妙法蓮華經玄贊 1.10

1.10

酬持因者，前八甚深中，第一佛曾親近百千萬億無數諸佛名受持讀誦甚深。初依菩薩供五恒佛，第二依菩薩供六恒佛，第三依菩薩供七恒佛，第四依菩薩供八恒佛，值多善友長時受持。又釋迦如來過去自為常不輕菩薩，於威音王佛滅後行不輕行，臨終之時聞虛空中說《法華經》二十千萬億偈，悉能受持。即得如上六根清淨，更增壽命二百萬億那由他歲，廣說此經。命終之後，得值二千億佛皆號日月燈明，常持此經。以是因緣又值二千億佛同號雲自在燈王，亦於此諸佛法中受持此經，常獲如上六根清淨，其常不輕即我身是，故為往時常持此經，今者說之勸常受持。

Responding to the cause of upholding: among the aforementioned eight profundities, the first—that the Buddha had formerly drawn close to hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of countless buddhas—is called the profundity of receiving, upholding, reading, and reciting. A bodhisattva of the first stage of reliance makes offerings to buddhas as numerous as five Ganges sands; a bodhisattva of the second stage of reliance makes offerings to buddhas as numerous as six Ganges sands; a bodhisattva of the third stage of reliance makes offerings to buddhas as numerous as seven Ganges sands; a bodhisattva of the fourth stage of reliance makes offerings to buddhas as numerous as eight Ganges sands; encountering many kalyāṇamitras, they receive and uphold it for a long time. Furthermore, Śākyamuni Tathāgata in the past was himself Sadāparibhūta Bodhisattva; after the extinction of Bhīṣmagarjitasvararāja Buddha, he practiced the conduct of never disparaging; when approaching the end of his life, he heard twenty thousand myriads of koṭis of verses of the Lotus Sūtra expounded in empty space, all of which he was able to receive and uphold. He immediately attained the purification of the six sense faculties as described above, further increased his lifespan by two hundred myriads of koṭis of nayutas of years, and extensively expounded this sūtra. After his life ended, he encountered two thousand koṭis of buddhas all named Candrasūryapradīpa, constantly upholding this sūtra. Due to these causes and conditions, he also encountered two thousand koṭis of buddhas all named Meghasvarapradīparāja, and in the teachings of these buddhas he also received and upheld this sūtra, constantly obtaining the purification of the six sense faculties as described above. That Sadāparibhūta was my own person; therefore, because he constantly upheld this sūtra in the past, he now expounds it to encourage beings to constantly receive and uphold it.