大般涅槃經義記 4.291

4.291

如來釋中，文別有三：一述前問明凡與聖不得相喻，我想在凡，無殺害想在阿羅漢；二明昔日說偈所因，「勿謂無因而逆說」者明非無因，「昔日」已下彰有所因，因於獵師殺鹿請佛故說斯偈，說前一偈呪願獵師令同佛壽；亦可此言呪願彼鹿，說後一偈呵誡獵師，令捨殺業；三嘆文殊能問密教。

In the Tathāgata's explanation, the text is divided into three parts: first, stating the previous question to clarify that ordinary people and nobles cannot be compared with one another—the notion of self belongs to ordinary people, while the absence of the notion of killing and harming belongs to arhats; second, clarifying the reason for having spoken the verse in the past—"do not say that it was spoken contrarily without cause" clarifies that it was not without cause; from "in the past" onward, it reveals that it had a cause: because a hunter killing deer requested the Buddha, he therefore spoke this verse, speaking the first verse as a blessing for the hunter to have a lifespan equal to the Buddha's; it can also be that these words were a blessing for the deer, speaking the latter verse to scold and admonish the hunter to make him abandon the karma of killing; third, praising Mañjuśrī's ability to inquire into the secret teaching.