宗鏡錄 26.5

26.5

答。以彼但於行布位中。修行信等。於此圓融普賢十信。一攝一切。猶未聞信。故知不偶斯文。虛功累劫。纔聞此旨。便入圓通。但不涉前五非器之中。則永固一乘之佛種。可以手得。可以心傳。深囑後賢。無失法利。又若過去。曾聞此法。未得信入。以法力所熏。方起疑心。若未曾聞。疑終不起。如入大乘論云。薄福之人。不生於疑。能生疑者。必破諸有。是以著有眾生。皆因染習。如輕毛之不定。垢淨隨緣。猶素絲之攬色。青黃任受。悉是聞熏之力。各入三乘之門。況聞宗鏡之中。速發一乘之種。但有心者。熏皆得成。華嚴論云。如世間一切井泉。以海為體。若人飲者。皆得海味。一體無異。但隨業力而得鹹味。此經亦爾。若有大心眾生。聞持信入。便得如來法身佛性。大悲智味。闡提之人。無所堪任。然如來智性。常作生因。故知具大信根者。聞之成佛。如不信者。即是闡提。然雖不信。亦熏其種。故云如來智性。常作生因。所以法華經偈云。若有聞法者。無一不成佛。昔泥蛤聞法而生天。厩象聽經而悛惡。比丘戲笑而獲果。女人思惟而悟空。何況聞宗鏡中純圓頓教。如善見律論云。昔佛在世時。到瞻婆羅國迦羅池邊。為眾說法。時彼池中。有其一蛤。聞佛池邊說法之聲。即從池出。入草根下。聽佛說法。時有一人。持杖放牛。見佛在坐。為眾說法。即往佛所。欲聞法故。以杖刺地。誤著蛤頭。即便命終。生忉利天。以福報故。宮殿縱廣十二由旬。與諸天女。娛樂受樂。即乘宮殿。往至佛所。頭頂禮足。佛知故問。汝是何人。忽禮我足。神通光明。相好無比。照徹此間。蛤天即以偈而答曰。往昔為蛤身。於水中覓食。聞佛說法聲。出至草根下。有一牧牛人。持杖來聽法。杖劖刺我頭。命終生天上。佛以蛤人所說偈。為四眾說法。是時眾中八萬四千人。皆得道跡。蛤天人得須陀洹果。含笑而去。大智度論云。昔王不立厩於寺者。謂此王有象。可以敵國。每有怨敵。莊嚴器仗。無不剋勝。後敵國皆懼。久而無敵。遂於寺中。立厩養之。久聞僧眾禮念。熏心。馴善成性。後有隣國兵眾相侵。嚴象敵之。都不肯戰。其王憂愁。慮國衰敗。智臣白王。此象久久處之精舍。見聞善事。與之化矣。可處屠坊。令常見殺。後未經久。惡心還起。畜生尚爾。況復於人。近善不善。近惡不惡。故儒典中。亦令君子慎所習也。今若聞宗鏡。熏起一乘。廣大難量。善利無盡。雜寶藏經云。佛法寬廣。濟度無涯。至心求道。無不獲果。乃至戲笑。福不唐捐。如往昔時。有老比丘。年已朽邁。神情昏塞。見諸年少比丘。種種說法。聞說四果。心生羨尚。語少比丘言。汝等聰慧。願以四果以用與我。諸少比丘。嗤而語言。我有四果。須得好食。然後相與。時老比丘。聞其此語。歡喜。即設種種餚饍。請少比丘食。共食已。更相指揮。弄老比丘。語言。大德。汝在此舍一角頭坐。當與汝果。時老比丘。聞已歡喜。如語而坐。諸少比丘。即以皮毱打其頭上。而語之言。此是須陀洹果。老比丘聞已。繫念不散。即獲初果。諸少比丘。復弄之言。雖與汝須陀洹果。然其故有七生七死。更移一角。次當與汝斯陀含果。時老比丘。獲初果故。心轉增進。即復移坐。諸少比丘。復以毱打頭。而語之言。與汝二果。時老比丘。益加專念。即證二果。諸少比丘。復弄之言。汝今已得斯陀含果。猶有往來生死之難。汝更移坐。我當與汝阿那含果。時老比丘。如言移坐。諸少比丘。復以毱打。而語之言。我今與汝第三之果。時老比丘。聞已歡喜。倍加至心。即時復證阿那含果。諸少比丘。復弄之言。汝今已得不還之果。然故於色無色界。受有漏身。無常遷壞。念念是苦。汝更移坐。次當與汝阿羅漢果。時老比丘。如語移坐。諸少比丘。復以皮毱撩打其頭。而語之言。我今與汝彼第四果。時老比丘。一心思惟。即證阿羅漢果。得四果已。甚大歡喜。設諸餚饍種種香華。獻諸比丘。報其恩德。與少比丘。共論道品無漏功德。諸少比丘。發言滯塞。時老比丘。方語之言。我已證得阿羅漢果已。諸少比丘。聞其此音。咸皆謝悔先戲弄罪。是故行人。宜應念善。乃至戲弄猶獲實報。況至心也。又雜寶藏經云。昔有一女。聰明智慧。深信三寶。常於僧次。請一比丘就舍供養。後時便有一老比丘。次到其舍。年老根鈍。素無知曉。齋食訖已。女人至心求請說法。敷坐頭前。閉目靜坐。比丘自知不解說法。趣其泯眼。棄走還寺。然此女人。至心思惟有為之法。無常苦空。不得自在。深心觀察。即時獲得須陀洹果。既得果已。向寺求覓。欲報其恩。然此比丘。自審知棄他逃走。倍生慚恥。轉復藏避。而此女人。苦求不已。方自出現。女人見已。具說蒙得道果因緣。齎供報恩。老比丘聞。甚大慚愧。深自剋責。亦復獲得須陀洹果。是故行者。應當至心精誠求法。若至心者。所求必證。如上所獲聖果。豈有前人為說深妙法耶。皆是自悟。從心所證。可驗宗鏡。達者無疑。如大乘本生心地觀經云。佛言。我今演說心地妙法。引導眾生。令入佛智。如是妙法。諸佛如來過無量劫。時乃說之。乃至以是因緣。難見難聞。菩提正道。心地法門。若有善男子。善女人。聞是妙法。一經於耳。須臾之頃。攝念觀心。熏成無上大菩提種。不久當坐菩提樹王。金剛寶座。得成阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。華嚴十地品云。金剛藏菩薩云。佛子。此集一切種一切智功德。菩薩行法門典。若諸眾生不種善根。不可得聞。解脫月菩薩言。聞此法門。得幾所福。金剛藏菩薩言。如一切智所集福德。聞此法門。福德如是。何以故。非不聞此功德法門。而能信解受持讀誦。何況精進如說修行。是故當知。要得聞此習一切智功德法門。乃能信解受持修習。然後至於一切智地。故知若不聞此不思議廣大威德圓頓法門。何由修行。速證究竟一乘。常樂我淨大涅槃果。以眾生處不定聚中。聞小修小。遇權習權。不偶斯文。俱成大失。今所集者。所益弘多。設聞而不修。亦成其種。何況聞思修者。如先德云。如今若要直會。但不取一切相即得。更無別語。佛是自心義。亦名為道。亦云覺義。覺是靈覺之性。只今自鑒照語言。應機接物。揚眉動目。運手動足。皆是自靈覺之性。亦是心。心即道。道即佛。佛即是禪。禪之一字。非凡所測。若知諸法從心生。即不應執。執即不知。若不見本性。十二分教則為虛設。故知因教明心。何執文義。又教從心生。心由教立。離心無教。離教無心。豈心外別有教而可執乎。所以唯識疏云。若頓教門。大不由小起。即無三時前後次第。即華嚴經中。說唯一心。是初成道竟最初一說。又云。諸愚夫類從無始來。虛妄分別因緣力故。執離心外。定有真實能取所取。如來大悲。以甘露法。授彼令服。斷妄狂心。棄執空有。證真了義。華嚴等中。說一切法皆唯有識。所以佛證唯識。說一心經。令依修學。釋云。天親造頌。成立佛經。令諸學者。了知萬法皆不離心。即大乘中道義理顯矣。是知圓中之信。此信難成。

Answer: It is because they only cultivated faith and the like within the stages of progressive practice, and had not yet heard or believed in these universally merging ten faiths of Samantabhadra, wherein one subsumes all. Therefore, one should know that if one does not encounter this text, one expends effort in vain for accumulated eons; yet the moment one hears this principle, one immediately enters perfect penetration. So long as one is not involved among the aforementioned five types of non-receptacles, one forever solidifies the buddha-seed of the ekayāna. It can be attained by the hand; it can be transmitted by the mind. I earnestly urge future worthy ones not to lose the benefit of the Dharma. Moreover, if in the past one had heard this Dharma but could not yet enter into faith, it was through the perfuming power of the Dharma that doubts initially arose. If one had never heard it, doubt would never arise in the end. As the Introduction to the Mahāyāna (Ru dacheng lun) says: 'A person of meager merit does not produce doubt. One who can produce doubt will certainly shatter all states of existence.' Thus, sentient beings attached to existence do so entirely because of defiled conditioning, just as a light feather is unfixed, its defilement or purity following conditions; just as raw silk absorbs dye, taking on blue or yellow at will. All of this is due to the power of hearing and perfuming, by which each enters the gates of the triyāna. How much more so when one hears within the Mirror of the Source: one swiftly brings forth the seed of the ekayāna. As long as one has a mind, whatever is perfumed is brought to completion. The Huayan Treatise says: 'Just as all the wells and springs in the world have the ocean as their substance, if people drink from them, they all attain the taste of the ocean—of one substance, without difference—yet according to the power of their karma alone do they obtain a salty flavor. This sūtra is also like this: if there are sentient beings of great mind who hear, uphold, and enter into faith, they immediately attain the tathāgata's dharmakāya and buddha-nature, the flavor of great compassion and wisdom. An icchantika is incapable of this; yet the tathāgata's wisdom-nature constantly acts as a generative cause.' Therefore, know that those endowed with the root of great faith become buddhas upon hearing it; those who do not believe are icchantikas. Yet, although they do not believe, it still perfumes their seed; thus it is said that the tathāgata's wisdom-nature constantly acts as a generative cause. Therefore, a gāthā of the Lotus Sūtra says: 'If there are those who hear the Dharma, / not one fails to become a buddha.' In ancient times, a mud-dwelling frog heard the Dharma and was born in heaven; a stable elephant listened to a sūtra and reformed its evil; a monk attained the fruit through joking; a woman realized emptiness through contemplation. How much more so when hearing the purely perfect and sudden teaching within the Mirror of the Source! As the Shanjian lü lun says: Anciently, when the Buddha was in the world, he went to the edge of the Kāla pool in the country of Campā to preach the Dharma for the assembly. At that time, in that pool, there was a frog. Hearing the sound of the Buddha preaching the Dharma by the pool, it immediately came out of the pool and went beneath the roots of grass to listen to the Buddha preaching the Dharma. At that time, there was a man grazing cattle with a staff. Seeing the Buddha seated, preaching the Dharma for the assembly, he went to the Buddha's place wishing to hear the Dharma, and planted his staff into the ground, mistakenly striking the frog's head. The frog immediately died and was born in the Trāyastriṃśa heaven. Due to its karmic reward of merit, its palace was twelve yojanas in length and breadth, and it enjoyed pleasures with the heavenly maidens. It then rode its palace to the Buddha's place and bowed its head to his feet. The Buddha, knowing, deliberately asked: 'Who are you, suddenly bowing at my feet? Your supernatural powers and radiant light, your major and minor marks are peerless, illuminating this entire place.' The frog deva then answered with a gāthā: 'In the past I had the body of a frog, / searching for food in the water. / Hearing the sound of the Buddha preaching the Dharma, / I came out beneath the roots of grass. / A cowherd came holding a staff / to listen to the Dharma; / the staff struck and pierced my head, / and at death I was born in heaven.' The Buddha used the gāthā spoken by the frog-man to preach the Dharma for the fourfold assembly. At that time, eighty-four thousand people in the assembly all attained the track of the Path, and the frog deva attained the fruit of srotāpanna and departed with a smile. The Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa says: Anciently, a king did not build an elephant stable at a monastery because this king had an elephant capable of resisting an enemy state. Whenever there were enemies, it would be adorned with armor and weapons, and it was always victorious. Later, the enemy states were all terrified, and for a long time there were no enemies; thus, a stable was built in a monastery to keep it. For a long time, hearing the saṅgha's bowing and chanting, its mind was perfumed, and it became docile and gentle by nature. Later, when troops of a neighboring country invaded, the elephant was equipped to resist them, but it refused to fight at all. The king was sorrowful, fearing the ruin of his state. A wise minister told the king: 'This elephant has stayed in the monastery for a long time, seeing and hearing good deeds, and has been transformed by them. It should be placed in a slaughterhouse and made to constantly see slaughter.' Before long, its evil mind arose again. If it is so even with beasts, how much more so with humans! Approaching the good makes one good; approaching the evil makes one evil. Therefore, in Confucian texts as well, the gentleman is enjoined to be cautious about what he is conditioned by. Now, if one hears the Mirror of the Source, it perfumes and brings forth the ekayāna, vast and immeasurable, of unending beneficial merit. The Za baozang jing says: 'The Buddha's Dharma is broad and vast, its deliverance boundless. Whoever seeks the Path with an earnest mind never fails to attain the fruit; even in joking, the merit is not in vain.' For instance, in ancient times there was an old monk, aged and decrepit, of dull and obstructed mental faculties. Seeing various young monks preaching the Dharma in various ways and hearing them speak of the four fruits, his mind gave rise to admiration and longing. He said to the young monks: 'You are intelligent; please bestow the four fruits upon me.' The young monks sneered and said to him: 'We have the four fruits, but we must have good food before we give them to you.' Hearing these words, the old monk rejoiced and immediately prepared various dishes and delicacies, inviting the young monks to eat. Having finished eating together, they directed each other to make fun of the old monk, saying to him: 'Venerable, sit in a corner of this room, and we will give you a fruit.' Hearing this, the old monk rejoiced and sat as told. The young monks then struck him on the head with a leather ball and said to him: 'This is the fruit of srotāpanna.' The old monk, having heard this, concentrated his thoughts without distraction, and immediately attained the first fruit. The young monks made fun of him again, saying: 'Although we gave you the fruit of srotāpanna, you still have seven births and seven deaths. Move to another corner, and next we will give you the fruit of sakṛdāgāmin.' Because the old monk had attained the first fruit, his mind progressed even further, and he moved his seat again. The young monks again struck his head with the ball and said to him: 'We give you the second fruit.' The old monk applied single-minded mindfulness even more, and immediately realized the second fruit. The young monks made fun of him again, saying: 'Now you have attained the fruit of sakṛdāgāmin, but you still face the difficulty of returning to birth and death. If you move your seat again, we will give you the fruit of anāgāmin.' The old monk moved his seat as told. The young monks again struck him with the ball and said to him: 'We now give you the third fruit.' Hearing this, the old monk rejoiced, redoubled his earnest mind, and immediately realized the fruit of anāgāmin. The young monks made fun of him again, saying: 'Now you have attained the fruit of non-returning, yet you still receive a body with outflows in the form and formless realms, impermanent and subject to decay, every thought being suffering. If you move your seat again, next we will give you the fruit of arhat.' The old monk moved his seat as told. The young monks again struck his head with the leather ball and said to him: 'We now give you that fourth fruit.' The old monk contemplated with one mind, and immediately realized the fruit of arhat. Having attained the four fruits, he was overjoyed. He prepared various delicacies and various fragrant flowers to offer to the monks to repay their kindness. He discussed the factors of enlightenment and undefiled virtues with the young monks, but the young monks' words were faltering and obstructed. Only then did the old monk say to them: 'I have already realized the fruit of arhat.' Hearing his words, the young monks all apologized and repented for their previous sin of playing pranks. Therefore, practitioners should be mindful of goodness; even playful jokes yield real results, how much more so an earnest mind! Also, the Za baozang jing says: In ancient times, there was a woman of keen intelligence and wisdom who had deep faith in the Three Jewels. In the order of the saṅgha, she would always invite a monk to her house for offerings. Later, an old monk's turn came to visit her house. He was aged, of dull faculties, and had no learning at all. When the vegetarian meal was finished, the woman earnestly requested him to preach the Dharma, spreading a seat before him and closing her eyes in quiet contemplation. The monk, knowing himself that he did not understand how to preach the Dharma, took advantage of her closed eyes, abandoned her, and ran back to the monastery. However, this woman earnestly contemplated conditioned dharmas as impermanent, suffering, empty, and lacking autonomy; observing with a deep mind, she immediately attained the fruit of srotāpanna. Having attained the fruit, she went to the monastery to seek him out, wishing to repay his kindness. But this monk, knowing full well that he had abandoned her and fled, felt redoubled shame and hid himself even further. Yet this woman sought him earnestly without ceasing, so he finally showed himself. Seeing him, the woman explained in full the causes and conditions of receiving the fruit of the Path, presenting offerings to repay his kindness. Hearing this, the old monk felt great shame, deeply reproached himself, and likewise attained the fruit of srotāpanna. Therefore, practitioners should seek the Dharma with an earnest and sincere mind. If one has an earnest mind, what one seeks will certainly be realized. As for the holy fruits attained above, did someone preach profound and wondrous Dharma to them beforehand? It was all self-awakening, realized from the mind. This verifies the Mirror of the Source; those who have penetrated it have no doubt. As the Dacheng bensheng xindi guan jing says: 'The Buddha said: "I now expound the wondrous Dharma of the mind-ground to guide sentient beings and cause them to enter the Buddha's wisdom. Such wondrous Dharma is expounded by the buddha-tathāgatas only after immeasurable eons have passed... By these causes and conditions, it is difficult to see and difficult to hear—the correct path of bodhi, the Dharma-gate of the mind-ground. If there is a good man or good woman who hears this wondrous Dharma, and it passes through their ears for only an instant, and they collect their thoughts to observe the mind, it perfumes into the seed of unsurpassed great bodhi; before long, they will sit upon the diamond throne under the king of bodhi trees and attain anuttarā-samyak-saṃbodhi."' The 'Ten Grounds' chapter of the Huayan sūtra says: 'Vajragarbha Bodhisattva said: "Sons of the Buddha, this scripture of the Dharma-gate of bodhisattva practice gathers all kinds of merit of sarvākārajñatā. If sentient beings have not planted good roots, it cannot be heard." Vimukticandra Bodhisattva said: "Having heard this Dharma-gate, how much merit does one attain?" Vajragarbha Bodhisattva said: "As much merit as is gathered by sarvākārajñatā, such is the merit of hearing this Dharma-gate. Why is this? Without having heard this meritorious Dharma-gate, one cannot faithfully understand, accept, uphold, read, and recite it, let alone vigorously cultivate it according to the teaching. Therefore, you should know that one must first hear this Dharma-gate of practicing the merit of sarvākārajñatā before one can faithfully understand, accept, uphold, and cultivate it, and thereafter reach the ground of sarvākārajñatā."' Therefore, know that if one does not hear this inconceivable, vastly majestic, perfect, and sudden Dharma-gate, by what means could one cultivate and swiftly realize the fruit of great nirvāṇa—the ultimate ekayāna, permanence, bliss, self, and purity? Because sentient beings abide in the indeterminate group, when they hear the small they cultivate the small, and when they encounter the provisional they practice the provisional; not encountering this text, they incur a great loss. What is gathered here brings exceedingly manifold benefits. Even if one hears it and does not cultivate, it still forms a seed; how much more so for those who hear, reflect, and cultivate! As an ancient master of virtue said: 'Now, if you want direct understanding, simply do not grasp any characteristics, and that will be enough; there are no other words. "Buddha" has the meaning of one's own mind; it is also called the "Path"; it is also said to mean "awakening." Awakening is the nature of luminous awareness. Right now, self-reflection, speaking, responding to conditions, receiving things, raising the eyebrows, moving the eyes, moving the hands, and moving the feet are all one's own nature of luminous awareness; they are also the mind. The mind is the Path; the Path is the Buddha; the Buddha is chan. The single character chan cannot be fathomed by worldlings. If one knows that all dharmas arise from the mind, one should not cling. Clinging is not knowing. If one does not see the original nature, the twelve divisions of the canon are set forth in vain.' Therefore, know that because the mind is clarified through teaching, why cling to literal words? Furthermore, teaching arises from the mind, and the mind is established through teaching. Apart from the mind there is no teaching; apart from teaching there is no mind. How could there be a teaching apart from the mind that one could cling to? Therefore, the Commentary on Vijñaptimātra says: 'In the gate of the sudden teaching, the great does not arise from the small; there is no sequential order of the three periods. That is, in the Huayan Sūtra, expounding only one mind was the very first preaching immediately after the initial realization of the Path.' It also says: 'All foolish worldlings, from beginningless time, due to the power of causes and conditions of false discrimination, cling to there definitely being real graspers and grasped apart from the mind. The Tathāgata, with great compassion, gave them the amṛta-dharma to drink, severing their deluded, frenzied minds, abandoning clinging to emptiness and existence, and realizing the true, definitive meaning. In the Huayan and other sūtras, it is expounded that all dharmas are consciousness-only. Therefore, the Buddha, having realized vijñaptimātra, expounded the sūtra of the one mind to cause them to cultivate in reliance upon it.' The commentary explains: 'Vasubandhu composed verses to establish the Buddha's sūtras, causing all scholars to understand that the ten thousand dharmas are not separate from the mind; thus the principle of the Mahāyāna middle way is revealed.' From this, know that faith in the perfect middle—this faith is difficult to achieve.