Verse I.28
| Line 346: | Line 346: | ||
The examples for the existence of the disposition for buddhahood in all sentient beings include being like silver in silver ore, sesame oil in sesame seeds, and butter in milk. Thus, just as silver can be manifested in silver ore, oil in seeds, and butter in milk, buddhahood can be manifested in sentient beings. | The examples for the existence of the disposition for buddhahood in all sentient beings include being like silver in silver ore, sesame oil in sesame seeds, and butter in milk. Thus, just as silver can be manifested in silver ore, oil in seeds, and butter in milk, buddhahood can be manifested in sentient beings. | ||
| + | ===Rinchen Yeshé=== | ||
| + | Rinchen Yeshé’s commentary on the ''Uttaratantra''2739 begins by repeating what RGVV says on I.28 and then elaborates on the meaning of the first three lines of this verse. As for the meaning of the dharmakāya of a tathāgata pervading all sentient beings, the naturally pure dharmakāya pervades all sentient beings. The dharmakāya that is also pure of all adventitious stains pervades all sentient beings as being suitable to be attained. Or, the phrase, "the perfect buddhakāya" refers to being pervaded by all three kāyas. To support this, Rinchen Yeshé first quotes ''Uttaratantra'' I.144 and RGVV on I.146–47. As for the manner of the three kāyas’ pervading sentient beings, he says that they exist in beings as being suitable to be attained as the manifest three kāyas. Or, in order to purify the basic element of sentient beings for as long as saṃsāra is not empty, the dharmakāya functions as the support for that, while the sambhogakāya promotes the welfare of pure retinues by pervading them, and the nirmāṇakāya promotes the welfare of impure retinues by pervading them. Therefore, the basis to be purified by these three kāyas—the basic element that is the tathāgata heart—exists in sentient beings. If this basis to be purified did not exist in beings, the promotion of their welfare through the three kāyas would be pointless.2740 | ||
| + | |||
| + | As for the meaning of suchness’s being undifferentiable, since its nature never changes into anything else, it is suchness. It exists in all sentient beings and buddhas in an undifferentiable manner. As ''Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra'' IX.37 says: | ||
| + | |||
| + | ::Though it is without difference in everything, | ||
| + | ::Suchness’s having become pure | ||
| + | ::Is the Tathāgata. Therefore, | ||
| + | ::All beings possess its heart. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Also the prajñāpāramitā sūtras say: | ||
| + | |||
| + | ::The suchness of the world, the suchness of arhats, | ||
| + | ::The suchness of pratyekabuddhas, and the suchness of the victors— | ||
| + | ::As just a single suchness, free from being and never other, | ||
| + | ::Has prajñāpāramitā been realized by the Tathāgata.2741 | ||
| + | |||
| + | And: | ||
| − | + | ::The element of space in the eastern direction, in the southern direction, | |
| + | ::Likewise in the western direction and the northern direction is boundless. | ||
| + | ::Existing above, below, in the ten directions, and in as many as there are, | ||
| + | ::There is no difference and there is no distinction. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ::The suchness of the past, the suchness of the future, | ||
| + | ::Likewise the suchness of the present, the suchness of arhats, | ||
| + | ::The suchness of all phenomena, and the suchness of the victors— | ||
| + | ::All this is the suchness of dharma, and there is no distinction.2742 | ||
| + | |||
| + | As for the meaning of the disposition’s existing in sentient beings, the disposition of the manifest three kāyas’ being suitable to be attained, if this disposition is purified, exists in all sentient beings. Therefore, one should understand that all beings possess the buddha heart.2743 | ||
===Butön Rinchen Drub=== | ===Butön Rinchen Drub=== | ||
| + | In his ''Ornament That Illuminates and Beautifies the Tathāgata Heart'',2744 Butön says that the teachings on ''tathāgatagarbha'' are of expedient meaning. He supports this by lengthy quotes from the ''Ghanavyūhasūtra'', the ''Laṅkāvatārasūtra'', the ''Śrīmālādevīsūtra'', and the ''Aṅgulimālīyasūtra''. Butön also adduces the typical three criteria that are considered to determine a teaching as being of expedient meaning: (1) its basis of intention (''dugongs gzhi''), (2) its purpose (''dogs pa''), and (3) the logical invalidation of the explicit statement (''dngos la gnod byed''). | ||
| + | |||
| + | (1) The general basis of intention of the teachings on buddha nature is the ālaya-consciousness, which refers to the sheer cause of buddhahood. In particular, Maitreya in his ''Uttaratantra'' had a threefold basis of intention in mind: (a) the dharmakāya, (b) suchness, and (c) the disposition. | ||
| + | |||
| + | (2) The purpose of teaching tathāgatagarbha lies in the indirect intention (ldem por dgongs pa) of its being the remedy that eliminates the five flaws described in ''Uttaratantra'' I.157–67.2745 In addition, Butön adduces ''Uttaratantra'' I.28, showing that the statement "all beings contain the buddha heart" was taught for three reasons. Following RGVV, Butön matches these three reasons with the nine examples in ''Uttaratantra'' I.144–52. However, his explanation of these three consists mainly of extensive quotes from the ''Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra'', the ''Avatamsakasūtra'', and the ''Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra''. | ||
| + | |||
| + | (a) As for the dharmakāya, Butön cites the ''Avataṃsakasūtra'' as saying that the dharmakāya pervades all sentient beings, all phenomena, and all realms, just as formless space does. According to Butön, this was said with the intention that the dharmakāya is not attained right now, but will be attained later. Citing the ''Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra'', he also refutes the notion that buddhahood dwells within due to the dharmakāya’s pervading everything and thus dwelling within sentient beings. | ||
| + | |||
| + | (b) As for suchness’s being undifferentiable, Butön says that the basic nature of all sentient beings—natural luminosity, which does not change into anything else—is the suchness of mind. It exists in buddhas and sentient beings without difference. Once that suchness—natural luminosity—has become pure of all adventitious stains without exception, it is buddhahood. Since this suchness also exists in sentient beings without difference, its complete purification of all stains will be attained later if they have cultivated the path. Therefore, the statement that suchness is undifferentiable is also made with the intention of referring to another time. | ||
| + | |||
| + | (c) As for all sentient beings’ possessing the disposition, the disposition is what gives rise to the three kāyas of a buddha. Since the tathāgatadhātu exists in all sentient beings, it is taught that they possess the tathāgata heart. Quoting ''Uttaratantra'' I.27, Butön says that since the teaching on the disposition is a case of labeling the cause with the name of the result, it likewise bears the intention of referring to another time. Also the example of the big scroll in the ''Avataṃsakasūtra'' was given with such an intention. Butön quotes that sūtra as saying that, due to being uninterrupted from the birth of all buddhas up through their entering parinirvāṇa, the buddhas fill up the entire dharmadhātu, and the seeing of all the diverse births of buddhas represents the eighth expertise in explanations with an intention. According to Butön, this passage refers again to the above threefold basis of intention (dharmakāya, suchness, and disposition), because it bears the intention of the seeds of all dharmas (''chos'') that are the buddha qualities existing in a complete manner and their true nature (''chos nyid'')— suchness—existing without difference before and after. According to the Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra, the nature of a buddha exists in all sentient beings because the seeds of buddhahood exist in them. | ||
| + | |||
| + | (3) Finally, Butön says that all this also establishes the invalidation of what the teachings on buddha nature say explicitly. In addition, he quotes the well-known passage from the ''Śrīmālādevīsūtra'': | ||
| + | |||
| + | <blockquote>The tathāgata heart is empty of all cocoons of afflictions that are separable [from it] and [can] be known to be divisible [from it]. It is not empty of the inconceivable buddha qualities that are inseparable [from it], [can]not be known to be divisible [from it], and far surpass the sand grains in the river Gaṅgā [in number].2746</blockquote> | ||
| + | |||
| + | However, Butön gives a very peculiar interpretation of the phrase "empty of . . . [can] be known" (''she's pa rnams kyis stong pa''), taking it to mean "empty of knowing" (''she's pas stong pa'') and concluding that this phrase explains the tathāgata heart as lacking wisdom. Therefore, he says, it also lacks all the qualities that are contained in this wisdom, because these two (wisdom and qualities) must be produced by the two immeasurable accumulations of wisdom and merit, respectively. | ||
===Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen=== | ===Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen=== | ||
| + | Dölpopa’s commentary on the ''Uttaratantra''2747 explains I.28 as the manner in which the dharmadhātu pervades everything. Since the dharmakāya of the perfect buddhas radiates toward and pervades all phenomena, since suchness—the nature of all phenomena of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa—is undifferentiable, and because the disposition of the tathāgatas—the naturally pure dharmadhātu—exists in all sentient beings as being suitable to be purified from its obscurations, all beings always possess the ultimate buddha heart since the very beginning in an uninterrupted manner.2748 | ||
===Gyaltsab Darma Rinchen=== | ===Gyaltsab Darma Rinchen=== | ||
| + | In his commentary on the ''Uttaratantra'',2749 the Gelugpa scholar Gyaltsab Darma Rinchen says that the tathāgata heart is explained by way of the result that is a tathāgata, the nature of a tathāgata, and the cause of a tathāgata. However, it is not that mere suchness and the dharmakāya of perfect buddhas are taken as instances of the tathāgata heart because the ''Uttaratantra'' and Asaṅga’s commentary explain the latter as pertaining solely to the phase of sentient beings and the phase of the cause. As for identifying the three instances of the tathāgata heart in ''Uttaratantra'' I.28, the result of having cultivated the path that purifies the basic element— the enlightened activity of the dharmakāya of perfect buddhas—radiates toward and pervades all sentient beings.2750 Beings are explained to possess the tathāgata heart because they have this very factor of being suitable for enlightened activity to engage them, which is associated with them as the special phenomenon that exists solely in the mind streams of sentient beings. This is similar to Abhisamayālaṃkāra VIII.11ab: | ||
| + | |||
| + | ::By virtue of the vastness of activity like that, | ||
| + | ::Buddhahood is described as "all-pervading." | ||
| + | |||
| + | Though suchness naturally devoid of stains is the nature of both sentient beings and buddhas, by taking its being the nature of buddhas as a reason, it refers to the tathāgata heart at the time when it is associated with the stains of the mind streams of sentient beings. It is said that all sentient beings possess the tathāgata heart with the intention that suchness with stains—the very suchness that is naturally devoid of the stains of the mind streams of sentient beings—exists in all beings. The same is also said with the intention that all beings possess the buddha disposition during the phase of the cause that makes them attain the three kāyas. Though there is also the naturally abiding disposition, when it is explained that beings possess the tathāgata heart through taking the existence of the disposition as a reason, this must be explained from the perspective of the cause of a tathāgata. When the same is explained through taking the existence of suchness as a reason, it must be explained from the perspective of the nature of a tathāgata. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Therefore, one should understand that the ''Tathāgatagarbhasūtra'', the ''Uttaratantra'', and Asaṅga’s commentary (RGVV) excellently determine the tathāgata heart as being all of the following three—the capacity in sentient beings’ mind streams of their being suitable for enlightened activity to engage them, the suchness with stains in the mind streams of sentient beings, and the buddha disposition in the mind streams of beings that is suitable to change state into the three kāyas. Without realizing these meanings, to assert even the ultimate dharmakāya as the tathāgata heart through dividing the latter into the triad of the resultant, the natural, and the causal tathāgata heart is a presentation that may amaze the ignorant, but it is not the meaning of the ''Uttaratantra'' and Asaṅga’s commentary. | ||
===Rongtön Shéja Günsi=== | ===Rongtön Shéja Günsi=== | ||
===Gö Lotsāwa=== | ===Gö Lotsāwa=== | ||
Revision as of 13:58, 16 July 2018
Mahāyānottaratantra Verse I.28
Tibetan (Dege, PHI, 111)[edit]
- རྫོགས་སངས་སྐུ་ནི་འཕྲོ་ཕྱིར་དང་།།
- དེ་བཞིན་ཉིད་དབྱེར་མེད་ཕྱིར་དང་།།
- རིགས་ཡོད་ཕྱིར་ན་ལུས་ཅན་ཀུན།།
- རྟག་ཏུ་སངས་རྒྱས་སྙིང་པོ་ཅན།།
English (Brunnhölzl, 356-357[2])[edit]
Since the perfect buddhakaya radiates,
Since suchness is undifferentiable,
And because of the disposition,
All beings always possess the buddha heart.
English (Takasaki, p. 197[3])[edit]
The Buddha's Body penetrates everywhere,
Reality is of undifferentiated nature,
And the Germ [of the Buddha] exists (in the living beings).
Therefore, all living beings are
Always possessed of the Matrix of the Buddha.
Other English Translations for Comparison[edit]
- Listed by date of publication[4]
- Obermiller (1931)[5]
- The Body of the Supreme Buddha is all-pervading,
- The Absolute is (one) undifferentiated (Whole)
- And the Germ (of Buddhahood) exists (in every living Being).
- Therefore, for ever and anon, all that lives
- Is endowed with the Essence of the Buddha.
- Guenther (1959)
- Because of the permeation of Sambuddhakāya, of the
- undifferentiatedness of Tathatā,
- And of the existence of families, all sentient beings are constantly
- endowed with Buddha-nature.
- Ruegg (1969)[6]
- En raison de l'irradiation du Corps du Sambuddha, de l'indifferenciation de l'Ainsite et de la Lignee, tous les etres incarnes sont toujours (des) buddhagarbha.
- Ruegg (1973)[7]
- En raison de l'irradiation par le Corps du buddha parfait, de l'indifferenciation de l'Ainsite et de l'existence du gotra, tous les etres incarnes sont toujours pourvus du buddhagarbha.
- Ahmad (1983)[8]
- Because of the extension (sphara˚a) of the Awakened Body (of the Buddha); because of its interpenetration (vyatibheda) with Suchness; And because of its embryo, all embodied :beings are eternally the wombs of the Buddha.
- Holmes (1985)[9]
- The buddha-essence is ever-present in everyone because
- the dharmakaya of perfect buddhahood pervades all,
- the suchness is undifferentiated and they have the potential.
- Guenther (1989)[10]
- Because of the pulsation of the gestalt as an awakening process
- (evolving like a dissipative structure) in its totality,
- Because of (its) inseparability from Being-in-its-beingness, and
- Because of (its) existence as a program, all embodied beings
- Have within themselves forever this thrust to move in the direction of a total spiritual awakening.
- Hookham (1992)[11]
- Because the Perfect Buddhakaya radiates,
- Because the Tathata is inseparable,
- Because the Gotra is present,
- All beings have the Essence (garbha) of Buddha.
- Holmes (1999)[12]
- The buddha-essence is ever-present in everyone because
- the dharmakaya of perfect buddhahood pervades all,
- suchness is without differences and
- they have the potential.
- Unlisted Translator on Rigpa Wiki[13]
- Because the perfect buddha’s kaya is all-pervading,
- Because reality is undifferentiated,
- And because they possess the potential,
- Beings always have the buddha nature.
{{note Template ideas: <pre> {{Verse |versesktdev1=संबुद्धकायस्फरणात् तथताव्यतिभेदतः<br> गोत्रतश्च सदा सर्वे बुद्धगर्भाः शरीरिणः |versesktdev1source=[http://www.dsbcproject.org/canon-text/content/575/2687 Digital Sanskrit Buddhist Canon] |versesktrom1=saṃbuddhakāyaspharaṇāt tathatāvyatibhedataḥ<br> gotrataśca sadā sarve buddhagarbhāḥ śarīriṇaḥ |versesktrom1source=[http://www.dsbcproject.org/canon-text/content/575/2687 Digital Sanskrit Buddhist Canon] |versetib1=རྫོགས་སངས་སྐུ་ནི་འཕྲོ་ཕྱིར་དང་<br> དེ་བཞིན་ཉིད་དབྱེར་མེད་ཕྱིར་དང་<br> རིགས་ཡོད་ཕྱིར་ན་ལུས་ཅན་ཀུན<br> རྟག་ཏུ་སངས་རྒྱས་སྙིང་པོ་ཅན |versetib1source=Dege, PHI,111 |DegeLink=https://adarsha.dharma-treasure.org/kdbs/degetengyur/pbs/934147 |nulinesinverse=4 |versetranseng1=Since the perfect buddhakaya '''radiates''', <br> Since '''suchness''' is undifferentiable, <br> And because of the '''disposition''',<br> All beings always '''possess''' the buddha heart. |versetranseng1source=[[When the Clouds Part]], [[Brunnhölzl, K.|Brunnhölzl]], 356-357 |versetranseng2=The Buddha's Body penetrates everywhere,<br> Reality is of undifferentiated nature,<br> And the Germ [of the Buddha] exists (in the living beings).<br> Therefore, all living beings are<br> Always possessed of the Matrix of the Buddha. |versetranseng2source=p. 197 - [[Takasaki, Jikido]]. [[A study on the Ratnagotravibhāga (Uttaratantra), being a treatise on the Tathāgatagarbha theory of Mahayana Buddhism]]. Serie Orientale Roma 33. Roma: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente (ISMEO), 1966. |versechinese1=體及因果業 相應及以行 <br> 時差別遍處 不變無差別 <br> 彼妙義次第 第一真法性 <br> 我如是略說 汝今應善知 |versechinese1source=[http://cbeta.buddhist-canon.com/result/normal/T31/1611_001.htm CBETA T31] }} </pre>}}
Verse I.28 Variations
Some use of "" in your query was not closed by a matching "".
RGVV Commentary on Verse
Tibetan
English
Sanskrit
Chinese
Full Tibetan Commentary
Full English Commentary
Full Sanskrit Commentary
Full Chinese Commentary
Other English translations[edit]
Textual sources[edit]
Commentaries on this verse[edit]
Academic notes[edit]
- Digital Sanskrit Buddhist Canon Unicode Input
- Brunnhölzl, Karl. When the Clouds Part: The Uttaratantra and its Meditative Tradition as a Bridge between Sūtra and Tantra. Boston: Snow Lion Publications, an imprint of Shambhala Publications, 2014.
- Takasaki, Jikido. A Study on the Ratnagotravibhāga (Uttaratantra): Being a Treatise on the Tathāgatagarbha Theory of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Serie Orientale Roma 33. Roma: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente (ISMEO), 1966.
- Many of the sources in this list come from an unpublished essay by Kurtis Schaeffer, who kindly shared his work.
- Obermiller, E. "The Sublime Science of the Great Vehicle to Salvation Being a Manual of Buddhist Monism." Acta Orientalia IX (1931), pp. 81-306.
- Ruegg, David Seyfort. La Theorie du Tathāgatagarbha et du Gotra. Ecole Francaise d'Extreme-Orient. Publications De l'Ecole Francaise d'Extreme-Orient Volume LXX. 1969.
- Ruegg, David Seyfort. Le Traite du Tathāgatagarbha de Bu ston Rin chen grub. Ecole Francaise d'Extreme-Orient. Publications De l'Ecole Francaise d'Extreme-Orient Volume LXXXVIII. 1973.
- Ahmad, Zahiruddin. "The Womb of the Tathāgata or Buddhist Monism." Journal of The Oriental Society of Australia 15/16, 1983-84. pp 27-44.
- Holmes, Ken & Katia. The Changeless Nature. Eskdalemuir, Scotland: Karma Drubgyud Darjay Ling, 1985.
- Guenther, Herbert V. From Reductionism to Creativity. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 1989.
- Hookham, S. K. The Buddha Within: Tathagatagarbha Doctrine According to the Shentong Interpretation of the Ratnagotravibhaga. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1992.
- Holmes, Ken & Katia. Maitreya on Buddha Nature. Scotland: Altea Publishing, 1999.
- http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Buddha_nature
Textual Sources[edit]
Verse Location[edit]
A Note On Verse Order: See notes in Brunnhölzl, K. When the Clouds Part, page 1076. Some text versions have this verse as verse I.27 and either leave out the verse 27 we have here or put it after this verse as verse 28.
Note 1236 in Brunnhölzl, K. When the Clouds Part: In the Tibetan Editions of the Uttaratantra, this verse follows I.28, and some editions omit it altogether. JKC (50) notes this fact and says that it does belong to the text since Dölpopa, Karma Könshön (a student of the Third Karmapa), Rongtön, Gö Lotsāwa, and others quote and comment on it extensively:
- སངས་རྒྱས་ཡེ་ཤེས་སེམས་ཅན་ཚོགས་ཞུགས་ཕྱིར།།
- རང་བཞིན་དྲི་མེད་དེ་ནི་གཉིས་མེད་དེ།།
- སངས་རྒྱས་རིགས་ལ་དེ་འབྲས་ཉེར་བརྟགས་ཕྱིར།།
- འགྲོ་ཀུན་སངས་རྒྱས་སྙིང་པོ་ཅན་ཏུ་གསུངས།།27།།
Commentaries on this verse[edit]
Asanga[edit]
Karl Brunnhölzl notes that neither the RGVV, nor Vairocanarakṣita’s Mahāyānottaratantraṭippaṇī comment specifically on the meaning of verses I.27 and I.28. (When the Clouds Part, 855.)
Sajjana[edit]
Verse 8 of Sajjana’s Mahāyānottaratantraśāstropadeśa offers an interesting reformulation/gloss of the first two reasons. Line 8b “since the welfare of sentient beings depends on the victor” corresponds to the first reason (“since buddha wisdom enters into the multitudes of beings” in I.27a and “because the perfect buddhakāya radiates” in I.28a). It highlights the intrinsic affinity between the buddha natures of buddhas and sentient beings, which enables the former to benefit and awaken the latter. In this vein, an interlinear gloss on verse 11 explicitly relates the twofold dharmakāya—“the utterly stainless dharmadhātu and its natural outflow (teaching the principles of profundity and diversity)” in Uttaratantra I.145 (explained by RGVV as “consisting of the arising of [individually] corresponding [forms of] cognizance in other sentient beings to be guided”) to “the perfect buddhakāya radiates . . .” Line 8c “because suchness operates in accordance with the welfare [of beings]” corresponds to the second reason (“since its stainlessness is nondual by nature” in I.27b and “because suchness is undifferentiable” in I.28b). This line emphasizes the active nature of suchness when it is understood as buddha nature, which always engages in the welfare of sentient beings, be it in the form of external buddha activity or as the internal driving force for the path of ordinary beings and bodhisattvas to attain buddhahood.
Ratnākaraśānti[edit]
The second chapter of Ratnākaraśānti’s Sūtrasamuccayabhāṣya establishes that the teaching of there being only a single yāna ultimately is of definitive meaning. In this context, he says that the tathāgata heart is only temporarily obscured by adventitious stains and quotes a verse by the Buddha also found in RGVV, Nāgārjuna’s Dharmadhātustava, and Uttaratantra I.28. Ratnākaraśānti concludes that the tathāgata heart is the single disposition that serves as the basis for there being just a single yāna.
- Since the dharmadhātu has the meaning of gotra, they are inseparable. Therefore, since all [beings] possess tathāgatagarbha, its fruition is just a single yāna. However, since it was taught as various yānas in the form of progressive means of realization and [since] this gotra does not appear due to [being obscured by] afflictions and so on, temporarily, [the Buddha] spoke of five gotras. For, he said:
- Just as within stony debris
- Pure gold does not appear,
- And then appears through being purified,
- The sugata is said [to appear] in the world.[1]
Also noble Nāgārjuna says [in his Dharmadhātustava]:
- In a pregnant woman’s womb,
- A child exists but is not seen.
- Just so, dharmadhātu is not seen,
- When it’s covered by afflictions.[2]
Likewise, noble Maitreya states [in his Uttaratantra]:
- Because the illuminating dharmadhātu radiates,
- There is no difference in suchness,
- And the actuality of the disposition appears,
- All [sentient beings] possess the sugata heart.[3]
- Therefore, just as [described in] the Tathāgatagarbhasūtra, though [tathāgatagarbha] is ensnared by afflictions, when the conditions for [its] awakening have formed, all [yānas] are simply a single yāna.[4]
Note that Ratnākaraśānti’s version of Uttaratantra I.28 contains interesting variant readings, especially in lines a and c. Either Ratnākaraśānti paraphrased I.28 in this way himself (or quoted it so from memory) or he used a different manuscript of the Uttaratantra.[5]
Ngog Lotsāwa[edit]
Ngog Lotsāwa’s Synopsis of the “Uttaratantra”[6] first elaborates on the example of the huge scroll the size of an entire trichiliocosm that is encapsulated in a single minute particle. Here, the buddha wisdom that exists in the mind streams of sentient beings is the dharmadhātu. This dharmadhātu is wisdom in the sense that the prajñā of buddhas knows, in a single moment, all phenomena to lack characteristics. Therefore, this prajñā is inseparable from what it knows. Thus, the ultimate, this very dharmadhātu, is the wisdom that is aware of this dharmadhātu. Since said dharmadhātu abides in all sentient beings in a complete manner, the example and its meaning are very much justified. When the obscurations have subsided, no characteristics whatsoever are seen, and this very nonseeing is the seeing of true reality. The wisdom of nothing to be seen is nothing but suchness itself. Therefore, it is in this sense justified (that dharmadhātu and wisdom are one).
As for the intention of lines I.28ac, Ngog says that sentient beings possess the tathāgata heart because they (a) possess the fruitional, (b) the natural, and (c) the causal tathāgata heart. (a) The perfect buddhakāya is pure suchness, and its radiating refers to sentient beings’ being pervaded by it. It pervades them because it is suitable to be attained by all sentient beings. From this perspective, the “tathāgata” (in “tathāgata heart”) refers to the actual tathāgata, while it is only in a nominal sense that sentient beings possess the heart of this tathāgata. For those who have the fortune to attain this tathāgatahood are labeled as being pervaded by it. (b) In terms of suchness, both “tathāgata” and sentient beings who possess the tathāgata heart are taken to be the actual suchness. For even when suchness, which is naturally devoid of stains, is associated with adventitious obscurations, it is the nature of a buddha and it definitely abides in the mind streams of sentient beings. (c) In terms of the disposition, “tathāgata” is understood in a nominal sense because the causes for attaining the state of pure suchness—the latent tendencies of virtue that consist of the seeds of prajñā and compassion—are the causes of a tathāgata, whereas it is precisely the disposition that is “the heart of sentient beings.”
Marpa Dopa and Parahitabhadra (as represented in CMW)[edit]
CMW’s2723 explanation of I.28 starts by saying that the Uttaratantra is the treatise that determines the meaning of the sūtras of definitive meaning. Therefore, in order to determine the intended meaning of the statement in the Tathāgatagarbhasūtra that "All sentient beings possess the tathāgata heart," first, the comments on the intention of the scriptures of the Tathāgata about the basic element are explained in I.28. Next, CMW indicates that its comments on this verse are based on the purport of verses I.144/147–52/155, which match the dharmakāya, suchness, and the disposition with the nine examples. This is followed by the explanation of the actual words of I.28:
The basic element has three phases—the phase of its being pure, the phase of its being both pure and impure, and the phase of its being impure. The phrase "Since the perfect buddhakāya radiates" refers to the phase of its being pure. [In it,] "kāya" [means] the dharmakāya, which [actually] refers to all three kāyas. "Through what does one know that?" Maitreya himself says [below]:
- The dharmakāya is to be known as twofold—
- The utterly stainless dharmadhātu
- And its natural outflow (teaching
- The principles of profundity and diversity).2724
"Radiates" [means] that these three kāyas pervade all sentient beings. "How do they pervade them?" In order to purify the basic element of sentient beings for as long as saṃsāra is not empty, with the dharmakāya’s functioning as the support, the sambhogakāya promotes the welfare [of sentient beings] through pervading the pure retinues who dwell on the bhūmis, and the three [kinds of] nirmāṇakāya perform the welfare [of sentient beings] through pervading the impure retinues. Therefore, the basis to be purified—the [tathāgata] heart or basic element—exists in [all] sentient beings. "Why?" If the basis to be purified—the basic element—did not exist [in sentient beings], their being pervaded by the three kāyas would be pointless. Having that in mind, [Maitreya] says, "All beings always possess the buddha heart."2725 Such is not only explained in the Uttaratantra alone, but the 'Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra' states:
- Just as space is asserted to be always omnipresent,
- This is held to be always omnipresent.
- Just as space is omnipresent in the hosts of forms,
- It is omnipresent in the hosts of sentient beings.2726
The phrase, "since suchness is undifferentiable" refers to the phase of the basic element’s being both pure and impure—the naturally pure suchness of buddhas and sentient beings is without any difference. This is declared in the Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra [as follows]:
- Though it is without difference in everything,
- Suchness having become pure
- Is the Tathāgata. Therefore,
- All beings possess its heart.2727
[The phrase] "since the disposition exists" refers to the phase of the basic element’s being impure—since the disposition of a tathāgata exists in all sentient beings, it abides as what is suitable to give rise to the dharmakāya. Exactly this is explained [in the Uttaratantra] below:
- It is held that the three buddhakāyas
- Are obtained from these two dispositions—
- The first kāya, by virtue of the first one,
- And the latter two, by virtue of the second one.2728
The following paragraph represents CMW’s comments on the nature of the basic element as explained in Uttaratantra I.30–31. However, since this paragraph again takes up the three reasons in I.28 and further elaborates on them through connecting them with I.30–31, it is presented here too.
In terms of the particular [characteristics of the nature of the basic element], during the phase of the basic element’s being pure, the dharmakāya radiates into all sentient beings, thus possessing the power to accomplish the goals that sentient beings think about. Therefore, it is similar to a precious gem. During the phase of the basic element’s being both pure and impure, the suchness of buddhas and sentient beings is undifferentiable. Therefore, it is similar to space. During the phase of the basic element’s being impure, the mahāyāna disposition exists in all sentient beings. Therefore, it is similar to water since it moistens the mind streams [of beings] by way of compassion. In terms of its general characteristic, in analogy with these three examples [of a jewel, space, and water] being pure by nature, their meaning refers to the basic element’s being pure by nature.2729
Later,2730 CMW’s comments on I.144/147–52/155 explicitly correlate verses I.145/148–147/150 with line I.28a; verse I.148/151, with I.28b; and verses I.149/152–152/155, with I.28c. In particular, the dharmakāya consists of the actual stainless dharmakāya (suchness endowed with twofold purity) and its natural outflow—the two rūpakāyas. Due to explaining the mahāyāna dharma, the rūpakāyas serve as the concordant cause for others attaining the dharmakāya through studying, reflecting, and meditating on this dharma. Furthermore, since the rūpakāyas represent the result that is concordant with the cause that is the dharmakāya, the dharmakāya itself is also their concordant cause. In terms of ultimate reality, the rūpakāyas teach the profundity of emptiness to bodhisattvas (ultimately, this represents the sambhogakāya). In terms of seeming reality, they explain the diversity of the three yānas (ultimately, this represents the nirmāṇakāya).
Suchness is compared to three attributes of gold—its being pure by nature, its color being changeless, and its being suitable to be made into ornaments (suggesting that, though suchness is undifferentiable in buddhas and sentient beings, it can eventually manifest as all kinds of precious qualities of realization and relinquishment).
As for the disposition, verse I.149/152 is said to describe its essence in terms of the naturally abiding and the unfolding disposition. Just as a treasure exists since the beginning of the world and is not created by humans, the naturally abiding disposition exists since beginningless time and is not created by the efforts of people. Just as a tree grows through water, manure, and so on, the unfolding disposition represents the arising of proper mental engagement such as studying. Verses I.150/153–152/155 present the power or capacity of the disposition. Just as a precious statue is not produced now and all kinds of desired things arise if it is supplicated, the dharmakāya is unproduced by causes and conditions and is a treasure of qualities such as the powers. Just like a prince, the sambhogakāya enjoys the mahāyāna dharma like a kingdom. Just as a golden statue is not an actual body but an image of a body, the nirmāṇakāya arises as an image in samādhi.
This is followed by a discussion of the ālaya and its relation to the disposition,2731 which is primarily based on the first chapter of the Mahāyānasaṃgraha and its commentary Vivṛtagūḍhārthapiṇḍavyākhyā. Being phrased throughout in classical Yogācāra diction, this section is a clear example of an early Tibetan commentary that based on the position of the Indian master Parahitabhadra, explicitly combines the Yogācāra teachings with those on buddha nature, which is exactly what later Tibetans such as the Third Karmapa and virtually all Shentongpas did in great detail. In particular, CMW quotes Parahitabhadra as saying that the ālaya and the disposition are the same—the naturally abiding ālaya’s being the same as the naturally abiding disposition and the adventitious ālaya’s being the same as the unfolding disposition. The ālaya is the foundation of both contaminated seeds and the uncontaminated seeds of the supramundane mind, which coexist like a mix of water and milk. However, the uncontaminated seeds do not exist substantially, are not able to produce manifest uncontaminated results yet, and are not the primary seeds in the ālaya, while the seeds of afflicted phenomena have the opposite characteristics. Therefore, the Mahāyānasaṃgraha refers to the ālaya as the support of afflicted phenomena alone. As for the coexistence of both uncontaminated and contaminated seeds in the naturally abiding disposition or ālaya, until one focuses on this ālaya through the remedial path, the seeds of afflicted phenomena exist in it as adventitious stains. However, once one focuses on this ālaya through the path, the adventitious stains become purified.
Furthermore, CMW’s introduction2732 elaborates on "the three natures" that are used in the three reasons in I.28: (1) the stainless dharmakāya, (2) changeless suchness, and (3) the disposition endowed with qualities. The text also provides instructions on how to work with these three in meditation. First, CMW describes the stainless dharmakāya as follows:
The stainless dharmadhātu of one’s own mind, by its very essence beyond [ordinary states of] mind and inconceivable by thoughts, is the instruction beyond expression on the definitive meaning, that is, the profound that is of one taste. Though this mind—the nature of phenomena free from speech, thought, and expression—is expressed by all kinds of yānas [in different ways], regard it as the definitive meaning of the heart of the matter, luminous mind as such. There are three guiding instructions about this dharmakāya. First, the mind appearing as all kinds of thoughts is the means. This being free from identification is prajñā. Mind’s appearing but being without nature, lucid yet without clinging, is the nondual path. This is [how to] rest in the dharmakāya first. In between, if thoughts arise, their being examined by prajñā is the indication of profundity. In the end, letting them be as lucid wisdom in an uncontrived manner is the indication of guidance through means.
Next, the text explains suchness’s not changing through thoughts in three parts:
(a) With regard to guidance through examples, as the example for [suchness’s] being changeless, consider the sky—no matter how much dust and smoke may arise [in it], the sky is not tainted. Thoughts are like this example. As the example for [suchness’s] being untainted, consider gold—gold is not tainted by a film and stains [on it], which are like thoughts. As the example for [suchness’s] being pure, consider water—if water is not muddied, [this resembles suchness’s] not being muddied by thoughts.
(b) Guidance through the meaning is sixfold. (1) At the time of being a sentient being, the true nature of the mind—suchness—does not change into the stains in its essence, no matter which afflictions and thoughts may arise. If suchness became the stains of thoughts, one would not become a buddha. (2) At the time of being a buddha, [suchness] does not change into qualities—there is no enhancement in the essence of the dharmakāya, which is self-arisen wisdom. If there were, one would not become a buddha through the path. (3)–(4) The stainless true nature of the mind is not tainted by flaws at the time of being a sentient being, nor is it tainted by qualities at the time of being a buddha. [As the Uttaratantra says:]
- There is nothing to be removed in this
- And not the slightest to be added.2733
[And:]
- Similarly, with the treasure of jewels lodged within the mind,
- Whose true nature is stainless and without anything to be added or to be removed,
- Not being realized, all these beings continuously experience
- The suffering of being destitute in many ways.2734
- (5) Sentient beings are the adventitious flaws of thoughts. Therefore, one familiarizes with them as being nonentities. (6) Buddhahood is one’s own mind’s being stainless of these adventitious stains of thoughts. [Thus,] one familiarizes with this luminosity of one’s own mind.
- (c) You may wonder, "How does one familiarize [with this]?" [One does so through] the three inconceivable [ways of] taking these very [guiding instructions] as the path. (1) At the time of being a sentient being, suchness is naturally pure and the essence of the mind is real as self-arisen wisdom. Through [mind’s] not recognizing its own face, the stains of thoughts arise, which is inconceivable. What one makes a living experience is thoughts being pointed out to be unidentifiable. (2) At the time of being a buddha, naturally stainless mind is real as self-arisen wisdom. Through [mind’s] recognizing its own face, it is free from the adventitious stains of thoughts, which is inconceivable purity. One makes this certainty about natural luminosity a living experience. (3) The [tathāgata] heart—the dharmakāya, self-arisen wisdom—is without distinction in buddhas and sentient beings. Its essence—alpha-pure ultimate luminosity—is the inconceivable nature. The temporary lack of realizing the true nature of the mind is its inconceivable appearance as all kinds of thoughts and flaws for sentient beings. The realization of the true nature of the mind is its inconceivable appearance as the kāyas and wisdoms for buddhas. [Thus,] natural luminosity is to be resolved through the view, temporarily to be made a living experience through familiarization, and thereafter one should train in compassion and bodhicitta.
Finally, the disposition endowed with qualities is discussed in five parts:
(a) The luminosity of one’s own mind is the disposition for the dharmakāya. Since it abides primordially and by nature as buddhahood, it is not that something nonexistent is accomplished. There is not the slightest buddhahood to be added apart from the realization of one’s own mind. (b) To realize thoughts as being adventitious is the sambhogakāya. (c) The arising of compassion for those who do not realize this is the nirmāṇakāya. (d) By virtue of the wisdom of realizing the two rūpakāyas, which is the supreme accomplished disposition, [luminosity] is free from the stains of thoughts—the buddhahood that is the dawn of realization is unceasing. Through realizing one’s own mind, there is not the slightest to be removed because there is no sentient being to be relinquished apart from [mind’s] playing as thoughts without a basis. (e) [The Uttaratantra says]:
- It is held that the three kāyas are attained
- By virtue of these two dispositions—2735
- Therefore, through that, at the time of recognizing one’s own mind as the inseparability of the expanse and wisdom, the following kind of experience arises. Since one’s own mind’s being unidentifiable (the expanse) and its being lucid and unceasing (wisdom) are inseparable, the characteristics [of mind’s nature] are beyond [ordinary states of] mind. Therefore, without thoughts and clinging, [all] that appears and exists dawns as the essence of the three kāyas. This has three parts. (1) The nature of the mind is the dharmakāya—the essence of the minds of all sentient beings in the three realms is real as luminosity. (2) The arising of one’s own realization of this actuality through instructions and familiarization is the sambhogakāya. Through that, though [this luminosity] itself may arise as all kinds of thoughts, one realizes that their essence lacks a root. (3) The arising of compassion without deliberately familiarizing with apprehending the conceptual cognitions of mind to be independent real entities is the nirmāṇakāya. Through various means, this is what arises in the mind stream [as] the bodhicitta that is associated with the thoughts of sentient beings. Those are [the ways of] bringing the naturally luminous [tathāgata] heart onto the path to buddhahood.
Gampopa[edit]
In its section on buddha nature as the fundamental cause for the entire path and its fruition, Gampopa’s Ornament of Precious Liberation2736 quotes Uttaratantra I.28 to support its explanation about the three reasons why all sentient beings possess the tathāgata heart. (1) The first reason is that the dharmakāya—emptiness—pervades all sentient beings, which means that buddhahood is the dharmakāya, the dharmakāya is emptiness, and emptiness pervades all sentient beings. (2) The second reason is that the nature of phenomena—suchness—is undifferentiable, that is, the suchness of buddhas and the suchness of sentient beings cannot be differentiated in terms of being better and worse, bigger and smaller, or higher and lower, respectively. (3) The third reason is that the disposition exists in all sentient beings, that is, beings have five kinds of buddha disposition: (a) the cut-off disposition, (b) the uncertain disposition, (c) the śrāvaka disposition, (d) the pratyekabuddha disposition, and (e) the mahāyāna disposition.
(a) According to Asaṅga, those with the cut-off disposition are those who have the six characteristics of not feeling the slightest weariness even when seeing the flaws of saṃsāra, not feeling the slightest faith even when hearing about the qualities of the Buddha, not feeling the slightest regret about excessively engaging in wrongdoings, and not having the slightest shame, embarrassment, and compassion. Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra III.11 says:
- Some are solely devoted to wrongdoing,
- Some have completely destroyed the immaculate dharmas,
- Some lack the virtue conducive to liberation,
- Some have inferior immaculate [dharmas], and [some] lack the cause.2737
When the Buddha spoke about beings with the "cut-off disposition," he had in mind that they remain in saṃsāra for a very long time but not that they will absolutely never attain buddhahood—if they make efforts, they too will attain it. Thus, the Mahākaruṇāpuṇḍarīkasūtra says:
- Ānanda, even if a sentient being who has no karmic fortune to pass into nirvāṇa does as little as tossing up a flower into space by focusing on the Buddha, the result of this root of virtue will be the result that is nirvāṇa. I say that [this being] will reach the culmination of nirvāṇa and the end of nirvāṇa.2738
(b) The uncertain disposition depends on conditions. For example, it turns into the śrāvaka disposition upon relying on a spiritual friend who is a śrāvaka, associating with companions who are śrāvakas, or seeing the scriptures of the śrāvakas. The same goes for the conditions that make the uncertain disposition turn into the pratyekabuddha disposition or the mahāyāna disposition.
(c) The characteristics of the śrāvaka disposition consist of being afraid of saṃsāra after having seen its flaws, having confidence in nirvāṇa, and possessing little compassion (that is, not being very interested in the welfare of beings).
(d) The characteristics of the pratyekabuddha disposition consist of the three of the śrāvaka disposition as well as being very proud, keeping one’s master secret, and liking to be in solitude.
(e) The mahāyāna disposition is classified as twofold—the naturally abiding disposition and the accomplished disposition. The nature of the naturally abiding disposition is the capacity of generating the buddha qualities that is of beginningless time and obtained by virtue of the nature of phenomena. The nature of the accomplished disposition is the capacity of generating the buddha qualities that is obtained by having familiarized with roots of virtue before. The synonyms for the mahāyāna disposition are "seed," "basic element," and "nature." It is superior to the dispositions of śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas because the latter reach their level of complete purity through having purified just the afflictive obscurations, whereas the mahāyāna disposition reaches its level of complete purity through having purified both obscurations.
The mahāyāna disposition can be either awakened (that is, its signs being observable) or unawakened. The four adverse conditions for its awakening are being born in states lacking leisure (such as in the lower realms or as long-living gods), being heedless, engaging in wrong ways, and possessing the flaws of the obscurations. The favorable conditions for its awakening are the outer condition of being taught the genuine dharma by others and the inner condition that consists of proper mental engagement, striving for roots of virtue, and so on. According to the Daśadharmakasūtra, the signs of the bodhisattva disposition are that, without relying on a remedy, one’s body and speech are naturally gentle, one’s mind has little deceit and hypocrisy, and one is loving and open toward all sentient beings. According to Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra III.5, the signs are that whatever bodhisattvas do is preceded by their compassion for sentient beings, they have faith in the mahāyāna dharma, they endure all hardships without second thought, and they engage in the roots of virtue that have the nature of the pāramitās.
Among these five dispositions, the existence of the mahāyāna disposition is the proximate cause of buddhahood. Since the dispositions of śrāvakas and pratyekabuddhas also lead to the attainment of buddhahood in the end, they are the distant causes of buddhahood. Within the uncertain disposition, there are some that are a proximate cause and some that are a distant cause. Since the cut-off disposition only refers to a long time before attaining buddhahood but not to absolutely never attaining buddhahood, it is the very distant cause of buddhahood.
The examples for the existence of the disposition for buddhahood in all sentient beings include being like silver in silver ore, sesame oil in sesame seeds, and butter in milk. Thus, just as silver can be manifested in silver ore, oil in seeds, and butter in milk, buddhahood can be manifested in sentient beings.
Rinchen Yeshé[edit]
Rinchen Yeshé’s commentary on the Uttaratantra2739 begins by repeating what RGVV says on I.28 and then elaborates on the meaning of the first three lines of this verse. As for the meaning of the dharmakāya of a tathāgata pervading all sentient beings, the naturally pure dharmakāya pervades all sentient beings. The dharmakāya that is also pure of all adventitious stains pervades all sentient beings as being suitable to be attained. Or, the phrase, "the perfect buddhakāya" refers to being pervaded by all three kāyas. To support this, Rinchen Yeshé first quotes Uttaratantra I.144 and RGVV on I.146–47. As for the manner of the three kāyas’ pervading sentient beings, he says that they exist in beings as being suitable to be attained as the manifest three kāyas. Or, in order to purify the basic element of sentient beings for as long as saṃsāra is not empty, the dharmakāya functions as the support for that, while the sambhogakāya promotes the welfare of pure retinues by pervading them, and the nirmāṇakāya promotes the welfare of impure retinues by pervading them. Therefore, the basis to be purified by these three kāyas—the basic element that is the tathāgata heart—exists in sentient beings. If this basis to be purified did not exist in beings, the promotion of their welfare through the three kāyas would be pointless.2740
As for the meaning of suchness’s being undifferentiable, since its nature never changes into anything else, it is suchness. It exists in all sentient beings and buddhas in an undifferentiable manner. As Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra IX.37 says:
- Though it is without difference in everything,
- Suchness’s having become pure
- Is the Tathāgata. Therefore,
- All beings possess its heart.
Also the prajñāpāramitā sūtras say:
- The suchness of the world, the suchness of arhats,
- The suchness of pratyekabuddhas, and the suchness of the victors—
- As just a single suchness, free from being and never other,
- Has prajñāpāramitā been realized by the Tathāgata.2741
And:
- The element of space in the eastern direction, in the southern direction,
- Likewise in the western direction and the northern direction is boundless.
- Existing above, below, in the ten directions, and in as many as there are,
- There is no difference and there is no distinction.
- The suchness of the past, the suchness of the future,
- Likewise the suchness of the present, the suchness of arhats,
- The suchness of all phenomena, and the suchness of the victors—
- All this is the suchness of dharma, and there is no distinction.2742
As for the meaning of the disposition’s existing in sentient beings, the disposition of the manifest three kāyas’ being suitable to be attained, if this disposition is purified, exists in all sentient beings. Therefore, one should understand that all beings possess the buddha heart.2743
Butön Rinchen Drub[edit]
In his Ornament That Illuminates and Beautifies the Tathāgata Heart,2744 Butön says that the teachings on tathāgatagarbha are of expedient meaning. He supports this by lengthy quotes from the Ghanavyūhasūtra, the Laṅkāvatārasūtra, the Śrīmālādevīsūtra, and the Aṅgulimālīyasūtra. Butön also adduces the typical three criteria that are considered to determine a teaching as being of expedient meaning: (1) its basis of intention (dugongs gzhi), (2) its purpose (dogs pa), and (3) the logical invalidation of the explicit statement (dngos la gnod byed).
(1) The general basis of intention of the teachings on buddha nature is the ālaya-consciousness, which refers to the sheer cause of buddhahood. In particular, Maitreya in his Uttaratantra had a threefold basis of intention in mind: (a) the dharmakāya, (b) suchness, and (c) the disposition.
(2) The purpose of teaching tathāgatagarbha lies in the indirect intention (ldem por dgongs pa) of its being the remedy that eliminates the five flaws described in Uttaratantra I.157–67.2745 In addition, Butön adduces Uttaratantra I.28, showing that the statement "all beings contain the buddha heart" was taught for three reasons. Following RGVV, Butön matches these three reasons with the nine examples in Uttaratantra I.144–52. However, his explanation of these three consists mainly of extensive quotes from the Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra, the Avatamsakasūtra, and the Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra.
(a) As for the dharmakāya, Butön cites the Avataṃsakasūtra as saying that the dharmakāya pervades all sentient beings, all phenomena, and all realms, just as formless space does. According to Butön, this was said with the intention that the dharmakāya is not attained right now, but will be attained later. Citing the Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra, he also refutes the notion that buddhahood dwells within due to the dharmakāya’s pervading everything and thus dwelling within sentient beings.
(b) As for suchness’s being undifferentiable, Butön says that the basic nature of all sentient beings—natural luminosity, which does not change into anything else—is the suchness of mind. It exists in buddhas and sentient beings without difference. Once that suchness—natural luminosity—has become pure of all adventitious stains without exception, it is buddhahood. Since this suchness also exists in sentient beings without difference, its complete purification of all stains will be attained later if they have cultivated the path. Therefore, the statement that suchness is undifferentiable is also made with the intention of referring to another time.
(c) As for all sentient beings’ possessing the disposition, the disposition is what gives rise to the three kāyas of a buddha. Since the tathāgatadhātu exists in all sentient beings, it is taught that they possess the tathāgata heart. Quoting Uttaratantra I.27, Butön says that since the teaching on the disposition is a case of labeling the cause with the name of the result, it likewise bears the intention of referring to another time. Also the example of the big scroll in the Avataṃsakasūtra was given with such an intention. Butön quotes that sūtra as saying that, due to being uninterrupted from the birth of all buddhas up through their entering parinirvāṇa, the buddhas fill up the entire dharmadhātu, and the seeing of all the diverse births of buddhas represents the eighth expertise in explanations with an intention. According to Butön, this passage refers again to the above threefold basis of intention (dharmakāya, suchness, and disposition), because it bears the intention of the seeds of all dharmas (chos) that are the buddha qualities existing in a complete manner and their true nature (chos nyid)— suchness—existing without difference before and after. According to the Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra, the nature of a buddha exists in all sentient beings because the seeds of buddhahood exist in them.
(3) Finally, Butön says that all this also establishes the invalidation of what the teachings on buddha nature say explicitly. In addition, he quotes the well-known passage from the Śrīmālādevīsūtra:
The tathāgata heart is empty of all cocoons of afflictions that are separable [from it] and [can] be known to be divisible [from it]. It is not empty of the inconceivable buddha qualities that are inseparable [from it], [can]not be known to be divisible [from it], and far surpass the sand grains in the river Gaṅgā [in number].2746
However, Butön gives a very peculiar interpretation of the phrase "empty of . . . [can] be known" (she's pa rnams kyis stong pa), taking it to mean "empty of knowing" (she's pas stong pa) and concluding that this phrase explains the tathāgata heart as lacking wisdom. Therefore, he says, it also lacks all the qualities that are contained in this wisdom, because these two (wisdom and qualities) must be produced by the two immeasurable accumulations of wisdom and merit, respectively.
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen[edit]
Dölpopa’s commentary on the Uttaratantra2747 explains I.28 as the manner in which the dharmadhātu pervades everything. Since the dharmakāya of the perfect buddhas radiates toward and pervades all phenomena, since suchness—the nature of all phenomena of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa—is undifferentiable, and because the disposition of the tathāgatas—the naturally pure dharmadhātu—exists in all sentient beings as being suitable to be purified from its obscurations, all beings always possess the ultimate buddha heart since the very beginning in an uninterrupted manner.2748
Gyaltsab Darma Rinchen[edit]
In his commentary on the Uttaratantra,2749 the Gelugpa scholar Gyaltsab Darma Rinchen says that the tathāgata heart is explained by way of the result that is a tathāgata, the nature of a tathāgata, and the cause of a tathāgata. However, it is not that mere suchness and the dharmakāya of perfect buddhas are taken as instances of the tathāgata heart because the Uttaratantra and Asaṅga’s commentary explain the latter as pertaining solely to the phase of sentient beings and the phase of the cause. As for identifying the three instances of the tathāgata heart in Uttaratantra I.28, the result of having cultivated the path that purifies the basic element— the enlightened activity of the dharmakāya of perfect buddhas—radiates toward and pervades all sentient beings.2750 Beings are explained to possess the tathāgata heart because they have this very factor of being suitable for enlightened activity to engage them, which is associated with them as the special phenomenon that exists solely in the mind streams of sentient beings. This is similar to Abhisamayālaṃkāra VIII.11ab:
- By virtue of the vastness of activity like that,
- Buddhahood is described as "all-pervading."
Though suchness naturally devoid of stains is the nature of both sentient beings and buddhas, by taking its being the nature of buddhas as a reason, it refers to the tathāgata heart at the time when it is associated with the stains of the mind streams of sentient beings. It is said that all sentient beings possess the tathāgata heart with the intention that suchness with stains—the very suchness that is naturally devoid of the stains of the mind streams of sentient beings—exists in all beings. The same is also said with the intention that all beings possess the buddha disposition during the phase of the cause that makes them attain the three kāyas. Though there is also the naturally abiding disposition, when it is explained that beings possess the tathāgata heart through taking the existence of the disposition as a reason, this must be explained from the perspective of the cause of a tathāgata. When the same is explained through taking the existence of suchness as a reason, it must be explained from the perspective of the nature of a tathāgata.
Therefore, one should understand that the Tathāgatagarbhasūtra, the Uttaratantra, and Asaṅga’s commentary (RGVV) excellently determine the tathāgata heart as being all of the following three—the capacity in sentient beings’ mind streams of their being suitable for enlightened activity to engage them, the suchness with stains in the mind streams of sentient beings, and the buddha disposition in the mind streams of beings that is suitable to change state into the three kāyas. Without realizing these meanings, to assert even the ultimate dharmakāya as the tathāgata heart through dividing the latter into the triad of the resultant, the natural, and the causal tathāgata heart is a presentation that may amaze the ignorant, but it is not the meaning of the Uttaratantra and Asaṅga’s commentary.
Rongtön Shéja Günsi[edit]
Gö Lotsāwa[edit]
Śākya Chogden[edit]
Dümo Dashi Öser[edit]
Mikyö Dorje, the 8th Karmapa[edit]
Padma Karpo[edit]
Kongtrul Lodrö Tayé[edit]
Mipham Rinpoche[edit]
Dongag Tenpé Nyima[edit]
Surmang Padma Namgyal[edit]
Ngawang Kunga Wangchug[edit]
Thrangu Rinpoche[edit]
Etc Etc[edit]
Notes[edit]
- 2717. RGVV (J6) adds that the Buddha uttered this verse while having the pure disposition and buddha nature (the tathāgatadhātu) in mind. (When the Clouds Part, Notes page 1217.)
- 2718. Verse 27. This corresponds to the eighth of the nine examples for buddha nature in the Tathāgatagarbhasūtra (D258, fols. 253b1–254a5) and Uttaratantra I.121–23. (When the Clouds Part, Notes page 1217.)
- 2719. I.28: chos dbyings snang byed ’od ’byung zhing / de bzhin nyid la tha dad med / rigs kyi don ni snang ba’i phyir / thams cad bde gshegs snying po can /. (When the Clouds Part, Notes page 1217.)
- 2720. D3935, fols. 296b.5–297a.2. (When the Clouds Part, Notes page 1217.)
- 2721. Given the significant differences in lines I.28ac and the well-known literalness of Tibetan translators, it seems rather unlikely that the translator here just produced a very free rendering of the Sanskrit as it is found in J and translated in DP. (When the Clouds Part, Notes page 1217.)
- 2722. Rngog lo tsā ba blo ldan shes rab 1993b, fols. 28b.4–29b.2. (When the Clouds Part, Notes page 1217.)
No Tibetan commentary defined.Some use of "" in your query was not closed by a matching "".