妙法蓮華經玄贊 2.217

2.217

The Commentary says: This is directly answering what was inquired. However, according to the root text of the Treatise, within this answer ten matters are accomplished: First, the cause of directly seeing the great meaning, which is this very passage. Second, from "Good sons, in the past…" downward, the cause of directly seeing the profound intention behind worldly letters, words, and phrases. Third, from "Good sons, just as in the past, immeasurable and boundless…" downward, the cause of directly seeing what is rare. Fourth, from "Next there was another Buddha, also named Candrasūryapradīpa…" downward, the cause of directly seeing what is supreme and wonderful. Fifth, from "Before that last Buddha had left the household…" downward, the cause of directly seeing great enjoyment (paribhoga). Sixth, from "After the Buddha passed into parinirvāṇa, Bodhisattva Varaprabha upheld the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka…" downward, the cause of directly seeing the turning of the wheel of Dharma of all Buddhas being received and upheld. Seventh, from "The eight sons of Buddha Candrasūryapradīpa all took Varaprabha as their teacher…" downward, the cause of directly seeing the Tathāgata's wheel of Dharma as good and solid. Eighth, from "These princes made offerings to immeasurable…" downward, the cause of directly seeing the ability to advance. Ninth, from "The last of them to become a Buddha was named Dīpaṅkara…" downward, the cause of directly seeing mindfulness and recollection. Tenth, from "Maitreya, you should know that at that time Bodhisattva Varaprabha…" downward, the cause of directly seeing the matters through which one's own person passed. A "cause" means that by which Mañjuśrī, through direct perception (pratyakṣa), saw those matters and verified their origins to answer Maitreya; hence they are called "causes." Or, because these ten matters mostly occurred in past eras and serve as the causes for the present, they are named "causes." Within these ten causes, there are five pairs in total: first, the pair of meaning and teaching; second, the pair of rarity and supremacy; third, the pair of turning and succession; fourth, the pair of solidity and advancement; fifth, the pair of other and self. Their allocation to the ten aspects of the sūtra should be known in accordance with their sequence. Here, it is generally divided into four: first, answering by demonstrating the signs and deliberating; second, answering by citing antiquity to establish the present; third, answering by pointing out specific events; fourth, answering through the mutual identity of past and present. The first two and the last one correspond to the order of the text, while the remaining intermediate seven causes generally point out specific events, as will be understood when reaching the text. This present passage is the answer by demonstrating the signs and deliberating. "Pondering" (wei 惟) means thinking, recollecting, or deliberating. "Considering" (cun 忖) means measuring. As for what the Treatise terms the accomplishment of the cause of directly seeing the great meaning: