Only through personal observation and verification of the truth can one attain enlightenment

Knowing the nature of the tathāgatagarbha does not equal enlightenment; this is stated in the Buddhist sutras—such knowledge is not one's own awakening, and the content of one's own awakening will certainly not be found in the sutras. Understanding the pure appearance of the tathāgatagarbha is not enlightenment. To observe the pure appearance of the tathāgatagarbha, one must first locate where the tathāgatagarbha is, how it operates, and how it works in coordination with the five aggregates (pañcaskandha); only then can one observe the purity of the tathāgatagarbha in the course of its functioning. Content understood from sutra passages or from the Dharma teachings explained by others is merely intellectual understanding—anyone who studies the Dharma can understand it, and there is nothing remarkable about that. What is most precious is the truth one has personally observed and verified; its verbal expression can be unique and highly specific, not vague generalities.