“Ānanda, the good, evil, and indeterminate natures that your mind habitually takes as objects give rise to dharmas. Are these dharmas produced by the mind itself, or do they exist in a separate location apart from the mind?”

This is stated quite clearly: the mind gives rise to objects, and objects give rise to the mind; the mind faculty takes dharmas as its objects. As we said earlier, dharma objects are the residual images left by the first five objects. These residual images are stored in the eighth consciousness, which is the storehouse consciousness. The mind faculty then takes up these images.

These images have no substance. They are unlike the external five objects encountered by the external five faculties, which possess some degree of substance. Once the mind faculty takes up these images, it clings tightly to them. Such clinging gives rise to illusory objects, which are called dharma objects. In summary, there are three kinds of dharma objects: good, evil, and indeterminate.

That which benefits oneself and others is good; that which benefits neither oneself nor others is evil; that which neither accords with nor opposes oneself or others, being neither favorable nor adverse, is called indeterminate. Hence the text says: “The good, evil, and indeterminate natures that the mind apprehends generate dharmas.”

Within these three categories, moreover, there are various distinctions. What is adverse to others but favorable to oneself benefits oneself while harming others; this is evil within good. What is adverse to oneself but favorable to others harms oneself while benefiting others; this is good within evil.

In the view of sentient beings, the mind faculty and dharma objects both have locations. But in the Buddha's view, neither can be apprehended; both are illusory and are wondrous functions arising from the Tathāgata-garbha.

“Are these dharmas produced by the mind itself, or do they exist in a separate location apart from the mind?” Does this dharma by which the mind faculty apprehends the three natures arise from your mind, or does it have a separate location outside your mind? If it has a place of arising, it is conditioned; if it has a place where it exists, it is spontaneous. If it has neither a place of arising nor a place where it exists, it is neither conditioned nor spontaneous. The following passage refutes both possibilities completely:

“Ānanda, if it is identical with the mind, then the dharma is not an object. If it is not an object apprehended by the mind, how can it constitute a location?”

The Buddha asks Ānanda: If this dharma is identical with the mind, then the mind is that which discerns; in that case, it is not an object—“the dharma is not an object.”

“Not an object apprehended by the mind”: since it is the mind, the mind does not apprehend itself; the mind apprehends only objects. Of the preceding five objects, the ears can know the sound of bells and drums, and the tongue can know the taste of ghee, and so forth. As for the residual images left by the five objects, only the mind can know them; only the mind faculty can know them, while the preceding five faculties cannot.

When the external five faculties encounter objects, there is mind; without objects, there is no mind. What of the inner mind faculty? Because of objects, the mind arises: “The mind is originally unborn; because of objects, it appears.” Without mind, there are no objects: “Objects are originally unborn; because of mind, they appear.” Without mind, how could there be objects? Mind is deliberation, and deliberation is the mind faculty. The realm of dharma objects all appears from deliberation.

When the preceding five faculties encounter the five objects, mind arises because there are the five objects; if there are no objects, there is no mind. For example, when the eyes encounter visible forms, if there are no visible forms, the eyes see nothing and cannot discern. What of the inner mind faculty? It does not encounter external objects; objects arise because of mind.

Because your mind clings to the residual images left by the first five faculties' encounter with the external five objects, there are objects, sounds, and so forth. Objects arise because of mind; without mind, there are no objects. When the first five faculties encounter the external five objects, “the mind is originally unborn; because of objects, it appears.” The dharma objects encountered by the inner mind faculty are instead such that “objects are originally unborn; because of mind, they appear.”

The preceding five faculties merely discern; they do not deliberate. The mind faculty, however, belongs to deliberation. Dharma objects do not possess substance as the preceding five objects do. Visible form, bodily sensation, scent, taste, and touch all possess substance, but dharma objects do not. Dharma objects are unlike material dharmas; they are more like mental dharmas.

Thus the Buddha distinguishes the matter in this way: if the dharma by which the mind faculty apprehends the three natures were mind, then mind would be that which apprehends. Mind can apprehend objects but cannot apprehend itself; hence it is “not an object apprehended by the mind.” Then it would have no location—where could it be? Thus this dharma is not produced by mind; that is, it is not conditioned in nature.

“If, apart from the mind, it has a separate location, then does the dharma itself possess awareness or not?”

If it is said that this dharma exists somewhere else, apart from the conscious mind, then does its own substance possess awareness, or does it lack awareness? These two questions are asked because they will subsequently both be refuted. It is wrong to say that it possesses awareness, and it is also wrong to say that it lacks awareness. Thus, apart from mind, this dharma does not exist in another place; that is, it is not spontaneous in nature.

“If it possesses awareness, it is called mind. Though distinct from you, it is not an object. If it has the same measure as another mind, then it is your mind. How could your mind become two minds within you?”

Earlier there were two questions: if this dharma exists in another place apart from the conscious mind, does its own substance possess awareness or not? “If it possesses awareness, it is called mind.” If it possesses awareness, it is not an object but mind. If it has awareness, how could it be an object? Objects are insentient things, and insentient things lack awareness.

Now, however, it has awareness; thus it is sentient, it is mind, and it is not an object. “Though distinct from you, it is not an object.” To be distinct from you means to exist somewhere else apart from you. If so, it is still not an object, for since it possesses awareness, awareness is mind. Although it is not the mind of your own sixth faculty, it is nevertheless not an object.

“If it has the same measure as another mind, then it is your mind.” Your mind and that hypothetical mind outside you are alike: both assess and discriminate. Since it could not be established as within, it was hypothetically placed without; yet the discussion is still of the same dharma by which the mind faculty apprehends the three natures. “Then it is your mind.” It is the same as your mind, without distinction; it is your mind.

“How could your mind become two minds within you?” If it cannot be established within and is hypothetically placed without, would this not make two minds? How could there be two minds? Apart from you, there is no other mind. From another perspective, your mind encounters dharma objects. The mind of the sixth faculty that knows is mind; the dharma known by the sixth faculty—the dharma object it encounters—also arises because “objects are originally unborn; because of mind, they appear,” and is therefore mind as well. If both the knower and the known are mind, would you not have two minds? Thus two minds cannot be established.

The foregoing explains that the dharma by which the mind faculty apprehends the three natures possesses awareness, and that possessing awareness cannot be established. Next it explains that this dharma lacks awareness, which likewise cannot be established:

“If it lacks awareness, then since this object is neither form, sound, scent, taste, contact, warmth or cold, nor the appearance of empty space, where could it be?”

If it is said that this dharma by which the mind faculty apprehends the three natures lacks awareness, then the dharma object within it must exist elsewhere apart from your mind, since your mind possesses awareness.

“Since this object is neither form, sound, scent, taste, contact, warmth or cold, nor the appearance of empty space, where could it be?” Form, sound, scent, taste, and touch—contact, separation, warmth, and cold—are objects apprehended by the first five faculties and all possess substance. Empty space also has a location. Yet this dharma object has neither substance nor location.

Then where is the dharma object? It is merely an image; it is not a material object such as form, sound, scent, taste, or touch, nor is it empty space. Since it is neither one of the five material objects nor the immaterial object of empty space, where else could it be?

“Now it has no indication in either form or emptiness. One should not suppose that, beyond the human world, there is some space outside of space. Since it is not an object apprehended by the mind, on what basis could a location be established?”

Now it cannot be indicated in form, sound, scent, taste, touch, or even empty space. So where is it? It is neither form, sound, scent, taste, or touch, nor empty space. Thus, apart from these, “one should not suppose that, beyond the human world, there is some space outside of space.” Could there be another place apart from this human world and apart from boundless empty space? There could not. This shows that neither consciousness nor dharma objects has any location.

“Since it is not an object apprehended by the mind, on what basis could a location be established?” Even if there were a place beyond the human world and empty space, our minds could not apprehend it, conceive of it, or perceive that it exists. If so, how could this hypothetical place be established?

“Therefore, you should know that dharmas and mind alike have no location. Thus the mind faculty and dharmas are both illusory, and are fundamentally neither conditioned nor spontaneous in nature.”

Therefore, one should understand that the good, evil, and indeterminate natures, together with the mind that apprehends these three natures, have no place where they exist. “Thus the mind faculty and dharmas are both illusory”: the mind faculty, the sixth consciousness, and dharmas, the three natures, are both illusory and unreal. Since both are illusory and unreal, they are neither conditioned nor spontaneous.

Because they have no place of arising, they are not conditioned in nature; because they have no place of abiding, they are not spontaneous in nature. Since they are neither conditioned nor spontaneous, they are the wondrous true suchness-nature of the Tathāgata-garbha. The Śūraṅgama Sūtra thus refutes delusion and reveals truth at every point, teaching us not to cling. Whether dharma objects or consciousness, none can be found.

In this way, the twelve bases are completely refuted.

Everyone clings to the idea that the faculties are in one's body: the eye faculty, ear faculty, nose faculty, tongue faculty, body faculty, and mind faculty. How can it be said that they do not exist? In truth, these faculties are illusory appearances that cannot be apprehended; they are all objects of our deluded attachment. To cling tightly to the existence of a self is the seventh consciousness: “I, I”—that is the body faculty belonging to an “I,” the appearance of self.

The appearance of self is the worst. When we undertake a seven-day retreat in our practice, we do so to overthrow this old seventh consciousness. Once it is overthrown, the eighth consciousness is free and transforms into great perfect mirror wisdom. Whether we use the Dharma gate of Buddha-recitation, the Dharma gate of Chan inquiry, or the practices of Esoteric Buddhism, we overthrow this old seventh consciousness. Once it is overthrown, we directly realize the state of non-self. Sentient beings deludedly cling to a self, and their desires are boundless.

Two young men said, “What you have said is wrong. If there were no desires, the world would not progress. The world progresses precisely because people have desires. Without desires, there would be no progress.”

Alas! On the surface, what they say seems correct: “I have desires. I want to satisfy them. I want to live well, eat well, and dress well, so I want money. Where does money come from?” They think, “I will invent something that others cannot make but I can. Once I have made it, I will hold the patent rights.”

After obtaining the patent rights, I can run the business exclusively, make more money, and satisfy my desires. If not for this desire, I would not undertake research. Without research, things would not be invented. Without invention and innovation, the world would not progress, and there would be no material civilization.”

If science did not advance, material civilization would not become more advanced from generation to generation. They say that desire is good: without desire, there is no progress; with desire, there is progress. From this perspective, it seems correct. But afterward it turns bad. How does it turn bad? Your desires are limitless; they can never be satisfied.

The higher material civilization rises, the higher desires rise, and the more fiercely people pursue material things. Because this pursuit becomes so intense, if they cannot attain their aims and satisfy their ever-increasing desires, they will commit evil deeds. They rob, steal, and commit killing, theft, sexual misconduct, and false speech. Crime rates rise, and public security becomes difficult to maintain.

Desire has this fatal flaw. We should also see that capitalism uses material incentives: whatever you invent, you are given a corresponding reward and a patent. Socialism advocates political consciousness and encourages people to think of humanity and of the public.

The good thing about socialism and communism is that they seek to transform human thought: do not pursue personal gain; serve the people and think of the public. From this starting point, your desire is still good, is it not? Our Buddhism accords quite well with this starting point.

We know that all things are illusory and unreal, fundamentally nonexistent. How, then, could we still think only of ourselves? We should arouse bodhicitta, think of the public, and liberate sentient beings. We should be kind not only to human beings but to every living creature; all that we do should be for the sake of freeing everyone from the sea of suffering.

Starting from this point, we may study science and medicine, and the world will be peaceful and stable. But if we begin from personal desire and use material incentives to create the wealth of civilization, it will become a world of robbers.

Look at how the countries of the world struggle without cease. For example, Africa has abundant oil resources, and others say, “You have so many resources. If you will not give them to me, I will seize them from you; I will fight you.” Is that not robbery? Communism is better: everyone shares one aim—to develop production in order to improve human life. It is not a matter of plunder; that is good. Thus, different perspectives yield different conclusions. The desire we must overcome is selfish desire. This is the principle taught in Buddhism.

“Investigating things and extending knowledge”—this was said by Wang Yangming. Ge means to remove: remove the feelings and desires aroused by things, remove the mind of desire. Only then can one “extend knowledge,” enabling one’s innate moral knowledge and ability to emerge. Buddhism speaks of realizing the mind and seeing one’s true nature.

If desires are without limit, the whole mind is filled with foul impurities and afflictions. They obscure the radiance of your true mind, and you can no longer see it. If material desires are removed, the true mind manifests before you.

When the true mind manifests, that is awakening. What a great treasure it is! Formerly, we did not know this. We knew only how to pursue the false appearances of material things; obscured by things, we underwent the round of birth and death in the six realms and suffered in vain. Now that we have broken open the cage and emerged from the cycle of birth and death in the six realms, how joyful and fortunate we are!

It is not enough to free oneself. So many sentient beings still remain in the cycle of birth and death; how can they all be brought out? Therefore, one arouses the great resolve to save sentient beings. Saving sentient beings naturally also requires invention and innovation, for one must benefit and serve them. Is it not good to serve the masses in this way and to consider the welfare of working people and the public? Therefore, Buddhist thought is very sound.

When the Buddha speaks of breaking through the five aggregates, the six entrances, and the twelve sense bases, he means breaking through the deluded mind. Once the deluded mind is broken through, the true mind manifests, and we can realize the Way. Breaking through delusion is precisely revealing the true. Conversely, these five aggregates, six entrances, and twelve sense bases are all our wondrous true suchness-nature of the tathāgata-garbha.

The tathāgata-garbha is true, and suchness and Buddha-nature are true; therefore, the five aggregates, six entrances, and twelve sense bases are also true, for they are our wondrous functioning. Once there is the mind king, these companions and attendants will not run wild; they can function wondrously. Is that not good? Whether you recognize this or not is the crucial point.

Recognizing the true mind is accomplished in a single turn. There is no need to get rid of deluded thoughts either; deluded thoughts themselves are suchness, like waves arising from water. Waves themselves are water. Once the waves are removed, water too would be gone. Therefore, the five aggregates, six entrances, and twelve sense bases need not be removed. We need only know that they are deluded mind and refrain from clinging to them.

Once we relinquish our deluded attachments, when one is true, all is true. But if you cling to them, when one is false, all is false: everything becomes false. If you give rise to deluded thoughts and cling to them, you enter the cycle of birth and death in the six realms again and must suffer again. How unjust! Therefore, we must understand this principle.

This is the merit of the Śūraṅgama Sūtra. It says that the five aggregates, six entrances, twelve sense bases, and eighteen realms—every dharma—is entirely true, all being our wondrous true suchness-nature. There is no need to remove them. When one is true, all is true. Once this is acknowledged, one can genuinely benefit from every dharma.

In our ordinary practice, we must understand the word “awakening.” We must know that the Way belongs to awakening, not to cultivation. What is cultivation? It is more accurate to call it restoration: returning to our Original Face. If it did not originally exist and one produced it from nothing through cultivation, that would be wrong. That would be a “nature arising from causes and conditions,” a dharma produced by causes and conditions.

Therefore, the Way is wondrous awakening. After awakening, one must be able to uphold it, and then safeguard it through practice at every moment. After safeguarding it for a period, let it function freely; release your hold and empty the mind, and you will gain genuine benefit.

Investigating Chan, Buddha-recitation, and Esoteric practice are all expedient approaches established by the patriarchs. They are methods for applying oneself in practice, means enabling sentient beings to enter the gate of prajñā. The various methods differ; there is not only one fixed method.

It is not necessary to investigate Chan until something emerges; it is not necessary to recite a certain number of Buddha-names; nor is it necessary to practice some secret and mysterious thing. All are for the sake of awakening here and now, relinquishing attachment, and gaining genuine benefit. It is not necessary to go somewhere else. Therefore, I say that one who is truly reborn in the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss is reborn there immediately.

This Sahā world here is the bliss of the West. People can easily misunderstand this statement, as though it meant that there is no Western Land of Ultimate Bliss. That is not what it means; rather, we have expanded the scope of the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss.

The Pure Land is originally our own mind. Our mind encompasses the vast emptiness, and the worlds of the ten directions are all within it. Why then can the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss not be expanded? One is immediately reborn there because one does not undergo any feeling; one has no suffering and no afflictions. At all times one is empty, and at every moment one abides in permanence, bliss, self, and purity. If one is not a Buddha, what is one? Is that not

rebirth in the West? What else could it be? Therefore, do not become deluded and attached, insisting that one must be in the West, must be in the Land of Ultimate Bliss, and must recite a certain number of Buddha-names to be reborn in the West; or thinking that one cannot be reborn there by cultivating other pure practices. This is mistaken.

The Western Land of Ultimate Bliss is a Pure Land. When the mind is pure, the Buddha-land is pure. Whatever dharma gate you practice, if you cultivate until your mind is pure and unstained, and you vow to be reborn in the Western Pure Land, you will certainly be reborn there. Not only can you be reborn in the Western Pure Land; you can also be reborn in the Pure Lands of the other nine directions. So long as you vow for rebirth, the Buddha will not refuse you: “Ah, you do not practice Buddha-recitation; you have not recited my name. You may not come, you may not come.” It is not like that.

What was discussed above concerns the twelve sense bases. Next, we will discuss the eighteen realms.

What are the eighteen realms? They are the six sense faculties and six sense objects discussed earlier, plus the six consciousnesses: three sets of six make eighteen—the eighteen realms. The twelve sense bases use the faculties to break through the objects; the eighteen realms break through “realm,” meaning a boundary. What is this realm? Originally, it means a boundary, a dividing line. When one thing adjoins another, a line marks their division.

When Buddhist scriptures speak of realms, many people say that realm can be understood as a cause: when a cause encounters conditions, a result arises. Others say that realm denotes a type or category, such as an ethnic group or a class.

People's identities, social positions, and occupations can be classified. For example, if someone asks, “What field are you in?” you may answer, “I am in journalism,” or “I am in business,” “industry,” and so forth.

In this passage, realm has the usual meaning of boundary. When the six sense faculties are combined with the six sense objects, six consciousnesses arise; faculties, objects, and consciousnesses together make eighteen realms. A realm is like a field with many ridges within it; each ridge is a boundary.

When our six sense faculties encounter the six sense objects, the latter serve as boundaries and give rise to the six consciousnesses. For example, the consciousness arising when the eye faculty encounters visual forms is called eye consciousness; the consciousness arising when the ear faculty encounters sounds is called ear consciousness.

In fact, the consciousness that arises from the sense faculties and their objects is originally the eighth consciousness. It is originally a single lucid awareness—originally one, not six. It is like a great expanse of land: if there were no field ridges, it would be one continuous stretch of ground, without boundaries.

Now, because it is tightly enclosed by the five preceding faculties—the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body—consciousness is mutually partitioned and therefore cannot function interchangeably. When the first five faculties discriminate among the five external objects, differentiated appearances and a differentiating mind arise, separating them from one another and creating boundaries.

We cling to the notion that the eye faculty can only see forms and the nose faculty can only smell odors, and that the functions of the six faculties each have their own classifications and limits. As soon as faculties and objects come into contact, the six kinds of conjunction divide them into six consciousnesses. The purpose of speaking here of the eighteen realms is to break through these boundaries. As the Heart Sūtra says, “No eye realm, up to and including no realm of consciousness.” As long as there is a boundary, it causes harm: it completely cuts off our single lucid awareness. Once this boundary is broken and the limits are gone, the faculties can function interchangeably.

In ancient times, the eighteen realms were explained by dividing them into mental dharmas and material dharmas; thus it was said that, in these eighteen realms, “mind and matter are both differentiated.”

When we previously discussed the five aggregates, we said that they “differentiate mind and combine matter.” This is because form among the five aggregates is regarded as a material dharma, while feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness are mental dharmas. The mental dharmas are differentiated into four, while the material dharma is combined into one; hence the phrase “differentiate mind and combine matter.”

When discussing the six entrances, we also said that they “differentiate matter and combine mind.” Among the six faculties, the five faculties of eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body are the supports of consciousness. These five faculties are combined with the sixth, the mind faculty; hence the phrase “differentiate matter and combine mind.”

Now, in discussing the eighteen realms, we say that “mind and matter are both differentiated.” How are mind and matter both differentiated? The six consciousnesses of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind, together with the mind faculty, make seven consciousnesses, which are treated as mental dharmas. The remaining five faculties—the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body—together with the six objects of form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharmas, make eleven bases, which are treated as material dharmas.

The material dharmas constituted by these eleven bases and the mental dharmas constituted by the seven consciousnesses together form the eighteen realms; this is called “mind and matter are both differentiated.” In fact, this way of speaking is not necessarily accurate.

For example, in speaking of differentiation and combination within the dharmas of the five aggregates, the preceding form is a material dharma—that is, all objective states—while the later consciousness is a mental dharma, the function of discernment. Yet feeling, perception, and formations are both material dharmas and mental dharmas. Without mind, how could one receive? Without matter, what could one receive? Thus feeling, perception, and formations pertain to both mental and material dharmas.

Because they pertain to both aspects, it is said: “Mind is not mind by itself; because of matter, there is mind. Matter is not matter by itself; because of mind, there is matter. Matter is mind; mind is matter.” Taken together in this way, we may say that the five aggregates do not merely differentiate mind; rather, they address both mind and matter.

When discussing the six entrances, since the six faculties each receive the six external objects, this receiving, in terms of its function, is mind. Thus the six faculties are also six kinds of mind. Therefore, it cannot simply be said that the first five faculties are differentiated while the mind faculty is combined. Among the eighteen realms, the six consciousness-minds are very important. Once these six consciousness-minds are broken through, all these boundaries are broken through as well.

Next, we shall begin to break through these eighteen realms one by one.