少室六門 1.88

1.88

問。經云。釋迦如來為菩薩時。曾飲三斗六升乳糜。方成佛道。先因飲乳。後證佛果。豈唯觀心得解脫乎。答。誠知所言無虛妄也。必因食乳。然始成佛。言食乳者有二種。佛所食者。不是世間不淨之乳。乃是真如清淨法乳也。三斗者。即三聚淨戒。六升者。即六波羅蜜。成佛道時。由食如是清淨法乳。方證佛果。若言如來食於世間和合不淨之牛羶腥乳者。豈不謗誤之甚乎。真如者。自是金剛不壞。無漏法身。永離世間一切諸苦。豈須如是不淨之乳。以充飢渴。如經所說。其牛不在高原。不在下濕。不食穀麥糠麩。不與特牛同群。其牛身作紫磨金色。言此牛者。毘盧舍那佛也。以大慈悲。怜愍一切。故於清淨法體中。出如是三聚淨戒六波羅蜜微妙法乳。育一切求解脫者。如是真淨之牛。清淨之乳。非但如來飲之成道。一切眾生若能飲者。皆得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。

Question: The sūtra says: 'When Śākyamuni Tathāgata was a bodhisattva, he drank three dou and six sheng of milk-gruel, and only then did he accomplish the Buddha Way.' If he first relied on drinking milk and only afterwards realized the fruit of buddhahood, how could contemplating the mind alone bring vimokṣa? Answer: Truly know that what was said is not false; he certainly had to consume milk, and only then did he accomplish buddhahood. Speaking of consuming milk, there are two kinds. That which the Buddha consumed was not worldly, impure milk, but the pure Dharma-milk of tathatā. The three dou are the three pure precepts. The six sheng are the ṣaṭ-pāramitā. When accomplishing the Buddha Way, it was by consuming such pure Dharma-milk that he only then realized the fruit of buddhahood. If one says that the Tathāgata consumed the impure, rancid, and fishy milk of worldly composite cows, would that not be an extreme slander and error? Tathatā itself is diamond-indestructible, the unconditioned dharmakāya, eternally free from all worldly suffering. How could it need such impure milk to satisfy hunger and thirst? As the sūtra says: 'That cow is not on the high plains, nor in the low wetlands. It does not eat grain, wheat, chaff, or bran, and does not herd together with common bulls. That cow's body is of purple-sheen golden colour.' Speaking of this cow, it is Vairocana Buddha. Out of great compassion and pity for all, from within his pure Dharma-essence he produced such subtle Dharma-milk of the three pure precepts and ṣaṭ-pāramitā to nurture all who seek vimokṣa. Not only did the Tathāgata drink the pure milk of such a truly pure cow and accomplish the Way, but if all sentient beings are able to drink it, they will all attain anuttarā-samyak-saṃbodhi.