法華義疏 8.139

8.139

二、釋名門者，「授」者云與也。「記」者云決也，亦云莂也。所言決者，於九道內分決此人必當成佛，故云決也。莂義亦然。懸說未來事以授前人，故名授記，前人領受故云受記。又汎論記無記有三：一、就三性門論記無記，若有善惡可記故名為記，無善惡可記故名無記。二、善惡能感苦樂果，有苦樂果可記名為記，無記不能感苦樂果，無果可記故名無記。三者、有物可記故名有記，無物可記故名無記，如《華嚴》以十四難為無記門也。即是無物可記故名無記也，如石女無兒可記也；而與此相違故名有記。今云修佛因得佛果，即是有果可記故名為記，聖記示人稱為授記也。又釋記者言錄，示果有可記錄也。十二部經中有《授記經》者，以因果事大物多惑之，宜別開一部。

Second, regarding the gate of explaining the name: "conferring" (*shou*) means to bestow. "Prophecy" (*ji*) means determining (*jue*), and also means certifying (*bie*). What is called determining means that, within the nine destinies, it is determined with certainty that this person will surely become a Buddha; hence it is called determining. The meaning of certifying is also like this. Remotely declaring future events to bestow upon the person before one is therefore called conferment of prophecy (*shouji*); the person before one receiving it is therefore called reception of prophecy (*shouji*). Furthermore, in general discussions of the marked (*ji*) and the indeterminate (*wuji*), there are three meanings: First, discussing the marked and indeterminate in terms of the gate of the three natures: if there are good and evil that can be recorded, it is called marked; if there are no good and evil that can be recorded, it is called indeterminate. Second, good and evil are able to produce fruits of suffering and pleasure: having fruits of suffering and pleasure that can be recorded is called marked; being indeterminate cannot produce fruits of suffering and pleasure, and having no fruits that can be recorded, it is called indeterminate. Third, having an actual entity that can be recorded is called marked, and having no actual entity that can be recorded is called indeterminate, as the *Avataṃsaka Sūtra* takes the fourteen unanswered questions (*caturdaśāvyākṛtavastūni*) as the gate of indeterminacy. That is to say, having no actual entity that can be recorded is called indeterminate, just as a barren woman has no child that can be recorded; and what is contrary to this is called marked. Here, it says that cultivating the Buddha cause results in attaining the Buddha fruit, which means having a fruit that can be recorded; hence it is called prophecy (*ji*). When a noble one predicts this to show a person, it is called conferment of prophecy (*shouji*). Furthermore, in explaining *ji*, it means recording, showing that the fruit has something that can be recorded. Among the twelve divisions of the canon, there is the *Vyākaraṇa* (conferment of prophecy scriptures); because the matter of cause and fruit is momentous and beings are often confused about it, it was appropriate to open a distinct division for it.