宗鏡錄 86.21

86.21

Explanation: Because they previously conceive through expedients the understanding of the other, appearing like the understanding of the other, they can correspond with it. Ordinary beings and Hinayāna practitioners do not know that they themselves are producing the understanding of the other, and thereupon say: 'I now know the minds of others.' Although they produce the understanding of the other and can correspond with it, because they deem that there are grāhaka and grāhya, it is still not true knowing. Therefore, that treatise says: 'Worldly knowers of others' minds do not know in accordance with reality with respect to those two phenomena, because of their false discrimination of the objective realms of grāhaka and grāhya.' By this textual evidence, there is no external consciousness; therefore, forming an external understanding is in all cases not true knowing. If one contemplates that the mental consciousness originally lacks shape or characteristic, is neither that nor this, has no coming and no going, and, not relying on external understanding, ceases discriminations, then this is true knowing of the minds of all living beings. Therefore, the Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa says: 'If the mental and mental-concomitant phenomena of all sentient beings were substantially existent by nature and not deceitful, the Buddha could not know the mental and mental-concomitant phenomena of all sentient beings. Because the mental and mental-concomitant phenomena of all sentient beings are substantially deceitful by nature, having no coming and no going, the Buddha is able to know the mental and mental-concomitant phenomena of all sentient beings. For example, a bhikṣu who seeks with greed does not obtain offerings, but if he has no greed or seeking, he lacks nothing. External to the mind it is likewise: if one discriminates and grasps at characteristics, one does not attain the true Dharma; because one does not attain the true Dharma, one cannot penetrate and know the mental and mental-concomitant phenomena of all sentient beings. If one does not grasp at characteristics and has no discrimination, one attains the true Dharma; hence, one is able to penetrate and know the mental and mental-concomitant phenomena of all sentient beings without any obstruction.' By this textual evidence, mind has no coming or going; the Buddha knows that there is no exterior, and corresponds to reality in being able to know. He is not like the ordinary beings and Hinayāna practitioners with knowledge of others' minds, who direct their conditions outward toward mind, still mingled with delusional consciousness. Therefore, the verses of the Viṃśikāvijñaptimātratāsiddhi say: 'Knowing of others' minds with regard to their objects is not knowing in accordance with reality; because it is not an object apart from consciousness, only the Buddha knows in accordance with reality.' By this textual evidence, the Buddha knows vijñaptimātra, producing by himself the understanding of the other, with no exterior that can be grasped. Because he knows that his own citta produces all understandings of minds, he forever cuts off the mind of outward discrimination. The Laṅkāvatārasūtra says: 'Knowing in accordance with reality that all phenomena are only one's own citta, therefore a discriminating mind does not arise.' By this textual evidence, the Buddha knows that another's mind is just his own citta, free from external discrimination, conditioning only his own citta, with mental speech as its object. Because the mental consciousnesses of sentient beings are boundless, each having different understandings with distinctions difficult to measure, the Buddha is free from external thoughts and omniscient in one mind, like water that is unmoved while the myriad images appear within it. When this one mind of the Buddha knows all minds, the one produces the understanding of the many, and the many is just the one. Just as that single water reflects the myriad images, and though it is a single water, it corresponds to the myriad images outside the water, the Buddha's mind is also like this: it completely illuminates others' minds, and though it is one mind producing the understandings of all minds, it corresponds with all other minds. Because the contemplation of vijñaptimātra has been practiced for a long time and brought to completion, he is free from external thoughts and only then capable of all-knowing. Therefore, a verse in the Avataṃsakasūtra says: 'Maheśvara's wisdom is sovereign; / When the great dragon king of the ocean sends down rain, / He is able to distinguish and count every drop, / Completely clear within a single thought-moment. / Having diligently studied and practiced for immeasurable billions of kalpas, / He attained this unsurpassed bodhi wisdom: / How could he, in a single thought-moment, / Not know the minds of all sentient beings?' Thus we know that the Buddhas are omniscient in every thought-moment; this is precisely the Buddha's mental speech discrimination. Although when knowing that on the conventional level each is consciousness-only he separately knows all minds, this is the Buddha's discrimination; based on his constant self-awareness that it is only his own mental speech, free from the aspect of external thoughts, there is no further discrimination. Therefore, when the great wise ones who contemplate vijñaptimātra condition their own mental speech and know the conventional truth, they also penetrate the ultimate truth, free from external discrimination. Therefore, in the Mahāyāna, from ordinary being up to Buddha, all contemplate their own citta's mental speech as the object, and thereby know that outside of mind there is no other mind. Although the minds of ordinary beings and sages are neither internal nor external, there are still conditions by which they are transformed by others. As the Vimalakīrtinirdeśasūtra says: 'At that time the devī, with supernatural power, transformed Śāriputra so that he resembled a devī, while she transformed her own body to resemble Śāriputra.' This transformation of Śāriputra caused his mind to see differently; it was not that there was another body whose shape was altered and substance switched. In the minds of sentient beings who cultivate superior practices, there is the karmic capacity to falsely see the Buddha where there is nothing. Because of superior karma evoking the Buddha's spiritual power, it causes their minds to transform, appearing to see the nirmāṇakāya. Therefore, the Mahāyānasaṃgraha says: 'In the stages of practice of others, due to the sovereign power of the Buddha's original vows, that consciousness appears transformed like sentient beings; therefore, it is called the transformation body.' By this textual evidence, the nirmāṇakāya of the Tathāgata, such as Śākyamuni and others, are all transformations produced by the minds of ordinary beings and Hinayāna practitioners themselves. Through delusion they see the Buddha attaining the Way and transforming sentient beings, and later they again falsely see the Tathāgata pass into extinction. This false seeing is transformed by the Buddha; therefore, that treatise says: 'Bodhi and nirvāṇa are taken as two, but this merely transforms the minds of others to make them see them as two; in substance they are not truly existent.' By this textual evidence, the Buddha transforms others' minds, causing them to falsely see the Buddha; outside of mind, there is no Buddha. In reality, ordinary beings and Hinayāna practitioners do not realize it is false seeing, and claim that there is an external Buddha coming to deliver sentient beings. Therefore, a sūtra verse says: 'The Buddha does not attain the Buddha-path, / Nor does he deliver sentient beings; / Sentient beings make rigid discriminations / That the Buddha delivers sentient beings.' Therefore, the Mahāyānasaṃgraha says: 'Because the consciousness of the meditator acts as an adhipatipratyaya, the consciousness of other people transforms according to the meditator's vow-power and becomes manifest. Thus we know there is definitely no external dust; there is only the fundamental consciousness.' By this textual evidence, those who see the sage's transformations all have the Buddha's power as their adhipatipratyaya. Therefore, that treatise says: 'When a bodhisattva of shallow practice wishes to accomplish benefits for sentient beings, he first makes vows in the present, then enters the true contemplation, and after emerging from contemplation, according to his wishes and desires it is then accomplished. If it is a bodhisattva of deep practice who wishes to accomplish benefits for sentient beings, he does not need in the present to make vows or enter and emerge from contemplation; merely by the power of his original vows, whatever he wishes to do is all accomplished. If śrāvakas and the like attain sovereignty in the nine concentrations, through this sovereignty in concentration they attain sovereignty in the six supernatural knowledges: within a single object, according to the power of their wishes and desires, they can each transform it into immeasurable kinds. If dusts truly had an intrinsic nature, this could not be accomplished.' By this textual evidence, fundamentally there is no external object; the power of sages causes others to see transformations where there is nothing, because all is false seeing and there is no external object. If many sages transform an object in the same place, each accomplishes it according to their own intent, without obstructing one another. Therefore, that treatise says: 'With respect to a single object, if many meditators with different vows can together transform a single objective realm, this transformation succeeds. Why does it succeed? Because it is accomplished according to their intent; therefore, in reality there is no external object, because there is only consciousness. Hence, each is accomplished according to their intent.' By this textual evidence, when many sages perform transformations in a single place, each does so according to their distinct intent, causing sentient beings to perceive different objects—harmonious yet not identical, commingled yet not disordered. This meaning is extremely profound, known only to those of great capacity. Therefore, all the way to the Buddha, all contemplate vijñaptimātra. Therefore, that treatise says: 'From the stage of aspiration up to the ultimate stage, all are generally termed the contemplation of vijñaptimātra.' By this textual evidence, in the Mahāyāna, entry into the Way equally involves contemplating vijñaptimātra, becoming progressively clearer up to the Buddha. As for what is called the contemplation of vijñaptimātra at the stage of aspiration: hearing the explanation of vijñaptimātra from teachers and friends, one who can immediately understand produces aspiration in mind; because there is aspiration, when he engages in learning and deliberating, he is a person of the stage of aspiration in the Mahāyāna. Therefore, that treatise says: 'Bodhisattvas, merely through virtue, hear that all phenomena are consciousness-only; relying on this teaching, following what they have heard, they give rise to faith and aspiration, and within the principle of all phenomena being consciousness-only, mental speech discrimination arises. Because of this aspiration and mental speech discrimination, the bodhisattva is said to have already entered the contemplation of vijñaptimātra.' Having such knowing is called entering the stage of aspiration in vijñaptimātra. By this textual evidence, studying the contemplation of vijñaptimātra is precisely the entry into the Way for bodhisattvas of great capacity. The above has comprehensively clarified the entry into the Way for both the Mahāyāna and Hinayāna: although their shallowness and depth differ, all exclusively cultivate wisdom, because wisdom contemplation is the substance of the correct Path. If one does not cultivate contemplation, the other practices are all insufficient. This clarifies that wisdom contemplation is the substance of entering the Way. As stated above, if one understands that all objective realms are only mental speech discrimination, then the mind has nothing to deliberate and the mouth has nothing to say; with grasping conditions already ceased, names and characteristics are instantly empty, and the wondrous, luminous true mind is revealed from here. Thus one attains the severance of the path of defilements, the drying up of the river of birth and death, thought after thought merging with reality, mind after mind according with the Way. For this reason, the Vajrasamādhisūtra says: 'The Buddha said: Wholesome and unwholesome phenomena are produced through transformation from the citta; all objective realms are mental speech discriminations. Restrain them in one place, and the multitude of conditions will be severed and eliminated. Why is this? When the one root does not arise, the three functions have nothing to apply; abiding in accord with principle, the gates of the six destinies are shut.'