法華文句記 7.45

7.45

「四見父畏避」者，父子相見雖譬感應道交不可思議，然約化事漸教以論，若云父先見子是如來鑑機，道理如此。今云子先見父相及處等，非即已見，並是約機，應具述始末受化元由。「或是王王等」者，既云見父畏避，即在頓漸教初，若據頓漸之前，未有畏魔之慮，約漸機對大論畏避等，故曰「未曾見聞」等也。從「略開」已下以後驗前，驗昔可中初與於大過於身子聞略說時，故云「有過今日」。

Regarding 'fourth, seeing his father and fleeing in fear': although the father and son seeing each other serves as a metaphor for the inconceivable mutual resonance of stimulus and response, yet discussing it in terms of the transforming work of the gradual teaching, if one says the father first saw the son, that is the Tathāgata discerning the capacity; such is the principle. Here, saying that the son first saw the father's marks, location, and so forth does not mean that he had truly already seen him; these are all spoken in terms of capacity, and should narrate the beginning and end of the original reason for receiving transformation. Regarding 'or perhaps a king, or equal to a king, and so forth': since it says that seeing the father he fled in fear, this is at the beginning of the sudden and gradual teachings; if based on before the sudden and gradual, he did not yet have the fear of Māra; speaking in terms of the gradual capacity being confronted with the Great, one discusses fleeing in fear and so forth; hence it says 'had never before seen or heard', and so forth. From 'briefly opened' downward, the earlier is verified by the later: verifying that in the past, when he was first given the Great, it was fitting that it exceeded what Śāriputra heard when it was briefly expounded; hence it says 'exceeded today'.