hundreds of thousands of lamps, continuing the flame and sharing the radiance, blazing in the present and illuminating the ancient. This principle of buddhānusmṛti is the method of rectifying the mind, rectifying the host of beings and returning them to the right path. As it is transmitted successively without end, it is therefore called the inexhaustible lamp. How could the doctrine of Universal Awakening to the Wondrous Way be mere words? It means that everyone can become a Buddha, regardless of whether one is monastic or lay, regardless of whether faculties are sharp or dull, with no distinction between this and that, no high or low, equal in a single nature alone. Gaining it constitutes awakening, losing it constitutes delusion—they are merely a single principle. Through delusion one becomes an ordinary being, through awakening one becomes a sage; for the deluded, phenomena are separated, but principle is not separated; for those who have lost it, they lose it themselves, but nature is not lost. Hence we know that those who cultivate the buddhānusmṛti-samādhi are rectifying their minds. When this mind is rectified, the nature accords with principle; having attained nature according with principle, the six dusts cannot defile it, and the myriad conditions cannot move it. Moving and functioning within the single emptiness, solitary and still in the domain of ten thousand transformations, without moving from one's fundamental place one roams the ten directions, transcending to the ground of Sukhāvatī, ascending to the hall of Quiet Radiance, dwelling on the summit of the mountain of nirvāṇa, and having an audience with the unexcelled Dharma King. How consummate is the meaning of Universal Awakening to the Wondrous Way and the rectification of the mind! For those who do not know this meaning, where can effort be applied, and where can wisdom be generated? They are like blind people, ignorant of the light of the sun and moon, walking into great perils; how can one recount the ditches and trenches into which they fall? Alas! The holy age is far removed, and people mostly hold erroneous interpretations. Although it is the right path, they all fall into heterodox sects; mediocre and confused sorts are nothing more than conscious beings, which causes the multitude of heterodoxies to deceive and confuse, and various factions to blaze up together. Right and wrong arise like swarming bees, prattling about emptiness and existence, cutting off empty space and disparaging each other. Some cling to phenomenal aspects and refuse to relinquish them; some follow conforming conditions without self-awareness; some guard withered wood and call it concentration; some rely on cleverness and call it wisdom; some rush down unprincipled paths and call it capability; some borrow the power of ghosts and spirits and call it supernatural penetration; some are unrestrained in body and mind and call it unhinderedness; some transmit secretly mouth to ear and call it an esoteric formula; some cling to the characters “Universal” and “Awakening” of our school; some proclaim the characters “Wondrous” and “Way” of other schools. These all privately steal this mirror to enter those heterodox realms, resulting in its being obscured by dust and filth, dimming the school's essence; although they obtain the name of this mirror, they do not obtain its function. Little do they know that Cizhao had a profound intention in establishing these four characters; the confused do not know this and, clinging to them, lose the proper measure. Furthermore, there are those who claim that staying at home is the teaching of Amitābha, while leaving home is the teaching of Śākyamuni; they venerate themselves as patriarchs, cling to doctrines as sects, harbor the grasping mind of self and other and encounter obstructions at every turn, being constrained by biased, heterodox, and inferior understandings, affirming themselves and denying others. If we, as descendants of the Buddhas and patriarchs, cannot shatter their attachments and dispel their confusions, how can we unveil the wisdom sun in the darkened thoroughfare? My heart aches for the hanging-in-the-balance of the Buddhas' and patriarchs' wisdom-life even more than having flesh sliced from my own body; mindful of repaying the deep grace of the Buddhas and patriarchs, I find no peace in sleeping or eating; mindful of the Buddha’s children across all quarters taking mistaken paths in cultivation, it is no different from being hung upside down. Although I cannot reach even one ten-thousandth of the ancients, yet this mind is not deceitful. I have constantly applied myself earnestly to this: respectfully examining the biographies of eminent monks, searching everywhere for the true traces of earlier sages, investigating their source, selecting their reality, and compiling whatever principle warrants and whatever phenomena exist. What was lacking I supplemented, what was redundant I cut out, what was concealed I illuminated, and what was broken I linked together, hoping that cultivators of pure karma a thousand years hence will reflect on the Way through these words and drink water while knowing its source, recognize the legacy of ancient sages and embody the standard of former masters, continue and exalt the Buddha's lineage, broadly illuminate the fine teachings, perpetuate the wisdom-life endlessly, and transmit the true lamp perpetually. Was it not said earlier that the four characters are a single mirror that thoroughly illuminates boundlessly? May those who embody this Way be careful not to neglect it!