藥師琉璃光如來本願功德經 十二大願（九至十二）
十二願在這一段收尾，收尾之後經文第一次描寫那個佛土，並第一次勸人發願。
最後四願落在哪裡
第九願所離的兩樣東西都有名字：魔的羂網，惡見的稠林。網的特點是走進去時路還是通的；稠林不擋人，只是走不出來。所以這一願的動作不是破，是把人領出來，安到別處去。
第十願寫王法之下的人——繩、鞭、牢獄、刑場。前面那些苦，病可以治、貧可以濟、見可以正；這一種，苦的來源是人間的權柄本身。所以它特別說明憑什麼：憑佛的福德威神力。而它許的是「解脫一切憂苦」，不是免於刑戮。經在最硬的地方沒有把話說滿。
最後兩願回到吃與穿。第十一願先寫因——人不是先壞才餓，是餓了才做出那些事；所與的分兩段：先把身餵飽，然後才是法味。第十二願寫貧，不寫「貧窮」二字了事，寫蚊虻、寒熱、晝夜，寫身上沒有一層遮擋。
一句拿西方作比
那個佛土的樣子，經是從『沒有』開始寫的：沒有女人，沒有惡趣，沒有痛苦的聲音。先把苦的來源一項一項拿掉，剩下的才叫莊嚴。
而其中有一句，全經只出現一次：「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」。
東方的淨琉璃，經自己拿西方的極樂來比。這不是後人的比附。
比的方式也要看清楚——沒有說誰勝過誰，說的是「等無差別」。舉一個人可能已經熟悉的地方，去說一個他還不熟悉的地方。
輪到聽的人
那國中有兩位上首，一名日光遍照，一名月光遍照。第二願說佛身「焰網莊嚴，過於日月」，這裡承事佛的兩位卻正以日月為名。
他們的職事是持那位佛的正法寶藏。法要傳得下去，靠的不是願本身，是有人持。
最後一句是勸：「應當願生彼佛世界」。
十二願講完、佛土寫完，經到這裡才第一次對聽的人說話。前面全是『我當如何』——那是佛在發願；這一句是「應當願生」——輪到聽的人發願了。
一部經講了這麼久的「願」，此刻把這個字交了出來。
而十二願自己的兩頭是這樣的：第一願要眾生「如我無異」，第十二願要眾生「隨心所翫，皆令滿足」。一頭是與佛齊平，一頭是他愛什麼就給什麼。日用之事排在最後，不是因為最輕，是因為那是願要落到的地方。
With this passage the twelve vows are finished. What comes after the finish is new twice over: the land itself is described, and someone is asked to make a vow of his own.
Where the Last Four Vows Come Down
Both of the things vow nine gets a person out of have names: the demon’s snare and net, the dense forest of evil views. What marks a net is that the road is still open at the moment of walking in; what marks a dense forest is that it bars nobody and simply cannot be walked out of. Hence the action of this vow is not breaking but carrying: a person is led out and set down elsewhere.
Vow ten writes the human being under the king’s law — the cord, the whip, the prison, the execution ground. The other sufferings had a remedy: sickness treated, want relieved, a crooked view straightened. This one has its source in human authority itself. So the vow names expressly what the release is founded upon: the merit and awesome spirit of the Buddha. And what it promises is release from grief and pain, not escape from execution. At its hardest place the sūtra stops short of saying everything.
The final two vows come back to eating and clothing. Vow eleven begins from the cause: nobody turns bad and then goes hungry; he goes hungry and then does those things. What is given arrives in two stages — the body filled first, the savor of Dharma only after. Vow twelve writes poverty without using the word: mosquitoes and gadflies, cold and heat, day and night, and a body with no layer over it.
One Sentence That Takes the West for Its Measure
The land is written from what it lacks: no women, no evil destinies, no sound of suffering. Take away the sources of suffering one at a time; the remainder is what deserves the name of adornment.
And within it stands a sentence found nowhere else in the sūtra: it is likewise as the Western World of Ultimate Bliss, in merits and adornments equal and without difference.
The Eastern Pure Beryl, measured by the sūtra itself against the Western Ultimate Bliss. Nobody later put the two together.
How the measuring is done also repays attention. Neither is said to surpass the other; the words are equal and without difference. A place the hearer may already know is raised in order to reach a place he does not.
The Turn Passes to the Listener
Two bodhisattvas stand foremost in that land, one named Sunlight Universally Shining and one named Moonlight Universally Shining. Vow two had said that the buddha-body is adorned with a net of flames surpassing sun and moon; here the two who serve that Buddha carry the sun and the moon in their names.
Their office is to uphold the treasury of that Buddha’s true Dharma. What carries the Dharma forward is not the vow but the presence of someone holding it.
Then the closing sentence, which is an exhortation: one should vow to be born in that buddha’s world.
Twelve vows spoken and a land described, and only now does the sūtra address whoever is listening. Everything up to here has been what I shall do — that was the Buddha vowing. This is you should vow — the turn has come round.
A text that has been saying the word vow for so long lets go of it here.
As for the two ends of the twelve vows themselves: the first asks that beings be no different from the Buddha, the twelfth that whatever their heart delights in be made complete. One end is level with a buddha; the other is whatever the person happens to like. Ordinary daily things stand last not because they weigh least, but because they are where the vows are meant to land.
大唐、三藏法師玄奘奉 詔譯《藥師琉璃光如來本願功德經》〈十二大願（九至十二）〉· 大正藏 T14n0450〔起 T14 0405b09〕。段／行首〔T14 …〕＝大正藏頁・欄・行錨。
〔T14 0405b09〕「第九大願：願我來世得菩提時，令諸有情，出魔羂網，解脫一切外道纏縛；若墮種種惡見稠林，皆當引攝置於正見，漸令修習諸菩薩行，速證無上正等菩提。 「第十大願：願我來世得菩提時，若諸有情，王法所錄，縲縛鞭撻，繫閉牢獄，或當刑戮，及餘無量災難凌辱，悲愁煎迫，身心受苦；若聞我名，以我福德威神力故，皆得解脫一切憂苦。 「第十一大願：願我來世得菩提時，若諸有情，飢渴所惱，為求食故造諸惡業；得聞我名，專念受持，我當先以上妙飲食，飽足其身；後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之。 「第十二大願：願我來世得菩提時，若諸有情，貧無衣服，蚊虻寒熱，晝夜逼惱；若聞我名，專念受持，如其所好，即得種種上妙衣服，亦得一切寶莊嚴具，華鬘塗香，鼓樂眾伎，隨心所翫，皆令滿足。 「曼殊室利！是為彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來、應、正等覺，行菩薩道時，所發十二微妙上願。 「復次，曼殊室利！彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來，行菩薩道時所發大願，及彼佛土功德莊嚴，我若一劫，若一劫餘，說不能盡。然彼佛土，一向清淨，無有女人，亦無惡趣，及苦音聲。琉璃為地，金繩界道，城、闕、宮、閣、軒、窓、羅網，皆七寶成。亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別。於其國中，有二菩薩摩訶薩：一名日光遍照，二名月光遍照，是彼無量無數菩薩眾之上首，悉能持彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來正法寶藏。是故，曼殊室利！諸有信心善男子、善女人等，應當願生彼佛世界。」
The canonical text stands in Chinese only. This edition renders the essence, the plain reading, the exposition and the apparatus into English — never the sūtra itself. Switch to 漢讀本 or 並行雙語 above to read it.
大唐三藏法師玄奘譯《藥師琉璃光如來本願功德經》T14n0450，自「第九大願」至「應當願生彼佛世界」。段首（…）＝大正藏頁·欄·行錨。願文是誓願之辭，白話仍作願體；總結與國土一段則為佛之敘說，作敘述文。
〔一·第九大願·出魔網外道縛〕（0405b09）『第九大願：願我未來世中證得菩提的時候，使一切有情脫出魔的羂網（捕獵用的網套），解脫一切外道的纏縛；（0405b10）假使墮在種種惡見的稠密林中，都要把他們引導攝受、安置於正見，漸漸使他們修習諸菩薩行，速疾證得無上正等菩提。』
〔二·第十大願·王法刑戮諸難〕（0405b13）『第十大願：願我未來世中證得菩提的時候，假使有情被王法所拘錄，（0405b14）以繩索綑縛、以鞭杖捶打，繫禁關閉在牢獄中，或者將要受到刑戮，以及其餘無量的災難凌辱，悲愁煎熬逼迫，身心受苦；（0405b16）假使聽聞我的名號，憑我福德威神之力的緣故，都得解脫一切憂苦。』
〔三·第十一大願·飢渴者先食後法〕（0405b18）『第十一大願：願我未來世中證得菩提的時候，假使有情被飢渴所惱，（0405b19）為了求食的緣故造作種種惡業；得聽聞我的名號，專心憶念受持，（0405b20）我當先以上等美妙的飲食飽足他的身，然後再以法味，使他畢竟安樂而安立之。』
〔四·第十二大願·貧無衣者所好皆足〕（0405b22）『第十二大願：願我未來世中證得菩提的時候，假使有情貧困而沒有衣服，（0405b23）蚊虻叮咬、寒熱交侵，晝夜逼迫惱害；假使聽聞我的名號，專心憶念受持，（0405b24）便如他所喜好的，即刻得到種種上等美妙的衣服，（0405b25）也得到一切寶製的莊嚴之具、華鬘塗香、鼓樂眾伎，隨他心裡所愛玩的，都使他滿足。』
〔五·總結十二願〕（0405b27）曼殊室利！這就是那位世尊藥師琉璃光如來、應、正等覺，行菩薩道的時候，所發的十二微妙上願。
〔六·彼佛土之莊嚴〕（0405b29）又，曼殊室利！那位世尊藥師琉璃光如來行菩薩道時所發的大願，以及那個佛土的功德莊嚴，（0405c01）我即使說一劫、或說一劫有餘，也說不能盡。（0405c02）然而那個佛土，一向清淨，沒有女人，也沒有惡趣以及痛苦的音聲。（0405c03）以琉璃為地，以金繩劃分道路的界線，（0405c04）城、闕、宮、閣、軒、窓、羅網，都由七寶所成。（0405c05）也如同西方極樂世界一樣，功德莊嚴，相等而沒有差別。
〔七·二大菩薩〕（0405c05）在那個國中，有兩位菩薩摩訶薩：（0405c06）一位名叫日光遍照，一位名叫月光遍照，（0405c07）是那無量無數菩薩眾中的上首，（0405c08）都能持守那位世尊藥師琉璃光如來的正法寶藏。
〔八·勸願生〕（0405c08）因此，曼殊室利！（0405c09）諸位有信心的善男子、善女人等，（0405c10）應當發願生到那位佛的世界。
Xuanzang’s translation, T14n0450, from “The ninth great vow” to “should vow to be born in that buddha’s world.” The figures in parentheses at the head of each segment give the Taishō page, register, and line. The vow text is the language of a pledge, and the plain reading keeps it in the form of a vow; the summary and the passage on the land are the Buddha’s own narration, and are set as narrative.
〔1 · Vow nine · Out of the demon’s net, out of the bonds of the outside paths〕（0405b09）The ninth great vow: I vow that in a future age, when I have realized awakening, I will cause all sentient beings to escape the demon’s snare and net (a noose and net such as are used in hunting) and to be freed from every entanglement and bond of the outside paths; （0405b10）and should they have fallen into the dense forest of every kind of evil view, I will draw them out, gather them in, and settle them in right view, gradually causing them to cultivate the practices of a bodhisattva and swiftly to realize unsurpassed perfect awakening.
〔2 · Vow ten · The king’s law, execution, and the other calamities〕（0405b13）The tenth great vow: I vow that in a future age, when I have realized awakening, should sentient beings be taken up by the king’s law, （0405b14）bound with cords, beaten with the rod and the whip, shut fast in prison, or about to be put to death, and should they meet with measureless further calamities and humiliations, scorched and pressed by grief and sorrow, suffering in body and mind — （0405b16）then if they hear my name, by the power of my merit and awesome spirit they will all be freed from every grief and pain.
〔3 · Vow eleven · For the hungry and thirsty, food first and Dharma after〕（0405b18）The eleventh great vow: I vow that in a future age, when I have realized awakening, should sentient beings be tormented by hunger and thirst （0405b19）and commit every kind of evil deed for the sake of getting food, then if they hear my name and hold it in mind and keep it single-heartedly, （0405b20）I will first satisfy their bodies with food and drink of the finest kind, and afterwards, with the savor of Dharma, establish them in ultimate peace and joy.
〔4 · Vow twelve · For the poor without clothing, whatever they delight in is granted in full〕（0405b22）The twelfth great vow: I vow that in a future age, when I have realized awakening, should sentient beings be poor and without clothing, （0405b23）bitten by mosquitoes and gadflies, beset by cold and heat, harried day and night, then if they hear my name and hold it in mind and keep it single-heartedly, （0405b24）they will obtain at once, just as they like them, garments of every sort of the finest kind, （0405b25）and will obtain as well every ornament made of jewels, flower-garlands and perfumed unguents, drums and music and troupes of performers — whatever their heart delights in, all of it will be made complete for them.
〔5 · The summary of the twelve vows〕（0405b27）Mañjuśrī! These are the twelve sublime and supreme vows that the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata, Worthy One, Perfectly Awakened One, made when he practiced the bodhisattva path.
〔6 · The adornment of that buddha-land〕（0405b29）Further, Mañjuśrī! The great vows that the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata made when he practiced the bodhisattva path, and the merits and adornments of that buddha-land — （0405c01）were I to speak for a kalpa, or for more than a kalpa, I could not exhaust them. （0405c02）Yet that buddha-land is pure throughout: there are no women there, nor any evil destinies, nor any sound of suffering. （0405c03）Beryl is its ground and golden cords mark out the bounds of its roads; （0405c04）its walls and gate-towers, its palaces and pavilions, its galleries and windows and its lattices of netting are all made of the seven jewels. （0405c05）It is likewise as the Western World of Ultimate Bliss: in merits and adornments equal and without difference.
〔7 · The two great bodhisattvas〕（0405c05）In that land there are two bodhisattva-mahāsattvas: （0405c06）the first named Sunlight Universally Shining, the second named Moonlight Universally Shining. （0405c07）They are the foremost among that measureless and countless host of bodhisattvas, （0405c08）and they are all able to uphold the treasury of the true Dharma of the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata.
〔8 · The exhortation to vow birth there〕（0405c08）Therefore, Mañjuśrī! （0405c09）Good sons and good daughters who have faith （0405c10）should vow to be born in that buddha’s world.
十二願到這一段收尾。收尾之後，經文第一次描寫那個佛土，並且第一次勸人願生。
青丘沙門太賢的《本願藥師經古迹》把最後四願配成兩對：願九、願十為「內外解縛門」，願十一、願十二為「志食與衣門」。而佛土一段他另立一科，析為八種功德成就。
第九願：網，與稠林
第九願是十二願中唯一用譬狀所離之境的一願：「令諸有情，出魔羂網，解脫一切外道纏縛」〔T14n0450 0405b09〕；「若墮種種惡見稠林，皆當引攝置於正見，漸令修習諸菩薩行，速證無上正等菩提」〔T14n0450 0405b10〕。
「魔羂網」〔T14n0450 0405b10〕的羂是套索，網是罩子——套索與網的特點是不覺得自己被套住。走進去的時候路是通的。
「惡見稠林」〔T14n0450 0405b11〕更準。稠林不是牆，它不擋人，它讓人一直走得下去——只是走不出來。見解的困境正是如此：不是無路可走，是條條都通向裡面。
所以這一願的動詞不是『破』，是「引攝置於正見」——把人領出來，安到另一個地方去。破不了稠林，只能把人帶走。
而末句「漸令修習諸菩薩行」的那個「漸」字，也應留意。出了稠林不等於到家，後面還有一段要慢慢走。
第十願：憑什麼解脫
第十願寫的是人間最硬的處境：「王法所錄，縲縛鞭撻，繫閉牢獄，或當刑戮，及餘無量災難凌辱，悲愁煎迫，身心受苦」〔T14n0450 0405b14〕。
繩子、鞭子、牢獄、刑場，一路寫到底。這是十二願中最沒有轉圜餘地的一種苦——前面那些，病可以治，貧可以濟，見可以正；這一種，苦的來源是人間的權柄本身。
所以這一願的所憑之處也和別願不同：「若聞我名，以我福德威神力故，皆得解脫一切憂苦」〔T14n0450 0405b16〕。
「以我福德威神力故」——別的願說聞名之後如何如何，這一願特別把憑藉點出來。因為在王法之前，人自己是沒有力的。
要看清楚它許的是什麼：末句是「解脫一切憂苦」，不是『免於刑戮』。經在最硬的地方沒有把話說滿。
這一點我們不宜替它補足。刑戮之免與憂苦之解，是兩件事；願只說了後一件。
第十一願、第十二願：先給，再說法
最後兩願回到最平常的兩件事：吃與穿。
第十一願先寫因：「飢渴所惱，為求食故造諸惡業」〔T14n0450 0405b19〕。人不是先壞才餓，是餓了才做出那些事。願文把業的來路寫在飢餓上。
而所與的分兩段：「我當先以上妙飲食，飽足其身；後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之」〔T14n0450 0405b20〕。
先食，後法。次第寫得很死：先把身餵飽，再談法味。
這個次第不是每個譯本都有。《灌頂》古譯本的第十一願只說「令得種種甘美飲食」〔T21n1331 0533a06〕，給了食物就完了。而唐代另一位譯人也譯出了這一層——「後以法味，令住勝樂」〔T14n0451 0413b20〕；先食後法之為兩段，兩個唐譯本都聽見了，古譯層沒有。
第十二願則是衣：「貧無衣服，蚊虻寒熱，晝夜逼惱」〔T14n0450 0405b23〕——不寫「貧窮」二字了事，寫蚊虻、寒熱、晝夜。貧的實況是身上沒有一層遮擋，日夜都在被叮咬和冷熱裡。
所與的也不只一件衣：「如其所好，即得種種上妙衣服」〔T14n0450 0405b24〕、「亦得一切寶莊嚴具，華鬘塗香，鼓樂眾伎」〔T14n0450 0405b25〕，末句是「隨心所翫，皆令滿足」〔T14n0450 0405b26〕。
寶飾、華鬘、塗香、鼓樂——這些都不是禦寒所需。願給到這裡，已經不只是讓人活著。
十二願的第一句與最末一句
十二願到此結束：「是為彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來、應、正等覺，行菩薩道時，所發十二微妙上願」〔T14n0450 0405b27〕。
把第一願的末句和第十二願的末句放在一起看：
第一願結於「令一切有情，如我無異」——要眾生和佛一樣。 第十二願結於「隨心所翫，皆令滿足」——隨眾生自己愛玩什麼，都給足。
始於齊佛，終於遂人。
一頭是最高的：與佛無異。一頭是最低的：他喜歡什麼就給他什麼。十二願是從那一頭走到這一頭的。
而次序是這樣安排的：先立佛身（一二），再及世出世（三四），再及戒與根（五六），再及病與身（七八），再及見與刑（九十），最後才是吃與穿（十一十二）。越到後面越具體，越到後面越貼近地面。
願沒有把日用留在最不重要的位置——它留在最後，是因為那是願真正要落到的地方。
我們讀願文，習慣把「令一切有情，如我無異」看得比「隨心所翫，皆令滿足」重。十二願的排法不是這樣排的。
說不能盡
十二願說完，經文轉去寫那個佛土，開頭一句是：「我若一劫，若一劫餘，說不能盡」〔T14n0450 0405c01〕。
歷來的讀法在此下了一句要緊的話：「顯如大願果亦無邊。身應準願」〔T38n1770 0258c25〕。
願無邊，所以果也無邊；佛身如何，也應該照著願去推。
這一句把序分立下的那個宗旨接了回來——以如來的因與果為宗。願是因，土是果，說不能盡的不是土有多大，是那個因有多深。
八件事
那個土是什麼樣子？歷來的讀法不逐句描寫，而是分成八項，每一項各繫一句經文：
「無有女人」〔T14n0450 0405c03〕是「一無所著穢成就」〔T38n1770 0258c27〕；「亦無惡趣，及苦音聲」〔T14n0450 0405c03〕是「二離所怖惡成就」〔T38n1770 0258c27〕；「琉璃為地，金繩界道」〔T14n0450 0405c03〕分屬「三所依清淨成就」〔T38n1770 0258c28〕與「四道路成文成就」〔T38n1770 0258c29〕；「城、闕、宮、閣、軒、窓、羅網，皆七寶成」〔T14n0450 0405c04〕與下句合為「五宮殿莊嚴成就」〔T38n1770 0259a01〕；二菩薩是「六大聖無絕成就」〔T38n1770 0259a02〕；持正法寶藏是「七利樂不斷成就」〔T38n1770 0259a03〕；勸願生是「八願生無礙成就」〔T38n1770 0259a04〕。
八項的走勢值得看：前兩項說的是那裡沒有什麼，中間四項說有什麼，第七項說有誰在做事，第八項才轉向讀的人。
從『沒有』開始，是這一段的體例。先把苦的來源一項一項拿掉，剩下的才是莊嚴。
「亦如西方極樂世界」
這一段有一句話，在整部經裡只出現一次：「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」〔T14n0450 0405c05〕。
東方的淨琉璃，經自己拿西方的極樂來比。
這件事的分量在於：這不是後人的比附，是經文自己說的。義淨的譯本也作「亦如西方極樂世界功德莊嚴」〔T14n0451 0413c11〕——兩個唐代譯本都有這一句。
比的方式也要看清楚。經沒有說東方勝於西方，也沒有說西方勝於東方，說的是「等無差別」。舉一個讀者可能已經熟悉的地方，來說一個他還不熟悉的地方——這是最省力的教法。
而八成就之中，這一句被列在「宮殿莊嚴成就」〔T38n1770 0259a01〕之下：它不是一句感嘆，是那個土的一項具體規格。
兩位菩薩，與一句勸
那個國中有兩位上首菩薩：「一名日光遍照，二名月光遍照」〔T14n0450 0405c06〕。
日與月。前面第二願說佛身「焰網莊嚴，過於日月」，這裡兩位上首卻正以日月為名——佛身超過日月，而承事佛的兩位以日月為名，一段之內光明的譬喻沒有斷過。
他們的職事是「悉能持彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來正法寶藏」〔T14n0450 0405c08〕。歷來的讀法給這一項取名「大聖無絕」，理由是「即補處故」〔T38n1770 0259a03〕——上首之位有人接得住，所以不會斷。
法要傳得下去，靠的不是願本身，是有人持。
最後一句是勸：「諸有信心善男子、善女人等」〔T14n0450 0405c09〕，「應當願生彼佛世界」〔T14n0450 0405c10〕。
十二願講完、佛土寫完，經文到這裡才第一次對讀的人說話。前面全是『我當如何』——是佛在發願；這一句是「應當願生」——輪到聽的人發願了。
一部經講了這麼久的「願」，此刻把這個字交到了我們手上。
承衍——一路分成八項，一路仍在說故事
上來是本段自身的義。此下另以三副眼旁照——鏡非經，只是同一段經文，換幾種讀法來看。而本段之末，第三副眼才第一次接上。
《本願藥師經古迹》（青丘沙門太賢撰）牒玄奘本而釋。上文之六對、八成就、「身應準願」之判、「即補處故」之註，骨幹全出於此。他讀佛土的方式仍是分析的：不描寫，只分項，且每一項都咬住一句經文——連「琉璃為地，金繩界道」這樣一句，他也拆成所依與道路兩成就。
敦煌所出的失名疏（T85n2766，首已殘缺）牒《灌頂》古譯本，配對與《古迹》全然不同：它以願九、願十為「制天魔摧外道」一雙〔T85n2766 0310b20〕，以願十一、願十二為「出慈悲境」〔T85n2766 0310c05〕。
它在願九下設了一個很尖的問：佛若發願要制伏天魔外道，這個心豈不是不善？——答曰「所以制天魔本為上隆三寶」〔T85n2766 0310b27〕。制魔不是為了勝過誰，是為了讓三寶興隆。一個看似不該問的問題，被它問了出來，也答了。
它釋願十更出人意表：既然要化外道，何以說「王法所加」？答曰九十六種道之中，「乃言王法所加解言九十六種道。王亦」〔T85n2766 0310b29〕是其中一道——王法也算一道，所以王法之難亦在化外道之列。這一解《古迹》沒有，兩說並錄，不設調停。
這一路仍然在說故事。釋此願，它記了一個人被夫人進讒，王將他節節肢解、棄於塚間；夜裡虎狼羅剎欲來食之，佛到其邊，光明一照，身即平復，為說法而得道。後來王來謝罪，願分半國，那人說：我這身已經破過、棄過，是佛把它接回來的，如今盡此形壽以身布施，不再回去了。
——王法所加之苦，它不解釋，它讓你看見那個從塚間被接回來的人。
另一卷敦煌失名疏（T85n2767）牒隋笈多本，其現存部分正從本段之末接上：它的牒經第一句是「經。是故至彼佛國土 五勸物願生」〔T85n2767 0311c24〕，對的正是底本這句「應當願生彼佛世界」。此前十二願的部分不在其中，本段以前無可徵引；自下一段起，它成為第三副眼。
三副眼，一路分項，一路說故事，一路才剛到。而經自己既不分項也不說故事——它寫完那個土之後，只說了一句：應當願生彼佛世界。
The twelve vows come to their close in this passage. After the close, the sūtra describes that buddha-land for the first time, and for the first time exhorts anyone to vow birth there.
Ancient Traces on the Sūtra of the Original Vows of the Medicine Buddha, composed by the śramaṇa Taehyŏn of Ch’ŏnggu, pairs the last four vows two by two: vows nine and ten as “the gate of loosing inner and outer bonds,” vows eleven and twelve as “the gate of intent upon food and clothing.” The section on the buddha-land he sets under an outline of its own, analysed into eight perfections of merit.
Vow Nine: A Net, and a Dense Forest
Vow nine is the one vow among the twelve that figures in simile the condition to be left behind: “causing sentient beings to escape the demon’s snare and net and to be freed from every entanglement and bond of the outside paths”; “should they have fallen into the dense forest of every kind of evil view, I will draw them out, gather them in, and settle them in right view, gradually causing them to cultivate the practices of a bodhisattva and swiftly to realize unsurpassed perfect awakening.”
In “the demon’s snare and net,” the snare is a noose and the net a covering — and the mark of a noose and a net is that one does not feel oneself caught. At the moment of walking in, the road is open.
“The dense forest of evil views” is more exact still. A dense forest is not a wall; it does not bar the way. It lets a person go on walking — only never out. That is precisely the plight of views: not that there is no road to walk, but that every road leads further in.
So the verb of this vow is not to break, but “to draw them out, gather them in, and settle them in right view” — to lead a person out and set him down somewhere else. The forest cannot be broken; the person can only be carried away from it.
And in the closing phrase, “gradually causing them to cultivate the practices of a bodhisattva,” the word gradually is worth marking. To be out of the forest is not yet to be home; there is a stretch of road still to be walked slowly.
Vow Ten: On What Strength Is the Release Founded
Vow ten writes of the hardest human situation there is: “taken up by the king’s law, bound with cords, beaten with the rod and the whip, shut fast in prison, or about to be put to death, together with measureless further calamities and humiliations, scorched and pressed by grief and sorrow, suffering in body and mind.”
Cords, the whip, the prison, the execution ground — it is written straight through to the end. This is the one suffering among the twelve vows with the least room to turn in. Of those before it, illness can be healed, poverty relieved, a crooked view set straight; here the source of the suffering is the authority of the human world itself.
So what this vow rests upon differs from the rest as well: “if they hear my name, then by the power of my merit and awesome spirit they will all be freed from every grief and pain.”
“By the power of my merit and awesome spirit.” The other vows say what follows upon hearing the name; this vow marks out expressly what the release is founded upon. For in the face of the king’s law a person has no strength of his own.
And it must be seen clearly what is promised. The closing phrase is “freed from every grief and pain” — not spared from execution. At the hardest place the sūtra does not say more than it says.
That is not for a reader to fill out. Escape from execution and release from grief and pain are two matters; the vow speaks only of the second.
Vows Eleven and Twelve: First Give, Then Speak of Dharma
The last two vows return to the two commonest matters of all: eating and clothing.
Vow eleven writes the cause first: “tormented by hunger and thirst, and committing every kind of evil deed for the sake of getting food.” A person does not go bad first and then grow hungry; he grows hungry and then does those things. The vow writes the provenance of the deed onto the hunger.
And what is given comes in two stages: “I will first satisfy their bodies with food and drink of the finest kind, and afterwards, with the savor of Dharma, establish them in ultimate peace and joy.”
Food first, Dharma after. The order is written down hard: fill the body first, then speak of the savor of Dharma.
Not every translation has this order. Vow eleven in the old Consecration translation says only “causing them to obtain every kind of sweet and delicious food and drink” — the food given, and there it ends. Another Tang translator did bring out this second layer: “and afterwards, with the savor of Dharma, cause them to abide in surpassing joy.” That food first and Dharma after are two stages, both Tang recensions heard; the old translation layer did not.
Vow twelve is clothing: “poor and without clothing, bitten by mosquitoes and gadflies, beset by cold and heat, harried day and night.” It does not dispose of the matter with the word poverty; it writes mosquitoes and gadflies, cold and heat, day and night. The reality of poverty is having no single layer of covering on the body, bitten and chilled and scorched around the clock.
Nor is what is given a single garment: “they will obtain at once, just as they like them, garments of every sort of the finest kind,” “and will obtain as well every ornament made of jewels, flower-garlands and perfumed unguents, drums and music and troupes of performers,” closing with “whatever their heart delights in, all of it will be made complete.”
Jewelled ornaments, flower-garlands, perfumed unguents, drums and music — none of these keeps out the cold. Giving as far as this, the vow is no longer merely keeping a person alive.
The First Sentence of the Twelve Vows and the Last
Here the twelve vows end: “these are the twelve sublime and supreme vows that the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata, Worthy One, Perfectly Awakened One, made when he practiced the bodhisattva path.”
Set the closing phrase of the first vow beside the closing phrase of the twelfth:
Vow one closes at “causing all sentient beings to be no different from me” — that beings should be as the Buddha is. Vow twelve closes at “whatever their heart delights in, all of it will be made complete” — that whatever a being himself likes to play with be given him in full.
It begins at equality with the Buddha and ends at granting what a person wants.
The one end is the highest there is: no different from the Buddha. The other end is the lowest: whatever he likes, give it to him. The twelve vows walk from that end to this one.
And the order of the walking is this: first the buddha-body is established (one and two), then the mundane and the supramundane (three and four), then precepts and faculties (five and six), then illness and the body (seven and eight), then views and punishment (nine and ten), and only last eating and clothing (eleven and twelve). The further on, the more concrete; the further on, the closer to the ground.
The vows have not left daily use in the least important place. It stands last because that is where the vows are truly to come down.
Reading vow-texts, we are used to holding “causing all sentient beings to be no different from me” higher than “whatever their heart delights in, all of it will be made complete.” The ordering of the twelve vows is not arranged that way.
Beyond Telling
The twelve vows told, the sūtra turns to write of that buddha-land, and its opening sentence is: “were I to speak for a kalpa, or for more than a kalpa, I could not exhaust them.”
The reading handed down sets an important sentence under this: “it discloses that as the great vows are, so too the fruit is without bound. The body should be reckoned according to the vows.”
The vows being boundless, the fruit too is boundless; and what the buddha-body is, is to be inferred by reckoning from the vows.
This sentence takes up again the purport laid down in the introduction — the cause and fruit of the Tathāgata as the doctrinal purport. The vows are the cause and the land is the fruit, and what cannot be exhausted in the telling is not how large the land is, but how deep that cause runs.
Eight Things
What is that land like? The reading handed down does not describe it phrase by phrase; it divides it into eight items, each item fastened to one sentence of the sūtra.
“There are no women there” is “first, the perfection of having no defilement to cling to”; “nor any evil destinies, nor any sound of suffering” is “second, the perfection of being free of the evils that are feared”; “beryl is its ground and golden cords mark out the bounds of its roads” belongs partly to “third, the perfection of the purity of what is relied upon” and partly to “fourth, the perfection of the roads being formed into a pattern”; “its walls and gate-towers, its palaces and pavilions, its galleries and windows and its lattices of netting are all made of the seven jewels,” taken with the sentence following, makes “fifth, the perfection of the adornment of palaces”; the two bodhisattvas are “sixth, the perfection of the great sages without cease”; the upholding of the treasury of the true Dharma is “seventh, the perfection of benefit and joy unbroken”; the exhortation to vow birth is “eighth, the perfection of vowing birth there without obstruction.”
The drift of the eight is worth watching: the first two say what is not there, the middle four say what is there, the seventh says who is at work there, and only the eighth turns toward the one reading.
To begin from absence is the manner of this passage. The sources of suffering are taken away one by one first, and what remains is the adornment.
“Likewise as the Western World of Ultimate Bliss”
This passage holds one sentence that occurs only once in the whole sūtra: “it is likewise as the Western World of Ultimate Bliss: in merits and adornments equal and without difference.”
The Eastern Pure Beryl, and the sūtra itself takes the Western Ultimate Bliss for the term of comparison.
The weight of this lies in the fact that it is not a later assimilation but the sūtra’s own saying. Yijing’s recension likewise has “likewise as the merits and adornments of the Western World of Ultimate Bliss” — both Tang recensions carry the sentence.
The manner of the comparison must also be seen clearly. The sūtra does not say that the East surpasses the West, nor that the West surpasses the East; what it says is “equal and without difference.” To raise a place a reader may already know in order to speak of a place he does not yet know — this is teaching at its least laborious.
And among the eight perfections this sentence is placed under “the perfection of the adornment of palaces”: it is not an exclamation but one concrete specification of that land.
Two Bodhisattvas, and One Exhortation
In that land are two foremost bodhisattvas: “the first named Sunlight Universally Shining, the second named Moonlight Universally Shining.”
Sun and moon. Vow two said earlier of the buddha-body that it is “adorned with a net of flames, surpassing sun and moon”; and here the two foremost attendants are named for sun and moon. The buddha-body surpasses sun and moon, and the two who serve the Buddha are named for sun and moon — within one passage the figure of light is never let go.
Their office is that “they are all able to uphold the treasury of the true Dharma of the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata.” The reading handed down names this item “the great sages without cease,” on the ground that “they are in the position of succession” — the place of the foremost has someone able to take it up, and so is not broken.
For the Dharma to be handed on, what is relied upon is not the vow itself but that there are persons who uphold it.
The last sentence is an exhortation: “good sons and good daughters who have faith,” “should vow to be born in that buddha’s world.”
The twelve vows told and the buddha-land written, only here does the sūtra speak for the first time to the one reading it. All before this has been what I shall do — the Buddha making his vows; this sentence is “should vow to be born” — the turn has come round to the one who listens.
A sūtra that has spoken so long of “vow” now puts that word into our hands.
Transmission — One Way Divides into Eight Items, the Other Is Still Telling Stories
The above is the meaning of the passage itself. Below, three auxiliary eyes shine upon it from the side — a mirror is not the sūtra, only the same passage seen through several ways of reading. And at the close of this passage the third eye joins for the first time.
Ancient Traces on the Sūtra of the Original Vows of the Medicine Buddha (composed by the śramaṇa Taehyŏn of Ch’ŏnggu) glosses Xuanzang’s recension. The six pairs, the eight perfections, the adjudication “the body should be reckoned according to the vows,” and the gloss “because they are in the position of succession” — the whole frame above comes from here. His way of reading the buddha-land is still analytic: he does not describe, he only divides into items, and every item bites down on one sentence of the sūtra — even a single sentence like “beryl is its ground and golden cords mark out the bounds of its roads” he splits into the perfection of what is relied upon and the perfection of the roads.
The anonymous commentary recovered at Dunhuang (T85n2766, wanting at its head) glosses the old Consecration translation, and its pairings differ from Ancient Traces altogether: it takes vows nine and ten as one pair, “subduing the deva-demons and crushing the outside paths,” and vows eleven and twelve as “setting forth the field of compassion.”
Under vow nine it sets a very sharp question: if the Buddha vows to subdue deva-demons and outside paths, is that intention not unwholesome? The answer is “the reason for subduing the deva-demons is fundamentally to raise up the Three Jewels.” Subduing demons is not for the sake of prevailing over anyone, but so that the Three Jewels may flourish. A question that looks as though it ought not to be asked was asked by that commentary, and answered.
Its exegesis of vow ten is more unexpected still: if the outside paths are to be converted, why speak of “what the king’s law inflicts”? The answer is that among the ninety-six paths, “it then says ‘what the king’s law inflicts,’ explaining it as the ninety-six kinds of path; the king too” is one of those paths — the king’s law counts as one path, and so the affliction of the king’s law also falls within the conversion of the outside paths. This reading Ancient Traces does not have; the two stand recorded together, with no reconciliation imposed.
That way of reading is still telling stories. Glossing this vow, it records a man slandered to the king by the queen; the king had his limbs severed one by one and his body cast into a graveyard. In the night tigers, wolves, and rākṣasas came to devour him; the Buddha came to his side, and at one shining of the light his body was made whole again, and Dharma was preached to him and he attained the way. Afterwards the king came to beg pardon and offered him half the kingdom, and the man said: this body of mine has been broken once and cast away once, and it was the Buddha who took it back; now to the end of this life I give the body away, and I shall not return.
— The suffering that the king’s law inflicts it does not explain. It lets you see the man who was carried back from the graveyard.
The other anonymous commentary from Dunhuang (T85n2767) glosses the Sui recension of Dharmagupta, and its surviving portion picks up exactly at the close of this passage: the first sentence of its glossing runs, “Sūtra: from ‘therefore’ down to ‘that buddha-land’ — fifth, exhorting people to vow birth there,” answering to the base text’s “should vow to be born in that buddha’s world.” The portion covering the twelve vows before this is not among what survives, and for anything earlier than this passage there is nothing to cite; from the next passage onward it becomes the third auxiliary eye.
Three auxiliary eyes: one dividing into items, one telling stories, one just arrived. And the sūtra itself neither divides into items nor tells stories — having finished writing that land, it says only one thing: you should vow to be born in that buddha’s world.
考據Apparatus
全段定位 本段含三事：①願九至願十二（六對中之第五、第六對——內外解縛門、志食與衣門）；②十二願之總結；③彼佛土功德莊嚴與勸願生一段——此段已出「答第二問」而入「答後問」，逐文鏡判為「本處莊嚴功德成就」，並析為八種功德成就。本單元亦是全經與淨土軸交涉最直之處：經文自言彼土「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」〔T14n0450 0405c05〕。十二願既竣，本目二附四譯十二願之全表（前二單元逐段對勘之總收）。
一、科判定位
| 對 | 願 | 疏文逐字 | 錨 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 五·內外解縛門 | 願九、願十 | 「五內外解縛門，即次二願，攝置正見，解惡見縛。證無上道，出魔羂故。以威神力，出刑縛故」 | 〔T38n1770 0258c06〕 |
| 六·志食與衣門 | 願十一、願十二 | 「六志食與衣門，即次二願，以食法味而建立故、以妙衣等而令滿足故」 | 〔T38n1770 0258c08〕 |
內外解縛之「內外」：願九所解者為內——惡見之縛（攝置正見）與魔羂；願十所解者為外——王法之刑縛（以威神力）。與第四對（除內外苦門）之內外分法不同軸：彼以苦之緣為內外，此以縛之處為內外。
總結：「總結也」〔T38n1770 0258c12〕——經文「是為彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來、應、正等覺，行菩薩道時，所發十二微妙上願」〔T14n0450 0405b27〕，即前科「略標、廣說、總結」之第三節，答第二問於此竣。
佛土一段已入答後問：「答後問也。於中有二：初本處莊嚴功德成就、後外方聞名功德成就」〔T38n1770 0258c23〕—— 本單元含其初（本處莊嚴），後者（外方聞名）自單元 05 起。
| 願 | 經文起訖逐字（各繫其錨） |
|---|---|
| 九 | 「第九大願：願我來世得菩提時」〔T14n0450 0405b09〕…「漸令修習諸菩薩行，速證無上正等菩提」〔T14n0450 0405b11〕 |
| 十 | 「第十大願：願我來世得菩提時」〔T14n0450 0405b13〕…「若聞我名，以我福德威神力故，皆得解脫一切憂苦」〔T14n0450 0405b16〕 |
| 十一 | 「第十一大願：願我來世得菩提時」〔T14n0450 0405b18〕…「我當先以上妙飲食，飽足其身；後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之」〔T14n0450 0405b20〕 |
| 十二 | 「第十二大願：願我來世得菩提時」〔T14n0450 0405b22〕…「隨心所翫，皆令滿足」〔T14n0450 0405b26〕 |
二、異譯對勘（一經四譯·十二願全表·異同誌錄不判）
甲·本單元四願
| 願 | 玄奘 T14n0450（底本） | 東晉《灌頂經》卷十二 T21n1331 |
|---|---|---|
| 九 | 「令諸有情，出魔羂網，解脫一切外道纏縛」〔T14n0450 0405b09〕 | 「摧伏惡魔及諸外道，顯揚清淨無上道法」〔T21n1331 0532c27〕 |
| 十 | 「王法所錄，縲縛鞭撻，繫閉牢獄，或當刑戮，及餘無量災難凌辱，悲愁煎迫，身心受苦」〔T14n0450 0405b14〕 | 「王法所加臨當刑戮」〔T21n1331 0533a01〕 |
| 十一 | 「我當先以上妙飲食，飽足其身；後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之」〔T14n0450 0405b20〕 | 不及法味：「令得種種甘美飲食」〔T21n1331 0533a06〕 |
| 十二 | 「亦得一切寶莊嚴具，華鬘塗香，鼓樂眾伎」〔T14n0450 0405b25〕 | 「即得衣服，窮乏之者施以珍寶，倉庫盈溢無所乏少」〔T21n1331 0533a09〕 |
乙·十二願四譯對應之總表（前三單元之總收）
以底本願次為序，記《灌頂》古譯本所誓是否相當：
| 願 | 底本（玄奘）所誓 | 隋／義淨 | 《灌頂》本 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 光明·相好·如我無異 | 相當 | 相當 |
| 2 | 琉璃身·焰網·幽冥開曉 | 相當 | 相當 |
| 3 | 智慧方便·受用物無盡 | 相當 | 異位（彼願三作智慧如海並及飲食施與；「無所乏少」之意見於彼願十二） |
| 4 | 邪道歸正·二乘入大 | 相當 | 不見（彼願四作佛道成就如星中之月） |
| 5 | 不缺戒·具三聚·毀犯還淨 | 相當 | 半相當（誓持戒而不及還淨） |
| 6 | 諸根不具→端正黠慧 | 相當 | 相當（體式作對句） |
| 7 | 眾病·無醫無親→病除·資具豐足 | 相當 | 半相當（除病而不及資具） |
| 8 | 轉女成男 | 相當 | 不見（彼願八作講宣妙法·入智慧門） |
| 9 | 出魔網·解外道縛·置於正見 | 相當 | 相當 |
| 10 | 王法刑縛→解脫憂苦 | 相當 | 相當 |
| 11 | 飲食＋法味 | 相當 | 半相當（與飲食而不及法味） |
| 12 | 衣服·寶具·華香·鼓樂 | 相當 | 相當 |
誌錄不判五事：
- 十二願之中，《灌頂》本與底本全相當者六（1·2·6·9·10·12），半相當者三（5·7·11），不見者二（4·8），異位者一（3）——六＋三＋二＋一＝十二。
- 「異位」與「不見」須分別——彼本願三之飲食施與、願十二之「倉庫盈溢無所乏少」，其所誓之事與底本願十一、願三相涉而不在同一願次；此屬異位，非彼本無此意。前單元記彼本願三、願四『所誓與三本全異』，就該願次所誓之事言之則然，就全帙之意有無言之則不盡然——今於此總表分「不見」與「異位」二格別之。
- 三處「半相當」皆是底本多一層：願五多『毀犯還淨』，願七多『資具豐足』，願十一多「後以法味」。底本於每一處都在物之外再加一層法。
- 願十一之二段式為底本所獨：「先以上妙飲食，飽足其身；後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之」——先食後法，次第分明；《灌頂》本唯言飲食。
- 願十二底本兼列衣服、寶莊嚴具、華鬘塗香、鼓樂眾伎四類；《灌頂》本作衣服、珍寶、倉庫、琴瑟鼓吹——類目相近而不逐一對當。
五事並錄，不判優劣、不據以改底本一字。
三、經論宗依（眼）
逐文鏡於本段不別引經論，其義理依據為經文自身與八成就之科。誠實記之。
「顯如大願果亦無邊。身應準願」〔T38n1770 0258c25〕——此為本段之樞紐判語。經文說彼佛之大願與佛土莊嚴「我若一劫，若一劫餘，說不能盡」〔T14n0450 0405c01〕，鏡以此顯因無邊故果亦無邊：願既無邊，果土亦無邊，而佛身亦當準此而知。願—土—身三事一貫，是全經因果為宗（序分所判「即以如來因果為宗」）之落實處。
四、本段釋要（逐文鏡逐文）
佛土八種功德成就（本段釋要之主體）——「略說其土則有八種功德成就」〔T38n1770 0258c26〕，逐一以經文為據：
| 成就 | 逐字 | 錨 | 所據經文 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 一 | 「一無所著穢成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0258c27〕 | 「無有女人」〔T14n0450 0405c03〕 |
| 二 | 「二離所怖惡成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0258c27〕 | 「亦無惡趣，及苦音聲」〔T14n0450 0405c03〕 |
| 三 | 「三所依清淨成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0258c28〕 | 「琉璃為地，金繩界道」〔T14n0450 0405c03〕之前半 |
| 四 | 「四道路成文成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0258c29〕 | 同上之後半（金繩界道） |
| 五 | 「五宮殿莊嚴成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0259a01〕 | 「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」〔T14n0450 0405c05〕 |
| 六 | 「六大聖無絕成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0259a02〕 | 「一名日光遍照，二名月光遍照」〔T14n0450 0405c06〕——鏡註其義曰「即補處故」〔T38n1770 0259a03〕 |
| 七 | 「七利樂不斷成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0259a03〕 | 「悉能持彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來正法寶藏」〔T14n0450 0405c08〕 |
| 八 | 「八願生無礙成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0259a04〕 | 「應當願生彼佛世界」〔T14n0450 0405c10〕 |
八成就之次第：一二為所無（無女人·無惡趣苦聲），三四為所依（地與道），五為所居（宮殿），六七為所住之人（二菩薩·持法），八為所勸（願生）。自無而有、自土而人、自人而勸，八目一氣而下。
「即補處故」〔T38n1770 0259a03〕——二菩薩之為「大聖無絕」，其義在補處：上首之位不斷，故曰無絕。
五、諸家異釋（三疏分欄·誌錄不判）
| 鏡 | 所牒之本 | 逐字 | 錨 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 《本願藥師經古迹》（青丘沙門太賢撰） | 玄奘本（與底本同） | 「略說其土則有八種功德成就」 | 〔T38n1770 0258c26〕 |
| 敦煌失名《藥師經疏》（T85n2766·殘卷·首闕） | 《灌頂》本 | 「此是第五制天魔摧外道為一雙置後」 | 〔T85n2766 0310b20〕 |
| 敦煌失名《藥師經疏》（T85n2767） | 隋笈多本 | 本段十二願部分零命中；佛土一段則其現存之首（0310c14 起以淨土四種、出體二義為玄義，牒經始於彼本國土一節之末「經。是故至彼佛國土 五勸物願生」〔T85n2767 0311c24〕） | 〔T85n2767 0311c24〕 |
T85n2767 於本段之末始入——此為該疏現存部分與本帙單元界之首次交會：其「五勸物願生」正對底本之「應當願生彼佛世界」〔T14n0450 0405c10〕。自單元 05 起，該疏成為第三副眼。其開篇以淨土四種（法體性土·自受用土·他用土·變化土）與出體二義判淨土，引《成唯識》《佛地論》，與《古迹》同屬法相一路而各自成文。
T85n2766 於願九、願十之配：「此是第五制天魔摧外道為一雙置後」〔T85n2766 0310b20〕——以願九制天魔、願十摧外道為一雙。其釋願九設一問：若佛但發願制天魔外道，此心豈非不善？答曰「所以制天魔本為上隆三寶」〔T85n2766 0310b27〕——制魔非為勝他，為隆三寶。 其釋願十則別立一解：「第二化諸外道。何意化」〔T85n2766 0310b28〕外道？「乃言王法所加解言九十六種道。王亦」〔T85n2766 0310b29〕是其一道——以九十六種道釋「王法」，遂以願十亦屬化外道之列。此解為《古迹》所無（彼以願十屬刑縛之解脫），二說並錄，不設調停。 願十一、十二則屬其第六雙：「此下第六雙出慈悲境」〔T85n2766 0310c05〕。
二疏對配之全異，於本段最顯：《古迹》以九十為「內外解縛」、十一十二為「志食與衣」；T85n2766 以九十為「制天魔摧外道」、十一十二為「出慈悲境」。所牒之本既異，配對亦異。
六、術語（首見名相）
| 名相 | 釋義所據（逐字各繫其錨） |
|---|---|
| 魔羂網 | 底本作「令諸有情，出魔羂網，解脫一切外道纏縛」〔T14n0450 0405b09〕；鏡配「證無上道，出魔羂故」〔T38n1770 0258c07〕之下 |
| 惡見稠林 | 底本作「若墮種種惡見稠林，皆當引攝置於正見，漸令修習諸菩薩行，速證無上正等菩提」〔T14n0450 0405b10〕 |
| 縲縛 | 底本作「王法所錄，縲縛鞭撻，繫閉牢獄，或當刑戮，及餘無量災難凌辱，悲愁煎迫，身心受苦」〔T14n0450 0405b14〕；校記記異讀（見目九） |
| 法味 | 底本作「後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之」〔T14n0450 0405b21〕；鏡配「以食法味而建立故」〔T38n1770 0258c08〕；《灌頂》本無此一層 |
| 十二微妙上願 | 總結之語：「是為彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來、應、正等覺，行菩薩道時，所發十二微妙上願」〔T14n0450 0405b27〕 |
| 八種功德成就 | 「略說其土則有八種功德成就」〔T38n1770 0258c26〕 |
| 補處 | 釋二菩薩為「大聖無絕」之由：「即補處故」〔T38n1770 0259a03〕 |
| 日光遍照·月光遍照 | 底本作「一名日光遍照，二名月光遍照」〔T14n0450 0405c06〕；義淨本同作「一名日光遍照，二名月光遍照」〔T14n0451 0413c12〕 |
七、譬喻·修辭
- 經文自用之譬一枚：「魔羂網」〔T14n0450 0405b10〕與「惡見稠林」〔T14n0450 0405b11〕——以網譬魔之所縛，以稠林譬惡見之所迷。十二願之中，唯此一願以譬狀所離之境；餘願皆直陳。
- 經文自舉之比類一處：「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」〔T14n0450 0405c05〕——不設譬而舉一已知之淨土為比，是全經唯一之他土比類。
- 鏡疏之判非譬而是科：八成就逐一繫經文，無所增譬。
- 旁照之疏於本段仍多故事（所牒非底本，錄以備參）：其釋願十以九十六種道釋王法〔T85n2766 0310b29〕，並舉一人為夫人所讒、王節解其體棄於塚間，佛至而身平復、為說法得道之事。
- 修辭：本段四願之末句與前八願同——皆落在眾生所得（速證菩提·解脫憂苦·畢竟安樂·皆令滿足）。而十二願之最末一句為「隨心所翫，皆令滿足」〔T14n0450 0405b26〕：十二願起於「令一切有情，如我無異」之齊佛，終於「隨心所翫」之遂人。始於齊佛，終於遂人——願之首尾在此。
八、徵引承衍
- 與淨土軸之直接交涉：經文自言彼土「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」〔T14n0450 0405c05〕，
義淨本亦作「亦如西方極樂世界功德莊嚴」〔T14n0451 0413c11〕——東方淨琉璃與西方極樂之對舉出於經文自身，
非後人比附。此為本帙與
canon/jingtu諸帙之經內對讀點。 - 「應當願生彼佛世界」〔T14n0450 0405c10〕——勸願生之語，與淨土諸經之勸願同式； 逐文鏡列為八成就之末「八願生無礙成就」〔T38n1770 0259a04〕。
- 軸內對讀點：願十之王法刑縛與《大乘大集地藏十輪經》之王臣品類語域相涉。
- 本段被本 corpus 其餘各帙徵引者，零命中。
九、校本定位
大正藏校記（<app>）本單元域內四處：
| 錨 | 底本 | 異讀 | 見證 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0405b14 | 「錄，縲縛」 | 繩縛錄／錄繩縛 | 宮·敦／宋·元·明 |
| 0405b14 | 「刑」 | 形 | 敦 |
| 0405b15 | 「凌辱」 | 陵辱 | 宮·敦 |
| 0405c08 | 「悉」 | 次補佛處悉 | 敦 |
前三條同在願十。第一條之異讀二型：宮敦作「繩縛錄」，宋元明作「錄繩縛」，底本作「錄，縲縛」——三本三序。
第四條最可注意：底本「悉能持彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來正法寶藏」〔T14n0450 0405c08〕， 敦本於「悉」上有「次補佛處」四字。而逐文鏡釋二菩薩為「大聖無絕成就」，其註正作「即補處故」〔T38n1770 0259a03〕—— 鏡之釋義與敦本之異讀同指補處一義。誌錄不判，不據以改底本一字；然二事相印，記之。
gaiji：本單元零命中。 夾註：本單元零命中。
Placement of the passage as a whole. This passage holds three matters: (1) vows nine through twelve — the fifth and the sixth of the six paired gates, the gate of loosing inner and outer bonds and the gate of intent upon food and clothing; (2) the summary of the twelve vows; (3) the merits and adornments of that buddha-land, together with the exhortation to vow birth there — a stretch of text that has already left “the answer to the second question” and entered “the answer to the later question,” which the line-by-line mirror reads as “the perfection of the merits of adornment in that very place” and analyses into eight perfections of merit. This unit is also the place where the sūtra touches the Pure Land axis most directly of all: the sūtra says of that land in its own words 「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」—“it is likewise as the Western World of Ultimate Bliss: in merits and adornments equal and without difference” 〔T14n0450 0405c05〕. The twelve vows now standing complete, Topic II appends the full table of the twelve vows across the four translations — the gathering-in of the segment-by-segment collation carried out in the two preceding units.
I. Doctrinal-Outline Placement
| Pair | Vows | Verbatim from the commentary | Anchor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fifth · gate of loosing inner and outer bonds | Vows nine and ten | 「五內外解縛門，即次二願，攝置正見，解惡見縛。證無上道，出魔羂故。以威神力，出刑縛故」—“Fifth, the gate of loosing inner and outer bonds: that is, the next two vows. Gathering beings in and placing them in right view, it looses the bond of evil views; realizing the unsurpassed way, they go out from the demon’s snare; by awesome spiritual power, they go out from the bonds of punishment.” | 〔T38n1770 0258c06〕 |
| Sixth · gate of intent upon food and clothing | Vows eleven and twelve | 「六志食與衣門，即次二願，以食法味而建立故、以妙衣等而令滿足故」—“Sixth, the gate of intent upon food and clothing: that is, the next two vows — because it establishes them by food and by the savor of Dharma, and because it satisfies them by fine garments and the rest.” | 〔T38n1770 0258c08〕 |
The “inner and outer” of loosing inner and outer bonds. What vow nine looses is the inner — the bond of evil views (gathered in and placed in right view) and the demon’s snare; what vow ten looses is the outer — the bonds of punishment under the king’s law (by awesome spiritual power). This division of inner and outer runs on a different axis from that of the fourth pair (the gate of removing inner and outer suffering): there the inner and outer are the conditions of suffering, here they are the places of bondage.
The summary: 「總結也」—“this is the summary” 〔T38n1770 0258c12〕 — that is, the sūtra’s 「是為彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來、應、正等覺，行菩薩道時，所發十二微妙上願」—“these are the twelve sublime and supreme vows that the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata, Worthy One, Perfectly Awakened One, made when he practiced the bodhisattva path” 〔T14n0450 0405b27〕, which is the third section of the earlier outline of brief statement, extensive exposition, and summary. The answer to the second question is here complete.
The passage on the buddha-land has already entered the answer to the later question: 「答後問也。於中有二：初本處莊嚴功德成就、後外方聞名功德成就」—“This is the answer to the later question. Within it there are two: first, the perfection of the merits of adornment in that very place; second, the perfection of the merits of hearing the name in other quarters.” 〔T38n1770 0258c23〕 — this unit holds the first of them (the adornment of that very place); the second (hearing the name in other quarters) begins with unit 05.
| Vow | The sūtra’s opening and closing words, each with its own anchor |
|---|---|
| Nine | 「第九大願：願我來世得菩提時」—“The ninth great vow: I vow that in a future age, when I attain awakening” 〔T14n0450 0405b09〕 … 「漸令修習諸菩薩行，速證無上正等菩提」—“gradually causing them to cultivate the practices of a bodhisattva and swiftly to realize unsurpassed perfect awakening” 〔T14n0450 0405b11〕 |
| Ten | 「第十大願：願我來世得菩提時」—“The tenth great vow: I vow that in a future age, when I attain awakening” 〔T14n0450 0405b13〕 … 「若聞我名，以我福德威神力故，皆得解脫一切憂苦」—“if they hear my name, then by the power of my merit and awesome spirit they will all be freed from every grief and pain” 〔T14n0450 0405b16〕 |
| Eleven | 「第十一大願：願我來世得菩提時」—“The eleventh great vow: I vow that in a future age, when I attain awakening” 〔T14n0450 0405b18〕 … 「我當先以上妙飲食，飽足其身；後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之」—“I will first satisfy their bodies with food and drink of the finest kind, and afterwards, with the savor of Dharma, establish them in ultimate peace and joy” 〔T14n0450 0405b20〕 |
| Twelve | 「第十二大願：願我來世得菩提時」—“The twelfth great vow: I vow that in a future age, when I attain awakening” 〔T14n0450 0405b22〕 … 「隨心所翫，皆令滿足」—“whatever their heart delights in, all of it will be made complete” 〔T14n0450 0405b26〕 |
II. Cross-Recension Collation (one sūtra, four translations · the full table of the twelve vows · agreements and differences recorded without adjudication)
A · The four vows of this unit
| Vow | Xuanzang, T14n0450 (base text) | The Eastern Jin Consecration Sūtra, scroll twelve, T21n1331 |
|---|---|---|
| Nine | 「令諸有情，出魔羂網，解脫一切外道纏縛」—“causing sentient beings to escape the demon’s snare and net and to be freed from every entanglement and bond of the outside paths” 〔T14n0450 0405b09〕 | 「摧伏惡魔及諸外道，顯揚清淨無上道法」—“crushing the evil demons and the outside paths, and setting forth the pure and unsurpassed Dharma of the way” 〔T21n1331 0532c27〕 |
| Ten | 「王法所錄，縲縛鞭撻，繫閉牢獄，或當刑戮，及餘無量災難凌辱，悲愁煎迫，身心受苦」—“taken up by the king’s law, bound with cords, beaten with the rod and the whip, shut fast in prison, or about to be put to death, together with measureless further calamities and humiliations, scorched and pressed by grief and sorrow, suffering in body and mind” 〔T14n0450 0405b14〕 | 「王法所加臨當刑戮」—“what the king’s law inflicts, being on the point of execution” 〔T21n1331 0533a01〕 |
| Eleven | 「我當先以上妙飲食，飽足其身；後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之」—“I will first satisfy their bodies with food and drink of the finest kind, and afterwards, with the savor of Dharma, establish them in ultimate peace and joy” 〔T14n0450 0405b20〕 | Does not reach the savor of Dharma: 「令得種種甘美飲食」—“causing them to obtain every kind of sweet and delicious food and drink” 〔T21n1331 0533a06〕 |
| Twelve | 「亦得一切寶莊嚴具，華鬘塗香，鼓樂眾伎」—“and they will obtain as well every ornament made of jewels, flower-garlands and perfumed unguents, drums and music and troupes of performers” 〔T14n0450 0405b25〕 | 「即得衣服，窮乏之者施以珍寶，倉庫盈溢無所乏少」—“they obtain clothing at once, and to the destitute precious jewels are given, their storehouses brimming over with nothing lacking” 〔T21n1331 0533a09〕 |
B · The full table of correspondence for the twelve vows across the translations (the gathering-in of the three preceding units)
Ordered by the vow-numbering of the base text, recording whether what the old Consecration translation pledges is equivalent:
| Vow | What the base text (Xuanzang) pledges | Sui / Yijing | The Consecration recension |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Light · marks and excellences · that they be no different from me | equivalent | equivalent |
| 2 | A body of beryl · a net of flames · the dark places opened to light | equivalent | equivalent |
| 3 | Wisdom and skilful means · things of use without end | equivalent | displaced (its vow three speaks of wisdom like the ocean and includes the giving of food and drink; the sense of “nothing lacking” appears at its vow twelve) |
| 4 | Wrong paths turned to the right · the two vehicles brought into the great | equivalent | not found (its vow four speaks of the accomplishment of the buddha-way, like the moon among the stars) |
| 5 | Unbroken precepts · complete in the threefold precepts · purity regained after transgression | equivalent | half equivalent (it pledges the keeping of precepts but does not reach the regaining of purity) |
| 6 | Faculties incomplete → upright and keen-witted | equivalent | equivalent (cast in parallel couplets) |
| 7 | Many illnesses · no physician and no kin → illness removed · goods and supplies in abundance | equivalent | half equivalent (illness removed but not reaching goods and supplies) |
| 8 | Turning a woman’s body into a man’s | equivalent | not found (its vow eight speaks of expounding the wondrous Dharma and entering the gate of wisdom) |
| 9 | Out of the demon’s net · loosed from the bonds of the outside paths · placed in right view | equivalent | equivalent |
| 10 | The bonds of punishment under the king’s law → freed from grief and pain | equivalent | equivalent |
| 11 | Food and drink plus the savor of Dharma | equivalent | half equivalent (food and drink given, but not reaching the savor of Dharma) |
| 12 | Garments · jeweled ornaments · flowers and perfumes · drums and music | equivalent | equivalent |
Five matters recorded without adjudication:
- Of the twelve vows, those in which the Consecration recension is wholly equivalent to the base text number six (1 · 2 · 6 · 9 · 10 · 12); half equivalent, three (5 · 7 · 11); not found, two (4 · 8); displaced, one (3).
- “Displaced” and “not found” must be kept apart. The giving of food and drink at that recension’s vow three, and the “storehouses brimming over with nothing lacking” at its vow twelve, touch upon what the base text pledges at vows eleven and three, but do not stand at the same vow-number; this is displacement, not the absence of the sense in that recension. The preceding unit recorded that vows three and four of that recension “pledge what is wholly other than the three recensions”; said of what is pledged under that vow-number this holds, but said of whether the sense is present anywhere in the volume it does not hold throughout. The present table therefore separates “not found” from “displaced” in two columns.
- All three of the “half equivalent” places are places where the base text adds one further layer: vow five adds “purity regained after transgression,” vow seven adds “goods and supplies in abundance,” vow eleven adds “and afterwards the savor of Dharma.” At every one of these the base text sets a layer of Dharma over and above the thing itself.
- The two-stage form of vow eleven belongs to the base text alone: first fine food and drink to satisfy the body, and afterwards the savor of Dharma to establish them in ultimate peace and joy — food first and Dharma after, the order plainly marked. The Consecration recension speaks only of food and drink.
- Vow twelve of the base text sets out four kinds together — garments, jeweled ornaments, flower-garlands and perfumed unguents, drums and music and troupes of performers; the Consecration recension has garments, precious jewels, storehouses, and zithers and drums and pipes — the categories are close without corresponding one to one.
The five stand recorded together; no ranking of better and worse is imposed, and not one character of the base text is altered on their account.
III. Scriptural and Treatise Basis (the “eye”)
The line-by-line mirror cites no scripture or treatise separately in this passage; its doctrinal ground is the sūtra’s own words together with the outline of the eight perfections. This is recorded honestly.
「顯如大願果亦無邊。身應準願」—“It discloses that as the great vows are, so too the fruit is without bound. The body should be reckoned according to the vows.”〔T38n1770 0258c25〕 — this is the pivotal adjudication of the passage. The sūtra says of that buddha’s great vows and the adornment of his land 「我若一劫，若一劫餘，說不能盡」—“were I to speak for a kalpa, or for more than a kalpa, I could not exhaust them” 〔T14n0450 0405c01〕, and the mirror uses it to disclose that because the cause is without bound the fruit too is without bound: the vows being boundless, the fruit-land is boundless, and the buddha-body too is to be known by reckoning from this. Vow, land, and body run as one thread, and this is the place where the doctrinal purport of the whole sūtra — cause and fruit of the Tathāgata, as the introductory outline determined it — comes down to the ground.
IV. Exegesis of the Passage (the line-by-line mirror, phrase by phrase)
The eight perfections of merit of the buddha-land (the substance of the exegesis in this passage) — 「略說其土則有八種功德成就」—“stated in brief, that land has eight perfections of merit” 〔T38n1770 0258c26〕, each fastened one by one to the sūtra’s own words:
| Perfection | Verbatim | Anchor | The sūtra text it rests on |
|---|---|---|---|
| One | 「一無所著穢成就」—“first, the perfection of having no defilement to cling to” | 〔T38n1770 0258c27〕 | 「無有女人」—“there are no women there” 〔T14n0450 0405c03〕 |
| Two | 「二離所怖惡成就」—“second, the perfection of being free of the evils that are feared” | 〔T38n1770 0258c27〕 | 「亦無惡趣，及苦音聲」—“nor any evil destinies, nor any sound of suffering” 〔T14n0450 0405c03〕 |
| Three | 「三所依清淨成就」—“third, the perfection of the purity of what is relied upon” | 〔T38n1770 0258c28〕 | the first half of 「琉璃為地，金繩界道」—“beryl is its ground and golden cords mark out the bounds of its roads” 〔T14n0450 0405c03〕 |
| Four | 「四道路成文成就」—“fourth, the perfection of the roads being formed into a pattern” | 〔T38n1770 0258c29〕 | the second half of the same (golden cords marking out the bounds of its roads) |
| Five | 「五宮殿莊嚴成就」—“fifth, the perfection of the adornment of palaces” | 〔T38n1770 0259a01〕 | 「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」—“it is likewise as the Western World of Ultimate Bliss: in merits and adornments equal and without difference” 〔T14n0450 0405c05〕 |
| Six | 「六大聖無絕成就」—“sixth, the perfection of the great sages without cease” | 〔T38n1770 0259a02〕 | 「一名日光遍照，二名月光遍照」—“the first named Sunlight Universally Shining, the second named Moonlight Universally Shining” 〔T14n0450 0405c06〕 — the mirror glosses the sense of it as 「即補處故」—“because they are in the position of succession” 〔T38n1770 0259a03〕 |
| Seven | 「七利樂不斷成就」—“seventh, the perfection of benefit and joy unbroken” | 〔T38n1770 0259a03〕 | 「悉能持彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來正法寶藏」—“they are all able to uphold the treasury of the true Dharma of the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata” 〔T14n0450 0405c08〕 |
| Eight | 「八願生無礙成就」—“eighth, the perfection of vowing birth there without obstruction” | 〔T38n1770 0259a04〕 | 「應當願生彼佛世界」—“should vow to be born in that buddha’s world” 〔T14n0450 0405c10〕 |
The sequence of the eight perfections: one and two are what is absent (no women, no evil destinies or sound of suffering); three and four are what is relied upon (the ground and the roads); five is what is dwelt in (palaces); six and seven are who dwells there (the two bodhisattvas, the upholding of the Dharma); eight is what is exhorted (vowing birth). From absence to presence, from the land to its people, from its people to the exhortation — the eight items come down in a single breath.
「即補處故」—“because they are in the position of succession”〔T38n1770 0259a03〕 — that the two bodhisattvas are “great sages without cease” lies in the position of succession: the place of the foremost is never broken, and so it is called without cease.
V. Divergent Readings (three commentaries, side by side — recorded without adjudication)
| Mirror | Recension it glosses | Verbatim | Anchor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ancient Traces on the Sūtra of the Original Vows of the Medicine Buddha (composed by the śramaṇa Taehyŏn of Ch’ŏnggu) | Xuanzang’s recension (the same as the base text) | 「略說其土則有八種功德成就」—“stated in brief, that land has eight perfections of merit” | 〔T38n1770 0258c26〕 |
| The anonymous Commentary on the Medicine Buddha Sūtra from Dunhuang (T85n2766 · a fragmentary scroll · wanting at the head) | The Consecration recension | 「此是第五制天魔摧外道為一雙置後」—“this is the fifth, subduing the deva-demons and crushing the outside paths, set as one pair and placed after” | 〔T85n2766 0310b20〕 |
| The anonymous Commentary on the Medicine Buddha Sūtra from Dunhuang (T85n2767) | The Sui recension of Dharmagupta | Nothing is found for the portion of the twelve vows in this passage; the section on the buddha-land, however, is where its surviving text begins (from 0310c14 it treats the four kinds of pure land and the two senses of the disclosure of substance as its profound meaning, and its glossing of the sūtra begins at the end of the section on the land in that recension: 「經。是故至彼佛國土 五勸物願生」—“Sūtra: from ‘therefore’ down to ‘that buddha-land’ — fifth, exhorting people to vow birth there” 〔T85n2767 0311c24〕) | 〔T85n2767 0311c24〕 |
T85n2767 enters only at the close of this passage — the first meeting of that commentary’s surviving portion with the unit boundaries drawn here: its “fifth, exhorting people to vow birth there” answers exactly to the base text’s 「應當願生彼佛世界」—“should vow to be born in that buddha’s world” 〔T14n0450 0405c10〕. From unit 05 onward that commentary becomes the third auxiliary eye. It opens by adjudicating the pure land through four kinds (the land of the dharma-nature as substance, the land of self-enjoyment, the land for the enjoyment of others, and the land of transformation) and through two senses of the disclosure of substance, citing the Cheng Weishi Lun and the Treatise on the Buddha-Ground; it belongs with Ancient Traces to the Dharma-characteristics line, while composing its text independently.
How T85n2766 pairs vows nine and ten: 「此是第五制天魔摧外道為一雙置後」—“this is the fifth, subduing the deva-demons and crushing the outside paths, set as one pair and placed after” 〔T85n2766 0310b20〕 — vow nine subduing the deva-demons and vow ten crushing the outside paths, taken as one pair. Its exegesis of vow nine sets a question: if the Buddha vows only to subdue deva-demons and outside paths, is that intention not unwholesome? The answer is 「所以制天魔本為上隆三寶」—“the reason for subduing the deva-demons is fundamentally to raise up the Three Jewels” 〔T85n2766 0310b27〕 — subduing demons is not for the sake of prevailing over another, but for the flourishing of the Three Jewels. Its exegesis of vow ten sets up a reading of its own: 「第二化諸外道。何意化」—“second, converting the outside paths. For what intent does he convert” 〔T85n2766 0310b28〕 the outside paths? The answer: among the ninety-six paths, 「乃言王法所加解言九十六種道。王亦」—“it then says ‘what the king’s law inflicts,’ explaining it as the ninety-six kinds of path; the king too” 〔T85n2766 0310b29〕 is one of those paths — the king’s law explained by way of the ninety-six paths, so that vow ten too is placed among the conversion of the outside paths. This reading is not in Ancient Traces (which takes vow ten as release from the bonds of punishment); the two readings stand recorded together, with no reconciliation imposed. Vows eleven and twelve belong to its sixth pair: 「此下第六雙出慈悲境」—“below this, the sixth pair sets forth the field of compassion” 〔T85n2766 0310c05〕.
The complete divergence of the two commentaries in their pairing is nowhere plainer than in this passage: Ancient Traces takes nine and ten as “loosing inner and outer bonds” and eleven and twelve as “intent upon food and clothing”; T85n2766 takes nine and ten as “subduing the deva-demons and crushing the outside paths” and eleven and twelve as “setting forth the field of compassion.” The recensions they gloss differing, the pairings differ as well.
VI. Terms (first occurrences)
| Term | The ground of the gloss (each verbatim with its own anchor) |
|---|---|
| The demon’s snare and net | The base text reads 「令諸有情，出魔羂網，解脫一切外道纏縛」—“causing sentient beings to escape the demon’s snare and net and to be freed from every entanglement and bond of the outside paths” 〔T14n0450 0405b09〕; the mirror pairs it under 「證無上道，出魔羂故」—“realizing the unsurpassed way, they go out from the demon’s snare” 〔T38n1770 0258c07〕 |
| The dense forest of evil views | The base text reads 「若墮種種惡見稠林，皆當引攝置於正見，漸令修習諸菩薩行，速證無上正等菩提」—“should they have fallen into the dense forest of every kind of evil view, I will draw them out, gather them in, and settle them in right view, gradually causing them to cultivate the practices of a bodhisattva and swiftly to realize unsurpassed perfect awakening” 〔T14n0450 0405b10〕 |
| Bound with cords | The base text reads 「王法所錄，縲縛鞭撻，繫閉牢獄，或當刑戮，及餘無量災難凌辱，悲愁煎迫，身心受苦」—“taken up by the king’s law, bound with cords, beaten with the rod and the whip, shut fast in prison, or about to be put to death, together with measureless further calamities and humiliations, scorched and pressed by grief and sorrow, suffering in body and mind” 〔T14n0450 0405b14〕; the collation notes record a variant (see Topic IX) |
| The savor of Dharma | The base text reads 「後以法味，畢竟安樂而建立之」—“and afterwards, with the savor of Dharma, establish them in ultimate peace and joy” 〔T14n0450 0405b21〕; the mirror pairs it with 「以食法味而建立故」—“because it establishes them by food and by the savor of Dharma” 〔T38n1770 0258c08〕; the Consecration recension has no such layer |
| The twelve sublime and supreme vows | The words of the summary: 「是為彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來、應、正等覺，行菩薩道時，所發十二微妙上願」—“these are the twelve sublime and supreme vows that the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata, Worthy One, Perfectly Awakened One, made when he practiced the bodhisattva path” 〔T14n0450 0405b27〕 |
| The eight perfections of merit | 「略說其土則有八種功德成就」—“stated in brief, that land has eight perfections of merit” 〔T38n1770 0258c26〕 |
| The position of succession | The reason the two bodhisattvas are called “great sages without cease”: 「即補處故」—“because they are in the position of succession” 〔T38n1770 0259a03〕 |
| Sunlight Universally Shining · Moonlight Universally Shining | The base text reads 「一名日光遍照，二名月光遍照」—“the first named Sunlight Universally Shining, the second named Moonlight Universally Shining” 〔T14n0450 0405c06〕; Yijing’s recension likewise reads 「一名日光遍照，二名月光遍照」—“the first named Sunlight Universally Shining, the second named Moonlight Universally Shining” 〔T14n0451 0413c12〕 |
VII. Simile and Rhetoric
- One simile used by the sūtra itself: 「魔羂網」—“the demon’s snare and net” 〔T14n0450 0405b10〕 and 「惡見稠林」—“the dense forest of evil views” 〔T14n0450 0405b11〕 — the net figuring what the demon binds with, the dense forest figuring the bewilderment of evil views. Among the twelve vows this is the only one that figures in simile the condition to be left behind; the rest state their matter directly.
- One comparison drawn by the sūtra itself: 「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」—“it is likewise as the Western World of Ultimate Bliss: in merits and adornments equal and without difference” 〔T14n0450 0405c05〕 — no simile is set up; a pure land already known is raised as the term of comparison, and this is the only comparison with another land in the whole sūtra.
- What the mirror commentary supplies is not simile but outline: the eight perfections are fastened one by one to the sūtra’s words, with no simile added.
- The commentary that shines from the side still tells many stories in this passage (it glosses a recension other than the base text; recorded for reference): its exegesis of vow ten explains the king’s law by way of the ninety-six paths 〔T85n2766 0310b29〕 and raises the affair of a man slandered by the queen, whose limbs the king had severed and whose body was cast into a graveyard, until the Buddha came and his body was made whole again, and Dharma was preached to him and he attained the way.
- Rhetoric: the closing sentence of each of the four vows here is of one kind with the eight vows before them — each comes down upon what beings gain (swiftly realizing awakening · freed from grief and pain · ultimate peace and joy · all made complete). And the very last sentence of the twelve vows is 「隨心所翫，皆令滿足」—“whatever their heart delights in, all of it will be made complete”〔T14n0450 0405b26〕: the twelve vows begin from “causing all sentient beings to be no different from me,” which is equality with the Buddha, and end at “whatever their heart delights in,” which is the granting of what a person wants. Beginning at equality with the Buddha, ending at the granting of what a person wants — the two ends of the vows lie here.
VIII. Citation and Transmission
- The direct meeting with the Pure Land axis: the sūtra says of that land in its own words 「亦如西方極樂世界，功德莊嚴，等無差別」—“it is likewise as the Western World of Ultimate Bliss: in merits and adornments equal and without difference” 〔T14n0450 0405c05〕, and Yijing’s recension likewise reads 「亦如西方極樂世界功德莊嚴」—“likewise as the merits and adornments of the Western World of Ultimate Bliss” 〔T14n0451 0413c11〕 — the setting of the Eastern Pure Beryl beside the Western Ultimate Bliss comes from the sūtra itself, and is not a later assimilation. This is the point of parallel reading within the sūtras themselves between this volume and the volumes at
canon/jingtu. - 「應當願生彼佛世界」—“should vow to be born in that buddha’s world”〔T14n0450 0405c10〕 — the words of the exhortation to vow birth, of one pattern with the exhortations of the Pure Land sūtras; the line-by-line mirror lists it as the last of the eight perfections, 「八願生無礙成就」—“eighth, the perfection of vowing birth there without obstruction” 〔T38n1770 0259a04〕.
- A point of parallel reading within this axis: the bonds of punishment under the king’s law in vow ten touch the field of language of the chapter on kings and ministers in the Daśacakra-kṣitigarbha Sūtra.
- Of citation of this passage by the remaining volumes of this corpus, nothing is found.
IX. Text-critical Placement
The Taishō collation notes (<app>) record four instances within this unit:
| Anchor | Base text | Variant | Witnesses |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0405b14 | 「錄，縲縛」 | 繩縛錄 / 錄繩縛 | Palace · Dunhuang / Song · Yuan · Ming |
| 0405b14 | 「刑」 | 形 | Dunhuang |
| 0405b15 | 「凌辱」 | 陵辱 | Palace · Dunhuang |
| 0405c08 | 「悉」 | 次補佛處悉 | Dunhuang |
The first three stand together in vow ten. The variant of the first entry is of two forms: Palace and Dunhuang read 繩縛錄, Song–Yuan–Ming read 錄繩縛, and the base text reads 錄，縲縛 — three recensions, three orders.
The fourth entry deserves the most notice: the base text reads 「悉能持彼世尊藥師琉璃光如來正法寶藏」—“they are all able to uphold the treasury of the true Dharma of the World-Honored Bhaiṣajyaguru Vaiḍūryaprabha Tathāgata” 〔T14n0450 0405c08〕, and the Dunhuang witness has four characters 「次補佛處」 above the 「悉」, that is, “next in succession to the buddha-place.” Now the line-by-line mirror explains the two bodhisattvas as “the perfection of the great sages without cease,” and its gloss reads exactly 「即補處故」—“because they are in the position of succession” 〔T38n1770 0259a03〕 — the mirror’s exegesis and the Dunhuang variant point to one and the same sense of succession. Recorded without adjudication, and not one character of the base text is altered on that account; yet the two attest each other, and are set down.
Gaiji: none in this unit. Inline gloss: none in this unit.