The Threefold Grouping, the Great Dharma Teacher, and the Four Unhindered Wisdoms Begin

Sūtra: This bodhisattva truly knows sentient beings sorted into the mark of the threefold grouping: the mark of the correctly settled group, the mark of the wrongly settled group, and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group; the mark of the correctly settled group through correct view, the mark of the wrongly settled group through wrong view, and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group; the mark of the wrongly settled group through the five heinous deeds, the mark of the correctly settled group through the five faculties, and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group; the mark of the wrongly settled group through the eight wrongnesses, the mark of the correctly settled group through the correct station — since he will never act wrongly again — and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group; the mark of the wrongly settled group through envy, stinginess, and unrelenting evil conduct, the mark of the correctly settled group through cultivating the unsurpassed noble path, and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group — all of these he truly knows. Son of the Buddha! A bodhisattva who accords with wisdom such as this is called one who dwells securely in the bodhisattva's Sādhumatī, the Ground of Excellent Wisdom.

Commentary: The distinctions within the thicket of sentient beings' threefold grouping are of five kinds. First, the distinction, among the three vehicles, of those who constantly and decisively possess the dharma of nirvāṇa and those who lack the dharma of nirvāṇa — as the sūtra says, "this bodhisattva truly knows sentient beings sorted into the mark of the threefold grouping: the mark of the correctly settled group, the mark of the wrongly settled group, and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group." Second, the distinction of the causes of wholesome and unwholesome conduct — as the sūtra says, "the mark of the correctly settled group through correct view, the mark of the wrongly settled group through wrong view, and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group." Third, the distinction of the causes of evil destinies and wholesome destinies — as the sūtra says, "the mark of the wrongly settled group through the five heinous deeds, the mark of the correctly settled group through the five faculties, and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group." Fourth, the distinction of the causes belonging to non-Buddhists and to śrāvakas — as the sūtra says, "the mark of the wrongly settled group through the eight wrongnesses, the mark of the correctly settled group through the correct station — since he will never act wrongly again — and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group." Fifth, the distinct manifestation belonging to bodhisattvas — as the sūtra says, "the mark of the wrongly settled group through envy, stinginess, and unrelenting evil conduct, the mark of the correctly settled group through cultivating the unsurpassed noble path, and, apart from these two, the mark of the undetermined group — all of these he truly knows." Abandoning sentient beings who could be converted is called envy; not delighting in giving one's own wealth to others is called the fault of stinginess; conduct able to give rise to suffering in others is unrelenting evil conduct. A bodhisattva contrary to the perfections is a wrongly settled bodhisattva. This is called the skillful means of the Dharma teacher accomplished, wisdom accomplished, and entry into practice accomplished. These three matters accomplished, he abides securely within this ground — as the sūtra says, "Son of the Buddha! A bodhisattva who accords with wisdom such as this is called one who dwells securely in the bodhisattva's Sādhumatī, the Ground of Excellent Wisdom." What, then, is accomplishing teaching? It is giving sentient beings the very means of liberation.

Sūtra: This bodhisattva, having already come to dwell in this bodhisattva's Sādhumatī, the Ground of Excellent Wisdom, truly knows sentient beings' differing marks of conduct such as these, and bestows upon them the very causes and conditions in accordance with their liberation. This bodhisattva truly knows the Dharma of converting sentient beings, truly knows the Dharma of ferrying sentient beings across, teaches the Dharma of the śrāvaka vehicle, teaches the Dharma of the pratyekabuddha vehicle, teaches the Dharma of the bodhisattva vehicle, and truly knows how to teach the Dharma of the Tathāgata's own ground. This bodhisattva, having known in this way, truly teaches the Dharma to sentient beings so that they attain liberation — in accordance with the distinctions of their minds, the distinctions of their latent tendencies, the distinctions of their faculties, the distinctions of their faith, the distinctions of their objects of experience, their various habitual tendencies of conduct, the wisdom that accords with every object of experience, according with the thicket of their inherent conduct, according with the turning of the habitual tendencies of the karma born of affliction, according with the distinctions of their grouping, and according with the faith proper to their vehicle — teaching them the Dharma so that they attain liberation.

Commentary: "Accomplishing teaching" means bestowing the very causes and conditions in accordance with sentient beings' liberation — as the sūtra says, "this bodhisattva, having already come to dwell in this bodhisattva's Sādhumatī, the Ground of Excellent Wisdom, truly knows sentient beings' differing marks of conduct such as these, and bestows upon them the very causes and conditions in accordance with their liberation." This "accomplishing teaching," moreover, is manifest through three further marks: first, wisdom accomplished; second, verbal action accomplished; third, the Dharma teacher accomplished. As for wisdom accomplished, this matter should be understood as spoken of according to what is known and according to what is relied upon. What is spoken of according to what is known? Since the vessel for liberation attains ripeness, since the very essence of liberation is correctly ferried across, and since the distinctions of liberation are the distinctions of the three vehicles — as the sūtra says, from "this bodhisattva truly knows the Dharma of converting sentient beings" all the way to "truly knows how to teach the Dharma of the Tathāgata's own ground." What is spoken of according to what is relied upon? It is because the Dharma taught corresponds to the vessel. As for "according with those who should be ferried across," this is bestowing the antidote-dharma — this meaning is spoken of in two phrases. As for the vessel for the Dharma taught being brought to completion, teaching the Dharma according to the faculties and according to faith — this meaning, too, is spoken of in two phrases — as the sūtra says, "this bodhisattva, having known in this way, truly teaches the Dharma to sentient beings so that they attain liberation, in accordance with the distinctions of their minds, the distinctions of their latent tendencies, the distinctions of their faculties, the distinctions of their faith." As for according with the vessel understood through simile — as the sūtra says, "the distinctions of their objects of experience" — this refers to their various habitual tendencies of conduct. As for according with the vessel of their various differing conduct — as the sūtra says, "the wisdom that accords with every object of experience." As for the vessel that attains accomplishment — as the sūtra says, "according with the thicket of their inherent conduct." As for according with the vessel of eloquent speech, since this refers to the arising of the affliction-born karma that habituates the very conduct he shares with them — as the sūtra says, "according with the turning of the habitual tendencies of the karma born of affliction." As for the vessel that turns upon settled and undetermined faculties — as the sūtra says, "according with the distinctions of their grouping." As for according with the cause of the vehicle, able to bring the vessel forth — as the sūtra says, "according with the faith proper to their vehicle, teaching them the Dharma so that they attain liberation." What, then, is the accomplishment of wisdom-activity?

Sūtra: This bodhisattva, dwelling within this bodhisattva's Sādhumatī, the Ground of Excellent Wisdom, is, in brief, said to become a great Dharma teacher, dwelling within the great Dharma teacher's own profound and subtle meaning, guarding and protecting the treasury of every buddha's Dharma.

Commentary: Here, two phrases are manifest: "teaching" and "upholding." As for "dwelling within the great Dharma teacher's own profound and subtle meaning," there are twenty aspects able to perform the work of a Dharma teacher. What are these twenty aspects able to perform the work of a Dharma teacher? First, timing; second, correct intention; third, immediacy; fourth, continuity; fifth, gradualness; sixth, sequence; seventh, the gradual sequence of phrase and meaning; eighth, demonstration; ninth, joy; tenth, encouragement; eleventh, being complete in merit; twelfth, not disparaging; thirteenth, not being disordered; fourteenth, according with the Dharma; fifteenth, according with the assembly; sixteenth, a mind of loving-kindness; seventeenth, a mind of peace and security; eighteenth, a mind of compassion; nineteenth, not attaching to profit, support, or renown; twentieth, not praising oneself while disparaging others. Here, "timing" means being free of the eight difficulties. As a verse says:

"Like a king harboring worry and vexation, sick, wrathful, or attached to every desire,
in a place of danger, without attendants; among flatterers, without a loyal minister —

at such times as these eight difficulties, a wise minister ought not to speak;
the mind-king, too, is just the same — at the wrong time, one ought not teach."

"Correct intention" means abiding in correct dignified deportment, not abiding incorrectly. What is the meaning of this? If he himself stands while another sits, he should not teach the Dharma — matters such as this are set forth at length within the scriptures on precepts. Why is this? Because every buddha and bodhisattva reveres and honors the Dharma; and because, through revering the Dharma, he causes others to give rise to a mind of reverence, hearing the Dharma with reverence, gathering in their minds to listen. "Immediacy" means that this bodhisattva, with correct intention, teaches every dharma to every assembly, being free of the defilement of stinginess with the Dharma. "Continuity" means teaching without rest, abandoning any mind of envy within every dharma. "Gradualness" means teaching according to the sequence of letter and phrase. "Sequence" means that the meaning, too, follows the sequence of letter and phrase, and is likewise taught in this way. "The gradual sequence of phrase and meaning" means teaching dharmas of shared meaning without teaching dharmas of differing meaning. "Demonstration" means demonstrating what should be demonstrated, and so forth. "Joy" means delighting in what should be delighted in. "Encouragement" means helping timid sentient beings so that they become courageous. "Being complete in merit" means fully teaching what is realized through manifest wisdom and inferential wisdom, and through the scriptural tradition. "Not disparaging" means teaching in accordance with the wholesome path. "Not being disordered" means being unmoved and unmixed, correctly entering what is not the thicket. "According with the Dharma" means fully teaching the four noble truths. "According with the assembly" means teaching the Dharma, among the four assemblies and the eight kinds of beings, according to what each is fit to hear. These fifteen kinds of mark are because the bodhisattva, according with benefiting others, teaches every dharma. "A mind of loving-kindness" means giving rise to a mind of loving-kindness and teaching the Dharma even among sentient beings who are his enemies. "A mind of peace and security" means giving rise to a mind that benefits, and teaching the Dharma, even among sentient beings of evil conduct. "A mind of compassion" means giving rise to a mind of compassion that brings benefit and joy, and teaching the Dharma, even among sentient beings who, experiencing suffering and pleasure, are given to heedlessness. "Not attaching to profit, support, or renown" means that his mind has no craving for them, and he constantly practices remaining far removed from them. "Not praising oneself while disparaging others" means teaching the Dharma to sentient beings free of pride, envy, and every secondary affliction. These five kinds of mark are because the bodhisattva's own mind is pure. Being complete in these twenty matters, he is able to perform the work of a Dharma teacher — this is what is called dwelling within the great Dharma teacher's own profound and subtle meaning. In this way, the wisdom accomplished within "accomplishing teaching" has already been explained. What, then, is verbal action accomplished?

Sūtra: Penetrating the skillful means of boundless wisdom, the four unhindered wisdoms give rise to the bodhisattva's own eloquence in teaching the Dharma; this bodhisattva, day and night, constantly remains unbroken in the four unhindered wisdoms. What are these four? They are the unhindered wisdom of dharmas, the unhindered wisdom of meaning, the unhindered wisdom of language, and the unhindered wisdom of eloquence.

Commentary: "Verbal action accomplished" means that the bodhisattva teaches the Dharma through the eloquent speech of the four unhindered wisdoms — as the sūtra says, from "penetrating the skillful means of boundless wisdom" all the way to "the unhindered wisdom of eloquence." "Unbroken" means unmoved. Here, the object-realm of the four unhindered wisdoms is of four kinds: first, the very substance of dharmas; second, the very substance of dharmas' object-realm; third, correctly obtaining and bestowing upon sentient beings; fourth, correctly seeking and bestowing through boundless gateways. Here, "the very substance of dharmas" means what is gathered within dharmas that are born, far removed from the two extremes — as with the mark of form's own resistant quality, and the rest, of this kind. "The very substance of dharmas' object-realm" means the object-realm of true wisdom within what is gathered within dharmas that are born, far removed from the two extremes. The bodhisattva abides within the object-realm of wisdom gathered within dharmas that are born, just as with form. What is this "form"? The eye, form, and the rest, according to their false discrimination, and so forth, of this kind. "Correctly obtaining and bestowing upon sentient beings" means that, within that object-realm of true wisdom, he correctly knows the speech that others delight in, and, correctly knowing, speaks according to others, and bestows it accordingly. "Correctly seeking and bestowing through boundless gateways" means that, according with the speech others delight in and correctly knowing it, he correctly knows boundless and various words of meaning, and, according with this knowing, bestows them. These four unhindered wisdoms have ten distinctions: first, in dependence on the particular characteristic; second, in dependence on the shared characteristic; third, the characteristic of activity; fourth, the characteristic of teaching; fifth, the characteristic of wisdom; sixth, the characteristic of being free of pride; seventh, the characteristic of the lesser vehicle and the great vehicle; eighth, the characteristic of the bodhisattva-ground; ninth, the characteristic of the Tathāgata-ground; tenth, the characteristic of sustaining activity. The latter five are the characteristics of purity. What, then, is the particular characteristic?

Sūtra: This bodhisattva, using the unhindered wisdom of dharmas, knows dharmas' own particular characteristic; through the unhindered wisdom of meaning, knows dharmas' distinguishing characteristic; through the unhindered wisdom of language, knows how to teach every dharma without breaking it apart; through the unhindered wisdom of eloquence, knows how to teach every dharma in sequence, without interruption.

Commentary: Here, the particular characteristic is of four kinds: first, the particular characteristic of dharmas as they arise; second, the particular characteristic of their distinctions; third, the particular characteristic of conceptions made firm; fourth, the particular characteristic of the distinctions among those conceptions — as the sūtra says, "this bodhisattva, using the unhindered wisdom of dharmas, knows dharmas' own particular characteristic; through the unhindered wisdom of meaning, knows dharmas' distinguishing characteristic; through the unhindered wisdom of language, knows how to teach every dharma without breaking it apart; through the unhindered wisdom of eloquence, knows how to teach every dharma in sequence, without interruption." Here, "teaching without breaking apart" means teaching the Dharma in various ways to sentient being after sentient being, according with each mark he has awakened to. "Teaching in sequence, without interruption" means, in sequence and without ceasing, using boundless and manifold differing names, in order to make that very meaning firm. What, then, is the shared characteristic?

Sūtra: Furthermore, through the unhindered wisdom of dharmas, he knows that dharmas are without any essential nature; through the unhindered wisdom of meaning, he knows dharmas' characteristic of arising and ceasing; through the unhindered wisdom of language, he knows dharmas as provisional names, and, without breaking apart the provisional name, teaches the Dharma; through the unhindered wisdom of eloquence, according with the provisional name, without breaking it apart, he teaches boundless dharmas.

Commentary: Here, the shared characteristic is of four kinds: first, the shared characteristic of all dharmas; second, the shared characteristic of all conditioned dharmas; third, the shared characteristic of all dharmas as provisional names; fourth, the shared characteristic of provisional name upon provisional name — as the sūtra says, "furthermore, through the unhindered wisdom of dharmas, he knows that dharmas are without any essential nature; through the unhindered wisdom of meaning, he knows dharmas' characteristic of arising and ceasing; through the unhindered wisdom of language, he knows dharmas as provisional names, and, without breaking apart the provisional name, teaches the Dharma; through the unhindered wisdom of eloquence, according with the provisional name, without breaking it apart, teaches boundless dharmas." Here, it is through the gateway of impermanence that he enters the meaning of no-self. The object-realm of wisdom at the very outset of this second, the shared characteristic, is thereby accomplished. Here, "knowing dharmas as provisional names, and, without breaking apart the provisional name, teaching the Dharma" means that a dharma under a provisional name is taught by means of a further provisional name. "According with the provisional name, without breaking it apart, teaching boundless dharmas" means that, without breaking apart the prior provisional name, he is nonetheless able to teach through a different provisional name. What, then, is the characteristic of activity?