Hoke-kyo Sutra (the Lotus Sutra) indicated that people who had not been able to believe Buddhism and had intended to stop believing when Daitsuchi-sho-butu had been born a long time ago, had been reborn in the era of Sakya-muni Buddha, who for 40-odd years had expounded his various teachings showing tentative enlightenment to make them understand the teachings and train themselves and had lead them to the real treasure, Ichijo teachings.
法華経では、遥か昔の大通智勝仏が出世された時、仏法を信じられず信心を止めようと思った人々が、再び釈迦仏の時代に生まれて仏に見(まみ)え、四十余年の間、様々な教えを説いて仮の悟りを示し理解して、また修行により真の宝である一乗の教えに到達させることを表している。 - Wikipedia日英京都関連文書対訳コーパス