出三藏記集 12.30

12.30

Now, the positions of the three realms are established, and the six destinies are demarcated. Coarse and subtle assume different appearances; suffering and joy trace disparate paths. Observing their origins, they do not deviate from form and mind; examining where they converge, none are other than birth and death. The saṃsāra of birth and death is called impermanence; the phantasms of form and mind are deemed the root of suffering. Therefore the Nirvāṇa [Sūtra] compares them to a great river, and the Lotus [Sūtra] equates them to a burning house. When holy ones achieve transcendent awakening, they halt their chariots, return to the source, and pluck themselves out of the three existences—only then do they realize the Way. Investigating the established structure of the worlds, it is formed of the four great elements. Combining through karma and converging through conditions, it flourishes with time; when its allotted measure is full and disasters arise, it returns once more to extinction. Thus, those whose lifespans are short consider it long, while those whose lifespans are long regard it as short. Because empty space is not an existent thing, its measure is boundless; because worlds are limitless, their forms are not uniform. Thus the trichiliocosm is governed by the Dharma King; the small chiliocosm is overseen by the Lord of Brahmā; Mount Sumeru is the abode of Śakra; the Iron Encircling Mountains form the border walls; the great ocean serves as the reservoir of the eight quarters; the sun and moon serve as the lamps of the four directions. The teeming masses of living beings make their dwellings here; the trifling sentient beings do not reflect on their misery. Viewed through worldly eyes, these are extravagant words of wild fabrication; observed from the Great Way, they are near matters held in the palm of one's hand. Yet the world reveres the Duke of Zhou and Confucius, taking their standard from the Classics and writings; though they tried to encompass the universe, their speculations were indecisive. The Book of Changes speaks of 'heaven being dark,' merely taking a name for the remote and profound; Zhuangzi speaks of 'the azure expanse,' referring only to the color seen from afar. Thereupon common folk trust what is bright, declaring that heaven is azure like jasper, while Ruist scholars rely on texts, asserting that heaven is black like lacquer. Blue and black are truly different, but they are identical in deviating from reality; though the Ruists and the commoners differ, they are as one in their ignorance. Thus the worldly revere the name of heaven without recognizing heaven's reality; how could they comprehend the magnificent splendor of the six heavens of desire, or the brilliant radiance of the Brahmā heavens? As for surveying the terrain of the earth, they foolishly rely on Zhang Hai; as for calculating the sun and moon, they place profound trust in arithmetic. Before meeting with even a single conjunction, they are mistaken by a thousand leagues. Even though Xia Ge discussed the earth, he went no further than doors and windows; when Master Zou spoke of heaven, he remained within the alcove and stove. Refining stones [to mend heaven] was already false, and the turtle legs [supporting it] were likewise absurd. Worldly books are redundantly numerous, yet in the end they offer no clear explanation; people of the world are dim-witted and ignorant, none knowing heaven's true form. Therefore, relying on wisdom, some grieved in solitude over the obscure cohesion of the six directions; when Huan Tan parried questions, he merely used the five internal organs as an analogy. When thoroughly learned and grand scholars found their thought frustrated and their reasoning exhausted, how could those of narrow vision be capable of analyzing it? Alas! They do not even know the present matters of the mundane realm; that they cannot conceive of the wondrous meaning goes without saying! I privately reflect that the great texts of the Vaipulya mostly expound profound emptiness; only the Dīrgha-āgama and the Loutan jing clearly explain the world. Yet their texts are expansive and their verses extensive, making them difficult to examine and investigate readily. Furthermore, famous masters and Dharma architects competitively occupied themselves with metaphysical principles; the accumulation of matters and origins was not necessarily exhaustively detailed. Being dull and obstinate, Sengyou's resolve lay in gathering what was left behind. Therefore I excerpted and collected the two sūtras to establish the foundation, while appending miscellaneous scriptures to present their agreements and differences, compiling them into five fascicles entitled Collected Records of the Worlds. It is intended to cause the ranks and tiers of the three heavens to be as brilliantly evident as unfolding a diagram, and the divisions of the six destinies to be as illuminated as looking into a mirror. May those submerged in the mundane have their ignorance dispelled, and those devoted to the Way have their understanding purified, jointly establishing the causes of the eye of wisdom and together accomplishing the karma of enlightenment.