諸經要集 3.22

3.22

述曰。上來所引經論。興置所由。其已知乎。然未識塔義是何。復有幾種。所為之人復通凡不。答曰。梵漢不同。翻譯前後。致有多名。文有訛正。所云塔者。或云塔婆。此云方墳。或云支提。翻為滅惡生善處。或云斗藪波。此云護讚。如人讚歎擁護歎者。西梵正音。名為窣堵波。此云廟。廟者貌也。即是靈廟也。安塔有其三意。一表人勝。二令他信。三為報恩。若是凡夫比丘有德望者。亦得起塔。餘者不合。若立支提。有其四種。一生處。二得道處。三轉法輪處。四涅槃處。諸佛生處及得道處。此二定有支提。生必生阿輸柯樹下。此云無憂樹。此是夫人生太子之處。即號此樹為生處支提。如來得道。在於菩提樹下。即呼此樹下為得道支提。如來轉法輪。及涅槃處。此二無定。初轉法輪為五比丘。在於鹿苑。縱廣各二十五尋。一尋八尺。古人身大故。一尋八尺。合二十丈。今天竺人。處處多立轉法輪。取一好處而依此量。竪三柱安三輪。表佛昔日三轉法輪相。即名此處。為轉法輪支提。如來入涅槃處。安置舍利。即名此處為涅槃支提。現今立寺名涅槃寺。此則為定。若據舍利處處起塔。則為不定。此四立名窣堵波。

Commentary: The reasons for their erection and construction as cited above from the sūtras and treatises are already understood. Yet what the meaning of a stupa is, how many types there are, and whether those for whom they are built include ordinary people are not yet known. The answer is: Sanskrit and Chinese differ, and the translations were made earlier and later, leading to many names and erroneous or correct texts. What is called a *ta* (stupa) is sometimes called a *tapoba* (*thūpa*), translated here as 'square mound'; sometimes called a *caitya*, translated as 'a place that eliminates evil and gives rise to goodness'; or sometimes called a *dousoupo*, translated here as 'guardian of praise', like a person praising and protecting the praised. The correct pronunciation in western Sanskrit is *stūpa*, translated here as 'temple'. A temple (*miao*) implies form (*mao*), that is, a spirit temple. Erecting a stupa has three purposes: first, to manifest the superiority of the person; second, to inspire faith in others; third, to repay kindness. If it is an ordinary bhikṣu who possesses virtue and renown, a stupa may also be erected for him; for others, it is not permissible. If caityas are established, there are four types: first, the place of birth; second, the place of attaining the Way; third, the place of turning the Dharma wheel; fourth, the place of nirvāṇa. At the places where Buddhas are born and where they attain the Way, caityas are definitively established. The birth must take place under an Aśoka tree, translated here as the sorrowless tree; this is the place where the consort gave birth to the crown prince, and so this tree is designated as the caitya of the birth site. The Tathāgata attained the Way beneath the Bodhi tree, and so beneath this tree is designated as the caitya of the site of attaining the Way. The places where the Tathāgata turned the Dharma wheel and entered nirvāṇa—these two have no fixed form. When he first turned the Dharma wheel for the five bhikṣus, it was in the Deer Park, measuring twenty-five fathoms on each side. A fathom is eight feet. Because people of antiquity were large in stature, one fathom was eight feet, totaling two hundred feet. Nowadays, people in India erect turning-the-Dharma-wheel shrines in many places: they select a fine location and, according to these measurements, erect three pillars and install three wheels to represent the marks of the Buddha's three turns of the Dharma wheel in the past, designating this site as the caitya of turning the Dharma wheel. The place where the Tathāgata entered nirvāṇa and the relics were enshrined is designated as the caitya of nirvāṇa. At present, a monastery named Nirvāṇa Monastery has been established there; this is fixed. If stupas are erected wherever relics are, they are not fixed. These four are called *stūpa*.