法華經義記 7.38

7.38

The sūtra has three chapters that teach people of inferior capacity through past causes and conditions to disclose the three [vehicles] and reveal the One [Vehicle], which are divided into two sections: first, the preceding section, the single chapter "The Conjured City", directly clarifies teaching people of inferior capacity through past causes and conditions; from here below there are two chapters, which are the second [section], bestowing prophecies on people of inferior capacity. The reason these people of inferior capacity do not express their understanding first is that their understanding comes after others and they dare not determine it themselves; therefore the Tathāgata, knowing that they have attained understanding, nonetheless bestows prophecy on them; but within the bestowal of prophecy itself, the meaning of expressing understanding is inherently contained. In this chapter there is also the bestowal of prophecy on Pūrṇa, the bestowal of prophecy on twelve hundred people, the bestowal of prophecy on five hundred people, and also the bestowal of prophecy collectively on all the voice-hearers. Why is the title of the prophecy given above as "Five Hundred Disciples"? Commentators say: "The five hundred people receive prophecy, and their names and the quantity of their retinues are all identical, and moreover they are able to express understanding, whereas the others are not like this; therefore it is called 'Chapter on the Bestowal of Prophecy on Five Hundred Disciples'."