英語訳
【Right Page】
supremacy. (This meaning is correct.)
Question: The treatise states: "Teaching is established according to beings, its purport is subtle and difficult to know. Principle merges with wisdom to unite with essence, it is deep and unfathomable." What does this mean?
Answer: The Water Commentary states: "This expresses the reason for taking explication and purport as essence. 'Beings' refers to spiritual faculties. 'Purport' refers to intention. 'Principle' refers to true principle. 'Merging' means uniting. This is the state of personally realizing." Now I think this text manifests that teaching and principle are supreme, thus showing the reason for making this the One Vehicle. The original intention of this essence is not merely taking explication and purport as the One Vehicle. Taking the meaning of the supremacy of explication and purport to call it the One Vehicle—this is the original intention.
Question: The treatise states: "Therefore, at the beginning of the Expedient Means chapter, explicated wisdom and explicating teaching gates are called the One Vehicle." What does this mean?
Answer: This is cited evidence. There are two types of cited evidence. This is the first.
Question: How does this text serve as evidence for this essence?
Answer: Explicated wisdom is principle. Explicating teaching gates are teaching. These two are called the One Vehicle. Therefore this serves as evidence.
Question: What is the initial text of the Expedient Means chapter?
Answer: The sūtra states: "The wisdom of all Buddhas is extremely deep and immeasurable. That gate of wisdom is difficult to understand and difficult to enter. All śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas cannot know it."
Question: What does this text mean?
Answer: The treatise's explanation of the Expedient Means chapter has five divisions. This is the initial text of the first division, praising the dharma. The Profound Praise states: "The dharma that is praised briefly has two types: first is wisdom, second is wisdom gates. Therefore the treatise states: 'There are two profundities: first is realization profundity, which refers to wisdom; second is scriptural profundity, which is wisdom gates.' Wisdom gates are precisely explicating teaching. Wisdom profundity is precisely explicated principle."
Question: The sūtra text states "the wisdom of all Buddhas is extremely deep and immeasurable," but does not call the wisdom gates "extremely deep." Why then are both called "extremely deep"?
【Lower Section】
Answer: The Profound Praise states: "This meaning of profundity extends to both teaching and principle. However, principle properly receives the name 'extremely deep.' The depth of gates is called 'difficult to see and awaken to, etc.' The two vehicles not knowing also extends to both of these."
Question: How many meanings do these two profundities each have?
Answer: Each has two meanings: first is subtle essence, second is difficult to understand.
Question: What are the two meanings of realization profundity?
Answer: Subtle essence has five profundities: First is meaning profundity, referring to correct wisdom, because it functions like suchness. Second is essence profundity, referring to the original nature of true-suchness dharma. Third is inner realization profundity, again manifesting correct wisdom, because it inwardly merges with suchness. Fourth is basis profundity, again manifesting true-suchness, because it is the foundation of all virtues. Fifth is supreme profundity, referring to great bodhi. "Difficult to understand" means all two-vehicle practitioners do not know it.
Question: Why are correct wisdom and true-suchness manifested twice repeatedly?
Answer: They are repeatedly manifested according to meaning. That is, correct wisdom is the meaningful function of true-suchness, hence called meaning profundity. Because it personally realizes true-suchness, it is called inner realization profundity. True-suchness is the fundamental essence of all dharmas, hence called essence profundity. Because it is the fundamental basis upon which all merit dharmas depend, it is called basis profundity.
Question: Why is supreme profundity not repeatedly manifested?
Answer: The single meaning of "supreme" is the ultimate and most excellent. Therefore it is not repeatedly manifested. Moreover, Asaṅga's Vajracchedikā treatise states: "Supreme bodhi is dharma-body principle. Samyaksaṃbodhi is reward-body wisdom." Therefore it is said that great bodhi comprehensively contains principle and wisdom. Why would repeated manifestation be needed?
Question: What are the two meanings of scriptural profundity?
Answer: First is subtle essence. The treatise cites the sūtra saying: "That wisdom gate is difficult to see, difficult to awaken to, difficult to know, difficult to understand, difficult to enter." (The present sūtra only has the fourth and fifth texts.) The Profound Praise states: "First, because the meaning of wisdom is deep, that gate is difficult to see. Second, because the essence of wisdom is deep, that gate is
【Left Page】
difficult to awaken to. Third, because the inner realization of wisdom is deep, that gate is difficult to know. Fourth, because the basis of wisdom is deep, that gate is difficult to understand. Fifth, because the supremacy of wisdom is deep, that gate is difficult to enter. Using the five difficulties of teaching, they are separately matched with the five types of wisdom profundity." (Now there is a meaning, I now abbreviate it.) Second is difficult to understand, because all two-vehicle practitioners do not know it. In explaining scriptural profundity, the next text of the sūtra presents eight profundities, but because it is complex, I do not record it.
Question: How do we know these two profundities constitute the One Vehicle?
Answer: Speaking of the One Vehicle, it ultimately takes teaching, principle, practice, and fruition as essence. Now this wisdom and wisdom gates are the One Vehicle of principle and teaching. The opening, showing, awakening, and entering below are the One Vehicle of fruition and practice. Therefore we know these two profundities are precisely the One Vehicle essence.
Question: The Water Commentary states: "The teaching at the beginning of the Expedient Means chapter extends to the provisional teachings of the three vehicles. How can this be cited to prove the One Vehicle teaching?" How should this be answered?
Answer: The next text states: "Within the supreme essence, the excellent is taken and the inferior is not taken. The intention is to take the Great Vehicle among the three vehicles to prove the teaching One Vehicle here, not requiring the provisional scriptural teaching."
Question: The treatise states: "Among the seventeen names in the Immeasurable Meanings Sūtra, the fourteenth is also called the One Vehicle." What does this mean?
Answer: This is the second evidence.
Question: How does this text serve as evidence?
Answer: This sūtra's doctrine takes teaching and principle as essence, and is also called the One Vehicle. It is clear that the One Vehicle takes teaching and principle as essence. Therefore this is cited as evidence.
Question: How do we know this sūtra takes teaching and principle as essence?
Answer: That sūtra states: "Because the natures and desires of all sentient beings are immeasurable, the dharma that is expounded is also immeasurable. Because dharmas are immeasurable, meanings are also immeasurable. 'Meanings are immeasurable' means they arise from one dharma. That one dharma is precisely the signless." Those "immeasurable dharmas" are teaching. "Immeasurable meanings"
【Lower Section】
are principle. The Lotus Treatise states: "Immeasurable meanings means accomplishing the meaning of words, therefore using this dharma gate to explain that extremely deep and subtle realm. The deep and subtle realm is precisely Buddha's most excellent realm."
The Profound Praise states: "Because explicating teaching dharmas explain those meanings, teaching is also immeasurable. Through this, both word-teaching and explicated meaning are called immeasurable." The meaning is that accomplishing word-meaning means words are teaching and meaning is principle. Therefore this sūtra takes teaching and principle as essence and receives the name One Vehicle.
Question: Various masters say "that sūtra takes the signless as essence." Why then do you only say it "takes teaching and principle as essence"?
Answer: That meaning does not conflict. Explaining the true-suchness subtle principle that is the basis of teaching and principle is properly called immeasurable meaning. Therefore it says "the signless is the essence." This does not mean teaching and principle do not constitute the essence. Therefore the Profound Praise states: "The treatise does not only take the produced teaching and principle to be called immeasurable. The essence of the immeasurable is precisely the realm of true cognition. What the essence can accomplish achieves those word-meanings."
Question: The treatise states: "Through this, the lotus has two meanings in the treatise: first, the essence emerges from water; second, it can bloom. The first is analogous to wisdom, the latter analogous to wisdom gates." What does this mean?
Answer: This text, in order to establish the above citation of the Immeasurable Meanings Sūtra taking teaching and principle as essence, cites text from the Lotus Treatise.
Question: Using this text, how is that meaning established?
Answer: "Through this" refers to the above-cited text that Immeasurable Meanings is also called the One Vehicle. "Lotus" mentions the sixteenth name. The meaning is: through this, the Immeasurable Meanings Sūtra that takes teaching and principle as essence is also called the One Vehicle, and the sixteenth designation is called "lotus." The treatise has two meanings of emerging from water and blooming. The "emerging from water" represents the explicated principle-wisdom that constitutes the essence. The "blooming" represents the explicating teaching wisdom-gates. Therefore the Immeasurable