]> 2026-10-13T23:58:00-04:00 The Nine Similes 0 en Buddha Within.jpg The ''Tathāgatagarbha Sūtra'' utilizes a series of nine similes to illustrate how buddha-nature exists within sentient beings— a state in which this basic element is ever-present, but obscured by the adventitious stains of afflictive emotions. These nine are repeated and explained in the first chapter of the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'', in which they are enumerated as 1) a buddha in a decaying lotus, 2) honey amid bees, 3) kernels in their husks, 4) gold in filth, 5) a treasure in the earth, 6) a sprout and so on from a small fruit, 7) an image of the victor in a tattered garment, 8) royalty in the womb of a destitute woman, and 9) a precious statue in clay. Below you will find information on these nine similes, including scriptural references and how they have been addressed in commentarial literature related to the ''Ratnagotravibhāga''. <div class="text-right zoom-80"> </div> 2020-03-30T13:39:56Z 2458939.0693982 2025-01-14T21:35:54Z 2460690.3999306 false The Nine Similes 0 200 0 template 1 [[:Media/Michael Zimmermann at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium]] The Nine Similes# QUERYdf675c3ed26e4528cfc62638a086f8c5 0 200 0 template 1 [[:Media/Christopher V. Jones at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium]] The Nine Similes# QUERY41e92fd5935c45425332f18f6d99ebb8 0 0 plainlist 1 [[:Śākyamuni]] The Nine Similes# QUERY9ebc59323851ad1bb7448cfc4670b730 0 0 plainlist 1 [[:Maitreya]] The Nine Similes# QUERY57fc0691195d38c76896e71fc1d944bd 0 0 plainlist 1 [[:Dumo Tashi Özer]] The Nine Similes# QUERY708fa833b36e1894eaf792f4f341e7d0 0 0 plainlist 1 [[:Jamgön Kongtrul]] The Nine Similes# QUERYfe2e9f065c5549e1b7e3b65c311e179a 0 0 plainlist 1 [[:Dalai Lama, 14th]] The Nine Similes# QUERY629d4b427e3d6c630713bdfd66e21577 0 0 plainlist 1 [[:Thrangu Rinpoche]] The Nine Similes# QUERYb58185bb201dce21ed57ff34738fc059 Nine Similes 0 en Nine Similes REDI 102 en REDI