出三藏記集 7.5

7.5

Great indeed is the perfection of wisdom (prajñāpāramitā)! The myriad holy ones draw upon it for penetration, and all honor it to achieve [their realization]. Like the earth containing [all things] or the sun shining [upon them], there is no phenomenon that it does not encompass. It does not rely upon nor abide in things, lest it be burdened by the realm of the named; yet having placed itself outside the named, it also disdains the formless. Forgetting both in the profound void, solitary and without a master: such is the guideline of this wisdom.

Now, as for longevity, none is more splendid than the supreme heavens, yet it equates this to an infant who dies prematurely; as for spiritual marvels, none is more splendid than soaring through the void, yet it considers this identical to stagnation; as for utmost virtue, none is greater than the true person (arhat), yet it compares this to rotten seed; as for exalted subtlety, none is greater than the Hero of the World (Buddha), yet it illustrates him through phantoms and dreams. Judging from this, it is truly the source venerated by all the holy ones!

Why is this? Grasping the Way and managing existence entails distinctions of low and high; this is merely the domain of the conditioned. It is not resting upon suchness (tathatā), roaming in the dharmatā, and being dark and nameless. Resting upon suchness, roaming in the dharmatā, and being dark and nameless—this is the inner chamber of the perfection of wisdom. Nominal teachings and distant conceptualizations are merely its temporary lodges. Yet among those who dwell in realization, none fail to tally with its non-arising and feel bewildered and dazzled; among those who cling to traces, none fail to resent its vast emptiness and absurdly slander it. When the movement of the Way inevitably meets with opposite reactions, the disparity between the superior and inferior brings about dazzlement and slander—is this not only to be expected?

Is it not only to be expected? In summary, this Dharma advances in parallel with the perfection of vigor (vīrya-pāramitā); roaming together with ease, the thousand practices and myriad requirements all accomplish the manifold practices through it. That it attains its reputation and that wisdom and vigor cause all phenomena to be mutually accomplished—these are to be sought within its ranks.

Moreover, as for this sūtra: it introduces the primary truth to begin its words, and recounts expedient means to head its discourse. No practice is so minute that it is not traversed; no calculation is so subtle that it is not exhausted. Its words seem repetitive, yet each has its principle; its meanings seem reiterated, yet each has its master. Those of petty views rejoice at its accessible teachings and awaken with delight; the broadly wise gaze at its distant standard and catch their breath in awe. Those who climb find it ever higher and cannot scale it; those who wade find it ever deeper and cannot fathom it. Those who deliberate cannot devise its outline; those who search cannot reach its extent. Profound and obscure! Truly it may be called the deep abyss of the great enterprise—how wondrous indeed!

Yet, as for those who would understand it: those who scrutinize the text to prove its principles are obscured as to its direction; those who examine phrases to verify its meaning are confused about its purport. Why is this? When one scrutinizes the text, discrepancies become mere diction; when one searches phrases, every category becomes an isolated purport. Becoming mere diction, it loses the intent of balanced unity; becoming an isolated purport, it overlooks the meaning of the original conception. If one follows the beginning to summarize its conclusion, or forgets the words to preserve its substance, then the profound penetration of great wisdom can be understood without leaving one's seat.

From the initial resolve to the attainment of all-knowledge (sarvajñatā), thoroughly completing and decisively determining [all stages] such that even the eighth stage holds no profound secrets—this is called wisdom; hence it is called "transcendence". The three liberations illuminate emptiness; the four inversions clarify existence. Comprehensively inspecting all phenomena so that they later find application, with both medicine and sickness dual-forgotten—this is called contemplation. If one clarifies these two practices, then regarding the three hundred thousand words, would it not be like looking at one's own palm? In haste and hurry, nothing arises apart from this.

After the Buddha's nirvāṇa, an eminent gentleman of the Western regions extracted ninety chapters to form the Daoxing pin. During the reigns of Emperors Huan and Ling, Zhu Shuofo brought it to the capital and translated it into Chinese. Following the original and according with its purport, he rendered the sounds as they were, reverently according with the holy words without adding any embellishment. However, since the sūtra was an abridged compilation brought together into chapters and sections, with differing sounds and divergent customs, transmitted orally by the translator—unless one possessed the three knowledges, who could grasp every single original context? For this reason, the Daoxing has quite a few passages where the beginning and end are obscure. When the ancients discussed it, there were often places of stagnation.

[Zhu] Shixing felt ashamed of this. Searching for its original text, he went to Khotan and obtained it, then sent it to Cangyuan, where it was translated as the Fangguang pin. It eliminated redundancies, cut down on repetitiveness, and strived for elegance and fluency; had it been translated in full, it would have been more than three times as long. It was skillful at expressing non-arising and exceptionally deft at discussing emptiness. Such translation work is difficult to match! What these two masters produced is sufficient to make the great wisdom shine forth and reveal the hidden. Zhi Qian's complete text must have been similar. Why? When sūtras are excerpted and trimmed, much harm is inevitably done. Entrusting oneself to the original and following the sage is the utmost precept of the Buddha.

Without measuring my own lack of learning, I aspired to this intention, reciting and savoring it repeatedly so that it might not fall to the ground. Examining the original circumstances of what was translated from beginning to end, there were still fractures, blemishes, and boundless obscurities. Had there been no Fangguang, by what means could this sūtra have been understood? I am forever indebted to the former sages for the abundant benefit received.

Now I have compiled what I have understood to form explanations beneath the phrases. What was originally revealed now heads [the section], and what was previously obscured is now revealed at the end. Noting differences in the translated sūtras, I have weighed their merits and flaws, adducing the original to verify the abridgment, without daring to arbitrarily add or subtract. I hope that those who share my aspiration will correct its shortcomings.