The Differences and Connections among the Essential Object, the External Six Sense Objects, and the Internal Six Sense Objects

The outer six sense-objects (bāhya-ṣaḍ-viṣaya) that exist in the universe are jointly produced and jointly upheld by the tathāgatagarbhas of all sentient beings, and are sustained by all tathāgatagarbhas using the seeds of the four great elements. The seeds of the four great elements arise moment by moment and cease moment by moment, so the outer six sense-objects also arise and cease moment by moment. The outer six sense-object realms are the most primordial material form (rūpa), a relatively substantial material form composed of real seeds; strictly speaking, it is called the essential realm (the direct object of its own kind), which is discerned by the tathāgatagarbha—the manas cannot discern it, and the six consciousnesses even less so. Even so, the essential realm is also arising, ceasing, and changing moment by moment. In the process of arising, ceasing, and mutating of the seeds of the four great elements, these seeds radiate outward, and they radiate into each tathāgatagarbha as well; that is why we can sense that there is a magnetic field and energy around matter.

The tathāgatagarbha then takes back the seeds of the four great elements that have radiated outward; only after they are taken back are they called the outer six sense-objects. The tathāgatagarbha then transmits the seeds of the four great elements on the outer six sense-objects into the supreme faculty (indriya) through the five faculties. The five faculties refer to the various nervous systems of the body; for example, the eye faculty has the vitreous body and a neural conduction system, which transmits the particles of the four great elements emitted by matter outside the eye faculty all the way to the supreme faculty of the eye at the back of the brain, thereby forming the inner material sense-object (inner rūpa-viṣaya). When the inner material sense-object lands in the supreme faculty of the eye, faculty and object come into contact. In fact, both the outer material sense-object and the inner material sense-object are first discerned by the manas; after the manas discerns them, if the eye faculty wishes to know them in detail, then the eye consciousness and mind consciousness are brought forth; if the manas does not wish to discern them in detail, we would not know of such material sense-objects. The mental sense-objects (dharma-viṣaya) that accompany the five sense-objects are transmitted simultaneously with them: the mental object of form is transmitted through the eye faculty together with the material sense-object, the mental object of sound is transmitted through the ear faculty together with the material sense-object, the mental object of scent is transmitted through the nose faculty together with the scent object, and it is the same with the mental objects of taste and touch.

This means that there are many dharmas within the supreme faculty; when the manas does not wish to discern them, the six consciousnesses cannot discern them, and we would not know the dharmas transmitted in through the five faculties. If the transmission by the nervous system has no obstruction or error, the formed inner six sense-objects will somewhat resemble the outer six sense-objects, or even closely resemble them, because the inner six sense-objects are the shadow of the outer six sense-objects, while the outer six sense-objects are the shadow of the essential realm, just like reflections in a mirror. The inner six sense-objects we discriminate are like reflections in a mirror, while the outer six sense-objects, which we cannot discriminate, correspond to the actual objects outside the mirror; those actual objects are somewhat more real than the inner six sense-objects, more closely matching the original essential realm of the six sense-objects. The essential realm is composed of real four great elements, which the manas cannot contact. Only after the tathāgatagarbha, like a mirror, takes in the four great elements on that essential realm and conjures them into appearance can the manas take it as its object.