宗鏡錄 85.27

85.27

Answer: Original awareness gets its name because of the initial; initial awareness is established from the original. As the Commentary on the Awakening of Faith says: “I wonder from where initial awareness arises? It is spoken of thus because it is opposed to the original. Originally, this initial awareness is born of the original; being brand new, it is therefore called initial. When reflecting back upon its substance, it has been present from the beginning; standing directly opposite to the initial, it is therefore called original. If there were no initial, what would it depend on? Just as a mother gives birth to a child, and in contrast to the child is called a mother.”