Episode 286 – The Tathagata-garbha in Us All
>> “The Tathagata-garbha is like gold in rocks, fire in wood. A storehouse of defilements is still replete with Buddha-nature. Therefore, it is called Tathagata-garbha.”
>> “[They] wanted to reveal to sentient beings the Buddha’s understanding and views. Thus, They appeared in this world. [They] wanted to enable sentient beings to realize the Buddha’s understanding and views. Thus, They appeared in this world.”
>> To realize the Buddha’s understanding and views: Realize the truths of ultimate reality to eliminate obstructions and reveal its embodiment. Then nature, appearance and action will be clear. When all things are in perfect harmony, there is no such thing as another Vehicle.
>> “[They] wanted to enable sentient beings to enter the path of the Buddha’s understanding and views. Thus, They appeared in this world. Sariputra, this is why all Buddhas, because of the causes and conditions of their great work, appeared in this world.”
>> Entering the Buddha’s understanding and views: Entering the principles of ultimate reality. When matters and principles are in harmony, everything is free and unobstructed. Then naturally we will flow with and accept things and will enter all Buddhas’ ultimate, perfect and great wisdom.
“The Tathagata-garbha is
like gold in rocks,
fire in wood.
A storehouse of defilements is
still replete with Buddha-nature.
Therefore, it is called Tathagata-garbha.”
The Tathagata-garbha is the Tathagata within us. So, garbha can mean “storehouse.” The Buddha comes to the world to show us that all of our minds are storehouses for the Tathagata-nature of True Suchness. So, the Tathagata-garbha is part of our daily living. When the Six Roots [connect with] the Six Dusts, our thoughts lead us to create [karma], which is stored in the storehouse consciousness. The storehouse consciousness is also called the Tathagata-garbha.
This storehouse consciousness contains our pure nature of True Suchness. This is just like how rocks and sand contain gold. Don’t we know that gold comes from refining ore and sifting through sand? Similarly, wood stores [the potential for] fire. When ancient people needed to start a fire, how did they do it? They would rub pieces of wood together. A storehouse of defilements, filled with filth, is still replete with Buddha-nature.
In our daily living, the Six Roots and Six Dusts are subject to many defiling [influences]. Even our actions can create a lot of karma. The karma we create is amassed in our storehouse consciousness. Though this storehouse, the eighth consciousness, stores many defilements and actions that create karma, amidst the defilement is still perfect Buddha-nature. So, we need to believe that all of us intrinsically have Buddha-nature.
During the time of the Buddha, there was this story about a very old man who knew that he did not have long to live. So, his last wish was to become a monastic. One day, he made up his mind and came to the Jetavana Abode. The Buddha was not there, so, he hurried to see Sariputra. Sariputra contemplated [him] in silence. He perceived that, in the past, this old man never had any roots of goodness and did not [do any good deeds] in life, so he did not have the karmic conditions to become a monastic. So, Sariputra rejected him and asked him to go home.
But he was still very determined, He pleaded with the bhiksus one by one. But the bhiksus saw that not even Sariputra dared to accept him, so how could they? Thus, they also refused him. The old man was dejected, but his will to become a monastic was still strong. He stayed there a long time, unwilling to leave. He squatted outside the abode, crying sorrowfully. He felt, “Even the lowest castes can become monastics, so why is it that [the Sangha] cannot accept me? Am I the most unruly person in this world?” At that moment, the Buddha returned. The Buddha said, “Everyone is the same; all have perfect wisdom.”
Perfect wisdom also refers to Tathagata-garbha, which contains intrinsic our Tathagata-nature and is embodied by great compassion; we all have this compassion. So, this is the nature and embodiment of perfect wisdom; wisdom is its nature, compassion its embodiment. This is inherent in everyone.
“The Buddha searches the Three Realms for those who can be transformed.” The Buddha comes to this world, to the Three Realms, and searches continuously for those with to search continuously for those with the karmic affinity to be taught, “Like a cow looking for her calves.” Like a mother cow looking for her babies, “[His] love knows no rest.” The Buddha’s compassion and love for sentient beings are like a cow caring for her calves. If a calf ran off, the cow would search and call for it. The logic is the same; we should know that we all have the Tathagata’s wisdom, just as among sand and gravel, there is still real gold. So, He extended His hand to help the old man up and very gently led him inside.
The Buddha said, “Even from a pile of sand, you can extract real gold. Who is without the Tathagata-garbha? Anyone can become a monastic.” Sariputra asked, “When exactly did his root of goodness, his Tathagata-garbha, appear?” The Buddha said, “Countless kalpas ago, A woodcutter was in the forest when a streak of tigers suddenly surrounded him. The woodcutter was surprised and frightened, and he hurriedly uttered, ‘I pay homage to the Buddha.’ This phrase is his root of goodness.” The Buddha then tonsured this old man and allowed him to become a monastic and engage in spiritual practice.
This story shows us that everything, from rocks to wood to sand, has an intrinsic nature to be discovered. That True Suchness is very valuable but as we go about our daily living and connect with this world, our habitual tendencies multiply our afflictions. So, then we start drawing distinctions like this is acceptable, while that is not, or that younger is better than older. We must not do this. So, the Buddha had the compassion to come to the world, life after life, for the sake of one great cause, to open and reveal His understanding and views for sentient beings to realize and enter.
The previous verse we discussed states,
“[They] wanted to reveal to sentient beings the Buddha’s understanding and views. Thus, They appeared in this world. [They] wanted to enable sentient beings to realize the Buddha’s understanding and views. Thus, They appeared in this world.”
The previous verses discussed how [all Buddhas want] us all to realize the Buddha’s understanding and views, such as how we intrinsically have Buddha-nature. As long as we are in the Tathagata-garbha and reflect on our own nature, we can discover the True Suchness of our nature. All Buddhas come to the Three Realms, to this world, to continuously search for those with the karmic conditions to be transformed. They teach sentient beings to realize the Buddha’s understanding and views.
To realize the Buddha’s understanding and views: Realize the truths of ultimate reality to eliminate obstructions and reveal its embodiment. Then nature, appearance and action will be clear. When all things are in perfect harmony, there is no such thing as another Vehicle.
“To realize the Buddha’s understanding and views” means to realize the truths of ultimate reality. We give rise to afflictions by drawing distinctions with “the view of people.” The Buddha eliminated the view of people, the view of self and the view of a lifespan. The Buddha only sees the truth of ultimate reality. We all intrinsically have Buddha-nature, but when we in [the Sangha] keep others from becoming monastics, we are actually obstructing our own minds.
So, we need to “eliminate obstructions and reveal the embodiment.” If we can realize the truth of ultimate reality, we can “eliminate obstructions and reveal its embodiment.” Once we eliminate obstructions, its embodiment, our compassion, will manifest, and we will view all sentient beings as people we want to transform. So, “nature, appearance and action will be clear. Nature” refers to our intrinsic wisdom. “Appearance” refers to all kinds of forms and appearances in the world. Naturally, “nature” and “appearance” and our “aggregate of action,” all views and understandings, will be all very clear.
So, “When all things are in perfect harmony, there is no such thing as another Vehicle.” By realizing the Buddha’s understanding and views naturally we will see through all our obstacles. It does not matter if we have roots of goodness or not because we all intrinsically have the Tathagata’s wisdom. Root of goodness or not, the thought of ignorance that arose in our minds led us to draw distinctions between good and evil. If we can tap into our original Tathagata-nature, everything appears as it is, and we see everything as good and nothing as evil. But if we see nothing as evil, then nothing can be considered good either.
So, the True Suchness of nature is the same, but we ordinary beings obstruct ourselves by drawing distinctions between nature and appearance. If we can clearly comprehend ultimate reality, won’t we clearly understand all natures and appearances? Won’t we completely understand all Dharma? “There is no such thing as another Vehicle.” The only true principle of the Buddha is the ultimate reality of the One Vehicle. There are no Two or Three Vehicle principles, only the ultimate reality of the One Vehicle. So, if we can really comprehend this, ․we will be able to clearly understand that we all intrinsically have Buddha-nature,
The following verse then states,
“[They] wanted to enable sentient beings to enter the path of the Buddha’s understanding and views. Thus, They appeared in this world. Sariputra, this is why all Buddhas, because of the causes and conditions of their great work, appeared in this world.”
[We can] feel the Buddha’s compassion, how He tirelessly and continuously returns to express that the Buddha appeared in this world because of His great causes and conditions with sentient beings. He hopes they will realize the truth of their own. Tathagata-nature of True Suchness. So, He works hard to continuously express this.
Entering the Buddha’s understanding and views: Entering the principles of ultimate reality. When matters and principles are in harmony, everything is free and unobstructed. Then naturally we will flow with and accept things and will enter all Buddhas’ ultimate, perfect and great wisdom.
What does it mean to “enter the Buddha’s understanding and views”? The word “enter” means to guide sentient beings to understand the truths of ultimate reality. He already opened this door for us; he “opened” and “revealed” this to us to guide us. He opened the door to our minds to point and show us what is hidden in our minds. By letting us “enter,” He helps us contemplate our nature, so we can understand it. When the door is open, we must enter it. Only when we “enter” can we understand the truths of ultimate reality. When matters and principles are in harmony, when they are perfect and harmonious, then naturally, there will be no obstacles to
[understanding] all worldly and world-transcending principles. Then even as we live in the world among all sorts of sentient beings and their different habitual tendencies, they will not be obstacles for us. If we [realize] world-transcending principles, naturally our understanding will also be free of obstructions, just as the universe cannot be obstructed. Nothing in the world will block our view, just as nothing can block the universe.
We will naturally be able to flow, just like water flowing downward. Whether there are rocks, sand or soil, it is all the same to the water; the water will keep freely flowing. If we place it in a round or square [container,] the water still behaves the same way. So, our Buddha-nature is like the universe, like water. It is free and nothing can obstruct it. “Naturally, we will flow with and accept things.” This is very liberating. Thus we can “enter all Buddhas’ ultimate, perfect and great wisdom.” He guides us to enter the Tathagata-nature of True Suchness, so we can naturally attain all Buddhas’ ultimate, perfect and great wisdom.
Ordinary people always limit and bind themselves, so they can never be truly free, unobstructed or at ease. But when we tap into our Tathagata-nature, we have a sense of freedom. For example, can you all recall where you were and what you did yesterday? Quickly, without obstructions, you can remember that you were working in the fields or were in the eastern or western parts [of Taiwan]. Nobody can hinder you. Your thinking and consciousness immediately shift to yesterday’s events. So, our mind is completely free.
Actually, ordinary people’s consciousnesses still have attachments to the self. Only ordinary people would say, “[We] have an affinity; when I see him I am joyful. When I see people I don’t have affinity with, I will keep my distance.” This is what ordinary people do. The Buddha is not like this. He wants to find all of us; He loves all of us. The Buddha’s love is very broad and open and draws no distinctions among sentient beings.
If we can enter the nature of our True Suchness, the truths of ultimate reality, naturally, matters and principles will be in perfect harmony, Everything will be free and unobstructed. Naturally, we will flow with and accept things. Then we are able to “enter all Buddhas’ ultimate, perfect and great wisdom.” Everyone, this is very important. When we listen to teachings, we must be mindful. “The mind, Buddhas, sentient beings are no different [in their natures].” How can we be one with the Buddha’s mind? When the Buddha comes to open and reveal to us, we must hurry to realize and enter [the Dharma]. The Buddha worked hard to find us. Look, we finally have this affinity with Him. He extended His hand to guide and transform us, but have we extended our hands to allow Him to guide us to enter [the truth]? This is what we have to ask ourselves. So everyone, we must always be mindful.