宗鏡錄 61.21

61.21

Answer: If one understands one's own mind, one achieves the Buddha's wisdom; ultimately, outside the mind there is no dharma that can be spoken of, nor any phenomenon that can be established. It is only for those who do not turn the light back to introspect themselves, but exclusively follow textual explanations and cling to their external objects, that within that which is without names and marks, one speaks provisionally using names and marks, using that very falsehood to reveal reality. One neither clings to letters nor separates from letters. Therefore, a verse in the Devarājaprajñāpāramitāsūtra says: 'The dhāraṇī has no letters; letters reveal the dhāraṇī. By the power of great compassion and skillful means, through transcending speech, letters are spoken.' The Laṅkāvatārasūtra says: 'The Buddha told Mahāmati: "We Buddhas and bodhisattvas do not utter a single word. Why is this? Because the Dharma transcends letters. It is not that speech is made without beneficial meaning. Speech is due to the delusive conceptualization of sentient beings. Mahāmati, if all dharmas were not spoken, the doctrinal teaching would be destroyed. If the doctrinal teaching were destroyed, there would be no Buddhas, bodhisattvas, pratyekabuddhas, or śrāvakas. If these did not exist, who would speak, and for whom? Therefore, Mahāmati, bodhisattva-mahāsattvas should not cling to speech, but in accord with what is appropriate and expedient, broadly explain the sūtras and teachings."' The Vimalakīrtinirdeśasūtra says: 'One who expounds the Dharma should expound it in accord with the Dharma... up to: The Dharma accords with emptiness; it follows signlessness; it corresponds with aimlessness. The Dharma transcends good and bad; the Dharma has neither increase nor decrease; the Dharma has neither arising nor ceasing; the Dharma has no place to which it returns. The Dharma transcends eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind; the Dharma has neither high nor low; the Dharma is eternally abiding and unmoving; the Dharma transcends all contemplative practice. Indeed, Mahāmaudgalyāyana! The characteristics of the Dharma are such; how could it be spoken? One who expounds the Dharma has nothing to expound and nothing to indicate; one who hears the Dharma has nothing to hear and nothing to attain. Just as an illusory conjurer expounds the Dharma to an illusory person, one should establish this intent and expound the Dharma. One should understand that the faculties of sentient beings are sharp or dull, be skilled in knowledge and vision without obstruction, praise the Great Vehicle with a mind of great compassion, be mindful of repaying the Buddha's benevolence without letting the Three Jewels be cut off, and only then expound the Dharma.' Therefore we know that it is not that expounding the Dharma is forbidden; only if one is without attachment when expounding, expounding is without fault. As the Viśeṣacintibrahmaparipṛcchāsūtra says: 'You bhikṣus should practice two things: first, noble expounding of the Dharma; second, noble silence.' But at the very time of expounding, completely realizing that nothing can be grasped is itself silence; it does not mean keeping one's mouth shut without speaking. Thus the ancients said: 'An illusory person speaks the Dharma, an illusory person hears; from the beginning, both have no sentiment. While speaking, there is no speaking—speak as you wish; at the place of hearing, there is no hearing—hear as you please.' Furthermore, if one takes the four self-natures, the personally attained dharma, and the fundamentally abiding dharma, from the standpoint of the ultimate truth, it cannot be spoken. If one takes the four siddhāntas, speaking according to the intentions of others, severing deep doubts, and generating correct faith, because there are causes and conditions, it can also be spoken. Moreover, what cannot be spoken is precisely what can be spoken, because the true principle is omnipresent; what can be spoken is precisely what cannot be spoken, because cultivation through conditions lacks self-nature. As the Laṅkāvatārasūtra says: 'Mahāmati again addressed the Buddha, saying: "As the World-Honoured One has said: 'From the night I attained supreme correct awakening until the night I entered parinirvāṇa, in between I did not speak a single word, nor have I spoken, nor will I speak. Non-speaking is the Buddha's speaking.'" Mahāmati addressed the Buddha, saying: "World-Honoured One, for what reason does the Tathāgata, the Arhat, the Fully and Completely Awakened One say that non-speaking is the Buddha's speaking?" The Buddha told Mahāmati: "Because of two dharmas, I make this statement. What are the two dharmas? Namely, the personally attained dharma and the fundamentally abiding dharma. These are called the two dharmas. Because of these two dharmas, I make such a statement. What is the personally attained dharma? What that Tathāgata attained, I have also attained, without increase or decrease. The ultimate realm of the personally attained dharma transcends verbal delusive conceptualization, and transcends the two approaches of letters. What is the fundamentally abiding dharma? It refers to the ancient sages' path of old; like the natures of gold and silver, the dharmadhātu is eternally abiding. Whether a Tathāgata appears in the world or does not appear in the world, the dharmadhātu is eternally abiding. It is like the road leading to that city: for example, a man travelling in a wilderness sees an even, straight road leading to an ancient city, and thereupon follows it into the city, enjoying pleasures as he desires. The verse says: 'From the night I attained the Way, / Until the night of nirvāṇa, / Between these two, / I spoke nothing at all. / Because of the personal and the fundamentally abiding, / I make such a statement; / That Buddha and I / Are completely without difference.'" The commentary says: 'There are two causes here: first, the personally attained dharma—the dharma attained by oneself is the path of realization; when the realized dharma is in oneself, it transcends faults and manifests virtues. Second, the fundamentally abiding dharma—fundamentally abiding refers to the ancient sages' path of old; it is transmitted from the old and not created.' The above is stating that there is no speaking based on principle and realization. If it is only heard by one's own mind, then the Buddha is constantly not speaking. As a verse in the Ratnagotravibhāga says: 'Just as various echoes / Arise relying on the earth, / Spontaneously without discrimination, / Abiding neither within nor without; / The Tathāgata's voice is also like this: / Arising relying on the mind-ground, / Spontaneously without discrimination, / Abiding neither within nor without.' Therefore, since it is neither born from within nor without, nor does it arise from the four propositions, this is according to true wisdom, which should be profoundly comprehended. If according to the provisional gate, skillful means are also not cut off. As the Zhiguan says: 'If one says that wisdom is born of the mind and naturally can illuminate, then the objective realm, the truth, and wisdom do not depend on one another. If one says that wisdom is not wisdom of itself, but is wisdom because of the objective realm, and the objective realm is not the objective realm of itself, but is the objective realm because of wisdom, this is like long and short depending on each other. If one says that the objective realm and wisdom exist because of causes and conditions, this is an appellation derived from combination. If one says they are none of the above three kinds, but are just spontaneously so, then they are without cause. All of these have the fault of the four graspings, and none of them can be spoken. In accordance with the causes and conditions of the four siddhāntas, it can also be spoken. There are only names, and names have no self-nature. Words without self-nature: these words do not abide, nor do they not abide. This is the inconceivable.' The sūtra says: 'Inconceivable wisdom-realm, inconceivable wisdom-illumination'—this is precisely the meaning. If one refutes the four natures of realm and wisdom, this is called real wisdom. If one accords with conditions through the four siddhāntas to speak of the four realms and wisdoms, this is called provisional wisdom. Thus provisional and real operate together, benefiting both oneself and others; only then does one merge with the Buddha's intent and avoid falling into one's own ignorance.