Diamond Sutra Explained: How to Dwell Nowhere and Let the Mind Arise解释

Chapter Ten: The Adornment of Pure Lands Original Text: Therefore, Subhuti, all Bodhisattva Mahasattvas should thus give rise to a pure mind. They should not give rise to a mind based on form, nor should they give rise to a mind based on sound, smell, taste, touch, or mental objects. They should give rise to a mind that abides nowhere.

Explanation: Therefore, Subhuti, all Bodhisattva Mahasattvas should give rise to a pure mind in this manner. They should not abide in form and give rise to a mind, nor should they abide in sound, smell, taste, touch, or mental objects and give rise to a mind. They should give rise to a mind that abides nowhere.

This passage summarizes the preceding ten chapters, instructing all Bodhisattva Mahasattvas on how to give rise to a pure mind. They should give rise to a pure mind as previously described. What was said before? It was said that one should practice the paramitas by emptying all dharma marks, emptying the marks of giving and cultivating blessings, emptying the marks of self, person, sentient being, and life span, emptying the bodily marks of the Tathagata, emptying the marks of dharmas and non-dharmas, emptying the marks of the Buddha Dharma, emptying the marks of the Tathagata’s teaching, emptying the marks of generating the bodhi mind, emptying the marks of fruition stages, emptying the marks of realizing bodhi, emptying the marks of attaining the Dharma, emptying the marks of adorning Buddha lands, and so on.

After emptying these marks, the mind gains nothing and seeks nothing. It does not abide in the marks of form and give rise to various mental activities, does not abide in the marks of sound and give rise to various mental activities, does not abide in the marks of smell and give rise to various mental activities, does not abide in the marks of taste and give rise to various mental activities, does not abide in the marks of touch and give rise to various mental activities, and does not abide in the marks of mental objects and give rise to various mental activities. In short, one should not abide in the marks of the six dust realms and give rise to various mental activities. Not abiding in the six dust marks means abiding nowhere. Abiding in the six dust marks means abiding somewhere. Abiding somewhere means non-abiding, an improper abiding. The mind is impure and has not given rise to great wisdom. Because the six dust marks are actually non-marks, called the six dusts but ultimately empty. How can one abide in emptiness? Since it cannot be abided in, it is non-abiding. Even abiding is empty. Therefore, one should give rise to the bodhi mind and practice the bodhisattva path without abiding in form, sound, smell, taste, touch, or mental objects. One should give rise to the bodhi mind and practice the bodhisattva path abiding nowhere.

Specifically, how does one practice the path without abiding in form, sound, smell, taste, touch, or mental objects? One must clearly understand what constitutes form, what constitutes sound, smell, taste, touch, and mental objects, what dharmas belong to the six dust realms, which dharmas one is particularly greedy for and attached to, what mental attitudes one holds when giving and cultivating blessings, what one seeks, what choices one makes based on, and what one’s aims and aspirations are when generating the mind and practicing the Dharma—whether one is greedy for certain worldly dharmas. One must deeply observe one’s own mind, excavate one’s own thoughts, only then can one grasp one’s own mind, purify mental thoughts, become free from desire and seeking, so that one’s actions can be pure, gradually corresponding with emptiness, gradually corresponding with stillness, thereby swiftly attaining the nirvana of the Great and Small Vehicles.

The World-Honored One said, therefore, all Bodhisattva Mahasattvas should give rise to a pure mind. They should not give rise to a mind abiding in form, sound, smell, taste, touch, or mental objects. They should give rise to a mind abiding nowhere, abiding in no dharma whatsoever. Bodhisattvas live in the world, practice the bodhisattva path in the world, interact with sentient beings. The seven false consciousnesses (vijnanas) continuously arise, producing various actions and karmic formations, constantly discriminating the six dust realms. The nature of these consciousnesses is precisely to discriminate and cognize the six dusts. To cognize the six dusts, discrimination must necessarily arise based on the six dusts; one must face the six dusts, contact the six dusts, thus abiding in the six dusts. Therefore, as long as there is the discriminating activity of the seven false consciousnesses, one is abiding in the six dusts; it is not a mind abiding nowhere. However, through cultivation, when a Bodhisattva contacts the six dust realms, after discrimination, they do not generate feelings, thus they do not abide in the six dusts. The mind becomes unattached, without thought, without rumination. The mind gradually becomes empty and pure, markless, wishless, non-doing.

Bodhisattvas also possess the Tathagatagarbha mind. That is the truly non-abiding mind, a mind that is inherently non-abiding without cultivation, constantly giving rise to mind and functioning, yet knowing no dharma whatsoever. It seems dull and foolish, but in reality, its mind is vast, immeasurably wise. The Tathagatagarbha manifests continuously, moment to moment, within the Bodhisattva’s bodily, verbal, and mental actions, constantly cooperating with the functioning of the seven consciousnesses, yet within it not a single dharma exists. It does not discriminate the six dusts, does not know the six dusts, does not abide in the six dusts. Therefore, the Tathagatagarbha is a non-abiding mind. When the eye faculty contacts form, the eye consciousness discriminates form, abiding in form to discriminate, the Tathagatagarbha does not see the appearance of form, does not discriminate the beauty or ugliness of form, does not abide in form. When the ear hears sound, the nose smells fragrance, the tongue tastes flavor, the body feels touch, the mind cognizes mental objects, the Tathagatagarbha does not hear, does not smell, does not taste, does not feel touch, does not cognize, does not discriminate, completely does not abide in these dharmas. Therefore, the Tathagatagarbha mind is a non-abiding mind. For the seven false consciousnesses to become pure, they should learn from the Tathagatagarbha, reduce abiding and grasping, reduce cognition, thereby reducing the arising of thoughts.

When the Sixth Patriarch attained enlightenment, he was listening to the Fifth Patriarch explain the Diamond Sutra. When it reached the line “should give rise to a mind abiding nowhere,” he became enlightened. He realized that originally non-abiding Tathagatagarbha mind, understood the meritorious functions of the Tathagatagarbha, and uttered the five “How wondrous is the self-nature”: How wondrous is the self-nature, originally pure! How wondrous is the self-nature, originally neither arising nor ceasing! How wondrous is the self-nature, originally complete and sufficient! How wondrous is the self-nature, originally unmoving! How wondrous is the self-nature, able to give rise to all dharmas!

Chapter Ten: The Adornment of Pure Lands Original Text: Subhuti, suppose there is a person whose body is like Mount Sumeru, the king of mountains. What do you think? Is such a body large? Subhuti said: Very large, World-Honored One. Why? Because the Buddha has said that it is not a real body, therefore it is called a large body.

Explanation: Subhuti, suppose there is a person whose body is as huge as Mount Sumeru, the king of mountains. What do you think, is such a body large? Subhuti said: Very large, World-Honored One. Why? The Buddha says it is not a true body, therefore it is called a “large body.”

Something that is “large” implies measure, quantity. As long as there is quantity, it is not immeasurable; it is small. A body with quantity, no matter how huge, is subject to birth and death. Life after life, it is born and perishes, perishes and is born again. It is not real, not permanently enduring. The non-arising, non-ceasing Tathagatagarbha has no quantity whatsoever. It has no length of time, no size of form, no marks whatsoever, yet it contains all marks. The worlds of the ten directions are all within it. Therefore, it is immeasurably large, truly large. Nothing can compare to it.