妙法蓮華經玄贊 3.63

3.63

贊曰：此頌入甚深。甚深者，佛所說法名字章句，意難得故、卒難入解，故名為人。又佛自住持是深法中，故名為入。不同外道雖說諸法，自不能入。由佛世尊說因緣理，唯佛自入、餘不能知，意趣難解故名入深。論云：「佛自住持不同外道，說因緣法甚深故。」此經云「是法不可示，言詞相寂滅」，因緣道理絕語言故，諸眾生類無能得解，除諸菩薩信力堅固者，初地已上得四種證淨，信佛、法、僧、戒故，能信法妙，而未圓證如是二妙。故此下云「不退菩薩亦不能知」，不能知者，不能圓證，非不信知。雖見道前比信亦知，非證信故，既非堅固所以不說。

The Eulogy states: This verse praises the profundity of entering. As for 'profundity', because the names, sentences, and phrasing of the Dharma spoken by the Buddha are difficult to grasp in meaning and suddenly difficult to enter and understand, it is named 'entering'. Moreover, the Buddha himself abides in and upholds this profound Dharma, hence it is called 'entering'. It is unlike the non-Buddhists who, although they speak of various dharmas, cannot themselves enter. Because the Buddha, the Bhagavat, spoke the principle of causes and conditions into which only the Buddha himself enters while others cannot know, the import is difficult to understand; hence it is called the profundity of entering. The *Treatise* says: 'The Buddha himself abides and upholds, unlike the non-Buddhists, because the Dharma of causes and conditions that he explains is profound.' This sūtra says: 'This Dharma cannot be demonstrated; the characteristics of words and speech are quenched and stilled.' Because the principle of causes and conditions transcends language, no class of sentient beings can attain understanding, except for the bodhisattvas whose power of faith is firm. From the first bhūmi onward, having attained the four kinds of verified faith—because they have faith in the Buddha, Dharma, Saṅgha, and precepts—they are able to believe in the wonder of the Dharma, yet they have not fully realized these two wonders. Therefore it says below, 'bodhisattvas who do not regress also cannot know.' 'Cannot know' means they cannot fully realize it, not that they do not believe and know it. Although before the path of vision they also know through inferential faith, because it is not verified faith, it is not firm, and therefore it is not mentioned.