妙法蓮華經玄義 7.103

7.103

○七、本眷屬妙者，經云：「此諸菩薩下方空中住。」此等是我子，我則是父。下方者，下名為底。《大品》有諸法底三昧，《釋論》云：「智度大道佛窮底」，當知此諸菩薩隣佛窮智度底。虛空者，法性虛空之寂光也。從本時寂光空中，出今時寂光空中。今時寂光空中者不識本時者，故言：我經遊諸國，乃不識一人。地湧千界，皆是本時應眷屬也。所以無三者，時節既久，權轉為實，但一無三，或可舉一例知有三也。從本垂迹，迹中始成佛時，亦有業、願、通、應。中間所化，亦有四種，文殊、觀音、調達等，或稱為師，或稱弟子，於惑者未了。若拂中間，無非是迹，則迹本可解；若執迹疑本，二義俱失（云云）。

7. The wonderfulness of the original retinue: the sūtra says, "These bodhisattvas abide in the empty space below." "These are my sons, and I am their father." "Below" means the bottom. The Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā-prajñāpāramitā mentions the samādhi of the bottom of all dharmas, and the Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa says, "The Great Path of the perfection of wisdom: the Buddha exhaustively reaches its bottom." One should know that these bodhisattvas are adjacent to the Buddha in exhaustively reaching the bottom of the perfection of wisdom. "Empty space" is the Quiescent Light of the empty space of the dharma-nature. From the empty space of Quiescent Light of the original time, they emerge into the empty space of Quiescent Light of the present time. Those in the empty space of Quiescent Light of the present time do not recognize those of the original time; hence it says: "I have traveled through various lands, yet I do not recognize a single person." Those welling forth from the earth throughout the thousand realms are all the responsive retinue of the original time. Why are there no three [vehicles]? Because the passage of time is long, the provisional has been converted into the real; there is only the one and no three. Alternatively, one may adduce the one as an example to know that there are three. Projecting traces from the original source: when first attaining Buddhahood in the traces, there are also [four kinds of retinues]: karma, vows, supernormal powers, and responsive manifestation. Those transformed in the intermediate periods also have four kinds: Mañjuśrī, Avalokiteśvara, Devadatta, and others are sometimes called teachers and sometimes called disciples, which remains unclear to the deluded. If one brushes away the intermediate [manifestations], none are not traces, and then traces and original source can be understood; if one clings to the traces and doubts the original source, both meanings are lost (and so forth).