大乘起信論廣釋卷第三．四．五 3.4

3.4

論。如二乘至名相似覺　釋曰。此第二覺相也。二覺相也。二乘觀智等是能覺人。新發意菩薩是三賢位。十解初心名發心住。舉而等後云初發意。得人空門同二乘說。覺於念異等者。明所覺相。如前所說三種異夢從本靜心無明眠起。此三乘人共智無我從異夢覺異相永無名。覺於念異念無異相。已捨麁分別等者。是覺利益。既此異相即是意識起。我我所自他異執隨事攀緣分別六塵。名麁分別執著相也。名相似覺者。是覺分齊。雖捨如是麁分別執。而猶未得法空真理。是故但名相似覺耳。或此位中得我空真如。知彼真如本無相念與無明念體相別異。由此但能捨麁分別。而未能知念即無念。非真覺故名相似覺。故經說為觀察義禪。謂知自共相人無我已於法我隨順觀察義禪。前釋順古違新論文。後釋甚差兩論快會。故新論云。覺念無念體相別異捨麁分別。

Treatise: As the two vehicles [...] it is called approximate awakening. Commentary: This is the second characteristic of awakening. In "the two vehicles' insight through contemplation and so forth," these are the persons capable of awakening. The newly resolved bodhisattvas are at the stages of the three grades of worthiness. The initial mind of the ten understandings is named the dwelling of resolving the mind. It is mentioned to include those after it, hence it says "initial resolve." Attaining the gate of personal emptiness is identical to what is taught for the two vehicles. In "awakening to the changing of thoughts," this clarifies the characteristics of what is awakened to. As previously explained, the three kinds of dreams of changing arise from the sleep of avidyā upon the originally calm mind. These practitioners of the three vehicles, through their shared insight into non-self, awaken from the dream of changing so that the characteristic of changing is forever gone; this is called "awakening to the changing of thoughts, so that thoughts are without the characteristic of changing." In "having abandoned coarse discrimination and so forth," this is the benefit of awakening. Since this characteristic of changing is none other than the mental consciousness giving rise to the differing attachments to self, what belongs to self, self, and other, which discriminates the six dusts following objects, it is called the "characteristic of coarse discrimination and grasping." In "it is called approximate awakening," this is the scope of the awakening. Although they have abandoned such coarse discriminative grasping, they have not yet attained the true principle of the emptiness of dharmas; therefore, it is merely called "approximate awakening." Alternatively, in this stage, one attains the tathatā of personal emptiness, knowing that that tathatā originally has no conceptual marks and that its substance and marks are distinct from the thoughts of avidyā. Through this, one can only abandon coarse discrimination, but is not yet able to know that thought is itself thoughtlessness; because it is not true awakening, it is called approximate awakening. Therefore, a sūtra describes it as "dhyāna that observes meaning," that is, having known the personal non-self of individual and common characteristics, one adaptively observes meaning regarding the dharma-self. The former explanation conforms to the old treatise and contradicts the new treatise; the latter explanation is quite superior and harmonises both treatises well. Thus the new treatise says: "awakening to the fact that thought and thoughtlessness are distinct in substance and marks, one abandons coarse discrimination."