[Pramāṇa](https://indike.org/pramana/) › [Indian literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in) › [Buddhist Literature](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha) › [Taishō Tripiṭaka (Chinese Buddhist canon)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho) › [大乘起信論廣釋卷第三．四．五](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2814) › 3.66 # 大乘起信論廣釋卷第三．四．五 3.66 大乘起信論廣釋卷第三．四．五 3.66 - **Language:** Classical Chinese ### [3.66](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2814.3.66) 論。是故一切至唯心虛妄　釋曰。此顯境體亦無也。如鏡中像無實體故鏡內鏡外皆不可得。境但是心虛妄現故。心外心內亦不可得。若爾諸境四義不成。無外境體。唯心妄故。二十唯識難起頌云。若識無實境。則處時決定。相續不決定。作用不應成。答。如夢中境。雖四義成實無別境故。寤時境雖有四義。亦不離心。亦如餓鬼同見膿河。又如地獄同見獄卒。雖無實境。四義亦成故。諸境界唯心虛妄。即二十論答難頌云。處時定如夢。身不定如鬼。同見膿河等。如夢損有用。一切如地獄。同見獄卒等。能為通害事。故四義皆成。若爾善惡應不成。業如夢所見皆無實故。答。理實善惡無實自性。皆虛妄心之所起。故隨自執心成彼業果。若如實知無所有。故依如義是故。經頌云。譬如燈破闇一念盡無餘。諸業之闇冥多劫所熏聚牟尼智燈照剎那速滅除。如是等義諸經非一。故彼善惡亦是夢心。如其心妄業亦然故。若爾殺生不斷彼命亦無怨等無外境故。答。見生殺命亦是妄心。無生及命無所殺故。謂有為法性自無常。於念念中無住性故。實無能殺所殺二相。但二妄心互相成故。由此念念妄熏習乃成決定怨業等。故二十唯識頌此義云。展轉增上力。二識成決定。長行廣釋廣敘引之。如涅槃經。佛依此義破彼闍王殺父罪執。故說蘊空無能所殺。除彼妄心罪自無故。 > \[Treatise:\] Therefore, all phenomena are fundamentally separated from the characteristics of thoughts, and cannot be grasped; they are only the mind's falsity. > \[Commentary:\] This reveals that the substance of objective fields is also non-existent. Just as an image in a mirror has no real substance, and therefore can be grasped neither inside nor outside the mirror, objective fields are merely false appearances of the mind, and therefore can be grasped neither outside nor inside the mind. If so, then the four meanings would not be established for the various objective fields: they would have no external substance, being only the mind's falsity. The Viṃśikāvṛtti raises an objection in verse: "If consciousness lacks real objects, then determination of place and time, non-determination of continuities, and causal functions would not be established." Answer: As with objects in a dream, although the four meanings are established, in reality there are no separate objects; although the objects of waking time have the four meanings, they are also not separate from the mind. Also, just as hungry ghosts collectively see rivers of pus, and just as in hell they collectively see hell wardens, although there are no real objects, the four meanings are still established; therefore, all objective fields are only the mind's falsity. That is to say, the verse answering the objection in the Viṃśikā says: "Determination of place and time is like a dream; indetermination of persons is like ghosts collectively seeing rivers of pus and so forth; causal function is like emission in a dream; all is like hell, collectively seeing hell wardens and so forth that can perform acts of mutual torment; therefore the four meanings are all established." If so, then wholesome and unwholesome karma would not be established, because like what is seen in a dream, all would lack reality. Answer: In principle and reality, wholesome and unwholesome \[actions\] have no real intrinsic nature; they are all produced by the false mind. Therefore, following one's own grasping mind, those karmic fruits are formed. If known as it truly is, they have no existence, relying on the meaning of suchness. Therefore a sutra verse says: "Just as a lamp destroys darkness, exhausting it in a single thought without remainder, the darkness of all karmas accumulated through perfuming for many kalpas is quickly eradicated in a kṣaṇa when illuminated by the lamp of the Muni's cognition." Such meanings across various sutras are not singular. Therefore, those wholesome and unwholesome \[actions\] are also dream minds; as their mind is false, so too is karma. If so, then killing living beings would not cut off their life, nor would there be enemies and so forth, because there are no external objects. Answer: Seeing a being and killing life is also a false mind; because there is no being or life, there is nothing killed. That is to say, conditioned dharmas are by nature impermanent, having no abiding nature moment to moment. In reality, there are no two characteristics of a killer and a killed; only two false minds mutually condition each other. Due to this moment-to-moment false perfuming, determinate hostile karma and so forth are formed. Therefore the Viṃśikāvṛtti verse states this meaning: "By their mutual sovereign power, the two consciousnesses become determined." The prose explanation explains and cites this extensively. Just as in the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra, the Buddha relied on this meaning to refute King Ajātaśatru's attachment to the guilt of killing his father, stating that the aggregates are empty and there is neither killer nor killed; once that false mind is removed, the guilt is naturally non-existent. > — English (machine translation) (machine translation) - [Previous: 3.65](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2814.3.65) - [Next: 3.67](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2814.3.67) - [Up: 3](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2814.3) ## Translations (1) - [English (machine translation)](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2814~en-mt.3.66) — English, machine translation ## Linked texts (1) - [大乘起信論略述](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2813.1.142) — Classical Chinese --- Source: [https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2814.3.66](https://indike.org/pramana/in.bauddha.taisho.2814.3.66) · Pramāṇa