法華玄義釋籤 1.121

1.121

次「何者」下釋，中二：初舉昔顯失，次舉今顯得。初文者，即以法華已前俱名為昔並用化他，故昔教中望今迹門，則三教照理不遍，故三教人實信未生、權疑未盡，望今本門昔經圓機亦名為失，是則四教俱不知有本時之果，生信未遠、近疑未除。

Next, in the explanation below 'why is this?,' there are two parts: first, adducing the past to reveal the deficiencies, and second, adducing the present to reveal the gains. The first text means that everything prior to the Lotus Sūtra is called 'the past' and was entirely used for transforming others. Therefore, looking from the past teachings toward the present trace gate, the three teachings do not illuminate the principle comprehensively; hence, for the people of the three teachings, true faith was not yet engendered and provisional doubts were not yet exhausted. Looking toward the present origin gate, the faculties of the perfect [teaching] in the past sūtras are also called deficient; thus, all four teachings alike did not know that there was a fruit of the original time—their engendering of faith was not yet profound, and their doubts about recent [attainment] were not yet eliminated.