Day 7 concludes Chapter 3, A Parable, and begins Chapter 4, Understanding by Faith.

Having last month considered more examples of people to whom we should expound the sūtra, we conclude Chapter 3, A Parable.

Expound it to the Buddha’s sons
Who expound the Dharma without hindrance
To the great multitude
With their pure minds
By telling them
Various stories of previous lives,
Parables and similes,
And also by giving them various discourses!

Expound it to the bhikṣus
Who seek the Dharma in all directions
In order to obtain
The knowledge of all things,
Who join their hands together
Towards the sūtra of the Great Vehicle,
Who receive it respectfully,
Who keep it with joy,
And who do not receive
Even a gāthā of any other sūtra!

Expound it to those
Who seek this sūtra
As eagerly as they seek
The śarīras of the Buddha!

[Expound it to those]
Who receive [this sūtra]
And put it on their heads,
And who do not seek
Any other sūtra
Or think of the books of heresy!

(The Buddha said to Śāriputra:)
Those who seek the enlightenment of the Buddha
Are as various as previously stated.
A kalpa will not be long enough
To describe the variety of them.
They will be able to understand [this sūtra] by faith.
Expound to them
The Sūtra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma!

The Daily Dharma offers this:

Those who seek the enlightenment of the Buddha
Are as various as previously stated.
A kalpa will not be long enough
To describe the variety of them.

The Buddha speaks these verses in Chapter Three of the Lotus Sūtra. We may believe that only some kinds of people will hear the teaching of the Buddha. In this passage the Buddha reminds us that we cannot predict who will be able to join us in our practice and who will not. This is why it is so important to maintain our vow as Bodhisattvas to benefit all beings.

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