妙法蓮華經玄義 7.245

7.245

次、用蓮華譬十二因緣者，烏皮淤泥，水草重覆，通如上說也，即是無明支種子；能生力即是行支；內有卷荷，華鬚備具，即是識、名色、六入、觸、受支，含潤愛、取、有支；團圓盤屈，不能得出，即是老死支。若能芽鋒萌動，鑽烏皮破，即是無明滅；不復在烏皮內生，即是諸行滅；出㲉殼外，即是老死滅，此略譬四種十二因緣也。

Next, using the lotus flower as a metaphor for the twelve links of dependent origination: The black skin, mire, water, and aquatic plants covering it layer upon layer, as explained generally above, are the seed of the link of ignorance. Its productive power is the link of formations. The curled leaf within, fully equipped with flower and stamens, is the links of consciousness, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, and feeling, while the moisture contains the links of craving, grasping, and existence. Being coiled and curled tightly, unable to break out, is the link of aging-and-death. If the tip of the shoot stirs and pierces through the black skin, that is the cessation of ignorance. No longer growing within the black skin is the cessation of formations. Emerging outside the shell is the cessation of aging-and-death. This briefly illustrates the four types of the twelve links of dependent origination.