維摩經義疏 1.32

1.32

「彼時佛與無量之眾恭敬圍繞而為說法」。上來第一明眾集，此第二序佛為說法。文有三句，謂法、譬、合。問：何故明佛說法？答：佛與淨名二心相鑒，淨名託疾方丈，如來菴薗說法，為之集眾，然後始得遣使慰之。問：說何等法耶？答：相傳云說普集經。「譬如須彌山王顯于大海」。第二譬說歎佛也。須彌為妙高山，亦云安明山，出水三百三十六萬里，入海亦然。「安處眾寶師子之座，蔽於一切諸來大眾」。第三合譬歎也。

"At that time, the Buddha was respectfully surrounded by the immeasurable multitude, and he preached the Dharma for them." The first section above explained the gathering of the assembly; this second section sets forth the Buddha preaching the Dharma for them. The text has three clauses, namely the dharma, the metaphor, and the application. Question: Why is it explained that the Buddha preached the Dharma? Answer: The Buddha and Jingming understood each other's minds; Jingming feigned illness in his ten-foot-square room, and the Tathāgata preached the Dharma in the Āmrapālī Grove to gather the assembly for his sake, only after which could he send an emissary to console him. Question: What Dharma did he preach? Answer: Tradition says he preached the Sūtra of Universal Gathering. "Just as Mount Sumeru, king of mountains, stands out prominent in the great ocean..." The second part uses a metaphor to praise the Buddha. Sumeru is the Wondrously High Mountain, also called the Calm and Clear Mountain; it rises three million three hundred and sixty thousand li out of the water, and likewise plunges into the ocean. "...safely seated upon his lion throne of many jewels, outshining all the multitudes of the great assembly who had arrived." The third part applies the metaphor in praise.