who, in his human existence, had sixteen sons, all of whom became
Buddhas and preached in their generation the wonderful Lotus doctrine.
In Chapter VIII the Buddha returns to the prediction of the future
of his disciples, when five hundred of them learn their fate, as do
others. The prediction is continued in Chapter IX when it is extended
to other multitudes. There are parallels with the Revelation of St.
John in that each receives a new name and dwells in a realm with a new
name.