維摩經疏卷第三．第六 3.11

3.11

第三釋中所以下總徵。憶念下別。別中有三。一出昔日被呵之事。二時維摩下明其教呵得失之相。三明說益。為諸居士說法者。經雖無文以理言之應說施戒修福等事或說小乘生空法等。小不應大。所以被呵。諺云。白衣居士久發大心。目連不識根機為說小法。法藥差故。故被呵也。就下教訶相中。先訶後教。訶中不當如仁說者。居士應聞大乘實相乃說有相之法。一說不應法。二說不當機。此二不當具有四失。一不知根。二不達深義。三闕於大悲。四不報佛恩。若約行辯目連修入證行。以其此人說施戒等法不隨真法。今教二空也。

In the third section, the explanation: from "Why?" onward is the general inquiry; from "I recall..." onward is the detailed explanation. Within the detailed explanation there are three parts: first, setting forth the previous occasion of being rebuked; second, from "At that time Vimalakīrti..." onward, explaining the aspects of gain and loss in his teaching and rebuke; third, explaining the benefits of the teaching. As for "preached the Dharma for the householders": although the sūtra text has no elaboration, in terms of the underlying principle, he must have preached on giving, precepts, cultivating merit, and the like, or preached the Hīnayāna Dharma of the emptiness of the person, and so forth. The small did not correspond to the great, and on this account he was rebuked. As the saying goes: the white-robed householders had long since generated the great aspiration, yet Maudgalyāyana, failing to recognize their spiritual capacity, preached a lesser Dharma to them. Because the medicine of the Dharma was mismatched, he was rebuked. In the aspect of teaching and rebuke below, first comes the rebuke, followed by the instruction. Within the rebuke, "You should not speak as you do, Venerable Sir": the householders ought to have heard the Mahāyāna dharmatā, yet he spoke of phenomena with signs. First, what he preached did not accord with the Dharma; second, what he preached was not suited to the faculties [of the audience]. These two failures to accord encompass four faults: first, not knowing the faculties; second, not penetrating the profound meaning; third, lacking great compassion; fourth, not repaying the Buddha's kindness. If distinguished in terms of practice, Maudgalyāyana had cultivated and attained the practice of realization; but because this person preached such dharmas as giving and precepts without conforming to the true Dharma, [Vimalakīrti] now instructs him in the two emptinesses.