It is said that Mingkuang’s view on the essence of the precepts in the Tiantai pusajie shu, a commentary of the Fanwang jing 梵網経, influenced the Japanese Tendai school. The characteristics of his view are as follows: 1） Explaining the essence of the Bodhisattva precepts by two modalities, the expressed and the unexpressed precepts （the spontaneous precepts）; 2） Defining the essence of the expressed as form and mind; 3） Recognizing the unexpressed precepts as the mind on the true features. His mentor Zhanran’s 湛然 view on the essence of the precepts examined the two modalities from the view point of Mahāyāna precepts. Since Zhanran’s idea was likely influenced by the Vinaya school, especially Daoxuan 道宣, Mingkuang also seems to have been so influenced. The third characteristic of the unexpressed precepts originated from Zhiyi’s 智顗 Fahua xuanyi 法華玄義, which also focused on the mind of the true features from the perspective of the perfect teaching’s precepts. There are also traces of Daoxuan’s partial impact on Mingkuang’s text. Therefore, we may see Mingkuang’s view as based on the Tiantai school and partly affected by the Vinaya school.
