The unsurpassed wondrous Dharma can only be apprehended by the mind, not conveyed in words

Intuitive understanding is the mind faculty's (manas) realization, while verbal transmission is an explanation in the language of the mind consciousness. The unsurpassed wondrous Dharma is the highest and most wondrous tathāgatagarbha Dharma, which each person must realize and verify firsthand; the guidance and hints given by others through language can never substitute for one's own realization. Realization requires many causal conditions—precepts, meditation (samādhi), and wisdom, as well as merit, must all be complete, and a deep questioning doubt must already have arisen, enabling abiding mindfulness of this very object in one's investigation. Only when the practice has reached the mind faculty can one realize the wondrous Dharma of the tathāgatagarbha. Verbal transmission can only first land in the mind consciousness; if the practice has not reached the mind faculty, it cannot touch the mind faculty. Therefore verbal transmission cannot substitute for the mind faculty's deliberation (manana) and investigation, and ultimately one cannot achieve firsthand realization.

When the practice of meditative concentration and investigation is not yet deep enough, one should focus on the practice and not listen to others' views, nor consult the Buddhist sutras or others' theoretical knowledge, because these would obstruct firsthand realization. Such matters of cultivation are entirely one's own affair—just as in eating, whoever eats is the one who becomes full; in the Buddhadharma, whoever investigates is the one who realizes it firsthand. Without investigation there is no realization; a Dharma merely heard is like something stolen—it does not belong to oneself. The state of meditative absorption (samādhi) can only be initiated by oneself, and wisdom arises from within one's own mind. Studying the Tripitaka and the twelve divisions of the canon forever falls short of one's own awakening. A practitioner should be like a great man, courageous in practice, doing everything with his own hands, and rejecting all opportunistic shortcuts.

That the unsurpassed wondrous Dharma cannot be transmitted in words has another layer of meaning: the tathāgatagarbha, this subtle and profound Dharma, cannot be expressed in language. However it is spoken of, what is spoken is not He; there is nothing spoken and nothing shown, and whatever is pointed out is also not He. No matter what, He simply refuses to come forward, refuses to appear, refuses to speak, refuses to act—low-key and selfless, and even without any "key." What can be done with such a Dharma? Only realization, firsthand realization, and personal awakening can reveal His true face. What is heard or read is not it; no one can transmit this Dharma through transmission. So do you still want to listen to others' instructions?