弘明集 9.5

9.5

Our Sage Sovereign, endowed with the dark tally, governs this great treasure of awakening. Anticipating Heaven, he establishes standards; observing the people, he institutes transformation. Fearing that disjointed sophistry would fabricate doctrines running rampant, and that none could untangle the subtle thread of intricate silk, the bequeathed writings of the Śākya teaching would soon be lost. Therefore, he composed this elegant treatise to promote the supreme scriptures. I, Shen Ji, early contemplating the emptiness of the body, harbored my mind in the inner teaching. Whenever partaking of the Dharma sound, I forgot sleep and food. Yet dull affections are hard to enlighten, and coming upon the principle, many were my doubts. Regarding the great doctrine of Buddha-nature, the path of my heart was utterly bewildered. Now that the Heavenly Inquiry has extended afar, I participated equally in receiving and beholding it; ten thousand nights obtained opening, and a thousand darknesses turned to eternal dawn. The doubts that were dispelled piecemeal all became lucidly penetrating. I venture to reflect that when fact and principle harmonize, there is no entity not cognized; when function conforms to the Dao, what mind is not discerning? Thus moving clouds lingering still respond to the harmony of beautiful tones; swimming fish leaping still appreciate the cadence of clear strings. How much more so when the subtlety of entering the spirit issues from the Heavenly Heart! This is why your subject dances and stamps his feet, unable to contain himself. Venturing on my shallow attainments, I have respectfully made this commentary. How could a cone and tube exhaust Heaven's profundity? My hope is merely that entrenched doubts might thereby be resolved. Undertaking practice is rooted in establishing faith. (Subject Ji says: An ignorant heart in darkness must generate great brightness. Brightness does not arise abruptly; its arising must be due to practice. Practice does not cultivate itself; cultivation must be due to faith. Faith is the mind that relies on teachers and leans on principle without divergence. Therefore, the five faculties take the one faith as their root, and the four faiths take non-divergence as their principal tenet. Once principal faith is established, the myriad goods naturally proceed; practicing good creates the fruit: this is called practice.) Faith being established is due to right understanding. (Subject Ji says: If heterodoxy and orthodoxy are not distinguished, what can faith be taken in? Therefore, the root of establishing faith relies on right understanding.) When understanding is right, external heterodoxy cannot disturb it. (Subject Ji says: When the single mind is upright, the myriad heterodoxies are extinguished. Hence one knows that if right view is harbored within, external heterodoxy cannot move it.) When faith is established, internal consciousness has no doubt. (Subject Ji says: Consciousness is the mind. Therefore, the Tattvasiddhi-śāstra states: 'Mind, thought, and consciousness are one in essence but different in name.' When the mind has believed, what doubt can there be?) Yet that upon which faith and understanding rely has its guiding principle. (Subject Ji says: 'To rely' means to lean upon. When settling the mind has a root, the branch practices naturally follow. The statement that there is a root is revealed in the sentence below.) What is it? The source, spirit-illumination, takes non-interruption as its essence; pure spirit must return to the wondrous fruit. (Subject Ji says: If spirit had an end, how could it be called spirit? Therefore, the sūtra says: 'I see that when the dead have their corporeal form broken and their material substance transformed, their spirit is not extinguished. Following good and evil actions, misfortune and fortune pursue them naturally.' This is precisely the meaning of non-extinction and non-interruption. If it transformed identically with grass and trees, how could it be pure? Because it is uninterrupted, it ultimately returns to the wondrous culmination. Relying with the mind on this ground, touching upon principle all is clear. Clear in the multitude of principles, what practice is not accomplished? This is what is meant by the guiding principle of faith and understanding.) The wondrous fruit's essence is ultimate and eternally abiding; pure spirit cannot avoid impermanence. (Subject Ji says: The wondrous fruit's understanding of principle is already complete, so its essence alone is extremely eternal; pure spirit has not yet fulfilled its practice, hence it cannot avoid shifting and changing.) Impermanence is that which perishes before and arises after, not abiding for a kṣaṇa. (Subject Ji says: Kṣaṇa is the sound of the country of Tianzhu, the name for the utmost rapidity. Arising and instantly perishing, how could it abide? Thus Vimalakīrti lamented: 'Monks, right at this moment there are birth, aging, and cessation!') If the mind, using the mind to climb upon conditioning, necessarily has its preceding consciousness differ from the succeeding one, this would depart together with the object; who then would become a Buddha? (Subject Ji says: The mind moving in accord with objects is its external function. Although the succeeding continues the preceding, it is ultimately not the real discourse. Hence one knows that the nature of the spirit-consciousness is clear, still, and unmoving. Because it is clear, still, and unmoving, it ultimately returns to the wondrous fruit.) The sūtra says: 'The mind is the direct cause, ultimately achieving the fruit of Buddhahood.' (Subject Ji says: Speaking briefly of the cause of Buddhahood, its meaning has two aspects: the first is called the conditioning cause; the second is called the direct cause. The conditioning cause is the myriad goods; the direct cause is the spirit-consciousness. The myriad goods possess the efficacy of assisting and eliciting, hence they are called the conditioning cause; the spirit-consciousness is its direct root, hence it is called the direct cause. Since it says 'ultimately achieving the fruit of Buddhahood', this verifies that non-interruption is evident.) It also says: 'If ignorance transforms, it turns into illumination.' Examining the intent of this sūtra, the principle can be sought. How so? The mind is the root of function; the root is one, while the functions are distinct. Distinct functions naturally have flourishing and decline, while the nature of the one root does not move. (Subject Ji says: Rinsing away dust and defilement, the root consciousness then is bright. Brightness and darkness exchanging is what is called 'transforming'. It is not to say that the former goes and the latter comes.) The one root is ignorance, [which is] spirit-illumination. (Subject Ji says: Spirit-illumination is fundamentally dark, hence it takes ignorance as its cause.) Inquiring into the appellation 'ignorance', it is not the name for great void; insentient earth and stones, how could they be called 'ignorance'? (Subject Ji says: Discerning good and evil, without mind it cannot be known; clearly examining right and wrong, without affection it cannot be recognized. Great void is insentient, hence it does not distinguish folly and wisdom; earth and stones have no mind, how could they discern understanding and delusion? Hence one knows that understanding and delusion abide in possessing a mind, and folly and wisdom reside in possessing consciousness. Since it is called 'ignorance', the meaning lies herein.) Therefore, one knows that while thought-deliberation ought to be illuminated, the essence cannot avoid delusion; delusion-deliberation not knowing is therefore called 'ignorance'. (Subject Ji says: Illumination is the original nature, so it ought to be illuminated. Consciousness defiled by external dust, internally it cannot avoid delusion; deluded and not understanding, it is thereupon called 'ignorance'. Arising from this, it received the name; how could the purport be empty?) Yet upon the essence of ignorance there is arising and perishing; arising and perishing are its distinct functions, while the meaning of the mind of ignorance does not alter. (Subject Ji says: Once there is its essence, there is its function. Speaking of function is not the essence; discussing essence is not the function. Function has flourishing and decline; essence has no arising or perishing.) Fearing that seeing its functions differ, one would immediately say the mind is extinguished along with the object, (Subject Ji says: The confused are deluded about its essence and function, hence they constantly harbor suspicions. Why? Essence and function are neither separated nor identical. Divorced from essence, there is no function, hence it is said to be 'not separated'; the meaning of function is not essence, hence it is said to be 'not identical'. Seeing their non-separation, they are deluded about their non-identity; deluded about their non-identity, they immediately say the mind is extinguished along with the object.) therefore, following the name 'ignorance', the designation of 'abiding stage' is added below it. This reveals that ignorance is precisely spirit-illumination; the nature of spirit-illumination does not shift. (Subject Ji says: Ignorance being tied to 'abiding stage' is surely to reprimand their deluded consciousness; yet the multitude embracing delusion have never understood it.) How is this known to be so? For instance, the preceding mind commits the weighty evil of the Uninterrupted [hell], and the succeeding consciousness raises the wondrous good of Neither-Conception[-nor-Non-Conception]. The principles of good and evil are vastly distant, and the preceding and succeeding are extremely apart from one another. If these functions truly lacked a single root, how could they be continuous like this? (Subject Ji says: If there were not a single root, function would have nothing to rely upon. Yet the confused see that their categories continue as one, hence great good is cited to reprimand their delusion about continuation.) Thus one knows that the preceding evil perishes of itself while the deluded consciousness does not move; the succeeding good, though arisen, does not alter the dark mind. (Subject Ji says: It has never diminished its root through the arising and perishing of good and evil.) Therefore, the sūtra states: 'If it is accompanied by all defilements and fetters, it is named ignorance; if it is accompanied by all wholesome dharmas, it is named illumination.' Is this not the nature of mind-consciousness being one while differing according to conditions? (Subject Ji says: If good and evil arise reciprocally, how could they be called 'accompanied'? Yet people constantly face these words while continually misunderstanding their purport. Therefore, he cites this essential passage to instruct the confused multitude.) Hence one knows that arising, perishing, shifting, and changing requite past causes, while good and evil alternatingly decline and arise from present objects. (Subject Ji says: Arising and perishing are caused by past karma, not made so by present objects; good and evil arise from present objects, not made so by past karma.) Yet the mind is their root, never differing. (Subject Ji says: Although the reasons for function are not the same, their essence does not differ.) Because its root of function is uninterrupted, the principle of becoming a Buddha is radiant; because it shifts and declines according to objects, that birth-and-death can be exhausted is evident. (Subject Ji says: Becoming a Buddha being radiant supports its root; birth-and-death being exhaustible is due to its function. If there were function without a root, it would be extinguished and not succeed; if there were a root without function, success would have nothing to extinguish.)