| Zhi Yi,the actual founder of Tendai,put forward the thoughts of "buddha-nature of good and evil","an ignorant thought gives rise to nature and mind","the principle of three thousand" etc.The most outstanding characteristic of his mind-nature theory is that he highlights "evil buddha-nature".The nature mentioned in his "evil buddha-nature" means the Buddha-nature based on uniformity of cause and effect while the evil is of none self-nature."Buddha-nature of evil" is just a dharma-gate without ontological significance.To understand his "evil buddha-nature" theory better,the key is to graspe the relationship between the 'good and evil' of "nature of virtue" and "three-cause Buddha-nature" while the difficult task is to clarify the relationship between "direct-cause Buddha-nature" and the 'good and evil' of "nature of virtue".Zhi Yi's "evil buddha-nature" theory is a rethinking of the background he lived and his life experience,and also a responce to all living beings seeking for liberation in the Dharma-ending Age.Based on Hui Si's theory of "nature of defiled purities",Zhi Yi's "evil buddha-nature" theory not only gives a more in-depth answer to the difficult theory question that how buddha-nature and mind-nature fuse cause-effect and liberation for buddhahood,but also includes the common view of good and evil as a part of the buddhist system,raising common view of good and evil to reality characteristics standards.Zhi Yi innovated the meaning of buddha-nature and based on the reality characteristics theory,he connected buddha-nature and common mind-nature by internalizing buddha-nature to mind-nature and emphasizing that all buddhas should liberate themselves by seeking from the mind.His thoughts such as "buddha-nature of good and evil","an ignorant thought gives rise to nature and mind","the principle of three thousand" are mutually connected and support each other which makes a pioneering contribution to the evolution of buddha-nature to mind-nature. |
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