維摩經義記卷第四 4.62

4.62

第二從非四大起以下。明至極法身出於百非之表也。非四大起同於虛空者。明法身不為四大所成。借虛空以況。真極若作常住法身者即略明常。又解。別有一法身。明相續常。即是壽命七百阿僧祇劫也。六入無積身心已過。法身不為無入積聚已過身心之表也。不在三界。出於三界。三垢離者。三界之業久已永除。順三脫門者。智惠與三空門相順也。三明與無明等者。觀三空門時闇齊觀故云學也。不一相者垂迹萬差不異相知語本唯一不自相知隨感則赴亦能現於他形不他者唯是自體不曾有他。非無相者。法身妙有不同虛空相。非取相者。雖非無相復不可以相根住取也。不此不彼者。不在生死而未出世。不在彼不彼者。不在涅槃而未常不在此。不中流者。不在道品中間而未常不在彼此。而化眾生者。雖非彼此中間而在生死以化眾生也。觀於寂滅亦不永滅者。智照性空寂滅之理而不永入寂滅亦復處有。不同二乘永寂不此不彼故不在此間彼間也。不以此不以彼。既非彼此。不可以彼此住取也。不可以智知不可以識識者。非滅智所知非凡識所識。無晦無明者。朗達三世故無晦。體非役慮故無明。又解。現同闇昧故言無明也。無名無相者。法身之體絕於名相也。無強者。現同嬰弱。無弱者生老不加也。非淨者。示居塵。穢者煩累永除也。不在方者。高栖環中。不離方者。像無不現。非有為者。法身惔怕。非無為者。不同六道。非示者。體非色故非示。無說者。體非聲故無說。不施現同慳悋。不慳者。檀度備足。不戒者。現有所犯。不犯者。惡法永息。不忍者示同惱恚。不恚者。瞋忿永除。不進者現同懶墮。不怠者。懈怠永盡。不定者。現同散亂。不亂者。囂喧永離。不智者現同愚闇。不愚者癡闇悉除。不誠者。現同誑偽。不欺者。虛誑永滅。不來者。從毘耶離向王舍城為來。還從王舍城向毘耶離為去。法身亦不見背此為來向彼為去。不出不入者。亦不見託生王宮為出雙樹滅跡為入。以一切言語道斷者。廢應論真故云言語道絕心行處滅也。非福田非不福田者。慢之得罪故非福田。敬則得福非福田。又解。現造眾惡非福田。眾惡永除非不福田也。非應供者。非福田故非應供。非不應供養者。是福田故應供養也。非取者。非供養故不可取也。非捨者。是應供養故不可捨。非有相者。不可作相根往取。非無相者不同虛空故非無相。又同真際者。同第一義諦真際之理與真理齊。等法性者。與性法冥符。不可稱不可量者。體絕稱量。過稱量者。金剛已還形奪之境稱量之內。法身出過名數之表稱量之外。非大者。細入無間故非大。非小者。彌淪太虛故非小。非見者。體非色故非見非聞者。體非聲香故非聞。非覺者。體非觸故非覺。非知者。體非味故非知。又一解。非可現見亦不可以非現見故言非聞也。亦非覺。察後非此知也。離眾結縛者。纏累永亡也。等諸智者。上齊諸佛下同眾生於諸法無分別者。前同假名眾生。今同眾生所引之法無分別。一切無已下明雖同眾生法而無煩惱等過。無失者。無過失也。無濁者。無塵濁也。無惱無煩惱。無作無起者。上明無煩惱。此明無業體。無生無滅者。既無煩惱結業。生據者始死據者終。明無生死也。無畏無憂無喜者。凡夫欣生惡死。若有其死可有憂畏。空理之中無死可得。故無憂畏。若有其生可有喜。生既不可得。故亦無喜。無厭者。無死之可厭無生之可著也。無已有今有當有者。此乃常住體非三世攝。不可一切言說分別顯示者。體絕百非眾相之表。故非言說可得分別顯示。世尊如來為若此已下。第三舉邪正來結上兩段。若以此觀者。作丈六身空法身百非之表。是名正觀。若他觀者。是名邪觀。若計丈六是實若謂丈六以為至極之佛。是名邪觀。

Second, from "not originating from the four great elements" onward, it explains that the ultimate dharmakāya transcends the hundred negations. "Not originating from the four great elements, it is like empty space" explains that the dharmakāya is not constituted by the four great elements, using empty space as a metaphor. If the true and ultimate is taken to be the permanently abiding dharmakāya, then it briefly clarifies permanence. Another explanation: there is a distinct dharmakāya that explains continuity-permanence, which is a lifespan of seven hundred asaṃkhyeya kalpas. "With no accumulation in the six sense bases, it has surpassed body and mind": the dharmakāya is not an accumulation of the [six] sense bases and has surpassed the realm of body and mind. "Not in the three realms": it has emerged from the three realms. "Free of the three defilements": the karmas of the three realms have long since been eradicated forever. "Accordant with the three gates of liberation": its wisdom accords with the three emptiness-gates. "The three knowledges equal to ignorance": when contemplating the three emptiness-gates, ignorance and wisdom are contemplated equally, hence it says "equal." "Not a single mark": the manifested traces are manifold. "Not different marks": referring to the source, it is solely one. "Not knowing its own mark": responding to stimulus it proceeds, and it can also manifest in other forms. "Not other": it is only its own essence and has never had an other. "Not devoid of marks": the dharmakāya is wondrous existence, not the same as the mark of empty space. "Not grasping marks": although not devoid of marks, one cannot abide and grasp it through the sense faculties and marks. "Neither here nor there": it is not in saṃsāra, yet not transcendent of the world. "Neither there nor not there": it is not in nirvāṇa, yet never not here. "Not in the midstream": it is not between the stages of the path, yet never not in either. "Yet transforming sentient beings": though not here, there, or in between, it resides in saṃsāra to transform sentient beings. "Contemplating cessation yet not permanently extinguished": with wisdom it illumines the principle of essential emptiness and cessation, yet does not enter permanent cessation, remaining also in existence; unlike the two vehicles' permanent quiescence, "neither here nor there," hence it is not here nor there. "Neither by this nor by that": since it is neither here nor there, one cannot grasp it by abiding in here or there. "Cannot be known by consciousness, cannot be recognized by intellect": it is not known by extinct wisdom, nor recognized by ordinary consciousness. "Neither dark nor bright": clearly penetrating the three times, it is without darkness; its essence is not fraught with deliberation, so it is without brightness. Another explanation: manifesting as identical with darkness, it is therefore said to be "without brightness." "Without name and without mark": the essence of the dharmakāya is beyond names and marks. "Without strength": manifesting as identical with the infant and weak. "Without weakness": birth and old age do not afflict it. "Not pure": it displays dwelling in the dusts. "Defiled": troubles and entanglements are forever eradicated. "Not in a direction": it perches high in the center of the circle. "Not apart from directions": there are no forms it does not manifest. "Not conditioned": the dharmakāya is tranquil. "Not unconditioned": it is not identical with the six destinies. "Not an indication": its essence is not form, hence not an indication. "Without preaching": its essence is not sound, hence without preaching. "Not giving": manifesting as identical with stinginess. "Not stingy": the perfection of giving is fully complete. "Not observing precepts": manifesting as having violations. "Not violating": bad dharmas are forever stilled. "Not patient": displaying as identical with affliction and wrath. "Not wrathful": anger and resentment are forever eradicated. "Not energetic": manifesting as identical with laziness. "Not indolent": negligence is forever exhausted. "Not concentrated": manifesting as identical with distraction. "Not distracted": clamor and turmoil are forever separated from. "Not wise": manifesting as identical with foolish darkness. "Not foolish": the darkness of delusion is completely eradicated. "Not sincere": manifesting as identical with deception. "Not deceitful": falsehood and deceit are forever destroyed. "Not coming": going from Vaiśālī toward Rājagṛha is "coming"; returning from Rājagṛha toward Vaiśālī is "going"; the dharmakāya is also not seen to turn its back on this to "come" or turn toward that to "go." "Neither emerging nor entering": neither is it seen to take birth in the royal palace as "emerging" or to extinguish its traces between the twin trees as "entering." "Because all paths of speech are severed": setting aside the responsive and discussing the true, it is therefore said that "the path of language is cut off, and the place of mental activity ceases." "Neither a field of merit nor not a field of merit": slighting it brings demerit, hence not a field of merit; revering it brings merit, hence not [un-]merit. Another explanation: manifesting the creation of many evils, it is not a field of merit; many evils being forever eradicated, it is not not a field of merit. "Neither worthy of offerings": because it is not a field of merit, it is not worthy of offerings. "Nor unworthy of offerings": because it is a field of merit, it is worthy of offerings. "Neither to be taken": because it is not an offering, it cannot be taken. "Nor to be renounced": because it is worthy of offerings, it cannot be renounced. "Not having marks": one cannot grasp it by making sense faculties and marks. "Not devoid of marks": not being the same as empty space, it is not devoid of marks. Furthermore, "identical with the true reality": identical with the principle of the ultimate truth's true reality, it is equal to the true principle. "Equal to dharma-nature": it silently tallies with the nature of dharmas. "Incalculable and immeasurable": its essence is beyond calculation and measurement. "Surpassing calculation and measurement": from the vajra[-stage] downward, the sphere of phenomenal forms falls within calculation and measurement; the dharmakāya surpasses the realm of names and numbers, outside calculation and measurement. "Not large": entering minutely where there is no interval, hence not large. "Not small": pervading the great void, hence not small. "Not seen": its essence is not form, hence not seen. "Not heard": its essence is not sound or smell, hence not heard. "Not felt": its essence is not touch, hence not felt. "Not known": its essence is not taste, hence not known. Another explanation: it is not perceptibly visible, nor can it be known through what is not perceptibly visible, hence it says "not heard"; nor is it felt, and following inspection, it is not known through this. "Free from all fetters and bonds": entangling ties are forever gone. "Equal to all wisdoms": above, it equals all buddhas; below, it is identical with sentient beings. "Without differentiation regarding all dharmas": previously it was identical with nominally designated sentient beings; here it is identical with the dharmas drawn upon by sentient beings, without differentiation. From "entirely devoid" onward, it explains that although identical with the dharmas of sentient beings, it is without faults such as afflictions. "Without loss": without faults or errors. "Without turbidity": without dust or defilement. "Without affliction": without kleśas. "Without action and without arising": the above explained the absence of afflictions; this explains the absence of the substance of karma. "Without birth and without cessation": since there are no afflictions or karma, birth being defined as the beginning and death being defined as the end, it explains the absence of saṃsāra. "Without fear, without sorrow, without joy": ordinary people rejoice in life and hate death; if there were death, there could be sorrow and fear, but within the principle of emptiness no death can be found, hence no sorrow or fear; if there were birth, there could be joy, but since birth cannot be found, there is also no joy. "Without revulsion": there is no death to be reviled and no birth to be attached to. "Neither having existed, nor existing now, nor to exist": this is the permanently abiding essence, not subsumed under the three times. "Cannot be distinguished or displayed by any speech": its essence transcends the hundred negations and the realm of all marks, hence it cannot be distinguished or displayed by speech. From "Bhagavat, the Tathāgata is like this" onward, the third section brings up the correct and the wrong to conclude the above two sections. If one contemplates in this way, taking the sixteen-foot body as empty and the dharmakāya as transcending the hundred negations, this is called the correct contemplation. If one contemplates otherwise, this is called a wrong contemplation. If one posits that the sixteen-foot body is real, or takes the sixteen-foot body to be the ultimate Buddha, this is called a wrong contemplation.