English
English version 1. Teaching (Jiào): In the first five years after the Buddha's enlightenment, he taught the five Bhikkhus; in the sixth year, he taught Shariputra (Shèlìfú, the disciple foremost in wisdom); in the seventh year, he taught the three Kashyapas (Sān Jiāshè, three famous Brahmin brothers). These are collectively known as 'Teaching of Existence'. 2. Twofold Emptiness Teaching (Èr Kōng Jiào): From the eighth to the thirty-eighth year, he comprehensively expounded the eight Prajna Sutras (Bōrě Jīng) and others. 3. Neither Existence nor Emptiness Teaching (Fēi Kōng Fēi Yǒu Jiào): From the thirty-ninth year until approaching Nirvana, he expounded the teaching of neither existence nor emptiness, which includes the Lotus Sutra (Fǎhuá Jīng), the Lankavatara Sutra (Léngqié Jīng), and the Vimalakirti Sutra (Sīyì Jīng). 4. The Tripiṭaka masters Jué Duō and Jí Duō of the Sui Dynasty classified the Tathagata's teachings into four periods: the Teaching of the Emptiness of Sentient Beings, the Teaching of the Emptiness of Dharmas, the Teaching of Dharma Characteristics, and the Teaching of Contemplative Practice. The Teaching of the Emptiness of Sentient Beings: This refers to the Agama Sutras (Āhán Jīng) and others spoken in the first twelve years after the Buddha's enlightenment. The Teaching of the Emptiness of Dharmas: This refers to the eight Prajna Sutras spoken thirty-eight years prior. The Teaching of Dharma Characteristics: This refers to the Lankavatara Sutra, the Vimalakirti Sutra, the Lotus Sutra, and others spoken from thirty-eight to forty-nine years after enlightenment, extensively explaining the Hundred Dharmas, the Three Natures, the Three Non-Natures, the Eight Consciousnesses, and the Two Non-Selves. The Teaching of Contemplative Practice: This refers to the Avatamsaka Sutra's (Huáyán Jīng) contemplation of the Dharmadhatu and others. 5. Layman Liu of the Jin Dynasty, a recluse in the mountains, expressed his own understanding and classified the teachings into five periods: the Teaching for Humans and Devas, the Teaching of the Emptiness of Sentient Beings, the Teaching of the Emptiness of Dharmas, the Teaching of the Emptiness of Both, and the Teaching of Neither Existence nor Emptiness. The Teaching for Humans and Devas: This refers to the Three Refuges, the Five Precepts, the Ten Virtuous Actions, and others spoken to Elder Tíwèi Zhǎngzhě within three weeks of the Buddha's enlightenment, because at that time there were no beings with the capacity for supramundane roots of goodness. The 'Difficulty of Perception' (Jué Shòu Nán) states: 'The Tíwèi Sutra (Tíwèi Jīng) says that five hundred merchants were about to receive the Five Precepts and first repented of the five heinous crimes, the ten evil deeds, and the sin of slandering the Dharma. The World Honored One said that the four great elements are inherently pure, and the self is inherently pure. Tíwèi attained the forbearance of non-arising dharmas, which is the forbearance of no-birth, and the five hundred merchants attained the gentle and compliant forbearance, etc. All of these are proofs of sainthood. How can it be said to be the Teaching for Humans and Devas?' The Teaching of the Emptiness of Sentient Beings: This refers to the teachings of the Two Vehicles spoken twelve years prior. The Teaching of the Emptiness of Dharmas: This refers to the teachings spoken thirty years prior. The Teaching of the Emptiness of Both: This refers to the eight Prajna Sutras spoken thirty-eight years prior. The Teaching of Neither Existence nor Emptiness: This refers to the Lotus Sutra, the Lankavatara Sutra, and others spoken after forty years. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chinese
“二、西天判教者：一、胜义俱空宗判教、二、应理圆实宗判教。且初那烂陀寺师子觉智光等，依文殊为宗主，判教为三时：一、生空；二、非空非有；三俱空。且生空者，即广说二乘等教是；二、非空非有教者，即《法华》等是；三、俱空，即八部《般若》是。第二应理圆实宗判教者，即那烂陀寺有论师名戒贤，依弥勒菩萨为宗主，判教为三时：一、有教，一代时教说有处是；二、空教，但说空处是；三、非空非有教，但说非空非有处是，依、圆是有，遍计等无，是真谛，但以将教就时，此非也；戒贤论师将时就教为正。难真谛云：佛成道后第二七日说《华严经》，岂是第一时教？又言四十年后非空非有是第二时教者，即佛临涅槃说《遗教经》，岂是第三时？戒贤将时就教判为正。此经诠净土，依、圆是有，遍计等无，即是非空非有教也。” 第五论顿渐者，曾得二乘果、发心向大者，名为渐悟，由生数少或全无故；若从二凡而归大，者即顿悟摄，未曾证悟二乘理故，生数犹多不名渐悟。《涅槃经》云：但说初果回心八万劫，乃至辟支迦十千劫。既不说资、加二位劫数多少，明知五果回心方名渐悟；若七方便回心但是顿悟收。曾发二乘心、曾修二乘行，求归大者皆名渐悟，具彼性故、修彼行故，闻思悟解 现代汉语译本 ‘二、西天判教者：一、胜义俱空宗判教、二、应理圆实宗判教。’也就是说，在西天（指古代印度）对佛教教义进行判别分类的人，主要分为两派：一是主张胜义俱空宗的，一是主张应理圆实宗的。 先说第一派，那烂陀寺（Nālandā，古代印度佛教寺院及大学）的师子觉（Śīlajñāna）、智光（Prajñāprabha）等人，以文殊菩萨（Mañjuśrī）为宗主，将佛教教义判为三个时期：一是生空（Śūnyatā）教，二是‘非空非有’教，三是俱空教。 所谓生空教，就是广泛宣说二乘（Śrāvakayāna and Pratyekabuddhayāna，声闻乘和缘觉乘）等教义；‘非空非有’教，就是指《法华经》（Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra）等经典；俱空教，就是指八部《般若经》（Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra）等经典。 再说第二派，应理圆实宗的判教者，那烂陀寺有一位论师名叫戒贤（Śīlabhadra），他以弥勒菩萨（Maitreya）为宗主，将佛教教义判为三个时期：一是有教，认为佛陀一代时教所说的是‘有’；二是空教，认为只说‘空’；三是‘非空非有’教，认为只说‘非空非有’。他们认为，依他起性（Paratantra）、圆成实性（Pariniṣpanna）是‘有’，遍计所执性（Parikalpita）是‘无’，这才是真谛（Paramārtha）。但是，这种将教义硬套入时期的做法是不对的；戒贤论师将时期对应教义的做法才是正确的。 有人反驳真谛（Paramārtha）的观点说：佛陀成道后第二个七天就说了《华严经》（Avataṃsaka Sūtra），难道这是第一时教吗？又说四十年后‘非空非有’是第二时教，那么佛陀临近涅槃（Nirvāṇa）时说了《遗教经》（Śāsanāgamaparikīrtana Sūtra），难道这是第三时吗？所以，戒贤将时期对应教义的判法才是正确的。这部经诠释的是净土（Pure Land），依他起性、圆成实性是‘有’，遍计所执性是‘无’，这就是‘非空非有’教义。 ‘第五论顿渐者，曾得二乘果、发心向大者，名为渐悟，由生数少或全无故；若从二凡而归大，者即顿悟摄，未曾证悟二乘理故，生数犹多不名渐悟。’第五部分讨论顿悟和渐悟：曾经证得二乘果位，然后发心趋向大乘（Mahāyāna）的人，称为渐悟，因为他们经历的生死轮回次数较少或者完全没有；如果从凡夫（普通人）直接归向大乘，那么就属于顿悟，因为他们没有证悟过二乘的道理，经历的生死轮回次数仍然很多，所以不能称为渐悟。 《涅槃经》（Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra）说：‘只说初果（Sotāpanna）回心需要八万劫（Kalpa），乃至辟支佛（Pratyekabuddha）需要十千劫。’既然没有说资粮位（Saṃbhāra-mārga）、加行位（Prayoga-mārga）这两个阶段需要多少劫数，就说明只有证得五果（指声闻四果加上辟支佛果）后回心向大乘，才能称为渐悟；如果七方便（指五停心观、别相念住、总相念住、暖位、顶位、忍位、世第一位）回心向大乘，都只能归为顿悟。曾经发过二乘心、曾经修过二乘行，然后寻求归向大乘的人，都可以称为渐悟，因为他们具备了二乘的根性，也修习过二乘的法门，通过听闻、思考、领悟而解脱。
English
English version ‘II. Classifiers of Teachings in the Western Regions: 1. The School of Ultimate Emptiness; 2. The School of Reasoned and Complete Reality.’ This means that those who classified Buddhist teachings in the Western Regions (ancient India) were mainly divided into two schools: one advocating the School of Ultimate Emptiness, and the other advocating the School of Reasoned and Complete Reality. First, regarding the first school, Śīlajñāna, Prajñāprabha, and others from Nālandā Monastery, with Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva as their patriarch, classified Buddhist teachings into three periods: 1. The teaching of Self-Emptiness (Śūnyatā); 2. The teaching of ‘Neither Empty nor Non-Empty’; 3. The teaching of Complete Emptiness. The teaching of Self-Emptiness is the extensive exposition of the teachings of the Two Vehicles (Śrāvakayāna and Pratyekabuddhayāna); the teaching of ‘Neither Empty nor Non-Empty’ refers to scriptures such as the ‘Lotus Sutra’ (Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra); the teaching of Complete Emptiness refers to scriptures such as the eight sections of the ‘Prajñāpāramitā Sutra’. Secondly, regarding the classifiers of the School of Reasoned and Complete Reality, there was a scholar named Śīlabhadra at Nālandā Monastery, who, with Maitreya Bodhisattva as his patriarch, classified Buddhist teachings into three periods: 1. The teaching of Existence, believing that what the Buddha taught throughout his life was ‘Existence’; 2. The teaching of Emptiness, believing that only ‘Emptiness’ was taught; 3. The teaching of ‘Neither Empty nor Non-Empty’, believing that only ‘Neither Empty nor Non-Empty’ was taught. They believed that the Dependent Nature (Paratantra) and the Accomplished Nature (Pariniṣpanna) are ‘Existence’, while the Imagined Nature (Parikalpita) is ‘Non-Existence’, and this is the Ultimate Truth (Paramārtha). However, this approach of rigidly fitting teachings into periods is incorrect; Śīlabhadra's approach of matching periods to teachings is correct. Someone refuted Paramārtha's view, saying: The Buddha spoke the ‘Avataṃsaka Sutra’ in the second week after his enlightenment, so is this the teaching of the first period? And saying that ‘Neither Empty nor Non-Empty’ is the teaching of the second period forty years later, then when the Buddha spoke the ‘Śāsanāgamaparikīrtana Sūtra’ near his Nirvāṇa, is this the third period? Therefore, Śīlabhadra's classification of matching periods to teachings is correct. This sutra explains the Pure Land, where the Dependent Nature and the Accomplished Nature are ‘Existence’, and the Imagined Nature is ‘Non-Existence’, which is the teaching of ‘Neither Empty nor Non-Empty’. ‘V. On Gradual and Sudden Enlightenment: Those who have attained the fruit of the Two Vehicles and aspire towards the Great Vehicle are called gradually enlightened, because they have few or no rebirths; if ordinary beings turn to the Great Vehicle, they are included in sudden enlightenment, because they have not realized the principles of the Two Vehicles, and their rebirths are still many, so they are not called gradually enlightened.’ The fifth part discusses gradual and sudden enlightenment: Those who have attained the fruit of the Two Vehicles and then aspire towards the Mahāyāna are called gradually enlightened because they have experienced fewer or no cycles of birth and death; if ordinary people directly turn to the Mahāyāna, then they belong to sudden enlightenment because they have not realized the principles of the Two Vehicles, and their cycles of birth and death are still numerous, so they cannot be called gradually enlightened. The ‘Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra’ says: ‘It is said that it takes 80,000 kalpas (aeons) for a Stream-enterer (Sotāpanna) to turn their mind, and even 10,000 kalpas for a Pratyekabuddha.’ Since it does not mention how many kalpas are needed for the stages of Accumulation (Saṃbhāra-mārga) and Application (Prayoga-mārga), it shows that only those who have attained the five fruits (referring to the four fruits of the Śrāvaka and the fruit of the Pratyekabuddha) and then turn their minds towards the Mahāyāna can be called gradually enlightened; if those in the seven expedient stages (referring to the Five Stopping-the-Mind Contemplations, Specific Mindfulness, General Mindfulness, Warmth Stage, Peak Stage, Forbearance Stage, and World's Foremost Stage) turn their minds towards the Mahāyāna, they can only be classified as suddenly enlightened. Those who have previously aspired to the Two Vehicles, practiced the practices of the Two Vehicles, and then seek to return to the Great Vehicle can all be called gradually enlightened because they possess the nature of the Two Vehicles, have practiced the methods of the Two Vehicles, and are liberated through hearing, thinking, and understanding. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------