法華義疏 10.145

10.145

「如來祕密神通之力」者，第二、正說文。初長行，次偈。長行為二：一、明過去無始；二、辨未來無終。但明此二者，為破二乘人謂始自王宮、終於雙樹，故明王宮生非始、雙樹滅非終也。既明本身無始終，即辨應身有始終。本身無始終，即顯真實義；應身有始終，謂開方便門。故但明斯二也。所以前明無始、後辨無終者，為破凡夫二乘前明有始、後辨有終故也。又釋彌勒父少子老之疑，故前明過去久已成佛，方化得爾許多人，則是父老子少之義，令大眾疑斷也。又明過去久已成佛，化得千世界塵數菩薩，未來無終方度法界一切眾生，令受化之徒心生歡喜。此二門各有三章。

"The Tathāgata's secret supernatural powers" is the second part: the main exposition. First comes prose, then verse. The prose has two parts: first, clarifying that the past is without beginning; second, distinguishing that the future is without end. Clarifying only these two is in order to refute the two vehicles' people who think it began in the royal palace and ended beneath the twin trees; hence it clarifies that birth in the royal palace was not the beginning, and extinction beneath the twin trees is not the end. Having clarified that the fundamental body has neither beginning nor end, it then distinguishes that the responsive body has a beginning and an end. The fundamental body having neither beginning nor end illuminates the real meaning; the responsive body having a beginning and an end constitutes opening the expedient means gate. Therefore it clarifies only these two. Why does it first clarify the beginningless and later distinguish the endless? It is to refute the ordinary beings and the two vehicles who beforehand clarified having a beginning and later distinguished having an end. It also resolves Maitreya's doubt regarding the young father and old sons; hence it first clarifies that he attained Buddhahood long ago in the past, and only then could he transform so many people, which constitutes the meaning of an old father and young sons, causing the assembly's doubts to be severed. It also clarifies that having attained Buddhahood long ago in the past, he transformed bodhisattvas as numerous as dust motes in a thousand worlds, and that the future being endless means he will eventually cross over all sentient beings of the dharmadhātu, causing those receiving transformation to give rise to joy in their minds. Each of these two gates has three sections.