The Case for the Mahāyāna, and the Bodhisattva Lineage
The treatise opens with its own reason for existing: an "ornament" is not decoration for its own sake but a set of five similes for how a teaching moves a mind, from first faith through to realization. From there it takes up the question a skeptical contemporary would actually have asked — is the Mahāyāna really the Buddha's word, or a later invention? — and answers with eight independent arguments, several of which work by showing that the objector's own premises, followed through, prove the opposite of what he intended. Having established the Mahāyāna, the treatise asks why anyone would take refuge in it above the other two vehicles, and answers in the extravagant register of royal birth: bodhicitta as seed, wisdom as mother, compassion as wet-nurse. And it closes this fascicle by asking what makes a bodhisattva a bodhisattva in the first place — the lineage, its existence proven from four kinds of observable difference among beings, its nine topics run out to their least comfortable conclusion: some beings, on this treatise's own account, do not have it at all.
Where This Fascicle Picks Up
This is the opening fascicle of the Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra (大乘莊嚴經論), translated into Chinese by Prabhākaramitra in the early Tang and here translated into English for the first time on this site. The Taishō text opens with an official preface by Li Baiyao, the court official who wrote it up by imperial decree — a document about the translation project itself rather than the treatise's own teaching. That preface, together with the question of how to describe this treatise's authorship, is addressed on this collection's index page rather than repeated here; what follows below is the treatise proper, starting from its own first verse.
The Chinese source marks "偈曰" for verse and "釋曰" for the prose that expounds it — not "頌曰" and "論曰" as in this site's other Yogācāra treatises, a difference of the translator's own idiom rather than of content. No verse-only extract of this text survives, unlike the companion text used to verify other treatises on this site; the boundary between root verse and prose exposition here is simply given by the source's own alternation of 偈曰 and 釋曰, which is unambiguous throughout.
Classical text is set in the left-hand column, our English in the right. See also this site's note on translation method.
1. The Origin: Five Similes for the Ornament
偈曰：
義智作諸義， 言句皆無垢，
救濟苦眾生， 慈悲為性故。
巧說方便法， 所謂最上乘，
為發大心者， 略以五義現。
釋曰：莊嚴大乘經論，誰能莊嚴？答：義智能莊嚴。問：義智云何莊嚴？答：開作諸義。問：以何開作？答：以言及句。問：以何等言？以何等句？答：以無垢言、以無垢句。無垢言者，謂能至涅槃城。無垢句者，謂字句相應。若離無垢言句，則於諸義不能開曉。
問：以何義故莊嚴？答：為救濟苦眾生故。問：眾生自苦，何因救濟？答：為菩薩者大悲為體，生憐愍故。問：若救他苦，莊嚴何法？答：莊嚴如來巧說方便法。問：何等方便法？答：所謂最上乘。問：為誰故莊嚴？答：為發大乘心者。問：以幾義莊嚴？答：略以五義示現。問：何者五義？
Wisdom of meaning brings forth all meanings;
its words and phrases are all stainless;
it rescues suffering sentient beings,
for compassion is its very nature.
Skillfully taught, a method of skillful means —
this is called the supreme vehicle —
for those who arouse the great mind,
it is shown in brief through five meanings.
The exposition: as for the "ornament" of the Mahāyāna sūtras and treatises — who is able to ornament it? Answer: the wisdom of meaning is able to ornament it. Question: how does the wisdom of meaning ornament it? Answer: by opening up and bringing forth all its meanings. Question: by what means does it open and bring them forth? Answer: by words and by phrases. Question: with what kind of words, with what kind of phrases? Answer: with stainless words and stainless phrases. Stainless words are those able to reach the city of nirvāṇa. Stainless phrases are those in which the letters and the phrasing correspond to one another. Apart from stainless words and phrases, one is unable to open up and make clear the various meanings.
Question: for the sake of what meaning does it ornament? Answer: in order to rescue and save suffering sentient beings. Question: sentient beings suffer of their own accord — for what reason should they be rescued? Answer: because for the bodhisattva great compassion is his very substance, and pity arises in him. Question: if it rescues the suffering of others, what dharma does it ornament? Answer: it ornaments the Tathāgata's skillfully taught method of skillful means. Question: what method of skillful means is this? Answer: it is called the supreme vehicle. Question: for whose sake does it ornament? Answer: for the sake of those who arouse the mind of the Great Vehicle. Question: by how many meanings does it ornament? Answer: it is shown in brief by five meanings. Question: what are the five meanings?
譬如金成器， 譬如花正敷，
譬如食美膳， 譬如解文字，
譬如開寶篋， 是各得歡喜；
五義法莊嚴， 歡喜亦如是。
釋曰：此中五譬，即譬彼五義莊嚴。如其次第，能令發大心者信向故、受教故、思惟故、修習故、證得故。問：其義云何？答：金成譬，為令信向，轉彼心故。華敷譬，為令受教，開示彼故。食膳譬，為令思惟，得法味故。解文譬，為令修習，更不思故。開篋譬，為令證得真實菩提分寶，自覺證故。由此五義分別大乘，能令彼人得生愛樂。問：若彼法自性功德具足，何義更須莊嚴為？答此問，偈曰：
It is like gold made into an ornament,
it is like a flower just now in bloom,
it is like eating a delicious meal,
it is like understanding a piece of writing,
it is like opening a jeweled casket —
in each of these one attains joy;
the Dharma ornamented by these five meanings
brings joy in just the same way.
The exposition: these five similes are similes for that ornamenting by the five meanings. In their order, they cause one who has aroused the great mind to have faith and turn toward it, to receive its teaching, to reflect upon it, to cultivate it, and to realize it. Question: what is their meaning? Answer: the simile of gold made into an ornament is so that one has faith and turns toward it, in that it transforms that person's mind. The simile of the flower in bloom is so that one receives its teaching, in that it opens and displays it to him. The simile of the delicious meal is so that one reflects upon it, in that one obtains the taste of the Dharma. The simile of understanding a piece of writing is so that one cultivates it, in that one no longer needs to deliberate over it. The simile of opening the jeweled casket is so that one realizes the true jewel that is the factor of enlightenment, in that one awakens to and realizes it oneself. By these five meanings the Great Vehicle is distinguished, and this is able to cause that person to give rise to love and delight in it. Question: if that Dharma is already complete in its own intrinsic merit, what need is there for it to be further ornamented? In answer to this question, in verse:
譬如莊美質， 臨鏡生勝喜，
妙法莊嚴已， 得喜更第一。
釋曰：譬如美質加莊像現在於鏡，則生勝喜。何以故？為有悅故。菩薩亦爾，莊嚴妙法義入自心，則生勝喜。何以故？為有聞故。
問：彼法有何功德須此莊嚴，強欲令他恭敬信受耶？
譬如飲藥苦， 病差則為樂；
住文及解義， 苦樂亦如是。
譬如難事王， 因事得威力；
如是難解義， 因解得法財。
譬如見生寶， 不別則不愛；
如是聞妙法， 不覺亦不喜。
釋曰：此三偈次第顯示妙法有三功德，一顯斷障因功德、二顯自在因功德、三顯妙喜因功德。問：此義云何？答：如飲苦藥，初時則苦，以難服故；後時則樂，以病差故。此法亦爾，住文時苦，味難得故；解義時樂，障病破故。如事嚴王，初時則苦，難得意故；後時則樂，與威力故。此法亦爾，思惟時苦，深難解故；思度時樂，長聖財故。如見生寶，未別時則不愛，謂無用故；識別時則深重，知有用故。此法亦爾，修行時則不喜，謂空無用故；修度時則深悅，知有大用故。緣起品究竟。
It is like an already beautiful form,
adorned, that looking in a mirror gives rise to surpassing joy —
the wondrous Dharma, once ornamented,
obtains a joy that is foremost still.
The exposition: it is like a beautiful form, adorned, whose reflection appears in a mirror — this gives rise to surpassing joy. Why is this? Because there is delight in it. It is the same for the bodhisattva: when the meaning of the ornamented wondrous Dharma enters his own mind, surpassing joy arises. Why is this? Because there is the hearing of it.
Question: what merit does that Dharma have, that it needs this ornamenting, as though one wished to force others into reverent faith and acceptance?
It is like drinking a bitter medicine —
once the illness is cured, it becomes a joy;
dwelling in the letter, and understanding the meaning,
are bitter and joyful in just this way.
It is like the difficulty of serving a stern king —
through that service one gains authority and power;
just so, the difficulty of understanding the meaning —
through that understanding one gains the wealth of the Dharma.
It is like seeing a rough, uncut gem —
without discerning it, one does not love it;
just so, hearing the wondrous Dharma —
without awareness of it, one does not delight in it.
The exposition: these three verses, in order, display three merits of the wondrous Dharma: first, the merit that is the cause of cutting off obstructions; second, the merit that is the cause of mastery; and third, the merit that is the cause of wondrous joy. Question: what is their meaning? Answer: it is like drinking a bitter medicine — at first it is bitter, since it is hard to swallow; afterward it is a joy, since the illness is cured. This Dharma is just the same: dwelling in the letter is bitter, since its flavor is hard to obtain; understanding its meaning is a joy, since the obstruction and the illness are broken. It is like serving a stern king — at first it is bitter, since it is hard to win his favor; afterward it is a joy, since he grants authority and power. This Dharma is just the same: reflecting upon it is bitter, since it is profound and hard to understand; weighing it thoroughly is a joy, since it lengthens one's noble wealth. It is like seeing a rough, uncut gem — before it is discerned one does not love it, since it seems to have no use; once it is recognized one values it deeply, knowing it has use. This Dharma is just the same: in the course of practice one does not delight in it, since it seems empty and useless; once one has weighed and measured its practice, one delights in it deeply, knowing it has great use. The chapter on the origin is complete.
莊嚴, "ornament," is doing more work here than the English cognate suggests. An ornament in this treatise's own account is not applied to something already complete for the sake of appearance; each of the five similes names a stage of actually taking hold of the teaching — faith, reception, reflection, cultivation, realization — and the ornament is whatever brings that stage about. The mirror simile in the second set makes the same point from the opposite direction: a beautiful face doesn't need the mirror to be beautiful, but the joy of seeing it needs the mirror to arise at all. The treatise's premise is that the Dharma is like the face and the ornamenting exposition is like the mirror — necessary not for the thing to be true, but for a joy in the thing to be possible for anyone else.
The three bitter-then-sweet similes are worth reading as a warning built into the treatise's own opening pages. Anyone who takes up a text this dense should expect exactly the sequence described: hard going at the level of the letter, harder still at the level of working out what it means, and only then — not before — the payoff. The treatise is telling its reader, before a single doctrine has been argued, not to mistake early difficulty for a sign that the difficulty won't resolve.
2. Establishing the Tenet: Eight Causes That Prove the Mahāyāna Is the Buddha's Word
釋曰：有人疑此大乘非佛所說，云何有此功德可得？我今決彼疑網，成立大乘真是佛說。
偈曰：
不記亦同行， 不行亦成就，
體、非體、能治、 文異八因成。
釋曰：成立大乘，略有八因；一者不記、二者同行、三者不行、四者成就、五者體、六者非體、七者能治、八者文異。第一不記者，先法已盡後佛正出，若此大乘非是正法，何故世尊初不記耶？譬如未來有異，世尊即記。此不記故，知是佛說。第二同行者，聲聞乘與大乘非先非後一時同行，汝云何知此大乘獨非佛說？第三不行者，大乘深廣，非忖度人之所能信，況復能行外道制諸論，彼種不可得，是故不行。由彼不行，故是佛說。第四成就者，若汝言餘得菩提者說有大乘，非是今佛說有大乘。若作此執，則反成我義。彼得菩提，亦即是佛，如是說故。第五體者，若汝言餘佛有大乘體，此佛無大乘體。若作此執，亦成我義。大乘無異，體是一故。第六非體者，若汝言此佛無大乘體，則聲聞乘亦無體。若汝言聲聞乘是佛說故有體，大乘非佛說故無體。若作此執，有大過失。若無佛乘而有佛出說聲聞乘者，理不應故。第七能治者，由依此法修行得無分別智，由無分別智能破諸煩惱。由此因故，不得言無大乘。第八文異者，大乘甚深非如文義，不應一向隨文取義，言非佛語。
The exposition: there are those who doubt that this Mahāyāna was spoken by the Buddha, asking: how could it then possess such merit? I shall now resolve the net of their doubt, and establish that the Mahāyāna is truly the Buddha's word.
Not predicted, and practiced together;
not practiced, and yet accomplished;
substance, non-substance, the remedy,
and difference of text — eight causes establish it.
The exposition: to establish the Mahāyāna, there are in brief eight causes: first, not predicted; second, practiced together; third, not practiced; fourth, accomplished; fifth, substance; sixth, non-substance; seventh, the remedy; and eighth, difference of text. First, not predicted: when an earlier teaching has already run its course, a later Buddha properly appears. If this Mahāyāna were not the true Dharma, why did the Bhagavat not predict it at the outset, as he does predict some future difference when one is to arise? Because he did not predict it, one knows it is the Buddha's own word. Second, practiced together: the śrāvaka vehicle and the Mahāyāna have been practiced together at one and the same time, neither before nor after the other — how then would you know that this Mahāyāna alone was not spoken by the Buddha? Third, not practiced: the Mahāyāna is profound and vast, not something a person of mere speculation is able to have faith in, how much less able to practice; were it a treatise fabricated by outsiders, that seed of theirs could not be obtained, and so it is not practiced by them — and because it is not practiced by them, it must be the Buddha's word. Fourth, accomplished: if you say that it was some other being who attained enlightenment who taught that there is a Mahāyāna, and not this present Buddha — if you hold to this, it in fact accomplishes my own thesis instead, for that being who attained enlightenment is himself just a buddha, since it is said in just this way. Fifth, substance: if you say that other buddhas possess the substance of the Mahāyāna but this buddha does not — if you hold to this, it too accomplishes my own thesis, for the Mahāyāna is not different from buddha to buddha; its substance is one. Sixth, non-substance: if you say that this buddha has no substance of the Mahāyāna, then the śrāvaka vehicle likewise would have no substance; and if you say instead that the śrāvaka vehicle, being spoken by the Buddha, has substance, while the Mahāyāna, not being spoken by the Buddha, has none — if you hold to this, it is a grave error, for it does not stand to reason that there should be no buddha-vehicle at all, and yet a buddha appear and teach the śrāvaka vehicle. Seventh, the remedy: by practicing in reliance on this Dharma one obtains non-discriminating wisdom, and by non-discriminating wisdom one is able to destroy the afflictions — for this reason, one cannot say there is no Mahāyāna. Eighth, difference of text: the Mahāyāna is exceedingly profound and is not as its literal wording suggests; one should not, simply following the letter, seize upon its apparent sense and say it is not the Buddha's word.
復次若汝言初不記者，由佛無功用心捨故。若作此執，是義不然。
偈曰：
諸佛三因緣， 現見亦護法，
如來智無礙， 捨者不應爾。
釋曰：若此大乘非佛說者，是為大障。諸佛有三因緣，何故不記？一無功用智恒起、是眼恒見。二恒作正勤、守護正法。三如來智力無有障礙。由此三因，汝言捨而不記者，不應道理。復次若汝言有體者，即聲聞乘是大乘體。何以故？即以此乘得大菩提故。若作此執，是義不然。
Furthermore, if you say that as for the first, not predicted — this is because the Buddha, with a mind free of exertion, simply set it aside — if you hold to this, the meaning does not follow.
The buddhas, for three reasons —
present seeing, and guarding the Dharma,
and the Tathāgata's unobstructed wisdom —
could not simply have set it aside, as you suppose.
The exposition: if this Mahāyāna were not spoken by the Buddha, that would be a grave obstruction indeed. The buddhas have three reasons why they could not have failed to predict it: first, effortless wisdom constantly arises in them — that eye of theirs constantly sees; second, they constantly exert right diligence, guarding and protecting the true Dharma; and third, the Tathāgata's power of wisdom is without any obstruction. For these three reasons, your claim that he set it aside and did not predict it does not stand to reason. Furthermore, if you say that as for substance, it is the śrāvaka vehicle that is the substance of the Mahāyāna, since it is by this very vehicle that great enlightenment is attained — if you hold to this, the meaning does not follow.
偈曰：
非全非不違， 非行非教授，
是故聲聞乘， 非即是大乘。
釋曰：有四因緣，非即以聲聞乘為大乘體，非全故、非不違故、非行故、非教授故。非全者，聲聞乘無有利他教授，但為自厭離欲解脫而教授故。非不違者，若言聲聞乘以自方便而教授他，即是他利教授。是義不然。何以故？雖以自利安他，彼亦自求涅槃勤行方便，不可以此得大菩提故。非行者，若汝言若能久行聲聞乘行則得大菩提果。是義不然，非方便故。聲聞乘非大菩提方便，不以久行，非方便能得大乘果。譬如搆角求乳，不可得故。非教授者，如大乘教授，聲聞乘無。是故聲聞乘不得即是大乘。
Not the whole, not without conflict,
not the practice, not the instruction —
for these reasons the śrāvaka vehicle
is not, after all, the very substance of the Mahāyāna.
The exposition: there are four reasons why the śrāvaka vehicle is not the very substance of the Mahāyāna: it is not the whole, it is not free of conflict, it is not the practice, and it is not the instruction. Not the whole: the śrāvaka vehicle has no instruction that benefits others; it instructs only for one's own weariness, freedom from desire, and liberation. Not free of conflict: if it is said that the śrāvaka vehicle, by its own methods, instructs others, and that this is therefore an instruction that benefits others — this does not follow, because although by benefiting himself he brings ease to others, that practitioner is himself still seeking nirvāṇa and diligently applying methods for his own sake; one cannot, by this, attain great enlightenment. Not the practice: if you say that by practicing the conduct of the śrāvaka vehicle for a long time one attains the fruit of great enlightenment — this does not follow, since it is not the right method; the śrāvaka vehicle is not a method for great enlightenment, and it is not by long practice, when it is the wrong method, that one attains the fruit of the Mahāyāna, any more than milk can be obtained by milking a horn. Not the instruction: the instruction of the Mahāyāna is something the śrāvaka vehicle lacks entirely. For these reasons the śrāvaka vehicle cannot be said to be the very substance of the Mahāyāna.
The eight causes are not a uniform set of arguments; they mix genuinely independent evidence (practiced together, not practiced by outsiders) with a sharper kind of move that this treatise reaches for repeatedly — taking an opponent's own premise and showing it proves the thesis it was meant to deny. The fourth and fifth causes both work this way: grant, for the sake of argument, that the Mahāyāna belongs to some other buddha rather than to the historical Buddha, or that it belongs to buddhas in general but not to this one — either concession already presupposes that a buddha teaches the Mahāyāna, which is the very point at issue. The opponent cannot state the objection without already conceding the conclusion. This is the treatise's characteristic apologetic style: not accumulating probability but closing off every escape route one at a time.
搆角求乳 — milking a horn in search of milk — is the sharpest image in the passage refuting the śrāvaka path as a route to buddhahood, and it is worth noticing exactly what it targets. The argument is not that long practice of the wrong thing yields too little; it is that no amount of it yields anything at all, because a horn was never the kind of thing that gives milk. Applied to the śrāvaka path, the claim is equally absolute: not that the śrāvaka vehicle is a slower road to the same destination, but that persistence along it cannot arrive there by definition, since its own aim — one's own liberation, not that of others — points somewhere else from the start.
3. Five Differences, Three Marks, and the True Method to Enlightenment
復次今更示汝相違義。
偈曰：
發心與教授， 方便及住持，
時節下上乘， 五事一切異。
釋曰：聲聞乘與大乘有五種相違，一發心異、二教授異、三方便異、四住持異、五時節異。聲聞乘若發心、若教授、若勤方便，皆為自得涅槃故。住持亦少，福智聚小故。時節亦少，乃至三生得解脫故。大乘不爾，發心、教授、勤方便皆為利他故。住持亦多，福智聚大故。時節亦多，經三大阿僧祇劫故。如是一切相違，是故不應以小乘行而得大乘果。
Furthermore, I shall now show you further the sense in which they conflict.
The arousing of the mind, and the instruction,
the method, and the sustaining,
and the span of time — in the lesser and the higher vehicle,
in these five matters, everything differs.
The exposition: the śrāvaka vehicle and the Mahāyāna conflict in five ways: the arousing of the mind differs, the instruction differs, the method differs, the sustaining differs, and the span of time differs. In the śrāvaka vehicle, whether it is the arousing of the mind, the instruction, or the diligent application of method, all of these are for the sake of attaining nirvāṇa for oneself alone. Its sustaining, too, is slight, since its accumulation of merit and wisdom is small. Its span of time, too, is short, since liberation is attained in as few as three lifetimes. The Mahāyāna is not like this: the arousing of the mind, the instruction, and the diligent application of method are all for the sake of benefiting others. Its sustaining, too, is great, since its accumulation of merit and wisdom is vast. Its span of time, too, is long, since it passes through three great incalculable eons. Since they conflict in all these ways, one should not expect to attain the fruit of the Mahāyāna by practicing the conduct of the Lesser Vehicle.
復次若汝言佛語有三相：一者入修多羅、二者顯示毘尼、三者不違法空。汝以一切法無自性而為教授，違此三相，故非佛語。若作此執，是義不然。
偈曰：
入自大乘經， 現自煩惱滅，
廣大甚深義， 不違自法空。
釋曰：今此大乘亦不違三相，入自大乘修多羅故、現自煩惱毘尼故，由菩薩以分別為煩惱故。廣大甚深即是菩薩法空，不違此空得大菩提故。是故此乘與三相不相違。
Furthermore, if you say: the Buddha's word has three marks — first, that it enters into the sūtras; second, that it is displayed in the vinaya; and third, that it does not conflict with the emptiness of things — and that we teach that all things are without own-nature, in conflict with these three marks, and so this is not the Buddha's word — if you hold to this, the meaning does not follow.
It enters into its own Mahāyāna sūtras,
it manifests, in itself, the extinguishing of the afflictions,
and its vast and profound meaning
does not conflict with its own emptiness of things.
The exposition: this Mahāyāna, too, does not conflict with the three marks. It enters into its own Mahāyāna sūtras; it manifests its own vinaya of the extinguishing of the afflictions, since for the bodhisattva discrimination itself is affliction; and its vast and profound meaning is precisely the bodhisattva's emptiness of things, and it is by not conflicting with this emptiness that great enlightenment is attained. For these reasons this vehicle does not conflict with the three marks.
復次前說不行者，我今更示此義令汝信受。
偈曰：
有依及不定， 緣俗亦不普，
退屈忖度人， 寧解大乘義？
釋曰：由有五因，彼忖度者不能得入大乘境界，彼智有依故、不定故、緣俗故、不普故、退屈故。彼有依者，智依教生，非證智故。不定者，有時更有異智生故。緣俗者，忖度世諦，不及第一義諦故。不普者，雖緣世諦但得少解，不解一切故。退屈者，諍論辯窮即默然故。大乘者即無所依乃至終不退屈。不退屈者，無量經中有百千偈說大乘法，由得此法辯才無盡，是故大乘非忖度人境。問：汝說聲聞乘非佛菩提方便，若爾何者是耶？
偈曰：
廣大及甚深， 成熟無分別，
說此二方便， 即是無上乘。
釋曰：廣大者，謂諸神通，由極勤方便令他信解故。甚深者，謂無分別智，由難行故。如其次第，一為成熟眾生、二為成熟佛法，即說此二為無上菩提方便，此二方便即是無上乘體。
Furthermore, as for what was earlier stated concerning not practiced — I shall now show this meaning further, so as to bring you to faith and acceptance.
Having a support, and being unfixed,
taking the conventional as object, and not being universal,
and shrinking back — how could a person of mere speculation,
possessed of these, ever understand the meaning of the Mahāyāna?
The exposition: for five reasons, one who merely speculates is unable to enter into the domain of the Mahāyāna, since his wisdom has a support, is unfixed, takes the conventional as its object, is not universal, and shrinks back. That it has a support means that his wisdom arises in dependence on instruction, and is not a realizational wisdom. That it is unfixed means that at times a different wisdom arises in its place. That it takes the conventional as its object means that his speculation reaches only the conventional truth, not the ultimate truth. That it is not universal means that although he takes the conventional truth as object, he obtains only a little understanding, and does not understand everything. That it shrinks back means that when debate and argument are exhausted, he simply falls silent. The Mahāyāna, by contrast, has no such support, and in the end never shrinks back: in measureless sūtras there are hundreds of thousands of verses teaching the Dharma of the Mahāyāna, and by attaining this Dharma one's eloquence becomes inexhaustible. For this reason, the Mahāyāna is not the domain of one who merely speculates. Question: you say that the śrāvaka vehicle is not the method for the Buddha's enlightenment — if so, then what is?
The vast, and the profound —
maturing beings, and the non-discriminating —
these two methods that are taught
are themselves the unsurpassed vehicle.
The exposition: the vast refers to the various supernormal powers, by which, through the utmost diligent application of method, one brings others to faith and understanding. The profound refers to non-discriminating wisdom, since it is difficult to practice. In this order, the first is for maturing sentient beings and the second is for maturing the buddha-dharmas — these two are taught as the methods for unsurpassed enlightenment, and these two methods are themselves the very substance of the unsurpassed vehicle.
The three marks of Buddha-word — entering the sūtras, being displayed in the vinaya, not conflicting with the emptiness of things — are a standard of the objector's own choosing, and the treatise's reply is to accept the standard rather than dispute it. This is a different tactic from the eight causes: instead of showing the objection self-defeating, it simply meets the bar on its own terms, three for three. The Mahāyāna's own emptiness of things (法空) is offered as satisfying exactly the third mark that the objector thought would rule the Mahāyāna out.
非依語教而生，是依證智而生 — the distinction between a wisdom that has a support and one that does not runs through this whole passage and resurfaces later in the treatise's account of the lineage: 有依者智依教生，非證智故. A wisdom built on instruction can always be argued with, since it rests on what someone else said; a realizational wisdom has nowhere for the argument to get a grip. The five reasons given for why mere speculation cannot reach the Mahāyāna are, read together, a portrait of what philosophical argument alone can and cannot do — it can go as far as the conventional truth, and it runs out exactly where the ultimate begins.
4. Why the Profound Teaching Should Not Be Feared
問：若爾，有人於中怖畏，過失云何？
偈曰：
不應怖而怖， 由怖被燒然，
怖引非福故， 長時過患起。
釋曰：若人非怖畏處妄生怖畏，是人即墮極熱惡道而被燒然。何以故？由此怖畏引大非福聚生，由此罪故能令是人經無量劫受大熱惱。
問：彼人復有何因生此怖畏？
偈曰：
非性非法朋， 少慧少因力，
怖此深妙法， 退失大菩提。
釋曰：若人生怖，由四因緣：一非種性，離菩薩性故。二非法朋，離善知識故。三少慧力，未解大乘法空故。四少因力，先世不種諸波羅蜜自性善根故。由此因緣，於甚深妙法橫生怖想，由此想故於大菩提福智二聚應得不得，是名為退。汝今應知，此退過患最極深重。
Question: if this is so, then when someone becomes fearful in the face of it, what fault is there in that?
Fearing what should not be feared,
one is burned by that very fear;
since fear draws forth demerit,
a calamity of long duration arises.
The exposition: if a person, where there is nothing to be feared, falsely gives rise to fear, that person falls straightaway into the extremely hot evil destinies and is burned there. Why? Because this fear draws forth a great accumulation of demerit, and by this offense that person is made to undergo great heat and torment for measureless eons.
Question: for what further reason does that person give rise to this fear?
Lacking the lineage, lacking companions in the Dharma,
of little wisdom, of little causal power —
such a one fears this profound and wondrous Dharma,
and falls away, losing great enlightenment.
The exposition: when a person gives rise to fear, it is owing to four causes: first, lacking the lineage, being apart from the bodhisattva nature; second, lacking companions in the Dharma, being apart from good spiritual friends; third, having little power of wisdom, not yet understanding the Mahāyāna's emptiness of things; and fourth, having little causal power, not having planted in a former life the wholesome roots that are the own-nature of the perfections. Owing to these causes, one wrongly gives rise to fear toward this profound and wondrous Dharma, and owing to this fear one fails to obtain what should be obtained of the twofold accumulation of merit and wisdom for great enlightenment — this is called falling away. You should now understand that the fault of this falling away is exceedingly profound and grave.
已說怖過及怖因，次說不應怖畏因。
偈曰：
無異即互無， 有異即險處，
無譬種種說， 續說多門說。
非有如文義， 諸佛甚深體，
聰慧正觀人， 應知不應怖。
釋曰：無異即互無者，若汝言聲聞乘即是大乘，無異大乘體。若如是者，即聲聞、辟支佛乘復無有體。何以故？由得佛故。如是一切皆是佛乘，何因怖耶？有異即險處者，若汝許有異大乘體，此體即是一切智道。最為第一險處，由難度故，此應仰信，何因怖耶？無譬者，於一時中無二大乘並出可以相比，何因怖一不怖二耶？種種說者，今此大乘非獨說空，亦說大福智聚。應解此意，何因獨怖空耶？續說者，一切時中決定相續說空，汝非乍聞，何因怖耶？多門說者，彼彼經中多門異說顯大要用，破諸分別，得無分別智。若異此說無大用者，如來但應言空，不說如、法性、實際等。既說有多門，何因獨怖空耶？非有如文義者，大乘甚深不如文義，何因隨文取義而怖空耶？諸佛甚深體者，佛性甚深卒難覺識，應求了別，何因怖耶？由如是等因緣故，聰慧正觀人於此大乘不應怖畏。
The fault of fear and the causes of fear having been stated, next the reasons one should not fear are stated.
If there is no difference, then each lacks the other;
if there is a difference, then it is the perilous place;
it has no analogy, and it is taught in manifold ways;
it is taught in continuity, and taught through many gates.
It is not as its literal wording suggests,
for the buddhas' body is exceedingly profound;
the wise, who observe correctly,
should know they ought not to fear it.
The exposition: "if there is no difference, then each lacks the other" means: if you say that the śrāvaka vehicle is itself the Mahāyāna, with no substance of the Mahāyāna distinct from it — if this were so, then the śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha vehicles would in turn have no substance either, since in the end one attains buddhahood; and if everything is thus entirely the buddha-vehicle, for what reason should one fear? "If there is a difference, then it is the perilous place" means: if you grant that there is a substance of the Mahāyāna distinct from the others, then this substance is itself the path of omniscient wisdom — the foremost of perilous places, being difficult to cross, and one should accept this on faith and look up to it; for what reason should one fear? "It has no analogy" means: there is no second Mahāyāna appearing at the same time to which it might be compared — why then fear the one, when one would not fear a second? "It is taught in manifold ways" means: this Mahāyāna does not teach emptiness alone, but also teaches the great accumulation of merit and wisdom; one should understand this intent — why fear emptiness alone? "It is taught in continuity" means: at all times it consistently and continuously teaches emptiness, and this is not something you have just now heard for the first time — why then fear it? "It is taught through many gates" means: in sūtra after sūtra it is taught differently through many gates, displaying its great essential function, breaking apart all discrimination, and yielding non-discriminating wisdom; were there no great function apart from this, the Tathāgata would only need to speak of emptiness, and would not speak of suchness, the nature of things, the true limit, and so on — since it is taught that there are many gates, why fear emptiness alone? "It is not as its literal wording suggests" means: the Mahāyāna is profound and is not as its literal wording suggests — why, then, following the letter and seizing on its apparent sense, fear its emptiness? "The buddhas' body is exceedingly profound" means: buddha-nature is profound and difficult to awaken to and recognize all at once; one should seek to understand it clearly — why fear it? For these reasons, the wise, who observe correctly, should not fear this Mahāyāna.
The four causes of fear anticipate the whole fourth chapter of this fascicle before it has been announced: 非性 — lacking the lineage — is named first among them, and the treatise will spend the rest of this fascicle arguing that the lineage is a real, observable difference among beings rather than a polite fiction. Fear of the teaching is being diagnosed here as a symptom with a cause, not a reasonable response to something genuinely dangerous — which sets up the sharper claim later that some beings, described at length in the section on the lineage below, do not merely fear the Mahāyāna but structurally cannot yet take it up.
The seven-part refutation of fear (無異即互無 through 諸佛甚深體) is built as a dilemma with no comfortable branch: either the śrāvaka vehicle just is the Mahāyāna, in which case there is nothing distinct to fear, or it is genuinely different, in which case what one fears is the very path of omniscience, which is a reason for reverence rather than dread. Every subsequent point in the list closes off some other way of reading the fear as sensible — "you've heard this before," "it isn't just emptiness," "the wording isn't literal" — until nothing is left standing except, in the treatise's own diagnosis, the lack of the lineage itself.
5. The Wisdom to Practice It, and Warnings Against Slander
已說不應怖畏因，次說能行此法智。
偈曰：
隨次聞思修， 得法及得慧，
此智行此法， 未得勿非毀。
釋曰：若人最初依善知識能起正聞，次於正義能起正憶，次於真實境界得生正智，次從彼彼得證法果，次從彼後起解脫智，是人此智隨深入遠能行此法。汝若自無此智，不應決定言非佛語。
已說能行此法智，次遮怖畏此法句。
偈曰：
不解解不深， 深非思度解，
解深得解脫， 諸怖不應爾。
釋曰：不解者，若汝言如是深法非我所解。如是起怖畏者，不應爾。解不深者，若汝言佛解亦不深。如其解深，何故說深？如是起怖畏者，不應爾。深非思度解者，若汝言何故此深非思量境界？如是起怖畏者，不應爾。解深得解脫者，若汝言何故獨解深義能得解脫，非思量人能得解脫？如是起怖畏者，不應爾。
The reasons one should not fear having been stated, next the wisdom of one able to practice this Dharma is stated.
In due order hearing, reflecting, and cultivating,
one attains the Dharma and attains wisdom;
it is by this wisdom that one practices this Dharma —
do not, without having attained it, revile and reject it.
The exposition: if a person, first of all, relying on a good spiritual friend, is able to give rise to right hearing; next, with regard to the right meaning, is able to give rise to right recollection; next, with regard to the true state of things, is able to give rise to right wisdom; next, from these various stages attains the realized fruit of the Dharma; and next, thereafter, gives rise to the wisdom of liberation — this person, as this wisdom of his deepens and extends further, is able to practice this Dharma. If you yourself lack this wisdom, you should not assert with certainty that this is not the Buddha's word.
The wisdom of one able to practice this Dharma having been stated, next the fear of specific phrases of this Dharma is warded off.
"I do not understand," "the understanding is not profound,"
"the profound is not understood by mere thought,"
"by understanding the profound, liberation is attained" —
none of these fears is warranted.
The exposition: "I do not understand" — if you say that such a profound Dharma is not something you understand, to give rise to fear in this way is not warranted. "The understanding is not profound" — if you say that even the Buddha's own understanding is not profound, for if his understanding were profound, why would it be called profound at all? — to give rise to fear in this way is not warranted. "The profound is not understood by mere thought" — if you say, why is it that this profound thing is not the domain of mere speculative thought? — to give rise to fear in this way is not warranted. "By understanding the profound, liberation is attained" — if you say, why is it that only understanding the profound meaning is able to attain liberation, and not one who merely speculates? — to give rise to fear in this way is not warranted.
如是已遮怖畏此法句，次以不信成立大乘。
偈曰：
由小信界伴， 不解深大法，
由汝不解故， 成我無上乘。
釋曰：小信者，狹劣信解故。小界者，阿梨耶識中熏習小種子故。小伴者，相似信界為眷屬故。此三若小，則不信別有大乘。由此不信，則成我所立是無上法。
已說成立大乘，次遮謗毀大乘。
偈曰：
隨聞而得覺， 未聞慎勿毀，
無量餘未聞， 謗者成癡業。
釋曰：汝隨少聞得有覺悟，不應隨聞復生謗毀。汝於未聞，無信可爾。何以故？不積善故未聞者多，慎勿謗毀。汝無簡別若生謗毀，更增癡業，壞前聞故。
已遮謗毀，次遮邪思。
偈曰：
如文取義時， 師心退真慧，
謗說及輕法， 緣此大過生。
釋曰：師心者，謂自見取，非智者邊求義故。退真慧者，如實真解未得退故。謗說者，毀善說故。輕法者，嫉所聞故。緣此非福，次身受大苦報，是名大過起。
已遮邪思，次遮惡意。
偈曰：
惡意自性惡， 不善不應起，
況移於善處， 應捨大過故。
釋曰：惡意者，是憎嫉心。自性惡者，此心是自性罪，尚不可於過失法中起，何況於非過法中起，是故急應須捨大過患故。成宗品究竟。
The fear of specific phrases of this Dharma having thus been warded off, next the Mahāyāna is established by means of the opponent's own unbelief.
By your small faith, small realm, and small companions,
you do not understand the profound and great Dharma;
and precisely by your not understanding it,
my unsurpassed vehicle is thereby established.
The exposition: small faith means narrow and inferior faith and understanding. Small realm means that the seeds habituated within the ālayavijñāna are small. Small companions means that one takes as one's circle those of a similarly small realm of faith. If these three are small, then one does not believe there is a distinct Mahāyāna — and it is precisely by this unbelief that what I have established is proven to be the unsurpassed Dharma.
The establishing of the Mahāyāna having been stated, next slander and vilification of the Mahāyāna are warded off.
According to what one has heard, one gains understanding;
of what one has not yet heard, take care not to revile it;
there is measurelessly more that remains unheard —
one who slanders it thereby commits an act of delusion.
The exposition: according to the little you have heard, you have gained some degree of understanding, but you should not, on the basis of what you have heard, go on to give rise to slander and vilification. Toward what you have not yet heard, it is permissible that you have no faith; why? because, for want of accumulated goodness, there is much that remains unheard — take care not to slander and vilify it. If, without discernment, you give rise to slander and vilification, you only increase your act of delusion, and destroy the benefit of what you had heard before.
Slander and vilification having been warded off, next wrong reflection is warded off.
When one takes up the meaning as the letter alone suggests,
following one's own mind, one falls away from true wisdom;
slandering the teaching, and holding the Dharma lightly —
from this a great fault arises.
The exposition: following one's own mind means grasping at one's own view, not seeking the meaning from the wise. Falling away from true wisdom means falling away without having attained true understanding as it really is. Slandering the teaching means vilifying what has been well taught. Holding the Dharma lightly means being envious of what one has heard. Conditioned by this demerit, one afterward undergoes a great and painful retribution in one's own person — this is called the arising of a great fault.
Wrong reflection having been warded off, next ill will is warded off.
Ill will is by its own nature evil;
being unwholesome, it should not arise at all —
how much less should it be turned toward what is good —
one should abandon it, for it is a great fault.
The exposition: ill will is a mind of hatred and envy. By its own nature evil means that this mind is itself an intrinsic offense; it ought not to arise even with regard to something genuinely faulty, how much less with regard to something not at fault at all — for this reason one must urgently abandon it, since it is a great calamity. The chapter on establishing the tenet is complete.
由汝不解故，成我無上乘 is the boldest turn in the whole chapter: the opponent's own confession of incomprehension is offered back as proof of the very thesis he was disputing. It only works because the treatise has spent the entire chapter establishing, independently, that the Mahāyāna is meant to exceed ordinary speculative reach — 有依、不定、緣俗、不普、退屈 from the earlier section. Given that setup, failing to understand is not neutral evidence; on the treatise's own terms it is close to what one would expect to find in something genuinely unsurpassed. Note that this move only has force against an opponent who has already been walked through the argument that speculative wisdom is bounded — used on its own it would just be an unfalsifiable dodge, and the chapter has been careful not to rely on it until everything else is in place.
The closing sequence — warding off slander, wrong reflection, and finally ill will — narrows in scope at each step and ends on the smallest object: 惡意自性惡, ill will is evil by its own nature, full stop, before it has done anything to anyone. The chapter that spent its opening half proving a metaphysical thesis through eight independent arguments ends by simply asking the reader not to hate what he does not yet understand. That is a modest place to land after such an ambitious beginning, and the modesty looks deliberate: having shown that disbelief is forgivable and even useful, the treatise draws the line only at the malice that sometimes accompanies it.
6. Taking Refuge: All-Pervasiveness, Valor, and Good Birth
釋曰：如此已成立大乘。次依大乘攝勝歸依。
偈曰：
若人歸三寶， 大乘歸第一，
一切遍勇猛， 得果不及故。
釋曰：一切歸依三寶中，應知大乘歸依最為第一。何以故？由四種大義自性勝故。何者四義？一者一切遍義、二者勇猛義、三者得果義、四者不及義。此義後當說。由此四義多有留難，諸歸依者或能不能，能者為勝。
已說歸依勝，次勸勝歸依。
偈曰：
難起亦難成， 應須大志意，
為成自他利， 當作勝歸依。
釋曰：難起者，所謂勝願，由弘誓故。難成者，所謂勝行，由經無量劫故。由如此難，應須發大志意。何以故？為欲成就他利與自利故。他利者，所謂願行，由願行是名聞因故。自利者，所謂大義，由大義是自體果故。前說四義，今當先說一切遍義。
偈曰：
眾生遍乘遍， 智遍寂滅遍，
是名智慧者， 四種一切遍。
釋曰：大乘歸依者，有四種一切遍：一者眾生一切遍，欲度一切眾生故。二者乘一切遍，善解三乘故。三者智一切遍，通達二無我故。四者寂滅一切遍，生死涅槃體是一味，過惡功德不分別故。
The exposition: the Mahāyāna having thus been established, next, in dependence on the Mahāyāna, the supreme refuge is gathered in.
Among all those who take refuge in the Three Jewels,
the Mahāyāna refuge is foremost,
by reason of all-pervasiveness, valor,
the fruit attained, and the unequaled.
The exposition: among all who take refuge in the Three Jewels, it should be known that the Mahāyāna refuge is foremost of all. Why is this? Because it excels through four kinds of great meaning intrinsic to itself. What are the four meanings? First, the meaning of all-pervasiveness; second, the meaning of valor; third, the meaning of the fruit attained; and fourth, the meaning of the unequaled. These meanings shall be explained later. Because of these four meanings there is much difficulty involved, so that of those who take this refuge, some are able and some are not; those who are able are the superior ones.
The supremacy of this refuge having been stated, next taking this supreme refuge is encouraged.
Difficult to arouse, and difficult to accomplish —
for this a great resolve is required;
in order to accomplish the benefit of both oneself and others,
one should take this supreme refuge.
The exposition: difficult to arouse refers to the supreme vow, because of the vastness of the pledge involved. Difficult to accomplish refers to the supreme conduct, because it passes through measureless eons. Because of such difficulty, a great resolve is required. Why? In order to accomplish both the benefit of others and the benefit of oneself. The benefit of others refers to the vow and its conduct, because the vow and its conduct are the cause of one's renown. The benefit of oneself refers to the great meaning, because this great meaning is the fruit belonging to one's own person. The four meanings having been stated above, the meaning of all-pervasiveness shall now be explained first.
All-pervading with respect to beings, all-pervading with respect to the vehicles,
all-pervading with respect to wisdom, all-pervading with respect to quiescence —
these are called, for one who has wisdom,
the four kinds of all-pervasiveness.
The exposition: the Mahāyāna refuge has four kinds of all-pervasiveness: first, all-pervasiveness with respect to beings, in that one wishes to liberate all sentient beings; second, all-pervasiveness with respect to the vehicles, in that one thoroughly understands the three vehicles; third, all-pervasiveness with respect to wisdom, in that one penetrates the two kinds of selflessness; and fourth, all-pervasiveness with respect to quiescence, in that saṃsāra and nirvāṇa are of a single taste in substance, and fault and merit are not discriminated apart.
已說一切遍義，次說勇猛義。
偈曰：
悕望佛菩提， 不退難行行，
諸佛平等覺， 勇猛勝有三。
釋曰：大乘歸依，有三種勝勇猛：一願勝勇猛，歸依佛時求大菩提多生歡喜，知勝功德故。二者行勝勇猛，起修行時不退不屈，難行行故。三者果勝勇猛，至成佛時與一切諸佛平等覺故。
復次由此勇猛，彼諸佛子恒得善生。
偈曰：
發心與智度， 聚滿亦大慈，
種子及生母， 胎藏乳母勝。
釋曰：菩薩善生，有四義：一者種子勝，以菩提心為種子故。二者生母勝，以般若波羅蜜為生母故。三者胎藏勝，以福智二聚住持為胎藏故。四者乳母勝，以大悲長養為乳母故。
復次善生者，由勇猛故恒得勝身。
偈曰：
妙相成生力， 大樂大方便，
如此四成就， 是名為勝身。
釋曰：菩薩身勝，有四種：一者色勝，得妙相嚴身，勝轉輪王等相故。二者力勝，得成熟眾生自在力故。三者樂勝，得寂滅上品佛地無邊樂故。四者智勝，得救一切眾生大巧方便故。此四成就，是名佛子善生，所謂色成就、力成就、樂成就、智成就。
The meaning of all-pervasiveness having been stated, next the meaning of valor is explained.
Longing for the Buddha's enlightenment,
not turning back from difficult practices,
and the equal awakening of all the buddhas —
in these, valor's supremacy is threefold.
The exposition: the Mahāyāna refuge has three kinds of supreme valor: first, the supreme valor of the vow, in that at the time of taking refuge in the Buddha, seeking great enlightenment, one gives rise to great joy, knowing its surpassing merit; second, the supreme valor of the practice, in that when one takes up the practice one does not turn back or shrink from difficult practices; and third, the supreme valor of the fruit, in that upon reaching buddhahood one attains the same equal awakening as all the buddhas.
Furthermore, by reason of this valor, those children of the buddhas constantly attain a good birth.
The arousing of the mind, and the perfection of wisdom,
the fullness of the accumulations, and great compassion —
these are, respectively, the supreme seed and birth-mother,
the supreme womb and the supreme wet-nurse.
The exposition: the bodhisattva's good birth has four aspects: first, the supreme seed, in that the mind of enlightenment is his seed; second, the supreme birth-mother, in that the perfection of wisdom is his birth-mother; third, the supreme womb, in that the sustaining of the twofold accumulation of merit and wisdom is his womb; and fourth, the supreme wet-nurse, in that the nourishing power of great compassion is his wet-nurse.
Furthermore, one who is thus well born, by reason of valor, constantly attains a supreme body.
The wondrous marks, the power born of accomplishment,
great bliss, and great skillful means —
these four accomplishments together
are called the supreme body.
The exposition: the bodhisattva's body is supreme in four ways: first, form is supreme, in that one obtains a body adorned with wondrous marks, surpassing the marks of a wheel-turning king and the like; second, power is supreme, in that one obtains mastery in the power to mature sentient beings; third, bliss is supreme, in that one obtains the boundless bliss of the quiescent, superior stage of buddhahood; and fourth, wisdom is supreme, in that one obtains the great and skillful means to save all sentient beings. These four accomplishments are called the good birth of a child of the Buddha — namely, the accomplishment of form, of power, of bliss, and of wisdom.
復次由此勇猛，得與王子相似。
偈曰：
光授法自在， 巧說善治攝，
由此四因故， 佛種則不斷。
釋曰：由四因緣，王種不斷：一者入位受職、二者增上無違、三者善能決判、四者分明賞罰。善生佛子亦爾。一者蒙光授，謂一切諸佛與大光明令受職故。二者法自在，謂於一切法中智慧自在他無違故。三者能巧說，謂對佛眾中善說法故。四者善治罰，謂於學戒者過惡能治功德能攝故。
復次由此勇猛，得與大臣相似。
偈曰：
入度見覺分， 持密利眾生，
由此四因故， 得似於大臣。
釋曰：有四種因，是大臣功德：一者入王禁宮、二者見王妙寶、三者祕王密語、四者自在賞賜。勇猛菩薩亦爾，一者常得善入諸波羅蜜；二者常見處處經中大菩提分寶，由不忘法故；三者常持如來身口意密；四者常能利益無邊眾生。
Furthermore, by reason of this valor, one comes to resemble a prince.
Bestowed with light, mastery over the Dharma,
skillful teaching, and skillful governance and inclusion —
owing to these four causes,
the lineage of the buddhas is unbroken.
The exposition: by four causes, the lineage of a king is unbroken: first, entering one's rank and receiving investiture; second, one's supreme authority meeting no opposition; third, being able to decide and judge well; and fourth, dispensing reward and punishment with clarity. It is the same for a well-born child of the Buddha: first, receiving the bestowal of light, in that all buddhas grant great light, causing him to receive his investiture; second, mastery over the Dharma, in that his wisdom in all things is unopposed and self-mastering; third, skillful teaching, in that he teaches the Dharma well before the assembly of buddhas; and fourth, skillful governance, in that toward those who train in the precepts, he is able to correct their faults and gather in their merits.
Furthermore, by reason of this valor, one comes to resemble a great minister.
Entering the perfections, seeing the factors of enlightenment,
upholding what is secret, and benefiting sentient beings —
owing to these four causes,
one comes to resemble a great minister.
The exposition: there are four causes that are the merits of a great minister: first, entering the king's forbidden palace; second, beholding the king's wondrous treasures; third, keeping secret the king's confidential words; and fourth, dispensing rewards with mastery. It is the same for the valiant bodhisattva: first, he constantly and skillfully enters the various perfections; second, he constantly beholds, here and there throughout the sūtras, the jewel that is the factor of great enlightenment, since he does not forget the Dharma; third, he constantly upholds the secrets of the Tathāgata's body, speech, and mind; and fourth, he is constantly able to benefit boundless sentient beings.
The four-part image of good birth — bodhicitta as seed, the perfection of wisdom as mother, the twin accumulations as womb, great compassion as wet-nurse — assigns the generative role to wisdom and the nurturing role to compassion, which is worth noticing rather than passing over as decorative. In this treatise's own vocabulary the mother is not a passive vessel; 般若波羅蜜為生母 makes wisdom the active parent, the thing that actually gives rise to the bodhisattva, while compassion's role is to sustain what wisdom has already produced. The pairing recurs constantly in this Yogācāra corpus in less figurative language — wisdom cuts through, compassion carries forward — but rarely as vividly as here.
The similes shift from family (seed, mother, womb, wet-nurse) to court (prince, then great minister) across these three verses, and the shift is not accidental: each stage widens the bodhisattva's field of action outward, from what he is made of, to what he will inherit, to what he is entrusted to do on behalf of others while he waits to inherit it. The minister's four merits are all about access and discretion — entering the forbidden palace, keeping the king's secret words — which fits a bodhisattva's actual situation better than the prince's four, which are about succession. One is a description of eventual status; the other, of daily conduct in the meantime.
7. The Fruit Attained, the Unequaled, and the Distinctions of Refuge
已說勇猛義，次說得果義。
偈曰：
福德及尊重， 有樂亦苦滅，
證樂證法陰， 習盡有滅捨。
釋曰：大乘歸依者，得此八果：一者信解時得大福德聚。二者發心時得三有尊重。三者故意受生時得三有中樂。四者解自他平等時得大苦聚滅，亦得滅一切眾生苦力。五者入無生忍時覺證最上樂。六者得菩提時證大法陰。法陰者所謂法身，如此法身名為大、名為勝、名為常、名為善聚。是無邊修多羅等法藏故名大，一切法中最上故名勝，永無有盡故名常，為力無畏等善法積聚故名善聚。七者得熏習聚盡永滅無餘。八者得有滅捨。有捨者，不住生死；滅捨者，不住涅槃。
The meaning of valor having been stated, next the meaning of the fruit attained is explained.
Merit, and being revered,
joy in existence, and the extinguishing of suffering,
realizing bliss, realizing the aggregate of the Dharma,
the exhaustion of habituation, and the abandoning both of existence and of cessation.
The exposition: one who takes the Mahāyāna refuge obtains these eight fruits: first, at the time of faith and understanding, one obtains a great accumulation of merit. Second, at the time of arousing the mind, one obtains reverence throughout the three realms of existence. Third, at the time of intentionally taking birth, one obtains joy within the three realms of existence. Fourth, at the time of understanding the equality of self and other, one obtains the extinguishing of a great accumulation of suffering, and also obtains the power to extinguish the suffering of all sentient beings. Fifth, at the time of entering the forbearance of non-arising, one realizes and awakens to the supreme bliss. Sixth, at the time of attaining enlightenment, one realizes the great aggregate of the Dharma. The aggregate of the Dharma is what is called the Dharma-body; this Dharma-body is called great, called supreme, called constant, and called the accumulation of the good. It is called great because it is the treasury of the Dharma comprising boundless sūtras; it is called supreme because it is foremost among all things; it is called constant because it is forever without end; and it is called the accumulation of the good because it is the accumulation of the good qualities such as the powers and the fearlessnesses. Seventh, one obtains the exhaustion of the accumulation of habituation, forever extinguished without remainder. Eighth, one obtains the abandoning both of existence and of cessation. The abandoning of existence means not abiding in saṃsāra; the abandoning of cessation means not abiding in nirvāṇa.
已說得果義，次說不及義。
偈曰：
大體及大義， 無邊及無盡，
由善世出世， 成熟神通故。
釋曰：大乘歸依者所有善根，由四因故，一切聲聞辟支佛所不能及。一者大體、二者大義、三者無邊、四者無盡。問：此云何？答：大體者，謂世間善根，已得超過二乘故。大義者，謂出世善根，二乘出世但自利故。無邊者，謂成熟善根，能成熟無邊眾生故。無盡者，謂神通善根，至無餘涅槃亦無盡故。
已說歸依勝義，次說歸依差別。
偈曰：
希望及大悲， 種智亦不退，
三出及二得， 差別有六種。
釋曰：歸依差別，有六種：一自性、二因、三果、四業、五相應、六品類。悕望為自性，至心求佛體故。大悲為因，為一切眾生故。種智為果，得無上菩提故。不退為業，行利他難行行不退不屈故。三出為相應，具足三乘出離行故。二得為品類，世俗得、法性得，麁細差別故。
The meaning of the fruit attained having been stated, next the meaning of the unequaled is explained.
Great substance, and great significance,
boundlessness, and inexhaustibility —
by reason of the wholesome roots, worldly and transcendent,
of maturing beings, and of the supernormal powers.
The exposition: the wholesome roots possessed by one who takes the Mahāyāna refuge are, for four reasons, something that no śrāvaka or pratyekabuddha can equal: first, great substance; second, great significance; third, boundlessness; and fourth, inexhaustibility. Question: what does this mean? Answer: great substance refers to the worldly wholesome roots, which already surpass those of the two vehicles. Great significance refers to the transcendent wholesome roots, since the transcendence of the two vehicles is only for their own benefit. Boundlessness refers to the wholesome roots of maturing beings, since they are able to mature boundless sentient beings. Inexhaustibility refers to the wholesome roots of the supernormal powers, since even upon reaching nirvāṇa without remainder, they are still not exhausted.
The supreme meaning of this refuge having been stated, next the distinctions within it are explained.
Longing, and great compassion,
the wisdom of all modes, and non-retrogression,
the threefold going forth, and the twofold attainment —
the distinctions are of six kinds.
The exposition: the distinctions of this refuge are of six kinds: own-nature, cause, fruit, function, correspondence, and class. Longing is its own-nature, in that with utmost sincerity one seeks the substance of buddhahood. Great compassion is its cause, in that it is undertaken for the sake of all sentient beings. The wisdom of all modes is its fruit, in that one attains unsurpassed enlightenment. Non-retrogression is its function, in that one practices the difficult conduct that benefits others without turning back or shrinking. The threefold going forth is its correspondence, in that one is complete in the conduct of renunciation of all three vehicles. The twofold attainment is its class, in that there is the conventional attainment and the attainment of the nature of things, differing as the coarse and the fine.
已說功德差別，次說行差別。
偈曰：
歸依有大義， 功德聚增長，
意悲遍世間， 廣流大聖法。
釋曰：大義謂自他利行。自利行者，謂功德增長。復有多種，若思度、若數數、若時節，皆無有量，由不可思度故、不可數知故。畢竟恒行，時無分齊故。他利行者，作意及悲遍一切眾生故、廣勤方便流大聖法故。大聖法者，大乘法故。歸依品究竟。
The distinctions of merit having been stated, next the distinctions of practice are explained.
This refuge has great significance:
its accumulation of merit ever increases;
its intent and compassion pervade the whole world;
and it broadly propagates the great and noble Dharma.
The exposition: great significance refers to the conduct that benefits both oneself and others. The conduct that benefits oneself refers to the increase of merit. This too is of many kinds — whether considered, or repeated, or measured by time — all without measure, since it cannot be gauged by thought and cannot be known by counting. It proceeds forever without end, since it has no limit of time. The conduct that benefits others is such that one's attention and compassion pervade all sentient beings, and one diligently and skillfully propagates the great and noble Dharma far and wide. The great and noble Dharma is the Dharma of the Mahāyāna. The chapter on taking refuge is complete.
The eight fruits are staged along the whole of the path rather than clustered at its end — merit at the very first moment of faith, reverence at the arousing of bodhicitta, joy at each intentional rebirth, and only much later the two culminating fruits at buddhahood itself. Reading them in order is a corrective to any picture of the bodhisattva path as pure deferral, all cost now for a payoff later; the treatise's own accounting has something being gained at nearly every stage, long before enlightenment is reached.
有捨、滅捨 — the abandoning that is not abiding in saṃsāra, and the abandoning that is not abiding in nirvāṇa — names, in eight characters, what this site's other Yogācāra pages call non-abiding nirvāṇa (無住涅槃), discussed at length in the Mahāyānasaṃgraha's treatment of the fruit of relinquishment. It is worth noting that this treatise reaches the same doctrine by a different route — not as the resolution of a technical problem about how a buddha's mind operates, but as the eighth and final fruit of an act as simple as taking refuge. The technical doctrine and the devotional starting point turn out to be describing the same destination.
8. The Lineage: Existence, Supremacy, Own-Nature, Marks, and Classes
釋曰：已說歸依義，次說種性差別。
偈曰：
有勝性相類， 過惡及功德，
金譬與寶譬， 九種各四種。
釋曰：種性有九種差別，一有體、二最勝、三自性、四相貌、五品類、六過惡、七功德、八金譬、九寶譬。如是九義，一一各有四種差別。此偈總舉，餘偈別釋。此中先分別有體。
偈曰：
由界及由信， 由行及由果，
由此四差別， 應知有性體。
釋曰：種性有體，由四種差別：一由界差別、二由信差別、三由行差別、四由果差別。由界差別者，眾生有種種界無量差別，如《多界修多羅》說。由界差別故，應知三乘種性有差別。由信差別者，眾生有種種信可得，或有因力起、或有緣力起，能於三乘隨信一乘，非信一切。若無性差別，則亦無信差別。由行差別者，眾生行行，或有能進或有不能進。若無性差別，則亦無行差別。由果差別者，眾生菩提有下中上，子果相似故。若無性差別，則亦無果差別。由此四差別，是故應知種性有體。
The exposition: the meaning of taking refuge having been stated, next the distinctions within the lineage are explained.
Existence, supremacy, own-nature, and marks,
class, faults, and merits,
the simile of gold, and the simile of the jewel —
nine topics, each with four aspects.
The exposition: the lineage has nine distinct topics: first, its existence; second, its supremacy; third, its own-nature; fourth, its marks; fifth, its classes; sixth, its faults; seventh, its merits; eighth, the simile of gold; and ninth, the simile of the jewel. Each of these nine topics, one by one, has in turn four further distinctions. This verse states them together in summary; the verses that follow explain each one separately. Here, its existence is distinguished first.
By reason of the differing elements, and by reason of faith,
by reason of conduct, and by reason of fruit —
by these four distinctions,
the existence of the lineage's substance should be known.
The exposition: the existence of the lineage's substance is known through four distinctions: first, the distinction of the elements; second, the distinction of faith; third, the distinction of conduct; and fourth, the distinction of fruit. By the distinction of the elements: sentient beings possess manifold and measureless different elements, as taught in the Sūtra of the Many Elements; because of this distinction of elements, one should know that the lineages of the three vehicles differ. By the distinction of faith: sentient beings can be observed to have various kinds of faith, some arising from the power of cause, some from the power of condition, each able, among the three vehicles, to have faith accordingly in one vehicle, and not in all three at once; if there were no distinction in the lineage, there would likewise be no distinction in faith. By the distinction of conduct: among the conduct that sentient beings practice, some are able to advance and some are not able to advance; if there were no distinction in the lineage, there would likewise be no distinction in conduct. By the distinction of fruit: sentient beings' enlightenment is inferior, middling, or superior, since the fruit resembles its seed; if there were no distinction in the lineage, there would likewise be no distinction in fruit. By these four distinctions, therefore, one should know that the lineage has a real substance.
已說種性有體，次說種性最勝。
偈曰：
明淨及普攝， 大義亦無盡，
由善有四勝， 種性得第一。
釋曰：菩薩種性，由四種因緣得為最勝，一由善根明淨、二由善根普攝、三由善根大義、四由善根無盡。何以故？非諸聲聞等善根，如是明淨故。非一切人善根，攝力無畏等故。餘人善根無他利故、餘人善根涅槃時盡故。菩薩善根不爾，由此為因，種性最勝。
已說種性最勝，次說種性自性。
偈曰：
性種及習種， 所依及能依，
應知有非有， 功德度義故。
釋曰：菩薩種性有四種自性，一性種自性、二習種自性、三所依自性、四能依自性，彼如其次第。復次彼有者，因體有故。非有者，果體非有故。問：若爾，云何名性？答：功德度義故。度者，出生功德義。由此道理，是故名性。
The existence of the lineage's substance having been stated, next the supremacy of the lineage is explained.
Brightness and purity, and universal inclusion,
great significance, and inexhaustibility —
by reason of these four superior qualities of its wholesome roots,
the lineage attains the foremost place.
The exposition: the bodhisattva's lineage attains supremacy by four causes: first, by reason of the brightness and purity of its wholesome roots; second, by reason of the universal inclusiveness of its wholesome roots; third, by reason of the great significance of its wholesome roots; and fourth, by reason of the inexhaustibility of its wholesome roots. Why is this? The wholesome roots of śrāvakas and the like are not bright and pure in this way; nor do the wholesome roots of all other persons include the powers, the fearlessnesses, and the like within them; the wholesome roots of others have no benefit for others, and are exhausted at the time of nirvāṇa. The bodhisattva's wholesome roots are not like this. It is by this cause that the lineage is supreme.
The supremacy of the lineage having been stated, next the own-nature of the lineage is explained.
The innate lineage, and the habituated lineage —
the support, and what depends on it —
should be known as existent, and as non-existent,
by reason of the sense of the perfection of merit.
The exposition: the bodhisattva's lineage has four own-natures: first, the own-nature of the innate lineage; second, the own-nature of the habituated lineage; third, the own-nature of the support; and fourth, the own-nature of what depends on the support — these correspond respectively to the pairs just named. Furthermore, that it exists means that its causal substance exists; that it is non-existent means that its resultant substance does not yet exist. Question: if this is so, why is it called a nature at all? Answer: because of the sense of the perfection of merit — perfection here has the sense of bringing forth merit. It is by this reasoning that it is called a nature.
已說種性自性，次說種性相貌。
偈曰：
大悲及大信， 大忍及大行，
若有如此相， 是名菩薩性。
釋曰：菩薩種性，有四種相貌：一大悲為相，哀愍一切苦眾生故。二大信為相，愛樂一切大乘法故。三大忍為相，能耐一切難行行故。四大行為相，遍行諸波羅蜜自性善根故。
已說種性相貌，次說種性品類。
偈曰：
決定及不定， 不退或退墮，
遇緣如次第， 品類有四種。
釋曰：菩薩種性品類，略說有四種：一者決定、二者不定、三者不退、四者退墮，如其次第。決定者，遇緣不退。不定者，遇緣退墮。
The own-nature of the lineage having been stated, next the marks of the lineage are explained.
Great compassion, and great faith,
great patience, and great conduct —
whoever possesses these marks
is called one of the bodhisattva lineage.
The exposition: the bodhisattva lineage has four marks: first, great compassion as its mark, in that one has pity on all suffering sentient beings; second, great faith as its mark, in that one loves and delights in the entire Dharma of the Mahāyāna; third, great patience as its mark, in that one is able to endure every difficult practice; and fourth, great conduct as its mark, in that one universally practices the wholesome roots that are the own-nature of the perfections.
The marks of the lineage having been stated, next the classes of the lineage are explained.
The fixed, and the unfixed;
the non-retrogressing, or the falling away —
according, in due order, to the conditions one meets,
the classes are of four kinds.
The exposition: in brief, the classes of the bodhisattva lineage are of four kinds, in order: first, the fixed; second, the unfixed; third, the non-retrogressing; and fourth, the falling away. The fixed do not retrogress whatever conditions they meet. The unfixed fall away depending on the conditions they meet.
The four-part proof of the lineage's existence is an argument from observed difference rather than from scripture alone: sentient beings visibly differ in what they have faith in, in whether their practice advances, and in the level of enlightenment they reach, and the treatise's claim is simply that these differences need a cause, and that a difference in the underlying lineage is the only cause that fits all four patterns at once. 若無性差別，則亦無信差別 is repeated with only its noun changed across all four sub-arguments — this is a single argument form applied four times, not four separate proofs, and its force depends entirely on there being no better explanation available for why practitioners of apparently equal effort and instruction still diverge.
性種 and 習種 — the innate lineage and the habituated lineage — set up a distinction this treatise will keep returning to but never fully resolve in this fascicle: is the potential for buddhahood something a being already has, prior to any practice, or something built up through habituation over time? The treatise's own answer refuses to choose only one: 彼有者，因體有故；非有者，果體非有故 — the lineage as cause already exists, but the lineage as fruit does not yet exist. Read this way, "nature" here names neither a fixed essence nor a pure construction, but a real capacity for a merit not yet brought forth — 功德度義, the sense of bringing forth merit, which is closer to a verb than a noun.
9. Faults, Merits, the Two Similes, and Those Without the Lineage
已說種性品類，次說種性過失。
偈曰：
應知菩薩性， 略說有四失，
習惑與惡友， 貧窮屬他故。
釋曰：菩薩種性過失，略說有四種：一者習惑，功德不行、煩惱多行故。二者惡友，離善知識、狎弊人故。三者貧窮，所須眾具皆乏少故。四者屬他，繫屬於人，不自在故。
已說種性過失，次說種性功德。
偈曰：
功德亦四種， 雖墮於惡道，
遲入復速出， 苦薄及悲深。
釋曰：菩薩種性雖有如前過失，若墮惡道，應知於中復有四種功德：一者遲入，不數墮故。二者速出，不久住故。三者苦薄，逼惱輕故。四者悲深，哀愍眾生亦成就故。
The classes of the lineage having been stated, next the faults of the lineage are explained.
It should be known that the bodhisattva lineage
has, in brief, four faults:
habituation to affliction, and evil companions,
poverty, and being subject to another.
The exposition: in brief, the faults of the bodhisattva lineage are of four kinds: first, habituation to affliction, in that one fails to practice the qualities and instead practices the afflictions to excess; second, evil companions, in that one is apart from good spiritual friends and keeps company with corrupt people; third, poverty, in that all the necessary provisions are wanting and scarce; and fourth, being subject to another, in that one is bound and attached to another person, without mastery of oneself.
The faults of the lineage having been stated, next the merits of the lineage are explained.
Its merits are likewise fourfold:
though one may fall into an evil destiny,
one enters it late and quickly emerges,
one's suffering is slight, and one's compassion runs deep.
The exposition: although the bodhisattva lineage has the faults just described, should it fall into an evil destiny, one should know that even there it possesses four further merits: first, entering late, in that one does not fall there often; second, emerging quickly, in that one does not remain there long; third, slight suffering, in that the affliction and torment there are light; and fourth, deep compassion, in that even there one's pity for sentient beings remains accomplished.
已說種性功德，次說種性金譬。
偈曰：
譬如勝金性， 出生有四種，
諸善及諸智， 諸淨諸通故。
釋曰：勝金性者，所出有四義：一者極多、二者光明、三者無垢、四者調柔。菩薩種性亦爾，一者為無量善根依止、二者為無量智慧依止、三者為一切煩惱障智障得清淨依止、四者為一切神通變化依止。
已說種性金性譬，次說種性寶性譬。
偈曰：
譬如妙寶性， 四種成就因，
大果及大智， 大定大義故。
釋曰：妙寶性者，四種成就依止：一者真成就依止、二者色成就依止、三者形成就依止、四者量成就依止。菩薩種性亦爾，一者為大菩提因；二者為大智因；三者為大定因，定者由心住故；四者為大義因，成就無邊眾生故。
The merits of the lineage having been stated, next the simile of gold for the lineage is explained.
It is like the nature of superior gold,
whose yield is of four kinds —
all manner of good, and all manner of wisdom,
all manner of purity, and all manner of supernormal power.
The exposition: what superior gold yields has four aspects — it is exceedingly abundant, it is radiant, it is free of impurity, and it is malleable. It is the same for the bodhisattva lineage: first, it is the support for measureless wholesome roots; second, it is the support for measureless wisdom; third, it is the support for the purification of all afflictive and cognitive obstructions; and fourth, it is the support for every kind of supernormal power and transformation.
The simile of gold for the lineage having been stated, next the simile of the jewel for the lineage is explained.
It is like the nature of a wondrous jewel,
which is the cause of four accomplishments —
great fruit, and great wisdom,
great concentration, and great significance.
The exposition: the nature of a wondrous jewel is the support for four accomplishments — the accomplishment of its genuineness, of its color, of its shape, and of its size. It is the same for the bodhisattva lineage: first, it is the cause of great enlightenment; second, it is the cause of great wisdom; third, it is the cause of great concentration, concentration being what makes the mind abide steadily; and fourth, it is the cause of great significance, in that it brings boundless sentient beings to maturity.
已廣分別性位，次分別無性位。
偈曰：
一向行惡行， 普斷諸白法，
無有解脫分， 善少亦無因。
釋曰：無般涅槃法者，是無性位。此略有二種：一者時邊般涅槃法、二者畢竟無涅槃法。時邊般涅槃法者，有四種人：一者一向行惡行、二者普斷諸善法、三者無解脫分善根、四者善根不具足。畢竟無涅槃法者，無因故，彼無般涅槃性，此謂但求生死、不樂涅槃人。
已說無性，次說令入。
偈曰：
廣演深大法， 令信令極忍，
究竟大菩提， 二知二性勝。
釋曰：廣演深大法者，為利他故。謂無智者，令得大信。已大信者，令成就極忍，能行不退。已極忍者，令究竟成就無上菩提。二知者，謂諸凡夫及諸聲聞。若得如是，彼諸二人則知自性性德圓滿性最為殊勝。
問：云何勝？
偈曰：
增長菩提樹， 生樂及滅苦，
自他利為果， 此勝如吉根。
釋曰。如是種性能增長極廣功德大菩提樹、能得大樂、能滅大苦、能得自他利樂以為大果，是故此性最為第一，譬如吉祥樹根。菩薩種性亦爾。種性品究竟。
The stage of possessing the lineage having now been distinguished at length, next the stage of lacking the lineage is distinguished.
Practicing only evil conduct,
universally cutting off all wholesome dharmas,
having no portion of liberation,
and having little good and no cause for it.
The exposition: those without the dharma of final nirvāṇa are those in the stage of lacking the lineage. This is, in brief, of two kinds: first, those whose final nirvāṇa is temporarily deferred, and second, those whose dharma of nirvāṇa is ultimately absent altogether. Those whose final nirvāṇa is temporarily deferred are of four kinds of persons: first, those who practice only evil conduct; second, those who have universally cut off all wholesome dharmas; third, those who have no wholesome root that is a portion of liberation; and fourth, those whose wholesome roots are incomplete. Those whose nirvāṇa is ultimately absent altogether are without the cause for it, and so are without the nature of final nirvāṇa at all — this refers to persons who seek only saṃsāra and take no delight in nirvāṇa.
The absence of the lineage having been stated, next the leading of beings into it is explained.
Widely proclaiming the profound and great Dharma,
bringing beings to faith, and to utmost patience,
and finally to great enlightenment —
by this, the two who come to know recognize the supremacy of the two natures.
The exposition: widely proclaiming the profound and great Dharma is done for the sake of benefiting others. That is, one who lacks wisdom is brought to attain great faith; one who already has great faith is brought to accomplish utmost patience, able to practice without retrogression; and one who already has utmost patience is brought to the final accomplishment of unsurpassed enlightenment. The two who come to know refers to ordinary beings and to śrāvakas. Once they attain this, these two kinds of persons come to know that the own-nature and the perfected quality of this nature's own merit are of the most surpassing kind.
Question: in what way is it supreme?
It makes the tree of enlightenment grow tall,
it brings forth joy and extinguishes suffering,
and the benefit of both self and other is its fruit —
this supremacy is like an auspicious root.
The exposition: this lineage is able to make the great tree of enlightenment, vast with merit, grow tall; it is able to bring forth great joy; it is able to extinguish great suffering; and it is able to obtain the benefit and joy of both self and other as its great fruit. For this reason this nature is foremost of all, like the root of an auspicious tree. The bodhisattva lineage is just the same. The chapter on the lineage is complete.
The stage of lacking the lineage (無性位) is stated here with unusual bluntness for a treatise that has spent two chapters arguing that fear of the Mahāyāna is unwarranted and correctable. The treatise itself distinguishes two very different claims and is careful not to blur them: 時邊般涅槃法, those whose final nirvāṇa is merely deferred by a run of bad conduct, negligible wholesome roots, or incomplete practice — all conditions that could in principle change — and 畢竟無涅槃法, those who are without the cause for nirvāṇa altogether, described not as incapable but as simply not wanting it, 但求生死、不樂涅槃. This is one version of the doctrine later Yogācāra literature systematizes as the icchantika, and it remained genuinely contested within the tradition for centuries after this treatise; the text here states it as a bare classification within the nine topics rather than arguing for it at length, and does not reconcile it explicitly with the universal buddha-nature taught in other Mahāyāna sources. Readers encountering the doctrine for the first time here should know that its scope and even its permanence were themselves live questions among later commentators, not a settled matter this treatise alone determines.
The gold and jewel similes, read side by side, divide the lineage's contribution in two: gold names what the lineage produces in abundance (善、智、淨、通— every wholesome thing, without limit), while the jewel names what the lineage makes possible in kind rather than quantity (大果、大智、大定、大義 — specific, singular accomplishments of the highest grade). Gold is a metaphor for output; the jewel is a metaphor for capacity. Together they cover the two things a cause needs to explain about its effects — how much, and how good — and the chapter's closing image, the auspicious tree, folds both back into a single organic figure: a root that determines both how large the tree grows and what kind of fruit it bears.
Fascicle 1 Complete
Four chapters, and the treatise's whole opening case. The origin chapter explains what "ornament" means and why a true teaching still benefits from skillful exposition. The chapter establishing the tenet answers the era's live objection — is this really the Buddha's word? — with eight independent causes, several of which trap the objection in its own premises, and closes by naming fear, slander, wrong reflection, and ill will as the real obstacles once the doubt itself has been addressed. The chapter on refuge explains why the Mahāyāna refuge exceeds the others in four ways, cast partly in the language of family (seed, mother, womb, wet-nurse) and partly in the language of court (prince, minister), and ending in eight fruits that begin at the very first moment of faith. And the chapter on the lineage lays out all nine of its topics — existence, supremacy, own-nature, marks, classes, faults, merits, and two similes — before closing on the treatise's least comfortable claim: that some beings, on its own account, do not yet have the cause for liberation at all. Fascicle 2 opens the chapter on arousing the mind of enlightenment (發心品), the practice by which the lineage described here first becomes active.
Continue to Fascicle 2 — Arousing the Mind, the Twofold Benefit, Reality, Supernormal Power, and Maturing Beings →