The Universal Saviour

In [The Parable of the Burning House], the rich father symbolizes the Buddha, while the children represent all of us living beings. In other words, the relationship between the Buddha and living beings is compared to the relationship of a father and his children. That the father saves his children out of compassion for them implies that the Buddha does the same thing. In short, the parable proclaims the Buddha to be nothing less than the universal Savior.

Introduction to the Lotus Sutra