法華文句記 4.126

4.126

答中言「無文」者，一往語耳。如說法中當為汝說，若將昔三以望今一，則今為昔，當此約縱無方之辯以答無方之問，得作此說。若不爾者，但得依常立法譬名。既云無方，觸途皆轉，如譬說中大車望小大亦是當，如法說中望三為昔，一亦成現。今云「譬是現」者，譬是現事且云現耳。「準後望前」者，法譬在於宿世之後，故以宿世為過去也。準知法譬合同當現。

The statement in the answer "there is no text" is merely a provisional remark. As in the preaching of the Dharma, [the Buddha says] "I shall preach for you." If one takes the three of the past to look toward the one of the present, then the present becomes the future relative to the past. This accommodates an unconfined debate in order to answer an unconfined question; it is permissible to make such a statement. If not so, one can only follow ordinary convention and establish the names "Dharma" and "parable." Since it is called unconfined, whichever approach one takes, all can be transposed. Just as in the parable preaching, when looking from the small carriage to the great, the great is also the future; just as in the Dharma preaching, looking from the three to the past, the one also becomes the present. Now, in saying "parables are the present," parables are present events, so they are provisionally called the present. In "assessing the former by analogy with the latter," the Dharma and parables follow past lives, so past lives are taken as the past. By analogy we know that the Dharma and parables combine to correspond to the future and present.