Lectures on the Fuzi Heji Sutra (62)

62. Without the Mind of Attachment and Delight, One Can Transcend All Phenomena

Original Text: It should be known that the eye faculty is ultimately empty. Therefore, its intrinsic nature is also empty. Its past and future cannot be apprehended. What is to be created in the future also cannot be apprehended. Why? Because its intrinsic nature is detached. If there is no intrinsic nature, then there is no male form, nor is there a female form. What is there to love or delight in? If attachment and delight arise, that is the state of demons. If there is no attachment or delight, that is the state of Buddha. Why? Because without attachment and delight, one can transcend all phenomena.

Explanation: We should know that since the eye faculty is ultimately empty, its intrinsic nature is also empty. The past and future of the eye faculty cannot be apprehended. Why is this so? Because the intrinsic nature of the eye faculty is detached from all phenomena. If the eye faculty has no intrinsic nature, then it has no male form, nor does it have a female form. Thus, there is nothing about male or female forms to love or delight in. If one gives rise to a mind of attachment and delight toward male and female forms, that is a state of demons. If one has no attachment or delight toward male and female forms, that is the state of Buddha. Why is this so? Because without the mind of attachment and delight, one can transcend all phenomena, and the mind attains purity.