Dharma Abides in Dharma’s Position; Worldly Phenomena Are Ever-Present

The Four Noble Truths themselves are phenomena of arising and cessation, yet the principle they embody is eternally existent. Whether a Buddha appears in the world or not, this principle remains. As long as the three realms of existence persist, the principle of the Four Noble Truths exists, and the principle of the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination exists. This eternal existence differs significantly from the eternal existence of the ālaya-vijñāna and should not be conflated. As the Lotus Sūtra states: "The dharmas abide in their own dharma-position; the characteristics of the world are ever-present." This conveys the same meaning. As long as the ālaya-vijñāna exists, the characteristics of the world exist. With the arising of the ālaya-vijñāna, the characteristics of the world necessarily arise; the Four Noble Truths and the law of the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination necessarily exist.

"Eternal" (常) can refer to the worldly eternal or the supramundane eternal. "True" (真) can refer to the worldly true or the supramundane true. To discern precisely which "eternal" or which "true" is meant, one must rely on the context and semantics, and more importantly, judge based on the underlying principles (义), not merely the words (语). Therefore, the power of discerning wisdom is crucial.