妙法蓮華經玄義 7.228

7.228

然經文兩處，說優曇鉢華時一現耳。此華若生，輪王應出。若說此經，即授佛記，法王王世也。此靈瑞華似蓮華，故以為喻。若從此意，即是借喻，喻於妙法。夫喻有少喻、遍喻，如《涅槃》（云云）但少喻，以月喻面，不得求其眉目；雪出況象，不可覓其尾牙。今法華三昧無以為喻，喻此蓮華耳。夫華有多種，已如前說。唯此蓮華，華果俱多，可譬因含萬行、果圓萬德，故以為譬。又餘華麁，喻九法界十如是因果；此華妙，喻佛法界十如因果。

However, the sūtra text says in two places that the *uḍumbara* flower appears only once in a while. When this flower appears, a wheel-turning king should appear. If this sūtra is preached, vyākaraṇa to Buddhahood is bestowed, and the Dharma King reigns over the world. This miraculous, auspicious flower resembles the lotus flower, which is why it is used as a metaphor. Following this intention, it is indeed a borrowed metaphor, illustrating the subtle Dharma. In general, metaphors have partial metaphors and exhaustive metaphors; as in the *[Mahāparinirvāṇa]-sūtra* (and so on), there are only partial metaphors: using the moon to illustrate a face, one must not seek its eyebrows and eyes; using snow to describe an elephant, one cannot look for its tail and tusks. Now, the Lotus Samādhi has nothing that can serve as its metaphor, so it is illustrated by this lotus flower alone. Flowers are of many kinds, as has been said before. Only this lotus flower has both blossoms and fruits in abundance, and can illustrate the cause containing the myriad practices and the fruit perfecting the myriad virtues, which is why it is used as a metaphor. Moreover, other flowers are coarse, illustrating the causes and effects of the ten suchnesses of the nine dharma realms; this flower is subtle, illustrating the causes and effects of the ten suchnesses of the Buddha dharma realm.