英語訳
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Their forms differ in various ways according to their births. How they receive their karmic rewards cannot be standardized. That is, according to the good, evil, suffering, and pleasure of the fundamental existence of their next birth, these characteristics appear during the intermediate existence stage. The intermediate existence of evil paths dwells in darkness, while the intermediate existence of good destinies has bright characteristics. The intermediate existence of hell beings has fierce fires and such, while the intermediate existence of form-realm beings has great brilliance and such. They are not the same. Fundamental existence refers to the time period after birth-existence and before death-existence. Regarding the twenty-five existences, Xuanzang's commentary contains verses about the realms: four continents, four evil paths, Brahmā heaven, desire-realm heavens, perception heaven, pure abodes, and four formless concentrations. The three grounds are: the ground with both initial and sustained application (desire realm and first dhyāna), the ground with only sustained application (intermediate dhyāna), and the ground without initial or sustained application (from second dhyāna to the sphere of neither-perception-nor-non-perception). I cannot record all the countless other classifications and establishments.
Establishment of Time and Eons
Generally, regarding eon-counts, there are great and small ones. Small eons refer to all time periods in terms of days, months, and years that do not reach a full increase-decrease cycle. Intermediate eons refer to one increase-decrease cycle up to seventy or ninety-nine increase-decrease eons. Great eons refer to eighty increase-decrease cycles and above. One increase means that a ten-year-old child lives to twenty, a twenty-year-old lives to forty, and thus progressively doubling by half until reaching 84,000 years—this is called one increase. One decrease means that from a lifespan of 84,000 years, after every hundred years one year decreases, and thus every hundred years one year decreases until reaching ten years as extreme old age. This gradual process is called one decrease. Therefore, increasing eons rapidly double-increase, so their time is short. Decreasing eons slowly decrease, so their
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time is long. Combining this increase and decrease is called an intermediate eon. From the smallest single eon and above—two increase-decreases or three increase-decreases up to seventy-nine—all constitute the measure of intermediate eons. However, regarding the phases of the vessel-world's formation and destruction, the four eons of formation, abiding, destruction, and emptiness are distinct. Formation is when the vessel-world initially forms; abiding is after formation; destruction is when it begins to be destroyed; emptiness is after destruction. Regarding one great trichiliocosm, all simultaneously form and all are destroyed. In these four eons, each experiences twenty increase-decrease cycles, totaling eighty increase-decrease eon-counts, called a great eon. From the smallest single eon up to but not reaching one great asaṃkhyeya, all constitute the measure of this great eon. During these eons, three disasters arise. At the end of one increase-decrease cycle of an intermediate eon, small three disasters arise: sword disasters, disease disasters, and famine disasters. When great eons are destroyed, great three disasters arise: fire disasters, water disasters, and wind disasters. However, fire arises seven times, water disaster occurs once. When water disasters arise seven times, wind disaster arises once. That is, some great eons are destroyed only by fire disaster, the next great eon is also destroyed only by fire disaster, and thus seven great eons are all destroyed only by fire. The next great eon is destroyed only by water disaster. This water disaster occurs only once. The next great eon is also destroyed by fire disaster, also destroyed seven times by fire. There is no difference in this pattern. The next great eon is destroyed only by water disaster, and that water disaster is also once, like this. Thus seven fires and one water, seven fires and one water, after experiencing seven water disasters, at the time of the next great eon, wind disaster arises. Afterward it should again be as before. As before, it revolves endlessly. The karmic power of sentient beings is created by only one mind. How pitiful, how detestable. In these eons, the Tathāgata appears in the world only during abiding eons. Within abiding eons, only during decreasing eons. During decreasing eons, in twenty decreasing eons, he appears according to conditions. Now regarding Śākyamuni's appearance in the world,
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the interpretation of time-eons often differs among scholars. Following one interpretation, he appeared during the time when human lifespan was one hundred years in the first decreasing eon. During this one decrease, four buddhas appear in the world: Krakucchanda appeared when lifespans were 60,000 years, Kanakamuni appeared when lifespans were 40,000 years, Kāśyapa appeared when lifespans were 20,000 years, and Śākyamuni appeared when lifespans were 100 years. Based on this, Maitreya's appearance in the world would be during the time period when the second abiding eon gradually turns from 84,000 years toward decrease. This is the purport of the orthodox Western interpretation recorded in the Yogācārabhūmi commentary. Generally, the eons of the three thousand buddhas' appearances have different names. The past thousand buddhas were in the Glorious Eon, the present thousand buddhas are in the Fortunate Eon, and the future thousand buddhas will be in the Constellation Eon. Among the present thousand, four buddhas have already appeared, and the present time is the end period of the semblance dharma after the fourth buddha's extinction. Thinking distantly of before and after, the ocean of suffering has no shore. Alas, what is this for?
Establishment of Pure Lands
Pure lands and impure lands—their location is one. "One" means they mutually interpenetrate like milk and water. However, defiled and pure are different, not uniform. One should know that the two lands are immediately not separate—they are one in this sense, yet separate in terms of defilement and purity. Due to this principle, impure lands pervade the ten directions without limit, and pure lands also pervade the ten directions without limit. How could there be a separate location for pure lands? This discusses the self-enjoyment land. If speaking about other-enjoyment lands, they appear according to what is suitable for bodhisattvas. Those who are transformed necessarily have the eighth ālaya consciousness, so taking some place within the impure lands as a supporting location, within it they transform and create circumferentially boundless, inconceivable lands. Although not necessarily permanently dwelling in this place, being here is also not
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without reason. Like an illusion, unobstructed, with no fixed characteristics. What is suitable is like the Pure Abode heavens of the form realm—because it is most suitable for the complete awakening of tenth-ground bodhisattvas, boundless lands appear in those heavens. The ten trillion lands west of here have karmic connections to attract and gather Sahā, so according to what is suitable, taking those locations, they manifest boundless lands. Though relying on those places, because the lands are boundless, they pervade and fill the ten directions. The ten-layered Vairocana's hundred-petal transformation (manifesting hundred-petal lotus platforms for first-ground capacity, manifesting thousand-petal lotus platforms for second ground, and so on up to the tenth ground, with ineffable petals all following this pattern)—some call them lands, some call them flower-seats. Among different interpretations, I have not yet seen sectarian judgment texts. Regardless of which interpretation one follows, there is no doubt that those lands are vast and extensive. They also all use many Sumeru-worlds of impure lands as supporting places and establish themselves above them—isn't this clear? The measurement of one petal is one trichiliocosm with ten billion Sumerus. A hundred petals are thus a hundred thousand billion Sumeru-worlds. The rest follow this pattern. The measurement of one petal is exactly the measurement of a great transformation-body buddha-land. The Śākyamuni on the petals is this teaching buddha, seen by preparatory-path bodhisattvas. Those ten billion lands are each individual lands of the small transformation-body. The Śākyamuni within the petals is this teaching buddha, seen by accumulation-path bodhisattvas. Great transformation-body lands are definitely pure lands and do not extend to impure lands. Small transformation-body lands are sometimes pure, sometimes impure. Regarding transformation-body pure lands, there is dispute about whether long-duration pure lands exist or not. Regardless of which interpretation one follows, what the preparatory path sees is definitely long-duration. If maintaining one interpretation, what the accumulation path sees also has long duration. Within these lands seen by the accumulation path, there are also two levels: exclusive lands and shared lands. The exclusive ones are seen only by bodhisattvas—illusory and inconceivable. The shared lands are seen by all three vehicles—good worldly lands. When Maitreya appears in this Jambudvīpa, golden