The three aspects of “subtle” are completely possessed by the Lotus Sūtra. In contradistinction to the views of Kuang-chai, who only assigns “fine” to the “present”, Chih-i argues that the Buddhist scriptures of the “past” contain both “fine” and “coarse” in terms of the cause and effect of Buddhahood. He goes through the teaching of the Buddha in the five periods that correspond with the five dairy flavors, and classifies the causes and effects that are contained in the teaching of the five periods into coarse or subtle. For Chih-i, the uniqueness of the present Lotus Sūtra as the ghee flavor (T’i-hu-ching) that is expounded in the fifth period is that it contains no coarse elements. The Lotus Sūtra presents only one kind of cause and effect of Buddhahood, which is the representation of a single unified entity. This one cause and effect of Buddhahood as the essential teaching of the Buddha is defined by Chih-i as “all-embracing in substance” (T’ikuang), “superior in position” (Wei-kao), and “eternal in function” (Yung-ch’ang). The substance of this essential teaching is all embracing, because it refers to the Ultimate Truth that permeates everywhere. The position of this essential teaching is superior because it refers to the Buddhahood that occurred in an incalculable past in the Origin. The function of this essential teaching is long because it refers to the Buddha’s activities in the Traces that can benefit sentient beings in the three periods of time, due to the fact that the Traces are derived from the Origin in an incalculable past. (Vol. 2, Page 66)

The three aspects of “subtle” are illustrated in terms of the effect of Buddhahood. From the three perspectives of the effect of Buddhahood, the “vastness of substance” refers to an all-embracing nature of the substance, because this substance “permeates everywhere and is inclusive of everything in the universe. The “superiority of position” refers to the immeasurable length of time in the past when the Buddha had attained Buddhahood. The “length of function” refers to the Traces (activities of the historical Buddha) that are manifested by the eternal Buddha from the Origin (the moment the Buddha initially attained enlightenment in an incalculable past) (Ts’ung-pen Ch’uichi), that benefit sentient beings in the three periods of time in terms of past, present, and future. (Vol. 2, Page 66)

The “length of function” (Yung-ch’ang) refers to the dynamic nature of the Middle Way functioning to teach and transform living beings. Where is this function derived from? It is derived from the wisdom of realizing that “the Ten Dharma-realms are Emptincss, the Provisional, and the Middle Way.” The ten realms are empty of substantial Being, but bear names and are temporarily existent this is the comprehensive view of reality: Emptiness and the Provisional are identical to each other, and this is the Middle Way. How does the Middle Way function? This is related to the Threefold Contemplation of Emptiness, the Provisional and the Middle Way. When the bodhisattva enters the view of Emptiness, he does not stop like the Two Vehicles (śrāvaka and pratyekabuddha) do (which entails the attachment to Emptiness). The bodhisattva proceeds to enter the view of the Provisional with Emptiness, which entails the view of non-attachment to the Provisional Existence. For Chih-i, entering the view of the Provisional Existence means to be active in the empirical world to save sentient beings. Since this view of the Provisional is integrated with Emptiness (i.e., the Provisional is Emptiness, and vice versa), it partakes the Middle Way. The function of the Middle Way is spoken of in terms of the bodhisattva entering the provisional existence with the view of Emptiness to benefit living beings. Whereas there are immeasurable sentient beings, the bodhisattva’s action of saving them also lasts forever. This endless action of saving beings renders length of function. Furthermore, these three aspects (substance, position, and function) are contained within each other. When one aspect is scrutinized upon, what one sees are the three aspects, since any one of these three is not apart from the other. When three aspects are examined, what one sees is actually one integrated unity of all three aspects. One cannot look at them as a fixed conception, they are neither the same nor different, which is designated by Chih-i as “fine” or “subtle.” (Vol. 2, Page 65)

The Buddha-realm does not exist apart from the other nine realms. In essence, all living beings possess the Buddha-nature (Ch., Fo-hsing; Skt., buddhadhātu), and given the right condition, they can realize this potential for Buddhahood, i.e., the realm of hell to the realm of the Bodhisattva can be transformed instantaneously into the Buddha-realm. (Vol. 2, Page 65)

The ten realms exist simultaneously in one’s mind, but one may not necessarily experience them all at the same given moment. One may experience any one of the ten realms at any moment, depending on the conditions of what one’s actions were and are in the past and present, and where one’s thoughts reside. When one realm is experienced, it is visibly present in one’s mind, but the other nine realms are also present in one’s mind, though in an invisible state. (Vol. 2, Page 64)

The Four Siddhāntas are the four methods employed by the Buddha to cause living beings to achieve accomplishment of attaining Buddhahood, or they can be the four viewpoints of perceiving truth.

The characteristics of the “Worldly Siddhānta” (Shih-chieh Hsi-t’an) concern the basic theory of causality (Yin-yüan) in Buddhism, and differentiate what is real and what is unreal. What is unreal (provisional) refers to all things in this spatial-temporal world that arise through Dependent Origination (Ch., Yüanch’i; Skt., pratityasamutpāda), rendering the fact that all things lack substantial Being, and are illusory. The unreal is spoken of in terms of the five aggregates bearing their existence in name. Names are not substantial, and thus, the five aggregates are only illusory and provisional. What is real (Shih) refers to the body that is constituted by the five aggregates, which really exists. In short, the Worldly Siddhānta distinguishes between phenomenon and noumenon, between real and unreal, between good and bad, and between different levels of religious practice and achievement. The teaching suits those beings that are capable of understanding the doctrine of the Worldly Siddhānta.

The characteristic of the “Siddhānta for Each Person” (Ko-ko Wei-jen Hsi-t’an) concerns the wholesome factors of beings, namely, arousing previous wholesomeness of beings, and encouraging them to keep doing good deeds and practice for their future destinies.

In contradistinction to the “Siddhānta for Each Person” (which is related to the wholesomeness of living beings), the “Siddhānta of Counteraction” (Tui-chih Hsi-t’an) is to treat the unwholesomeness of living beings. Hence, the characteristic of this siddhānta concerns the evil side of beings, namely, how to destroy evil by means of wholesomeness. This teaching of the Siddhānta of Counteraction reveals the goal of religious practice.

The “Siddhānta of the Supreme Truth” (Ti-i-i Hsit’an) reveals the principle (as truth) (Ti-li) by means of applying the formula of the fourth Alternative, namely, “everything is neither real nor unreal”, which transcends affirmation or negation. Therefore, the characteristic of this siddhānta concerns leading living beings to realize the truth by disposing the fundamental nature of emptiness of all entities, and by negating all possible attachments to either unreal (provisional) or real, and either good or evil. The passage concerning the Four Siddhäntas is originally stated in the Mahāprajn͂āpāramitopadeśa (Ta-chih-tu Lun), T.25, 59b-61b.

For a brief explanation of the Four Siddhāntas, see also Hurvitz, Chih-i, p.313, note l. For a detailed discussion of the Four Siddhāntas in the Ta-chih-tu Lun, see Swanson, Foundations of T’ien-t’ai Philosophy, pp.23-30. (Vol. 2, Page 53)