英語訳
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Essentials of Transmission of Reasonable Mahāyāna, Volume Two
Draft by Ryōhen of Shōganin, Kōfukuji Temple
Ninth, next on the excellence of ultimate delusion-breaking. That is, all foolish ordinary beings, since beginningless time, have been largely attached to views of existence, with endless cycles of rebirth. The great sage, taking pity on this, taught emptiness to break attachment to existence. This is called shallow breaking. Sentient beings, through this, also became attached to grasping emptiness. The great sage, taking pity on this, taught the middle [way] to break both [extremes]. This is called deep breaking. Similarly, since beginningless time [beings] have been largely attached to grasping separation, with birth and death never ceasing. The great sage, taking pity on this, taught identity to break separation. Sentient beings, through this, also became attached to views of identity. The great sage, taking pity on this, taught the middle [way] to break both [extremes]. The shallow and deep are evident. Since partial existence and partial emptiness are already false attachments, how could partial separation and partial identity not be false attachments? Therefore the Tathāgata in the Saṃdhinirmocana Sūtra warned with profound teachings on mutual identity and separation: "foolish, obtuse, unclear, unskillful, not practicing in accordance with principle" (text). The Buddha himself raised various subtle, layered, detailed, ineffable difficulties, extensively establishing the meaning of neither identity nor separation. His words are extremely earnest and his principle profoundly mysterious. Who could harbor a moment's doubt toward this? If one forcibly remains attached to the one side of identity, it is probably not the middle way. It is probably not beyond language. How could one speak of "the cessation of verbal characteristics"? Why call it "inconceivable dharma"? Clearly, other schools' dharma-gates of mutual identity merely break and eliminate the beginningless attachments of inferior ordinary beings to complete separateness. In reality, don't those schools also hold the meaning of neither identity nor separation? What we hear as rumors are probably the partial attachments of beginning students. If one says "without speaking of complete identity, it would be difficult to eliminate attachment to separation, therefore one must teach [identity]," know that this is precisely
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the initial breaking of delusion. Having heard this teaching, when attachment to identity arises, one immediately teaches "our school should break both views." Is this not ultimate? Teaching the one vehicle to break attachment to three vehicles, teaching the analogy of clouds and rain to break attachment to vehicle-oneness, etc.—is this not also this meaning? Therefore other schools are also correct dharma. However, because they are hidden and secret, they teach only one gate. For example, though Prajñāpāramitā is correct dharma, because it is hidden and secret, it teaches only one gate. Being thus hidden and having similarities [with wrong views], students often become attached to one side. If one still argues about this, how can one escape the layered, endless difficult refutations of the Tathāgata as explained in the Profound Secret [Sūtra]?
Tenth, next on the excellence of the sequential stages of the three trainings. The correspondence of the three trainings with the three baskets is as usual; the sequential stages from shallow to deep have no controversy. Among these, our school studies and relies on Mahāyāna Abhidharma, taking consciousness-only wisdom-practice as its fundamental aim. As for the treatise basket: among the three baskets taught by the Tathāgata, Abhidharma is the foundation, and should be understood to include treatises taught by bodhisattvas. The Buddha-taught Abhidharma Mahāyāna teachings are precisely the Saṃdhinirmocana Sūtra, the Abhidharma Sūtra, etc. (determination by our school's founders). Though they are sūtra texts, they are the inner treasury of nature-characteristics analysis, ultimate definitive meaning. Sūtras carry implicit intentions; Abhidharma determines nature and characteristics. What carries implicit intentions, though profound, has ambiguities, so students are often confused. What determines nature and characteristics, though appearing divisive, has no ambiguities, so students can understand. That is to say, everything is clearly revealed with absolutely no concealed aspects. Existence is taught as existence, non-existence as non-existence, phenomena as phenomena, principle as principle, shallow as shallow, deep as deep, explanation as explanation, affirmation as affirmation, identity as identity, separation as separation. This is called the most ultimate teaching because Buddha's intention is fully revealed. Among all teachings, could there be
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any teaching like this? Therefore, even if one studies the sūtra basket, if one does not reveal its implicit intentions, how could one rely on this to establish a school? What is clearly revealed all corresponds to nature and characteristics; beyond correct-incorrect decisive definitive meaning, clear definitive meaning cannot be obtained. Even if other people's private determinations can still be established as schools, how much more so our school, where the Tathāgata himself revealed implicit intentions, determined nature and characteristics, clearly and distinctly established dharma-gates, took ultimate Mahāyāna Abhidharma as its base sūtra, and took the subtle great treasury revealed by the Tathāgata and further expanded by the [future] Buddha [Maitreya] as base treatises, etc.?
Eleventh, next on the excellence of the marvelous activity of destroying heterodoxy. The gate of logic (hetuvidyā), though called the model of ninety-six [non-Buddhist] paths, originally derives only from Buddha's teaching. Though serving as the track for twenty-eight masters, it resides exclusively in our school. Therefore the base sūtra's one section and the great treatise's five divisions—their explanations alone are clear. The ten-branch various treatises and hundred base commentaries—their interpretations are truly flourishing. Containing and storing boundless profound dharmas while also carrying this marvelous function—like a sage king bearing the wheel-treasure, what enemy with deviant views would one encounter without defeating them? This is the ultimate of great compassion because it can eliminate the fundamental source of sentient beings' four kinds of birth. It is also the most essential of great wisdom because it can induce marvelous understanding of personally realized emptiness of both [persons and dharmas]. Therefore when Cārvāka overturned heterodoxy, he suddenly aroused Prince Kumāra's faith. When Harṣa returned to orthodoxy, he quickly subdued Prajñāgupta's false views. Establishing and refuting is extremely swift—what compares to this? It is truly like Mount Qiao pressing spring eggs, still comparable to a fierce wind rolling autumn [leaves]. How much more so when Maitreya taught the seven reasons to cut through the evil net of slandering Mahāyāna, Dignāga opened eight gates to crush the bedrock of primordial nature transformation, on the day Vasubandhu composed the Seventy [Verses], the drums of true other-school theories lost their sound, when Dharmapāla defeated one hundred [opponents], the solid fortress of substantial dharmas
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erased its traces, etc.? This is when nature-characteristics hang up mirrors, winds of three valid cognitions fly, existence and emptiness dissolve shadows, and springs of two causes gush forth.
Twelfth, next on the excellence of perfectly established doctrinal principle. That is, within sacred teachings, two types of people are explained: first, people with Buddha-nature; second, people without Buddha-nature. Since these two types of people are equally taught in sacred texts, why love one and treat the text as literally teaching real possession of nature, while hating one and going mad over the text to eliminate real absence of nature? Within the same sacred teachings, what causes such partiality? If you cite textual evidence, I also cite texts. If you establish doctrinal reasoning, I also establish reasoning. If you fear having doubt about your own existence or non-existence and forcibly make [one teaching] expedient, how can you use personal doubt-resolution to determine the expedient or ultimate nature of sacred teachings? Just as those teachings speak of hell existing—not yet knowing whether my own self can escape or not, having this doubt, how could one reject and deny [hell's existence]? In emptiness-quiescence teachings, all [substantial entities] are eliminated. Know that these two [types of people] are both real as the texts state. Also, among the practitioners targeted by the three vehicles, since bodhisattvas already have people of determined nature, why do the two [lesser] vehicles lack people of determined nature? Both sides are equally among those targeted by the vehicles—why love bodhisattvas and permit their determined nature while hating the two [lesser] vehicles and eliminate [their] determined nature? Such partiality and lack of examination is layer upon layer as above. Also, among the three vehicles, the practice of the superior vehicle has sequential stages that are long and distant. Because bodhisattvas surpass two-vehicle practitioners by immeasurable multiples, they definitely pass through three great incalculable eons. The myriad practices are difficult to cultivate and the great fruit difficult to realize, because one cannot immediately enter through sudden expedient means. However, in sacred teachings, sometimes teaching transcendent swift attainment of perfect enlightenment is what is demonstrated for timid sentient beings. Sometimes teaching that perfect enlightenment is achieved only after immeasurable incalculable eons is what is demonstrated for lazy sentient beings. But in reality, bodhisattvas' inherent nature and faculties are equal, their initial inspiration is also equal, and what they realize is also equal. There is no dharma of transcendent swift realization. All must pass through three