쫑카빠의 참회론 고찰 - 천태 참법사상과의 비교를 중심으로 -

Abstract

The confession which eliminates the crimes leads the practitioner to the attainment of Buddha. Tsong kha pa explains the confession by Seven Fold Offerings(七支供養) which makes the practitioner be purified and Four Powers(四力) which are the antidotes for erasing the crimes. The confession which is one of Seven Fold Offerings are explained in the stage of Preliminaries of Three Grades of Persons(三士) and Four Powers are explained in the way of Lower Grade Persons(下士道). The Three Grade of Persons should be understood as the Buddhist practical system and the way of Lower Grade Persons is only one way to reach the stage of the Higher Grade Persons(上士). So the practitioner should confess till attaining the enlightenment The pure practices of practitioner can be maintained when he keeps Prātimokṣa. Prātimokṣa is for self-discipline and the prerequisite for the Bodhisattva's Precepts. Tsong kha pa states that the Bodhisattva's precepts have the quality of correction after committing the crimes because of the merit of Bodhicitta. Zhi-yi(智顗) says that we can be purified of all crimes because of the Emptiness(Śūnyatā). Tsong kha pa's confession can be understood from a practical point of view and Zhiyi's confession can be served as a theoretical point of view. Therefore these thoughts help us understand the confession more systematically.