大乘經典《華嚴經》在中國形成哲學意味濃厚的華嚴宗，其中有法界三觀、華嚴六相、十玄門、華嚴三昧等複雜奧妙的觀法，這是中國人的成就，也是中國大乘佛學的特色。西元418年晉譯六十卷《華嚴經》到了七世紀時，由帝心尊者杜順禪師發展出法界三觀，對於“法界”的概念逐漸深化，其學說提出理與事的概念，他只說理如事、事如理、理遍於事、事遍於理，並未說出“理法界”、 “事法界”、 “理事無礙法界”、 “事事無礙法界”的切割觀念。沿用後代已逐漸定型為四法界說，遠離原經文中單一整全的樸實概念。“法界”概念被僵化做形而上的理法界與形而下的事法界，甚至於再型塑出超越界的“理事無礙法界”與玄妙不可測的“事事無礙法界”，如此不復再是當初印度經義了。本文目標在於探討華嚴初祖帝心尊者到三祖法藏、四祖清涼澄觀之間詮釋義理的變化軌跡，並試圖從六十卷本《華嚴經》”入法界品“經文中尋找“法界”一詞的原義，以澄清中國高僧衍生的哲學意義與原經文的差異分界線。

The India «Hua-Yen Sutra » is the foundation of the Chinese Hua-Yen sect. It was very prosperous much in China since the 7th Century. This sutra is grand and huge. The various Chinese translations of it covers only one third to one half of it. Based on the translations, the Chinese patriarchs constructed the school of Hua-Yen. They interpreted the Dharma-Realm, explained how each level of the real influences each other and the relation among them. They found out that every thing is combined with phenomenon and noumonon, and sometimes these conditions help each other, but sometimes they disturb and destroy each other. Thus the Hua-Yen philosophy was established in Tang Dynasty. But semantically, the term Dharma-Realm has different meanings in Indian and Chinese versions. In the Indian sutra Dharma-Realm means the pure area, or the spiritual area, it abounds with spirituality, without limit or any boundary. Chinese scholars developed Dharma-Realm into four areas/levels: Phenomenon Dharma-Realm. Noumenon Dharma-Realm. Noumenon-phenomenon no obstacle Dharma-Realm. Phenomenon-phenomenon no obstacle Dharma-Realm. Even if this philosophical system is meaningful, it does separate the wholeness of Dharma-Realm into four areas/levels. Nowadays people have misinterpreted it as four higher lower levels.