金光明最勝王經 大吉祥天女品第十六

This apparatus takes the chapter body in Yijing’s T16n0665 as its base, while setting beside it the two Dharmakṣema-line recensions, Huizhao’s principal commentary, and ancient Sui, Tang, and Song commentaries. Alternate translations and interpretations are noted only with their sources, without deciding which is superior; line-by-line commentaries and a record on the profound meaning remain distinct layers and are not conflated.

I. Doctrinal-Outline Placement

Yijing’s recension gives the title 「金光明最勝王經大吉祥天女品第十六」—“The Sūtra of Golden Light, the Supreme King: The Goddess of Great Auspiciousness, Chapter Sixteen” 〔T16n0665 0438c24〕. The chapter body begins at 0438c26 and ends at the true last line, 0439b02. The whole chapter is one continuous address: the goddess rises from her seat and speaks to the Buddha, vowing to supply what those who propagate the sūtra require; she recalls a cause from the past and explains why she benefits beings today; she exhorts people to read and recite, make offerings, invoke her name, and hear and receive the teaching; six lines of verse then restate the benefits, and the Buddha concludes by praising and confirming her words. Because the chapter is short and contains few changes of scene, no outline headings have been inserted into its main text.

Huizhao’s principal commentary titles it 「大吉祥天女品第十六」—“The Goddess of Great Auspiciousness, Chapter Sixteen” 〔T39n1788 0307c27〕. His judgment at the chapter boundary reads: 「與財物中分之為二，此初一品明弘經者應得四事，下之一品明得之方。」—“The giving of material goods is divided into two: this first chapter explains that those who propagate the sūtra should obtain the four requisites; the following chapter explains the means by which they are obtained” 〔T39n1788 0308b05〕. This judgment reads Yijing’s Chapters 16 and 17 together as two divisions of giving material goods. Within the present chapter, Huizhao further distinguishes four sections: seeing those who propagate the sūtra and supplying the four requisites; explaining the cause that enables her to supply them while also clarifying repayment of beneficence; exhorting people to practice accordingly; and the Buddha’s praise that completes the exhortation. These four divisions serve only as a doctrinal index and are not inserted into the sūtra as if they were its own headings.

II. Alternate Translations · Collation of the Three Translations

Chapter Titles, Boundaries, and Division or Combination

The single Deity of Merit chapter in T663 and T664 does not have exactly the same complete boundary as Yijing’s Chapter 16: its first half corresponds to this chapter and its second half to Yijing’s Chapter 17. Continuous sūtra text establishes the division. The second half of T663 begins, 「於此北方，毘沙門天王有城名曰阿尼曼陀，其城有園名功德華光」—“In the north here, the heavenly king Vaiśravaṇa has a city named Animanda, and in that city there is a garden named Merit-Flower Radiance” 〔T16n0663 0345a28〕. T664 begins it, 「於此北方毘沙門王，有城名曰阿尼曼陀，其城有園名功德華光」—“In the north here, King Vaiśravaṇa has a city named Animanda, and in that city there is a garden named Merit-Flower Radiance” 〔T16n0664 0388b02〕. The corresponding passage in Yijing’s Chapter 17 begins, 「北方薜室羅末拏天王城名有財，去城不遠，有園名曰妙華福光」—“In the north, the city of the heavenly king Vaiśravaṇa is named Possessor of Wealth; not far from the city is a garden named Wondrous-Flower Merit Radiance” 〔T16n0665 0439b05〕. All three passages continue in the same sequence with the city and garden, a purified chamber, bathing and putting on clean clothes, invoking the name and making offerings, the phrases of invitation, and undertaking precepts for seven days. This apparatus therefore records only the correspondence of division and combination; it does not infer why Yijing divided the chapters as he did.

Within this fascicle, T664 additionally bears the attribution 「北涼三藏曇無讖譯」—“Translated by the Tripiṭaka Master Dharmakṣema of Northern Liang” 〔T16n0664 0388a09, third occurrence in the complete text〕; the attribution is simply recorded where it appears. In the opening section of all three recensions, the Goddess of Great Auspiciousness and the Deity of Merit alike vow to supply preachers with food, clothing, bedding, and medicine. They are therefore read in parallel as alternate translated names for the same deity; the difference of title alone is not used to posit two deities.

Correspondence in Nine Sections

Section eight occurs only within the T665 boundary corresponding to this chapter; section nine belongs to Chapter 17 after the division. Both are recorded in their extant forms, without treating presence or absence as grounds for a judgment of addition or omission.

Character-Level Variants in the First Half of T663 and T664

After punctuation is removed, the first two sections contain 374 characters in T663 and 372 in T664. There are six non-punctuation differences in the otherwise corresponding character sequence; all six are listed here:

Within the same character sequence, there are twenty-nine places where the punctuation between two adjacent characters differs. In the table, ∅ means that there is no punctuation between the two characters; it is not a character in the sūtra:

These six character-level variants and twenty-nine punctuation differences use only the first two sections of T663 and T664 as their denominator. The spell and interlinear notes in the second half belong to the boundary corresponding to Chapter 17 and are not included in this table.

Index of Variants across the Three Recensions

These differences form a parallel index only. Each recension retains its own characters: the readings are neither normalized across recensions nor used to decide which recension is superior.

III. Scriptural Grounds for the Consciousness-Only Meaning (the Point of the Eye)

Huizhao signs himself 「翻經沙門慧沼撰」—“Composed by the śramaṇa Huizhao, translator of scriptures” 〔T39n1788 0286b13, fifth occurrence〕. His principal commentary on this chapter begins at 0307c27 and ends at 0309a05. Passages around 0181c, 0182c, and 0191c belong to the fascicle’s general introduction or table of chapter titles, not to the line-by-line commentary on this chapter.

Explanation of the Name and of Division or Combination

The transmitted explanation of the name reads: 「釋名者，梵云摩訶〔此云大〕，室利〔此云吉祥〕，提婆仳此云天女，總名大吉祥天女。」—“As for explaining the name: Sanskrit mahā [here meaning ‘great’], śrī [here meaning ‘auspiciousness’], and devī here meaning ‘goddess’; together the name is Goddess of Great Auspiciousness” 〔T39n1788 0308a04〕. All three interlinear notes are retained as transmitted. Asked why the present material has been established as a separate chapter, Huizhao first answers, 「但為廣略有殊，故開合異。」—“It is only because the fuller and briefer treatments differ that their division and combination differ” 〔T39n1788 0308a08〕. He then gives two lines of explanation in response to the successive questions:

• One explanation says, 「化有萬途，理不一準。」—“Transformative activity has ten thousand paths; its principle does not follow a single fixed standard” 〔T39n1788 0308a14〕.
• Another says, 「又益辨、衣服為難，待求方得、增地味而為易，故不待求。神自主地，故益為易。」—“Again, increasing eloquence and clothing is difficult, so these are obtained only after being sought; increasing the earth’s richness is easy and therefore does not await a request. The deity herself governs the earth, so benefiting it is easy” 〔T39n1788 0308a14〕.
• On why a sūtra-holder must nevertheless request resources and wealth, he first says, 「上行持經自應得於四事，欲令成於福行，故復令其請求。」—“Above, one who practices by holding the sūtra should naturally obtain the four requisites; wishing to bring the person’s meritorious practice to completion, she therefore also has that person make a request” 〔T39n1788 0308a17〕.
• He further says, 「又自專弘經者，未以求於四事；為求四事者令使行經，故待依經學求方與。」—“Again, those personally devoted to propagating the sūtra do not seek the four requisites. For those who do seek the four requisites, she has them practice the sūtra; therefore she waits until they have learned the method of seeking according to the sūtra before giving them” 〔T39n1788 0308a18〕.

All four statements are parallel levels within the same response to difficulties. None is deleted in order to select another.

Two Explanations of the Goddess’s Destiny

Huizhao first transmits Paramārtha’s explanation: 「此初地菩薩，應作樹神王，領諸神隨所至處與他勝樂。勝樂即功德之果，故名功德天。外國呼神亦名天也。」—“This is a bodhisattva on the first ground, who responds by becoming a king of tree deities, leading the deities and giving others excellent happiness wherever she goes. Excellent happiness is the fruit of merit, so she is called the Deity of Merit. In foreign lands a deity is also called a god” 〔T39n1788 0308a21〕. He then gives his own explanation: 「今解：準經但云天女、不說為神，如下地神，即名神故。設有處說名樹神王者，如四天王亦名四天神王，以主神故名為神王，非必鬼趣。天女亦爾，是天趣攝。」—“My present explanation is this: according to the sūtra, it says only ‘goddess’ and does not call her a deity; below, the earth deity is explicitly called a deity. Even if somewhere she is called a king of tree deities, the four heavenly kings are likewise called the four god-kings: because they govern deities, they are called god-kings, not because they necessarily belong to the preta destiny. The goddess is the same and is included in the destiny of gods” 〔T39n1788 0308a24〕. The former explanation understands her as manifesting as a king of tree deities; the latter understands her as included in the destiny of gods. Both are recorded without adjudicating.

Four Divisions, Benefits, and Exhortation to Learn

Huizhao divides the chapter into four sections and further analyzes the first into the protocol for requesting benefit, seeing the practice, and conferring its benefit; the benefit is then divided into worldly and supramundane. For the long-term benefits, he lists three levels: obtaining an excellent body, constant abundance and happiness, and the ability to benefit beings 〔T39n1788 0308b21〕. For encountering buddhas, awakening, and freedom from the three evil destinies, he gives three levels: encountering a buddha, attaining awakening, and realizing nirvāṇa 〔T39n1788 0308b25〕. These are the commentator’s divisions, not word-for-word headings in the sūtra.

Huizhao explains the three modes of following spoken by the goddess as follows: 「隨所念，他心通所緣。」—“Whatever is thought of is the object of the superknowledge that knows others’ minds” 〔T39n1788 0308c09〕; 「隨所視方，天眼通所見。」—“Whatever direction is viewed is what the superknowledge of the divine eye sees” 〔T39n1788 0308c10〕; and 「隨所至，神境通所至。」—“Wherever she arrives is where the superknowledge of miraculous states reaches” 〔T39n1788 0308c10〕. The sūtra itself speaks only of a thought-of place, a viewed direction, and a reached country; the names of the three superknowledges belong specifically to the commentary layer.

On the enumeration of precious objects, Huizhao says, 「此中八寶，餘多說七，七寶說處亦復不同。」—“Here there are eight treasures; elsewhere seven are more often taught, and the places that teach seven also differ” 〔T39n1788 0308c11〕. He then cites an ancient treatise: 「隨方所重，說七有別。」—“Because different regions prize different things, their accounts of the seven differ” 〔T39n1788 0308c12〕. This resolves a difficulty concerning seven and eight; it is not used to delete or alter the eight names of treasures in this sūtra.

Concerning those reached by the exhortation to learn, Huizhao preserves two readings: 「若準真諦，前益法師、此益聽者。今意通二。」—“According to Paramārtha, the preceding passage benefits the Dharma teacher and this one benefits the listener. In my present understanding, it applies to both” 〔T39n1788 0308c19〕. He then analyzes the prose into five items: reading and reciting for oneself, the protocol for reading and reciting, making offerings to the goddess, exhorting others to listen, and concluding the benefits. He also analyzes the six-line verse into eight meanings: freedom from decline for oneself and one’s retinue; no want of clothing or food; radiance and long life; increased richness of the earth; rain falling at the proper time; rejoicing among gods and deities; flourishing of the hundred grains; and fulfillment of all that is thought of 〔T39n1788 0308c28〕. The six lines and the eight meanings belong respectively to the verse form and the commentator’s analysis; neither is rewritten as the other.

IV. Explanations of Various Masters

Zhiyi’s Words and Phrases on the Sūtra of Golden Light, T39n1785

The fascicle opens with the attributions 「隋天台智者大師說」—“Taught by the Great Tiantai Master Zhizhe of the Sui” 〔T39n1785 0046b26〕 and 「門人灌頂錄」—“Recorded by his disciple Guanding” 〔T39n1785 0046b27〕. Its dedicated heading is 「釋功德天品」—“Explaining the Deity of Merit Chapter” 〔T39n1785 0076b17〕. The line-by-line commentary first explains in general: 「此天住福德莊嚴法門攝一切法，而以功德為首，故言功德天。又能與說者所須無所乏少，故名功德天。又令說者晝夜思惟是經深義，故名功德天。又令聽者速成菩提。具此眾義，故名〈功德天品〉。此是天王護經第三意，福資請說及以聽者。」—“This deity abides in the Dharma gate of adornment with merit, which gathers in all dharmas and takes merit as foremost; therefore she is called the Deity of Merit. She can also give preachers whatever they need so that they lack nothing; therefore she is called the Deity of Merit. She also enables preachers to contemplate this sūtra’s profound meaning day and night; therefore she is called the Deity of Merit. She also enables listeners to accomplish awakening swiftly. Because she possesses all these meanings, the chapter is called The Deity of Merit. This is the third intention in the heavenly kings’ protection of the sūtra: merit supplies those who request the teaching, those who preach, and those who listen” 〔T39n1785 0076b18〕. The six subsequent divisions are provision of the four requisites, the source of the merit, exhortation and disclosure of the method of practice, the vow to be present and lend support, the request that fellow practitioners accompany her, and a separate disclosure of reverence and refuge 〔0076b23–b29〕. The first two and the brief disclosure under the third illuminate Chapter 16; the detailed disclosure under the third and the last three divisions continue into Chapter 17. The single old-recension chapter is not incorrectly compressed into one chapter of Yijing’s recension.

Zhili’s Record on the Words and Phrases of the Sūtra of Golden Light, T39n1786

This work bears the attribution 「宋四明沙門釋知禮述」—“Set forth by the śramaṇa Zhili of Siming in the Song” 〔T39n1786 0083b07〕 and is a line-by-line record explaining Zhiyi’s Words and Phrases. Its heading for the present chapter explicitly reads 「第三、〈功德天品〉」—“Third: The Deity of Merit Chapter” 〔T39n1786 0143a27〕; this is not a cross-reference. In explaining the title, Zhili first says that merit supports wisdom and that merit and wisdom together adorn the fundamental principle; he also says, 「若總若別，皆金光明一體異名也。」—“Whether taken generally or separately, all are different names for the one substance of golden light” 〔T39n1786 0143b01〕. He then explains the Deity of Merit as encompassing all while taking merit as foremost and correlates the reading with the four siddhāntas: worldly convention, individual adaptation, counteraction, and ultimate meaning.

The line-by-line explanation directly marks, 「初、誓給四事。即經所列衣服、飲食、臥具、醫藥也。及餘資產者，即四事之外，一切資具產生之物也。」—“First, she vows to supply the four requisites: precisely the clothing, food, bedding, and medicine listed in the sūtra. ‘And other resources’ means every object of support and sustenance beyond the four requisites” 〔T39n1786 0143b09〕. Next it says, 「二、明福德之由。述過去世值佛修證金光明法門，故，能今日隨弘經處有求皆與。」—“Second, it explains the source of the merit. It recounts that in a past life she encountered a buddha and cultivated and realized the golden-light Dharma gate; therefore, today, wherever the sūtra is propagated, she grants whatever is sought” 〔T39n1786 0143b11〕. At 「三、勸示行法，二：初、略勸示；二、廣勸示。」—“Third, exhorting and disclosing the method of practice, in two parts: first, a brief exhortation and disclosure; second, a detailed exhortation and disclosure” 〔T39n1786 0143b20〕, the brief disclosure still corresponds to this chapter, while what follows under the detailed disclosure moves into the second half of the old recension’s chapter and corresponds to Yijing’s Chapter 17. The record follows the old recension line by line; it does not import the subsequent spell material backward into Chapter 16.

Jizang’s Commentary on the Sūtra of Golden Light, T39n1787

The work bears the attribution 「沙門吉藏撰」—“Composed by the śramaṇa Jizang” 〔T39n1787 0160a27〕. Its line-by-line commentary on this chapter begins: 「〈功德天品〉　此神迹在樹神之王，隨所至處與他勝樂，故名功德。外國呼神亦名為天。此神本是初地，初地具足檀波羅蜜，故有財物自在行也。」—“The Deity of Merit Chapter. This deity’s manifested trace is as a king of tree deities. Wherever she goes she gives others excellent happiness, and therefore is named Merit. In foreign lands a deity is also called a god. This deity is fundamentally on the first ground; the first ground fulfills the perfection of giving, and therefore she practices with sovereignty over material goods” 〔T39n1787 0168a20〕. Jizang further divides the material into two main sections, for preachers and for the audience, and says, 「故能以慈心隨所念方、以天眼隨所視方、以身通隨所至方，令眾生受樂、七寶具足也。」—“Thus, with a compassionate mind she follows whatever direction is thought of, with the divine eye she follows whatever direction is viewed, and with bodily superknowledge she follows whatever direction is reached, enabling sentient beings to receive happiness and possess the seven treasures in full” 〔T39n1787 0168b02〕. The king of tree deities, the first ground, the perfection of giving, and the three superknowledges are all Jizang’s judgments. The ensuing section marked 「初略明」—“First, a brief explanation” 〔0168b05〕 continues through 「物也」—“objects” 〔0168b10〕 and still illuminates this chapter’s concluding reading and recitation, offerings, wealth, richness of the earth, grain, and fruit. Beginning with 「第二段亦二」—“The second section likewise has two parts” 〔0168b10〕, the detailed explanation of the northern city and garden, the spell, and the seven-day practice corresponds to Yijing’s Chapter 17; b10 is a mixed line.

Zhili’s Supplementary Record on the Profound Meaning of the Sūtra of Golden Light, T39n1784

This work bears the attribution 「宋四明沙門知禮述」—“Set forth by the śramaṇa Zhili of Siming in the Song” 〔T39n1784 0012b05〕. It explains the Profound Meaning, not the preceding Record on the Words and Phrases. The work contains no line-by-line heading for this chapter; its sole collateral illumination occurs in a general discussion of the profound meaning: 「〈堅牢地神品〉、〈大辯天品〉、〈功德天品〉，各於品內廣明饒益行經之者。此諸菩薩及諸天神，多是古佛却來，或乃分真垂應，遙禮稱揚如來功德，護持饒益說聽之人，皆為宗奉經王、流通方等，若非法門至妙，曷能裨贊惟勤。」—“The Earth Deity Firm and Steadfast, Great Eloquence, and Deity of Merit chapters each explain at length within the chapter how those who practice the sūtra are benefited. These bodhisattvas and heavenly deities are for the most part ancient buddhas who have returned; some have manifested responses from partial realization. From afar they revere and praise the Tathāgata’s merit and protect, uphold, and benefit those who preach and hear, all in order to honor the king of sūtras and circulate the Vaipulya teaching. If the Dharma gate were not supremely wondrous, how could they support and praise it with such diligence?” 〔T39n1784 0014b18〕. It is therefore listed only as collateral testimony on the profound-meaning layer and is not falsely represented as another line-by-line commentary.

V. Terminology

Goddess of Great Auspiciousness and Deity of Merit

Huizhao explains mahā, śrī, and devī respectively as great, auspiciousness, and goddess; T665 accordingly reads Goddess of Great Auspiciousness. T663, T664, and all the commentaries on the old recension read Deity of Merit. The three recensions correspond section by section in such principal elements as the object of offering, the four requisites, and the past cause, so the alternate names are set beside one another without replacing one by the other.

The Four Requisites and Other Supports

The four requisites are food, clothing, bedding, and medicine. The sūtra additionally speaks of every other necessary support; Zhili’s line-by-line record likewise explains other resources as all supports beyond the four requisites. The general name “four requisites” therefore must not erase the sūtra’s other supports, and the enumeration of jewels must not be compressed into the single generic term “wealth.”

Three Spatial Terms and Three Superknowledges

T665 gives, in order, whatever place is thought of, whatever direction is viewed, and whatever country is reached; both old recensions use “direction” for all three. Huizhao and Jizang further correlate them with three superknowledges. The present text preserves the base recension’s distinction among place, direction, and country; the three superknowledges appear only as the ancient commentators’ interpretive layer.

Original Characters for the Eight Treasures

T665 lists gold, silver, beryl, giant-clam shell, agate, coral, amber, pearl, and other precious objects; among the transmitted characters, 𤦲 is rare. Huizhao’s cited wording instead has 硨磲、碼碯、琥珀; T663 and T664 further differ as 琥珀、虎魄、壁玉、璧玉. Each is the wording of its own witness, and they are not normalized into a single set of standard characters.

VI. Similes · Rhetoric

The chapter establishes no separate simile. Its rhetorical center is the shift from prose into six lines of verse, which brings the fruits of propagating the sūtra to bear on oneself and one’s retinue, clothing and food, radiance and lifespan, the richness of the earth, timely rain, the assembly of gods and the deities of gardens, forests, grain, and fruit, groves and fruit trees, shoots and crops, precious wealth, and whatever is thought of. The original verse reads: 「由能如是持經故，自身眷屬離諸衰；所須衣食無乏時，威光壽命難窮盡。能令地味常增長，諸天降雨隨時節；令諸天眾咸歡悅，及以園林穀果神。叢林果樹並滋榮，所有苗稼咸成就；欲求珍財皆滿願，隨所念者遂其心。」—“Because they are able to uphold the sūtra in this way, they themselves and their retinues are freed from every decline; they never lack the clothing and food they require, and the reach of their majestic radiance and lifespan is difficult to exhaust. She can cause the earth’s richness always to increase, while the gods send rain in accord with the seasons; she causes the whole assembly of gods to rejoice, together with the deities of gardens, forests, grain, and fruit. Groves and fruit trees alike grow luxuriantly, and all shoots and crops come to fruition; those who seek precious wealth have every wish fulfilled, and whatever they think of accords with their hearts” 〔T16n0665 0439a23–a28〕.

Through paired lines, the verse moves outward from the human body to the earth, the timing of rain, and crops, and then returns to what is sought and thought. Huizhao analyzes the six lines as eight meanings, which is a new division of their content; it does not alter the six-line form. The corresponding material on the earth’s richness, grain, fruit, and necessities in T663 and T664 is prose. This apparatus records the difference in literary form without deciding a sequence in which prose was changed into verse or verse into prose.

VII. Cross-Reading · Carrying Forward

In his general outline of circulation, Zhiyi connects the adjacent chapters on protecting the sūtra in sequence: 「〈功德天品〉誓以資財潤請者說者；〈地神品〉誓以地味膏腴味請處說處；〈散脂品〉誓以威武摧外敵壤內難，安於請說聽等也。又〈天王〉護其國，〈大辯〉護其師，〈功德〉護其眾，〈地神〉護其地，〈散脂〉禳其災，令經法大行也〔云云〕。」—“The Deity of Merit Chapter vows to enrich those who request and preach with material wealth; the Earth Deity Chapter vows to enrich the earth’s flavor at the places of request and preaching; the Sañjñeya Chapter vows to use majestic force to crush external enemies, destroy internal troubles, and secure those who request, preach, and listen. Again, the Heavenly Kings protect the realm, Great Eloquence protects its teacher, Merit protects its assembly, the Earth Deity protects its land, and Sañjñeya averts its disasters, causing the Dharma of the sūtra to flourish [and so forth]” 〔T39n1785 0073c07〕. The present chapter can thus be read across the preceding chapter’s attainment of eloquence, the following chapter’s method for obtaining wealth, and the next chapter’s increase of the earth’s richness, while every function remains on the textual and ancient-commentary layer of its own chapter.

Across the three translations’ divisions and combinations, Chapter 16 carries forward only the first half of the old translations’ single Deity of Merit Chapter; the northern city and garden, the phrases of invitation, and the spell continue as Chapter 17. Looking back, the sequence moves from protection of a preacher’s eloquence to the preacher’s clothing, food, and supports; looking ahead, it moves from the vow to supply the four requisites to the method by which they are sought. This carrying forward preserves both the boundary between Yijing’s two chapters and the continuity within the old translations’ single chapter.

VIII. Placement of the Editions

• Base recension: T16n0665, chapter title at 0438c24–c25, chapter body at 0438c26–0439b02, containing 539 characters.
• Alternate translations: first half of T16n0663 at 0345a05–a27; first half of T16n0664 at 0388a10–b01. The attribution in the fascicle of T664 occurs at 0388a09.
• Huizhao’s principal commentary: T39n1788 at 0307c27–0309a05; the attribution used here is the fifth occurrence at 0286b13.
• Zhiyi’s line-by-line commentary: T39n1785 at 0076b17–b29, with the general circulation outline at 0073c07 used as collateral illumination.
• Zhili’s line-by-line record: T39n1786 at 0143a27–c22; 0143a27–b20 directly illuminates this chapter, 0143b21 marks the transition between the brief and detailed disclosures, and the detailed material illuminates Chapter 17.
• Jizang’s line-by-line commentary: T39n1787 at 0168a20–b29; the material beginning at 0168a20 illuminates this chapter through 「物也」—“objects” 〔0168b10〕, while the material beginning with 「第二段亦二」—“The second section likewise has two parts” 〔0168b10〕 crosses into Chapter 17; b10 is a mixed line.
• Zhili’s record on the profound meaning: T39n1784 has only collateral illumination at 0014b18, not a line-by-line commentary on this chapter.
• This chapter contains only prose, six lines of verse, and the Buddha’s praise; it has no spell or dhāraṇī transcription. The spell in the second half of the old translations’ single chapter belongs to the boundary corresponding to Yijing’s Chapter 17.

The cited authorities are limited to sūtras and ancient masters; alternate translations, cited sūtra text, and commentarial judgments are separately identified. These locations are supplied for consultation: they neither replace the source-layer text nor judge the superiority of an edition. From protecting what those who propagate the sūtra need to the following chapter’s method for obtaining wealth, the two chapters continue in sequence according to their respective boundaries.