妙法蓮華經文句 3.33

3.33

Fourth, from "Now seeing this portent" onward, this is called the clearly determined answer. Since the six portents of present and past are correspondent, through reflection it is determined without error; both the brief past and the extensive past are determined. "Will preach the Mahāyāna" determines the previous portent of preaching the Dharma; "named the Lotus of the Wonderful Dharma" determines the previous portent of raining flowers; "teaching the bodhisattva dharma" determines the previous portent of the assembly's joy; "protected and kept in mind by the buddhas" determines the previous portent of the earth quaking. Comprehensively subsuming them, entering samādhi is completely contained within them. Some interpret this as correspondence of the past and correspondence of what is to come, without recognizing correspondence of the present. Investigating the text, it says: "Now seeing this portent, it is no different from the original." This speaks precisely of the present; how could one call the six portents the past? Basing on this text as the present, we therefore make the explanation of the three correspondences. The gāthās comprise forty-five verses; they do not versify the brief past seen in the reflection above in the answer, and in the extensive past seen, they versify only the beginning and the end, not versifying the middle. First, there are two verses versifying the correspondence of time, name, preaching the Dharma, and so forth in the extensive past seen. From "Before the Buddha left household life" onward, secondly, there are thirty-nine verses versifying the three correspondences of the final Buddha; next, there are four verses versifying the determined answer. Within the second group of three correspondences, there are three: first, there is one verse versifying the correspondence between the past and what has already occurred; next, secondly, there are fifteen and a half verses versifying the correspondence between the past and the present; thirdly, next there are twenty-two and a half verses versifying the correspondence between the past and what is to come. From "The Buddha preached the great" onward, secondly, within the correspondence with the present, there are again two: first, fourteen verses versify these and those six portents; second, from "At that time the fourfold assembly" onward, one and a half verses versify the fourfold assembly's harbouring of doubt. The first also has two: first, there are four verses versifying the correspondence of the six portents of this land, where it additionally adds heavenly drums sounding on their own, representing preaching without being asked. "Manifesting various rare occurrences" is a general versification of all the portents. From "This light illuminated" onward, second, next are ten verses versifying the correspondence of the six portents in other lands; the prose merely says, "The buddha lands seen just as now," which is brief, while these verses are extensive. The text has five parts: first, three verses versify seeing the sentient beings of the six destinies as correspondent; next, from "Also saw various Tathāgatas" onward, second, one verse and two lines versify seeing the buddhas as correspondent; next, from "The World-Honoured One was in" onward, third, two lines versify hearing the Buddha preach the sudden teaching's seven good dharmas as correspondent; next, from "In each and every buddha land" onward, fourth, three verses versify seeing the three vehicles of śrāvakas and so forth, which is the former Buddha opening the gradual teaching as correspondent; next, from "Also saw various bodhisattvas" onward, fifth, two verses versify seeing the bodhisattvas' various causes and conditions, which is versifying opening the Vaipulya and Prajñā teachings as correspondent.