西方合論 10.12

10.12

五、日月有無者，諸本或言日月虛空；或言處空而不運轉；或不言有無；或直言無有。又經曰：「彼佛光明普照佛剎，無量無數不可思議，映蔽日月。諸聲聞眾皆有身光，能照一尋；菩薩光照極百千尋；二菩薩光明，常照三千大千世界。」如是雖有日月，如爝火之處太陽，豈有光照？若日月不能照者，應無晝夜。何故？經言晝夜六時，及與清旦食時等事，明知亦是權說，借此晝夜喻彼時分，非為實事。且晝夜往來者，是眾生心明暗傾奪感有此相，故淨佛國土，不應有此。如忉利而上，尚不假明日月，何況極樂？縱令有者，亦是彼化國眾生，色空見未盡，現有如是日月相故，而實佛土，無有日月。如《大論》曰：「釋迦文佛更有淨國土如阿彌陀佛；阿彌陀佛亦有不嚴淨國如釋迦文佛。」此隨機感說，亦不妨說有故。

Fifth, regarding the presence or absence of the sun and moon: Various recensions variously say that the sun and moon are in empty space; or say that they abide in the sky without revolving; or do not speak of presence or absence; or simply say that there are none. Moreover, a sūtra says: "That Buddha's radiance universally illuminates the Buddha-realm, immeasurable, innumerable, and inconceivable, outshining the sun and moon. The assembly of śrāvakas all have auras on their bodies that can illuminate one fathom; the bodhisattvas' light illuminates up to a hundred thousand fathoms; the light of the two bodhisattvas constantly illuminates the trichiliocosm." Thus, even if there were a sun and moon, like a spark before the blazing sun, how could they cast illumination? If the sun and moon cannot illuminate, there should be no day and night. Why, then, do the sūtras speak of the six periods of day and night, as well as the morning mealtime and such matters? One clearly knows that these are also expedient explanations, using this day and night to metaphorically indicate those divisions of time; they are not actual occurrences. Furthermore, the alternation of day and night is an appearance evoked by the mutual rivalry of light and darkness in the minds of sentient beings; therefore, in a pure Buddha-land, such a thing ought not to exist. If even in the realms above the Trāyastriṃśa heaven they do not depend on the brightness of the sun and moon, how much less so in Sukhāvatī? Even if they were present, it would only be because the sentient beings in that transformed realm have not yet exhausted their views of form and emptiness, so such appearances of the sun and moon manifest; but in reality, the Buddha-land has no sun or moon. As the Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa says: "Śākyamuni Buddha also has a pure realm like Amitābha's; Amitābha also has an unadorned and impure realm like Śākyamuni's." This is spoken in accordance with the capacities and evoke responses, so it does not obstruct speaking of their presence.