佛祖統紀 3.150

3.150

時人未得法華妙旨。但見部內有三車窮子化城等譬。乃謂不及餘經。蓋不知重舉前四時權獨顯大車。但付家業唯至寶所。故致誹謗之咎（已上並四教儀○妙旨者。迹門三周開顯之妙。初法說周重舉四時之權。會三歸一。身子上根得記是也。次譬說周明三車一車。譬前法說。四大弟子設窮子喻獲得家業。中根信解作佛是也。三因緣周明十六王子下種中間調停今得授記。有化城寶所之喻。下根千二百聲聞等獲益是也。人不見之。故致誹謗。如清涼師李長者等。不知此旨。便為不及也）。

People of the time had not grasped the wondrous purport of the Lotus; merely seeing that the division contained parables such as the three carts, the impoverished son, and the conjured city, they claimed that it was inferior to other sūtras. This was because they did not know that reiterating the expedients of the previous four periods uniquely revealed the great cart, and that merely bequeathing the family estate solely reached the place of jewels. Hence they incurred the fault of slander. (All the above is from the Sijiao yi. The "wondrous purport" refers to the wonders of opening and revealing in the three cycles of the trace gate: First, the cycle of preaching the Dharma reiterates the expedients of the four periods, uniting the three to return to the one, which is Śāriputra of superior capacity receiving prophecy. Second, the cycle of preaching parables clarifies the three carts and the one cart, analogizing the previous Dharma preaching, with the four great disciples presenting the parable of the impoverished son and obtaining the family estate, which is those of middling capacity having faith and understanding and attaining Buddhahood. Third, the cycle of causes and conditions clarifies the sixteen princes planting seeds, the interim reconciling, and now receiving prophecy, with the parable of the conjured city and the place of jewels, which is the twelve hundred śrāvakas and others of inferior capacity obtaining benefit. People do not see this and thus incur slander; people such as Master Qingliang and Elder Li, not knowing this purport, deemed it inferior.)