抄録
The phrases for the two aspects of merit-transference, “aspect of going” (Wang-xiang 往相) and the “aspect of returning” (huanxiang 還相), in the Wang sheng lunzhu 往生論註 are not found in sutras and commentaries before the Wangsheng lun 往生論 (Treatise on Birth in the Pure Land) and the Wangsheng lunzhu (Commentary on the ‘Treatise of Birth in the Pure Land’). Therefore, these two phrases are taken to be the creation of Tanluan. The philosophical background of the “aspect of returning” (huanxiang) has been considered to be “the gate of traveling in the forest” (yuanlin youxidi men 園林遊戯地門) as described in the Wangsheng lun. While I agree that this concept is its primary philosophical background, I believe that the concept in the Mahaprajnaparamitopadesa, in which bodhisattvas are born in this world in order to enlighten all sentient beings, also informs its philosophical background.
