妙法蓮華經文句 壽量品 · 譬說（開譬・合譬）
良醫有很多兒子。他因事遠行，孩子們誤飲毒藥，倒在地上翻滾。父親回來了，調好藥草交給他們——色、香、味都齊備。
沒有失去本心的孩子，看一眼就服下，病立刻好了。失了本心的那些，見到父親一樣歡喜、一樣求救，卻不肯把藥吃下去；毒氣太深，他們看見好藥，反而覺得不好。
父親於是想了一個辦法。他說：我年紀大了，快死了，好藥留在這裡，你們自己取來服。說完就到別的國去，派人回來報信：你們的父親死了。
孩子們聽見，這才心痛醒悟：想到自己從此孤單無依，再沒有可以依靠的人。就在那一刻，他們忽然嘗出那藥色味香美，取來服下，毒病全好。
經文接著問：有人能說這位良醫犯了說謊之罪嗎？
不能。
值得停下來想的是「不能」的理由。不是因為父親情有可原，也不是因為善意的謊言可以通融。而是因為：那句話從頭到尾，只為讓孩子把藥吃下去。父親實在還活著，藥實在是好藥，病實在被治好了——真正虛妄的話，不會有這樣的結局。
而且他真的回來了。聽說孩子都好了，他隨即歸來，讓所有人都見到他。
佛說，我也是這樣。
我們容易把這譬喻讀成佛的自我辯解，其實它問的是我們。孩子拒藥，不是因為沒拿到藥，是因為毒太深，好的嘗起來反而不好。父親一直在的時候，他們不吃；聽說父親不在了，他們才吃。
於是這個故事真正扎人的地方在於：使那些孩子動起來的，不是藥，也不是父親的話，而是失去。
所以讀這一譬，最要緊的也許不是追問佛究竟滅度了沒有，而是：我手上是不是也放著一味一直沒有服下的藥？我是不是也要等到以為再沒有人可依靠的時候，才肯把它拿起來？
A good physician has many children. While he is away on business, they mistakenly drink poison and fall to the ground writhing. The father returns and prepares medicinal herbs for them, complete in color, fragrance, and flavor.
The children who have not lost their right minds take one look, drink the medicine, and immediately recover. Those who have lost their right minds are equally joyful to see their father and equally plead for rescue, yet refuse to take the medicine. The poison has penetrated too deeply: when they see good medicine, they instead think it bad.
The father therefore devises a method. He says: I am old and soon will die. I leave this good medicine here; take it yourselves and drink it. He then goes to another country and sends someone back with the news: your father has died.
Only on hearing this do the children awaken in grief. They think that they are now alone and exposed, with no one left to depend upon. At that moment they suddenly recognize the medicine’s fine color, flavor, and fragrance, take it, and are completely cured of the poison.
The sutra then asks: Can anyone say that this good physician is guilty of falsehood?
No.
What deserves a pause is the reason for “no.” It is not that the father has an excusable motive, nor that a well-intentioned lie may be indulged. It is that from beginning to end his statement exists only to make the children drink the medicine. The father is actually still alive, the medicine is actually good, and the illness is actually cured. A truly false statement does not have such an outcome.
Moreover, he truly returns. On hearing that the children have recovered, he immediately comes back and lets them all see him.
The Buddha says: I am the same.
We readily read this parable as the Buddha defending himself, but it actually questions us. The children refuse the medicine not because they did not receive it, but because the poison is so deep that what is good tastes bad. While their father remains present, they do not drink; only when they hear that he is gone do they take it.
The piercing point of the story is therefore this: what moves those children is not the medicine, and not the father’s words, but loss.
Perhaps the most important question when reading this parable is not whether the Buddha has ultimately entered extinction, but this: Is there also a medicine in my hands that I have continually refused to take? Must I too wait until I believe there is no one left to rely upon before I finally pick it up?
隋天台智者大師說《妙法蓮華經文句》〔灌頂法師私記・唐天寶戊子朗和尚條倫治定本・卷端序＝鏡中沙門神逈述〕· 大正藏 T34n1718〔起 T34 0134a05〕。段/行首〔T34 …〕＝大正藏頁·欄·行錨（換頁一枚）。
〔T34 0134a05〕「譬如」下，第二，譬說，有開譬、合譬。開譬為二：一、良醫治子譬，譬上三世應化所宜；二、治子實益譬，譬上三世利物不虛。上未來文少，此中具有。就初為三：一、醫遠行譬，譬過去益物；二、還已復去，譬現在應化；三、尋復來歸，譬未來應化。過去文為二：一、發近顯遠，二、明過去應化所宜。今但譬應化所宜。所宜有三：一、處所，二、拂迹疑，三、正應化，今但譬應化。應化又二：一、機感，二、正應化，今具譬之。「如有良醫」者，超譬上「我以佛眼觀」，有能應之智也。從「多諸子息」，是追譬上「若有眾生來至我所」，能感之機也。上應化所宜又二：一、益物，二、明歡喜，今但譬益物。上益物又二：一、非生現生，二、非滅現滅，今但譬現滅。初「良醫」者，醫有十種：一者治病病增無損，或時致死，譬空見外道，恣意行惡教人起邪斷善根，法身既亡慧命亦死。二者治病不增不損，譬有見苦行外道，投巖赴火苦行行善，不得禪定不能斷結即是無損，亦不能斷善即是不增也。三者治病損而無增，但世醫所治差已還復生，即是修定斷結外道也。四者治病能令差已不復發，而所治不遍，即二乘人止治一兩種有緣者，不能遍治一切也。五者雖能兼遍，而無巧術用治苦痛，《釋論》呼為拙度，即是六度菩薩慈悲廣治也。六、治病妙術，治無痛惱而不能治必死之人，譬通教菩薩體法，但治有反復凡夫，不治焦種二乘也。七、雖治難愈之病，而不一時治一切病，即是別教菩薩也。八、能一時治一切病，而不能令平復如本，即圓教初心十信也。九、能遍治一切，亦能平復如本，而不能令過本，即圓教後心也。十、一時治一切病即能平復，又使過本，即是如來。前三種醫即《大經》中之舊醫用乳藥也；後七並客醫，無術者，但用無常苦等法，如用辛苦酢藥也，有術遠來還令服乳，最後究竟良醫也。良者善也，內有三達五眼即是八術。妙得藥性善治者，外識病源能用藥也。「智慧」者，權實二智，深知二諦也。「聰達」者，五眼鑒機頓漸不差也。十二部教文理甚深，如「明鍊方藥」，依四悉檀治眾生病，如「善治眾病」也。《無量義》云「醫王大醫王」，以大醫故稱為良醫。「多諸子息」，「若十」，聲聞；「二十」，支佛；「百數」，菩薩。菩薩之子，凡有三種子義：一、就一切眾生，皆有三種性德，佛性即是佛子，故云「其中眾生悉是吾子」，此文云「多諸子息」也。約十心數法即有百子，心王為正因佛性，慧是了因性，餘九相扶起屬緣因性，一數起時九數扶助，如是成百也。性德佛子非善非惡而通善惡，故此十數及與心王為通心數，是以性德三因，悉屬正因佛子。二者就昔結緣為佛子，如十六王子覆講《法華》，時聞法者亦生微解，即成了因性；昔微能修行，為緣因性；正性為本，此三因並屬緣因，資發今日一實之解，故以昔日結緣，為緣因佛子，即火宅中三十子也。此約十信，一信起時即具餘九，還有百信，故得結緣為佛子也。三者了因之子，即是今日聞《法華經》，安住實智中，我定當作佛，決了聲聞法，是諸經之王，從佛口生、得佛法分，故名真子。此亦有三因性，今既顯了見於佛性，並屬了因佛子；百子之義還將十數入十善法中，十信入初住中，是故正因通於本末。此文明百子，不取了因子，了因子屬下不失心服藥中明之。「以有事緣遠至他國」者，譬過去應化中現滅也。「諸子於後」下，第二，還已復去，譬現世益物，又二：一、諸子於後飲毒，譬上機應相關，見諸眾生德薄垢重，眾生於佛滅後，樂著三界邪師之法，故云「飲他毒藥」，即是「遊行詣他國」，輪轉諸趣墮在三界，故云「宛轉于地」。「是時其父還來歸家」下，譬上我少出家得三菩提第二非生現生也。上有二，形聲及利益不虛，今言諸子飲毒去譬上形益，信受邪師之法名為「飲毒」，「失心」是無大小機感生，不失心是有大小機感生。又失心者，貪著三界，失先所種三乘善根也，為是人非滅唱滅。不失心者，雖著五欲而不失三乘善根，為是人故非生現生，善強惡輕見佛即能修道斷結，如子見父求藥病愈；善輕惡重得見佛，亦求護而不修道，如子見父求救不肯服藥，父為此子唱言應死。「遙見」者，明佛出世時眾生亦見色身，而為見、思障隔五分，不得親奉法身，故云「遙」也。見聞佛出皆有喜敬之事，現諸經文梵王請等，例是求救之辭也。「父見子等苦」下，譬上聲益，又二：初譬佛受請轉二諦法輪也。「而作是言」下，譬誡勸。「經方」者，即十二部教也，「藥草」即教所詮八萬法門也。從佛出十二部乃至出《涅槃》，此出漸頓藥草也。直從佛出十二部，此出頓藥草也；從佛出修多羅，此出漸藥草也。「色」者譬戒，戒防身口事相彰顯也。「香」者譬定，功德香熏一切也。「味」者譬慧，能得理味也。此戒定慧即八正道，修八正道能見佛性。又「色」是般若，照了法性之色分明無礙；「香」是解脫，斷德離臭也；「味」是法身，理味也。三法不縱不橫名祕密藏，依教修行得入此藏也。說三乘空三昧力如「擣」、無相如「篩」、無作如「合」，一一三昧具戒定慧也。又空觀如「擣」、假觀如「篩」、中觀如「合」，此三觀各不離戒定慧。將此法與漸頓眾生令修行，名「服」也。從「而作是言」乃至「可服」，即是勸門也。從「速除苦惱」乃至「無復眾患」，即是誡門也。將誡勸二教，令諸眾生服法藥也。「其諸子中不失心者」下，譬上得益不虛。上有二：一、不虛，次、釋不虛，今云「其諸子中不失心者服藥病差」，即譬上皆實不虛也。釋不虛，不作譬也。 〔T34 0135a26〕妙法蓮華經文句卷第九下 妙法蓮華經文句卷第十上 天台智者大師說 從「餘失心者」下，譬上非滅現滅。上有二：一、不久應死，譬上非滅現滅；二、諸子醒悟，譬上唱滅利益。又唱死之由，由子不服，譬上薄德見佛常在但增憍恣。上現滅中有二：一、本實不滅，二、非滅唱滅，不出現滅之由由，亦是唱滅利益中。今譬不譬第一，而明現滅之由，正由眾生薄德見佛不修行，即是不肯服藥也。「我今當設」下，正唱應死，譬非滅唱滅。此中明衰老為二：一、擬宜去住，譬上住有損、滅有益；二、「即作是言」下，唱應死，正譬現滅化期將竟也。「死時已至」者，當入涅槃也。留經教在，故云「是好良藥今留在此」。「復至他國」者，即是此方現滅、他方現生，上文云「願在他方遙見守護」，即其義也。「遣使」者，或取涅槃中大聲普告為使人，或用神通，或用舍利，或用經教等為使人，今用四依菩薩語眾生云佛已滅度，但留此法我今宣弘，汝當受行也。後時眾生若無四依傳述經法，豈能自知佛已滅度？故用四依是使人也。二、「是時諸子」下，諸子醒悟譬現滅利益。上文有二：一、明損益，二、釋損益，今但譬得益。此中「自惟孤露」下，明滅後得益，如優波笈多所化之流也。又為二：一、現滅利益，二、是未來機感。良由滅後眾生醒悟服藥修行以作因緣，能感未來應化，如《遺教》云「其未度者作得度因緣」；亦有現得感見，《普賢觀》云「精進苦到得見釋迦分身、多寶、東力、善德等及七佛世尊」。第三，「其父聞子悉已得差」下，即是未來益物威猛之力。父聞子差即機咸使見之，即是起未來之應化，方將形聲兩益也，如文。從「諸善男子於意云何」下，牒不虛譬，明三世利益不虛也。從「佛言我亦如是」去，明合譬也。「成佛已來無量劫」者，合過去世也。「方便力言當滅度」，合現在世也。文略不合未來，亦無能說我虛妄，合益物不虛也。
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.
一、譬說怎樣分科
從『譬如』以下，是第二大段譬說，分成開譬與合譬。
開譬又分兩層：第一是良醫治子譬，用來譬喻前面所說三世應化的機宜；第二是治子實益譬，用來譬喻前面所說三世利益眾生真實不虛。前面法說之中，未來的文字很少，這裡的譬喻卻三世俱全。
先說第一層，又分三段：第一是良醫遠行譬，譬喻過去世利益眾生；第二是回家以後又離去，譬喻現在世的應化；第三是不久又回來，譬喻未來世的應化。
過去這一段，前面的長行原有兩層：一是從近時成佛推顯久遠成佛，二是說明過去應化的機宜。這裡只譬喻應化的機宜。機宜又有三項：一是處所，二是拂去對中間因果的疑惑，三是正說應化；這裡只譬喻應化。應化又分兩項：一是眾生的機感，二是佛的正應化；這兩項譬中都有。
『如有良醫』一句，是越過中間而直接譬喻前文『我以佛眼觀』，表示佛有能應眾生的智慧。從『多諸子息』一句起，是回頭譬喻前文『若有眾生來至我所』，表示眾生有能感佛的根機。
前面所說應化的機宜又有兩層：一是利益眾生，二是說明眾生歡喜；這裡只譬喻利益眾生。前面利益眾生又有兩層：一是本來不生而示現出生，二是本來不滅而示現滅度；這裡只譬喻示現滅度。
二、十種醫是哪十種
先解『良醫』一詞。醫有十種。
第一種，治病而使病增加、毫無減損，有時甚至致人於死。這譬喻執著空見的外道，他們縱意造惡，又教人生起邪見、斷絕善根，法身既已喪失，慧命也隨之而死。
第二種，治病而不增不減。這譬喻執著有見的苦行外道，他們投身巖下、赴入火中，以苦行修善，卻得不到禪定、不能斷除煩惱結使，這就是無所減損；也不能斷絕善根，這就是不增加。
第三種，治病能減損而不增加，但世間醫者所治，痊癒之後還會再犯。這就是修習禪定、伏斷煩惱的外道。
第四種，治病能使痊癒之後不再復發，但所能治的並不周遍。這就是二乘之人，只能治一兩種有緣的眾生，不能普遍治療一切眾生。
第五種，雖然能夠兼治周遍，卻沒有巧妙的技術來處理痛苦。《大智度論》稱這種為拙度，就是修六度的菩薩以慈悲廣泛救治。
第六種，治病的技術巧妙，治療時不生痛惱，卻不能治必死之人。這譬喻通教菩薩用體法觀門，只能救治還有轉圜餘地的凡夫，不能救治如同焦壞種子的二乘。
第七種，雖然能治難以痊癒的病，卻不能同時治好一切病。這就是別教菩薩。
第八種，能夠同時治好一切病，卻不能使人平復如初。這就是圓教初心的十信位。
第九種，能夠周遍治好一切，也能使人平復如初，卻不能使人超過原本。這就是圓教後心。
第十種，同時治好一切病，並且能使人平復，又使人超過原本。這就是如來。
前三種醫，就是《大般涅槃經》中所說用乳藥的舊醫；後七種都是客醫。其中沒有技術的，只會用無常、苦等法門，如同使用辛、苦、酢一類的藥；有技術而從遠方來的，最後仍舊教人服乳，這才是究竟的良醫。
三、良醫、智慧、聰達逐字怎麼講
『良』就是善。內在具有三達與五眼，這就是八術；能巧妙掌握藥性而善於治療，是說對外能認識病源、懂得用藥。
『智慧』，指權智與實智二種智慧，深深了知真俗二諦。『聰達』，指以五眼鑑察根機，頓與漸絲毫不差。十二部教的文與理都極為深奧，如同經文所說『明鍊方藥』；依四悉檀救治眾生的病，如同經文所說『善治眾病』。
《無量義經》說『醫王大醫王』；因為是大醫，所以稱為良醫。
四、多諸子息與三種佛子
『多諸子息』一句中，『若十』指聲聞，『二十』指支佛，『百數』指菩薩。
菩薩之子，共有三種子的意義。
第一，就一切眾生而言，眾生都具有三種性德，佛性就是佛子，所以經中說『其中眾生悉是吾子』，本經此處則說『多諸子息』。若就十種心數法來說便有百子：心王是正因佛性，慧是了因佛性，其餘九項互相扶助生起，屬於緣因佛性；一個心數生起時，另外九個從旁扶助，這樣就成為百。性德佛子不是善也不是惡，卻能通於善惡，所以這十數與心王同為通心數；因此性德三因，全都歸屬正因佛子。
第二，就往昔結緣而成為佛子。例如十六王子重講《法華經》時，聽法的人也生起微少的理解，這就成為了因佛性；往昔能夠稍稍修行，成為緣因佛性；正因為根本。這三因合起來都歸屬緣因，能資助引發今日一實之解，所以把往昔結緣稱為緣因佛子，也就是〈譬喻品〉火宅中的三十子。這是就十信位說：一信生起時就具足其餘九信，仍舊成為百信，所以能以結緣為佛子。
第三是了因之子，就是今日聽聞《法華經》、安住實智之中、確信自己必定當得作佛、決了聲聞之法、知道此經是諸經之王，因而從佛口生、得佛法分，所以名為真子。這一類也有三因性；如今既已顯了見到佛性，就都歸屬了因佛子。百子的意義，仍舊是把十數收入十善法中、把十信收入初住中，因此正因通於本與末。本段所說的百子，不取了因之子；了因之子屬於下文不失心而服藥一節中說明。
五、遠行、飲毒、還家
『以有事緣遠至他國』一句，譬喻過去應化之中的示現滅度。
從『諸子於後』以下，是第二段回家以後又離去，譬喻現在世利益眾生，又分兩層。
第一，諸子在父親離去之後飲下毒藥，譬喻前面所說機與應互相關涉：佛見眾生德行淺薄、垢染深重。眾生在佛滅度以後，樂於執著三界中邪師的法，所以說『飲他毒藥』，也就是經文『遊行詣他國』；輾轉流轉於諸趣、墮在三界之中，所以說『宛轉于地』。
從『是時其父還來歸家』以下，譬喻前面所說我少年出家得三菩提，也就是第二層本來不生而示現出生。
前面原有兩項：形益與聲益，以及利益真實不虛。如今說諸子飲毒，是譬喻前面的形益。信受邪師之法名為『飲毒』；『失心』表示沒有大乘小乘的機感生起，不失心表示有大乘小乘的機感生起。
又，失心的人貪著三界，喪失先前所種的三乘善根，佛為這種人本來不滅而唱說滅度。不失心的人，雖然貪著五欲卻沒有喪失三乘善根，佛為這種人本來不生而示現出生。善根強而惡業輕的，見到佛就能修道斷結，如同兒子見到父親、求藥而病癒；善根輕而惡業重的，雖然也見到佛，只求救護而不肯修道，如同兒子見到父親、求救卻不肯服藥，父親便為這樣的兒子唱說應當死去。
『遙見』一句，說明佛出世時眾生也能見到色身，卻被見惑、思惑障隔五分法身，不能親自承奉法身，所以說『遙』。見聞佛出世都有歡喜恭敬之事，如今諸經文中梵王請佛等記載，都屬於求救的言辭。
六、經方、藥草與擣篩和合
從『父見子等苦』以下，譬喻前面所說的聲益，又分兩層。最初譬喻佛接受請求而轉真俗二諦法輪。從『而作是言』以下，譬喻誡與勸。
『經方』就是十二部教，『藥草』就是十二部教所詮的八萬法門。從佛出十二部教乃至出《大般涅槃經》，這是出漸教與頓教的藥草；直接從佛出十二部教，這是出頓教的藥草；從佛出修多羅，這是出漸教的藥草。
『色』譬喻戒，戒能防護身業口業，事相彰明顯著。『香』譬喻定，功德之香熏染一切。『味』譬喻慧，能得到理的滋味。這戒、定、慧就是八正道；修八正道能見佛性。
又可以說，『色』是般若，照了法性之色分明無礙；『香』是解脫，斷德離去臭穢；『味』是法身，也就是理的滋味。這三法不縱不橫，名為祕密藏；依教修行便能進入此藏。
宣說三乘：空三昧之力如同『擣』，無相三昧如同『篩』，無作三昧如同『合』；一一三昧都具足戒定慧。又可說空觀如同『擣』，假觀如同『篩』，中觀如同『合』；這三觀各自不離戒定慧。把這些法給予漸教頓教的眾生、令其修行，名為『服』。
從『而作是言』乃至『可服』，就是勸門；從『速除苦惱』乃至『無復眾患』，就是誡門。以誡、勸二教，使眾生服下法藥。
從『其諸子中不失心者』以下，譬喻前面所說得益真實不虛。前面原有兩項：一是不虛，二是解釋不虛。如今說『其諸子中不失心者服藥病差』，就是譬喻前面所說一切真實不虛。至於解釋不虛，則沒有另作譬喻。
〔妙法蓮華經文句卷第九下訖。以下卷第十上，天台智者大師說。〕
七、餘失心者與唱說滅度
從『餘失心者』以下，譬喻前面所說本來不滅而示現滅度。前面原有兩項：一是不久應當死去，譬喻本來不滅而示現滅度；二是諸子醒悟，譬喻唱說滅度所生的利益。
又，唱說死去的緣由，在於兒子不肯服藥，這譬喻前面所說德行淺薄的人見佛常在、反而更增憍慢放縱。
前面說示現滅度時有兩層：一是本來實在不滅，二是本來不滅而唱說滅度；其中並未說出示現滅度的緣由，那緣由也含在唱說滅度的利益之中。如今譬喻不譬第一層，而說明示現滅度的緣由，正因為眾生德薄、見佛而不修行，也就是不肯服藥。
從『我今當設』以下，正式唱說應當死去，譬喻本來不滅而唱說滅度。此中說明衰老又分兩層：第一是斟酌去或住哪一種合宜，譬喻前面所說常住有損、示滅有益；第二從『即作是言』以下唱說應當死去，正是譬喻示現滅度、化緣將盡。
『死時已至』，是說將要進入涅槃。留下經教在世，所以說『是好良藥今留在此』。『復至他國』，就是在此方示現滅度、在他方示現出生；前文說『願在他方遙見守護』，正是這個意思。
『遣使』一句，有人取《大般涅槃經》中大聲普告的人為使者，有人用神通，有人用舍利，有人用經教等為使者；如今則用四依菩薩告訴眾生說：佛已滅度，只留下此法，我今宣揚弘傳，你們應當受持奉行。後代眾生若沒有四依傳述經法，怎能自己知道佛已滅度？所以用四依作為使者。
第二，從『是時諸子』以下，諸子醒悟，譬喻示現滅度所生的利益。前文原有兩項：一是說明損與益，二是解釋損與益；如今只譬喻得益。
其中從『自惟孤露』以下，說明佛滅度以後所得的利益，如同優波笈多所度化的那一類人。這又分兩層：一是示現滅度的利益，二是未來的機感。正因為佛滅度以後眾生醒悟、服藥修行而作成因緣，才能感得未來的應化，如同《佛遺教經》所說『其未度者作得度因緣』；也有現前就能感見的，《觀普賢菩薩行法經》說『精進苦到得見釋迦分身、多寶、東力、善德等及七佛世尊』。
第三，從『其父聞子悉已得差』以下，就是未來利益眾生的威猛之力。父親聽說兒子病癒，眾生的根機便一齊使他得見，這就是興起未來的應化，將要施行形益與聲益兩種利益，如經文所說。
從『諸善男子於意云何』以下，是牒舉不虛之譬，說明三世利益真實不虛。
八、合譬
從『佛言我亦如是』以下，說明合譬。
『成佛已來無量劫』一句，合於過去世。『方便力言當滅度』一句，合於現在世。文中省略而沒有合未來世。『亦無能說我虛妄』一句，合於利益眾生真實不虛。
I. How the Teaching by Parable Is Divided
Beginning with “suppose,” the second major section is the teaching by parable, which is divided into opening the parable and applying the parable.
Opening the parable is further divided into two levels. First is the parable of the good physician treating his children, illustrating the appropriateness of responsive transformation in the three periods taught above. Second is the parable of the real benefit gained by treating the children, illustrating that benefiting beings in the three periods, as taught above, is real and not false. Very little in the preceding Dharma teaching concerned the future, but all three periods are complete in this parable.
The first level is itself divided into three parts. First, the good physician’s distant journey illustrates benefiting beings in the past. Second, his leaving again after returning home illustrates responsive transformation in the present. Third, his return soon afterward illustrates responsive transformation in the future.
The preceding prose passage on the past had two levels: first, using recent attainment to bring distant attainment to light; second, explaining what was appropriate for responsive transformation in the past. Only what was appropriate for responsive transformation is illustrated here. That appropriateness had three aspects: first the places, second dispelling doubt about cause and effect in the intervening period, and third responsive transformation proper. Only responsive transformation is illustrated here. Responsive transformation itself had two aspects: beings’ stimulus of capacity and the Buddha’s actual response; both are present in the parable.
The words “suppose there is a good physician” leap over the intervening material and directly illustrate the earlier words “I observe with the Buddha eye,” showing that the Buddha possesses the wisdom capable of responding to beings. Beginning with “many children,” the text turns back to illustrate the earlier “if beings come to me,” showing that beings possess capacities capable of eliciting the Buddha.
The appropriateness of responsive transformation taught above also had two levels: benefiting beings and then explaining their joy. Only benefiting beings is illustrated here. Benefiting beings above likewise had two levels: manifesting birth without originally being born, and manifesting extinction without originally becoming extinct. Only manifested extinction is illustrated here.
II. What Are the Ten Kinds of Physician?
First the term liangyi (“good physician”) is explained. There are ten kinds of physician.
The first treats an illness but makes it worse without reducing it at all, sometimes even causing death. This illustrates outsiders attached to views of emptiness. They freely commit evil and teach others to produce wrong views and sever their wholesome roots. Once the Dharma body has been lost, the life of wisdom also dies.
The second treats an illness without making it either better or worse. This illustrates ascetic outsiders attached to views of existence. They cast themselves from cliffs or enter fire, cultivating wholesome acts through austerities, yet they do not attain concentration and cannot sever the bonds of affliction; this is the absence of improvement. Nor do they sever their wholesome roots; this is the absence of aggravation.
The third treats illness so that it diminishes without worsening, but after worldly physicians have cured it, the illness can recur. This illustrates outsiders who cultivate concentration and suppress or sever the afflictions.
The fourth cures illness so that it does not recur, but cannot treat universally. This illustrates people of the two vehicles, who can treat only one or two classes of beings with whom they have affinities and cannot treat all beings universally.
The fifth can treat universally, yet lacks skillful technique for dealing with pain. The Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom calls this clumsy crossing: bodhisattvas cultivating the six perfections provide broad treatment through compassion.
The sixth possesses skillful technique and causes no painful distress while treating, but cannot treat someone certain to die. This illustrates bodhisattvas of the shared teaching, whose contemplation realizing the substantial emptiness of dharmas can rescue ordinary beings who still have the possibility of reversal, but cannot rescue those of the two vehicles who are like scorched seeds.
The seventh can treat an illness difficult to cure, but cannot cure all illnesses simultaneously. This illustrates bodhisattvas of the distinct teaching.
The eighth can cure all illnesses simultaneously, but cannot restore the patient to the original state. This illustrates the ten faiths, the beginner’s stage of the perfect teaching.
The ninth can cure all illnesses universally and restore the patient to the original state, but cannot cause the patient to surpass that state. This illustrates the later mind of the perfect teaching.
The tenth cures all illnesses simultaneously, restores the patient, and causes the patient to surpass the original state. This is the Tathāgata.
The first three physicians are the old physicians using milk medicine described in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra; the latter seven are all visiting physicians. Those without technique use only teachings such as impermanence and suffering, like medicines that are pungent, bitter, and sour. The one with technique who comes from afar ultimately still has people drink milk; only this is the ultimate good physician.
III. How “Good,” “Wisdom,” and “Clear Understanding” Are Explained Word by Word
“good” means excellent. Inwardly possessing the three penetrative knowledges and five eyes constitutes the eight arts; skillfully mastering the properties of medicines and treating well means that outwardly the physician can recognize the source of illness and understand how to use medicine.
“wisdom” means the two kinds of wisdom, provisional and real, through which the physician deeply knows the two truths of the true and the conventional. “clear understanding” means using the five eyes to discern capacities without the slightest error concerning sudden and gradual. The words and principles of the twelve divisions of the teaching are all exceedingly profound, like the sutra’s “thoroughly versed in prescriptions and medicines”; treating beings’ illnesses through the four siddhāntas is like the sutra’s “skillfully treating the many illnesses.”
The Sutra of Immeasurable Meanings says “king of physicians, great king of physicians.” Because he is the great physician, he is called a good physician.
IV. “Many Children” and Three Kinds of Buddha-Child
In the phrase “many children,” “perhaps ten” refers to śrāvakas, “twenty” to pratyekabuddhas, and “a hundred” to bodhisattvas.
The bodhisattva children have the meaning of three kinds of child.
First, as concerns all beings, beings all possess the three kinds of inherent virtue. Buddha-nature is precisely buddha-child, and so the sutra says “the beings within are all my children,” while the present passage of this sutra says “many children.” If reckoned through the ten associated mental factors, there are a hundred children. The mind-king is buddha-nature as the direct cause; wisdom is buddha-nature as the discernment cause; the other nine mutually assist their arising and belong to buddha-nature as conditioning cause. Whenever one mental factor arises, the other nine assist it, making a hundred. Buddha-children of inherent virtue are neither wholesome nor unwholesome, yet can extend through both; hence these ten and the mind-king are mental factors common to all minds. All three causes as inherent virtue are therefore assigned to buddha-children of the direct cause.
Second are those who became buddha-children through connections formed in the past. For example, when the sixteen princes repeated the Lotus Sutra, those who heard the Dharma also generated a slight understanding, which became buddha-nature as discernment cause. Their slight cultivation in the past became buddha-nature as conditioning cause, while the direct cause remained the basis. Together these three causes are all assigned to the conditioning cause, because they assist in eliciting today’s understanding of the one reality. Past connection is therefore called the conditioning-cause buddha-child, namely the thirty children in the burning house of the “Parable” chapter. This is explained in terms of the ten faiths: when one faith arises, it possesses the other nine and still makes a hundred faiths. Thus connection can constitute buddha-children.
Third are children through the discernment cause: those who today hear the Lotus Sutra, abide in real wisdom, firmly believe that they will certainly attain buddhahood, have decisively understood the Dharma of the śrāvakas, and know that this sutra is king among sutras. They are thereby born from the Buddha’s mouth and receive a share of the Buddha Dharma, and so are called true children. This class also possesses the nature of the three causes. Since they have now clearly seen buddha-nature, all are assigned to buddha-children of the discernment cause. The meaning of a hundred children still gathers the tenfold number into the ten wholesome deeds and the ten faiths into the first abode; hence the direct cause extends through root and branches. The hundred children in this passage do not include children through the discernment cause. Those children are explained below in the passage on those who have not lost the right mind and take the medicine.
V. Traveling Afar, Drinking Poison, and Returning Home
The words “having business, he travels far to another country” illustrate manifested extinction within responsive transformation in the past.
Beginning with “afterward, the children,” the second part describes the father leaving again after returning home. It illustrates benefiting beings in the present and is divided into two levels.
First, the children drink poison after their father has left, illustrating the mutual involvement of capacity and response explained above: the Buddha sees beings as meager in qualities and heavy with defilement. After the Buddha’s extinction, beings delight in and cling to the teachings of wrong teachers within the three realms. Hence the text says “they drink another’s poison,” corresponding to the sutra’s “he travels to another country.” Revolving through the destinies and falling within the three realms is called “writhing upon the ground.”
Beginning with “at that time their father returns home” illustrates the earlier statement that the Buddha left home in youth and attained complete awakening. This is the second level: manifesting birth without originally being born.
The preceding passage originally had benefits through form and sound, together with benefit that is real and not false. The children’s drinking poison now illustrates the preceding benefit through form. Accepting the Dharma of wrong teachers is called “drinking poison.” “losing the right mind” means that no Great or Lesser Vehicle capacity arises; not losing the right mind means that a Great or Lesser Vehicle capacity arises.
Again, those who lose their right minds cling to the three realms and lose the wholesome roots of the three vehicles planted earlier. For them the Buddha, originally unextinguished, announces extinction. Those who do not lose their right minds cling to the five desires yet have not lost the wholesome roots of the three vehicles. For them the Buddha, originally unborn, manifests birth. Those with strong wholesome roots and light evil karma can cultivate the Way and sever the bonds on seeing the Buddha, like children who see their father, request medicine, and recover. Those with slight wholesome roots and heavy evil karma may also see the Buddha but only request rescue and refuse to cultivate the Way, like children who see their father and request help but refuse to take the medicine. For such children the father announces that he must die.
The word yaojian (“seeing from afar”) means that when the Buddha appears in the world, beings can see his form-body, yet the delusions of views and thought separate them from the fivefold Dharma body. They cannot personally attend upon the Dharma body, and so it is called “afar.” Seeing and hearing that the Buddha has appeared both produce joy and reverence. Accounts such as Brahmā’s request to the Buddha in the scriptures all belong to words seeking rescue.
VI. Prescriptions, Medicinal Herbs, and Pounding, Sifting, and Combining
Beginning with “the father sees his children suffering” illustrates the preceding benefit through sound and is divided into two levels. The first illustrates the Buddha accepting the request and turning the Dharma wheel of the two truths, true and conventional. Beginning with “and he speaks these words” illustrates admonition and exhortation.
“prescriptions” means the twelve divisions of the teaching, and “medicinal herbs” means the eighty thousand Dharma gates conveyed by those divisions. From the Buddha there issue the twelve divisions through the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra: these are the medicinal herbs of the gradual and sudden teachings. The twelve divisions issuing directly from the Buddha are the medicinal herbs of the sudden teaching; the sūtras issuing from the Buddha are the medicinal herbs of the gradual teaching.
“color” illustrates ethical discipline, which guards bodily and verbal karma and is manifest in concrete conduct. “fragrance” illustrates concentration, whose fragrance of qualities permeates everything. “flavor” illustrates wisdom, which obtains the taste of principle. Ethical discipline, concentration, and wisdom are the eightfold noble path; cultivating that path enables one to see buddha-nature.
It may also be said that “color” is prajñā, which clearly and unobstructedly illumines the color of Dharma-nature; “fragrance” is liberation, the virtue of severance freed from foulness; and “flavor” is the Dharma body, the taste of principle. These three dharmas are neither vertical nor horizontal and are called the secret treasury. Practicing according to the teaching enables one to enter this treasury.
In teaching the three vehicles, the power of the samādhi of emptiness is like “pounding,” the samādhi of signlessness is like “sifting,” and the samādhi of wishlessness is like “combining.” Each samādhi fully possesses ethical discipline, concentration, and wisdom. It may also be said that contemplation of emptiness is like “pounding,” contemplation of the provisional is like “sifting,” and contemplation of the middle is like “combining.” None of these three contemplations is apart from ethical discipline, concentration, and wisdom. Giving these dharmas to beings of the gradual and sudden teachings and causing them to practice is called “taking the medicine.”
From “and he speaks these words” through “you may take it” is the gate of exhortation; from “quickly remove your painful distress” through “have no further afflictions” is the gate of admonition. Through the two teachings of admonition and exhortation, beings are made to take the Dharma medicine.
Beginning with “among his children, those who have not lost their right minds” illustrates that the benefit taught above is real and not false. The preceding passage originally had two aspects: non-falsehood and the explanation of non-falsehood. Here the words “among his children, those who have not lost their right minds take the medicine and recover” illustrate that everything stated above is real and not false. No separate parable is given for the explanation of non-falsehood.
“Fahua Wenju, Fascicle Nine, Lower Half, ends here. Below begins Fascicle Ten, Upper Half, spoken by the Great Master Zhizhe of Tiantai.”
VII. The Remaining Children Who Have Lost Their Right Minds and the Announcement of Extinction
Beginning with “the remaining children who have lost their right minds” illustrates manifesting extinction without originally becoming extinct, as taught above. The preceding passage originally had two aspects: first, “before long I will die,” illustrating manifested extinction without originally becoming extinct; and second, the children’s awakening, illustrating the benefit produced by announcing extinction.
Again, the reason for announcing death lies in the children’s refusal to take the medicine. This illustrates the earlier teaching that people meager in qualities see the Buddha constantly present and consequently become still more arrogant and unrestrained.
The preceding explanation of manifested extinction had two levels: first, originally and truly not becoming extinct; second, announcing extinction without originally becoming extinct. It did not separately state the reason for manifested extinction, which was included within the benefit produced by announcing extinction. The parable now does not illustrate the first level, but explains the reason for manifested extinction: beings are meager in qualities, see the Buddha, and yet do not practice—just as the children refuse the medicine.
Beginning with “I will now devise” formally announces that the father must die, illustrating the announcement of extinction without originally becoming extinct. The explanation of his decline in age has two levels. First, he weighs whether departure or remaining is appropriate, illustrating the preceding point that constant presence causes harm while manifested extinction brings benefit. Second, beginning with “he then speaks these words,” he announces that he must die, directly illustrating manifested extinction as the conditions for transformation draw to an end.
“the time of death has arrived” means that he is about to enter nirvāṇa. He leaves the scriptural teaching in the world, and so says “I now leave this fine medicine here.” “again he goes to another country” means manifesting extinction in this land and manifesting birth in another. The preceding text’s “may he watch over and protect us from afar in another land” has precisely this meaning.
The phrase qianshi (“sending a messenger”) has been interpreted in several ways: some take the person who announces the news in a great voice in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra as the messenger, some take supernormal powers, some relics, and some the scriptural teaching. Here, however, bodhisattvas of the four reliances are taken as telling beings: the Buddha has entered extinction and left only this Dharma; I now proclaim and transmit it, and you should receive, uphold, and practice it. If later beings had no four reliances to transmit the scriptures and Dharma, how could they know by themselves that the Buddha had entered extinction? The four reliances are therefore taken as the messenger.
Second, beginning with “at that time the children,” the children awaken, illustrating the benefit produced by manifested extinction. The preceding passage originally had two aspects: first, explaining harm and benefit; second, explaining that harm and benefit. Only the acquisition of benefit is illustrated here.
Within this, beginning with “they consider themselves orphaned and exposed” explains the benefit obtained after the Buddha’s extinction, as with the kinds of people transformed by Upagupta. This is again twofold: first, the benefit of manifested extinction; second, capacity in the future. Because beings awaken after the Buddha’s extinction, take the medicine, and practice, they create the conditions capable of eliciting responsive transformation in the future. Thus the Sutra of the Buddha’s Bequeathed Teaching says “for those not yet liberated, create the conditions for liberation.” Some can elicit a vision in the present: the Sutra on the Practice of Contemplating the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra says “through diligent and arduous effort, one sees Śākyamuni’s divided bodies, Prabhūtaratna, Dongli, Shande, and the seven World-Honored Buddhas.”
Third, beginning with “the father hears that all his children have recovered” is the mighty power of benefiting beings in the future. When the father hears that the children have recovered, beings’ capacities jointly cause them to see him. Responsive transformation in the future thus arises, about to bestow both benefit through form and benefit through sound, as the sutra states.
Beginning with “good sons, what do you think?” restates the parable’s non-falsehood and explains that benefiting beings in all three periods is real and not false.
VIII. Applying the Parable
Beginning with “the Buddha says, I am also like this” explains the application of the parable.
“immeasurable kalpas since I attained buddhahood” applies to the past. “through the power of skillful means I say that I will enter extinction” applies to the present. The text abbreviates and does not apply the parable to the future. “nor can anyone say that I am false” applies to the real and unfailing benefit of beings.
〈如來壽量品〉先用長行說佛久遠成道、常住不滅，又說佛為眾生示現滅度。話說到這裡，一個疑問已經逼到眼前：實在沒有死而說自己死了，這和欺誑有什麼分別？佛沒有再用抽象的話回答，而是說了一個故事——良醫遠行、諸子飲毒、父親留藥、遣使報死、諸子醒悟而服藥病癒。
本單元所消的，正是這個故事。智者不把它讀成一段動人的譬喻而已，而是逐節扣回前面法說的每一項：哪一節譬過去、哪一節譬現在、哪一節譬未來，哪一節譬利益不虛。譬喻在此不是修辭，是驗證。
一、一個故事，為何要拆成開譬與合譬？
本論先把譬說分成開譬與合譬。開譬是把故事鋪開，合譬是把故事收回佛身上。
開譬又分兩層。第一層是良醫治子譬，用來譬前面所說三世應化的機宜；第二層是治子實益譬，用來譬前面所說三世利益眾生真實不虛。同一個故事被讀了兩遍：第一遍看醫者如何隨時節而去、而還、而復去、而來歸；第二遍看兒子是否真的病癒。
這樣分，是因為前面的法說本來就有兩件事要證。一件是佛的應化確實貫通三世，另一件是佛所作的利益確實不虛。若只鋪開故事而不收回，譬喻就成了旁白；若只收回而不鋪開，前面所立的三世義便無處落實。
二、法說裡未來的話那麼少，譬中為何三世俱全？
本論明說，前面法說之中未來的文字很少，而這裡的譬喻三世俱全。
這句話值得停一下。它不是說法說有缺漏，而是指出兩種文體各有所長。法說要立義，把久遠成道、常住不滅一句立穩，未來義就已經寄託在「常住不滅」四字裡；譬說要顯事，事須有始有終，所以醫者非去而還、還而復去、復去而來歸不可。四個轉折一排，過去、現在、未來自然各得其位。
因此，未來義在法說中是被寄託的，在譬說中是被演出的。讀者若只數字數，會以為本論前詳後略；若順著文體讀，就會看見同一個義在兩處各盡其分。
這裡還牽出本單元一個容易被讀漏的習慣。本論在科分過去一段時，連說了幾次「今但譬」：前面長行本有發近顯遠與應化機宜兩層，這裡只譬機宜；機宜本有處所、拂去中間因果之疑、正說應化三項，這裡只譬應化；機宜之下本有利益眾生與眾生歡喜兩層，這裡只譬利益眾生；利益眾生本有非生現生與非滅現滅兩層，這裡只譬現滅。四道取捨一層套一層，像逐格收窄的鏡頭。
這種寫法有兩重作用。一是誠實：譬喻取了哪一項就說取了哪一項，沒有取的絕不代為補上，讀者因而清楚知道譬文的射程到哪裡為止。二是精準：正因為前面每一層都已在法說中立過，譬喻才不必重走全程，只需對準最需要顯明的那一項。而在應化一項之下，本論又特別聲明機感與正應化「今具譬之」——該省的省到底，該全的一項不缺。
順著這個習慣讀下去，後文那句「文略不合未來」就不會顯得突兀。從頭到尾，本論都在標記經文取了什麼、略了什麼；末後合譬缺一項，只是同一個習慣的最後一次施用。
三、十種醫一路排到如來，這是在排什麼？
本論解「良醫」二字，先立十種醫。第一種治病反而使病加重甚至致死，譬空見外道；第二種不增不減，譬苦行外道；第三種能減而病會復發，譬修定伏結的外道。第四種能使病不復發卻治不周遍，是二乘；第五種能兼治周遍卻無巧術，是六度菩薩；第六種術妙而不能治必死之人，是通教菩薩；第七種能治難癒之病卻不能同時治盡，是別教菩薩；第八種能同時治盡卻不能使人平復如初，是圓教初心；第九種能平復如初卻不能使人超過原本，是圓教後心；第十種同時治盡、能平復、又使人超過原本，才是如來。
這十階並不是十種醫術的優劣表，而是一張以救治能力為尺度的判教圖。尺度有四個刻度：能不能斷、能不能遍、能不能巧、能不能令人回復並超過本有。外道連第一刻度都過不去，二乘過了斷而過不了遍，菩薩諸位逐一補上遍與巧，而「平復如本」與「過本」兩項唯佛能盡。
值得注意的是第十種所加的「過本」。前九種醫最好也只能使人回到原來的樣子，唯有如來能使人超過原本。這一句把整張圖從治病推到成佛：佛所作的不是把眾生修回原狀，而是使本有的佛性完全顯發而更有所成。
四、斷乳又還令服乳，這個回還說明什麼？
本論隨即把十醫分成兩群：前三種是舊醫用乳藥，後七種都是客醫。客醫之中沒有技術的，只會用無常、苦一類的藥；有技術而從遠方來的，最後仍舊教人服乳，這才是究竟的良醫。
這裡有一個回還的動作：乳藥先被人濫用，接著被禁斷，最後又被恢復。三個階段對應三種身分——濫用的是舊醫，禁斷的是初來的客醫，恢復的是究竟良醫。
回還之所以重要，在於它說明「禁斷」本身就是方便。乳藥從頭到尾沒有變，變的是服藥的人與時節。若不曾禁斷，濫用不會停止；若禁斷之後不再恢復，眾生便永遠停在無常、苦的藥上。佛先說無常，後說常，正是這個次第；而能作這個次第的，是同一位醫者。
這也回頭照亮了十醫的排法。前九種醫各自停在某一個階段，只有第十種醫走完了全程——他既能禁斷，也能恢復。
五、多諸子息，為何要開出三種佛子？
經文只說良醫有很多兒子，或十、或二十、乃至百數。本論卻在此開出三種佛子的意義。
第一種是性德佛子。一切眾生都具有三種性德，佛性即是佛子；本論引經文說一切眾生都是佛的兒子。這一種不論修與不修，凡有心者皆在其中。
第二種是結緣佛子。往昔十六王子重講此經時，聽法的人生起了微少的理解、作了少分的修行，這分理解與修行成為日後的因；本論明說這就是火宅譬中的三十子。這一種要有過去的一段緣。
第三種是了因之子。今日聽聞此經、安住實智、確信自己必定當得作佛，因而從佛口生、得佛法分，名為真子。這一種要有今日的一番決了。
三種一列，故事裡那些兒子就不再只是故事裡的人。凡有心者本來就是佛子，這是為什麼佛必定要回來；曾結過緣的才會在父親歸來時認得他，這是為什麼有人能感；今日決了的才成為真子，這是為什麼要說此經。本論在此明說，本段所講的百子不取了因之子，了因之子留待下文不失心而服藥一節再說——可見三種子並非平列的分類，而是隨譬文次第逐步交出的。
六、失心與不失心，為何決定佛現生還是現滅？
諸子飲毒之後，有的失去本心，有的不失。本論說，失心表示沒有大小乘的機感生起，不失心表示有機感生起；又說失心的人貪著三界、喪失先前所種的三乘善根，佛為這種人本來不滅而唱說滅度；不失心的人雖著五欲而未失善根，佛為這種人本來不生而示現出生。
於是，現生與現滅不是佛的兩種心情，而是對兩種機的兩種應。本論再以強弱說得更細：善根強而惡業輕的，見佛就能修道斷結，如同兒子見父求藥而病癒；善根輕而惡業重的，雖然見佛也只求救護而不肯修道，如同兒子見父求救卻不肯服藥——父親便為這樣的兒子唱說應當死去。
這句話把唱滅的緣由完全落在眾生身上。父親說死，不是因為父親要走，是因為兒子在父親還在的時候不肯服藥。本論後文說得更直白：示現滅度的緣由，正在於眾生德薄、見佛而不修行。
還有一層值得留意。經文說諸子「遙見」父親。本論解這個「遙」字，說眾生固然見到佛的色身，卻被見惑思惑障隔，不能親自承奉法身。所以即使在佛住世之時，見與見之間也有遠近；唱滅所要對治的，正是這種見而不親的遠。
七、色香味與擣篩和合，為何要配兩重？
父親依諸經方求好藥草，色香美味具足，擣篩和合而給兒子服用。本論解「經方」為十二部教，解「藥草」為十二部教所詮的八萬法門，然後對色、香、味各作兩重解釋。
第一重，色譬戒，因為戒防護身口、事相彰顯；香譬定，因為功德之香熏染一切；味譬慧，因為慧能得到理的滋味。這三者就是八正道，修八正道能見佛性。
第二重，色是般若，照了法性之色分明無礙；香是解脫，斷德離去臭穢；味是法身，也就是理的滋味。這三法不縱不橫，名為祕密藏。
兩重不是二選一。第一重從能修的行說，第二重從所證的德說；同一副藥，在服的人那裡是戒定慧，在證的境界那裡是般若、解脫、法身。擣、篩、和合三個動作也照樣配了兩重：一配空、無相、無作三三昧，一配空觀、假觀、中觀，而本論特別聲明，一一三昧都具足戒定慧、三觀也各不離戒定慧。
配兩重而不互相取代，正是本論一貫的作法。藥草若只是法門的名目，服下去也不會好；要它真能治病，就得同時看見它是行、也是德。至於誡與勸，本論分得很清楚：勸門是告訴你這藥好、你可以服，誡門是告訴你服了才能除苦、不服則眾患不已。兩門合起來，才使人真正把藥服下去。
八、父親說自己死了，為何不算說謊？
回到最初的疑問。父親實在還活著，卻遣使還告「汝父已死」。經文隨即設問：有人能說這位良醫犯了虛妄之罪嗎？答案是不能。
本論的解法不在替父親開脫，而在指出那句話的所為。父親所以說死，是因為兒子在他面前不肯服藥；他留下好藥、遠至他國、遣使報死，為的是讓兒子在失去依怙之後醒悟過來，自己把藥服下。故事的結局證明了這一點：諸子聞父喪亡，自念孤露，心遂醒悟，這才知道那藥色味香美，取而服之，毒病皆癒。
所以判斷一句話虛妄與否，不能只看它與事實是否相符，還要看它是為何而說、結果如何。父親沒有因為說死而真的離開兒子——他聽說兒子病癒，隨即回來，使一切兒子都見到他。說死是方便，救兒子才是所為，而父親實在仍在，則守住了整件事的根底。
本論在遣使一節說得特別具體：報信的人可以是誰？他列出幾種說法，最後取四依菩薩——佛滅度以後，四依告訴眾生佛已滅度、唯留此法、我今宣弘、汝當受行。本論還補了一句反問：後代眾生若沒有四依傳述經法，怎能自己知道佛已滅度？這一問把譬喻拉回到讀者所在的時代。我們之所以知道有佛出世、有佛滅度、有法可服，正是因為有人把話傳了下來。
九、承衍：合譬為何不合未來？
末後，本論以合譬把良醫還歸於佛：成佛已來無量劫，合於過去世；以方便力說當滅度，合於現在世；亦無能說我虛妄，合於利益不虛。三項一一對應，唯獨未來世沒有合。
本論不遮掩這一點，明說「文略不合未來」。這是本論一貫的誠實：經文合了什麼就說合了什麼，沒有合的不代為補上。未來義並非落空——它在前面的譬中已由「尋復來歸」一轉演出，也將在隨後的偈頌中重新展開。
本單元止於利益不虛。其下二十五行半的偈頌，會把法說與譬說一併重頌，良醫一譬在那裡再現為五行的開合。讀路由散說之譬，轉入偈中之頌；而「不虛」二字，正是兩處共同的收束。
文句記之眼
湛然對本單元的鏡釋，一部分是把本論的科分再說一遍，一部分則是對本論文字提出商榷，後者尤其值得誌明。
科分上，他把開譬二分標作良醫譬三世、治子譬不虛，比本論的良醫治子譬、治子實益譬更簡；所分的三段——醫遠行譬過去、還已復去譬現在、尋來譬未來——則與本論全同。標目雖異而分節不異，兩形並存，不以鏡文改本論。
十種醫一段，他先總判這十種「通收邪正貫彼偏圓」，說明本論何以要把外道也算進醫裡；又為前三醫引《大般涅槃經》立據。接著他引《阿含》另有良醫四種之說——善知病相、善知病因、善知方治、畢竟不發——卻不把它接進本論的十醫，反而自判這四種「望今但成第四五醫」，並警告直接引它來證此處會深違經旨。這是鏡中很清楚的一次取捨：引來的材料未必都能用，能不能用要看它是否配得上本門所說的久遠。他又把本論十醫的最後三階配入位次，說第八醫但在十信、第九須初住已上至金剛心、第十妙覺才名「過本」，並解釋「復」與「過」的分別——法身本有，今令證本故名為復；對性得而言無功用，故修名為過。這層位次配當出自鏡層，本論本身只說圓教初心、圓教後心、如來。
三處商榷則直接指向本論的文字。其一，本論說無術的客醫「如用辛苦酢藥」，湛然依《大般涅槃經》六味之說，判今文的「辛」恐是字誤，應作「苦酢醎」。其二，本論說諸子飲毒是譬前面的形益，湛然說此處文中闕略，應當補出前面原有非生現生、非滅現滅兩層。其三，本論說佛受請轉二諦法輪，湛然說這裡的「二諦」應當作三諦，只是二通三別、且捨別從通，所以就頓教中的二諦而言也說得過去。
這三處要如何讀，關係到鏡的分寸。湛然並未把本論改掉，他是在本論之外標出自己認為更周全的說法；而本帙讀者層仍守底本作「辛」、作「形益」、作「二諦」，把鏡的校語另署鏡層並錄。保存兩邊，不是把問題擱置，而是讓讀者看見古德讀同一段文字時實際發生過的商量。
其餘鏡釋也有幾處使本論更明。他解「宛轉于地」的「地」，說是相對出世法而言。他把「擬宜」二字扣回經文的「當設方便」，指出「當」就是「擬」。他解「留經教」為如付法藏。遣使一節，他錄了他師「或取大聲或用神通」等說法，錄而不廢，卻仍判都不及以四依為使——與本論的取捨一致。至於「其父聞子得差」，他特別聲明「得差之言不全惑斷」：只要有三乘機、堪能會入，不論斷惑與否都名得差。這一句把譬中的病癒放寬到機熟的層面，免得讀者把它讀成必須斷盡煩惱才算。
還有一處是上游的照明。湛然在前一單元已指出，法說中未來的話少，只寄於「常住不滅」四字，而偈中文多。這句話正好解釋本單元開頭那句「上未來文少，此中具有」：不是本論前面漏說，而是長行與偈頌各有取義的分量。
The “Lifespan of the Tathāgata” chapter first says in prose that the Buddha attained the Way in the distant past and constantly abides without extinction; it also says that the Buddha manifests extinction for beings. By this point a question presses immediately upon us: if one is not actually dead but says that one has died, how is this different from deception? The Buddha does not answer again in abstractions. He tells a story: a good physician travels afar, his children drink poison, the father leaves medicine and sends a messenger to announce his death, and the children awaken, drink the medicine, and recover.
This unit explains precisely that story. Zhizhe does not read it merely as a moving parable, but connects every portion back to each item in the preceding Dharma teaching: which portion illustrates the past, which the present, which the future, and which the non-falsehood of benefit. The parable here is not ornament; it is verification.
I. Why Divide One Story into Opening and Applying the Parable?
The root treatise first divides the teaching by parable into opening the parable and applying it. Opening unfolds the story; application gathers the story back upon the Buddha.
Opening the parable is further twofold. The first is the parable of the good physician treating his children, illustrating the appropriateness of responsive transformation in the three periods described above. The second is the parable of the real benefit gained when the children are treated, illustrating the real and unfailing benefit to beings in the three periods described above. The same story is read twice. The first reading attends to how the physician leaves according to the time, returns, goes away again, and comes back once more. The second asks whether the children are actually cured.
This division is made because the preceding Dharma teaching had two things to establish. One is that the Buddha’s responsive transformation truly pervades the three periods; the other is that the benefit accomplished by the Buddha is truly not false. If the story were merely unfolded without being gathered back, the parable would become an aside. If it were gathered back without being unfolded, the previously established meaning of the three periods would have nowhere to take concrete form.
II. Why Are All Three Periods Present in the Parable When So Little Is Said of the Future in the Dharma Teaching?
The root treatise explicitly says that little in the preceding Dharma teaching concerns the future, whereas all three periods are complete in this parable.
This deserves a pause. It does not say that the Dharma teaching is deficient, but points out that the two literary forms have different strengths. The Dharma teaching must establish meaning: once distant attainment and constant abiding without extinction are firmly stated, the future is already lodged in the four characters “constantly abiding without extinction.” The parable must show events, and events require a beginning and an end. The physician must leave and return, return and leave again, then leave and come home once more. When these four turns are set in sequence, past, present, and future each naturally finds its place.
The future is therefore entrusted in the Dharma teaching and enacted in the parable. A reader who merely counts characters may think the root treatise detailed at first and abbreviated afterward. A reader who follows each form sees the same meaning fulfilling its own function in both places.
This also reveals a habit in this unit that is easily overlooked. In outlining the past, the root treatise repeatedly says “here only this is illustrated.” The preceding prose had both arousing the near to reveal the distant and the appropriate modes of responsive transformation; here only the modes are illustrated. Those modes had three parts—the places, removal of doubt about intermediate cause and fruit, and responsive transformation proper—yet here only responsive transformation is illustrated. Beneath that were benefiting beings and beings’ joy, yet only benefiting beings is illustrated. Beneath benefiting beings were manifesting birth without originally being born and manifesting extinction without originally becoming extinct, yet only manifested extinction is illustrated. Four successive selections nest within one another like a camera narrowing frame by frame.
This method has two functions. The first is honesty: the parable states exactly what it takes up and never supplies what it does not, so the reader knows the reach of the illustration. The second is precision: because every preceding level was already established in the Dharma teaching, the parable need not travel the entire route again and can aim only at what most needs to be made visible. Beneath responsive transformation, however, the root treatise specifically declares that both stimulus of capacity and the actual response are “fully illustrated here.” What may be omitted is omitted completely; what must be complete lacks nothing.
Following this habit, the later statement “the text briefly omits application to the future” no longer seems abrupt. From beginning to end the root treatise marks what the sutra takes up and what it abbreviates. The missing item in the final application is only the last use of the same method.
III. What Is Being Ranked When Ten Kinds of Physician Lead All the Way to the Tathāgata?
In explaining “good physician,” the root treatise first establishes ten kinds of physician. The first treats illness but instead aggravates it and may cause death, illustrating outsiders with views of emptiness. The second neither aggravates nor reduces illness, illustrating ascetic outsiders. The third reduces illness but allows it to recur, illustrating outsiders who cultivate concentration and suppress the bonds. The fourth prevents recurrence but cannot treat universally: the two vehicles. The fifth treats universally but lacks skillful technique: bodhisattvas of the six perfections. The sixth has marvelous technique but cannot treat someone certain to die: bodhisattvas of the shared teaching. The seventh can treat difficult illness but cannot treat all illnesses at once: bodhisattvas of the distinct teaching. The eighth can treat all at once but cannot restore the patient to the original state: beginners in the perfect teaching. The ninth restores the original state but cannot cause the patient to surpass it: those at the later mind of the perfect teaching. The tenth treats all illnesses at once, restores the patient, and moreover causes the patient to surpass the original state; only this is the Tathāgata.
These ten stages are not merely a chart ranking medical techniques; they map teachings by the measure of their ability to heal. The measure has four degrees: whether one can sever, whether one can treat universally, whether one can do so skillfully, and whether one can restore and then surpass what was inherent. Outsiders fail even the first degree; the two vehicles pass severance but not universality; the various bodhisattva stages successively add universality and skill, while only the Buddha completes both “restoration to the original state” and “surpassing the original.”
The addition of “surpassing the original” in the tenth deserves attention. At best the preceding nine physicians can only return someone to the former state; only the Tathāgata enables one to surpass it. This sentence carries the whole map beyond curing illness to attaining buddhahood. The Buddha does not merely repair beings back to an original condition; he enables inherent buddha-nature to be completely disclosed and brought to further accomplishment.
IV. What Does It Mean to Prohibit Milk and Then Have It Drunk Again?
The root treatise immediately divides the ten physicians into two groups. The first three are old physicians using milk medicine; the latter seven are all visiting physicians. Visiting physicians without technique use only medicines such as impermanence and suffering. The one who comes from afar with technique finally has people drink milk again; only this is the ultimate good physician.
There is a movement of return here: milk medicine is first misused, then prohibited, and finally restored. The three stages correspond to three identities—the old physician misuses it, the newly arrived visiting physician prohibits it, and the ultimate good physician restores it.
This return matters because it shows that “prohibition” is itself a skillful means. The milk medicine never changes; those taking it and the time change. Without prohibition, misuse would not stop. If it were never restored after prohibition, beings would remain forever with the medicines of impermanence and suffering. The Buddha first teaches impermanence and afterward permanence in precisely this sequence, and the same physician is capable of carrying out the entire sequence.
This also casts light backward on the ranking of the ten physicians. Each of the first nine stops at a particular stage; only the tenth completes the whole course—he can both prohibit and restore.
V. Why Does “Many Children” Open into Three Kinds of Buddha-Child?
The sutra says only that the good physician has many children—perhaps ten, twenty, or even a hundred. The root treatise, however, opens three meanings of buddha-child here.
The first are buddha-children of inherent virtue. All beings possess three kinds of inherent virtue, and buddha-nature is precisely buddha-child. The root treatise cites the scripture as saying that all beings are the Buddha’s children. Whether cultivating or not, every being with mind is included.
The second are buddha-children connected by past conditions. When the sixteen princes repeated this sutra in the past, those who heard it generated a slight understanding and practiced a little. That understanding and practice became a later cause; the root treatise expressly says these are the thirty children in the burning-house parable. This class requires a connection in the past.
The third are children through the discernment cause. Hearing this sutra today, abiding in real wisdom, and firmly believing that one will certainly become a buddha, they are born from the Buddha’s mouth, receive a share of the Buddha Dharma, and are called true children. This class requires a decisive understanding today.
Once the three are listed, the children in the story no longer remain merely persons in a story. Every being with mind is originally a buddha-child, which is why the Buddha must return. Those who formed a connection in the past recognize the father when he returns, which is why some can elicit him. Those who reach decisive understanding today become true children, which is why this sutra must be taught. The root treatise expressly says that the hundred children in this passage do not include the children through the discernment cause; those are reserved for the later passage on those who have not lost their right minds and drink the medicine. The three kinds of children are thus not parallel classifications but are handed forth successively according to the progression of the parable.
VI. Why Does Losing or Not Losing the Right Mind Determine Whether the Buddha Manifests Birth or Extinction?
After drinking poison, some children lose their right minds and others do not. The root treatise says that losing the right mind signifies that no Great or Lesser Vehicle capacity has arisen to elicit the Buddha, while retaining it signifies that such capacity has arisen. It also says that those who lose their right minds are attached to the three realms and have lost the wholesome roots of the three vehicles planted earlier; for them the Buddha, originally unextinguished, announces extinction. Those who have not lost their right minds remain attached to the five desires but have not lost their wholesome roots; for them the Buddha, originally unborn, manifests birth.
Manifesting birth and manifesting extinction are therefore not two moods of the Buddha but two responses to two capacities. The root treatise further distinguishes them by strength and weakness. Those with strong wholesome roots and light evil karma can cultivate the Way and sever the bonds on seeing the Buddha, like children who see their father, request medicine, and recover. Those with slight wholesome roots and heavy evil karma may see the Buddha and request rescue yet refuse to cultivate the Way, like children who ask their father for help but refuse the medicine. For such children the father announces that he must die.
This places the reason for announcing extinction entirely on the side of beings. The father speaks of death not because he wants to leave but because the children refuse the medicine while he remains present. The root treatise later states it more directly: the reason for manifesting extinction lies precisely in beings’ meager qualities and their seeing the Buddha without cultivating.
Another layer deserves attention. The sutra says that the children “see their father from afar.” The root treatise explains this “afar”: although beings see the Buddha’s form-body, the delusions of views and thought obstruct them so that they cannot personally attend upon the Dharma body. Even while the Buddha abides in the world, one kind of seeing may thus be near and another distant. Announcing extinction counteracts precisely this distance of seeing without intimacy.
VII. Why Are Color, Fragrance, Flavor, Pounding, Sifting, and Combining Explained Twice?
Following the medical formulas, the father seeks fine herbs, complete in color, fragrance, and delicious flavor, then pounds, sifts, combines, and gives them to the children to drink. The root treatise explains “medical formulas” as the twelve divisions of the teaching and “medicinal herbs” as the eighty thousand Dharma gates conveyed by those divisions; it then explains color, fragrance, and flavor in two ways.
In the first, color illustrates ethical discipline because discipline protects body and speech and manifests clearly in conduct. Fragrance illustrates concentration because the fragrance of qualities pervades all. Flavor illustrates wisdom because wisdom obtains the taste of principle. These three are the eightfold noble path; cultivating that path enables one to see buddha-nature.
In the second, color is prajñā, clearly and unobstructedly illumining the color of Dharma-nature. Fragrance is liberation, the virtue of severance freed from foulness. Flavor is the Dharma body, the taste of principle. These three dharmas are neither vertical nor horizontal and are called the secret treasury.
The two explanations are not alternatives. The first speaks from practices that cultivate; the second from qualities realized. The same medicine is discipline, concentration, and wisdom for the person taking it, and prajñā, liberation, and Dharma body in the domain realized. The three actions of pounding, sifting, and combining are likewise explained twice: once as the three samādhis of emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness, and once as the contemplations of emptiness, the provisional, and the middle. The root treatise expressly says that every samādhi possesses discipline, concentration, and wisdom, and that each of the three contemplations is not apart from them.
Explaining both without using one to replace the other is the root treatise’s consistent method. If medicinal herbs were merely names of Dharma gates, swallowing them would not cure illness. For the medicine truly to heal, it must be seen as both practice and quality. The root treatise also distinguishes admonition and exhortation clearly: the exhortation tells you that the medicine is good and may be taken; the admonition tells you that taking it alone can remove suffering and that without it the many afflictions will not cease. Together the two gates make someone actually drink the medicine.
VIII. Why Is the Father’s Claim to Have Died Not False?
Return to the opening question. The father is actually alive, yet sends a messenger back to announce “your father has died.” The sutra immediately asks: Can anyone say that this good physician is guilty of falsehood? The answer is no.
The root treatise does not excuse the father; it points to what the statement accomplishes. The father says that he has died because his children refuse to drink the medicine in his presence. He leaves the good medicine, travels to another country, and sends the report of his death so that, bereft of support, the children will awaken and drink the medicine themselves. The story’s conclusion proves this: hearing of their father’s death, the children consider themselves orphaned and exposed, their minds awaken, and only then do they recognize the medicine’s fine color, flavor, and fragrance, drink it, and recover completely from the poison.
Whether a statement is false therefore cannot be judged solely by whether its surface matches the fact; one must also see why it was spoken and what follows. By speaking of death the father does not truly abandon his children. On hearing that they have recovered, he immediately returns and lets every child see him. Speaking of death is a skillful means; rescuing the children is the purpose; the father’s actual continued presence preserves the ground of the entire act.
The root treatise is especially concrete in the passage on sending a messenger. Who may report the news? It lists several explanations and finally adopts bodhisattvas of the four reliances. After the Buddha’s extinction, the four reliances tell beings that the Buddha has become extinct, only this Dharma remains, they now proclaim it, and beings should receive and practice it. The root treatise adds a rhetorical question: if later beings had no four reliances to transmit and recount the scripture and Dharma, how could they know by themselves that the Buddha had become extinct? The question draws the parable back into the reader’s own age. We know that a buddha appeared, that a buddha entered extinction, and that a Dharma remains to be taken precisely because someone transmitted the words.
IX. Carrying Forward: Why Does the Application Omit the Future?
At the end the root treatise applies the parable and returns the good physician to the Buddha. “Immeasurable kalpas since I attained buddhahood” applies to the past; “through the power of skillful means I say that I will enter extinction” applies to the present; “none can say that I am false” applies to the non-falsehood of benefit. The three correspond one by one, but the future alone is not applied.
The root treatise does not conceal this. It expressly says “the text briefly omits application to the future.” This is its consistent honesty: it says what the scripture applies and does not supply what it does not. The future has not fallen away. It was already enacted through the turn “soon returns again” in the preceding parable and will be unfolded again in the following verse.
This unit ends with the non-falsehood of benefit. The twenty-five and a half verse lines below will restate both the Dharma teaching and the teaching by parable, where the good-physician parable reappears in five lines of opening and application. The reading path turns from prose parable into verse recapitulation, and “not false” is the closure shared by both.
Through the Eye of the Wenjuji
Part of Zhanran’s Mirror explanation of this unit restates the root treatise’s divisions, while another part challenges its wording; the latter especially deserves to be recorded.
In outlining the passage, he calls the opening’s two divisions “the good-physician parable of the three periods” and “the children-treated parable of non-falsehood,” briefer than the root treatise’s “parable of the good physician treating his children” and “parable of the real benefit from treating the children.” His three parts—the physician’s distant travel illustrating the past, his return followed by renewed departure illustrating the present, and his coming back again illustrating the future—are identical with the root treatise. The headings differ but the divisions do not; both forms remain, and the Mirror does not alter the root treatise.
For the ten physicians, the Mirror first gives the overall judgment that the ten “universally include wrong and right and extend through partial and perfect,” explaining why the root treatise counts outsiders among physicians. It cites the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra as the basis for the first three. It then cites another account from the Āgamas of four kinds of good physician—knowing well the marks of illness, its cause, the prescription for treatment, and how it will never recur—yet does not insert these into the root treatise’s ten. Instead, it judges that those four, “viewed from the present passage, amount only to the fourth and fifth physicians,” and warns that directly citing them to prove this passage would deeply violate the sutra’s purport. The Mirror thus makes a clear selection: cited material is not necessarily usable; whether it can be used depends on whether it corresponds to the distant duration taught by the Origin Gate. It further correlates the final three of the ten physicians with stages: the eighth only with the ten faiths, the ninth from the first abode upward through the vajra mind, and the tenth with wondrous awakening, which alone is called “surpassing the original.” It also explains the distinction between “restoring” and “surpassing”: the Dharma body is originally present, and causing its original state to be realized is called restoring; relative to inherent attainment, cultivated attainment is effortless and therefore called surpassing. These stage-correlations belong to the Mirror; the root treatise itself says only beginner in the perfect teaching, later mind in the perfect teaching, and Tathāgata.
Three challenges directly concern the root treatise’s wording. First, where the root treatise says that a visiting physician without technique uses “as though using pungent, bitter, and sour medicine,” Zhanran judges from the six flavors in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra that the present character xin (“pungent”) is probably an error and that the phrase should read “bitter, sour, and salty.” Second, where the root treatise says that the children’s drinking poison illustrates the preceding benefit through form, Zhanran says that the text here is abbreviated and should supply both earlier levels—manifesting birth without originally being born and manifesting extinction without originally becoming extinct. Third, where the root treatise says that the Buddha accepted the request and turned the Dharma wheel of the two truths, Zhanran says that “two truths” should be three truths; because two are shared and the third distinct, and because the distinct is set aside in favor of the shared, he says that speaking of two truths within the sudden teaching can nevertheless be sustained.
How these three places are read bears directly on the proper limits of the Mirror. Zhanran does not alter the root treatise; outside it he marks what he takes to be a more complete reading. This edition’s reader layers still preserve the base text as “pungent,” “benefit through form,” and “two truths,” while recording the Mirror’s textual comments separately in the Mirror layer. Preserving both sides does not leave the questions unattended; it lets the reader see the actual deliberation that occurred when an ancient master read the same passage.
Other Mirror explanations further clarify several places. Zhanran explains “writhing upon the ground,” taking “ground” as relative to supramundane Dharma. He connects “planning what is appropriate” to the sutra’s “I should establish a skillful means,” pointing out that “should” is precisely “planning.” He reads “leaving the scriptural teaching” as comparable to entrusting the Dharma treasury. In the messenger passage he records his teacher’s explanations such as “perhaps taking a great voice, perhaps using supernormal power,” preserving rather than discarding them, yet still judges that none surpasses taking the four reliances as the messenger—in agreement with the root treatise’s choice. Concerning “the father heard that the children had recovered,” he expressly says “the words ‘had recovered’ do not mean complete severance of delusion.” So long as a capacity for the three vehicles exists and is capable of converging and entering, it is called recovery whether or not delusion has been severed. This broadens recovery in the parable to the maturation of capacity and prevents the reader from assuming that only complete exhaustion of afflictions counts.
One further passage illuminates this unit from upstream. In the preceding unit Zhanran already observed that little in the Dharma teaching concerns the future, which is lodged only in the four characters “constantly abiding without extinction,” whereas the verse says more. This precisely explains the opening statement of this unit, “the preceding text has little on the future, while it is complete here.” The point is not that the root treatise omitted something earlier, but that prose and verse each carry a different proportion of the meaning.
考據Apparatus
本單元承前廣開近顯遠的長行法說，轉入譬說。正文先分開譬、合譬，開譬又以良醫治子譬三世應化、以治子實益譬利物不虛；末以合譬把良醫還歸於佛。本文的十種醫、三種子義、色香味配戒定慧等語，都是《文句》本身明說；《文句記》的進一步判釋、以及湛然對本論文字的三處校語，另署鏡層，不倒入本論。
一、科判定位
本品屬本門（15–28）。嚴格域為 T34n1718〔0134a05–0135c11〕：起於「譬如」下之譬說，止於同一〔0135c11〕行中合譬末語「合益物不虛也」；該行其後之偈二十五行半已入下一單元，不納本單元。全域實有二千三百二十六個漢字。
本單元內含卷界：〔0135a26〕作「妙法蓮華經文句卷第九下」訖、「妙法蓮華經文句卷第十上」起，其下復題「天台智者大師說」。故本單元跨卷第九下與卷第十上兩半卷，非一半卷所能盡。此即長品跨半卷之例，讀者層依原典照錄卷題與題署，不刪併、不移置。
本論自科如下：
| 次第 | 本論自科 | 行域與內容 |
|---|---|---|
| 一 | 譬說總科 | 「「譬如」下，第二，譬說，有開譬、合譬。」〔0134a05〕 |
| 二 | 開譬二分 | 「一、良醫治子譬，譬上三世應化所宜」〔0134a06〕；「二、治子實益譬，譬上三世利物不虛」〔0134a07〕 |
| 三 | 良醫譬三世 | 「一、醫遠行譬，譬過去益物」〔0134a08〕；二、還已復去譬現在；三、尋復來歸譬未來 |
| 四 | 過去：能應之智與能感之機 | 「如有良醫」者超譬上「我以佛眼觀」〔0134a14〕；「多諸子息」追譬上眾生來至我所 |
| 五 | 十種醫 | 自「醫有十種」〔0134a19〕起，逐一列十，第十「即是如來」〔0134b09〕 |
| 六 | 良醫釋名 | 舊醫客醫之判〔0134b09–0134b11〕；「良者善也」〔0134b12〕；智慧、聰達、方藥、眾病逐字釋〔0134b14–0134b17〕 |
| 七 | 多諸子息與三種子義 | 十、二十、百數配聲聞、支佛、菩薩〔0134b18〕；三種子義〔0134b19–0134c11〕 |
| 八 | 過去現滅 | 「以有事緣遠至他國」譬過去應化中現滅〔0134c12〕 |
| 九 | 現在：飲毒與還家 | 飲他毒藥、宛轉于地〔0134c16–0134c17〕；失心與不失心分機 |
| 十 | 形益與聲益 | 遙見求救為形益；受請轉法輪、誡勸二門為聲益〔0135a05–0135a19〕 |
| 十一 | 得益不虛 | 「其諸子中不失心者」服藥病差，譬上皆實不虛 |
| 十二 | 非滅現滅（卷第十上） | 「從「餘失心者」下，譬上非滅現滅」〔0135b05〕；唱應死〔0135b12〕、留藥〔0135b16〕、遣使四依〔0135b21〕 |
| 十三 | 諸子醒悟 | 滅後得益與未來機感〔0135b26–0135c03〕 |
| 十四 | 未來益物與牒不虛 | 父聞子差起未來應化〔0135c04〕；牒不虛譬〔0135c06〕 |
| 十五 | 合譬 | 「從「佛言我亦如是」去，明合譬也」〔0135c08〕；合過去、合現在，不合未來〔0135c10〕 |
《文句記》對位：開合總科見 T34n1719〔0333a06–0333a13〕，逐句釋見〔0339a13–0340c20〕，其下〔0340c21〕已入「釋分別功德品」，不屬本單元。
二、成立與傳本
卷端序記灌頂法師私記、合二十卷〔0001a23–0001a24〕，又記唐天寶戊子朗和尚條倫；卷首題署天台智者大師說〔0001b20〕。本單元中段又見卷第十上之題署「天台智者大師說」，與全帙二十半卷單署之例一致。義說歸智者，記錄歸灌頂，現行文字又經條倫治定；神逈序、朗和尚治定語與湛然《文句記》皆屬傳本或鏡釋層，不改作智者正文。
三、所帖經文與所引
（一）所帖根經：良醫治子譬全段
本單元逐句所消者為《妙法蓮華經》〈如來壽量品〉良醫治子一譬。根經先回錨本倉《妙法蓮華經》封印本，並列 T09n0262 行錨：
| 本論所標 | 根經逐字 | 行錨 |
|---|---|---|
| 譬說起句 | 「譬如良醫，智慧聰達，明練方藥，善治眾病。」 | T09n0262〔0043a08〕 |
| 多諸子息 | 「其人多諸子息——若十、二十乃至百數，以有事緣，遠至餘國。」 | 〔0043a09–0043a10〕 |
| 諸子飲毒 | 「諸子於後，飲他毒藥，藥發悶亂，宛轉于地。」 | 〔0043a10–0043a11〕 |
| 其父還家 | 「是時其父還來歸家，諸子飲毒，或失本心、或不失者，遙見其父，皆大歡喜，拜跪問訊」 | 〔0043a11–0043a13〕 |
| 求救之辭 | 「善安隱歸。我等愚癡，誤服毒藥，願見救療，更賜壽命。」 | 〔0043a13–0043a14〕 |
| 依經方求藥草 | 「父見子等苦惱如是，依諸經方，求好藥草，色香美味皆悉具足，擣篩和合與子令服」 | 〔0043a14–0043a16〕 |
| 勸門 | 「此大良藥，色香美味皆悉具足，汝等可服」 | 〔0043a17〕 |
| 誡門 | 「速除苦惱，無復眾患。」 | 〔0043a18〕 |
| 不失心者得差 | 「其諸子中不失心者，見此良藥、色香俱好，即便服之，病盡除愈。」 | 〔0043a18–0043a20〕 |
| 餘失心者不服 | 「餘失心者，見其父來，雖亦歡喜問訊，求索治病，然與其藥而不肯服。」 | 〔0043a20–0043a21〕 |
| 唱應死 | 「我今當設方便，令服此藥。」 | 〔0043a25〕 |
| 留藥 | 「汝等當知！我今衰老，死時已至，是好良藥，今留在此，汝可取服，勿憂不差。」 | 〔0043a26–0043a27〕 |
| 遣使 | 「復至他國，遣使還告：『汝父已死。』」 | 〔0043a28〕 |
| 諸子醒悟 | 「自惟孤露，無復恃怙，常懷悲感，心遂醒悟，乃知此藥色味香美，即取服之，毒病皆愈。」 | 〔0043b02–0043b04〕 |
| 父聞子差 | 「其父聞子悉已得差，尋便來歸，咸使見之。」 | 〔0043b04–0043b05〕 |
| 牒不虛 | 「諸善男子！於意云何？頗有人能說此良醫虛妄罪不？」 | 〔0043b06–0043b07〕 |
| 合譬 | 「我亦如是，成佛已來、無量無邊百千萬億那由他阿僧祇劫，為眾生故，以方便力、言當滅度，亦無有能如法說我虛妄過者。」 | 〔0043b07–0043b10〕 |
根經內層引號依原典作『』，本表照錄不改。
（二）本論所引：《大般涅槃經》舊醫客醫
本論以十種醫之前三配舊醫、後七配客醫：「前三種醫即《大經》中之舊醫用乳藥也」〔0134b09〕、「後七並客醫」〔0134b10〕、「有術遠來還令服乳，最後究竟良醫也」〔0134b11〕。所指為《大般涅槃經》舊醫客醫一段：
| 本論所繫 | 今本逐字 | 行錨 |
|---|---|---|
| 舊醫用乳藥 | 「乳藥復不善解，或有風病、冷病、熱病、一切諸病，悉教服乳。」 | T12n0374〔0378a21〕 |
| 客醫遠來 | 「是時舊醫不知諮受，反生貢高輕慢之心。」 | 〔0378a24〕 |
| 客醫入見王 | 「是時舊醫，即將客醫共入見王。」 | 〔0378b01〕 |
| 還令服乳 | 「如王所患，應當服乳。我於先時，所斷乳藥，是大妄語。」 | 〔0378b20〕 |
南本《大般涅槃經》同段見 T12n0375〔0617c27 起〕，二本文字互有詳略，並錄不判。
（三）本論所引：《無量義經》
「《無量義》云「醫王大醫王」，以大醫故稱為良醫。」〔0134b17〕——今本逐字命中：「醫王大醫王」〔T09n0276 0384c05〕。
（四）本論所引：《佛遺教經》
「如《遺教》云「其未度者作得度因緣」」〔0135c01〕——今本作「其未度者，皆亦已作得度因緣」〔T12n0389 1112b10〕。本論略「皆亦已」三字，屬撮引；二形並錄不判。
（五）本論所引：《觀普賢菩薩行法經》——撮引，元素分見四處
「《普賢觀》云「精進苦到得見釋迦分身、多寶、東力、善德等及七佛世尊」。」〔0135c02–0135c03〕。今本無此一句連文，所舉諸名分見四處：
| 本論所舉 | 今本逐字 | 行錨 |
|---|---|---|
| 多寶 | 「樂見多寶佛塔者」 | T09n0277〔0389c19〕 |
| 釋迦分身 | 「樂見釋迦牟尼佛及分身諸佛者」 | 〔0389c20〕 |
| 善德 | 「南無東方善德佛及分身諸佛」 | 〔0392b05〕 |
| 七佛世尊 | 「亦常夢見過去七佛」 | 〔0390c17〕 |
「精進苦到」四字今本零命中，據實誌之，不代擬他文。又本論此處作『東力』，大正本作「力」而甲本作「方」（見第八目校記），甲本作『東方善德』，正與今本〔0392b05〕相合。
（六）本論所引：《大智度論》——「拙度」今本零命中
「《釋論》呼為拙度，即是六度菩薩慈悲廣治也」〔0134a29〕之所繫。今本《大智度論》T25n1509 以標記容錯法檢「拙度」二字，零命中；今本自有「如實巧度」九見（〔0107a17〕、〔0107a21〕、〔0108a18〕等）。故「拙度」為對「巧度」而立之語，非今本《釋論》之逐字。零命中據實記，不代擬出處。湛然《文句記》亦用此語：「又七客醫中初二拙度」〔T34n1719 0339b10〕。
（七）本論所引：《法華經》內部
| 本論所舉 | 今本逐字 | 行錨 |
|---|---|---|
| 一切眾生皆是佛子 | 「其中眾生悉是吾子」 | T09n0262〔0014c26〕〈譬喻品〉 |
| 火宅三十子 | 「長者諸子，若十、二十，或至三十」 | 〔0012b18〕〈譬喻品〉 |
| 十六王子昔日結緣 | 「十六菩薩沙彌皆悉信受」 | 〔0025b02〕〈化城喻品〉 |
本論作「十六王子覆講《法華》」〔0134b28〕，「覆講」二字今本《法華經》零命中，係本論述其事之語，非經文逐字。
（八）本論所舉之人：優波笈多
「如優波笈多所化之流也」〔0135b27〕。此名於《大般涅槃經》T12n0374、《阿育王傳》T50n2042、《出三藏記集》T55n2145 三帙皆零命中，本表據實誌之。《文句記》引作「如毱多」〔T34n1719 0340c04〕，並判「毱多是滅後四依」，字略而義同。
（九）只有方向、沒有唯一逐句者
本論言「從佛出十二部乃至出《涅槃》，此出漸頓藥草也」〔0135a06〕，係以五味相生之義總攝諸經出生次第，非徵引某一經之一句，不列逐字對錨。
四、文句記釋要〔鏡〕
湛然於本單元之鏡釋，見 T34n1719〔0333a06–0333a13〕與〔0339a13–0340c20〕。
開合科之對位：記作「次譬中二：開、合。開譬為二：一良醫譬三世，二治子譬不虛。初文又三：一醫遠行譬過去，二還已復去譬現在，三尋來譬未來。」〔0333a06–0333a08〕。與本論「一、良醫治子譬」「二、治子實益譬」〔0134a06–0134a07〕相較，記之標目較簡而所分全同；二形並錄，不以記文改本論。
十種醫：記云「「醫有十種」者，通收邪正貫彼偏圓」〔0339a13–0339a14〕，又為前三醫立據，引《大經》「王之土境清夷閑靜，真是出家住止之處」〔0339a16〕。復引《阿含》另一四種良醫之說：「良醫有四，一善知病相，二知病因起，三善知方治，四畢竟不發。」〔0339a19–0339a21〕，並自判此四「望今但成第四五醫」〔0339a23〕，且誡「直引證此深違經旨」〔0339a25〕。此四醫之說出自鏡層，本論十醫中無之。
後三醫之「復」與「過」：記以第八醫但在十信、第九須初住已上至金剛心、第十妙覺始名「過本」〔0339b02–0339b09〕，把本論十醫末三階配入位次。此配位屬鏡釋，本論但言「即圓教初心十信也」「即圓教後心也」「即是如來」〔0134b06–0134b09〕。
湛然校本論文字三處——皆照錄，不代裁：
| 記之校語 | 行錨 | 所校本論之文 |
|---|---|---|
| 「今文云「辛」恐字誤，應云「苦酢醎」故。」 | 〔0339b23〕 | 本論「如用辛苦酢藥也」〔0134b11〕 |
| 「「譬上形益」者，文中闕略，應云上有二」 | 〔0340a23〕 | 本論「今言諸子飲毒去譬上形益」〔0134c20〕 |
| 「「譬上聲益」中云「二諦」者，應云三諦，二通三別，且捨別從通，即頓中二諦也。」 | 〔0340b04–0340b06〕 | 本論「初譬佛受請轉二諦法輪也」〔0135a04〕 |
三處皆湛然指本論用字或文勢有闕，而本帙讀者層仍守底本作「辛」「形益」「二諦」，不靜默改從鏡文；鏡之校語則署鏡層並錄。
其餘鏡釋要句：「宛轉于地」者望出世法故且云「地」〔0340a22〕；「擬宜」者《經》云「當設方便」、「當」即「擬」〔0340b28〕；「留經教」者如付法藏〔0340b29〕；於使人一項，記錄他師之說而仍以四依為勝：「雖眾釋不同，非無一理，終不及以四依為使。」〔0340c03–0340c04〕；「其父聞子得差」者「得差之言不全惑斷」〔0340c08–0340c09〕。
鏡之上游照明：記於前單元已言「法說中未來語少」但指「常住不滅」四字，而「譬說偈中文多」〔0333a21–0333a25〕。此語照明本單元何以未來文少——非本論漏說，而是長行譬說本身取義如此。
五、諸家異釋
本論於本單元未錄諸師異解，據實記之，不虛列（本品異解已於 16a 單元先出五家，此處不重）。鏡層則於遣使一項錄有他師之說：「他云：或取大聲或用神通等」〔T34n1719 0340c01〕，湛然錄而不廢，仍以四依為勝〔0340c03–0340c04〕。此屬鏡中所錄，不倒寫為本論已列之異解。
六、術語
| 語 | 釋 |
|---|---|
| 十種醫 | 本論自立之十階判教喻，自「治病病增無損」至「一時治一切病即能平復，又使過本」，通收邪正、貫徹偏圓〔0134a19–0134b08〕。 |
| 舊醫・客醫 | 出《大般涅槃經》；本論以前三醫配舊醫用乳藥、後七配客醫〔0134b09–0134b11〕。 |
| 三達五眼・八術 | 「良者善也，內有三達五眼即是八術。」〔0134b12〕三達即三明，鏡云「三明居極，故得達名」〔T34n1719 0339c02〕。 |
| 拙度 | 對「巧度」而立之語，本論以呼六度菩薩之慈悲廣治〔0134b02〕；今本《釋論》零命中（見第三目）。 |
| 體法 | 通教菩薩之觀法，「但治有反復凡夫，不治焦種二乘」〔0134b03–0134b04〕。 |
| 焦種 | 喻二乘不能發大心者，與「有反復凡夫」對舉〔0134b04〕。 |
| 三種子義 | 性德佛子（一切眾生三種性德）、結緣佛子（昔十六王子時聞法者）、了因之子（今日聞《法華》者）〔0134b19–0134c11〕。 |
| 正因・了因・緣因 | 三因佛性；本論以心王為正因、慧為了因、餘九相扶屬緣因〔0134b22–0134b24〕。 |
| 經方・藥草 | 「「經方」者，即十二部教也，「藥草」即教所詮八萬法門也。」〔0135a05〕 |
| 色・香・味 | 一釋配戒、定、慧〔0135a09–0135a10〕；再釋配般若、解脫、法身〔0135a11–0135a13〕。 |
| 祕密藏 | 「三法不縱不橫名祕密藏，依教修行得入此藏也。」〔0135a14〕 |
| 擣・篩・合 | 一釋配空、無相、無作三三昧〔0135a15〕；再釋配空觀、假觀、中觀〔0135a17〕。 |
| 誡門・勸門 | 自「而作是言」至「可服」為勸門，自「速除苦惱」至「無復眾患」為誡門〔0135a19–0135a21〕。 |
| 四依 | 佛滅後傳述經法之人；本論以之為譬中「遣使」〔0135b21〕，鏡判「毱多是滅後四依」〔T34n1719 0340c05〕。 |
七、譬喻・互讀・承衍
本單元之意象為良醫治子。醫遠行、還家、復去、來歸四轉，對應過去、現在、未來三世應化；毒藥、失心、留藥、唱死諸節，則落在眾生機感與佛之唱滅上。
與〈譬喻品〉互讀：本論明以「即火宅中三十子也」〔0134c03〕把結緣佛子繫回火宅三十子，又引「其中眾生悉是吾子」證性德佛子；良醫之子與火宅之子，同以「子」表佛與眾生之分，而所取義各別——彼取免難、此取受藥。
與〈化城喻品〉互讀：十六王子昔日結緣為緣因佛子〔0134c01〕，正是化城一品所說之昔緣；良醫譬所以能說「還家」「來歸」，其根據在昔日已結之緣。
與本品前後段互讀：前段長行法說明三世益物與非滅現滅，本單元以譬重顯；本論所謂「上未來文少，此中具有」〔0134a07〕，即指法說未來義寄於常住不滅四字，而譬中三轉俱足。
承衍：本單元止於合譬「合益物不虛也」〔0135c11〕。其下偈頌以二十五行半重頌法說與譬說，良醫一譬在彼再現為五行之開合；讀路由散說之譬，轉入偈中之頌。
八、校本定位
本單元嚴格域內有十七個校勘正文位置，全屬【大】【甲】直接對舉；沒有星號回指、單邊校記與省略字數式校記：
| 次 | 校勘正文位置 | 【大】 | 【甲】 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 一 | 0134a21 | 邪 | 耶 |
| 二 | 0134b01 | 治病 | 病治 |
| 三 | 0134b03 | 反 | 返 |
| 四 | 0134b15 | 達 | 遠 |
| 五 | 0134b16 | 鍊 | 練 |
| 六 | 0134b18 | 故 | 故故 |
| 七 | 0134b21 | 德 | 得 |
| 八 | 0134b24 | 因 | 因佛 |
| 九 | 0134b24 | 數 | 甲本缺 |
| 十 | 0134c07 | 王 | 主 |
| 十一 | 0134c14 | 世 | 在 |
| 十二 | 0135b12 | 正 | 甲本缺 |
| 十三 | 0135b15 | 竟 | 畢 |
| 十四 | 0135c03 | 力 | 方 |
| 十五 | 0135c22 | 通 | 甲本缺 |
| 十六 | 0135c27 | 說 | 甲本缺 |
| 十七 | 0135c27 | 次 | 甲本缺 |
其中三枚值得誌明。〔0134b16〕之「鍊／練」，正落在本論釋根經「明練方藥」之處，而根經今本作「練」〔T09n0262 0043a08〕，甲本與根經同形。〔0135c03〕之「力／方」，即《普賢觀》引文中『東力／東方』一字之異，甲本作「方」而與今本《普賢觀》「東方善德佛」〔T09n0277 0392b05〕相合。〔0134b15〕之「達／遠」則落在「聰達」釋文，二形義各可通。三處皆並錄，讀者層守大正本形，不靜默改從甲本。
本單元嚴格域內無通用字庫外字。品題兩形之例（「序品」無釋冠、餘二十七品作「釋Ｘ品」）於本品見「釋壽量品」〔0127a17〕，已誌於 16a 單元。卷界題署見第一目。
This unit follows the preceding prose teaching that extensively opens the near to reveal the distant and turns to the teaching by parable. The root treatise first divides the passage into opening and applying the parable. The opening uses the good physician’s treatment of his children to illustrate responsive transformation in the three periods, and the real benefit of that treatment to illustrate unfailing benefit to beings; the final application gathers the good physician back into the Buddha. The ten physicians, three meanings of “child,” and correlation of color, fragrance, and flavor with ethical discipline, concentration, and wisdom are all stated by the Wenju itself. The Wenjuji’s further judgments and Zhanran’s three textual comments on the root treatise are separately marked as the Mirror layer and are not poured back into the root treatise.
I. Doctrinal-Outline Placement
This chapter belongs to the Origin Gate (15–28). Its strict domain is T34n1718 〔0134a05–0135c11〕: it begins with the teaching by parable under 「譬如」 tr. “suppose” and ends on the same 〔0135c11〕 line with the application’s closing words 「合益物不虛也」 tr. “applying the unfailing benefit to beings.” The twenty-five and a half lines of verse following on that line already belong to the next unit and are excluded here. The complete domain contains 2,326 Han characters.
This unit contains a fascicle boundary: at 〔0135a26〕, 「妙法蓮華經文句卷第九下」 tr. “Fahua Wenju, Fascicle Nine, Lower Half” ends and 「妙法蓮華經文句卷第十上」 tr. “Fahua Wenju, Fascicle Ten, Upper Half” begins, followed again by the attribution 「天台智者大師說」 tr. “spoken by the Great Master Zhizhe of Tiantai.” This unit therefore crosses the lower half of fascicle nine and the upper half of fascicle ten; it cannot be contained within a single half-fascicle. This is an instance of a long chapter crossing a half-fascicle boundary. The reader layer reproduces the original fascicle titles and attribution in place without deleting, combining, or relocating them.
The root treatise’s own outline is as follows:
| No. | Root-treatise division | Domain and content |
|---|---|---|
| I | General division of the teaching by parable | 「「譬如」下，第二，譬說，有開譬、合譬。」 tr. “Beginning with ‘suppose,’ the second part is the teaching by parable, with opening and applying the parable” 〔0134a05〕 |
| II | Two divisions in opening the parable | 「一、良醫治子譬，譬上三世應化所宜」 tr. “First, the parable of the good physician treating his children illustrates what was appropriate for responsive transformation in the three periods above” 〔0134a06〕; 「二、治子實益譬，譬上三世利物不虛」 tr. “second, the parable of the real benefit gained by treating the children illustrates the unfailing benefit to beings in the three periods above” 〔0134a07〕 |
| III | The good-physician parable in the three periods | 「一、醫遠行譬，譬過去益物」 tr. “First, the physician’s distant journey illustrates benefiting beings in the past” 〔0134a08〕; second, leaving again after returning illustrates the present; third, returning soon afterward illustrates the future |
| IV | Past: wisdom capable of response and capacity capable of stimulus | 「如有良醫」 tr. “suppose there is a good physician” leaps forward to illustrate 「我以佛眼觀」 tr. “I observe with the Buddha eye” above 〔0134a14〕; 「多諸子息」 tr. “many children” turns back to illustrate beings coming to the Buddha |
| V | Ten kinds of physician | Beginning with 「醫有十種」 tr. “there are ten kinds of physician” 〔0134a19〕, the text lists all ten in order, the tenth being 「即是如來」 tr. “precisely the Tathāgata” 〔0134b09〕 |
| VI | Explanation of “good physician” | Judgment of old and visiting physicians 〔0134b09–0134b11〕; 「良者善也」 tr. “‘good’ means excellent” 〔0134b12〕; word-by-word explanation of wisdom, clear understanding, medicines, and illnesses 〔0134b14–0134b17〕 |
| VII | Many children and three meanings of “child” | Ten, twenty, and a hundred correspond to śrāvakas, pratyekabuddhas, and bodhisattvas 〔0134b18〕; the three meanings of “child” 〔0134b19–0134c11〕 |
| VIII | Manifested extinction in the past | 「以有事緣遠至他國」 tr. “having business, he travels far to another country” illustrates manifested extinction within past responsive transformation 〔0134c12〕 |
| IX | Present: drinking poison and returning home | Drinking another’s poison and writhing upon the ground 〔0134c16–0134c17〕; differentiation of those who lose and do not lose the right mind |
| X | Benefits through form and sound | Seeing from afar and seeking rescue is benefit through form; accepting the request, turning the Dharma wheel, and the two gates of admonition and exhortation are benefit through sound 〔0135a05–0135a19〕 |
| XI | Real benefit without falsehood | 「其諸子中不失心者」 tr. “among his children, those who have not lost their right minds” take the medicine and recover, illustrating that all taught above is real and not false |
| XII | Manifested extinction without original extinction (fascicle ten, upper half) | 「從「餘失心者」下，譬上非滅現滅」 tr. “Beginning with ‘the remaining children who have lost their right minds,’ it illustrates manifested extinction without original extinction above” 〔0135b05〕; announcing death 〔0135b12〕, leaving the medicine 〔0135b16〕, and sending the four reliances as messengers 〔0135b21〕 |
| XIII | The children awaken | Benefit after extinction and capacity in the future 〔0135b26–0135c03〕 |
| XIV | Future benefit and restatement of non-falsehood | The father hears that the children have recovered and responsive transformation in the future arises 〔0135c04〕; non-falsehood is restated 〔0135c06〕 |
| XV | Applying the parable | 「從「佛言我亦如是」去，明合譬也」 tr. “Beginning with ‘the Buddha says, I am also like this,’ it explains the application of the parable” 〔0135c08〕; the past and present are applied, while the future is not 〔0135c10〕 |
The corresponding Wenjuji passages are its general division of opening and application at T34n1719 〔0333a06–0333a13〕 and its phrase-by-phrase explanation at 〔0339a13–0340c20〕. The passage beginning at 〔0340c21〕 is already 「釋分別功德品」 tr. “explaining the ‘Distinctions in Benefits’ chapter” and does not belong to this unit.
II. Formation and Transmission
The prefatory record at the head of the fascicle says that Dharma Master Guanding privately recorded the teaching and combined it into twenty fascicles 〔0001a23–0001a24〕; it also records that Monk Lang arranged the text in the wuxu year of the Tianbao era. The fascicle heading attributes the discourse to the Great Master Zhizhe of Tiantai 〔0001b20〕. In the middle of this unit, the upper half of fascicle ten again carries the attribution 「天台智者大師說」 tr. “spoken by the Great Master Zhizhe of Tiantai,” consistent with the attribution pattern across the work’s twenty half-fascicles. The doctrinal exposition belongs to Zhizhe, the record to Guanding, and the received wording also passed through Lang’s editorial arrangement. Shenjiong’s preface, Lang’s note of arrangement, and Zhanran’s Wenjuji belong respectively to transmission or Mirror-exegesis layers and are not rewritten as Zhizhe’s root text.
III. Sutra Passages Explained and Works Cited
A. Root Sutra: The Entire Parable of the Good Physician Treating His Children
This unit explains the entire parable of the good physician treating his children in the “Lifespan of the Tathāgata” chapter of the Lotus Sutra, phrase by phrase. The root sutra is first anchored to this repository’s sealed Lotus Sutra text, with T09n0262 line anchors alongside:
| Root-treatise label | Exact root-sutra text | Line anchor |
|---|---|---|
| Opening of the parable | 「譬如良醫，智慧聰達，明練方藥，善治眾病。」 tr. “Suppose there is a good physician, wise and clearly understanding, thoroughly versed in prescriptions and medicines, and skillful in treating the many illnesses.” | T09n0262 〔0043a08〕 |
| Many children | 「其人多諸子息——若十、二十乃至百數，以有事緣，遠至餘國。」 tr. “That man has many children—perhaps ten, twenty, or even a hundred. Having business, he travels far to another country.” | 〔0043a09–0043a10〕 |
| The children drink poison | 「諸子於後，飲他毒藥，藥發悶亂，宛轉于地。」 tr. “Afterward the children drink another’s poison. When the poison takes effect, they become delirious and writhe upon the ground.” | 〔0043a10–0043a11〕 |
| Their father returns home | 「是時其父還來歸家，諸子飲毒，或失本心、或不失者，遙見其父，皆大歡喜，拜跪問訊」 tr. “At that time their father returns home. Of the children who have drunk poison, some have lost their original minds and others have not. Seeing their father from afar, they are all overjoyed, bow, kneel, and greet him.” | 〔0043a11–0043a13〕 |
| Words seeking rescue | 「善安隱歸。我等愚癡，誤服毒藥，願見救療，更賜壽命。」 tr. “How good that you have returned safely. In our foolishness we mistakenly took poison. We beg you to rescue and cure us and grant us further life.” | 〔0043a13–0043a14〕 |
| Following prescriptions to seek medicinal herbs | 「父見子等苦惱如是，依諸經方，求好藥草，色香美味皆悉具足，擣篩和合與子令服」 tr. “The father sees his children suffering so. Following the prescriptions, he seeks fine medicinal herbs complete in color, fragrance, and delicious flavor, pounds, sifts, and combines them, and gives them to the children to take.” | 〔0043a14–0043a16〕 |
| Gate of exhortation | 「此大良藥，色香美味皆悉具足，汝等可服」 tr. “This excellent medicine is complete in color, fragrance, and delicious flavor. You may take it.” | 〔0043a17〕 |
| Gate of admonition | 「速除苦惱，無復眾患。」 tr. “Quickly remove your painful distress and have no further afflictions.” | 〔0043a18〕 |
| Those retaining the right mind recover | 「其諸子中不失心者，見此良藥、色香俱好，即便服之，病盡除愈。」 tr. “Among his children, those who have not lost their right minds see that this fine medicine is good in color and fragrance, immediately take it, and are completely cured of their illness.” | 〔0043a18–0043a20〕 |
| The others refuse the medicine | 「餘失心者，見其父來，雖亦歡喜問訊，求索治病，然與其藥而不肯服。」 tr. “The remaining children who have lost their right minds see their father return. Though they too rejoice, greet him, and seek treatment, when he gives them the medicine they refuse to take it.” | 〔0043a20–0043a21〕 |
| Announcing death | 「我今當設方便，令服此藥。」 tr. “I will now devise a skillful means to make them take this medicine.” | 〔0043a25〕 |
| Leaving the medicine | 「汝等當知！我今衰老，死時已至，是好良藥，今留在此，汝可取服，勿憂不差。」 tr. “You should know that I am now old and declining and the time of death has arrived. I leave this fine medicine here. You may take it; do not worry that you will fail to recover.” | 〔0043a26–0043a27〕 |
| Sending a messenger | 「復至他國，遣使還告：『汝父已死。』」 tr. “He again goes to another country and sends a messenger back to announce: ‘Your father has died.’” | 〔0043a28〕 |
| The children awaken | 「自惟孤露，無復恃怙，常懷悲感，心遂醒悟，乃知此藥色味香美，即取服之，毒病皆愈。」 tr. “They consider themselves orphaned and exposed, with no one left to rely upon. Constantly grieving, their minds finally awaken. They recognize the medicine’s fine color, flavor, and fragrance, take it, and are all cured of the poison.” | 〔0043b02–0043b04〕 |
| The father hears they have recovered | 「其父聞子悉已得差，尋便來歸，咸使見之。」 tr. “The father hears that all his children have recovered, soon returns, and lets them all see him.” | 〔0043b04–0043b05〕 |
| Restating non-falsehood | 「諸善男子！於意云何？頗有人能說此良醫虛妄罪不？」 tr. “Good sons, what do you think? Can anyone say that this good physician is guilty of falsehood?” | 〔0043b06–0043b07〕 |
| Applying the parable | 「我亦如是，成佛已來、無量無邊百千萬億那由他阿僧祇劫，為眾生故，以方便力、言當滅度，亦無有能如法說我虛妄過者。」 tr. “I am also like this. Since I attained buddhahood, immeasurable and boundless hundreds of thousands of myriads of millions of nayutas of asaṃkhyeya kalpas have passed. For beings’ sake, through the power of skillful means I say that I will enter extinction, yet no one can rightly say that I am guilty of falsehood.” | 〔0043b07–0043b10〕 |
The root sutra uses inner 『』 quotation marks within its own quotation; the table reproduces them without alteration.
B. Root-Treatise Citation: Old and Visiting Physicians in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra
The root treatise correlates the first three of the ten physicians with old physicians and the latter seven with visiting physicians: 「前三種醫即《大經》中之舊醫用乳藥也」 tr. “the first three physicians are precisely the old physicians using milk medicine in the Great Sutra” 〔0134b09〕, 「後七並客醫」 tr. “the latter seven are all visiting physicians” 〔0134b10〕, and 「有術遠來還令服乳，最後究竟良醫也」 tr. “the one with technique who comes from afar has people drink milk again and is the final, ultimate good physician” 〔0134b11〕. These statements refer to the passage on old and visiting physicians in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra:
| Root-treatise connection | Exact received text | Line anchor |
|---|---|---|
| Old physician using milk medicine | 「乳藥復不善解，或有風病、冷病、熱病、一切諸病，悉教服乳。」 tr. “Moreover, he did not properly understand milk medicine. Whether the illness was caused by wind, cold, heat, or any other condition, he instructed everyone to drink milk.” | T12n0374 〔0378a21〕 |
| Visiting physician comes from afar | 「是時舊醫不知諮受，反生貢高輕慢之心。」 tr. “At that time the old physician did not know to consult and learn from him, but instead became arrogant and contemptuous.” | 〔0378a24〕 |
| Visiting physician enters to see the king | 「是時舊醫，即將客醫共入見王。」 tr. “The old physician then brought the visiting physician with him to see the king.” | 〔0378b01〕 |
| Having people drink milk again | 「如王所患，應當服乳。我於先時，所斷乳藥，是大妄語。」 tr. “For the king’s illness, he should drink milk. My former prohibition of milk medicine was a grave falsehood.” | 〔0378b20〕 |
The corresponding passage in the southern recension of the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra appears beginning at T12n0375 〔0617c27〕. The two recensions differ in fullness of wording; both are recorded side by side without adjudication.
C. Root-Treatise Citation: The Sutra of Immeasurable Meanings
「《無量義》云「醫王大醫王」，以大醫故稱為良醫。」 tr. “The Sutra of Immeasurable Meanings says, ‘king of physicians, great king of physicians’; because he is the great physician, he is called a good physician” 〔0134b17〕—the exact words 「醫王大醫王」 tr. “king of physicians, great king of physicians” occur in the received text at T09n0276 〔0384c05〕.
D. Root-Treatise Citation: The Sutra of the Buddha’s Bequeathed Teaching
「如《遺教》云「其未度者作得度因緣」」 tr. “As the Bequeathed Teaching says, ‘for those not yet liberated, create the conditions for liberation’” 〔0135c01〕—the received text reads 「其未度者，皆亦已作得度因緣」 tr. “for those not yet liberated, all have also already created the conditions for liberation” at T12n0389 〔1112b10〕. The root treatise abbreviates the three words 「皆亦已」 tr. “all also already”; both forms are recorded without adjudicating between them.
E. Root-Treatise Citation: The Sutra on the Practice of Contemplating the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra—A Composite Citation Whose Elements Occur in Four Places
The root treatise reads 「《普賢觀》云「精進苦到得見釋迦分身、多寶、東力、善德等及七佛世尊」。」 tr. “The Contemplation of Samantabhadra says, ‘through diligent and arduous effort, one sees Śākyamuni’s divided bodies, Prabhūtaratna, Dongli, Shande, and the seven World-Honored Buddhas’” 〔0135c02–0135c03〕. The received text has no such continuous sentence; the names it cites occur separately in four places:
| Item cited by the root treatise | Exact received text | Line anchor |
|---|---|---|
| Prabhūtaratna | 「樂見多寶佛塔者」 tr. “those who wish to see the stūpa of Prabhūtaratna Buddha” | T09n0277 〔0389c19〕 |
| Śākyamuni’s divided bodies | 「樂見釋迦牟尼佛及分身諸佛者」 tr. “those who wish to see Śākyamuni Buddha and the buddhas who are his divided bodies” | 〔0389c20〕 |
| Shande | 「南無東方善德佛及分身諸佛」 tr. “Homage to Shande Buddha of the eastern direction and the buddhas who are his divided bodies” | 〔0392b05〕 |
| Seven World-Honored Buddhas | 「亦常夢見過去七佛」 tr. “they also constantly dream of seeing the seven buddhas of the past” | 〔0390c17〕 |
The four characters 「精進苦到」 tr. “diligent and arduous effort” have zero matches in the received text; this is recorded as found, without supplying substitute wording. The root treatise also reads 『東力』 here. The Taishō edition has 「力」 tr. “li,” while Edition A has 「方」 tr. “direction” (see the textual note in Section VIII). Edition A’s 『東方善德』 tr. “Shande of the eastern direction” agrees with the received text at 〔0392b05〕.
F. Root-Treatise Citation: The Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom—“Clumsy Crossing” Has Zero Matches in the Received Text
The referent of 「拙度」 tr. “clumsy crossing” is the root treatise’s statement at 〔0134a29〕: 「《釋論》呼為拙度，即是六度菩薩慈悲廣治也」 tr. “The Expository Treatise calls this clumsy crossing: bodhisattvas of the six perfections treat broadly through compassion.” A marker-tolerant search for the two characters 「拙度」 tr. “clumsy crossing” in the received T25n1509 Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom returns zero matches; the received text has nine occurrences of 「如實巧度」 tr. “skillful crossing in accord with reality,” including 〔0107a17〕, 〔0107a21〕, and 〔0108a18〕. Thus 「拙度」 tr. “clumsy crossing” is a term established in contrast to 「巧度」 tr. “skillful crossing,” not an exact phrase in the received Expository Treatise. The zero result is recorded without inventing a source. Zhanran’s Wenjuji also uses the term: 「又七客醫中初二拙度」 tr. “among the seven visiting physicians, the first two are clumsy crossing” 〔T34n1719 0339b10〕.
G. Internal Citations of the Lotus Sutra
| Item cited by the root treatise | Exact received text | Line anchor |
|---|---|---|
| All beings are children of the Buddha | 「其中眾生悉是吾子」 tr. “the beings within are all my children” | T09n0262 〔0014c26〕, “Parable” chapter |
| Thirty children in the burning house | 「長者諸子，若十、二十，或至三十」 tr. “the elder’s children—perhaps ten, twenty, or as many as thirty” | 〔0012b18〕, “Parable” chapter |
| Past connection with the sixteen princes | 「十六菩薩沙彌皆悉信受」 tr. “the sixteen bodhisattva novices all trusted and accepted it” | 〔0025b02〕, “Parable of the Conjured City” chapter |
The root treatise reads 「十六王子覆講《法華》」 tr. “the sixteen princes repeated the Lotus” 〔0134b28〕. The two characters 「覆講」 tr. “repeated the teaching” have zero matches in the received Lotus Sutra and are the root treatise’s description of the event, not an exact sutra quotation.
H. Person Named by the Root Treatise: Upagupta
The root treatise says 「如優波笈多所化之流也」 tr. “as with those of the kind transformed by Upagupta” 〔0135b27〕. This name has zero matches in T12n0374 Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, T50n2042 Transmission of King Aśoka, and T55n2145 Collection of Records Concerning the Tripiṭaka; this is recorded as found. The Wenjuji abbreviates the citation to 「如毱多」 tr. “as with Gupta” 〔T34n1719 0340c04〕 and judges 「毱多是滅後四依」 tr. “Gupta is one of the four reliances after the Buddha’s extinction.” The name is abbreviated but the meaning is the same.
I. Directional Reference Without a Unique Sentence-Level Source
The root treatise’s statement 「從佛出十二部乃至出《涅槃》，此出漸頓藥草也」 tr. “from the Buddha issue the twelve divisions through the Nirvāṇa Sutra; these are the medicinal herbs of the gradual and sudden teachings” 〔0135a06〕 gathers the sequence in which the scriptures issue from one another through the meaning of the five flavors. It does not cite a single sentence from one scripture and therefore receives no sentence-level anchor here.
IV. Essential Explanations from the Wenjuji [the Mirror]
Zhanran’s Mirror explanations for this unit appear at T34n1719 〔0333a06–0333a13〕 and 〔0339a13–0340c20〕.
Correspondence of opening and application: the Wenjuji says 「次譬中二：開、合。開譬為二：一良醫譬三世，二治子譬不虛。初文又三：一醫遠行譬過去，二還已復去譬現在，三尋來譬未來。」 tr. “Next, the parable has two parts: opening and application. Opening the parable is twofold: first, the good physician illustrates the three periods; second, treating the children illustrates non-falsehood. The first is again threefold: the physician’s distant journey illustrates the past, his leaving again after returning illustrates the present, and his return soon afterward illustrates the future” 〔0333a06–0333a08〕. Compared with the root treatise’s 「一、良醫治子譬」 tr. “first, the parable of the good physician treating his children” and 「二、治子實益譬」 tr. “second, the parable of the real benefit gained by treating the children” 〔0134a06–0134a07〕, the Mirror’s labels are briefer but its divisions are identical. Both forms are recorded; the Mirror wording does not alter the root treatise.
Ten kinds of physician: the Mirror says 「「醫有十種」者，通收邪正貫彼偏圓」 tr. “‘There are ten kinds of physician’ universally includes wrong and right and extends through partial and perfect” 〔0339a13–0339a14〕. It also establishes a basis for the first three physicians by citing the Great Sutra: 「王之土境清夷閑靜，真是出家住止之處」 tr. “the king’s territory is pure, level, tranquil, and quiet, truly a place where renunciants may dwell” 〔0339a16〕. It further cites another Āgama account of four kinds of good physician: 「良醫有四，一善知病相，二知病因起，三善知方治，四畢竟不發。」 tr. “A good physician has four qualities: first, knowing well the marks of illness; second, knowing the cause from which it arises; third, knowing well the prescription for treatment; and fourth, ensuring that it never recurs” 〔0339a19–0339a21〕. It itself judges that, 「望今但成第四五醫」 tr. “viewed from the present passage, these amount only to the fourth and fifth physicians” 〔0339a23〕, and warns that 「直引證此深違經旨」 tr. “directly citing them to prove this passage deeply violates the sutra’s purport” 〔0339a25〕. This account of four physicians belongs to the Mirror layer and is absent from the root treatise’s ten.
The 「復」 tr. “restoring” and 「過」 tr. “surpassing” of the last three physicians: the Mirror correlates the eighth physician only with the ten faiths, the ninth with the first abode and above through the vajra mind, and the tenth with wondrous awakening, which alone is called 「過本」 tr. “surpassing the original” 〔0339b02–0339b09〕. It thereby assigns stages to the final three physicians. This correlation belongs to the Mirror; the root treatise says only 「即圓教初心十信也」 tr. “precisely the ten faiths at the beginner’s mind of the perfect teaching,” 「即圓教後心也」 tr. “precisely the later mind of the perfect teaching,” and 「即是如來」 tr. “precisely the Tathāgata” 〔0134b06–0134b09〕.
Three places where Zhanran comments on the wording of the root treatise—all are recorded without adjudicating or silently changing the root text:
| Mirror textual comment | Line anchor | Root-treatise wording commented upon |
|---|---|---|
| 「今文云「辛」恐字誤，應云「苦酢醎」故。」 tr. “The present text’s ‘pungent’ is probably a scribal error; it should read ‘bitter, sour, and salty.’” | 〔0339b23〕 | 「如用辛苦酢藥也」 tr. “as though using pungent, bitter, and sour medicine” 〔0134b11〕 |
| 「「譬上形益」者，文中闕略，應云上有二」 tr. “‘Illustrates the benefit through form above’: the present text is abbreviated and should say that there were two aspects above.” | 〔0340a23〕 | 「今言諸子飲毒去譬上形益」 tr. “The present passage beginning with the children drinking poison illustrates the benefit through form above” 〔0134c20〕 |
| 「「譬上聲益」中云「二諦」者，應云三諦，二通三別，且捨別從通，即頓中二諦也。」 tr. “Where the passage ‘illustrates the benefit through sound above’ and says ‘two truths,’ it should say three truths. Two are shared and three distinct; setting the distinct aside in favor of the shared, these are the two truths within the sudden teaching.” | 〔0340b04–0340b06〕 | 「初譬佛受請轉二諦法輪也」 tr. “The first part illustrates the Buddha accepting the request and turning the Dharma wheel of the two truths” 〔0135a04〕 |
In all three places, Zhanran points to wording or movement in the root treatise that he considers erroneous or abbreviated. The reader layer of this edition nevertheless retains the base-text forms 「辛」 tr. “pungent,” 「形益」 tr. “benefit through form,” and 「二諦」 tr. “two truths” without silently changing them to the Mirror’s wording; the Mirror’s textual comments are recorded separately in the Mirror layer.
Other essential Mirror statements: it explains 「宛轉于地」 tr. “writhing upon the ground” by saying that 「地」 tr. “ground” is relative to supramundane Dharma 〔0340a22〕. It explains 「擬宜」 tr. “planning what is appropriate” through the sutra’s 「當設方便」 tr. “I should establish a skillful means,” because 「當」 tr. “should” is precisely 「擬」 tr. “planning” 〔0340b28〕. It relates 「留經教」 tr. “leaving the scriptural teaching” to entrusting the Dharma treasury 〔0340b29〕. On the identity of the messenger, it records other teachers’ explanations yet still gives precedence to the four reliances: 「雖眾釋不同，非無一理，終不及以四依為使。」 tr. “Although the many explanations differ and are not without reason, none ultimately equals taking the four reliances as the messenger” 〔0340c03–0340c04〕. Concerning 「其父聞子得差」 tr. “the father hears that the children have recovered,” it says 「得差之言不全惑斷」 tr. “the words ‘have recovered’ do not mean complete severance of delusion” 〔0340c08–0340c09〕.
Upstream illumination from the Mirror: in the preceding unit the Wenjuji already said 「法說中未來語少」 tr. “little in the Dharma teaching concerns the future,” referring only to the four characters 「常住不滅」 tr. “constantly abiding without extinction,” whereas 「譬說偈中文多」 tr. “the verse of the teaching by parable contains more text” 〔0333a21–0333a25〕. This illuminates why the present unit says little about the future: the root treatise has not omitted it, but the long prose parable allocates the meaning in this way.
V. Explanations of Various Masters
The root treatise records no explanations of other masters in this unit. This is stated directly rather than creating an empty list. The five other-master explanations in this chapter already appeared in unit 16a and are not repeated here. At the Mirror level, however, the messenger passage records another teacher’s view: 「他云：或取大聲或用神通等」 tr. “Another says: perhaps take the great voice, or perhaps use supernormal power, and so forth” 〔T34n1719 0340c01〕. Zhanran records this without discarding it, yet still considers the four reliances superior 〔0340c03–0340c04〕. This belongs to an explanation recorded in the Mirror and is not rewritten as though the root treatise had listed it.
VI. Terminology
| Term | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Ten kinds of physician | A ten-stage teaching-classification simile established by the root treatise, extending from 「治病病增無損」 tr. “treating an illness but worsening it without reduction” to 「一時治一切病即能平復，又使過本」 tr. “treating all illnesses simultaneously, restoring the patient, and causing the patient to surpass the original state.” It universally includes wrong and right and extends through partial and perfect 〔0134a19–0134b08〕. |
| Old physician · visiting physician | Derived from the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra. The root treatise correlates the first three physicians with the old physician using milk medicine and the latter seven with visiting physicians 〔0134b09–0134b11〕. |
| Three penetrative knowledges, five eyes, and eight arts | 「良者善也，內有三達五眼即是八術。」 tr. “‘Good’ means excellent; inwardly possessing the three penetrative knowledges and five eyes constitutes the eight arts” 〔0134b12〕. The three penetrative knowledges are the three illuminations; the Mirror says 「三明居極，故得達名」 tr. “when the three illuminations reach their culmination, they acquire the name ‘penetrative’” 〔T34n1719 0339c02〕. |
| Clumsy crossing | A term established in contrast to 「巧度」 tr. “skillful crossing.” The root treatise uses it for the compassionate, universal treatment of bodhisattvas practicing the six perfections 〔0134b02〕; it has zero matches in the received Expository Treatise (see Section III). |
| Realizing the substantial emptiness of dharmas | The contemplation of bodhisattvas in the shared teaching: 「但治有反復凡夫，不治焦種二乘」 tr. “it treats only ordinary beings capable of reversal, not the scorched seeds of the two vehicles” 〔0134b03–0134b04〕. |
| Scorched seed | A simile for those of the two vehicles who cannot arouse the great mind, contrasted with 「有反復凡夫」 tr. “ordinary beings capable of reversal” 〔0134b04〕. |
| Three meanings of “child” | Buddha-children of inherent virtue (the three inherent virtues possessed by all beings), buddha-children connected through past conditions (those who heard the sixteen princes in the past), and children through the discernment cause (those who hear the Lotus today) 〔0134b19–0134c11〕. |
| Direct, discernment, and conditioning causes | The three causes of buddha-nature. The root treatise takes the mind-king as the direct cause, wisdom as the discernment cause, and the other nine mutually assisting factors as the conditioning cause 〔0134b22–0134b24〕. |
| Prescriptions · medicinal herbs | 「「經方」者，即十二部教也，「藥草」即教所詮八萬法門也。」 tr. “‘Prescriptions’ are the twelve divisions of the teaching; ‘medicinal herbs’ are the eighty thousand Dharma gates conveyed by the teaching” 〔0135a05〕. |
| Color · fragrance · flavor | One explanation correlates them with ethical discipline, concentration, and wisdom 〔0135a09–0135a10〕; a second correlates them with prajñā, liberation, and Dharma body 〔0135a11–0135a13〕. |
| Secret treasury | 「三法不縱不橫名祕密藏，依教修行得入此藏也。」 tr. “The three dharmas are neither vertical nor horizontal and are called the secret treasury; practicing according to the teaching enables one to enter this treasury” 〔0135a14〕. |
| Pounding · sifting · combining | One explanation correlates them with the three samādhis of emptiness, signlessness, and wishlessness 〔0135a15〕; a second correlates them with the contemplations of emptiness, the provisional, and the middle 〔0135a17〕. |
| Gate of admonition · gate of exhortation | From 「而作是言」 tr. “and he speaks these words” through 「可服」 tr. “you may take it” is the gate of exhortation; from 「速除苦惱」 tr. “quickly remove your painful distress” through 「無復眾患」 tr. “have no further afflictions” is the gate of admonition 〔0135a19–0135a21〕. |
| Four reliances | People who transmit and recount the scriptures and Dharma after the Buddha’s extinction. The root treatise takes them as the 「遣使」 tr. “sending of a messenger” in the parable 〔0135b21〕; the Mirror judges 「毱多是滅後四依」 tr. “Gupta is one of the four reliances after the Buddha’s extinction” 〔T34n1719 0340c05〕. |
VII. Similes · Cross-Reading · Carrying Forward
This unit’s central image is the good physician treating his children. The four turns of traveling afar, returning home, leaving again, and coming back correspond to responsive transformation in the past, present, and future. The poison, loss of the right mind, medicine left behind, and announcement of death concern beings’ stimulus of capacity and the Buddha’s announcement of extinction.
Cross-reading with the “Parable” chapter: the root treatise expressly uses 「即火宅中三十子也」 tr. “precisely the thirty children in the burning house” 〔0134c03〕 to connect buddha-children formed through past conditions back to the burning-house parable, and cites 「其中眾生悉是吾子」 tr. “the beings within are all my children” to establish buddha-children of inherent virtue. The good physician’s children and the burning-house children both use 「子」 tr. “child” to express the relationship between Buddha and beings, but each takes a different meaning: there, escape from danger; here, taking the medicine.
Cross-reading with the “Parable of the Conjured City” chapter: past connections formed under the sixteen princes are buddha-children of the conditioning cause 〔0134c01〕, precisely the former connections described in that chapter. The good physician’s parable can speak of 「還家」 tr. “returning home” and 「來歸」 tr. “coming back” because its basis lies in connections already formed in the past.
Cross-reading with the preceding and following passages of this chapter: the preceding prose Dharma teaching explains three-period benefit and manifested extinction without original extinction; this unit reveals them again through parable. The root treatise’s words 「上未來文少，此中具有」 tr. “little in the preceding text concerns the future, while it is complete here” 〔0134a07〕 mean that the Dharma teaching lodges the future in constant abiding without extinction, while the parable presents all three turns in full.
Carrying forward: this unit ends with the application 「合益物不虛也」 tr. “applying the unfailing benefit to beings” 〔0135c11〕. The following verse restates the Dharma teaching and teaching by parable in twenty-five and a half lines, and the good-physician parable reappears there in five lines of opening and application. The reading path turns from the prose parable to its recapitulation in verse.
VIII. Placement of the Editions
The strict domain of this unit contains seventeen textual-critical body positions, all direct comparisons between 【Taishō】 and 【Edition A】. It contains no asterisk back-references, one-sided notes, or notes specifying an omitted number of characters:
| No. | Textual-critical body position | 【Taishō】 | 【Edition A】 |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | 0134a21 | 邪 | 耶 |
| II | 0134b01 | 治病 | 病治 |
| III | 0134b03 | 反 | 返 |
| IV | 0134b15 | 達 | 遠 |
| V | 0134b16 | 鍊 | 練 |
| VI | 0134b18 | 故 | 故故 |
| VII | 0134b21 | 德 | 得 |
| VIII | 0134b24 | 因 | 因佛 |
| IX | 0134b24 | 數 | absent in Edition A |
| X | 0134c07 | 王 | 主 |
| XI | 0134c14 | 世 | 在 |
| XII | 0135b12 | 正 | absent in Edition A |
| XIII | 0135b15 | 竟 | 畢 |
| XIV | 0135c03 | 力 | 方 |
| XV | 0135c22 | 通 | absent in Edition A |
| XVI | 0135c27 | 說 | absent in Edition A |
| XVII | 0135c27 | 次 | absent in Edition A |
Three positions merit specific notice. At 〔0134b16〕, 「鍊／練」 tr. “the two variant forms” occurs precisely where the root treatise explains the root sutra’s 「明練方藥」 tr. “thoroughly versed in prescriptions and medicines.” The received root sutra has 「練」 tr. “versed” at T09n0262 〔0043a08〕, so Edition A agrees with the root sutra. At 〔0135c03〕, 「力／方」 tr. “li／fang” is the single-character difference in the Contemplation of Samantabhadra citation 『東力／東方』; Edition A has 「方」 tr. “direction” and thus agrees with the received scripture’s 「東方善德佛」 tr. “Shande Buddha of the eastern direction” at T09n0277 〔0392b05〕. At 〔0134b15〕, 「達／遠」 tr. “penetrative／far” occurs in the explanation of 「聰達」 tr. “clear understanding,” and both forms admit a coherent reading. All three are recorded side by side; the reader layer retains the Taishō forms without silently changing to Edition A.
The strict domain has no character outside the common character set. The two forms of chapter heading—the “Introduction” chapter as 「序品」 tr. “Introduction” without a preceding “explanation,” and the other twenty-seven chapters as 「釋Ｘ品」 tr. “explaining chapter X”—appear in the present chapter as 「釋壽量品」 tr. “explaining the ‘Lifespan’ chapter” 〔0127a17〕 and were already recorded in unit 16a. The fascicle-boundary attribution is recorded in Section I.