Why Does the Tathāgatagarbha Withdraw from the Physical Body Bit by Bit at the Moment of Death?

The physical body is formed from the seeds of the four great elements—the seeds of the four great elements within the tathāgatagarbha. At death, the four great elements in the physical body must disperse, so that the body can cease and no longer continue to function. At the time of dying, the four great elements decompose and disperse, and the seeds return to the tathāgatagarbha. This process is not completed all at once; the duration required varies, depending on wholesome and unwholesome karma. The decomposition of the four great elements means that the seeds of the four great elements gradually withdraw from the physical body bit by bit, the body's functions gradually decline, and it gradually stiffens. For convenience, this process is described as the tathāgatagarbha withdrawing from the physical body, no longer grasping and sustaining it, so that the body no longer possesses vitality.

The tathāgatagarbha is formless and without characteristics; no one can see Him entering the physical body or withdrawing from it. The seeds of the four great elements are also formless and without characteristics; no one can see the seeds of the four great elements forming the physical body or their decomposition as they withdraw from it. One can only observe the changes in the physical body, and from those changes infer the changes and functions of the seeds and the function of the tathāgatagarbha. Where the tathāgatagarbha functions within the physical body, there are lifespan, warmth, and consciousness; without the tathāgatagarbha, there is no lifespan, warmth, or consciousness. At the time of dying, lifespan fades away bit by bit, the body's temperature fades away bit by bit, growing colder and colder, and thus stiffer and stiffer; consciousness gradually weakens and fades, the mind grows increasingly muddled, until there is no awareness or perception, and one enters the antarā-bhava. The place where the tathāgatagarbha finally leaves the physical body is the place where the four great elements finally decompose, the place where lifespan finally comes to rest, and the place where body temperature finally disappears; this determines the karmic destiny into which one will be reborn in the next life. The higher up the body this final point is, the more wholesome the karmic destiny of the next life will be; conversely, the lower it is, the more unwholesome the karmic destiny will be.

The dharma that sentient beings cannot see is the true; the dharma they do see is false. Seeing only the false and not the true is called ignorance (avidyā). If one could see the true at all times and in all places, then there would be nothing to concern oneself with in the world—everything is empty, not a single dharma can bind the mind, and even the world does not exist. The mind fully returns to self-nature, endowed with wisdom; this is called wisdom (jñāna). Wisdom is not sentiment; where there is sentiment, there is no wisdom.