維摩經疏卷第三．第六 6.29

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第二辯前香飯。文別有三。一阿難致問佛具答之。二舍利自說身香阿難審問舍利具答。三阿難問飯消久近維摩為辯。初中先問起發。今所聞香自昔未有是為何香下佛為辯。彼菩薩毛孔之香即是眾香菩薩毛孔香也。問。前去香氣普勳三千世界。何故阿難不聞此中方聞。答。非分故雖近不聞。今欲廣明佛事。所以得聞。又云。阿難園中尋聞此香。今欲顯飯殊勝廣明佛事。所以重問。不是以前不聞。第二初先舍利自說身香。阿難次問此所從來。舍利後辯。長者維摩從眾香國取佛餘飯。於舍食者。一切毛孔皆香。若此故我身香。第三有兩問答。初阿難問香住。文如維摩下答。至此飯消阿難重問。文如下答。答中有三。初法次喻後合。前中有三。初約凡夫。次約二乘。後約菩薩。此飯勢力至于七日然後乃消者。此約凡說勢。唯七日其飯即消。又云。香飯三塵為性。通凡及聖。香飯益身唯得七日。若凡夫人未起行者食此香飯。七日之內起人天行然後乃消。若大小乘人未發心者食此香飯。七日之內隨其所應香飯力勳發意乃消。如七生聖人如七步毒蛇也。藏云。飯勢有三。凡夫福薄但得七日。所謂下也。二乘次中故得初果正位羅漢心脫然後乃消。所謂中也。大乘發心乃至補處然後乃消。所謂上也。以應三品眾生故初云七日。若約位辯。五停心觀七方便也。一不淨觀。二界分別觀。三慈悲觀。四因緣觀。五數息觀。六總別相念。七達分善根。經此七位食大悲飯能離煩惱香飯息用。故云七日消也。若依薩婆多宗。一五停心觀。二別相念。三總相。四暖。五頂。六忍。七世第一法。為七也。正位者。次為二乘苦法忍以去見諦十六心名入正位。若約新經。未離欲者若食此飯要得離欲。然後乃消。此即第三果。得心解脫者。謂阿羅漢果。大乘中三句至發心者至十信已上發心菩提也。得無生忍者。初地已上得無生法忍。理實四忍俱得。從初為名也。問。經云。已發意食此飯者後無生忍然後乃消者。此從十信至初地經初僧祇劫。此既長時捨身受身。不可香飯隔生猶在。云何言得無生忍乃消。答。有其四義。一直往菩薩地首。是分斷身雖復捨生受生。猶食香飯起觀心相續不斷。入初地時引無漏惠斷惑證如。息其作用。名之為消。二此諸菩薩復捨生受身。後身之中識中有種子種子遇緣還生。香飯相續不斷。流至初地發無漏心。斷惑證真。名之為消。非是食滅名為消也。三迴心菩薩十信十住已去受變易身相續不斷。猶食香飯。引真見道。雙斷二障。證真擇滅。息其作用。名之為消。非是無食也。四諸小菩薩身雖分斷。猶食不思議飯。攝持此身相續不斷。入初地時引正體智。斷惑證如。名之為消。非食滅也。故上經云。揣若須彌。乃至一切猶不可盡也。又上經云。無盡戒定智惠功德具足者所食之餘終不可盡。法華云。是時釋迦牟尼佛默然而坐。及諸四眾亦皆默然。五十小劫以佛神力故令諸大眾謂如半日。又法華云。日月燈明佛說法華經。六十小劫時。會聽者謂如半日。理實聽六十小劫。由經勢力持諸眾生經六十劫不死。此亦如是。又如大迦葉於鷄足山入滅盡定。留身待彌勒佛。經五十六億萬歲彌勒下生與佛相見。中間不死。定力持身。香飯功力亦爾。如智度論說也。若約新經。其以證得無生忍者若食此飯要當安住不退轉位。然後乃消。此即八地位也。得一生補處者十地後心種智現前細障斯滅。此飯乃消也。譬如有藥下立喻以顯名。曰上味者列藥名。其有眼下明藥功能。此飯如是者合。上味滅除下合。身諸毒滅然後乃消。問。香飯既是色法。云何斷惑。答。遠云。由大悲香飯不思議力所以能斷惑。如輪王有一床寶。聖王居上。即能離欲。逮得四種玉女。雖見如覩佛像。不生欲心。況佛菩薩所受境界。如經中說。菩薩有一照法性冠。著此觀時一切諸法悉現在心。諸事亦爾。雖有此釋。道理不然。豈有色法性能斷惑。但以香飯資發觀智能斷煩惱。非是食體即能斷惑。

Second, explaining the fragrant rice mentioned earlier. The text contains three distinct parts: first, Ānanda asks a question, and the Buddha replies in full; second, Śāriputra himself speaks of the fragrance of his body, Ānanda inquires closely, and Śāriputra replies in full; third, Ānanda asks about the duration until the rice is digested, and Vimalakīrti explains it. In the first part, the question is raised at the beginning: from "The fragrance smelled now was never heard of from of old; what kind of fragrance is this?" down to where the Buddha explains it for him. The fragrance of that bodhisattva's pores is the pore-fragrance of the bodhisattvas of Sarvagandhasugandhā. Question: Earlier, the fragrance universally perfumed the trichiliocosm; why did Ānanda not smell it then and only smells it now? Answer: Because it was not his capacity, although it was near, he did not smell it; now, to broadly illuminate the Buddha's work, he is made to smell it. Alternatively, it is said: in the garden Ānanda had already smelled this fragrance, and now, wishing to reveal the preeminence of the rice and broadly illuminate the Buddha's work, he therefore asks again, not that he did not smell it before. In the second part, first Śāriputra himself speaks of his body's fragrance; next Ānanda asks where this came from; afterwards Śāriputra explains: "The elder Vimalakīrti fetched the leftover rice of the Buddha from the land of Sarvagandhasugandhā; for those who ate it in his house, all their pores are fragrant like this; therefore my body is fragrant." In the third part, there are two questions and answers. First, Ānanda asks about the abiding of the fragrance; the text is as below where Vimalakīrti replies. Up to this, when the rice is digested, Ānanda asks again; the text is as below where he replies. In the reply there are three parts: first the teaching, next the simile, and finally the application. In the first part, there are three: first regarding ordinary beings, next regarding the two vehicles, and finally regarding bodhisattvas. "The power of this rice lasts for seven days and only then is digested": this is spoken regarding ordinary beings whose capacity is only seven days, after which the rice is digested. Alternatively, it is said: fragrant rice has the three sense-data as its nature and is common to ordinary beings and āryas alike; the fragrant rice benefits the body for only seven days. If an ordinary person who has not yet aroused practice eats this fragrant rice, within seven days he arouses human and heavenly practices, and only then is it digested. If persons of the Mahāyāna or Hīnayāna who have not yet aroused the mind [for bodhi] eat this fragrant rice, within seven days, according to what is appropriate, the power of the fragrant rice perfumes them, and upon their arousing the mind it is digested; it is like an ārya destined for seven rebirths, or like a serpent whose poison acts within seven steps. Kuiji says: There are three powers of the rice: ordinary beings have slight merit and obtain only seven days, which is called the lowest. The two vehicles are intermediate, so upon attaining the first fruit, the correct state, and the arhat's mental liberation, it is only then digested, which is called the intermediate. In the Mahāyāna, from arousing the mind up to being bound to one rebirth, it is only then digested, which is called the highest. Corresponding to the three grades of sentient beings, it first says "seven days." If explained according to stages, these are the five contemplations for settling the mind and the seven expedients: first, contemplation of impurity; second, contemplation of the analysis of realms; third, contemplation of loving-kindness and compassion; fourth, contemplation of causes and conditions; fifth, contemplation of counting the breath; sixth, the mindfulness of specific and general characteristics; seventh, the roots of goodness leading to liberation. Passing through these seven stages, eating the rice of great compassion enables the abandoning of defilements, and the fragrant rice ceases its functioning; hence it says "digested in seven days." If following the Sarvāstivāda school: first, the five contemplations for settling the mind; second, mindfulness of specific characteristics; third, general characteristics; fourth, warmth; fifth, summit; sixth, patience; seventh, the highest worldly dharmas: these make up the seven. The "correct state": next, for the two vehicles, from the patience with the dharma of suffering onwards, the sixteen minds of seeing the truths are called entering the correct state. According to the New Sūtra: for those who have not yet abandoned desire, if they eat this rice, they must necessarily attain abandonment of desire, and only then is it digested; this is the third fruit. "Attaining mental liberation": this refers to the fruit of the arhat. Within the Mahāyāna, the three phrases: up to "arousing the mind" refers to arousing the mind for bodhi from the ten faiths upward. "Attaining patience with the unarisen": from the first bhūmi upward, one attains the patience with the unarisen nature of dharmas; in actual fact, all four patiences are attained, but it takes its name from the first. Question: The sūtra says, "For those who have already aroused the mind, eating this rice, it is only after [attaining] patience with the unarisen that it is digested"; from the ten faiths to the first bhūmi takes the first asaṃkhyeya-kalpa. Since this is a long time, casting off bodies and receiving bodies, the fragrant rice cannot still remain across lifetimes; how can it be said that it is digested only upon attaining patience with the unarisen? Answer: There are four meanings. First: bodhisattvas on the direct path, at the head of the bhūmis, have bodies of fragmented transmigration; although they cast off life and receive life, they still eat the fragrant rice and arouse the mind of contemplation in uninterrupted continuity; upon entering the first bhūmi, this induces outflow-free wisdom, severs delusions, and realizes suchness; when its function ceases, this is called "being digested." Second: these bodhisattvas again cast off life and receive bodies; in subsequent bodies, there are seeds within consciousness, and when seeds encounter conditions they arise again; the fragrant rice continues without interruption, flowing to the first bhūmi to arouse the outflow-free mind, severing delusions and realizing the real; this is called "being digested," not that the extinction of the food is called "being digested." Third: bodhisattvas who have converted their minds, from the ten faiths and ten abodes upward, receive bodies of inconceivable transformation in uninterrupted continuity; they still eat the fragrant rice, which induces the true path of seeing, severs both obstacles, and realizes true analytical cessation; when its function ceases, this is called "being digested," not that there is no food. Fourth: although the bodies of lesser bodhisattvas are of fragmented transmigration, they still eat this inconceivable rice, which sustains these bodies in uninterrupted continuity; upon entering the first bhūmi, it induces the mūla-jñāna, severs delusions, and realizes suchness; this is called "being digested," not the extinction of the food. Therefore the earlier sūtra says: "A morsel like Mount Sumeru... yet all could not exhaust it." Moreover, the earlier sūtra says: "The leftovers eaten by those endowed with inexhaustible morality, samādhi, wisdom, and merit can never be exhausted." The Lotus Sūtra says: "At that time Śākyamuni Buddha sat silently, and the four assemblies were also silent; for fifty small kalpas, through the Buddha's supernatural power, he made the great assembly deem it as half a day." Again, the Lotus Sūtra says: "When the Buddha Candrasūryapradīpa preached the Lotus Sūtra for sixty small kalpas, the listeners in the assembly deemed it as half a day." In truth they listened for sixty small kalpas; by the power of the sūtra, sentient beings were sustained through sixty kalpas without dying; this is also like that. Again, it is like Mahākāśyapa entering nirodha-samāpatti on Mount Kukkuṭapāda, preserving his body to await Maitreya Buddha; after 5,600,000,000 years, Maitreya will descend and be born to meet the Buddha; in the interim he does not die, for the power of samādhi sustains his body; the efficacy of the fragrant rice is also like this, as explained in the Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa. According to the New Sūtra: for those who have already realized patience with the unarisen, if they eat this rice, they must necessarily dwell securely in the irreversible stage, and only then is it digested; this is the stage of the eighth bhūmi. "Those who attain being bound to one rebirth": in the final mind of the tenth bhūmi, the knowledge of all modes becomes manifest and subtle obstacles are eliminated; this rice is then digested. From "Just as there is a medicine..." downward: establishing a simile to elucidate. "Named 'Supreme Taste'": listing the name of the medicine. From "If anyone has eyes..." downward: clarifying the medicine's function. "This rice is also like this": the application. From "Supreme Taste eliminates..." downward: the application; all poisons of the body are eliminated, and only then is it digested. Question: Since the fragrant rice is a physical form (rūpa-dharma), how does it sever delusions? Answer: Huiyuan says: by the inconceivable power of the fragrant rice of great compassion, it is therefore able to sever delusions. Just as a cakravartin has a jeweled couch upon which the sage king sits, and he is immediately able to abandon desire; and having attained four kinds of jade maidens, though seeing them, it is like beholding an image of the Buddha, and no lustful mind arises; how much more so for the spheres experienced by buddhas and bodhisattvas! As the sūtra says: a bodhisattva has a crown that illumines dharma-nature; when wearing this crown, all dharmas are fully present to the mind; other matters are also like this. Although there is this explanation, in principle it is not so: how could a physical form have the intrinsic nature to sever delusions? It is only that the fragrant rice sustains and arouses the wisdom of contemplation that can sever afflictions, not that the substance of the food itself can sever delusions.