大般涅槃經義記 9.242

9.242

下次破其種子之喻。先牒直非，「何以故」下釋以顯非。三句破之：一以先後次第徵破、二以外類內、三以內類外。「次第說故」是初破也。若使子中即有芽莖乃至果實便是一時，何故子先乃至菓後？子先菓後，次第說故，明知先無。

Next, it refutes their analogy of the seed. It first cites [the claim] and directly negates it; from "Why is this?" onwards, it explains to demonstrate the error. It refutes it with three phrases: first, questioning and refuting it through the temporal sequence; second, using the external to analogize the internal; third, using the internal to analogize the external. "Because it is spoken of sequentially" is the first refutation: if the seed already contained sprout, stem, and even fruit, then they would be simultaneous; why, then, does the seed come first and the fruit come later? Because the seed is first and the fruit is later, being spoken of sequentially, it is clearly known that [the fruit] did not exist previously.