英語訳
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Three great incalculable eons, neither increasing nor decreasing. (All three incalculable eons, all in one moment.) In Aśvaghoṣa Bodhisattva's Treatise on Awakening Faith, this teaching is clearly present. How could one not accept it? However, that manifestation also has real meaning. People of supreme supreme diligence transform many great eons. (Though not transcending incalculable eons, they transcend ordinary great eons.) Though the three incalculable eons are immeasurable, they are contained within momentary instants. Because it relates to cultivation in previous lives. Because fruit is established in the causal stage. Regarding years, numbers, and eons—immeasurable numbered eons. Because in each stage one passes through many koṭis. This is completely different from those with partial attachments who regard our teaching gate as partial empty talk. Phenomena and principle, oneness and difference, etc., are all as clarified above. Within teachings equally spoken by Buddha, what love or hatred could there be? All should follow the above. Are these principles not ultimate? (Those who have faith and study this teaching must have Mahāyāna nature and should not doubt—the meaning is as in the questions and answers below.)
Thirteenth, next on the excellence of unquestionable lineage. All schools revere the Tathāgata. If one truly obtains the essential meaning, what school would be base? The Dharma has gates numerous as Ganges sands, all reaching one reality. What person of wisdom would become stuck in one gate? However, ordinary feelings are foolishly blind, and orthodox versus heterodox is extremely dark. The divisions of doctrinal paths cannot be definitively judged. Therefore one investigates the succession and makes it one's guide. What matters return to is also not without reason. Our school: Vairocana transmitted to Maitreya, the sequence as in the notes above. Maitreya transmitted to Asaṅga, as clarified below. That is, in the thousand years after Buddha's extinction, initially existence-teachings flourished and sentient beings became attached to existence. Next emptiness-teachings flourished and sentient beings became attached to emptiness. Asaṅga was saddened by this and sought the Dharma of the middle position. At night he ascended to the heavenly palace and received our school from the great sage, venerable Maitreya. In daytime he returned to the human realm and expounded for the assembly. At that time most people could not believe and accept [the teaching]. Therefore [Asaṅga] petitioned Maitreya to destroy attachments and graspings. The bodhisattva responded to the petition and descended to the human realm. In the great lecture hall of Ayodhyā country in central India, he emitted great radiance, gathered sentient beings with karmic connections,
【Lower Section】
Over four months of nights, he taught the five treatises, simultaneously breaking existence and emptiness, revealing middle-way principle. Since that time, there have been no dissenting theories. The four rulers of the five regions of India all took refuge in this Dharma. Asaṅga immediately transmitted to his disciple Vasubandhu. Vasubandhu received the teaching and composed many treatise collections. Among these he encompassed myriad phenomena in a single character, condensed a thousand instructions in one word, composed the Viṃśikā verses, and expounded the profound meaning of consciousness-only. Thereupon Dharmapāla and other ten great treatise masters each studied the verse texts and competed in producing marvelous commentaries. Jade chapters mutually polished each other, flowery texts competed in brilliance. Kunlun mountains divided peaks, jeweled trees varied branches. However, uniquely transcending the group of worthies, prominently displaying fragrant excellence—this was Dharmapāla alone. Non-Buddhists and Hīnayāna practitioners all unanimously declared: "In Mahāyāna there is only this person." On his deathbed, a voice in the sky proclaimed "This is one Buddha of the Bhadra kalpa." Various posthumous honors are fully contained in separate biographies (etc.). He then transmitted the Dharma to Bodhisattva Śīlabhadra. The bodhisattva transmitted to Tripiṭaka Xuanzang, the tripiṭaka master transmitted to Master Ci [Kuiji], the master transmitted to Master Zixzhou, the master transmitted to Master Puyang. The details of each excellent matter of transmission are as in the Biography of Cien, Biographies of Eminent Monks, etc. At that time, Prelate Genbō of our court entered Tang for study, returned to court and transmitted [the teaching]. He made Prelate Zenju the dharma successor. Also Master Cien transmitted to Dharma Master Jibong of Silla, Dharma Master Jibong transmitted to Prelate Gien of Japan, the prelate transmitted to Dharma Teacher Sengyō, the teacher transmitted to Dharma Teacher Myōfuku, the teacher transmitted to Prelate Zenju, the prelate transmitted to Priest Shōkai. The lineage below continues face-to-face down to the present time, with the teacher-disciple [succession] unbroken. Alas! Golden texts and jade principles shine their light in the western heavens. Sanskrit rain and wisdom-water bring moisture to the Japanese realm. Even without the righteousness of respectful correspondence, who would doubt the details of the source? How much more so
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regarding these patriarchs upon patriarchs? How much more regarding these transmissions upon transmissions?
Fourteenth, next on the excellence of the patriarchs' noble status. Generally speaking, once doctrinal evidence and principles are perfectly established and dharma transmission clearly documented, then even if those patriarchs were of low status, their school cannot but be trusted. How much more when the source position is exaltedly victorious? Patriarchs are those whose expounded texts and meanings do not extend to others, persons in whom the establishment of one school first begins. Venerable Maitreya's five treatises encounter no challenge to controversy. Moreover, they are long-term expositions of the Inner Palace. (Vasubandhu came down and informed Asaṅga—see the Record of Western Regions.) What person would doubt that the great sage venerable Maitreya is our patriarch? If one extends to doubt, then all schools and all patriarchs could extend to doubt, because differences between this and that cannot be obtained. Know that Asaṅga, Vasubandhu and below are all final teachers among patriarchs. What they return to exists only in the sage Maitreya. The ultimate of veneration—wanting to describe it would be shallow. Even if [Maitreya] were a bodhisattva of other directions, who would treat him lightly? Even if he were a future bodhisattva, who would not revere him? There is no duality in what is revered. What could serve as comparison? Yet now suddenly becoming inherited disciples, easily disturbing the settled judgment of the bodhisattva. Even if [done] carelessly, is that transgression light? How much more comparing him to mud, likening him to an infant? A bottomless deep pit—one cannot not fear. Roughly hearing by transmission that venerable Maitreya promotes expedient-gate teachings—what is the meaning of this? If venerable Maitreya does not know reality, then in debate there would still be fear. If he knows real teaching but does not promote it, what is the reason for this? If faculties and opportunities are not yet mature, when will they be purely mature? To break various false views after [Buddha's] extinction, the bodhisattva descends to the human realm. Is that matter comparable to light down? The responsive meeting of time, the correspondence of opportunities—who would extend to one moment of doubt? If time has not arrived and opportunities are not mature,
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should this be called the great sage's error? If he descends because expedient-teaching opportunities are mature, why does he not descend when real opportunities are mature? Why does the bodhisattva only benefit expedient opportunities and not benefit real ones? Moreover, where in what age are those whose real opportunities are purely mature? In what place? Could it be that setting aside sentient beings of superior faculties in the true Dharma age, not being in the victorious land of central India where Buddha was born, extending far to the semblance age, being in border inferior realms, real teaching perfect opportunities first become mature? Why are true Dharma opportunities and faculties only limited to the expedient? Why did the doctrinal understanding of central countries completely lose the real? Examining difficulties this way, there is no time for detailed enumeration. What person with mind would believe and accept this? If one still forcibly argues, this is merely despising the bodhisattva. Fearsome! Fearsome! Think deeply! Think deeply! Though Asaṅga and Vasubandhu are founding patriarchs, who would disparage them? They are humbly great sages of the ground-entering, no-birth level. They are ultimate positions of one incalculable eon. Down to Xuanzang and Cien, though fundamental patriarchs, how could one laugh at them? They are precisely traces of Bodhisattva Sadāprarudita. They are manifestations of venerable Avalokiteśvara. How much more regarding this world's present one-life-remaining bodhisattva position? Generally, various principles are difficult to describe exhaustively.
Fifteenth, next on the excellence of true and correct translation. That is, though the layered matters above are complete, if there are doubts about translation, one should still retain regrets. Our Tripiṭaka Master received his nature from divine brilliance, in youth detesting the red dust. Accumulating virtue through successive lives, in youth excelling in the black-robed gate. Consequently he exhausted the five sections and seven groups in one summer month, partook of the eighty [thousand teachings] and twelve [divisions] in the customs of both capitals. Han dynasty one country, Wu and Shu one skill—no virtue he did not investigate, no master he did not visit, no doubt he did not discuss, no text he did not peruse. Moreover he clearly understood the three emptinesses, his practice encompassed the four patiences. Pine wind and water-moon were insufficient for comparison; immortal dew and bright pearls could hardly serve as metaphor. Yet the Buddha [teachings] of previous eras