Does the taste object of the external object-aspect exist?

Question: The inner sense-objects are transformed from the outer sense-objects, so do the outer sense-objects ultimately exist or not? For example, a dish is very salty; although the taste differs in each person's inner sense-object, does the dish ultimately have taste or not?

Answer: The outer sense-object of the taste object is the same, but because each person's karmic power differs, the taste they perceive differs. When karmic power differs, the four great element particles of the taste object transmitted through the tongue faculty undergo variation, and the inner sense-object changes accordingly; therefore, the feeling after the conscious mind discriminates it is different. For instance, a person with an eye disease can see a circular shadow in a lamp's light, while others cannot see it—this is due to the karmic obstruction of his eye disease. Sentient beings' blessings and karmic obstructions differ, so the taste objects they perceive also differ. For example, the Buddha possesses unsurpassed merit, so any food in the Buddha's mouth is the most supreme delicacy, but in the mouths of ordinary sentient beings, this is not so.

The taste object is material form, composed of seeds of the four great elements, and is divided into two kinds: the outer sense-object and the inner sense-object. Thus there exists the outer sense-object of tastes such as salty, bland, sweet, and pungent, which the tongue consciousness and mind consciousness cannot contact or discern. Only the tathāgatagarbha can contact the outer sense-object of taste, but He has no mouth, and thus cannot tell us about it.

When we savor taste objects, our own Buddha-nature is operating; therefore, when tasting food, one can see the wondrous function of the Buddha-nature, and at that time one no longer regards the taste object as real, and will realize the contemplation of illusoriness. Some people neither cultivate merit nor cultivate meditative concentration, but apply themselves exclusively to the power of wisdom; such people find it difficult to realize the Buddha-dharma in actual practice, and often suffer great losses without knowing it themselves. For those who do not cultivate blessings and meditative power, if they cultivate wisdom exclusively, they will pay a greater price, expending more time and energy. It would be better to cultivate blessings thickly and firmly establish meditative concentration, and then, with just a little contemplation of the Buddha-dharma, one can realize it. Those who do not want to suffer losses end up suffering losses instead—this is the consequence of lacking wise discernment.