英語訳
[Right page, upper section]
They are completely subdued on the grounds. What is called "on the grounds" refers to the first ground and above. That situation will be explained next. Therefore, during the one great asaṃkhyeya kalpa of the pre-ground stage, obstructions are subdued but not yet severed. Asaṃkhyeya kalpa means innumerable kalpas. Innumerable kalpa means, for example, if one were to stroke a stone extending eight hundred li in both width and height with an extremely thin and light celestial garment, very rarely and gently, until that stone gradually wore away and became nothing—this duration is called one great innumerable kalpa. The duration of the pre-ground stage is this. In this way, when the awakening within ordinary beings' capacity reaches its limit, the uncontaminated seeds finally produce lower-grade manifest activity for the first time. This is precisely the two wisdoms of lower-grade Wonderful Observation and Equality. At this time, one first becomes able to awaken to the principle of suchness and able to sever the two discriminated obstructions. This is called the path of seeing. This also has multiple layers: one-mind path of seeing, three-mind path of seeing, and sixteen-mind path of seeing arise in sequence. This is the beginning of the first ground among the ten grounds. From this point onward, one is called a sage and called a ground-level bodhisattva. The ten grounds are: Ground of Joy, Ground Free from Defilement, Ground of Emission of Light, Ground of Blazing Wisdom, Ground Difficult to Conquer, Ground of Manifest Presence, Ground of Far-going, Ground of Immobility, Ground of Good Wisdom, and Ground of Dharma Cloud. The first ground refers to the initial Ground of Joy. What are now called these ten grounds are the successive stages of mind that gradually approach Buddhahood as awakening unfolds, divided into ten. In each
[Right page, lower section]
stage, many koṭi hundreds of thousands of great kalpas are traversed, so even the period called the initial Ground of Joy is extremely long. Though the path of seeing has three layers, because the time period is short, even when one exits the path of seeing and enters the path of cultivation, one is still within the first ground. What is called entering the path of cultivation means the two wisdoms of Wonderful Observation and Equality arise repeatedly. This arises from middle-grade uncontaminated seeds. That awakening becomes even clearer and begins to sever the innate delusions mentioned earlier. What is called delusion refers to obstructions. Regarding these innate delusions, among the afflictive and cognitive obstructions that exist, bodhisattvas sever innate afflictive obstructions when they become Buddha at the end of the tenth ground. From earlier, since entering the path of cultivation, they gradually sever innate cognitive obstructions. Therefore, even while exiting the path of seeing and still being on the first ground, they sever innate cognitive obstructions. From the first ground to the second ground, from the second ground to the third ground, and so forth up to from the ninth ground to the tenth ground—each time one enters the next ground, one successively severs the innate cognitive obstructions that obstruct that next ground. In this way, when one becomes Buddha from the tenth ground, one severs what are called Buddha-fruit obstructions. What are called Buddha-fruit obstructions are the remaining innate cognitive obstructions that were not completely severed, and the various innate afflictive obstructions that were intentionally left unsevered. Because these two obstructions obstruct Buddha-fruit,
[Left page, upper section]
when one properly achieves Buddhahood, these are severed. The reason bodhisattvas retain innate afflictive obstructions and do not sever them during the ten grounds is, first, because they are not obstructions of the ten grounds, and second, for the sake of liberating sentient beings. There are other reasons besides these, but their details are omitted. The ten grounds have particularly excellent qualities. In each, one cultivates one practice, severs one obstruction, and realizes one suchness. The practices to be cultivated are called the ten pāramitās, the obstructions to be severed are called the ten layers of obstructions, and the suchnesses to be realized are called the ten suchnesses. Their details are also omitted. Now, from the first ground to the end of the seventh ground, another great asaṃkhyeya kalpa is traversed—this is the second asaṃkhyeya. From the eighth ground to the end of the tenth ground, another great asaṃkhyeya kalpa is traversed—this is the third asaṃkhyeya. The one great asaṃkhyeya of the pre-ground stage is the first asaṃkhyeya. This is called the cultivation of three asaṃkhyeyas. The uncontaminated wisdom during that time also perfumes seeds each time it arises and ceases moment by moment. The way it perfumes is like contaminated seeds. The perfuming of uncontaminated mind seeds begins from the second moment of the path of seeing. The second moment refers to the second instant. Since beginningless time, during the period of being an ordinary being, there are no newly perfumed uncontaminated seeds. If uncontaminated mind does not arise, who would perfume them? Therefore, the wisdom of the very first moment of the path of seeing arises solely from naturally uncontaminated seeds. After that,
[Left page, lower section]
newly perfumed seeds are produced and added, and original seeds and newly perfumed seeds combine to arise. This is called new-old combined arising. New-old combined arising is not only for the uncontaminated. Since beginningless time, contaminated dharmas are also likewise. For any dharma, when both types of seeds—original and newly perfumed—exist together, new-old combined arising necessarily occurs. Regarding these three asaṃkhyeyas: in the first asaṃkhyeya, only contaminated awakening arises and uncontaminated awakening has not yet opened. In the second asaṃkhyeya, contaminated and uncontaminated arise mixed together. In the third asaṃkhyeya, purely uncontaminated awakening alone continues, and contaminated wisdom does not intermix. Merit accumulates rapidly moment by moment, and awakening unfolds swiftly instant by instant. The first instant doubles the previous two asaṃkhyeyas, the second instant doubles the first instant. What is called doubling means that what existed from the beginning remains unchanged, and on top of that, the same amount that existed from the beginning is added. In this way, the third instant, fourth instant, up to the final instant of the tenth ground successively double. At the end of the third asaṃkhyeya, there are the hundred kalpas of cultivating major and minor marks. That is to say, when the time to become Buddha approaches, one specifically cultivates the karma of various major marks and minor excellent marks for one hundred kalpas. When such various practices are fulfilled, in the Akaniṣṭha Heaven—the highest limit regarding the realm of form, still higher than the mind-basis—great self-