大乘莊嚴經論 序——現代漢語讀本
太子右庶子安平男臣李百藥 奉 勅序
臣聞：天帝受無上之法，景福會昌；輪王致正真之道，神祇合德。是則聖人執契，玄化潛通；至誠所感，冥功斯應。皇情西顧、法海東流，如開洪範之圖、似得圓光之夢。持綫妙典，發金口而祕綸言；書葉舊章，自龍宮而升麟閣。
昔迦維馭世，大啟法門，懸明鏡於無象、運虛舟於彼岸。空有兼謝、生滅俱忘，絕智希夷之表、遺形動寂之外。然隨緣利見、應跡生知，震大地而萃人天、放神光而掩日月，百億須彌俱霑聲教、三千世界盡入隄封。愍三毒之韁鎖、矜五蔭之纏蓋，惜飛電於浮生、歎懸藤於逝水。八關云闢，開慧識於幽塗；三乘方軌，運慈心於朽宅。龍興霧集，神動天隨。大道為心，望法雲而遐舉；聞聲悟道，漸初地而依仁。遷㮈苑之喬枝、入祇園之隩室，酌智水之餘潤、承慧日之末光。
既而稅駕連河、歸真雙樹，聖靈逾遠、像教浸微，大義或乖、斯文將墜。穿鑿異端、分析多緒，是末非古、殊塗別派。天親初學之輩，尚致西河之疑；龍樹究竟之儔，彌深東魯之歎。仰惟法寶，盡諦無為。故經文云：佛以法為師，佛從法生、佛依法住。豈止研幾盡性、妙物窮神，出入無間、苞含元氣而已！
若夫惟天為大，寒暑運其功；謂地蓋厚，山澤通其氣。是以姬文以大聖之姿幽贊易道、丘明懷同恥之德祖述微言，諸經著論、俯同斯旨。大乘莊嚴論者，無著菩薩纂焉。菩薩以如來滅度之後，含章秀發，三十二相具體而微，八千億結承風俱解，弘通正法、莊飾經王，明真如功德之宗、顯大士位行之地，破小乘執著、成大乘綱紀。其菩提一品最為微妙，轉八識以成四智、束四智以具三身，詳諸經論所未曾有，可謂聞所未聞、見所未見。
聖上受飛行之寶命、總步驟於前王，屈天師之尊，智周萬物；應人皇之運，道照三明。慈惠外宣、神機內湛，端扆而役百靈、垂拱而朝萬國，彌綸造化之初、含吐陰陽之際，功成作樂既章韶舞，治定制禮言動翠華。金輪所王，封疆之固惟遠；芥城雖滿，龜鼎之祚無窮。光闡大猷，開導群品，凡諸內典，盡令翻譯。
摩伽陀國三藏法師波羅頗蜜多羅，唐言明友，即中天竺剎利王之種姓也，以大唐貞觀元年十二月入京。法師戒行精勤、才識明敏，至德隣于初果、多能亞夫將聖，繼澄、什之清塵來儀上國，摽生、遠之逸氣高步玄門，帝心簡在，皇儲禮敬。其博聞強記、探幽洞微，京城大德莫不推許。粵以貞觀四年，恭承明詔。又勅尚書左僕射䢴國公房玄齡、散騎常侍行太子左庶子杜正倫銓定，義學法師慧乘、慧朗、法常、智解、曇藏、智首、道岳、慧明、僧辯、僧珍、法琳、靈佳、慧賾、慧淨、玄謨、僧伽等，於勝光寺共成勝業。又勅太府卿蘭陵男蕭璟監掌修緝。
三藏法師云：外國凡大小乘學，悉以此論為本；若於此不通，未可弘法。是以覃思專精，特加研究。慧淨法師，聰敏博識，受旨綴文。玄謨法師，善達方言，又兼義解，至心譯語，一無紕謬。以七年獻春之始撰定斯畢，勒成十有三卷二十四品。勅太子右庶子安平男李百藥序之云爾。
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.
〔序題〕《大乘莊嚴經論》的序。太子右庶子、安平縣男，臣李百藥，奉皇帝之命作序。
〔一·佛法東來〕（0589b25）臣聽說：天帝領受了至高無上的法，福報因此興盛；轉輪聖王成就了正大真實的道，天地神明也與他同心同德。可見，聖人只要把握住根本的道理，那無形的教化自會暗中相通；心誠到了極點，冥冥之中就有回應。如今皇上心向西方（佛法的源頭），佛法也就東流到了中土——就像《尚書·洪範》那篇天賜的圖譜被打開，又像漢明帝夢見頭頂放光的金人（佛教傳入中國的預兆）一樣。佛陀親口宣說的精妙經典，藏著深密的教法；那些寫在貝葉上的古老典籍，從龍宮被取出（龍樹入龍宮得大乘經的典故），如今又送進了朝廷的藏書樓。
〔二·佛的出世與化迹〕（0589c01）從前佛陀在迦毗羅衛（釋迦牟尼的故鄉）出世，大開法門，像把一面明鏡懸在無形之境，又像駕著一隻空船，把眾生渡向彼岸。在祂那裡，「空」和「有」一齊消解，「生」和「滅」都被忘卻，超出了思慮言說所能及的範圍，也脫離了形跡的動與靜。然而祂又隨順因緣、為利益眾生而示現，順著根機讓人和天人生起正見：祂震動大地，把人、天都聚攏過來；放出神光，連日月都被蓋過——億萬座須彌山都沐浴在祂的教法聲中，三千大千世界全歸入祂的化境。祂憐憫眾生被貪、瞋、癡三毒像韁繩枷鎖一樣捆住，悲憫他們被五蘊像羅網一樣纏蓋，痛惜這漂浮的人生短得像一道閃電，感歎生命危脆得像懸在急流上的一根藤。祂開啟八關齋戒之門，在黑暗險路上點亮智慧之燈；鋪設三乘的軌道，把慈悲送進這快要朽壞的房子（『火宅』，比喻三界）裡。祂就像龍一升起、雲霧就聚攏，神一發動、上天就隨應。凡是立志追求大道的人，仰望「法雲」便高高飛起；凡是聽到法音而覺悟的人，漸漸登上初地、安住於仁。祂停在菴沒羅園（一座芒果園）的高枝下，住進祇園（祇樹給孤獨園）的深室裡，汲取智慧之水的餘潤，承接智慧之日的餘光。
〔三·滅度後正法衰微〕（0589c11）後來，佛陀在尼連禪河邊停下車駕，在兩棵娑羅樹之間歸於寂滅（涅槃）。從此聖者的神靈一天天遠去，佛像住世之教（像法時期）也漸漸衰微，佛法大義有的被講歪了，這部正法眼看就要失傳。人們牽強附會、鑽進各種異端，把頭緒越分越多——崇尚晚近、否定古義，各走各的路、各立各的派。連世親（天親）門下那些初學的人，都生出了像「西河之疑」那樣的誤會（子夏在西河講學，門人竟把他錯當成孔子，比喻學人辨識不清）；連龍樹那樣徹底證悟的同道，也更深地發出「東魯之歎」（東魯是孔子的故鄉，借指對聖道衰落的感慨）。我恭敬地想：法寶才是究竟的真理、本來就無為。所以經上說：佛以法為師，佛從法而生，佛依法而住。這哪裡只是窮究精微、看透萬物之妙、出入無礙、包含元氣而已呢！（法的尊貴，遠不止於此。）
〔四·無著編纂此論·菩提品為全書之眼〕（0589c18）說到底——天之所以稱「大」，是因為它用寒來暑往運行著功能；地之所以稱「厚」，是因為它靠山川湖澤通著氣脈（天地各憑自己的德性化育萬物）。正因如此，周文王憑著大聖人的資質，幽微地闡發了《易經》的道理；左丘明懷著『以巧言令色為恥』的品德（出自《論語》），傳述並闡明了聖人的微言大義——歷來在佛經之上著述成論的，都不外乎這同一個用意（借周文王、左丘明，比喻無著著論以闡發佛經）。《大乘莊嚴論》，就是無著菩薩編纂的。菩薩在如來滅度之後，內蘊的文采煥發出來，三十二相已大體具備（只是略遜於佛），八千億的煩惱結使隨著教法之風一齊解開。他弘揚流通正法、莊嚴裝飾這部『經中之王』，闡明真如與功德的根本，彰顯菩薩的果位與修行境地，破除小乘的執著、確立大乘的綱紀。其中〈菩提品〉最為精妙——把八識轉成四智，再把四智收束起來、成就三身；這樣詳盡的講法，是歷來經、論中從未有過的，真可說是聞所未聞、見所未見。
〔五·當朝聖君下詔翻譯〕（0589c28）當今皇上（唐太宗）承受了上天賦予的寶貴使命，整個治理的規模都超越了前代帝王。他能放下身段、屈尊禮敬高僧，智慧遍及萬物；順應人間帝王的氣運，道德映照三明。慈惠向外宣布，神機在內沉靜；端坐朝堂就能調度百神，垂衣拱手就能讓萬國來朝。他統理天地化育之初、吐納陰陽交替之際；功業告成便制作禮樂、奏起《韶》舞，天下安定便制定禮儀、舉手投足都牽動著飾有翠羽的鑾駕。金輪王所統轄的疆土，邊防牢固而遼遠；縱使「芥城」裝滿（用來比喻劫的漫長），國運（龜、鼎所象徵）也無窮無盡。他光大、闡揚佛法大道，開導眾生，下令把所有的佛教典籍（內典）全部翻譯出來。
〔六·譯主波羅頗與譯場〕（0590a06）摩揭陀國的三藏法師波羅頗蜜多羅，漢語譯作「明友」，出身中印度的剎帝利王族，在大唐貞觀元年（627年）十二月進入京城。法師持戒精嚴、勤勉，才識明敏，最高的德行已接近初果，多方面的才能僅次於近乎聖人的人。他承接著佛圖澄、鳩摩羅什的清風餘韻來到上國，又帶著竺道生、慧遠那樣超逸的氣度高步於佛門；皇帝把他記在心上，太子也以禮相待。論博聞強記、探幽洞微，京城的高僧大德沒有不推崇讚許的。於是在貞觀四年（630年），他恭敬地接受了皇帝的明詔。皇帝又下令：讓尚書左僕射、邘國公房玄齡，和散騎常侍、代理太子左庶子的杜正倫負責審定；讓義學法師慧乘、慧朗、法常、智解、曇藏、智首、道岳、慧明、僧辯、僧珍、法琳、靈佳、慧賾、慧淨、玄謨、僧伽等人，在勝光寺一同完成這樁盛事。又下令讓太府卿、蘭陵縣男蕭璟總管監督編訂。
〔七·此論為根本·譯成卷品〕（0590a19）三藏法師（波羅頗）說：『在印度，凡是研究大乘、小乘佛學的人，都把這部論當作根本；要是這部論讀不通，就沒法弘揚佛法。』因此譯經的眾人都深入鑽研、格外用心。慧淨法師聰明博學，負責領受旨意、裁定文辭；玄謨法師精通梵語、又兼通義理，用心翻譯，沒有一處差錯。到貞觀七年（633年）正月初，全部定稿完成，編成十三卷、二十四品。皇帝於是下令讓太子右庶子、安平縣男李百藥作了這篇序——就是這樣。
〔Preface title〕 Preface to the Treatise Adorning the Mahāyāna Scriptures (《大乘莊嚴經論》). Composed by imperial command by your servant Li Baiyao, Right Mentor to the Crown Prince and Viscount of Anping.
〔1 · The Dharma comes east〕 (0589b25) Your servant has heard it said: when the Lord of Heaven received the unsurpassed Dharma, his blessings grew abundant; when the wheel-turning king accomplished the true and upright Way, the spirits of heaven and earth were of one virtue with him. So it is that a sage need only hold fast to the root of the matter, and its unseen transforming power quietly reaches everywhere; where sincerity is complete, a hidden response answers it in the unseen. Now His Majesty's heart turns toward the West (the source of the Dharma), and so the Dharma has flowed east into these central lands — as when the heaven-sent chart of the Great Plan was unrolled (the "Hongfan" chapter of the Book of Documents), and as when Emperor Ming of Han dreamed of the golden man with light streaming from his head (the omen that Buddhism was coming to China). The Buddha's own mouth spoke the wondrous scriptures, holding a teaching deep and secret; and those ancient records written on palm leaves, once brought out from the Nāga palace (Nāgārjuna's descent into the Nāga palace, where he obtained the Mahāyāna scriptures), have now been carried up into the imperial library.
〔2 · The Buddha's coming into the world and his saving work〕 (0589c01) Long ago the Buddha came into the world at Kapilavastu (Śākyamuni's homeland), threw open the gate of the Dharma, and — like a bright mirror hung up in the formless, like an empty boat that ferries beings across — carried living beings to the far shore. In him "emptiness" and "existence" dissolve together, "arising" and "ceasing" are both let go; he passes beyond all that thought and speech can reach, and stands free of every trace, past both motion and stillness. And yet, following conditions and appearing for the good of beings, he manifested himself and — in accord with each capacity — awakened right understanding in gods and men: he shook the great earth and gathered gods and men to him; he sent out a divine radiance that outshone the sun and moon — hundreds of millions of Mount Sumerus all bathed in the sound of his teaching, the whole vast thousandfold universe drawn into the field of his transforming work. Pitying beings bound by the three poisons of greed, hatred, and delusion as though by rope and shackle, grieving for them wrapped and covered by the five aggregates as though by a net, he mourned that this drifting life is as brief as a flash of lightning, and sighed that a life is as fragile as a vine hanging over a rushing stream. He opened the gate of the eight-precept observance, lighting the lamp of wisdom along the dark and dangerous road; he laid down the track of the three vehicles, carrying his compassion into this house on the verge of ruin (the "burning house," a figure for the three realms). He was like a dragon rising and the mist gathering to it, like a spirit stirring and heaven answering. Those who set their hearts on the great Way gaze at the "Dharma-cloud" and soar aloft; those who hear the sound of the teaching and awaken climb by degrees to the first ground and rest in benevolence. He lingered beneath the tall boughs of the Āmra grove (a mango garden), dwelt in the inner chamber of the Jeta grove (the Jetavana, Anāthapiṇḍada's park), drawing on the lingering moisture of the water of wisdom and receiving the last light of the sun of wisdom.
〔3 · After the passing, the true Dharma wanes〕 (0589c11) In time the Buddha halted his carriage by the Nairañjanā river and passed into final peace between the twin sāla trees (the Parinirvāṇa). From then on the sage's spirit grew more remote with each day, and the age of the image-teaching (the era of the semblance Dharma) slowly declined; the great meaning of the Dharma was in places distorted, and this true teaching stood on the verge of being lost. People forced strained readings and burrowed into one heterodoxy after another, splitting the tradition into more and more tangled strands — prizing the recent and denying the ancient, each taking his own road and setting up his own school. Even the beginning students in Vasubandhu's own line fell into confusions like the "Xihe mistake" (when Zixia taught at Xihe, his students mistook him for Confucius himself — a figure for disciples who cannot tell rightly what they are looking at); even those of complete realization, the peers of Nāgārjuna, only sighed the more deeply the "Eastern Lu lament" (Lu was Confucius's homeland — a figure for grief at the decline of the sage's Way). Reverently I consider this: the Dharma-jewel alone is the final truth, unconditioned in its very nature. This is why the scripture says: the Buddha takes the Dharma as his teacher; the Buddha is born from the Dharma; the Buddha abides by the Dharma. How could its worth be merely to fathom the subtle and see through the nature of things, to move in and out without hindrance and hold within it the primal breath of the world! (The Dharma's honour reaches far beyond even this.)
〔4 · Asaṅga compiled this treatise; the Bodhi chapter is the eye of the whole book〕 (0589c18) In the end — Heaven is called "great" because it works its powers through the round of cold and heat; Earth is called "thick" because it circulates its breath through mountains and marshes (each, by its own nature, brings all things to completion). In just this way, King Wen of Zhou, with the stature of a great sage, subtly drew out the Way of the Book of Changes, and Zuo Qiuming, holding to the virtue of being "ashamed of flattering words and a fawning face" (from the Analects), transmitted and set forth the sage's subtle words — all who have ever composed treatises upon the scriptures share this one same purpose (King Wen and Zuo Qiuming stand here for how Asaṅga composed a treatise to draw out the meaning of the Buddha's scriptures). The Treatise Adorning the Mahāyāna Scriptures was compiled by the Bodhisattva Asaṅga. After the Tathāgata's passing, the Bodhisattva — his inner brilliance breaking forth, the thirty-two marks nearly complete in him (falling only a little short of a Buddha), eight thousand million fetters loosed all at once at the wind of the teaching — spread the true Dharma abroad and adorned this "king among scriptures," making clear the root of Suchness and its qualities, setting forth the stages and practice-ground of the bodhisattvas, breaking the attachments of the Lesser Vehicle and establishing the framework of the Great Vehicle. Among its chapters the Bodhi chapter is the most subtle of all — it transforms the eight consciousnesses into the four wisdoms, then gathers the four wisdoms together to complete the three bodies; a treatment so full and detailed had never appeared in any scripture or treatise before, and may truly be called heard as never heard, seen as never seen.
〔5 · The present sage-sovereign decrees the translation〕 (0589c28) Our present sovereign (Emperor Taizong of Tang) has received the soaring mandate of Heaven, and the whole scope of his rule surpasses the kings before him. He can set aside his own station and humbly honour eminent monks, and his wisdom reaches through all things; answering the destiny of a human sovereign, his virtue shines with the three illuminations. His kindness is proclaimed outward while his divine insight rests still within; seated at the throne he directs the hundred spirits, and with robes hanging and hands folded he receives the homage of ten thousand kingdoms. He governs the very beginnings of creation and breathes in tune with the turning of yin and yang; his work accomplished, he made music and set forth the Shao dance; his rule secured, he ordained the rites, and his every movement stirs the kingfisher-plumed imperial canopy. The lands the golden-wheel king governs are guarded to their farthest borders; and though the "mustard-seed city" be filled to the brim (a figure for the vast length of an aeon), the fortune of his state (symbolized by the sacred tortoise and the ritual tripods) is without end. Making bright and setting forth the great design, guiding the multitude of beings, he decreed that all the Buddhist scriptures and treatises be translated in full.
〔6 · The chief translator Prabhākaramitra and the translation bureau〕 (0590a06) The Tripiṭaka master Prabhākaramitra of the kingdom of Magadha — his name rendered in the Tang tongue as "Bright-Friend" — came of the kṣatriya royal line of Central India, and entered the capital in the twelfth month of the first year of Zhenguan (627). Pure and diligent in his keeping of the precepts, bright and quick in learning and understanding, his highest attainment came near to the first fruit (of the path) and his many talents were second only to those all but sages. Carrying on the pure legacy of Fotucheng and Kumārajīva, he came in audience to this superior land, and with the free spirit of Daosheng and Huiyuan he strode high through the gate of the profound teaching; the Emperor held him in his regard, and the Crown Prince treated him with reverence. For breadth of learning and power of memory, and for probing the hidden and penetrating the subtle, not one of the great monks of the capital failed to esteem him. And so, in the fourth year of Zhenguan (630), he reverently received the clear imperial command. It was further decreed that Fang Xuanling — Left Vice-Director of the Department of State Affairs and Duke of Xing — together with Du Zhenglun — Cavalier Attendant-in-Ordinary, acting as the Crown Prince's Left Mentor — should review and finalize the work; and that the doctrinal masters Huicheng, Huilang, Fachang, Zhijie, Tanzang, Zhishou, Daoyue, Huiming, Sengbian, Sengzhen, Falin, Lingjia, Huize, Huijing, Xuanmo, Sengqie, and others, should together carry out this excellent undertaking at Shengguang Monastery. It was further decreed that Xiao Jing — Chamberlain of the Court of the Imperial Treasury and Viscount of Lanling — should have overall charge of overseeing and editing the work.
〔7 · This treatise is the root; the completed fascicles and chapters〕 (0590a19) The Tripiṭaka master (Prabhākaramitra) said: "Abroad, all who study the Great and Lesser Vehicles take this treatise as their root; one who does not master it cannot spread the Dharma." For this reason all who worked on the translation studied it deeply and gave it their special care. The Dharma master Huijing, keen and broadly learned, took charge of receiving the sense and shaping the wording; the Dharma master Xuanmo, well-versed in the Indian tongue and also skilled in doctrine, translated the words with the utmost care, without a single error. At the beginning of the first month of the seventh year (Zhenguan 7, 633), the whole redaction was completed, compiled into thirteen fascicles and twenty-four chapters. His Majesty then decreed that Li Baiyao — Right Mentor to the Crown Prince and Viscount of Anping — should compose this preface. And so it is.
考據Apparatus
本層立本論之源信——譯史（譯人·詔·場·年·卷品）皆序自證而以經錄、僧傳互核；典故隨段標其所出。
一 譯史（序自證·三證互核）
| 項 | 序文所載（出處） | 互核 |
|---|---|---|
| 譯主 | 摩伽陀國三藏法師波羅頗蜜多羅，唐言明友，中天竺剎利王種姓（0590a06） | 開元錄 T55n2154·三藏法師傳 T50n2053 |
| 入京 | 大唐貞觀元年（627）十二月入京（0590a07） | — |
| 奉詔 | 貞觀四年（630）恭承明詔（0590a12） | — |
| 譯訖 | 貞觀七年（633）獻春之始撰定斯畢（0590a23） | 奉詔與譯訖二年不可混；序自分明 |
| 譯場 | 勝光寺（0590a17） | — |
| 銓定／監掌 | 房玄齡（尚書左僕射·邘國公）、杜正倫（散騎常侍行太子左庶子）銓定（0590a14）；蕭璟（太府卿·蘭陵男）監掌修緝（0590a18） | — |
| 義學法師 | 慧乘、慧朗、法常、智解、曇藏、智首、道岳、慧明、僧辯、僧珍、法琳、靈佳、慧賾、慧淨、玄謨、僧伽 等（0590a15） | — |
| 綴文／譯語 | 慧淨受旨綴文；玄謨善達方言、兼義解，至心譯語、一無紕謬（0590a21） | — |
| 卷品 | 勒成十有三卷二十四品（0590a23） | 目錄核合（十三卷·二十四品） |
| 撰序 | 太子右庶子·安平男李百藥奉勅（0589b23·0590a24） | — |
二 典故（隨段·標其所出）
- 洪範之圖（0589b28）：《尚書·洪範》九疇（傳本河圖洛書之數）；喻聖王受天法之圖籙。
- 圓光之夢（0589b28）：漢明帝夢金人項佩日光，佛法入漢之兆（《後漢書》·《四十二章經》序）。
- 龍宮…麟閣（0589b29）：龍宮，龍樹入龍宮得大乘經（龍樹本傳）；麟閣，漢麒麟閣，皇家功臣與典藏。喻佛典自天竺升於唐廷。
- 迦維（0589c01）：迦維羅衛，佛之本生國。
- 希夷（0589c02）：《老子》第十四章「視之不見曰夷，聽之不聞曰希」；喻佛智超乎視聽。
- 朽宅（0589c08）：《法華·譬喻品》火宅喻，三界如火宅。
- 㮈苑·祇園（0589c10）：㮈苑，菴沒羅園；祇園，祇樹給孤獨園；皆佛常住說法之處。
- 連河·雙樹（0589c11）：連河，尼連禪河；雙樹，拘尸那娑羅雙樹，佛涅槃之處。
- 西河之疑（0589c13）：《史記·仲尼弟子列傳》子夏居西河教授，門人疑其為夫子；喻學人辨識之惑，移譬法義傳承之歧。
- 東魯之歎（0589c14）：東魯，孔子之鄉；歎，聖道衰微之慨（《論語·子罕》「鳳鳥不至」之歎類）。
- 佛以法為師，佛從法生、佛依法住（0589c16）：序標「經文云」。所出——《大方便佛報恩經》T03n0156（0157b12）：「佛以法為師，佛從法生；法是佛母，佛依法住。」序撮其文（略「法是佛母」一句）。其「以法為師」之義，亦見《大智度論》T1509 等。
- 姬文贊易（0589c19）：周文王演《易》（《繫辭傳》「文王演周易」）。
- 丘明同恥（0589c19）：左丘明；《論語·公冶長》「巧言令色足恭……左丘明恥之，丘亦恥之」；祖述微言，謂傳《春秋》之微言。以姬文、丘明二聖賢著述闡經，喻無著纂論以闡佛經。
三 經眼（序所獨標）
序標〈菩提品〉最為微妙：「轉八識以成四智、束四智以具三身」（0589c25），「詳諸經論所未曾有」。此即本論之眼（詳該品考據）；下游承用見成唯識論卷十四智三身、義林 T45n1861 0359b27。
四 撰者（序作「無著纂」）
序作：「大乘莊嚴論者，無著菩薩纂焉」（0589c21）；卷首另署：「無著菩薩造」。兩項傳承記載並錄，不以「纂」「造」互相化約。窺基《述記》0352b12 另判頌出彌勒、長行釋為世親；此為窺基之說。古德三說並錄而不判；本編署名從底本卷端所載「無著菩薩造」及「大唐天竺三藏波羅頗蜜多羅譯」。
This layer establishes the treatise's source-trust — the translation-history (the translator · the imperial decree · the translation-site · the years · the fascicles and chapters) is all attested by the preface itself and cross-checked against the ancient masters' scripture-catalogues and monk-biographies; the allusions are marked, passage by passage, with their sources.
I. Translation history (preface self-attestation · cross-checked, three witnesses)
| Item | As recorded in the preface (locus) | Cross-check |
|---|---|---|
| Translator | The Tripiṭaka Dharma-master of Magadha, 波羅頗蜜多羅 [Prabhākaramitra], in the Tang tongue 明友 ["Bright-Friend"], of the kṣatriya royal lineage of Central India (0590a06) | 開元錄 Kaiyuan Catalogue T55n2154 · 三藏法師傳 Biography of the Tripiṭaka Master T50n2053 |
| Entry to the capital | Entered the capital in the twelfth month of the first year of Zhenguan (627) [大唐貞觀元年（627）十二月] (0590a07) | — |
| Receiving the decree | In the fourth year of Zhenguan (630) [貞觀四年] he reverently received the clear command (0590a12) | — |
| Translation completed | In the seventh year of Zhenguan (633), at the opening of spring, the redaction was completed [貞觀七年（633）獻春之始撰定斯畢] (0590a23) | The receiving-of-the-decree and the completion, two years apart, are not to be conflated; the preface itself keeps them distinct |
| Translation-site | 勝光寺 [Shengguang Monastery] (0590a17) | — |
| Reviewing / overseeing | 房玄齡 [Fang Xuanling] (Left Vice-Director of the Department of State Affairs · Duke of Xing) and 杜正倫 [Du Zhenglun] (Cavalier Attendant-in-Ordinary, acting as the Crown Prince's Left Mentor) reviewed and finalized it (0590a14); 蕭璟 [Xiao Jing] (Chamberlain of the Court of the Imperial Treasury · Viscount of Lanling) had overall charge of the overseeing and editing (0590a18) | — |
| Doctrinal-scholar masters | 慧乘、慧朗、法常、智解、曇藏、智首、道岳、慧明、僧辯、僧珍、法琳、靈佳、慧賾、慧淨、玄謨、僧伽 [Huicheng, Huilang, Fachang, Zhijie, Tanzang, Zhishou, Daoyue, Huiming, Sengbian, Sengzhen, Falin, Lingjia, Huize, Huijing, Xuanmo, Sengqie] and others (0590a15) | — |
| Shaping the text / rendering the words | 慧淨 [Huijing] received the sense and shaped the wording; 玄謨 [Xuanmo], well-versed in the Indian tongue and also skilled in doctrine, rendered the words with utmost care, 「一無紕謬」 [without a single error] (0590a21) | — |
| Fascicles & chapters | 勒成十有三卷二十四品 [compiled into thirteen fascicles and twenty-four chapters] (0590a23) | Corroborated against the catalogues (thirteen fascicles · twenty-four chapters) |
| Composing the preface | 李百藥 [Li Baiyao], Right Mentor to the Crown Prince and Viscount of Anping, by imperial command (0589b23 · 0590a24) | — |
II. Allusions (per passage · marking each source)
- 洪範之圖 [the chart of the Great Plan] (0589b28): the Nine Categories of the "Hongfan" chapter of the Book of Documents (transmitted as the numbers of the He-tu and Luo-shu diagrams); a figure for the sage-king receiving Heaven's law as a chart.
- 圓光之夢 [the dream of the haloed one] (0589b28): Emperor Ming of Han dreamed of a golden man with sunlight ringing his head — the omen of Buddhism's coming into Han China (the Book of the Later Han; the preface to the Sūtra in Forty-two Sections).
- 龍宮…麟閣 [the Nāga palace … the Qilin Pavilion] (0589b29): the Nāga palace — Nāgārjuna's descent into the Nāga palace, where he obtained the Mahāyāna scriptures (Nāgārjuna's biography); the Qilin Pavilion — the Han-dynasty Pavilion of the Qilin, the imperial hall of meritorious officials and its archive. A figure for the Buddhist canon rising from India up into the Tang court.
- 迦維 [Kapila(vastu)] (0589c01): Kapilavastu, the land of the Buddha's birth.
- 希夷 [the rarefied and the inaudible] (0589c02): Laozi ch. 14, 「視之不見曰夷，聽之不聞曰希」 ["what is looked at and not seen is called yi; what is listened to and not heard is called xi"]; a figure for the Buddha's wisdom passing beyond sight and hearing.
- 朽宅 [the decaying house] (0589c08): the parable of the burning house in the "Parable" chapter of the Lotus Sūtra — the three realms are as a burning house.
- 㮈苑·祇園 [the Āmra grove · the Jeta grove] (0589c10): the Āmra grove, Āmrapālī's mango garden; the Jeta grove, the Jetavana of Anāthapiṇḍada; both places where the Buddha long abode and expounded the Dharma.
- 連河·雙樹 [the Nairañjanā river · the twin trees] (0589c11): the connecting river, the Nairañjanā; the twin trees, the pair of sāla trees at Kuśinagara — the place of the Buddha's Parinirvāṇa.
- 西河之疑 [the Xihe doubt] (0589c13): the Records of the Grand Historian, "Biographies of the Disciples of Confucius" — when Zixia taught at Xihe, his students doubted, mistaking him for the Master himself; a figure for disciples' confusion of recognition, here transferred to figure the branching astray of the Dharma's transmission.
- 東魯之歎 [the Eastern Lu lament] (0589c14): Eastern Lu, the homeland of Confucius; the lament, grief at the decline of the sage's Way (of a kind with the lament in the Analects, "Zihan": 「鳳鳥不至」 ["the phoenix does not come"]).
- 佛以法為師，佛從法生、佛依法住 [the Buddha takes the Dharma as teacher; the Buddha is born from the Dharma; the Buddha abides by the Dharma] (0589c16): the preface marks it 「經文云」 ["the scripture says"]. Source — the Sūtra on the Great Skillful Means of the Buddha's Requital of Kindness 《大方便佛報恩經》 T03n0156 (0157b12): 「佛以法為師，佛從法生；法是佛母，佛依法住。」 ["The Buddha takes the Dharma as teacher; the Buddha is born from the Dharma; the Dharma is the Buddha's mother; the Buddha abides by the Dharma."] The preface abridges the passage (dropping the line 「法是佛母」 ["the Dharma is the Buddha's mother"]). The sense of "taking the Dharma as teacher" is also seen in the Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom T1509 and elsewhere.
- 姬文贊易 [King Wen draws out the Changes] (0589c19): King Wen of Zhou elaborated the Book of Changes (the Xici Commentary: 「文王演周易」 ["King Wen elaborated the Zhou Changes"]).
- 丘明同恥 [Zuo Qiuming's shared shame] (0589c19): Zuo Qiuming; the Analects, "Gongye Chang," 「巧言令色足恭……左丘明恥之，丘亦恥之」 ["flattering words, an ingratiating face, and excessive deference … Zuo Qiuming was ashamed of these, and I too am ashamed of them"]; "transmitting and setting forth the subtle words" refers to his handing down the subtle words of the Spring and Autumn Annals. King Wen and Zuo Qiuming, the two sage-worthies, composing works to draw out the classics, stand as a figure for Asaṅga compiling a treatise to draw out the Buddha's scriptures.
III. The eye of the treatise (singled out by the preface)
The preface singles out the Bodhi chapter as the most subtle: 「轉八識以成四智、束四智以具三身」 ["transforming the eight consciousnesses into the four wisdoms, and gathering the four wisdoms to complete the three bodies"] (0589c25), 「詳諸經論所未曾有」 ["a fullness of detail unprecedented in the scriptures and treatises"]. This is the eye of the treatise (detailed in the apparatus of that chapter); its later reception is seen in the Discourse on the Perfection of Consciousness-only [成唯識論] scroll ten (the four wisdoms and three bodies) and in the Forest of Meanings in the Mahāyāna Dharma Garden [義林] T45n1861 (0359b27).
IV. Author (the preface writes "compiled by Asaṅga")
The preface says 「大乘莊嚴論者，無著菩薩纂焉」 ["the Treatise Adorning the Mahāyāna was compiled by the Bodhisattva Asaṅga"] (0589c21); the head of the fascicle separately reads 「無著菩薩造」 ["composed by the Bodhisattva Asaṅga"]. Both transmitted records are retained without harmonizing “compiled” and “composed.” Kuiji's Notes on the Treatise [《述記》] at 0352b12 separately attributes the verses to Maitreya and the prose commentary to Vasubandhu; that is Kuiji's account. The ancient masters' three accounts are recorded side by side and not adjudicated; this edition follows the two transmitted base-text heading lines 「無著菩薩造」 ["composed by the Bodhisattva Asaṅga"] and 「大唐天竺三藏波羅頗蜜多羅譯」 ["translated by the Tang Indian Tripiṭaka master Prabhākaramitra"].