Commentary on the Sutra of the Compendium of Father and Son (61)

The eye faculty is intrinsically empty in nature.

Original text:

O Great King, such an eye faculty cannot be found upon thorough investigation from every perspective. Why is this so? Because the earth element is empty, the earth element is pure. Up to the wind element being empty, the wind element is pure. If all dharmas are intrinsically empty in nature, how can there be purity in those elements? There is neither contention nor purity nor defilement, for both purity and contention are unobtainable. Then what form could possibly be perceived?

Explanation:

The Buddha said: “O Great King, such an eye faculty cannot be found upon exhaustive investigation; it is ultimately unobtainable. Why is it unobtainable? Because the earth element is empty, the earth element is pure. Similarly, the water, fire, and wind elements are empty, so the water, fire, and wind elements are pure—not a single dharma exists. If all dharmas are intrinsically empty, then there can be no talk of purity within any elemental realm, nor can there be defilement, anger, or contention. Both the purity and defilement of dharmas are unobtainable. What form, then, could possibly be obtained? All form-dharmas are unobtainable.”

No matter how we investigate the eye faculty, it is unobtainable. Its nature is that of tathāgatagarbha; its appearance is bestowed by tathāgatagarbha and is illusory—thus, its appearance is unobtainable. The earth, water, fire, and wind elements that constitute the eye faculty are empty in appearance and tathāgatagarbha in nature—they too are empty. Because they are empty, the four great elements are pure; because the four great elements are pure, the eye faculty is pure. Since the eye faculty is intrinsically empty, there is neither purity nor impurity in its appearance. Its appearance is ultimately unobtainable, and its purity or defilement is likewise unobtainable. The intrinsic nature of the eye faculty is tathāgatagarbha—it lacks self-nature and is thus empty.

Seeking the nature of earth within the eye faculty is unobtainable. The nature of earth itself is empty—formless and markless, an imperceptible seed, ultimately unobtainable. The eye faculty formed from it is also unobtainable. Similarly, the natures of the water, fire, and wind elements are all empty—formless and markless. The nature of the four great elements is unobtainable and empty; thus, the eye faculty formed from them is also empty and unobtainable. Therefore, seeking the intrinsic nature of the eye faculty yields nothing, for the eye faculty has no self-nature.

The Buddha said all dharmas are intrinsically empty. Thus, the eye faculty, as a dharma, is intrinsically empty—empty from beginning to end, possessing nothing. After the eye faculty arises, it will cease and return to nothingness. It has neither origin nor destination; it is empty in itself. The earth, water, fire, and wind elements are all empty by nature. The eye faculty formed from them is thus intrinsically empty. There is no such thing as purity or impurity in the eye faculty realm—no good or bad—because it is empty in itself. One cannot speak of its purity or impurity, nor of contention or non-contention.