翻譯名義集 4.107

4.107

【南無】或那謨，或南摩，此翻歸命。《要律儀》翻恭敬，《善見論》翻歸命覺，或翻信從。《法華疏》云：「南無，大有義。或言度我，可施眾生。若佛答諸佛，度我義不便。」《五戒經》稱驚怖。驚怖，正可施佛也；生死險難，實可驚怖。《大品》云：「佛言：『若有一人稱南無佛，乃至畢苦，其福不盡。』」《智論》「問曰：『云何但空稱名字，便得畢苦，其福不盡？』答：『是人曾聞佛功德，能度人老病死苦，若多若少供養，及稱名字，得無量福（此說稱佛功德）。』」《華嚴》云：「寧受地獄苦，得聞諸佛名；不受無量樂，而不聞佛名。所以於往昔，無數劫受苦，流轉生死中，不聞佛名故。」《大品》云：「我得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提時，十方過如恒沙等世界中眾生，聞我名者，必得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提。」《智論》「問曰：『有人生佛世，在佛法中，或墮地獄，如提婆達多、俱迦梨訶多釋子等，三不善法覆心，故墮地獄。此中云何言如恒河沙等世界，但聞佛名，便得道耶？』答：『有眾生福德淳熟，結使心薄，應當得道。若聞佛名，即持得道。又復以佛威力故，聞即得度。譬如熟癰，若無治者，得小因緣，而便自潰。亦如果熟，若無人取，微風因緣，便自墮落。如新淨白㲲，易為受色（此說聞佛名福）。』」

[Namo] Also written na-mo or nan-mo; translated here as "taking refuge with one's life." The Yaolüyi translates it as "reverence," and the Shanjian lun translates it as "taking refuge with one's life in the Enlightened One" or translates it as "faithfully obeying." The Fahua shu says: "Namo has many meanings. Some say it means 'deliver me,' which may apply to sentient beings. If a buddha responds to buddhas, the meaning 'deliver me' is not suitable." The Wujie jing calls it "alarm and dread." Alarm and dread precisely apply before the Buddha; the perils of birth and death are indeed cause for alarm and dread. The Dapin says: "The Buddha said: 'If a single person proclaims namo buddhāya, then until their suffering is ended, their merit will not be exhausted.'" The Zhilun asks: "Why is it that merely uttering the name in vain allows one to end suffering and causes one's merit to be inexhaustible?" It answers: "This person had previously heard of the Buddha's virtues, that he is able to deliver people from the suffering of aging, illness, and death; whether making offerings great or small, upon uttering the name, they obtain immeasurable merit. (This speaks of the merit of uttering the Buddha's name)." The Huayan says: "Better to endure the sufferings of hell and get to hear the names of the buddhas, than to experience immeasurable pleasures and not hear the names of the buddhas. The reason one endured suffering for countless kalpas in the past and transmigrated through birth and death is that one did not hear the names of the buddhas." The Dapin says: "When I attain anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi, if sentient beings in the worlds of the ten directions—as numerous as the sands of the Ganges—hear my name, they are certain to attain anuttarā samyaksaṃbodhi." The Zhilun asks: "Some people are born in the Buddha's era and abide within the Buddha's Dharma, yet fall into hell, such as Devadatta and Kokālika, whose minds were obscured by three unwholesome dharmas and thus fell into hell. Why does it say here that in worlds as numerous as the sands of the Ganges, merely hearing the Buddha's name causes one to attain the Way?" It answers: "There are sentient beings whose merits are fully ripened and whose fettering afflictions are slight, who ought to attain the Way. If they hear the Buddha's name, they thereby attain the Way. Moreover, by the Buddha's awe-inspiring power, hearing it, they are instantly delivered. It is like a ripe ulcer: even without treatment, given a minor condition, it will burst on its own. It is also like ripe fruit: if no one plucks it, given the condition of a slight breeze, it will fall on its own. It is like fresh, clean white cotton fabric, which easily takes color. (This speaks of the merit of hearing the Buddha's name)."