北山錄 7.1.1

7.1.1

([…] lift it through various dhyānas, the great earth shook violently, yet his sash still touched the ground. The Buddha said: "Śāri[putra]'s dhyāna is such that [Maudgalyā]yana cannot even know its name.") Pūrṇa […] was foremost in wisdom among the disciples, yet was known for expounding the Dharma. (Pūrṇamaitrāyaṇīputra, which translates as "Son of Full Compassion," took his name from his mother, "Full Compassion" being the name of his mother.) Mahākāśyapa was the heir of the Dharma, yet was praised solely for the dhūta practices. (Mahākāśyapa of radiant drinking […] was a man of Rājagṛha. He renounced glory and wealth […], sustained himself by begging for food, and cultivated the dhūta practices.) Śāri[putra] and Maudgalyāyana […] composed the Abhidharma, yet Kātyāyana was exclusively given the title of disputation. (Abhidharma translates as "unrivaled Dharma," namely the basket of treatises [Abhidharma-piṭaka]. Both Maudgalyāyana and Śāriputra composed treatises of this kind, yet Kātyāyana was called foremost in disputation. It is also said that Kātyāyana translates as "clipping-and-shaving clan." In high antiquity there were rṣis. Having lived long in the mountains, their hair grew long and there was no one to shave it. By the rules of the Brahmans, it was deemed impure not to shave one's hair. One ṛṣi shaved the hair for them, and all the ṛṣis wished and protected him so that he attained the Way. From then on they were called the "clipping-and-shaving clan," and the Venerable One was his descendant.) This was the grand intention of the Great Sage, not that the others could not encompass them, (they were praised for what they singularly excelled in) but among them, whether encouraging or discouraging, he spoke in response to conditioned phenomena. Thus Kapphina alone exhausted the celestial calendar; (Kapphina translates as "constellation room [Anurādhā]"; because he was born through an evocative resonance with it, he was knowledgeable about the celestial calendar) Śroṇa was exceptionally energetic. (This refers to the monk Śroṇakoṭīkarṇa. From birth onward, his feet never trod upon the earth. After leaving home, he practiced the Way day and night until blood flowed from beneath his feet. The Buddha preached the parable of tuning the lute for him, requiring that he keep the strings neither too tight nor too loose according to the situation, whereby he realized the fruit.) As for the five hundred, if assessed by a single practice, every one of them would rank first rather than second. As for the three thousand disciples of Confucius' school who ascended the hall and the seventy-two who entered the inner chambers, if classified according to the four subjects and ten philosophers, even though Zeng Shen was not listed under virtuous conduct, he was celebrated for filial piety and fraternal respect. (Virtuous conduct, government affairs, literary learning, and speech are the four subjects. Yan Hui, Min Sun, Ran Yong, Yan Yan, Bu Shang, Ran Geng, Zhong You, Ran You, Zai Wo, and Zi Gong are the ten philosophers; Zeng Shen was not included among them.) The author of the Zuo Commentary was not listed under literary learning, yet his brush flourished in state history. (Not being included among the ten philosophers, Zuoqiu Ming, who composed the Zuo Commentary, was also a disciple of Confucius.) In the three hundred canons of rites and the three thousand dignified demeanours, only Gongxi Chi stood pre-eminent. (Gongxi Chi, courtesy name Zihua, had an imposing bearing. Confucius said: "Wearing his sash and standing in court, he could be employed to converse with the guests.") Thus the style and teachings of the two traditions mysteriously accord in their praises and reprimands. In the past, praising Mahākāśyapa was saying that they shared the same liberation; censuring Śāriputra was saying that it was something he could not know. (In the Lotus Sūtra: "Even if monks filling the worlds of the ten directions were all like Śāriputra, they still could not know it.") None of the lands in the ten directions is not pure, yet the Land of Immeasurable Life is uniquely extolled. All the noble Great Beings universally harbor compassion, yet Avalokiteśvara's power is uniquely displayed. The Great Being of the Snowy Mountains perceived the signs and knew the final cessation; (When the Buddha entered parinirvāṇa in Kuśinagara, Mahākāśyapa was staying on the Snowy Mountains. Seeing the great earth shake violently and beholding radiant light, he knew that this must be the Tathāgata's cessation, whereupon he came to the assembly.) the nominal bodhisattvas wept upon hearing of his permanent abiding. Indeed, if an affair is not beneficial, he would not deem it good; if his teaching should not endure long, he would not proclaim it. (Nominal refers to initial aspiration. When they heard the Buddha state that remaining long in the world brought no benefit—the Nirvāṇa Sūtra says: "After three months I shall enter nirvāṇa"—they burst into tears. The Lotus Sūtra says: "If the Buddha were to abide long in the world, persons of slight virtue would not plant wholesome roots.") That which transmitters of the Dharma have yet to attain—herein lies the difficulty! If one clings to the letter to determine the meaning, the meaning will end in obstruction; if one strains the meaning to violate the letter, the text will be compromised. (Extravagant interpretation detached from the text does harm to the text.) In some cases, learning is broad but reasoning cannot be refined; in others, the mind understands but the mouth cannot debate. These two conditions truly exist. (One should not demand perfection in a single person.) However, each sūtra expounded is called foremost; this certainly has an underlying intention. For Yu Fu and Bian Que treating patients, (The Records of the Grand Historian: Yu Fu and Bian Que were both good physicians of antiquity.) for dark cold, cinnamon and pepper are good remedies; (dark cold is chilly; cinnamon and pepper are hot, hence they are good) for fiery agitation, ice and snow are good remedies. (fiery agitation is hot; ice is cold, hence it is good.) The Great Physician King of the Dharma pities the common beings of the realms; (the Buddha is the Great Physician King) he shatters name and characteristic through prajñā, unites the three vehicles through the Lotus, and induces sorrowful repentance through the Golden Light. Each has its specific aim and does not occupy a secondary place. (The Diamond Sūtra is called supreme and foremost for shattering characteristics; the Lotus Sūtra is foremost for uniting the small and medium vehicles of sheep and deer carts into the great white ox cart; the Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sūtra is foremost for relying on Bodhisattva Ruci's repentance of all sinful hindrances.) When the scriptures say that if the ruler of a state loses the Way, the jade candles will not be harmonious (when the four seasons are in harmony, it is called jade candles) and the wind and rain will be unseasonable and epidemics will arise, these are words of warning and admonition. (As in the Benevolent Kings Sūtra, the Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sūtra, etc. "Jing" means to startle; "jie" means to restrain.) A king transforms those below by means of moral wind. If his wind is benighted, the people will turn to evil; when virtue is thin and calamity heavy, how can great peace be attained? Therefore, destroying his people leaves no one to protect the state; thus the loss of his position and emoluments is like the collapse of a crag. ("Jian" means to annihilate; "wang" means to have none; "Di" is the name of a mountain. If a ruler is without the Way, Heaven sends down disaster and calamity, destroying his worthy, virtuous, and loyal ministers, and the state crumbles like a collapsing mountain.) Thus the Great Sage is subtle and creates an accomplished expression. However, within the teachings there are also words that seem similar but whose intention is different. For example, during his three months of secluded dwelling, he ordered that no one should see him, except for a single attendant. (When the Buddha rested at leisure, he first ordered that casual visitors not be allowed to see him.) There was the bhikṣu Upasena who, together with sixty dhūta practitioners, (not accepting invitations, constantly begging for food, staying on mountaintops, wearing tattered robes, sitting under trees, eating one meal a day, possessing only three robes, constantly sitting and not lying down, contemplating corpses, not eating meat—such as these are all dhūta practices) went straight in to see the Buddha. The Buddha, perceiving their fewness of desires, praised them. Those who did not have few desires realized: "This is tranquil sitting; it is up to our group to lead one another to be like Upasena, and only then can we see the Buddha." (Upasena was able to see the Buddha because of few desires; those with many desires then led one another to have few desires.) In the past, the nine classes of scriptures were taught.