妙法蓮華經文句 8.69

8.69

Regarding "At that time, from the lower region...": Second, this clarifies the benefits of Mañjuśrī's propagating the sūtra on this day, which again has two parts: first, clarifying Mañjuśrī's propagating the sūtra; second, from "Mañjuśrī said, 'In the midst of the ocean...'" onwards, clarifying the benefits. The first again has five parts: 1. Clarifying Prajñākūṭa's requesting to withdraw. The Puṇḍarīka-sūtra says: "The bodhisattva accompanying the Buddha of the lower region was named Prajñākūṭa, in Chinese called Zhiji." 2. From "Śākya[muni]..." onwards, clarifying the World-Honoured Śākya stopping him, bidding him wait for the testimony of the benefits of propagating the sūtra. Prajñākūṭa considered that Prabhūtaratna had emerged in order to testify to the sūtra, and since exhorting beings to transmit it was now completed, he therefore requested to return. Śākyamuni stopped him because, although the events of the traces approach were finished, the origin approach had not yet been revealed; thus he used Mañjuśrī as a reason to detain Prabhūtaratna—the Buddha's esoteric intention was not something bodhisattvas could know. 3. From "At that time, Mañjuśrī..." onwards, Mañjuśrī thereupon arrives. 4. From "Bodhisattva Prajñākūṭa..." onwards, Prajñākūṭa asks how many were converted. 5. From "Mañjuśrī said..." onwards, Mañjuśrī replies that it cannot be declared by mouth. Under the fifth there are again seven: (1) replying that those who benefited are exceedingly numerous; (2) from "Before he had finished speaking..." onwards, those receiving benefit assemble as testimony; (3) from "All these bodhisattvas..." onwards, all were converted by Mañjuśrī; (4) from "Those who were originally śrāvakas..." onwards, they were originally śrāvakas who previously received the expedient teaching and abided in the two vehicles' path. The Puṇḍarīka-sūtra says: "Those lotus flowers rising out of the pond—those who had originally given rise to the bodhisattva mind, their flowers in mid-air expounded Mahāyāna matters; those who had originally given rise to the śrāvaka mind, their flowers in mid-air only expounded matters of cutting off birth-and-death"; (5) from "Now they all practice..." onwards, now having heard the real teaching, they all abide in the Mahāyāna Dharma; (6) from "Mañjuśrī said to Prajñākūṭa..." onwards, Mañjuśrī concludes the benefits; (7) from "At that time..." onwards, Prajñākūṭa praises in verse.