妙法蓮華經玄贊 7.184

7.184

贊曰：此明所滋之體。初一頌總，次一頌半別滋種性。「百穀」者，「穀」續也。楊泉《物理論》云：「粱者黍稷之總名，稻者粇糯之總名，薺者眾豆之總名。三穀各二十合為六十，蔬菓之實助穀各二十，凡為百穀。故《詩》曰『播厥百穀』。《周易》『百穀麗于地』是也。」百穀、甘蔗、萄葡三事，以喻中大二草三乘，有種性故。「蔗」音之夜反，「萄」音徒刀反，或作「桃𭹟」。張騫西域使還，得安石榴、葡桃、胡桃。《廣志》云「葡桃有白黑黃」。此是小草無種姓人，得生人天。如乾地普洽，無出世種故。總結上云三乘藥草、大小二木有種姓者，因此雨故普得滋茂。此依別義以配其喻。亦有本言山川險谷，其苗稼者即是百穀。《說文》「草生於田曰苗」。《蒼頡》、《玉篇》「禾之未秀曰苗」，苗而不秀是也。禾之秀實曰稼，莖即為禾；又云在野曰稼。前解苗、稼為異，喻因、果別；後解苗即是稼，但喻總穀。

Commentary: This explains the essences that are nourished. The first verse is general, and the next verse and a half specifically nourish the distinct dispositions. "The hundred grains": "gu" (grain) means to continue. Yang Quan's Wulilun states: "Liang is the general name for millet and proso; dao is the general name for non-glutinous and glutinous rice; qi is the general name for various beans. Each of the three grains has twenty varieties, totaling sixty; the fruits of vegetables and trees that supplement the grains each have twenty varieties, totaling one hundred grains. Thus the Book of Songs says, 'He sowed the hundred grains'; the Zhouyi says, 'The hundred grains cling to the earth.' This is what it refers to." The three things—the hundred grains, sugarcane, and grapes—exemplify the medium and large herbs and the three vehicles, because they possess dispositions. "Zhe" (蔗) is glossed phonetically as the fanqie of zhi and ye; "tao" (萄) is glossed phonetically as the fanqie of tu and dao, sometimes written with peach and grape characters. When Zhang Qian returned from his mission to the Western Regions, he obtained pomegranates, grapes, and walnuts. The Guangzhi states: "Grapes are white, black, and yellow." These are people of no spiritual disposition among the small herbs, who attain birth among humans and devas. Like dry ground thoroughly soaked, they lack the supramundane lineage. It concludes generally by saying that those who possess lineages among the medicinal herbs of the three vehicles and the large and small trees all flourish and luxuriate on account of this rain. This is matched with the parables according to the specific meaning. There are also texts that say that among the mountains, rivers, and perilous valleys, their sprouts and crops are the hundred grains. The Shuowen says: "Herbs growing in fields are called miao (sprouts)." The Cangjie and Yupian state: "Grain that has not yet flowered is called miao"; this is "sprouting but not flowering." Grain that flowers and fruits is called jia (crops), its stem being the cereal plant; it is also said that what is in the fields is called jia. The earlier explanation treats miao and jia as different, exemplifying the distinction between cause and fruit; the later explanation treats miao as identical to jia, merely exemplifying all grains generally.