大乘入道次第開決 1.7

1.7

'The true mark has a single flavor, the wondrous amṛta', and so forth: these two lines display the Dharma Jewel. The upper line displays its principle-Dharma of tathatā. The lower line displays the teaching-Dharma that flows from it. As for saying 'single flavor, amṛta', and so forth, this statement is made relying on the Nirvāṇa-sūtra. Thus that sūtra says: 'In the Snowy Mountains there is a supreme, wondrous medicine named amṛta. If a person consumes it, they attain immeasurable lifespan. Originally it has only a single flavor, but following the places to which it flows, various flavors arise; yet its true flavor remains in the mountains.' The single flavor of amṛta illustrates the tathatā of the true mark. The various flavors that flow illustrate the various teachings. In accordance with the various capacities and dispositions of sentient beings, that tathatā is explained through various gates, yet the original tathatā undergoes no change whatsoever.