[17]
A New Chinese Sect.
In its formal organization the Ten-dai sect is of Chinese origin. It is
named after Tien Tai,[18] a mountain in China about fifty miles south of
Ningpo, on which the book which forms the basis of its tenets was
composed by Chi-sha, now canonized as a Dai Shi or Great teacher. Its
special doctrine of completion and suddenness was, however, transmitted
directly from Shaka to Vairokana and thence to Maitreya, so that the
apostolical succession of its orthodoxy cannot be questioned.
The metaphysics of this sect are thought to be the most profound of the
Greater Vehicle, combining into a system the two opposite ideas of being
and not being. The teachers encourage all men, whether quick or slow in
understanding, to exercise the principle of "completion" and
"suddenness," together with four doctrinal divisions, one or all of
which are taught to men according to their ability. The object of the
doctrine is to make men get an excellent understanding, practise good
discipline and attain to the great fruit of Enlightenment or
Buddha-hood.
Out of compassion, Gautama appeared in the world and preached the truth
in several forms, according to the circumstances of time and place.
There are four doctrinal divisions of "completion," "secrecy,"
"meditation," and "moral precept," which are the means of knowing the
principle of "completion.
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