The state of thoughtlessness samadhi refers to dwelling in a state of concentration where there is no thought or perception, without doing anything, completely free of thought, where consciousness neither observes nor engages in thinking—much like the state of "dwelling inwardly in tranquility" described by the World-Honored One in the Shurangama Sutra. These are all idle states of consciousness. Some people mistakenly believe this state to be the thoughtless tathata, thinking they have attained tathata samadhi.
In truth, tathata is inherently devoid of even the slightest thought; whether one cultivates samadhi or not, this remains unchanged. Thus, the state of tathata is eternally immutable. In contrast, the absence of thought in meditative concentration is cultivated—first absent, then present. Since it can appear after being absent, it can also disappear again after being present. As a phenomenon subject to arising, cessation, and change, it is not the unborn and unceasing tathata. Therefore, it does not equate to the state of tathata samadhi.
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