宗鏡錄 53.12

53.12

答。根者。即五根。有增上出生義故。名之為根。於中有清淨五色根。有扶塵五色根。若清淨五色根。即是不可見有對淨色。以為體性。能發生五識。有照境用故。若扶塵五色根者。即扶清淨根。能照其境。自體即不能照境。為扶塵根。是麁顯色故。不妨與清淨根為所依。五蘊論云。根者。最勝義。自在義。主義。增上義。是為根義。云何眼根。謂以色為境。淨色為性。謂於眼中一分淨色。如淨醍醐。此性有故。眼識得生。無即不生。乃至身根以觸為境。並淨色為性。無即不生。

Answer: "Faculties" are the five faculties. Because they have the meaning of predominant arising, they are named "faculties." Among them, there are the five pure form-faculties and the five auxiliary form-faculties. The five pure form-faculties take invisible, obstructive, pure form as their substance; they can produce the five consciousnesses and possess the function of illuminating objects. The five auxiliary form-faculties assist the pure faculties so that they can illuminate their objects, while their own substance cannot illuminate objects. Because the auxiliary faculties are coarse and manifest forms, they do not hinder being the support for the pure faculties. The Pañcaskandhaprakaraṇa states: "'Faculty' has the meaning of supreme, the meaning of mastery, the meaning of lord, and the meaning of predominant; this is the meaning of faculty. What is the eye-faculty? It takes visible form as its sphere and pure form as its nature. That is, a portion of pure form within the eye, like pure clarified butter (sarpirmaṇḍa); because this nature exists, the eye-consciousness can arise; if it is absent, it does not arise. And so on up to the body-faculty taking tangible objects as its sphere, all taking pure form as their nature; if it is absent, it does not arise."