How to Realize the Most Fundamental Enlightenment

The most precise approach to seeking the Tathāgatagarbha is akin to seeking the wind—one discerns the traces of the wind through its functions, and similarly, the Tathāgatagarbha is discovered through its traces. Though the Tathāgatagarbha is formless and traceless, it pervades all realms without concealment; its shadow is everywhere, yet its essence remains unseen. The traces of the Tathāgatagarbha are not easily found through the functions of the four great elements. Realization of the Tathāgatagarbha arises from observing the functioning of the great element of consciousness, through which the operational characteristics of the Tathāgatagarbha are revealed—hence the doctrine of Consciousness-Only. Thus, awakening occurs within the six consciousnesses, while the sharpest practitioners awaken at the seventh consciousness, the mental faculty. This is a profound awakening, the ultimate awakening, the most fundamental awakening, the most thorough awakening—it is the awakening of the Consciousness-Only school, not the superficial awakening of the Chan school.