Twenty Types of Emptiness in the Mahayana

In Volume 51 of the Mahāprajñāpāramitā Sūtra, the Buddha states that there are twenty kinds of emptiness in the Mahāyāna that Bodhisattvas should cultivate and study. They are: inner emptiness, outer emptiness, inner and outer emptiness, emptiness of emptiness, great emptiness, ultimate truth emptiness, emptiness of the conditioned, emptiness of the unconditioned, emptiness of the ultimate, emptiness of the beginningless and endless, emptiness of dispersion, emptiness of non-transformation, emptiness of intrinsic nature, emptiness of self-characteristics, emptiness of common characteristics, emptiness of all dharmas, emptiness of the unattainable, emptiness of the absence of nature, emptiness of self-nature, and emptiness of the absence of self-nature. The emptiness of conventional dharmas refers to non-existence, absence, non-being, and unattainability. The emptiness of the self-nature Tathāgatagarbha refers to the kind of emptiness devoid of all characteristics of conventional dharmas; it differs from conventional dharmas. Its essence exists as truly real, but it is not cognized in the same way conventional dharmas are cognized. To cognize the emptiness of the Tathāgatagarbha using the method for cognizing conventional dharmas is incorrect and often leads to misunderstanding. The connotations of the twenty kinds of emptiness are briefly explained as follows:

Inner emptiness refers to the emptiness of the inner dharmas: eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind. Outer emptiness refers to the emptiness of the outer dharmas: form, sound, smell, taste, tangible objects, and mental objects. Inner and outer emptiness refers to the emptiness of the inner six bases and the outer six bases. Emptiness of emptiness means that all dharmas are entirely empty, and this emptiness itself is also empty. Great emptiness refers to the emptiness of the ten directions: east, south, west, north, the four intermediate points, above, and below.

Ultimate truth emptiness refers to the emptiness of Nirvāṇa. Why is Nirvāṇa empty? Because Nirvāṇa is merely a state of quiescence revealed by the essence of the Tathāgatagarbha. A state is certainly not a true dharma; moreover, it is manifested and supported by the Tathāgatagarbha. Do not confuse Nirvāṇa with the essence of the Tathāgatagarbha; the two are different—one is real, the other is provisional.

Emptiness of the conditioned refers to the emptiness of the Three Realms: the desire realm, form realm, and formless realm. The Three Realms are created and conditioned; therefore, they are conditioned. Thus, dharmas that arise from non-existence to existence are naturally empty. Emptiness of the unconditioned refers to the emptiness of phenomena without birth, abiding, change, or cessation. That is to say, phenomena of birth, abiding, change, and cessation are empty, and phenomena without birth, abiding, change, or cessation are manifested and also empty. Existence and non-existence are merely nominal designations, mere verbal expressions. Emptiness of the ultimate means that all dharmas are ultimately unattainable; this unattainability is empty. Attainability and unattainability are both without substance, mere conceptual proliferation; therefore, it is empty.

Emptiness of the beginningless and endless means that for all dharmas, there is no beginning, middle, or end to be attained, and no coming or going to be attained. The beginning, middle, and end stages of events—their occurrence, development, and change—are unattainable; this unattainability is empty. That all dharmas have an attainable beginning, middle, and end is empty; unattainability is also empty. That all dharmas have coming and going, development, and change is empty. For example, the past, present, and future lives of sentient beings are empty; the absence of coming and going is also empty. All phenomena, characteristics, and states are empty.

Emptiness of dispersion means that the phenomena of disintegration, dispersion, destruction, and abandonment of all dharmas are empty; both aggregation and dispersion are empty. Emptiness of non-transformation means that non-change, non-transformation, non-dispersion, non-destruction, and non-abandonment—these phenomena are empty. Transformation and non-transformation are both empty, mere conceptual proliferation.

Emptiness of intrinsic nature means that the intrinsic nature of all dharmas is empty. Whether it is the nature of the conditioned or the unconditioned, it is not created by Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, Śrāvakas, or Pratyekabuddhas, nor is it created by ordinary beings. Since no one creates it, it is empty.

Emptiness of self-characteristics means that the self-characteristics of all dharmas are empty. For example, the self-characteristic of the form aggregate is resistance, which is empty; the self-characteristic of the feeling aggregate is reception, which is empty; the self-characteristic of the perception aggregate is conceptualization, which is empty; the self-characteristic of the formation aggregate is volitional activity, which is empty; the self-characteristic of the consciousness aggregate is discrimination, which is empty. Similarly, the self-characteristics of conditioned dharmas or the self-characteristics of unconditioned dharmas are all empty.

Emptiness of common characteristics means that the common characteristics of all dharmas are empty. For example, the common characteristic of defiled dharmas is suffering, which is empty; the common characteristic of conditioned dharmas is impermanence, which is empty; the common characteristic of all dharmas is emptiness and selflessness, which is empty. Thus, the emptiness of the five aggregates and selflessness realized by Arhats is empty; the twelve links of dependent origination realized by Pratyekabuddhas is also empty. All dharmas also have immeasurably many common characteristics, all of which are empty. All dharmas, whether their self-characteristics or common characteristics, are empty.

Emptiness of all dharmas means that the five aggregates, twelve sense bases, and eighteen elements—whether with form or without form, visible or invisible, resistant or non-resistant, defiled or undefiled, conditioned or unconditioned—are all empty.

Emptiness of the unattainable means that all dharmas are unattainable, and even this unattainability is empty and unattainable. All dharmas, including past, present, and future dharmas, are unattainable. If one bases oneself on the past, there is no present or future to be attained; if one bases oneself on the future, there is no present or past to be attained; if one bases oneself on the present, there is no past or future to be attained. These unattainabilities are also empty.

Emptiness of the absence of nature means that all dharmas have no nature or attributes whatsoever, and this very absence of nature is also empty. For example, water has no water-nature or non-water-nature, no wetness, no softness, no hardness, no fluidity, etc.—it has no nature at all, and this absence of nature is also empty. For example, the five aggregates have no five-aggregate-nature, no non-five-aggregate-nature, no nature whatsoever, and this absence of nature is also empty.

Emptiness of self-nature means that the self-nature of all dharmas is empty; the capacity for self-mastery is empty; the capacity to combine and produce a self is empty. Emptiness of the absence of self-nature means that the absence of autonomy and the absence of sovereignty in dharmas are empty; the characteristic of dharmas being subject to sovereignty is also empty. That is, the capacity of dharmas to combine is empty, and that which is combined is also empty.

The nature, absence of nature, self-nature, and other-nature of all dharmas are all empty. Emptiness of existence means that the nature of the five aggregates having existence is empty. Emptiness of the absence of nature means that the unconditioned nature of dharmas is empty. Emptiness of self-nature means that all dharmas lack self-nature; this emptiness is not accomplished by wisdom, not accomplished by view, nor accomplished by any other dharma. Emptiness of other-nature means that whether the Buddha appears in the world or not, all dharmas—the abiding of dharmas, the fixity of dharmas, the nature of dharmas, the realm of dharmas, equality, freedom from production, suchness, non-falsity, immutability, ultimate reality—are empty due to other-nature.

In summary, whatever is spoken has no real meaning; whatever is known has no real meaning; whatever is indicated has no real meaning; whatever is conceived has no real meaning; whatever is thought and created has no real meaning; whatever is conceived as dharma has no real meaning. Everything is empty through and through, until that which cannot be emptied any further—that alone is the non-empty emptiness; apart from this, all is empty.