緇門警訓 4.26

4.26

The Gui Jing Yi says: "Because this triratna abides permanently in the world and is not slighted or violated by worldly phenomena, it is called a 'jewel.' Just as precious worldly gems are valued by the world, now this triratna is that toward which all sentient beings, the three vehicles, and the seven assemblies take refuge and look up; therefore it is called the true refuge. If one lacks dedicated faith and serves heterodox spirits alongside it, even if one receives the precepts of refuge, one will not attain the noble Dharma. Thus the sūtra states: 'One who takes refuge in the Buddha is truly called an upasaka; he will never falsely take refuge in any other devas or spirits.' Why is this? Because the nature and characteristics of the true triratna abide permanently and are fit to be a reliance for living beings. As for the rest, the heavenly lords themselves suffer affliction of body and mind; conditioned and defiled, they lack power and ability. Having no leisure to save themselves, how could they save others? Only the supramundane jewel possesses the power to sustain. As for 'taking refuge': just as relying on a king's authority prevents infringement, now relying on the true jewel brings boundless prestige and fortune. Thus it causes divine dragons to escape the slaughter of the garuḍas, and devout laymen to transcend the perils of the yakṣas. The five kinds of threefold refuge all take refuge in this jewel, which is also called the triratna of identical characteristics. Because its principle extends through the three times and its meaning exhausts the ten directions, this permanently abiding triratna is the utmost ultimate. A sūtra states: 'If someone gets to hear the two words "permanently abiding," that person will not fall into evil destinies birth after birth.' Why is this? Because knowing that the inherent nature of the Dharmakāya-buddha is permanent, once heard and understood, it perfumes the fundamental consciousness. When the karmic seed is formed, pure faith is never lost. How much more so if one can form a vow to take refuge and honor it as one's exemplar! Truly, across cumulative kalpas one will remain pure and preeminent, with no danger of falling. As recorded in a sūtra, someone received the threefold refuge and at Maitreya's first assembly attained liberation from birth and death. This is truly the bridge to cross the ocean of suffering, the ladder to enter the Buddha's Dharma."